Tokenized Real-World Assets Poised to Become Standardized On-Chain Products by 2026
The $130 trillion fixed-income market is driving institutional adoption of tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), with experts predicting standardized on-chain products will emerge within two years. Persistent inefficiencies in traditional finance—opacity, centralization, and legacy infrastructure—are accelerating demand for blockchain-based solutions.
Key hurdles remain: legal enforceability of smart contracts, liquidity fragmentation, and interoperability challenges. Yet the sector is already seeing meaningful traction, with tokenized treasuries and private credit leading the charge. "The biggest unlock is infrastructure that reduces adoption barriers," said one industry executive, citing the need for embedded risk classification and insurance as default features.
By 2026, expect RWAs to evolve from niche pilots to repeatable financial products—complete with institutional-grade safeguards. This shift could onboard real capital at scale, bridging the gap between TradFi and DeFi.