Real-world asset tokenization moved from a theory to live markets in early 2026. It now allows buyers to own parts of different assets like Treasury funds, pre-IPO companies, and collectibles. A CoinMarketCap report by Daniel Phillips two months ago marks this change. Real-world assets appear as digital records on blockchains, and they are easier to buy and sell.
Key facts:
- Tokenized Treasuries and money market funds lead the way. Circle’s USYC holds nearly $3 billion in tokens. BlackRock’s BUIDL covers $2.4 billion, and Franklin Templeton’s BENJI stands at $821 million.
- Tokenized equities jumped about 2,878% to around $963 million by January 2026. XStocks (Backed Finance/Kraken) has the most holders, while Ondo Global Markets owns the largest value piece.
- Hyperliquid’s HIP-3 market protocol started in October 2025. It lets users stake and trade private company values like SpaceX and OpenAI. The protocol reached $200 million in volume in only 17 days.
- Ethereum controls about 50% of tokenized real-world assets with a total of $16.6 billion. BNB Chain doubled its locked value to roughly $4 billion across 14 issuers in areas such as bonds, equities, credit, and commodities.
- The market now also includes graded Pokémon cards, tokenized uranium and copper, gold and silver contracts, and even NFT-backed Nvidia GPUs that serve as collateral for on-chain loans.
Why it matters:
Tokenization on blockchains allows fractional ownership and 24/7 settlement. It makes fast trading and returns possible for assets that used to be hard to move. Banks, new federal rules like the 2025 GENIUS Act for stablecoins, and fresh protocols help bring this change to many users. This shift alters how assets are bought, sold, and used as loan guarantees.
Background:
The change began with stablecoins that mirrored fiat money on blockchains in the mid-2010s. Soon after, digital bonds appeared from the European Investment Bank and Hong Kong’s monetary authority in January 2023. BlackRock started BUIDL on Ethereum in March 2024. It quickly became one of the largest tokenized funds. This rapid growth follows Larry Fink’s 2025 and 2026 view that every stock, bond, fund, and asset can be tokenized. Digital wallets now spread everywhere, and many blockchains now compete in the market. Each one focuses on traits like speed, cost, or rule compliance.
