Ripple expands XRP adoption across Japan, Korea: Why the timing matters

As TradFi-to-DeFi integration deepens, it’s clear that the impact won’t remain limited to the U.S. alone.

Looking at Ripple [XRP], the company seems to be actively aligning itself with this shift.

Just a few days ago, Ripple highlighted in a post on X that Rakuten Wallet users in Japan can now convert their Rakuten points into XRP, tapping into a user base of around 44 million.

Notably, a similar development is emerging in Korea. Hana Financial TI, one of the country’s largest financial institutions, has completed a Korean won stablecoin proof of concept on the XRP Ledger.

The project focuses on testing real-world issuance and settlement on the ledger, clearly leveraging DeFi momentum.

At a fundamental level, these developments don’t look like a fluke. 

According to DeFiLlama, Ripple’s native stablecoin RLUSD is up over 10% on the month, reaching a new all-time supply high of $1.6 billion.

March attestations also show multiple real-world use cases of RLUSD across different TradFi participants. Naturally, the XRPL ecosystem continues to expand alongside this trend. 

Notably, the timing of this move couldn’t be better.

On the macro side, the CLARITY Act is gaining momentum, with several government representatives expecting a potential passage in May or, at the latest, by August.

This raises the question: With Ripple pushing XRP globally, is this setting up a post-clarity XRP rally and a push to hold its position as the third-largest crypto asset?

Market structure tightens as Ripple awaits regulatory clarity

Notably, the timing of Ripple’s recent XRP push also looks strong from a technical standpoint.

On the weekly chart, XRP has been trading sideways below the $1.5 resistance zone for over 12 weeks.

This consolidation has also aligned with steady institutional demand, with XRP ETFs closing April with $81 million in net inflows, marking the strongest monthly ETF flow of 2026 so far.

Add CryptoQuant’s latest data, and the setup looks increasingly constructive. As the chart below shows, XRP’s Estimated Leverage Ratio (ELR) stays low and flat, showing leverage isn’t driving the current price action.

This points to a more organic structure, with speculative excess already flushed out.

In short, XRP’s setup leans bullish here, with low leverage and strong spot demand forming what looks like a textbook bear trap. According to AMBCrypto, Ripple’s strategic moves add further strength to XRP’s technical backdrop.

With XRPL’s deeper integration into TradFi across Asian markets, this could directly feed into rising XRP demand while also reinforcing confidence in Ripple’s underlying fundamentals.

On the CLARITY Act side, the setup looks well-positioned to further strengthen existing momentum.

Ripple is therefore in a relatively stronger position to benefit once the act progresses through the U.S. Senate, with its global footprint potentially adding further upside.

At the same time, from a technical standpoint, XRP continues to hold its place among the top crypto assets, with attention gradually shifting toward Ethereum [ETH] as the next target. 

Final Summary

• Ripple’s global expansion, strong RLUSD growth, and low XRP leverage point to a bullish setup forming ahead of regulatory clarity.
• With the CLARITY Act advancing, XRP’s consolidation and steady inflows support potential upside and top-tier crypto positioning.