The world of Real-World Assets (RWA) is undergoing a seismic shift. No longer confined to real estate and government bonds, RWA is breaking into previously unimaginable domains — from bluefin tuna fishing rights to concert intellectual property and personal health data. A recent X Space hosted by 1783DAO and BroadChain, titled "Beyond Real Estate, Bonds, and Charging Stations: What Industries Can Be Tokenized?", brought together over a dozen industry leaders to explore the next wave of asset tokenization.
Moderated by Web3 Miya, the discussion featured insights from Blade (Co-Founder of 1783DAO), Louis Liu (Web3Link & TopFund), Tony Fu (RWA Group), Robin (BFG Labs), and other key figures in Web3, finance, and regulatory innovation. The core takeaway? RWA is evolving from a niche concept into a transformative financial infrastructure — one that could redefine how value is created, shared, and traded globally.
👉 Discover how tokenized assets are reshaping global finance — explore the future of RWAs today.
Beyond Real Estate: The Rise of Novel RWA Assets
While real estate and corporate bonds have dominated early RWA experiments, the panel spotlighted emerging use cases with profound implications.
One standout example was the **$Tuna project**, a pioneering initiative that tokenizes Australian southern bluefin tuna fishing quotas. With only 2,530 tons of global catch allowed annually by the Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT), scarcity drives value. The $Tuna team acquires these quotas, tokenizes them, and distributes returns through a three-layer value chain:
- Base Layer – Rental Yield: Investors earn 4.5%–6% annual returns from leasing fishing rights.
- Middle Layer – Consumer Market Integration: Processed tuna is sold via major platforms like Hema and Dingdong Maicai, generating additional revenue.
- Top Layer – Biomedical Innovation: Collaboration with global universities extracts "plasmalogens" from tuna — compounds now being used in Alzheimer’s supplements, set for market release in July 2025.
This vertically integrated model not only enhances yield but also promotes sustainable fishing practices — proving that RWA can align profit with purpose.
Other innovative assets discussed included:
- Concert IP tokenization, enabling fans to crowdfund events and share in ticket and merchandise revenues.
- Health data monetization, where individuals tokenize their anonymized medical records for pharmaceutical research.
- Luxury timber assets, such as golden nanmu wood, appraised by PwC and brought on-chain.
These examples signal a broader trend: any asset with predictable cash flow, digital traceability, and global demand can become an RWA.
The Compliance Conundrum: Innovation vs. Regulation
Despite rapid technological progress, regulatory frameworks lag behind.
Blade emphasized that “innovation is outpacing regulation” — a recurring theme across jurisdictions. While IEEE is working on RWA protocol standards for data provenance and asset verification, implementation remains fragmented.
In Hong Kong, companies face high barriers to entry: launching a compliant RWA product costs around HKD 4 million, excluding ongoing compliance overheads. This makes it nearly impossible for SMEs to participate.
Meanwhile, liquidity remains critically low. OSL and HashKey — Hong Kong’s two licensed crypto exchanges — report daily RWA trading volumes under $1 million, far below traditional markets.
Louis Liu highlighted a deeper structural issue: the absence of market makers. Without active liquidity providers, even well-designed RWAs struggle to gain traction. He proposed a dual-track approach:
- Compliance Track: Use regulated platforms like OSL to issue tokenized U.S. Treasuries for professional investors.
- Innovation Track: Leverage high-speed blockchains like Solana to launch non-standard assets (e.g., concert royalties) in sandbox environments.
To bridge this gap, TopFund is reportedly collaborating with Bybit to launch an RWA Market Making Fund, targeting long-tail assets with high growth potential but poor liquidity.
What Makes an Asset Ideal for Tokenization?
The panel converged on three key criteria for viable RWA candidates:
- Yield Threshold: Must generate at least 9%–10% returns to justify blockchain integration costs.
- Digital Native Potential: Should be easily measurable and verifiable via IoT or ERP systems.
