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What is asset tokenisation and why is it happening now?
Asset tokenisation is the creation of digital representations of real-world assets (RWAs) on a blockchain. These can include equities, bonds, real estate, private credit and fund interests. Once tokenised, assets can be traded around the clock, settled in near real time and divided into smaller fractions, making asset classes previously reserved for institutional investors, such as private equity, real estate and structured credit, accessible at significantly lower minimum investment thresholds. The appeal for investors is clear: tokenisation promises to unlock liquidity in traditionally illiquid markets, reduce settlement risk and cut the cost of intermediaries through smart contract automation. Increasingly, it is also reshaping access to listed markets, opening the door to borderless trading of equities that were previously siloed behind local custody infrastructure. McKinsey forecasts that total tokenised market capitalisation could reach $2tn by 2030 (excluding cryptocurrencies), or $4tn in a bullish scenario.
Crucially, institutional adoption is now tangible. In March 2026, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Securitize announced a collaboration to develop a digital trading platform for issuer-sponsored tokenised securities, with Securitize named as the first digital transfer agent eligible to mint blockchain-native securities for corporate and exchange traded fund (ETF) issuers. Securitize already manages over $4bn in tokenised RWAs and works with top-tier asset managers including BlackRock, Apollo, KKR and Hamilton Lane. This marks a significant step: the world’s largest stock exchange is now building the infrastructure for tokenised securities alongside regulated fintech partners, rather than experimenting at the periphery. Nasdaq, Coinbase and a growing roster of crypto-native platforms and retail brokerages are positioning for the same shift. For investors, the theme is no longer speculative; it is becoming investable across multiple listed names.
Which asset classes are moving on-chain first?
The quickest adopters have been cash and deposits, bonds, money market funds, exchange-traded products and loans. Tokenised money market funds have gained particular traction, with financial incumbents such as BlackRock, Franklin Templeton and WisdomTree all participating. Consumer lending is another area of rapid on-chain migration, with Figure Technology Solutions originating loans on the Provenance blockchain; its marketplace volume reached $2.47bn in Q325, up 70% year-on-year, and its outstanding loan balance stood at $12.7bn, representing 75% of all tokenised private credit, according to the company. Commodity-backed tokens are also emerging: regulated gold-backed instruments, for example, offer a route to fractional ownership of physical reserves with blockchain-based transparency and auditability.
Who is building the infrastructure?
The infrastructure buildout is happening at two levels. At the top end, major exchanges are moving from observation to active participation. The NYSE’s collaboration with Securitize focuses on building the standards for digital transfer agents and tokenisation agents, with the explicit aim of ensuring tokenised securities meet the same trust, transparency and investor protection standards as traditional markets. Coinbase Global is working to launch tokenised equities and plans to bring other asset classes on-chain, with the ambition of creating what it calls an ‘everything exchange’. In Asia, OSL Group became the distributor of the first tokenised retail money market fund in the region and has partnered with the Solana Foundation to drive compliant RWA tokenisation globally.
At the same time, a tier of smaller, regulation-first platforms is emerging to bridge traditional finance and digital assets. Valereum, listed on Aquis, operates VLRM Markets, a regulated tokenisation platform built on exchange infrastructure acquired in Gibraltar. Its current focus is on monetising that infrastructure through RWA integration: in March 2026, Valereum announced a strategic integration with Quorium Global Photonics under a $200m share subscription agreement, generating $15.9m in annual contracted income, with a first coupon payment of $3.9m. Its first tokenised product, VGOLD, is a regulatory-approved gold offering backed by independently verified reserves. The company’s leadership, drawn from former Gibraltar Stock Exchange senior management, provides institutional credibility as Valereum pursues wider market recognition, including a potential US listing.
What are the investment risks?
Regulatory frameworks remain uneven across jurisdictions, creating uncertainty for cross-border tokenisation. Liquidity on secondary markets for tokenised assets is still shallow in many cases. Technology risk persists: smart contract vulnerabilities, custodial security and blockchain interoperability are all evolving. Tokenisation platforms vary widely in maturity, and investors should assess the operational integrity, regulatory standing and track record of any given platform before committing capital. As with any emerging financial infrastructure, the gap between technological promise and real-world execution remains material.
How can investors get exposure?
Listed companies offer several routes into the tokenisation theme, and they broadly fall into three categories. First, traditional exchanges adding tokenisation capabilities: NYSE, Nasdaq and their Asian counterparts represent a broad infrastructure play, where tokenisation is an incremental revenue opportunity layered onto existing franchise value. Second, crypto-native platforms expanding into regulated securities: Coinbase is the most prominent, using its exchange licence and balance sheet to push into tokenised equities and on-chain settlement. Third, pure-play tokenisation platforms: smaller-cap names such as Valereum and Figure Technology Solutions, whose valuations are more directly tied to the success or failure of the tokenisation thesis.
On financials, Figure Technology Solutions reported adjusted EBITDA of $86.4m in Q325, up 75% year-on-year, driven by its blockchain-based lending marketplace. At the smaller end, Valereum’s near-term economics are anchored by $15.9m in annual contracted income from the Quorium integration, with further upside tied to the buildout of VLRM Markets and a potential US listing. The broader market has yet to assign meaningful thematic premiums to most tokenisation-exposed names, potentially presenting an opportunity for investors willing to take a view ahead of wider recognition.
What should investors watch next?
The pace of regulatory development will be decisive. In the US, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s engagement with tokenised securities infrastructure, including the NYSE-Securitize initiative, signals growing regulatory acceptance. In Europe, the EU’s DLT Pilot Regime provides a framework for multilateral trading of tokenised instruments. Key metrics to monitor include the growth in tokenised assets under management, secondary market liquidity, the rate of institutional adoption and whether settlement cost savings materialise at scale. If tokenisation delivers on its structural advantages, the result could be a more efficient, accessible and transparent global capital market.
Edison insight
Asset tokenisation has the potential to fundamentally reshape global financial markets. Apart from fractionalisation, reduction of administrative burdens and lowering barriers to entry, it facilitates better composability, enabling the efficient re-use of collateral. Asset tokenisation also allows for the introduction of more flexible and customer-centric custody models, providing end users with greater control over their assets. The disruptive potential of tokenisation goes beyond financial markets and covers areas such as supply-chain finance, provenance and compliance.
Megatrends: fintech innovation, blockchain and digital assets, digital infrastructure, financial market digitisation, disintermediation, regulatory evolution, transformative technology
