eToro is taking a big step into real-world asset (RWA) tokenization. The company announced plans to launch tokenized versions of the 100 most popular US-listed stocks and ETFs as ERC-20 tokens on the Ethereum blockchain.
The rollout will allow users to trade these stocks 24 hours a day, five days a week, well beyond traditional market hours. Even more significantly, users will eventually be able to withdraw these tokenized stocks into their own crypto wallets and deploy them in DeFi protocols.
According to eToro, the goal is to bridge traditional finance and decentralized finance by giving users full control over their tokenized assets. “Yes, that is 100% the objective here,” a company spokesperson said when asked if users could move assets into self-custody.
That means you could, for example, buy tokenized Tesla shares on eToro, move them into your own Ethereum wallet, stake or lend them via a DeFi app, and return them to the platform later if needed.
eToro isn’t new to the concept of tokenization. In 2019, it launched blockchain-based gold and silver tokens. But the tokenization of publicly traded US stocks marks a significant step toward real adoption.
Tokenized stocks have been gaining momentum across the crypto industry, even if they remain a small piece of the total RWA pie. According to data from RWA.xyz, tokenized equities account for just $418 million in total value, compared to a $21.3 billion total RWA market.
But interest is clearly growing. In June, Robinhood launched a new layer-2 blockchain on Arbitrum for tokenized stocks, offering zero-commission trading to European users. That same month, Switzerland-based Backed Finance listed over 60 tokenized equities on Kraken, ByBit, and multiple Solana DeFi apps.
eToro’s entry brings credibility, reach, and retail familiarity to the space. CEO Yoni Assia said tokenization could “democratize finance” by removing the friction and middlemen that gate access to traditional assets. “It brings transparency, control, and accessibility to more people,” he said.
For now, these tokenized assets won’t be available to users in the United States and other restricted regions due to ongoing regulatory barriers. However, momentum is building globally as fintech platforms, DeFi developers, and even legacy players bet on the future of tokenized finance.
As tokenized stocks become easier to buy, transfer, and use in DeFi, the market could quickly evolve from niche to mainstream. Whether that future belongs to centralized platforms like eToro or fully on-chain systems is still up for debate, but the foundations are being built.