- Global Liquidity: Capable of attracting cross-border investors.
Stock tokenization emerged as a particularly promising frontier. Though FTX’s earlier attempt failed due to inadequate market making, platforms like Bybit may now have the infrastructure to succeed.
Similarly, concert economics offer massive upside. With a $30 billion global market** and **70% of profits captured by scalpers**, fan-powered RWA models could redistribute value directly to supporters — potentially birthing the first **$1 billion non-standard RWA.
FAQs:
- Q: Can personal data really be tokenized safely?
A: Yes — through zero-knowledge proofs and decentralized identity systems, users can monetize anonymized health or behavioral data without exposing privacy. - Q: Are tokenized assets legally recognized?
A: In regulated jurisdictions like Hong Kong and Singapore, yes — provided they comply with securities laws and custodial requirements. - Q: How do investors get paid from RWAs?
A: Through smart contracts that automate dividend or interest distribution, often pegged to stablecoins for ease of transfer.
Franchise-Style RWAs: Stable Cash Flows Meet Blockchain Transparency
Beyond exotic assets, the discussion turned to more predictable revenue streams:
- Charging station operations
- Mining farm yields
- Fishing quota leases
These “franchise-class” RWAs share common traits:
- Steady 5%–15% annual returns
- IoT-enabled real-time performance tracking
- Automated payouts via smart contracts
Tony Fu revealed that RWA Group is partnering with entities linked to Jia Yueting (LeEco founder) on an upcoming project expected to launch in Q3 2025 — signaling growing institutional interest in income-generating physical assets.
Global RWA Ecosystems: Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai Compared
Each major hub offers distinct advantages:
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But summarizing without tables:
- Hong Kong: Strong ties to mainland China’s capital base and state-owned enterprise pipelines, but hampered by fragmented exchange liquidity and retail access restrictions.
- Singapore: MAS-backed “Project Guardian” has launched tokenized money market funds (4.2% yield, 24/7 redemption), appealing to conservative institutions.
- Dubai: VARA’s regulatory sandbox allows full asset tokenization — including equities — with retail participation. Its risk-friendly climate attracts frontier projects.
Louis Liu advocated for a tiered regulatory model in Hong Kong, combining strict compliance for standard assets (e.g., U.S. Treasuries) with innovation sandboxes for carbon credits or IP-based RWAs.
He also disclosed ongoing work with Hong Kong authorities on an RWA Liquidity Incentive Program, offering fee rebates to market makers — a move that could dramatically boost trading activity.
Technology as the Final Bridge: IoT, Oracles, and Hybrid Models
Blade stressed that oracles and IoT devices are closing the gap between physical assets and blockchain verification. For instance, $Tuna plans to install sensors on fishing vessels to stream real-time catch data — ensuring transparency and trust.
Future applications could extend to:
- Real-time energy output from solar farms
- Occupancy rates in commercial buildings
- Machine productivity in smart factories
Three technical pathways were identified to solve liquidity:
- Dedicated RWA market-making funds
- Cross-chain liquidity aggregators (akin to 1inch in DeFi)
- Hybrid NFT-collateralized lending models to improve capital efficiency
RWA: A Quiet Financial Revolution
The consensus was clear: RWA is not just digitizing old assets — it’s redefining global capital flows.
As Louis Liu put it: “Tokenization will reconstruct the global liquidity order.”
From tuna quotas to concert tickets, the boundary of what can be owned, traded, and monetized is expanding. Giants like BlackRock and Ant Group entering the space validate its mainstream potential.
For investors: opportunities span low-risk U.S. Treasury tokens to high-upside ventures like $Tuna.
For regulators: the challenge lies in protecting investors without stifling innovation.
And for builders? The time is now.
As叶开 (Ye Kai) concluded: “The theme of finance over the next 20 years will be tokenization — the key is knowing when to enter each asset class.”