Real World Assets (RWA) tokenization is reshaping the global financial landscape at an unprecedented speed and depth. Robinhood, which once disrupted the U.S. securities industry with its zero-commission model, is now presenting a more imaginative vision: to fully push stocks, derivatives, and even private equity onto the blockchain through tokenization, ultimately creating a new Layer 2 public chain capable of supporting global real assets—Robinhood Chain. Meanwhile, traditional financial institutions like SIFMA have expressed concerns over the exemption requests for tokenized stocks issued by crypto companies, highlighting the complexities of compliance and regulation in the development of RWA. This article will delve into the latest developments in RWA tokenization, its disruptive impact on traditional finance, and explore the future direction of this deep integration and competition, incorporating expert opinions.
At the Cannes press conference, Robinhood elaborated on its grand blueprint for building an "on-chain brokerage," aiming to break down the barriers of traditional finance and achieve comprehensive asset tokenization through blockchain technology.
Targeting the European Market: Pioneers in Tokenizing U.S. Stocks and Private Equity
Robinhood views European users as the vanguard of its tokenization strategy, due to the relatively clear regulatory environment provided by the EU's MiCA legislation. Robinhood announced the launch of tokenized trading for over 200 U.S. stocks and ETFs, based on Arbitrum Layer 2, with plans to expand to more assets by the end of the year. These tokenized stocks support real-time dividends and stock splits, allowing users to seamlessly access a 24/5 tradable market for U.S. stock tokens. Notably, Robinhood announced that starting July 7, European users will be able to claim the first batch of tokenized equity in SpaceX and OpenAI. This means Robinhood is breaking the traditional model of private equity, which has long been monopolized by the wealthy and institutions, by opening shares of the world's most notable tech startups to retail users in token form, achieving "equal access" to a previously high-threshold, low-liquidity private market through tokenization.
Targeting the U.S. Market: Advanced Crypto Trading and AI Empowerment
In the U.S. market, Robinhood is solidifying its position as the "preferred platform for active traders" through advanced tools and richer investment scenarios. This includes launching staking products (initially supporting ETH and SOL, removing minimum staking thresholds and providing rewards), introducing Smart Exchange Routing functionality (to find optimal liquidity across multiple exchanges), and releasing the AI investment assistant Cortex (which provides Robinhood Gold users with comprehensive analysis of market dynamics, on-chain events, token news, etc.). Additionally, the Robinhood Gold credit card will add a "crypto cashback" feature, aiming to seamlessly connect users' daily lives with on-chain asset management.
Global Strategic Core: Robinhood Chain
All these products will ultimately converge into Robinhood's "global chessboard"—Robinhood Chain. This is a Layer 2 public chain evolved from the Arbitrum technology stack, positioned by Robinhood as "the first Layer 2 public chain dedicated to real assets." It will not only support Robinhood's tokenized stock trading but will also facilitate the tokenization of a full range of real assets in the future, including real estate, bonds, artworks, and carbon credits. The goal of Robinhood Chain is to become a public chain ecosystem open to global developers, allowing third-party projects to issue real asset tokens on it, ultimately achieving self-custody transfer capabilities for tokens and cross-chain migration.
RWA tokenization is predicted by Ripple and BCG to reach a market size of $18.9 trillion by 2033, showcasing its immense potential. However, this trend has also raised concerns among traditional financial institutions and prompted profound industry reflections.
SIFMA's Concerns: Compliance and Investor Protection
The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) has written to the SEC's cryptocurrency working group, opposing the exemption requests for tokenized stocks from crypto companies like Coinbase and Kraken. SIFMA stated that the related requests are "seriously concerning" and called for the SEC to gather public input through an open process to avoid rapid approvals in an opaque manner. SIFMA emphasized that such significant policies should not be handled directly through "exemptions" and questioned whether the SEC can regulate unregistered entities and protect investor rights. This reflects traditional finance's deep concerns that RWA tokenization may bypass existing regulatory frameworks, leading to investor protection and market risk issues.
Matt Levine's Sharp Insight: Tokenization as a Modern Narrative of "Avoiding Disclosure Rules"
Bloomberg opinion columnist Matt Levine provided a profound analysis of RWA tokenization in his article. He pointed out that the core of the U.S. securities market's century-long history is mandatory disclosure to protect investors. However, the private market has now become a new "public market," where many star private companies (like SpaceX and OpenAI) can secure massive funding without going public, leaving ordinary investors with no access. Levine believes that tokenization offers a "shortcut" by raising funds through issuing "tokens" (economic rights certificates similar to stocks) without adhering to securities laws. He sharply noted that major players in finance, such as BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, promote tokenization partly to "avoid disclosure rules." Levine concluded that "allowing the public to invest in private companies" is paradoxical because the core characteristic of private companies is that they are not open to the public and are not subject to the disclosure obligations of public companies. Therefore, "allowing the public to invest in private companies" is equivalent to "permitting companies to sell shares to the public without disclosing information." He argued that saying "we should abolish disclosure rules" sounds terrible, while saying "tokenization" sounds good, modern, and cool, but in essence, it may be seeking a way to abolish the information disclosure and trading rules of the stock market, making the stock market more like cryptocurrency rather than making cryptocurrency more like a regulated stock market.
Despite facing regulatory and ideological battles, RWA tokenization is still accelerating its implementation globally.
Active Exploration in the Asian Market: On July 2, Hong Kong's Derlin Holdings announced a strategic cooperation memorandum with fintech company Asseto Fintech Limited, which focuses on RWA tokenization, to jointly develop RWA tokenization solutions in the Asian market and promote the adoption of compliant digital asset products and services, including stablecoin applications and DeFi integration. On the same day, Matrixport Ventures, as an important initiative to support the digitalization of RWA, strategically allocated part of its investment portfolio to tokenized gold, investing $3 million in XAUm launched by Matrixdock, which is backed by LBMA-certified 99.99% pure gold.
The Prototype of "On-Chain Brokerage": Robinhood's strategic layout, especially the launch of Robinhood Chain, indicates that the prototype of an "on-chain brokerage" is taking shape. It is not only Robinhood's own "Layer 2 settlement network" but will also become a public chain ecosystem open to global developers, allowing third-party projects to issue real asset tokens on it. This model forms direct competition with the RWA strategies actively explored by Coinbase, Kraken, and others, but Robinhood possesses brokerage qualifications and a complete compliance brokerage chain, giving it a unique advantage in bridging the compliance channels between traditional finance and blockchain.
The wave of RWA tokenization is profoundly changing the underlying logic of the financial world. Innovators like Robinhood are actively exploring ways to break down the barriers of traditional finance, achieving comprehensive asset tokenization and inclusivity. However, the concerns of traditional institutions like SIFMA, along with the profound insights of experts like Matt Levine, remind us that the development of RWA is not a smooth path; it involves complex issues of regulation, compliance, and investor protection. This evolution from zero commission to "on-chain brokerage" is a microcosm of the deep integration and competition between traditional finance and the crypto world. In the future, whether RWA can truly realize its potential will depend on how to find a balance between innovation and regulation, building a new ecosystem for digital assets that is both efficient and secure.
Related: OpenAI states that tokenized stocks on Robinhood do not represent company equity.
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