Real-World Assets Tokenization: Which 5 Crypto Projects Are Leading the 2024 RWA Revolution?

The blockchain space is witnessing a fundamental shift. What began with Bitcoin’s colored coins has evolved into a multi-billion dollar ecosystem where physical assets—real estate, Treasury bills, commodities—are being converted into digital tokens and traded on-chain. As of March 2024, the total market capitalization of real-world asset (RWA) tokens has surpassed $8.4 billion, signaling unprecedented institutional interest in this emerging sector.

The entry of BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager with trillions under management, through its tokenized fund BUIDL on Ethereum, represents a watershed moment. This move has catalyzed mainstream validation of RWA tokenization and opened floodgates for other financial giants to explore similar opportunities. But beyond the headlines, which crypto projects are actually building the infrastructure to power this revolution?

Understanding Why Real-World Asset Tokenization Matters

Before diving into specific projects, it’s worth understanding why RWA tokenization has captured the attention of both retail and institutional players:

Fractional Ownership & Accessibility: Tokenization breaks down traditionally high-barrier assets into smaller, tradable units. A $1 million building can now be divided into 1 million tokens worth $1 each, democratizing access to wealth-building assets.

Unlocking Dormant Value: Real estate, fine art, and corporate debt represent trillions in global wealth but suffer from illiquidity. Blockchain-based tokenization instantly converts these into liquid, 24/7 tradable assets.

DeFi Composability: Once on-chain, tokenized Treasury bills or real estate can be used as collateral in lending protocols, bridging traditional finance with decentralized finance in ways previously impossible.

Transparency & Trust: Every transaction is immutably recorded, reducing fraud and increasing investor confidence—critical for institutional adoption.

The Leading Projects Reshaping Asset Tokenization

1. Ondo Finance (ONDO) - The RWA Catalyst

Ondo Finance stands as perhaps the most mature player in the RWA tokenization space. The protocol introduced OUSG, the world’s first major tokenized U.S. Treasury product, fundamentally proving that Treasury bills could be effectively represented on-chain. Its Flux Finance lending protocol demonstrated that these tokenized assets work seamlessly with existing DeFi infrastructure.

The protocol’s governance model empowers ONDO token holders to shape the platform’s evolution. Recent developments underscore its momentum: the launch of Ondo Global Markets (Ondo GM) opens the door to broader securities tokenization, while partnerships with Sui and Aptos networks extend its reach across multiple blockchain ecosystems.

Most significantly, in March 2024, Ondo made a strategic move to deposit $95 million of OUSG assets into BlackRock’s BUIDL fund. This represents the first major integration between a crypto protocol and a traditional asset manager’s tokenized offering—a milestone suggesting how real-world asset tokenization will operate in the near future.

2. Mantra (OM) - Bringing RWA to Emerging Markets

Mantra operates as a Layer 1 blockchain specifically optimized for real-world asset tokenization. Following a $11 million funding round led by Shorooq Partners, the project has positioned itself as the bridge between traditional finance and blockchain, particularly for Middle Eastern and Asian markets.

OM Price Data (as of December 2025):

• Current Price: $0.07
• 24h Change: -5.16%
• Market Cap: $83.92M
• 24h Volume: $644.77K

The OM token functions as both a governance and utility asset. Holders can stake tokens for passive yield and participate in protocol decisions. Mantra’s infrastructure is specifically designed to meet the regulatory requirements of institutional investors while providing developers with the tools needed to build RWA-focused applications. Its mission extends beyond tokenization—it aims to establish the foundational layer for a global financial ecosystem that exists natively on-chain.

3. Polymesh (POLYX) - Enterprise-Grade Security Tokens

Polymesh differentiates itself by targeting the securities tokenization sector specifically. As a public permissioned Layer 1 blockchain, it combines the governance and compliance rigor of private networks with the transparency of public blockchains—a critical requirement for institutional players handling regulated assets.

POLYX Price Data (as of December 2025):

• Current Price: $0.05
• 24h Change: -4.54%
• Market Cap: $61.01M
• 24h Volume: $96.39K

The POLYX token powers all network operations: transaction fees, staking, governance, and security token issuance. Its unique tokenomics model—where supply approaches an asymptotic limit through algorithmic generation—balances network incentives with controlled inflation. This design appeals to institutions seeking a sustainable, long-term platform for tokenizing real-world assets.

4. OriginTrail (TRAC) - Knowledge Assets & Supply Chain Trust

OriginTrail takes a different approach: instead of focusing solely on financial assets, it leverages its Decentralized Knowledge Graph (DKG) to enable trusted data exchange across supply chains, healthcare, and construction. This infrastructure positions tokenized real-world assets within broader ecosystems of verifiable data.

TRAC Price Data (as of December 2025):

• Current Price: $0.40
• 24h Change: -2.93%
• Market Cap: $177.61M
• 24h Volume: $18.99K
• Circulating Supply: 447.27M out of 500M total

The TRAC token (launched in 2018 as an ERC-20) powers all DKG operations: publishing assets, node collateral, and delegated staking. Its multichain approach ensures interoperability across different blockchains, enhancing scalability. For RWA tokenization, this means real-world assets can be verified, authenticated, and tracked through trusted knowledge networks—critical for institutional confidence in tokenized offerings.

5. Pendle (PENDLE) - Yield Tokenization & RWA Integration

Pendle revolutionizes how investors interact with yield-bearing assets. The protocol separates assets into Principal Tokens (PT) and Yield Tokens (YT), allowing traders to speculate on future yield or secure fixed returns—a sophisticated tool previously unavailable in decentralized markets.

PENDLE Price Data (as of December 2025):

• Current Price: $1.80
• 24h Change: +2.44%
• Market Cap: $297.23M
• 24h Volume: $509.80K

What makes Pendle particularly relevant to RWA tokenization is its recent integration of real-world assets like MakerDAO’s Boosted Dai Savings and Flux Finance’s fUSDC. This moves Pendle beyond pure DeFi yield into facilitating on-chain access to tokenized Treasury bonds and other RWA products. For institutional investors, Pendle now offers a sophisticated platform to hedge and optimize yields on traditional assets without leaving the blockchain.

6. TokenFi (TOKEN) - No-Code RWA Tokenization

TokenFi democratizes asset tokenization by removing technical barriers. Its platform allows anyone to create and launch ERC-20 and BEP-20 tokens representing real-world assets without writing code. Given projections that the RWA market will reach $16 trillion by 2030, this accessibility is crucial.

TOKEN Price Data (as of December 2025):

• Current Price: $0.00 (valued in satoshis)
• 24h Change: -2.17%
• Market Cap: $7.58M
• 24h Volume: $262.85K

The TOKEN utility token unlocks platform features: simplified token launches, generative AI for NFT creation, smart contract auditing, and direct connections to institutions seeking liquidity. By lowering barriers to tokenization, TokenFi captures a segment of the emerging RWA market that traditional platforms have overlooked.

Other Notable Players in Real-World Asset Tokenization

Securitize has emerged as the enterprise standard for digital securities management. BlackRock’s strategic investment and board appointment signal institutional confidence in its regulatory compliance framework. By 2022, Securitize Markets ranked among the top 10 U.S. stock transfer agents, servicing 1.2 million investor accounts.

Untangled Finance ($13.5M funding round in October 2023) focuses on bringing private credit onto blockchain networks, increasing accessibility for a broader investor base.

Swarm Markets (SMT) specializes in regulatory-compliant tokenization across multiple asset classes. Its July 2023 partnership with Mattereum signals the industry’s commitment to comprehensive, compliant real-world asset solutions. As of March 2024, Swarm maintains over $5.4 million in total value locked (TVL).

MakerDAO (MKR), one of Ethereum’s most established DeFi protocols, now holds real-world assets comprising nearly 30% of its balance sheet—approximately $2.06 billion of its $6.6 billion TVL. This institutional adoption of RWA within DeFi demonstrates mainstream acceptance.

The Market Inflection Point

The convergence of several factors is accelerating RWA tokenization adoption:

Institutional Demand: BlackRock’s entry proved institutional investors view blockchain-based asset tokenization as inevitable, not speculative.

Regulatory Clarity: Frameworks are emerging in major jurisdictions, reducing legal uncertainty around tokenized securities.

Technical Maturity: Projects have moved beyond proof-of-concept into production systems managing real capital.

Ecosystem Interoperability: Real-world asset tokens now integrate with DeFi protocols, creating genuine financial use cases rather than speculative tokens.

Looking Ahead

The crypto projects driving real-world asset tokenization are constructing the financial infrastructure of the next decade. What started as a niche experimentation has evolved into institutional-grade platforms managing billions. As regulatory frameworks solidify and user adoption accelerates, expect these projects—and the tokenization space broadly—to capture an ever-larger share of global financial activity. The revolution in how we trade, settle, and own assets has already begun on-chain.