-
The majority of RWA issuers prioritise capital formation over secondary markets liquidity.
-
Tokenization strategies are expected to be led by issuance growth and not liquidity.
-
Regulatory friction is the primary barrier to RWA Tokenization adoption.
Brickken Survey: RWA Issuers Focus On Capital Raising As Liquidity Takes A Back Seat According to Brickken’s Fourth Quarter 2025 Survey, real-world asset (RWA), issuers are turning towards tokenization as a tool for capital-raising rather than a method for secondary market liquidity.
The findings show that the majority of participants see tokenization as a fundraising and issuance infrastructure, whereas liquidity remains a long-term goal tied to market development.
53.8% of respondents cited capital formation and fundraising effectiveness as their primary reasons for tokenizing assets. In contrast, 15.4% cited liquidity as their primary motive, while 38.4% stated that liquidity was not needed for their project. 46.2% of respondents expect secondary-market liquidity to be available within 6-12 months.
Jordi Esteuri, Brickken’s chief marketing officer, said that issuers are moving away from conceptual use cases, and instead focusing on operational goals such as capital accessibility, investor reach, and process efficiency.
He said that many exchanges are still in a phase of validation, where regulatory frameworks and issuance processes have to be digitalized before liquidity is a priority. Esturi said that the expansion of trading hours is a reflection of business model adjustments, rather than a disconnect between issuer demand and exchanges.
His comments follow major announcements by U.S. exchanges. CME Group plans on introducing 24-hour trading for crypto derivatives by the end of May, while New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and Nasdaq (NASDAQ) have stated their intentions to support round-the clock trading of tokenized shares.
Related: Institutions lead RWA growth, panel says at consensus Hong Kong
The Issuance of Securities is Outpacing Liquidity Plans
The survey shows that tokenization has already been implemented by most respondents. Around 69.2% of respondents reported that the tokenization process was completed and they were now live. 23.1% reported that projects are in progress, and 7.7% still remain in planning.
Esturi made a distinction between “optional” liquidity and “mandatory”, noting that private market issuers have long-term investment horizons. He said that liquidity will scale along with issuance volumes and institution participation, rather than before them.
Ondo, a company that began with tokenized U.S. Treasury bonds and now manages over $2 billion in assets is focusing its efforts on tokenized stocks, and exchange-traded fund. Chief Strategy Officer Ian de Bode stated that equities are suitable for collateral and have established valuation frameworks.
Regulation is still the primary obstacle
The regulatory complexity continues to weigh heavily on issuers. In the survey, 53.8% of respondents said that regulation slowed down operations, and 30.8% reported partial friction. 84.6% of respondents reported some level or other of regulatory drag. Only 13% of respondents identified technology or development to be the main challenge.
Alvaro Garrido is the founding partner of Legal Node. He said that compliance considerations are incorporated from the beginning of projects. There is a growing demand for legal structure tailored to specific assets and technology.
Related: What is the outlook for RWA in 2026?
This site is for entertainment only. Click here to read more
