Tokenization could drive DeFi assets to $2.7T by 2030, says Standard Chartered
Standard Chartered forecasts that DeFi could reach $2.7T in assets locked by 2030, driven by tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs) and “crypto-native” growth onchain. Geoff Kendrick, head of digital assets research at the bank, estimates DeFi will see a 37x increase in tokenized assets by end-2030.
Today, only about 3% of stablecoins and 10% of tokenized RWAs are used in DeFi. Standard Chartered expects the share of tokenized value used in DeFi to rise to 30% by 2030 (from roughly 3.5% currently). The bank argues this would pull more institutional capital into DeFi, but also notes that reaching $2.7T requires both fast onchain asset growth and a near ninefold jump in DeFi usage of tokenized value.
The report highlights Uniswap as a potential hub for tokenized markets due to its scale, brand, and ability to operate through multiple crypto cycles. Kendrick also suggests traditional financial institutions may favor DeFi venues that prioritize security and reliability.
Other researchers caution that tokenization doesn’t automatically create unified liquidity. Issuing the “same” asset across multiple blockchains and formats can lead to liquidity silos, pricing gaps, and higher trading costs—meaning market depth may not scale as quickly as market value.
Bullish
Standard Chartered’s $2.7T DeFi-by-2030 projection is a positive demand signal, because it links tokenization with actual onchain “usage share” (not just issuance). For traders, expectations that tokenization will expand the DeFi addressable market can support risk-on positioning in DeFi and DEX ecosystems. The emphasis on Uniswap as a routing hub adds another bullish angle: improved tokenized flows can translate into higher activity and potentially better fee dynamics.
That said, the article also highlights structural risks—liquidity fragmentation across chains/formats and the fact that tokenization doesn’t automatically make illiquid assets liquid. Historically, similar narratives (RWA/tokenization “adoption waves”) often lead to early enthusiasm and short-term inflows into liquid DeFi majors, but liquidity fragmentation can later dampen realized volume and growth expectations.
Short-term: traders may react by rotating toward higher-beta DeFi/DEX plays and “infrastructure” names as the market prices in growing tokenization activity.
Long-term: if stablecoin/RWA DeFi usage share truly rises toward the forecast, DeFi could see sustained TVL and volume expansion. If execution lags (market depth, interoperability, routing), the bullish thesis may shift from price momentum to slower, more selective growth.