Tokenization of RWA will bring $44 billion annually to the UK economy by 2035 — a digital leap plan.
The UK is betting on the tokenization of real-world assets (RWA) as a key driver of economic growth. According to a new strategic plan developed by the kingdom's digital markets representative, Chris Woolard, the adoption of blockchain technologies in the financial sector could add up to £33 billion (approximately $44 billion) to the country's economy annually by 2035.
This document is not just a declaration of intent. It is a detailed one-year roadmap aimed at transitioning the industry from fragmented pilot projects to full-scale, widespread use of distributed ledgers in finance. This is about a systemic change in the rules of the game.
Key stages of the plan
The strategy includes several specific and measurable steps. Among them:
- Launching testing of repo operations using digital securities.
- Issuing the first tokenized government bond — with a deadline of the end of the first quarter of 2027.
- Developing and implementing a regulatory framework for secondary trading of digital assets.
- Legal recognition of tokens as collateral by the Bank of England.
The working group includes over 50 leading financial institutions and technology companies, including JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, BlackRock, and Ripple. The latter have already actively commented on the initiative: in their view, on-chain funds and bonds are no longer experiments. They are mature instruments that operate "cheaper, better, and faster" than their traditional counterparts.
The plan's authors emphasize: by 2035, tokenization of real-world assets could account for up to 16% of the total global investment volume. For London to maintain its status as a global financial center, the technology must be integrated into the country's legal and tax framework within the next two years. Woolard states directly: the UK must "move at the speed of the most agile players," otherwise it risks losing the global race for digital markets.
This plan is a logical continuation of the country's Treasury initiative in April to unify the regulation of traditional services, stablecoins, and tokenized deposits into a single legal framework.
My comment: This move by London is not just a catch-up reaction, but a deliberate attempt to take a leading position. If the UK can indeed create a clear and stimulating regulatory environment for RWAs within the next two years, it will be a powerful signal for institutional capital. The market is waiting not just for experiments, but for a working infrastructure, and the British plan looks like one of the most well-developed to date.