The global market for tokenized real-world assets (RWA) will be valued at between $3 trillion and $10 trillion by 2030, according to Morgan Stanley. Amy Oldenburg, the bank’s head of digital asset strategy, told attendees at TOKEN2049 that the securities industry was expecting to see exponential growth in this space as it prepared to embrace the tokenization of financial products.
This projection comes as the Wall Street behemoth prepares to enter the fray of blockchain-based finance. Tokenization involves representing assets on a blockchain, and Morgan Stanley anticipates that increased adoption by institutional players will drive the market to unprecedented heights.
JUST IN: Morgan Stanley says the tokenized assets market will become a $3 trillion to $10 trillion market by 2030.
— Watcher.Guru (@WatcherGuru) October 12, 2026
But even at the upper end of its projected range, the market for tokenized assets would need to grow by a factor of more than 255 to meet the bank’s expectations, given the current figures of $39.19 billion as of October 12, 2026. To reach $10 trillion.
Oldenburg noted that private shares, structured notes and investment funds would be among the first items to be tokenized since they entail complex paper work and administration. The use of blockchain technology to record and execute ownership of assets will make it much easier to perform these tasks.
The financial sector is also considering using tokenized securities as collateral for loans and derivatives. Morgan Stanley is preparing its infrastructure to support the nascent ecosystem, but the process has been slow. The bank expects to launch its tokenized equity trading facility in the first quarter of 2027, compared to the second half of 2026 originally projected.
The head of digital assets at Morgan Stanley said the lack of products was one of the contributing factors to the postponement. The financial firms need a diverse product universe to cater to the needs of their institutional clients before they can facilitate broader adoption.
Other players in the financial sector have already jumped on the bandwagon as evidenced by the growth of xStocks which has facilitated the purchase of more than 1,100 tokenized equities. Morgan Stanley is set to follow closely on the heels of its competitors as it works on its own infrastructure to provide similar services within the confines of a regulated environment.
Beyond xStocks, the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) also announced its intention to launch a tokenization service in October 2026. The new facility will enable participants to tokenize eligible securities while benefiting from the existing custodian infrastructure.
Morgan Stanley is also involved in several other digital initiatives, including the development of digital wallets and blockchain-based applications by its Digital Asset Lab. In addition, Morgan Stanley announced last month that it had received conditional regulatory approval for a digital asset trust.
While these developments are encouraging, one has to remain wary of the fact that Morgan Stanley’s projection is a long-term target. The rate at which these crypto assets will grow depends on a variety of factors, including how quickly the markets will embrace tokenization and how far regulatory restrictions will impede the process.
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