Ethereum leads RWA sector with $4.1B in assets, zkSync trails at $1.95B
Rapid growth in asset tokenization
Over the past month, the total value of tokenized real-world assets (RWA) on the Ethereum blockchain has increased by 10.8% to $4.1 billion, further strengthening Ethereum’s dominance in this market, with its share rising to 53.4%.
Key Takeaways
- Following Donald Trump’s election victory in the U.S., institutional adoption of tokenized assets (RWA) has surged, leading to a growing migration of assets like bonds, real estate, and commodities onto blockchain networks.
- Ethereum has been best positioned for this shift due to its robust smart contract ecosystem and Layer 2 solutions.
- According to RWA.xyz data, Ethereum currently holds more than half of the RWA market. However, competitors like Solana are preparing to challenge its dominance.
Rapid growth in asset tokenization
RWA.xyz data shows that Ethereum’s tokenized assets are more than twice the size of the next-largest RWA blockchain. zkSync Era ranks second with a 26% market share and $1.95 billion in total assets under management.
The largest tokenized asset on Ethereum at the time of publication was Tether’s USDT, accounting for 58.37% of the market, followed by Circle’s USDC with a 29% share.
Christine Kim, Vice President of Research at Galaxy Digital, reported that 13 of the 20 financial institutions identified as building crypto infrastructure and applications were issuing RWA on Ethereum and its Layer 2 solutions.
Kim also highlighted that over 50 traditional companies—including financial institutions like Deutsche Bank and PayPal, as well as brands like Louis Vuitton and Adidas—were developing crypto-specific applications on Ethereum and its L2 networks.
She further noted that the range of RWAs issued on Ethereum includes money market funds like the Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund and government bonds from institutions such as the European Investment Bank.
Competitors lagging behind
RWA.xyz data shows that other blockchains are still far behind Ethereum. Aside from zkSync Era with $1.95 billion in RWA, the rankings include Stellar ($405 million), Aptos ($335.5 million), and Polygon ($193 million).
RWA market participants and their shares. Source: RWA.xyz
Galaxy Digital’s research found that Ethereum’s success in RWA tokenization is driven by its strong smart contract ecosystem, security, and network effects. Institutional adoption of Ethereum-based RWA has surged as tokenized bonds, real estate, and commodities increasingly move on-chain. Layer 2 networks like zkSync Era have further enhanced Ethereum’s scalability, offering lower fees and faster transactions while maintaining the security of the base layer.
Nick Ducoff, Head of Institutional Growth at the Solana Foundation, stated that Solana is making a strategic push into RWA tokenization through its integration with Securitize, aiming to provide institutional investors with low-cost, high-speed transactions.
He described Securitize’s expansion on Solana as a milestone in delivering “institutional-grade financial products on-chain.”
As we wrote, decentralized finance and asset tokenization platform Mantra Finance has announced receiving a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license from the Dubai Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA).
