NYDIG Head of Research: Stock Tokenization Will Not Immediately Bring Huge Gains to the Crypto Market, Its Benefits Will Gradually Emerge

On December 13, NYDIG Global Research Head Greg Cipolaro noted in a Friday report that stock tokenization won’t immediately deliver massive returns to the crypto market—but benefits will emerge gradually if such assets integrate better with blockchains. “The networks these assets depend on—like Ethereum—have seen modest early returns, but returns will rise in tandem as assets’ accessibility, interoperability, and composability improve,” Cipolaro wrote. He added initial returns stem mainly from transaction fees tied to tokenized asset trades, while blockchains supporting these assets will also “see growing network effects from storage demand.” “Down the line, these real-world assets could integrate into decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystems, acting as loan collateral, lendable assets, or trading instruments,” Cipolaro said. “But this will take time—only achievable after technological advancement, infrastructure upgrades, and regulatory rule evolution.” He also noted building tokenized assets with composability and interoperability is challenging, as “their forms and functions vary widely” and span public and private networks. For instance, Digital Asset Holdings’ privately run Canton Network currently hosts $380 billion in tokenized assets—91% of total real-world asset “representational value.” Ethereum, the most mainstream public blockchain, has already deployed $121 billion in real-world assets. Cipolaro emphasized tokenized asset design can differ sharply even on open networks like Ethereum. “These assets typically qualify as securities and still depend on traditional financial frameworks—including brokers, KYC/qualified investor checks, whitelisted wallets, and transfer agents,” he said. Still, he noted companies are leveraging blockchain to gain benefits like “near-instant settlement, 24/7 operations, programmable ownership, transparency, auditability, and optimized collateral efficiency.”