Tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) span a growing range of financial categories, each with distinct yield profiles, liquidity characteristics, risk structures, and regulatory treatment. This guide breaks down the major RWA categories available on blockchain networks in 2026, with current market data, key products, and practical considerations for each.
For a broader overview of how tokenization works, see the guide to understanding real-world assets. For a comparison of RWAs with traditional securities, see tokenized assets vs traditional securities. Explore 260+ tokenized assets to trade on MetaMask today via Ondo Global Markets.
Disclaimer: This guide is for educational purposes only. It is not financial advice, not a solicitation, and not for UK audiences. Tokenized real-world assets are risky and not suitable for all users.
Not all tokenized assets carry the same risk or behave the same way. The RWA categories below vary across several dimensions: market size (how much capital has been deployed), yield profile (whether the asset generates income and at what range), yield type (whether returns come from income, price appreciation, or both), liquidity (how easily tokens can be redeemed or sold on secondary markets), and key considerations (the dominant factors to be aware of for each category).Category | Market size (Apr 2026) | Typical yield | Yield type | Liquidity | Key consideration |
US Treasuries | ~$12.98B | ~3–5% | Income (accruing or rebasing) | High (daily redemption common) | Counterparty, custodial |
Equities and ETFs | ~$1B+ | Variable (market return) | Price appreciation + dividends | Medium (24/5, thin order books) | Securities-law, market |
Private credit | ~$6 distributed (~$18–19B broad) | ~8–15% | Income (periodic distributions) | Low (lockups common) | Credit default, structuring |
Commodities | ~$7.37B | None (price exposure only) | Price appreciation | Medium | Custody, verification |
Real estate | Low hundreds of millions | ~4–10% (rental yields) | Income + appreciation | Low | Valuation, property management |
Bonds (non-Treasury) | ~$2.02B | ~4–8% | Income (coupon payments) | Low–medium | Credit, interest-rate |
Yield ranges above reflect general observations reported across platforms and may vary significantly by product, issuer, and market conditions. They do not represent guaranteed returns. Market size figures sourced from rwa.xyz as of early April 2026.
Tokenized US Treasuries products provide onchain exposure to short-term US government debt, typically through a special purpose vehicle (SPV) or fund structure that holds the underlying bonds and issues tokens representing shares or claims.As of early April 2026, tokenized US Treasuries hold approximately $12.88 billion in total value across distributed and represented assets. The category has grown from roughly $5 billion in late 2024, reflecting sustained institutional and retail demand.
Treasury-backed tokens generally distribute yield in one of two ways. Accruing tokens (such as Ondo's OUSG) increase in price as the underlying assets earn interest, while the token balance stays constant. Rebasing tokens (such as Ondo's rOUSG) maintain a stable price near $1 and instead increase the number of tokens in the holder's wallet. A third approach involves separate stablecoin distributions. Each mechanism has different implications for accounting, tax treatment, and compatibility with DeFi protocols.
BlackRock's BUIDL fund, managed via Securitize, is the single largest tokenized Treasury product and is now live on nine blockchain networks. Ondo Finance offers OUSG and USDY. Franklin Templeton's BENJI fund operates on Stellar and Ethereum. MetaMask USD (mUSD) is backed by short-term US Treasury bills held in regulated custody.
Ethereum hosts the majority of tokenized Treasury value. Stellar, Solana, Polygon, Avalanche, Arbitrum, Base, and BNB Chain also support Treasury products, with cross-chain expansion accelerating through 2026. The underlying US government debt carries minimal credit risk, but the tokenized layer introduces counterparty, smart contract, and redemption-delay risk—the strength of a token holder's claim depends on the legal structure, specifically whether the SPV provides bankruptcy remoteness.Tokenized Treasuries are accessible through MetaMask via Ondo products and mUSD. mUSD is native to the MetaMask ecosystem and backed by short-term US Treasury bills.
