Tokenized Securities Market to Hit $5.5 Trillion by 2030: Citi Predicts

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Citi predicts the tokenized securities market will grow to $5.5 trillion by 2030Markets

What to know:

  • Citi projects that tokenization of real-world assets will surge from a $17 billion market today to as much as $5.5 trillion by 2030, with a range of $2.7 trillion to $8.2 trillion depending on adoption speed.
  • Major market infrastructures including DTCC, Nasdaq and the NYSE’s owner are embedding tokenization into their core trading systems, while growing stablecoin use and clearer U.S. regulation are enabling instant, on-chain settlement.
  • Citi expects tokenization to concentrate in mainstream public markets such as U.S. Treasuries and stocks, with parallel legacy and digital systems coexisting for years and giving an edge to large “structural orchestrators” that control both assets and payment rails.

In this article

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Tokenization – turning real-world assets into digital tokens on the blockchain – is becoming increasingly common and is now moving beyond experimentation into regular business practice.

A new report from Citi, titled “Tokenization 2030: Wall Street On-Chain,” estimates the current global market for these digital investments at $17 billion. CoinDesk received a copy of the report before its public release at the Proof of Talk event in Paris.

Citi predicts this market will grow to $5.5 trillion by 2030, according to their main projections. However, the final size could range from $2.7 trillion in a slower growth scenario to $8.2 trillion if adoption happens quickly, Citi notes.

According to the report, we’re at a critical moment. Citi explains that the significant influence of the U.S. financial system and the dollar is now driving large-scale change. Specifically, when institutions like DTCC and the NYSE start using tokenization in financial markets, it will signal a major shift.

According to Citi, three big shifts are driving this trillions of dollars move.

Stock markets are starting to integrate this new technology directly into their existing trading platforms.

Major financial institutions are moving towards using blockchain technology for traditional securities. In July, the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) will begin limited testing of tokenized securities, with a full launch planned for October. Nasdaq is developing a system that would allow companies to issue shares on a blockchain, potentially by 2027. The Intercontinental Exchange, owner of the New York Stock Exchange, is also exploring tokenized stocks.

Nasdaq has been given the green light by regulators to issue and trade some stocks directly on a digital, blockchain-based system.

Currently, the increasing popularity of reliable digital currencies is solving the final problem needed for immediate trade settlements. Experts predict standard stablecoins will reach a $1.9 trillion market size by 2030, and when combined with digital bank accounts, they’ll allow for the simultaneous exchange of assets and money. This growth in stablecoins could also generate approximately $1 trillion in new demand for U.S. government bonds, as these currencies are typically backed by these bonds.

Good news for the digital asset industry: U.S. lawmakers are making progress on new rules. A key bill, called the Clarity Act, recently passed the Senate Banking Committee with bipartisan support (15-9) after being stalled for four months. This moves the bill closer to a full vote in the Senate.

According to a recent Citi report, expected market growth will likely occur in traditional public investments like U.S. stocks and bonds, as opposed to private investments, which are less liquid and tend to change more slowly.

Citi estimates that by 2030, 10% of U.S. Treasury bills and 3% of U.S. stocks will be available as digital tokens. If only 10% of typical U.S. investors start using these new platforms, it could generate $2.6 trillion in demand for digital stocks.

However, other specialized investments, such as private credit and private equity, are predicted to total only around $100 billion worldwide by 2030.

Citi explained that the transition won’t be immediate; traditional and modern financial systems will need to operate together for a period of time.

From my analysis, the rollout of this new system reminds me a lot of how electronic tolling was implemented with things like E-ZPass. It wasn’t an overnight change. Instead, highway systems initially expanded to include both traditional cash lanes and automated ones side-by-side. This created added expense and some initial confusion, but ultimately allowed for a complete transition to the automated system. We can expect a similar phased approach here.

As a crypto investor, I’m starting to see how this new system will really benefit the big players – the large banks and investment firms. They’re uniquely positioned because they control both the actual assets *and* the systems that move the money digitally. This means they can essentially manage an entire transaction from start to finish within their own networks, giving them a huge advantage.

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2026-06-01 10:25