Standard Chartered Forecasts $4 Trillion in Tokenized Assets by End of 2028

Standard Chartered puts $4 trillion on-chain by end of 2028

Standard Chartered forecasts that tokenized assets will reach $4 trillion on blockchain networks by the end of 2028. Geoffrey Kendrick, the bank's global head of digital assets research, published the projection in a research note released 26 May 2026. Kendrick identifies passage of the US CLARITY Act as the most significant near-term catalyst for accelerating the migration from traditional financial rails.

"Tokenized assets will reach $4T by the end of 2028 (half in stablecoins and half in RWAs)." — Geoffrey Kendrick, Global Head of Digital Assets Research, Standard Chartered, 26 May 2026

The $4 trillion splits evenly: stablecoins and real-world assets

Kendrick divides the $4 trillion target equally. $2 trillion goes to the stablecoin supply and $2 trillion to tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) — instruments such as government bonds, money market funds, and equities issued and settled on-chain. The forecast treats both segments as complementary: stablecoins provide the liquidity layer, while tokenized RWAs provide the yield-bearing collateral.

DeFi protocols stand to capture the bulk of the capital

Standard Chartered argues that mature decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols — not traditional custodians — will process most of the incoming capital. The structural reason is composability: on a shared blockchain ledger, a single asset can simultaneously earn yield, serve as collateral, and remain liquid. Kendrick contends this property has no equivalent in traditional finance.

"Well-established DeFi protocols with strong risk metrics and governance should benefit the most." — Geoffrey Kendrick, Global Head of Digital Assets Research, Standard Chartered, 26 May 2026

BlackRock's BUIDL fund shows the model already in motion

BlackRock's BUIDL — the largest tokenized real-world asset product globally — held approximately $2.5 billion in assets as of April 2026, up from $1 billion at its March 2024 launch. The fund tokenizes US Treasury bills on-chain and pays daily yield directly to investor wallets. Standard Chartered's research cites products like BUIDL as evidence that institutional-grade tokenization infrastructure is operational, not theoretical.