Tokenized equities are blockchain-based tokens designed to track the market performance of publicly traded stocks and exchange-traded funds. They provide economic exposure—including price movement and, in many cases, dividend-equivalent distributions—without conferring direct share ownership or voting rights.Tokenized equities remain a smaller category by onchain value compared to Treasuries—rwa.xyz tracks over $1 billion in distributed value—but the number of available products has expanded rapidly. Ondo Global Markets launched in early 2026 with over 100 tokenized US stocks and ETFs—including assets tracking Apple, NVIDIA, Tesla, Amazon, and index funds like QQQ and SPY—with plans to scale to thousands. Today, over 150 Ondo tokenized stocks and ETFs are available to trade on MetaMask.
Tokens are typically issued by a platform that purchases the underlying security and holds it through a licensed custodial broker-dealer. The token tracks the total return of the underlying asset, with dividends generally reinvested rather than distributed separately. For example, Ondo Global Markets tokens use the "-on" suffix (e.g., AAPLon for Apple) and are priced in USD. Trading is available 24/5 (Sunday 8:05 pm ET to Friday 7:59 pm ET), while peer-to-peer token transfers occur 24/7. More detail is available in the Ondo Global Markets documentation.
Tokenized equities face significant regulatory complexity. The SEC's January 28, 2026 joint statement on tokenized securities confirmed that existing federal securities laws apply regardless of whether ownership is recorded onchain or offchain. Beyond regulatory risk, tokenized equities carry standard market risk and thin secondary-market liquidity—order-book depth for most tokenized stocks remains significantly lower than their traditional counterparts.
Tokenized stocks and ETFs are accessible on MetaMask Mobile and MetaMask Extension via Ondo Global Markets in supported non-US regions. This is the broadest RWA category available through MetaMask, with 150+ options including individual equities, index funds, and commodity ETFs.
Tokenized private credit represents loans to businesses or consumers—including trade finance, small and medium enterprise (SME) lending, asset-backed securities, and fintech receivables—structured as onchain tokens. It's one of the largest RWA categories by total value, though the figures depend heavily on which platforms and methodologies are included.Private credit is the largest or second-largest RWA category depending on the data source. Figures vary because major platforms like Figure (which tokenizes home equity lines of credit, or HELOCs, on the Provenance blockchain) account for a significant share of active loans but operate on permissioned infrastructure. According to rwa.xyz, onchain private credit stood at approximately $5 billion in distributed value as of March 2026, while broader counts that include represented and platform-locked assets bring the total closer to $18–19 billion. The traditional private credit market is estimated at roughly $3–3.5 trillion globally.
An originator—such as a fintech lender or trade-finance company—structures a pool of loans and places them in an SPV. A tokenization platform then issues tokens representing slices of the loan pool. Interest payments flow from borrowers through the SPV to token holders, either onchain or through periodic offchain distributions. Some platforms use tranching (senior and junior tranches) to distribute risk, similar to traditional securitization structures.Maple Finance provides institutional lending pools and its Syrup platform for retail access. Centrifuge focuses on structured credit and trade finance, with a significant integration into the Sky protocol (formerly MakerDAO). Goldfinch operates in emerging-market lending. Clearpool offers permissioned borrower pools. Figure dominates in consumer credit (HELOCs and mortgages) on the Provenance blockchain.
Yields in tokenized private credit typically range from 8–15%, reflecting the credit risk and illiquidity premium relative to government debt. These yields carry meaningful default risk—in March 2026, stress in the broader private credit market highlighted how credit deterioration in underlying loans can affect tokenized products. Lockup periods are common, and secondary-market liquidity for most credit tokens is thin.
Ethereum is the primary network for distributed private credit, with Provenance (Figure), Base, Polygon, and Celo also hosting significant activity.Private credit tokens are accessible through DeFi integrations on Ethereum, which can be explored via MetaMask's built-in swap and app-browsing features on mobile and desktop.
Tokenized commodities provide onchain exposure to raw materials, such as gold, silver, and oil. Each token typically represents a claim on a specific quantity of a physical commodity held in custody by a regulated entity.The tokenized commodity market reached approximately $7.37 billion in total market cap as of early April 2026, according to rwa.xyz, driven almost entirely by gold. Tether Gold (XAUT) and Paxos Gold (PAXG) together account for approximately 74% of the market—XAUT at roughly $2.7 billion and PAXG at approximately $2.4 billion. Paxos reports over 510,000 ounces of allocated gold backing PAXG tokens. Smaller categories—including tokenized energy and agricultural commodities—exist but remain early-stage with limited trading activity.
