📊 Equities Come Onchain

RWA World Newsletter - Sept 12, 2025

Author

Ray Buckton
September 12, 2025

Another week means another Friday, and Ray Buckton, Head of Research at RWA World, is roaring to go! 🦁

🎯🔥 Rapid Fire Takeaways:

They’re not alone, either. Fairmint has been working on this for seven years – with over $1 billion in volume and a transfer agent license, they recently launched Observer Nodes on the Canton Network. Make sure to listen to CEO Joris’ Fireside Chat at the upcoming RWA Summit on September 17th. 👀

If this conversation excites you, join us on Thursday at 2 pm EDT on Wolf Crypto. We can get you on the panel if you’re building in RWA. 🐺

🏛️ Govs, Regs, and Associations

Tokenzied asset regulations continue to expand globally, particularly in the US, as Senate Democrats have set the stage for bipartisan talks with their crypto market structure framework. The path to compliant DeFi is now clear post-GENIUS Act, with SEC Chair Atkins decrying the “endless legal uncertainty.” All the while, Wyoming’s Frontier stablecoin on Hedera pits public money against private stablecoins. Further afield, Argentina is diving into tokenized securities, Nigeria is wary of digital currencies, and in Russia, Sberbank is launching crypto derivatives. 🗺️

Asia is a hotbed for RWA activity, with Kazakhstan piloting USD-pegged stablecoins and launching a digital asset framework and crypto reserve by 2026. Vietnam kicked off a 5-year crypto market pilot as Australia opined on the security and rights of digital currencies. Japan’s 20% flat tax on crypto is a hit, and Hong Kong is again in the limelight, becoming a multicurrency stablecoin hub. With the HKMA issuing limited stablecoin licenses while easing capital rules for banks holding crypto, it’s little wonder why funds like Guofu are going full RWA. 🌏

📰 Tokenization Development

Not a week goes by without big funding, and with rounds now clocking in closer to $1 billion, the industry is reaching new heights: 

But why invest when you can buy outright? Sometimes, a good old-fashioned buyout or strategic majority stake does the trick better than a strategic investment: 

When investment or acquisition is off the table, collaboration can work just as well, as evidenced by the following big moves: 

Acquisitions, investments, and partnerships, oh my! Talk about a yellow brick road leading to the Land of Oz… or in this case, the land of tokenized assets. 🧱

👛 Stablecoins

What a week for stablecoins, with Ethereum’s supply surging $1 billion daily to over $165 billion. Initiatives like Fireblocks’ institutional stablecoin network and Mega Matrix’s $2 billion SEC registration are helping fuel the growth. Deutsche Bank outlines how stablecoins are going mainstream, and Berstein is confident Circle and others can keep growing. However, USDH is a contender with Sky tapping its $8 billion balance sheet and Paxos working with PayPal and Venmo on USDH rails. Interoperability is also winning, with Tether’s USDT now seamless on Tron and USDD on Ethereum. No wonder Figure Technologies upsized its IPO. 👍

Regarding interoperability, Plume welcomes native USDC, as Hyperliquid also powers validators for USDH. New stablecoins are also prevalent, with MegaETH launching a native stablecoin with Ethena and Concordium launching three new stablecoins. US Credit Union will launch CLDUSD in Q4 2025, while Almanak kicked off its alUSD on Pendle. Tetra Digital Group wants regulated issuance in Canada, while South Korean fintech Toss is exploring a won stablecoin and an Australian debut. With Rapyd introducing stablecoin payments and Fiserv revealing its plans, it’s clear why PayPal calls AI-powered stablecoin agents a “killer combo” for the global economy. 🤖

Emerging economies are going all in. Stablecoins comprised 43% of Africa’s crypto transactions in 2024, and RLUSD is now entering the continent. In South America, Venezuela is turning to USDT for crude oil settlements as “Binance Dollars” replace the hyperinflating bolivar. Kazakhstan approved stablecoins for regulatory fee payments following Elliptic's crime-tracking tools for stablecoins. And while euro stablecoins run into liquidity issues, regulations open more paths to maturity as incumbents like Visa take strategic positions and Stripe outlines business interests. 💳

🆕 New Platforms, Programs, Tools, and Integrations

Lots of progress this week, with Onino integrating Genesys Chain for RWA DeFi, and BBVA integrating Ripple for a retail crypto push in Spain. No shortage of new launches this week, either: 

The industry is maturing faster than ever, from hardware wallet infrastructure to network upgrades and custodial solutions. 🌱

🥧 RWA Sectors & Ecosystems

This week's bits and bobs include Thiel calling Ethereum Wall Street’s new base layer and 1Money securing 34 US money transmitter licenses. Do they think they’re Pokémon cards or something? Bakkt’s licenses also support its new model, as Broadridge’s DLR platform revealed that it is processing over $280 billion in average daily repo transactions. 

Trump Media unveiled a strategic CRO acquisition, and HashKey launched a $500 million treasury fund for institutional crypto exposure. While crypto treasuries are still hot, tokenzied equity is the industry's darling. Fairmint’s Observer Nodes on Canton is one of the blockbuster reveals this week – their seven-point letter to the SEC on modernizing equity markets is a banger you need to read. There’s a big difference between synthetic wrappers and genuine tokenized equity, and understanding what you’re buying when you buy a token is key. 🔑

After you dive down that rabbit hole, note that Republic launched a tokenized secondary offering for SpaceX and Ondo Finance launched tokenized US stocks and ETFs on Ethereum. Tokenized stocks are everywhere – Sui recently launched some, Kraken kicked off their own in the EU, and Bitgit is getting involved. With Bitfinex Securities nearing the $250 million milestone, Fidelity’s tokenized fund surpassing $200 million, and Nasdaq’s SEC filing, things are just getting started. 💹

Stocks aren’t the only things getting tokenized. Private credit is undergoing a quiet revolution, while Tether is bringing gobs of gold onchain and Matrixport and the HKUST Institute released a great research report on the topic. RWAs are becoming the new trust layer for ESG assets, as Diginex is using DLT to verify projects, and Ant Digital brings $8 billion in energy assets onchain. ⛓️

🛸 Beam Me Up, Scotty

That’s all for this week, folks.

If you’re in NYC next week, attend the RWA Summit and hear what Fairmint has been working on for the past seven years. 

Bringing genuine equity onchain is no small feat, and it's worth getting a glimpse into the future of tokenized equity markets and beyond.

See you there! 👋