New York Life Investment Management sees tokenization enabling personalized portfolios

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Highlights

Thomas Sy of New York Life Investment Management says tokenization enables scalable, onchain customization of portfolios by embedding bespoke strategies directly into tokenized assets.
NYLIM has partnered with Centrifuge to put a high-yield corporate bond strategy onchain, with tokenization expected to simplify settlement and lower investor costs if efficiencies materialize.
Citi projects the tokenized real-world assets market to grow from $30 billion currently to $5.5 trillion by 2030, driven by institutional demand for yield-generating tokenized assets and stablecoins.

Customization strategy and onchain portfolio design

As reported by CoinDesk, Thomas Sy, head of multi-asset solutions at New York Life Investment Management, says tokenization’s biggest opportunity is not simply faster settlement or round-the-clock trading, but the ability to redesign portfolio construction. He says blockchain can help asset managers build tailored investment strategies for individual clients on a scale that current systems do not support.

Sy says customized strategies often combine ETFs, bonds, private credit and other assets, creating operational complexity that makes personalization hard to scale. In his view, tokenization can embed customization within the asset itself rather than relying on layers of operational work around multiple asset classes.

NYLIM has already moved further into the space by teaming up with Centrifuge to bring one of its high-yield corporate bond strategies onchain. Sy also says tokenization could simplify transfer agency, settlement and other back-office functions, potentially lowering costs for investors if those efficiencies are realized.

Stablecoin demand and institutional market impact

Sy says stablecoins are becoming the first practical bridge for traditional financial institutions moving onchain. As banks, payment companies and fintech groups use stablecoins more widely for cross-border payments and treasury management, he expects demand to grow for institutional tokenized assets that can generate yield instead of sitting in cash balances.

That view comes as Wall Street firms expand tokenization efforts across money market funds, private credit and equities. Citi projects the market for tokenized real-world assets could reach $5.5 trillion by 2030 from about $30 billion currently, underscoring the scale of the opportunity the sector is targeting.

Sy says decentralized finance also has potential for institutional investors, but broader participation still depends on more developed market infrastructure. He says tokenized collateral, central clearing and prime brokerage services need to mature further before DeFi becomes fully institutionalized.

Our previous coverage of tokenization in financial market plumbing explained how blockchain ledgers and smart contracts are being adopted to reduce costly reconciliation and speed up settlement for traditional assets. We noted signs of mainstream traction, including JPMorgan’s Kinexys processing large onchain volumes, DTCC’s plan to tokenize U.S. Treasuries from 2025, and regulatory approval steps toward tokenized stock trading that keep existing shareholder rights while moving settlement onto blockchain rails.

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