Gold-backed tokens follow a mint-on-demand model: when a purchaser deposits fiat, the issuer buys LBMA-approved bullion, stores it in an allocated vault (Brink's London for PAXG; Swiss vaults for XAUT), and mints a corresponding token. Redemption reverses the process. Paxos publishes monthly attestation reports; Tether provides periodic reserve disclosures. Unlike commodity ETFs, tokenized commodities operates 24/7 on crypto exchanges, creating continuous price discovery even when traditional gold markets are closed. Key considerations include custody and verification (dependence on the custodian's integrity and audit frequency) and issuer concentration—two issuers dominate nearly the entire market. Tokenized commodities don't generate yield; returns depend entirely on price movement of the underlying asset.
Ethereum is the primary network. PAXG and XAUT are also available on BNB Chain, Solana, Arbitrum, and other networks.Commodity exposure is accessible on MetaMask through tokenized commodity ETFs (such as Gold ETF—IAU and Silver ETF—SLV) via Ondo Global Markets. PAXG is also an ERC-20 token that can be held and swapped directly in any Ethereum-compatible MetaMask wallet.
Tokenized real estate enables fractional ownership of residential or commercial properties through blockchain-based tokens. Token holders may receive proportional rental income and benefit from property value appreciation, depending on the structure.Tokenized real estate remains a smaller and less mature category compared to Treasuries or equities. Most activity occurs through specialized platforms rather than broad DeFi integration. Estimates of onchain real estate value vary significantly depending on inclusion criteria, but the category is generally measured in the low hundreds of millions of dollars on distributed platforms. The Deloitte Center for Financial Services projects $4 trillion in total tokenized real estate by 2035—with approximately $1 trillion in tokenized private real estate funds—growing at a 27% compound annual rate from under $300 billion in 2024.
A property or portfolio of properties is placed into an SPV. The SPV issues tokens representing fractional ownership or a claim on rental income. Some platforms (like RealT) issue tokens on Ethereum and Gnosis Chain that distribute rental income in stablecoins to token holders on a regular schedule. Others (like Lofty) focus on the US residential market with lower minimum participation amounts.
RealT, Lofty, and CitaDAO are among the most active. Figure also operates in this space through tokenized HELOCs and mortgage products, though its focus is on credit rather than direct property ownership. Real estate tokens carry valuation, property management, and jurisdictional risk, with generally low secondary-market liquidity.
Tokenized real estate platforms typically operate as standalone apps. Where those platforms issue ERC-20 tokens on Ethereum or compatible networks, those tokens can be held and managed within MetaMask.
Tokenized bonds encompass corporate bonds, municipal bonds, and structured fixed-income products issued or represented onchain. This category overlaps with tokenized Treasuries but extends to instruments with different credit profiles and yield characteristics.As of early 2026, tokenized corporate bonds hold approximately $1.77 billion in total value, according to rwa.xyz. Issuers include BlackRock and Securitize, who have explored broader fixed-income tokenization beyond government debt. UBS issued a tokenized bond in 2025, and the European Investment Bank has issued digital bonds on blockchain. Non-Treasury bonds introduce credit risk, interest-rate risk, and structural complexity, with the tokenized layer adding smart contract and custodial risk on top.
Some tokenized bond products are included within the broader fixed-income ETFs available through Ondo Global Markets on MetaMask, such as bond-focused ETF tokens (e.g., TLT, AGG).
Several additional asset classes are being tokenized, though they remain in earlier stages of adoption with limited onchain value and infrastructure.Spiko has led efforts in tokenizing European sovereign debt and money market funds, including French and German government instruments. The category is small but growing as European regulatory frameworks (particularly MiCA) mature. Current holdings can be tracked on rwa.xyz.
Tokenized PE/VC products offer ownership in private companies or funds. Hamilton Lane's SCOPE fund (tokenized via Securitize on Ethereum, Polygon, and Optimism) and KKR's Health Care Strategic Growth Fund (on Avalanche) are among the earliest institutional examples. Access remains largely restricted to accredited or qualified purchasers.
