Tokenized Real-World Assets Surpass $51 Billion as Race for Onchain Equities Heats Up

The tokenization boom is showing little sign of slowing down.

The market value of tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) has climbed above $51 billion, marking a 40% increase since the start of the year despite broader crypto markets declining by roughly 20% over the same period, according to new research from Bernstein.

The data suggests institutional demand for blockchain-based versions of traditional financial assets continues to grow independently of crypto market cycles.

Private credit remains the largest segment of the tokenized asset market, accounting for nearly half of total value, followed by U.S. Treasuries and commodities. Meanwhile, the number of RWA holders has surpassed 917,000, up approximately 60% year-to-date.

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The Next Battleground: Tokenized Stocks

While private credit and Treasury products dominate today's market, Bernstein believes the biggest opportunity lies in tokenized equities.

The sector has expanded from roughly $700 million at the beginning of the year to $1.6 billion today, representing growth of more than 130%.

But as interest accelerates, the industry is increasingly dividing into two competing approaches.

The first model focuses on trading infrastructure. Platforms issue blockchain-based representations of publicly traded stocks while holding the underlying shares in custody. Investors gain access to 24/7 trading and near-instant settlement, but ownership rights remain with the intermediary holding the shares.

This is the approach being pursued by platforms such as Coinbase and Robinhood, which recently launched tokenized stock offerings for international users.

The second model aims to place equities directly on blockchain rails.

Under this framework, blockchain serves as the official shareholder ledger, giving token holders ownership rights, voting power, and dividend entitlements similar to traditional securities. Companies including Figure, Bullish, and Securitize are building the regulatory and technical infrastructure needed to support this vision.

Coinbase's Vision for an "Everything Exchange"

Bernstein highlighted Coinbase's increasingly ambitious strategy as the company expands beyond crypto trading.

In recent weeks, Coinbase has rolled out tokenized equities, equity perpetual futures, and pre-IPO perpetual products for international users while continuing to expand regulated crypto derivatives offerings in the United States.

The firm's tokenized stock products are backed one-for-one by underlying shares and include features such as automatic dividend distributions and programmable onchain functionality.

Analysts describe the strategy as an attempt to build an "everything exchange" capable of supporting crypto assets, traditional equities, derivatives, and tokenized securities under a single platform.

Despite the rapid growth, regulatory developments remain the industry's most important catalyst.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has already approved several initiatives involving tokenized securities and has proposed changes that could make blockchain-based trading venues more competitive with traditional exchanges.

Industry participants are particularly focused on the possibility of future exemptions that would allow tokenized U.S. equities to trade more freely onchain.

If those approvals materialize, tokenized stocks could become one of the fastest-growing segments of the digital asset industry.

Volumes Are Already Accelerating

The momentum is beginning to show in trading activity.

According to Bernstein, monthly transfer volumes for tokenized equities reached an annualized pace of $5.3 billion in June, compared to $3.6 billion in May and just $500 million in September 2025.

Among the largest tokenization platforms, Figure currently leads with nearly $19 billion in tokenized assets, followed by Securitize, Ondo, Circle, and Tether.

For years, tokenization was viewed as one of blockchain's most promising but slowest-moving opportunities. The latest figures suggest the industry may finally be approaching an inflection point—one where traditional financial assets become as accessible onchain as cryptocurrencies themselves.

Credit: Based on reporting by The Block