Standard Chartered Forecasts 5-Year Surge in Non-Stablecoin RWA Tokenization

Standard Chartered has projected a significant surge in the tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs) beyond stablecoins over the next five years. This growth is anticipated to be driven by regulatory progress and a sharper focus on high-impact use cases, as outlined in a June 20 report.

The bank's report, titled “RWA Tokenisation — A Growth Opportunity,” highlights that while stablecoins remain the dominant driver of blockchain-based RWAs, efforts to tokenize non-stablecoin assets such as private credit, securitized debt, private equity, and commodities have lagged behind, with a current market size of around $2 billion. This gap is largely attributed to uneven regulations and early projects targeting areas with limited value from blockchain adoption.

Geoffrey Kendrick, head of digital assets research at Standard Chartered, noted that the industry's heavy reliance on stablecoins has overshadowed other tokenization prospects that could transform illiquid and hard-to-access markets. Kendrick emphasized that regulatory clarity and a focus on the right areas could drive significant growth in non-stablecoin RWA tokenization.

The report identifies tokenized private credit as a notable early success, demonstrating that blockchain can unlock real value by improving liquidity for traditionally difficult-to-trade assets. This logic is expected to extend to private equity and niche commodities markets, where institutional investors are actively seeking better efficiency and transparency.

Despite the optimism, Standard Chartered cautions that regulatory fragmentation remains an obstacle. While jurisdictions such as Singapore, Switzerland, the EU, and Jersey have developed clearer rules for RWAs, others lag behind, and know-your-customer (KYC) checks continue to complicate cross-border adoption. The bank's research calls for tokenization strategies that emphasize areas of differentiation from off-chain assets, rather than replicating what already works well in traditional markets. By doing so, platforms and issuers could gain traction even in uncertain regulatory environments.

The report highlights that tokenized private credit, structured debt, and corporate bonds have begun to expand steadily, with projections showing an accelerated climb starting from 2025. If industry players leverage lessons from private credit and build robust compliance frameworks, non-stablecoin RWAs could emerge as the next major wave in the digital asset sector.