Only redemptions, no trading? BlackRock's RWA beneficiaries and how to find the real market leader

Summary

Kim Jun-woo, CEO of Zangle, examines the RWA tokenization landscape, identifying Securitize and Coinbase as leading beneficiaries of the trend. He explains why Securitize’s issuance model and Coinbase’s regulated infrastructure position them to capture institutional flows as the market grows, while noting the early stage of secondary trading and the need for regulatory clarity.

• RWA tokenization market remains extremely small, with total on-chain equity RWA around 3 trillion won, offering a long runway.
• Securitize is a pure-play RWA issuance platform, public on NYSE with Hanwha as a major strategic shareholder.
• Coinbase’s regulated model and direct asset pegging are seen as the preferred infrastructure for institutional RWA participation.
• Robinhood has attracted over 300k RWA accounts but average balances are tiny, showing early retail interest without deep liquidity.
• Secondary markets for tokenized assets are still undeveloped; most investors hold to maturity or redeem directly.
• Global demand for Korean assets (e.g., K-pop, games, Samsung) may drive early tokenization on overseas regulated platforms.
• Follow-on investments by strategic players like Hanwha serve as a quality signal for early-stage RWA companies.