Beyond Hype to Utility: Key RWA Insights from Digital Asset Summit 2025
The world of digital assets continues to evolve at breakneck speed, with Real World Assets (RWAs) emerging as perhaps the most transformative segment of the blockchain ecosystem. Last week, I had the privilege of attending Blockworks' Digital Asset Summit 2025 in New York City, where the brightest minds in finance gathered to discuss the future of digital assets—and RWAs were definitely the belle of the blockchain ball.
Institutional Adoption: From Trickle to Flood
If there was one clear takeaway from DAS 2025, it's that institutional capital is no longer merely dipping its toes in the RWA waters—it's diving in headfirst. The summit revealed that over $19 billion in total assets have now been tokenized on-chain, with a staggering growth rate of 30-50% CAGR year over year.
"The growth is impressive, but this is still a small fraction of the $100 trillion in capital markets," noted Solomon Chesifayet, head of Capital Markets at Aptos Labs, during a particularly insightful panel. "But the fact that 67% of tokenized assets are now in private credit and 20% in commodities shows where institutional interest is converging."
Speaking of convergence—the buzzword that echoed through the halls of the Javits Center throughout the summit—it seems we're finally witnessing the long-promised marriage of TradFi and DeFi. And like most marriages, it's the compromise and adjustment from both parties that's making it work.
As one panelist quipped, "A crypto ETF is a bit like putting a horse in front of a car just for the stagecoach driver not to be frightened." Not exactly the revolution some crypto purists had hoped for, but sometimes you need to wear a suit to get into the party where you can truly change things.
The Tokenization Acceleration
The undeniable star of the show was tokenized treasuries. BlackRock's money market fund, BUIDL, tokenized by Securitize, has surpassed $1 billion in assets under management within just a year. Overall, tokenized treasuries have grown from around $1.2 billion to over $4.5 billion in recent months.
"Passing the first $1 billion is the hardest," explained Michael Sonenshine, COO at Secure Ties. "After that, liquidity and new use cases drive further growth."
What's perhaps most interesting is how quickly tokenized treasuries are outpacing the early growth of stablecoins. As Ian from Ondo Finance pointed out, "Stablecoins maintained AUM even during the bear market, indicating their importance. Tokenized treasuries are following a similar pattern but at an accelerated pace."
The consensus among panelists was that we're witnessing just the beginning of a massive shift, with projections suggesting that tokenized RWAs could reach $30 trillion in the next decade. That's not just growth—that's a fundamental restructuring of global financial markets.
Impact on Leading RWA Projects
Ondo Finance: From Strength to Strength
Ondo Finance has positioned itself at the forefront of the RWA revolution, and DAS 2025 only confirmed their leading status. Ian, Ondo's Chief Strategy Officer, shared that they are now live on 12 blockchains and integrated with over 80 DeFi protocols.
What set tongues wagging was the revelation of Ondo's partnership with MasterCard to enable users on the MTN network to pay for assets minted on a public blockchain but settled on MasterCard's interbank private network. This hybrid approach—leveraging public blockchains for transparency while settling on private networks—appears to be the pragmatic path forward that institutions find palatable.
"We're developing the infrastructure via the Ondo chain to connect the public blockchain network with private TradFi environments that are becoming 24/7," Ian explained. This approach addresses the DVP (Delivery Versus Payment) framework that institutions require, while still maintaining the transparency benefits of blockchain.
Ondo's focus on assets with deep liquidity in public markets positions them perfectly to capitalize on the growing institutional demand for crypto-native yield opportunities backed by traditional financial instruments.
Goldfinch: Microfinance and Emerging Markets
While direct mentions of Goldfinch were limited at DAS 2025, the discussions around microfinance and emerging markets highlighted the growing importance of Goldfinch's approach.
Multiple speakers emphasized that the next evolution of private credit involves microfinancing, particularly in emerging markets. As one panelist noted, "In many countries, when a USD or Euro wire is sent, the central bank locks it up for an extended period. This creates issues for exporters who need immediate funds."
This is precisely the problem Goldfinch aims to solve through its on-chain credit protocol. By facilitating access to capital in emerging markets where traditional financial infrastructure falls short, Goldfinch is addressing a multi-trillion dollar opportunity.
The summit's emphasis on fixed income as a natural fit for the industry's yield-focused mindset aligns perfectly with Goldfinch's approach to bringing real-world lending opportunities on-chain.
RedBelly Network: Compliance as a Feature, Not a Bug
Perhaps the most significant shift evident at DAS 2025 was the newfound appreciation for compliance-first approaches to blockchain infrastructure—an area where RedBelly Network shines.
The discussions around regulatory clarity and the separation of function in financial services underscored the value proposition of RedBelly's compliant-by-design approach. As one speaker emphasized, "Segregation of funds and separation of function are fundamental tenets of traditional finance that the crypto industry needs to adopt."
RedBelly Network's built-in identity verification system with sanctions and AML compliance checks positions it as the ideal infrastructure for institutions seeking to tokenize assets while maintaining regulatory compliance.
The summit's consensus that regulation should aim to protect consumers, create a wholesale marketplace, and harness innovation aligns perfectly with RedBelly's vision of a compliant RWA ecosystem.
Swarm: The Gold Standard for Tokenized Securities
Swarm's approach to tokenizing publicly-traded securities and gold received validation from multiple discussions at DAS 2025. The summit featured extensive conversations about the need for tokenized assets to have proper backing, transparency, and institutional-grade custody—all hallmarks of Swarm's approach.
The panel on tokenization highlighted that "tokenization can make value accessible to global users in a decentralized environment," a core principle of Swarm's mission to democratize access to financial assets.
Swarm's recent collaboration with Plume and MetaStreet to create the first Gold NFT Lending Pool was cited as an example of the innovative financial primitives that tokenization enables. As tokenized gold continues to gain traction as a digital store of value, Swarm's xGOLD token is well-positioned to capture market share.
Institutional Infrastructure: The Missing Piece
A recurring theme throughout DAS 2025 was the critical importance of institutional-grade infrastructure for RWAs to reach their full potential. The tokenization of assets is just the first step—for true adoption, institutions need comprehensive infrastructure that bridges the gap between traditional and digital finance.
Tom Paiket from Bank of New York Mellon emphasized that traditional institutions play a growing role in crypto custody and tokenization. They hold the underlying assets and enable the minting of tokens on private permissioned or public chains, depending on client preferences.
The LMAX Group CEO summed it up perfectly: "Two key factors for the future: Convergence and Credit." The convergence of traditional finance with digital assets and the rebuilding of the credit complex in crypto will unlock trillions in value.
While none of the top 40 banks are currently trading spot Bitcoin directly, about half are expected to engage with digital assets by the end of 2026. This timeframe for institutional adoption aligns with the projected growth of RWAs.
The Future: From Billions to Trillions
Looking ahead, the path for RWAs seems clear: continued exponential growth driven by institutional adoption, regulatory clarity, and innovative financial products.
The most exciting development on the horizon is the automation of financial processes through blockchain. Imagine a future where, as one panelist described, "paychecks are directly deposited into a wallet, smart contracts automatically allocate funds into various on-chain products like Biddle, Apollo credit fund, and shares of Tesla."
This system would automate moving money between investment accounts, personal checking and savings, direct deposits, and auto debits for mortgages and bills. This wallet-centric approach could revolutionize financial advisory, wealth management, and collateral management.
For projects like Ondo Finance, Goldfinch, RedBelly Network, and Swarm, this means unprecedented opportunities to scale their platforms and capture significant market share in the growing RWA ecosystem.
Conclusion: The Trade of the Millennium
As we process the wealth of insights from DAS 2025, one thing becomes abundantly clear: RWAs represent what one speaker called "the trade of the millennium." The tokenization of real-world assets on blockchain infrastructure isn't just another crypto trend—it's a fundamental reimagining of global financial markets.
The journey from billions to trillions in tokenized assets won't be without challenges. Regulatory hurdles, technological limitations, and institutional inertia will all play a role in determining the pace of adoption. But the direction is unmistakable.
In the world of finance, it's rare to witness a truly paradigm-shifting innovation. The internet revolutionized information flow; social media transformed communication; and now, RWAs are poised to reinvent the very fabric of global finance.
For investors, builders, and financial institutions, the message from DAS 2025 is clear: The RWA revolution is not coming—it's already here. And those who recognize this reality today will be the financial leaders of tomorrow.
After all, as one particularly insightful panelist noted, "What can be unburdened by what has been?" In the case of RWAs, the answer may well be: everything.
