Bitfinex: Tokenized Real-World Assets Could Reach $1T in a Decade Led by Emerging Markets

Jesse Knutson, Head of Operations at Bitfinex Securities, forecasts that tokenized real-world assets (RWA) could reach $1 trillion within the next decade, driven primarily by rapid adoption in emerging markets. Tokenization converts physical assets — such as real estate, commodities and fixed-income instruments — into blockchain tokens, enabling fractional ownership, on-chain funding and stablecoin settlement. Knutson says developed markets are currently focused on tokenizing fixed-income products (US Treasuries, money market funds), while emerging economies are more likely to tokenize tangible assets and scale faster by bypassing legacy financial infrastructure and integrating digital payments. Key barriers remain: legal enforceability of on-chain contracts, liquidity and settlement risk, investor protections, and interoperability between permissioned and public blockchains and token standards. Knutson emphasizes the need for pilots to move into production-ready, transferable tokens that can act as DeFi collateral to unlock wider utility. For traders, the trend points to growing demand for tokenized real assets and expanding on-chain collateral use — opportunities that hinge on regulatory clarity and improving secondary-market liquidity.