RWA market hits $51B as tokenized private credits surges: Bernstein
Bernstein says the tokenized RWA market has reached $51 billion, led by private credit and Figure's blockchain-based lending stack.
Intelligence analysis by GPT-5.4 Mini
Bernstein’s latest view puts tokenized real-world assets at $51 billion, with private credit now the biggest slice. The report says Figure leads RWA platforms, while BlackRock’s BUIDL and onchain derivatives activity add to broader adoption.
A big report says a new kind of digital finance market is getting much bigger. It is about putting real things like loans and treasury assets onto blockchain systems.
The biggest part right now is private credit, which is like people lending money directly instead of only using a bank. One company, Figure, is leading that part.
It is a bit like moving from paper tickets to digital ones for a whole stadium. Different counters may count the tickets differently, but the crowd is clearly growing.
Analysis
Market size and mix
Bernstein says the tokenized real-world asset market has grown to $51 billion, up 42% this year. In its view, private credit is now the largest category, making up about 44% of total RWA value. That puts lending and fund structures ahead of tokenized treasuries, which the report says remain the second-largest segment at roughly 30%.
Why private credit is leading
The report frames private credit as a strong fit for tokenization because it connects investors seeking yield with businesses seeking financing. Bernstein points to Figure Technology Solutions as the main driver in this segment. Figure reportedly leads tokenized RWA platforms with $18 billion in assets, much of it tied to private credit. The report says Figure has tokenized $5 billion in consumer loans in 2026 so far, with April monthly loan volume hitting $1.3 billion. It also says Figure’s Connect marketplace accounted for 56% of loan volumes in Q1 2026.
Bigger institutional adoption
Bernstein also says institutional activity is spreading through tokenized money-market and fund products. It cites BlackRock’s BUIDL, which has passed $2.5 billion in assets. On the platform side, Securitize and Paxos are described as holding about $4.2 billion each across asset types including treasuries, commodities, and stocks.
What the report is really saying
A key point is that the market size depends heavily on methodology. Bernstein’s $51 billion estimate is well above RWA.xyz’s $34 billion figure, which suggests some providers count tokenized exposure differently. The report also points to Hyperliquid as a leading venue for onchain RWA derivatives, saying open interest reached $2.6 billion in May and April trading volume totaled $65 billion. Overall, the piece argues that blockchain is becoming a core infrastructure layer for capital markets, not just a niche experiment.
Key points
- Bernstein says the tokenized RWA market has reached $51 billion and is up 42% this year.
- Private credit is now the largest RWA segment, accounting for about 44% of value in the report.
- Figure Technology Solutions leads tokenized RWA platforms with $18 billion in assets, mostly tied to private credit.
- BlackRock’s tokenized money-market fund BUIDL has passed $2.5 billion in assets, according to the report.
- Bernstein says onchain RWA derivatives activity on Hyperliquid is growing, with $2.6 billion in open interest in May.
