Standard Chartered expects the market for tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), excluding stablecoins, to grow from approximately $35 billion today to $2 trillion by 2028, according to a report published this week.
The bank’s projection is based on accelerating adoption across financial institutions and growing infrastructure maturity within blockchain ecosystems. The report, led by Geoffrey Kendrick, Head of Digital Assets Research at Standard Chartered, anticipates that tokenized money market funds and listed equities will each account for roughly $750 billion of the total, while the remaining $500 billion will be made up of less liquid assets such as private equity, corporate bonds, real estate, and commodities.
Ethereum is identified as the leading blockchain for tokenization use cases, due to its consistent uptime and reliability. Kendrick noted that the protocol’s decade-long operating history without major disruption gives it a foundational edge, while factors like network speed and fees are seen as secondary considerations.
The report argues that the 2025 surge in stablecoin adoption laid the groundwork for expanded decentralized finance (DeFi) and tokenization. Stablecoins have increased on-chain liquidity and enabled lending, borrowing, and settlement mechanisms that mimic traditional financial systems — positioning tokenized markets to challenge legacy finance more directly in the coming years.
The bank also notes that regulatory clarity in the U.S. will be essential for the market’s full expansion. While uncertainty remains, Standard Chartered does not expect it to derail momentum ahead of the 2026 U.S. midterm elections.
