Tokenized Assets: From Experimentation to Mainstream Financial Infrastructure

A new report by Binance Research reveals that tokenized real-world assets are no longer just about moving traditional instruments onchain, but rather getting put to work. The 'RWA Activation Era' study argues that the tokenization story is entering a second phase, where the focus shifts from how much value gets wrapped into a token to what happens to that value once it's there.

According to the report, total assets under management in the RWA market hit $34.18 billion as of September 15, 2026, up 85.2% year to date. Bonds and money market funds remain the largest category at $18.29 billion, while equities surged 390.4% year to date.

Binance Research introduced two new metrics, Programmable Asset Ratio (PAR) and Capital Activation Rate (CAR), to measure how tokenized assets are actually being used. Private credit posted the highest CAR at 49.67%, while tokenized equities' CAR climbed from 1.95% to 7.54% since the start of 2026.