Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has once again drawn attention to the tokenization of real-world assets, calling it a key driver for attracting global investment. However, in his view, the industry will face a serious obstacle—issuing assets on multiple blockchains simultaneously, which will inevitably lead to liquidity fragmentation.
Zhao is actively promoting tokenization as a tool for states seeking to increase inflows of foreign direct investment (FDI). He emphasizes that the ability to sell tokenized shares worldwide is a unique opportunity for countries and companies to attract capital that was previously inaccessible due to geographic and regulatory barriers. In this context, he is already advising the authorities of Pakistan and Kyrgyzstan on digital asset regulation, and in June he proposed similar initiatives to the governments of these countries.
The market is growing, but risks remain
My analysis confirms: the market for tokenized real-world assets (RWA) continues to expand steadily. Over the past 30 days, the value of tokenized assets has grown by 2.16%, reaching $38.4 billion. At the same time, the number of holders has increased by 79.74%—to 2.379 million—indicating growing interest from retail investors. However, the total value of listed assets has declined by 4.66%, to $342.63 billion, which may point to a redistribution of capital within the sector.
Zhao sees fragmentation as the main problem. Issuing the same asset on multiple blockchains without proper interconnection creates isolated liquidity pools, which increases operational costs and reduces market efficiency. Major financial infrastructure players, including Clearstream, DTCC, and Euroclear, have also raised this issue, dedicating a separate report to it together with Boston Consulting Group. The report emphasizes that fragmentation "locks" assets in separate ecosystems, preventing their free circulation.
Zhao himself is optimistic: he believes that as the number of market participants grows, issuers will learn to interact with each other, and the fragmentation problem will be resolved. In his words, high interchangeability among issuers will become a key factor for the industry's development.
Expert opinion
I share Zhao's optimism, but with a caveat: until a unified standard for interaction between blockchains is established, fragmentation will remain the main obstacle to institutional adoption. However, the current growth dynamics of holders and market volume show that tokenization's potential is enormous, and those who first solve the interoperability problem will gain a significant competitive advantage. Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev has also supported tokenization, calling it the best way to modernize the U.S. financial system, which only confirms the systemic shift in the industry.