Over three years ago, BlackRock’s Larry Fink predicted that the “next generation for markets … will be [the] tokenisation of securities.”
That forecast is now a commercial reality.
Distributed tokenised asset value reached over $34 billion in May 2026, and early launches from BlackRock, Fidelity Investments, and Apollo are proving the model works. A recent survey found that 77% of asset managers say tokenisation is a “key trend that justifies immediate action.”
A powerful convergence is underway. Firms are using tokenised distribution as the fastest route into digital assets, while a maturing DeFi ecosystem needs blockchain-native tools for treasury management. This approach has become the essential bridge between TradFi and DeFi, connecting two worlds that have largely operated apart.
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Tokenised distribution as the entry point
The long-term vision involves digitalising the entire asset management value chain, but the immediate practical entry point is distribution. Managers can take existing funds and issue them in token form without overhauling major infrastructure. Only the fund unit is tokenised, leaving the underlying fund structure and administration unchanged.
Calastone’s research forecasts that tokenised fund AUM will grow from $4 billion in 2024 to $235 billion by 2029 – a 58-fold increase. Solutions like its Tokenised Distribution are enabling this boom by leveraging the world’s largest funds network. Recent deployments already validate the model, including Legal & General making £50 billion in liquidity fund assets available via that network.
How DeFi demand is driving supply
Alongside institutional adoption, demand from the DeFi ecosystem is becoming an important driver. Tether, the largest stablecoin issuer, now holds $127 billion in US Treasury bills, making it a larger buyer than Canada, Taiwan, Mexico, Norway and Hong Kong. But these digital-native organisations face a challenge: a lack of blockchain-compatible tools for treasury management.
Our research found that 75% of DeFi platforms currently hold cash in traditional money market funds (MMFs) or bank deposits. The very platforms that helped pioneer decentralised finance are forced to resort to traditional intermediaries to manage their own assets, undermining liquidity and settlement speed. Tokenised MMFs combine the safety and yield of traditional finance with on-chain settlement, digital wallet integration, and stablecoin compatibility.
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It’s a neat alignment of interests. The vast majority (80%) of these platforms believe tokenised MMFs could benefit their treasury management – not just to manage assets more effectively but also to retain clients (75%) and attract new investors (40%). This matches asset managers’ own priorities: MMFs and private asset funds are the top products they want to tokenise.
What’s happening here is more than a simple product launch. The flow of capital from one side to the other is creating a new kind of financial infrastructure that neither traditional nor decentralised finance could build alone. Asset managers get a new distribution channel; DeFi platforms get the sophisticated on-chain tools they’ve been missing. It’s a symbiotic relationship still in its early stages.
Partnerships, speed, and flexibility
Managers are prioritising speed to market, choosing collaboration over building in-house.
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