RWA

Grayscale's 2026 outlook, published on Monday, projects Bitcoin to reach a new all‑time high in the first half of 2026, driven by institutional demand and clearer U.S. regulation. The report anticipates bipartisan market‑structure legislation and stablecoin growth under the GENIUS Act, alongside themes like tokenization and DeFi lending, while downplaying quantum computing and DATs as market drivers.

Tokyo-based SBI Holdings is partnering with Startale Group to issue a yen-denominated stablecoin in Q2 2026. According to the companies, Shinsei Trust & Banking will oversee issuance and redemption, while SBI VC Trade will manage circulation. The firms say the stablecoin market exceeds $300 billion and remains concentrated in U.S. dollar assets.

JPMorgan Chase has introduced the tokenized My OnChain Net Yield Fund on Ethereum with $100 million in internal seed capital, targeting institutional and high-net-worth investors. The fund, operated by JPMorgan Asset Management via the Kinexys platform, tokenizes money market fund shares and focuses on bond-based assets. Ethereum's role in on-chain financial products continues to grow as its market value and dominance evolve amid recent price declines.

Doha Bank completed a digitally native US dollar bond, issuing $150 million in floating-rate notes with T+0 settlement on Euroclear’s D-FMI. Standard Chartered served as sole global coordinator and arranger, and the notes were listed on the London Stock Exchange’s International Securities Market. The bank said the deal diversifies funding and expands its investor base.

Tokenized commodities reached $3.7B in December 2025, while tokenized stocks were around $808M. Tether's gold-backed tokens led commodity issuance, and platforms including Ondo ($368M) and XStocks ($300M) expanded supply. On December 12, 2025, XStocks introduced XBridge to link Solana and Ethereum for tokenized equities.

Hashdex released its 2026 crypto investment outlook, with CIO Samir Kerbage suggesting most investors consider a 5–10% crypto allocation. The report projects stablecoins rising from roughly $295 billion to well over $500 billion and tokenized RWAs reaching about $400 billion by end-2026, while AI-focused crypto grows from around $3 billion to $10 billion. A portfolio test shows adding the Nasdaq Crypto Index US to a 60/40 improved risk-adjusted returns, albeit with deeper drawdowns.

The SEC issued an investor bulletin on crypto asset custody, urging retail users to weigh security trade-offs and the consequences of private key loss. On December 13, 2025, the agency highlighted the guidance via its official account. In parallel, regulators advanced integration with banking, as the OCC conditionally approved five crypto firms for national trust bank status and the SEC cleared DTCC to tokenize select securities beginning in late 2026.

On December 14, 2025, Pakistan's finance ministry announced an MoU with Binance to advise on tokenizing up to $2 billion in state-owned assets. The non-binding pact envisions six months to finalize definitive agreements and is subject to regulatory approvals. Pakistan also granted No Objection Certificates to Binance and HTX to begin local licensing and AML registration.

On Dec. 12 in Islamabad, Pakistan's finance minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and Binance CEO Richard Teng signed an MOU to study tokenizing state-owned assets, including sovereign bonds, bills, and resource reserves. The multi-billion-dollar evaluation targets fractionalized, tradable instruments to widen investor access. Changpeng Zhao attended, as Pakistan develops a virtual assets authority with preliminary approvals for Binance and HTX.

A policy showdown has emerged in Washington as Citadel Securities and a coalition of DeFi groups submit opposing frameworks on how the SEC should regulate tokenized stocks. Citadel favors folding tokenized assets into existing securities rules, while the coalition argues open-source protocols and autonomous smart contracts should not be treated like broker-dealers.