IMF: Tokenized Assets Reach $65 Billion, but Liquidity and Regulation Remain Barriers to Adoption

Odaily News: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) stated that the tokenized financial market is growing rapidly, but legal uncertainty, insufficient interoperability, and the lack of a widely recognized settlement asset could still limit its further development.

In its latest analysis, the IMF noted that as of July, the scale of tokenized real-world assets (RWA) was approximately $65 billion, still relatively small compared to the roughly $300 trillion in global capital market assets. Among these, tokenized credit products accounted for approximately $30.4 billion, money market funds approximately $17.5 billion, and tokenized equities approximately $2.3 billion.

The IMF stated that tokenized equities are attracting investors by supporting 24/7 trading and fractional ownership, but their liquidity is significantly lower than traditional markets, with actual volatility approximately 1.5 times that of traditional stocks. As the tokenized market expands, increased market correlation and leverage could amplify liquidity risks, concentrated selling, and risk contagion.

The IMF said tokenization could reshape financial markets, but future development will depend more on improved policy frameworks, market depth, trust mechanisms, and risk protection measures. Currently, since the market size remains relatively small, the systemic risks posed by tokenized assets are limited. (Cointelegraph)