RWA Deposits Surpass DeFi in On-Chain Finance Boom

The on-chain finance boom is experiencing a significant shift in its growth drivers. According to a report jointly released by CoinShares and Token Terminal, DeFi deposits have fallen about 15% year-over-year in Q2 2026, while RWA (real-world asset) deposits have soared from $2.33 billion to $7.44 billion, up more than 200% year-over-year.

The growth in RWA is largely driven by the influx of traditional financial assets onto the blockchain, including U.S. Treasuries, money market funds, private credit, gold, and crude oil. This trend is being led by institutions such as BlackRock, which has tokenized its Treasury holdings with an AUM of about $2.87 billion.

The report highlights that RWA perpetual contracts have become a major force in on-chain trading, with quarterly trading volume soaring from $12.37 billion in Q4 2025 to $202.7 billion in Q2 2026, a roughly 16-fold increase. This trend is being driven by the need for real-time liquidity and settlement efficiency.