Some tokenized products function as actively managed portfolios, dynamically allocating across asset classes. USDY (Ondo) operates as a yield-bearing note that could be categorized here. The distinction between "active strategies" and other categories is often blurry.Tokenized carbon credits aim to bring transparency to voluntary offset markets by recording retirement and transfer onchain. Toucan Protocol and KlimaDAO were early entrants, though the category experienced significant contraction after the 2022–2023 crypto downturn. Institutional interest is slowly returning.Fractional ownership of fine art and luxury collectibles exists through platforms like Masterworks (which uses blockchain-adjacent infrastructure) and various NFT-based approaches. Regulatory classification is often unclear, and secondary liquidity is minimal.All RWA categories share common risks including smart contract vulnerabilities, counterparty and custodial exposure, regulatory uncertainty, and liquidity constraints. For a detailed breakdown of these cross-cutting risks and how they apply to self-custody, see RWA tokens: what crypto wallet users need to know in 2026.
Different blockchains support different RWA categories, and availability varies by issuer and product. Network-level data can be explored on rwa.xyz.
Ethereum remains the dominant network for nearly every RWA category, hosting over 56% of all tokenized asset value. Its deep DeFi ecosystem allows tokenized assets to be used as collateral in lending protocols, traded on decentralized exchanges, and integrated into structured products.Stellar has strength in tokenized Treasury products, including Franklin Templeton's BENJI fund.Solana is expanding RWA support, with Ondo Global Markets tokens and Hamilton Lane's fund available on the network. Its low transaction costs make it attractive for smaller-value transfers.
Polygon, Avalanche, Arbitrum, and Base each host growing numbers of tokenized assets, with Base (a Coinbase-incubated Layer 2) gaining traction for institutional products.BNB Chain supports Ondo Global Markets tokens and has received regulatory approval for tokenized stocks and ETFs in Abu Dhabi.
Provenance (built on Cosmos SDK) is the primary network for Figure's private credit products but operates as a more permissioned environment.Crosschain interoperability protocols (such as Wormhole and LayerZero) are becoming increasingly important as the same asset may need to move between networks to access different liquidity pools or DeFi applications.As tokenized assets grow in institutional adoption, their interaction with traditional payment infrastructure becomes increasingly relevant. ISO 20022—the global financial messaging standard that replaced legacy SWIFT MT formats in November 2025—plays a role in how settlement data flows between onchain and offchain systems.
ISO 20022 is a messaging protocol, not an asset classification framework or certification system. It defines how financial institutions structure and exchange transaction data—including counterparty identifiers, compliance codes, and settlement details—in machine-readable formats. The standard doesn't certify, endorse, or categorize tokens or blockchains. However, its structured data format could improve how tokenized asset transactions are communicated between onchain settlement layers and traditional banking rails.Several blockchain protocols have built ISO 20022-compatible messaging layers. XRP (via RippleNet), Stellar (XLM), and XDC Network have each developed infrastructure for translating onchain transaction data into ISO 20022-formatted messages, positioning them as potential settlement rails for cross-border RWA transfers. Quant's Overledger platform takes an interoperability approach, mapping blockchain data structures to ISO 20022 messages for institutional use.For RWA categories specifically, this matters in scenarios involving cross-border settlement, institutional custody handoffs, and yield distribution workflows where structured payment messages need to flow between onchain smart contracts and traditional banking systems. As tokenized Treasuries, equities, and credit products scale, the ability to generate ISO 20022-compliant settlement messages from onchain transactions could reduce friction between DeFi and traditional finance infrastructure.The convergence is still early. Most tokenized asset settlement today occurs entirely onchain or through bespoke integrations with custodians and broker-dealers. But as both the RWA market and ISO 20022 adoption mature, the intersection could become a significant infrastructure layer—particularly for institutional participants who require standardized reporting and compliance audit trails.For a deeper look at how regulatory structures, yield distribution, and custody work across these categories, see RWA tokens: what crypto wallet users need to know in 2026.
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