Tokenized Assets: A New Trend Reshaping Financial Markets

The tokenization of real-world assets (RWA) has become an irreversible trend. From a certain trading platform planning to launch tokenized stocks, to another platform considering putting its own stocks on-chain; from the active participation of traditional financial giants to leading DeFi protocols incorporating RWA into their collateral frameworks—tokenization is fundamentally changing the liquidity and accessibility of assets.

Despite facing challenges such as regulatory adaptation and infrastructure improvement, the RWA sector has shown tremendous potential: the total locked value (TVL) of tokenization of assets such as U.S. Treasury bonds, real estate, and luxury goods has exceeded several billion dollars. According to data platforms, the total on-chain managed value of the RWA market has reached $23.92 billion so far. The Boston Consulting Group predicts that by 2030, the global tokenized asset scale will reach $16 trillion, accounting for 10% of all investable assets.

This article will deeply analyze the most promising RWA sub-sector and introduce the leading projects that are most representative in various fields.

Tokenization of National Bonds: A Revolution in Liquidity and Transparency

Tokenization of government bonds transforms traditional government bonds into digital assets on the blockchain, enhancing investment convenience and market transparency. Several institutions have launched related products:

• Franklin Templeton launches the world's first registered tokenized money market fund FOBXX, investing in U.S. government securities.
• OpenEden issues tokenized US Treasury bonds TBILL through XRP Ledger.
• Matrixdock has launched a short-term US Treasury Token (STBT), distributing interest to holders daily.
• Securitize collaborates with Tradeteq to launch a tokenized U.S. Treasury fund USTY for qualified investors.
• Superstate issues short-term U.S. government securities fund USTB.
• Hashnote has launched the USYC Token representing short-term U.S. Treasury bonds and repurchase agreements.
• A certain asset management company launched the tokenized national debt fund BUIDL, which is used as collateral on multiple platforms.

Stablecoins: The Cornerstone of the Cryptocurrency Market

Stablecoins serve as the "anchor" asset in the crypto market, with relatively stable value, playing a crucial role in the cryptocurrency ecosystem. Recent regulatory developments may impact the operational models of stablecoin issuers:

A certain company, as the issuer of USDC, is promoting the GENIUS Act, which requires stablecoin issuers to hold equivalent short-term U.S. Treasury securities as reserve assets and to make regular disclosures. Other stablecoin issuers such as Tether, Paxos, Gemini, TrueUSD, Ethena, Labs, StraitsX, Frax Finance, USUAL, and Sky may also need to adjust their reserve mechanisms to comply with the new regulatory requirements.

Tokenization of Stocks: The Bridge Between Traditional Stock Markets and Cryptocurrency Markets

Tokenization of stocks allows investors to invest in stocks through blockchain, lowering the investment threshold and increasing transparency and liquidity:

• BACKED Finance tokenizes traditional stocks and ETFs into "xStocks", operating on the Solana blockchain to provide round-the-clock trading services for US stocks.
• Dinari offers tokenized stocks and ETFs called dShares, ensuring a 1:1 correspondence with actual stocks, supporting multiple blockchain exchanges.
• Exodus Movement launched the EXOD Token representing its Class A common stock, managed on the Algorand blockchain and listed on the U.S. stock exchange.

Private Lending: Providing Low-Cost Financing for SMEs

Private lending provides loans to businesses through non-traditional financial institutions and tokenizes these loans via blockchain, enhancing capital liquidity and transparency:

• Centrifuge tokenizes assets such as accounts receivable to provide financing channels for small and medium-sized enterprises.
• Maple focuses on providing a decentralized lending platform for unsecured loans.
• Clearpool allows institutions to initiate and manage a decentralized lending protocol.
• CREDIX connects borrowers and investors, focusing on the tokenization of private credit.
• TrueFi is a decentralized platform providing unsecured loans for global investors.
• Goldfinch provides unsecured loans to businesses through community governance, with a particular focus on enterprises in developing countries.

Real Estate Tokenization: Lowering Investment Barriers and Increasing Liquidity

Real estate tokenization allows small investors to participate in the traditionally high-threshold real estate market and enjoy greater liquidity:

• Propy digitizes real estate transactions through blockchain, achieving the world's first blockchain real estate transaction.
• RealT divides real estate assets into small tokens, allowing global investors to participate and enjoy monthly rental income.
• Parcl combines blockchain with real estate market data to provide investors with diverse global real estate investment opportunities.

Tokenization of Art and Collectibles: Opening New Investment Channels

The tokenization of artworks and luxury goods provides collectors with new investment opportunities:

• Courtyard.io tokenizes artworks through blockchain, enabling them to be traded like other crypto assets.
• Tiamonds tokenizes valuable items such as diamonds, providing a high liquidity and transparent investment platform.
• WATCHES.io, COLLECTOR, and DVIN focus on the tokenization of luxury watches, artworks, and high-end collectibles respectively.

Decentralized Exchange: A New Era of Crypto Asset Trading

Decentralized exchanges (DEX) provide a more transparent and secure trading experience for the crypto market:

• DigiFT is a decentralized exchange focused on trading financial derivatives and structured products.
• Swarm is a decentralized platform supporting tokenization of asset trading, providing transparent transaction records.
• Mauve and Stobox focus on building decentralized exchanges, providing digital asset management and trading services.

With the advancement of technology and the continuous improvement of the regulatory environment, the tokenization asset market is expected to welcome broader development space, providing global investors with more diversified and efficient investment options.