The $16 Trillion Opportunity: Where Real-World Assets Meet Blockchain in 2025
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The real-world asset tokenization market exploded 380 percent in three years, reaching $24-30 billion by mid-2025. BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, and 40+ financial institutions are deploying billions. When the world’s largest asset manager launches a tokenized fund that attracts $2.5 billion in 18 months, it signals a structural shift rather than experimental deployment.
Market projections for 2030 range from McKinsey’s conservative $2 trillion to BCG’s optimistic $16 trillion. The United States commands 46 percent of major tokenization platforms globally, driven by SEC regulatory clarity through the “Spring Sprint” initiative and SAB 122 reversal enabling bank participation.
Market Scale and Institutional Adoption
The United States commands 37 of 80 (46 percent) major tokenization platforms, compared to just 6 in Singapore and 4 each in Switzerland and the UK. The SEC’s Crypto Task Force represents a philosophical shift from enforcement-first to regulation-first. Commissioner Hester Peirce’s May 2025 preview of a “conditional exemptive order” outlined frameworks allowing firms to use distributed ledger technology to issue, trade, and settle securities.
Goldman Sachs’ July 2025 partnership with BNY to launch tokenized money market funds marked the first time U.S. fund managers could enable MMF subscriptions via tokenization. BlackRock, Fidelity, Federated Hermes, and Goldman Sachs Asset Management participated, targeting transformation of the $7.1 trillion money market industry.
Modern tokenization platforms offer atomic settlement, programmable compliance, multi-chain interoperability, institutional custody through qualified custodians like BNY and State Street, and on-chain identity verification. Figure Technologies demonstrates maturation at scale: $50+ billion in blockchain transactions and a $7.6 billion public company valuation.
Investment Thesis and Growth Trajectory
Projection ranges for RWA tokenization by 2030 span from McKinsey’s conservative $2 trillion to Boston Consulting Group’s optimistic $16 trillion and Standard Chartered’s aggressive $30 trillion. Even the conservative scenario represents 67x growth from today’s $30 billion market, a 100+ percent CAGR through 2030.
Efficiency gains are structural, not incremental. Tokenization delivers 35-65 percent cost reduction across the asset management value chain by eliminating intermediaries. For a $1 billion asset manager, this equals $350 million in annual savings. Settlement time compresses from days to minutes, with platforms achieving atomic settlement eliminating counterparty risk.
Hamilton Lane’s March 2025 launch of its first private infrastructure fund for retail investors with a $500 minimum demonstrates democratization potential. Traditional private infrastructure investments required $100,000+ minimums and accredited investor status.
GSC PERSPECTIVE
The RWA tokenization market presents a structural opportunity for family offices, asset managers, pension funds, and endowments willing to position ahead of mainstream adoption. The 380 percent three-year growth to $30 billion, combined with $2-16 trillion 2030 projections, suggests earlystage market dynamics with institutional infrastructure already operational.
Strategic positioning requires focus on proven platforms with institutional custody (BlackRock BUIDL, Franklin FOBXX, Figure Technologies) rather than speculative early-stage protocols. The 69.8 percent institutional capital share indicates professional validation, while the SEC’s regulatory clarification roadmap reduces policy uncertainty that historically constrained allocations.
We anticipate consolidation toward 5-10 dominant platforms controlling 70+ percent of tokenized asset volume by 2030, driven by custody requirements, regulatory compliance costs, and institutional preference for established counterparties. Positioning during the 2025-2027 transition window creates 12-18 month licensing lead time and 2-5 percent cost advantages that late entrants cannot replicate.
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