Tokenization Market Hits $24 Billion in 2025 Driven by Private Credit

The tokenization market for real-world assets (RWAs) has reached a significant milestone, with a valuation of $24 billion in the first half of 2025. This growth is primarily driven by private credit, which has emerged as a key sector within the tokenization landscape. Private credit, along with US Treasury debt, has been instrumental in propelling the market forward, highlighting the increasing interest and investment in tokenized assets.

Private credit, also known as direct lending, provides investors with yields ranging from 8% to 12%. This sector now accounts for over half of the RWA market, reaching $14 billion. Tokenization has enhanced settlement speed and liquidity, lowered barriers to entry, and enabled fractional participation, capabilities that private credit markets have historically lacked. This has made private credit more accessible and attractive to a broader range of investors, including those seeking higher yields than those available in public credit markets.

Ethereum continues to dominate the tokenization market, serving as the leading platform for these digital representations of real-world assets. By mid-2025, the Ethereum network hosted roughly $7.5 billion in tokenized value across 335 products, accounting for 59% of the total market. Ethereum's decentralized governance has historically limited its institutional outreach, but the launch of Etherealize in January 2025 marked a strategic pivot to bring more institutional participation onchain. This has further solidified Ethereum's position as the premier network for tokenized RWAs.

While Ethereum remains dominant, other blockchains are also making strides in the tokenized RWA market. Solana, for instance, has emerged as a high-performance challenger, hosting roughly $351 million of tokenized assets as of June. Aptos has also seen increased RWA deployment, hosting $349 million in tokenized assets. Notably, Aptos was the first non-Ethereum Virtual Machine network for BlackRock’s BUIDL fund. Avalanche now hosts $188 million in tokenized assets, including KKR’s tokenized fund, while XRP Ledger has emerged as a regulated newcomer with $157 million in tokenized RWAs.

The surge in the tokenization market can be attributed to several factors, including the efficiency and transparency that blockchain technology brings to traditional financial processes. Tokenization allows for the fractional ownership of assets, making them more accessible to a broader range of investors. This democratization of investment opportunities is a significant driver of the market's growth. As more assets are tokenized and more investors enter the market, the potential for growth is immense. The continued dominance of Ethereum in this space further solidifies its position as a leader in the blockchain industry, paving the way for future innovations and developments.