What is RWA? How will RWA trigger the next financial revolution when gold and real estate are 'on-chain'?

"The financing entity has shifted from enterprises to quality assets," summarized Zhao Wenbiao, CEO of Ant Group's Digital Technology, on the essential difference of RWA (Real World Assets tokenization). He compared this innovation to a "mini-IPO," which has completely changed the rules of the traditional financing game.

Langxin Technology uses over 9,000 new energy charging piles as anchor assets to issue RWA and easily raise 100 million yuan on the blockchain; a vineyard in Jiading, Shanghai has its entire process from planting to harvesting recorded on-chain, successfully issuing 10 million RWA tokens which were subscribed by international capital. These cases are redefining the way we understand asset liquidity.

Deconstructing RWA, a New Wave of On-Chain Assets

RWA is essentially the digital migration of asset rights. It transforms tangible or intangible assets in the real world—real estate, commodities, bonds, artworks, and even future income rights from charging stations and vineyards—into on-chain digital tokens through blockchain technology.

This process is called "Tokenization," which gives physical world assets the digital characteristics of being divisible, programmable, and globally transferable.

The core differences between traditional financing and RWA financing are significant. Traditional finance heavily relies on the creditworthiness of the entity (such as corporate ratings), banks require strong guarantees or even counter-guarantee measures for lending, which results in high thresholds and lengthy processes.

RWA shifts to the credit of the assets themselves: As long as the project is of high quality and has stable revenue expectations, tokens can be issued on-chain to raise funds from global investors. Wang Wei, CTO of Ant Group, pointed out: "Similar to corporate financing, due diligence is required, and physical asset financing also needs credible investigation, while Web3 technology solves the credibility issue of physical assets."

##Why is RWA needed? Value and risk coexist

The explosion of RWA stems from its ability to address pain points in traditional finance. Boston Consulting Group (BCG) predicts that by 2030, the global RWA market size could reach $16 trillion, accounting for 10% of global GDP. Citigroup estimates that the tokenization of assets of private non-listed companies will grow more than 80 times by 2030, reaching approximately $4 trillion. Its core advantages are reflected in five dimensions:

• Lowering barriers: Properties or bulk commodities worth millions can be divided into small tokens (e.g., $100/share), allowing retail investors to participate.
• Enhance liquidity: Illiquid assets (such as real estate and accounts receivable) can be traded on-chain 24/7, shortening the liquidation period.
• Breaking geographical barriers: The global interoperability of blockchain makes cross-border investment more convenient.
• Enhance transparency and security: Transaction data on the chain is immutable, and smart contracts automatically execute profit sharing, reducing the risk of human intervention.
• Reduce costs: Disintermediation eliminates high fees from banks, lawyers, and others.

The risks cannot be ignored:

• Regulatory ambiguity: Many countries have not clarified the RWA legal framework, making cross-border compliance complex.
• Trust Risk: The authenticity of assets relies on the issuer and third-party audits. If the custodian falsifies information, the on-chain tokens will lose their support.
• Technical vulnerabilities: If a smart contract has flaws, it may be attacked by hackers.
• Asset volatility: The physical value may depreciate (e.g., real estate prices drop by 15%), requiring dynamic assessment.

##Famous RWA Project Panorama The RWA ecosystem has formed a diverse array of tracks, with the following being representative projects:

Gold Token: The "hard currency" of tangible assets

• PAX Gold (PAXG): Issued by Paxos, each token is backed by 1 troy ounce of physical gold stored in London, and redemption is supported.
• Tether Gold (XAUT): Launched by Tether, backed by gold stored in Swiss vaults, it stands alongside PAXG as a mainstream gold token.

Bond Token: U.S. Treasury Yields "Democratized"

• Ondo Finance (OUSG): Tokenized short-term US Treasury bonds, with an annual yield of approximately 5.1%, and a minimum investment threshold of $500.
• Franklin FOBXX: A tokenized government money market fund, with 99.5% of assets allocated to U.S. Treasury securities and cash, available for subscription at $20.

Innovation in Physical Assets: Breakthroughs in Micro Financing

• Langxin Technology Charging Pile RWA: Anchored by the future income rights of over 9,000 charging piles, raised 100 million yuan in Hong Kong financing through Ant Chain technology, pioneering the tokenization of domestic new energy assets.
• RealT Property Token: Segregates independent property ownership, allowing token holders to receive rent proportionally, achieving a "fragmented landlord" model.

Alternative Asset Expansion: Agriculture and Carbon Credits

• Shanghai Jiading Vineyard: The entire process of grape planting is on-chain, issuing 10 million RWA financing for expansion.
• Tokenization of carbon credits: Xiao Gang mentioned that carbon credits, as intangible assets, can release value through RWA.

Hong Kong Sandbox and the Path to Compliance, RWA's Future Anchor Point

Hong Kong is becoming a testing ground for RWA compliance. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has launched the Ensemble project sandbox, with Langxin Technology's case selected as one of the first projects, building a "two chains and one bridge" architecture:

• Asset Chain (Mainland): Physical assets are tokenized into tradable digital products.
• Transaction Chain (Hong Kong): Fiat currency tokenization, completing cross-border transactions within the sandbox.

This design provides a model for RWA cross-border flows. Xiao Gang emphasized that the regulatory focus should be on "asset authenticity, compliance, and volatility," and that risks should be strictly controlled off-chain while curbing speculation on-chain.

##RWA Future Outlook Goldman Sachs, HSBC, and UBS have been competing to bring gold ownership and bond tokenization onto the blockchain. Yan Ying, Chief Scientist of Ant Chain, stated that "extreme performance and security are the eternal pursuit of Web3 technology."

As the blockchain architecture with a hundred thousand TPS performance and PB-level data processing matures, the future收益 of charging stations, vineyards, and even a forest will be transformed into flowing code on the chain.

When the value of the real world is reprogrammed, what we hold is no longer cold receipts, but real verifiable asset fragments - this is the financial equality future promised by RWA.

Author: Blog Team *This content does not constitute any offer, solicitation, or recommendation. You should always seek independent professional advice before making any investment decisions. *Please note that Gate may restrict or prohibit all or part of the services from restricted areas. Please read the user agreement for more information, link: