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January 2025: Real World Assets (RWA) & Stablecoin Recap

January 2025: Real World Assets (RWA) & Stablecoin Recap

January 2025 proved to be a pivotal month for crypto, defying early market hesitation with a surge of institutional and regulatory developments. From Trump’s pro-crypto stance and state-level Bitcoin reserves to SEC shakeups and ETF approvals, the industry witnessed a paradigm shift toward mainstream adoption.

February 04, 2025

Crypto Overview: What Happened Last Month?

A sluggish start to January initially left market participants questioning whether the broader crypto market’s momentum from late 2024 had finally stalled. However, as the month progressed, a cascade of significant industry developments underscored a shifting regulatory and institutional landscape, ultimately fueling renewed optimism. The turning point came with Donald Trump taking office, ushering in an administration that swiftly set the stage for institutional and governmental adoption of crypto. Notably, multiple states introduced legislation aimed at creating strategic Bitcoin reserves, reinforcing the growing perception that the U.S. government is taking a more favorable stance toward digital assets. The Oklahoma Senator’s introduction of the “Bitcoin Freedom Act” on January 9 was one of the first legislative moves in this direction, setting the tone for a month marked by increased state-level engagement with crypto.

Meanwhile, regulatory battles took center stage as U.S. judges began pressing the SEC for explanations regarding its historically rigid stance on crypto regulation. This legal pressure, emerging on January 13, signaled potential accountability for the regulatory agency, which has long been criticized for its unwillingness to provide clear guidelines for the industry. The same day, BlackRock’s launch of a Bitcoin ETF on Cboe Canada reaffirmed the institutional interest in crypto, demonstrating that the world’s largest asset managers continue to see Bitcoin as a legitimate financial instrument. A day later, Hong Kong granted new crypto licenses, further cementing Asia’s role in advancing global digital asset adoption.

The regulatory landscape saw additional glimmers of hope as Senator Lummis revealed on January 16 that the FDIC had destroyed documents related to Operation Chokepoint 2.0, giving market participants reason to believe past government efforts to stifle crypto-banking relationships have come to an end. However, this revelation also preceded a big shift in crypto regulation when SEC Chair Gary Gensler stepped down on January 20 — a development long anticipated by the industry as a potential turning point for more constructive U.S. crypto regulation. That expectation materialized faster than anticipated when, on January 23, Trump issued an executive order aimed at shaping the U.S. crypto sector’s future, and Gensler officially resigned. Within days, the SEC withdrew its controversial crypto tax accounting bulletin, reinforcing the notion that regulatory hostility toward crypto was beginning to thaw.

Fig. 1: Jan. 2025 Returns - Top 10 Cryptoassets by Market Capitalization

Institutional momentum continued to build, with Arizona’s Senate approving a bill to create a strategic Bitcoin reserve on January 28, followed by Utah, Texas, and Illinois announcing similar initiatives. The same day, Solana’s ETF refiling gained traction, and Coinbase filed paperwork to list Solana and Hedera futures, reinforcing the narrative that traditional finance is increasingly integrating with crypto. The month’s bullish crescendo came on January 30 when the SEC fast-tracked approval for Bitwise’s Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF, signaling a broader shift toward crypto acceptance in the U.S. Meanwhile, North Dakota introduced a bill to uphold Bitcoin mining rights, further reflecting pro-crypto legislative momentum at the state level. To cap off the month, Grayscale announced the debut of a new Dogecoin Trust on January 31, highlighting that investor appetite for both institutional and speculative crypto products remained robust.

While the broader market spent the early part of the month in a period of uncertainty, January ultimately emerged as a landmark month for regulatory progress and institutional adoption. Such was especially evident when looking at the top 10 cryptoassets by market cap, most of which finished higher while others, such as XRP (+46%), LINK (+26%), and SOL (+22%), outperformed BTC (+10%) by a considerable margin. The developments throughout the month provided a clear signal: crypto is not only here to stay but is increasingly being embraced at both the state and federal levels. As always, while the broader cryptoasset market digested these structural shifts, the Real World Assets (RWA) and stablecoin sectors remained at the forefront of innovation and adoption. Next, we will explore these sectors' most notable data points and developments to understand their trajectory and impact on the evolving crypto landscape.

RWA: Jan. 2025 Milestones & Developments

Fig. 2: Real World Assets Total Value Locked (TVL)

After hitting an all-time high of $11.16B earlier in the month, RWA total value locked (TVL) slipped to a 1-month low of $10.4B into month-end, snapping a 2-month winning streak.

Fig. 3: RWA TVL by Category

When looking at the RWA TVL on a categorical basis, the biggest changes month-over-month were Synthetic Dollars (+$206M), commodities (+$87M), and equities (+$4M). However, the most notable change was Government Securities, which shed a whopping -$656M in TVL for the month of January.

Fig. 4: RWA TVL Change by Blockchain

When looking at RWAL TVL change by blockchain, there was little change month-over-month for the vast majority of chains. The exceptions, however, included Arbitrum and Ethereum, which shed more than -$62M and -$209M in TVL, respectively. The change in Ethereum’s TVL relative to the change in sector-wide TVL tells us that while RWA innovation is occurring across various blockchains, Ethereum remains the defacto chain for RWA and is where the vast majority of capital resides.

Fig. 5: RWA-to-DeFi TVL Ratio

With DeFi TVL having fallen from $124.4B to $120B in January, or what was a -3.6% decline, and RWA TVL shedding more than -7%, it ought to come as no surprise that our RWA-to-DeFi TVL ratio slipped lower into the end of January and finished at 0.048x. Although the ratio finished lower in January and remains quite a bit away from surpassing its August 2024 all-time high of 0.055x, it should be noted that RWA TVL continues to outpace DeFi TVL growth, as evidenced by the ratio remaining in a broader uptrend since hitting a 1-year low in March 2024.

Fig. 6: Number of RWA Token Holders

The number of RWA token holders across a select number of RWA-centric tokens, or what we believe to be a proxy for the broader RWA vertical, grew by nearly 3% - marking its biggest monthly gain since April 2024.

Fig. 7: Jan. 2025 Performance

Although the vast majority of the cryptoasset market finished higher in January, our RWA Index (+36%) handsomely outperformed BTC (+9.6%), ETH (-1%), and the DeFi Pulse Index (-3.4%) by a substantial margin. The massive outperformance at the start of 2025 suggests that RWA/tokenization could very well continue to be a key theme for the new year and might even prove to be an emerging “narrative” in the months ahead.

Notable RWA Developments:

Bitwise CEO’s 2025 Predictions: Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley predicted that in 2025, tokenization will empower numerous small and niche businesses to access capital markets, a privilege previously limited to larger firms. Horsley emphasizes that the true revolutionary potential of tokenization lies on the supply side, enabling a vast untapped supply of smaller businesses to access capital markets.
BlackRock CEO Advocates for Tokenization: In a CNBC interview on January 23, 2025, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink said he urged the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to expedite the approval of tokenizing bonds and stocks, emphasizing that this move could democratize investments and reduce costs for investors. He believes that tokenization would simplify processes and potentially eliminate the need for proxy votes.
$1.7B Private Credit On-Chain: Tradable announced that it has tokenized approximately $1.7B in private credit on the Ethereum layer-2 protocol ZKsync, encompassing nearly 30 institutional-grade credit positions.
MANTRA and DAMAC Collaborate on $1B RWA Tokenization in the Middle East: Blockchain firm MANTRA has partnered with real estate developer DAMAC to tokenize $1B worth of RWA in the Middle East. The collaboration seeks to leverage blockchain to increase liquidity and broaden investor access to the region’s real estate market.
Tokenized Bonds to Reach $1T by 2028: A recent Research and Markets report forecasted that the tokenized bond market will hit $1T by 2028.
Securitize Adopts Wormhole to Boost Liquidity for Institutional Tokenized Assets: Securitize, a leading asset tokenization platform managing over $1.5B, has integrated Wormhole’s interoperability solution to enhance liquidity and accessibility for institutional tokenized assets. The partnership enables seamless and secure transfers of tokenized funds across multiple blockchain networks, including Arbitrum, Avalanche, Ethereum, Optimism’s OP Mainnet, and Polygon.
Circle Enters Tokenization Race by Acquiring Hashnote, a $1.3B RWA Issuer: Circle acquired Hashnote, a RWA issuer managing $1.3B in assets, marking its entry into the tokenization market. This acquisition is expected to bolster Circle’s capabilities in bringing traditional assets onto the blockchain.
Dutch Banking Giant ABN AMRO Concludes Tokenized Securities Test on Ethereum: As part of a broader effort to demonstrate the potential for blockchain to streamline processes in traditional finance, ABN AMRO has successfully completed a test involving the issuance and settlement of tokenized securities on Ethereum.
Robinhood CEO Warns Lack of U.S. Regulation Stifles Security Tokenization Efforts: Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev expressed concerns that the absence of clear U.S. regulations is hindering the advancement of security tokenization. Last month, he outwardly advocated for regulatory clarity to foster innovation in the tokenization of securities.
Apollo Unveils Tokenized Private Credit Fund as Blockchain Deepens TradFi Links: Apollo Global Management introduced a tokenized version of its Diversified Credit Fund, enabling accredited investors to access private credit investments on multiple blockchains, including Solana, Ink, Ethereum, Aptos, Avalanche, and Polygon. This initiative, developed in collaboration with security token specialist Securitize, offers exposure to corporate direct lending, asset-backed finance, and structured credit.
Bitfinex Securities to Launch Tokenized Bitcoin Mining Product Under El Salvador’s Flexible Digital Asset Laws: Bitfinex Securities said it is set to launch a tokenized Bitcoin mining investment product, leveraging El Salvador’s accommodating digital asset regulations. The product will allow investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin mining through tokenized securities.
IMF Outlines Many Benefits of Tokenization, But Also Risks: In a 33-page report entitled Tokenization and Financial Markets Inefficiencies, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) acknowledged that tokenization can enhance financial market efficiency by reducing costs, frictions, and risks while improving transparency. However, the IMF also warned of potential risks, such as increased leverage, impacts on bank funding structures, and heightened interconnectedness among market participants, which could amplify systemic vulnerabilities during financial crises.

Stablecoins: Jan. 2025 Milestones & Developments

Fig. 8: Stablecoin Total Market Capitalization

Surprisingly, the stablecoin total market cap pushed beyond $200B in January and to an all-time high of $218B at the end of the month. The surge can be attributed to the relentless demand for cryptoassets, as evidenced by the monthly performance of the largest cryptoassets by market ca.p. Not only that but the growth can also be explained by stablecoin adoption continuing to gain traction all around the world as their usefulness and utility become increasingly more apparent and as institutions & governments seek to capitalize on their benefits - as we highlight below in the "Notable Developments" section.

Fig. 9: Top Stablecoin Market Capitalizations

A few notable changes occurred in January when looking at the largest stablecoins by market cap. Resolv's USR surpassed TrueUSD's TUSD stablecoin after exploding from $320M at the start of the month to a month-end reading of roughly $574M. Furthermore, growing demand for Sky's USDS stablecoin, or what was formerly Maker's DAI stablecoin, resulted in the stablecoin taking rank as 3rd place and surpassing Ethena's USDe. Lastly, growing demand for Circle's USDC stablecoin and emerging headwinds for Tether's USDT stablecoin amid the company's unwillingness to comply with MiCA regulations resulted in the gap between the two largest stablecoins narrowing from $93B to $86B.

Fig. 10: Change in Stablecoin Supply by Chain

To better understand where stablecoin growth took place in January, we can look at the change in stablecoin supply by chain. As shown in Figure 10, Solana and Ethereum were the leaders with a +$6.2B and +$5.6B increase MoM, respectively. Solana's outperformance is especially notable, as its total supply hit an all-time high of $11B and grew by more than +120%. On the flip side, just as we saw Arbitrum take place as one of the worst-performing chains when looking at monthly RWA TVL change, the same was true in terms of stablecoin supply (-$1.6B).

Fig. 11: Total Stablecoin Transaction Volume by Chain

To gain a clearer insight into last month's stablecoin activity, we can analyze the total transaction volume by chain and the transaction size of stablecoins across different chains. For the first time, Solana took the cake when looking at micro-transactions (<$100) and transactions exceeding $100K. The only chain that came close to Solana's some 3B transactions of <$100 in size was BSC at 1.4B transactions. When looking at transactions exceeding $100K, Tron (154M transactions) was the only chain that came within striking distance of Solana (467M transactions). Be that as it may, it should be noted that while Solana saw outsized activity, when looking at transaction volume by chain, Tron took first place with more than $313B while Ethereum ($238B) and Solana ($68B) trailed behind. Needless to say, stablecoin activity on Solana has started to ramp up considerably and caught the attention of market participants, but it should be noted that Ethereum and Tron also remain defacto go-to chains in terms of transferring value via stablecoins.

Fig. 12: Stablecoin Transaction Size By Blockchain, By Amount

Notable Stablecoin Developments:

Stablecoin Volumes Surpassed Visa and Mastercard Combined in 2024: In 2024, stablecoin transfer volumes reached $27.6T, exceeding the combined volumes of Visa and Mastercard by 7.7%. This surge is attributed to increased use of trading bots, particularly on networks like Solana and Base, and highlights the growing role of stablecoins in the global financial ecosystem.
Trump’s Executive Order Raised EU Concerns Over USD Stablecoin Dominance: A January executive order by President Donald Trump’s promoted the development of dollar-backed stablecoins while prohibiting the establishment of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) in the United States. The move heightened concerns within the European Union regarding the potential for increased U.S. dollar dominance in the global stablecoin market, prompting discussions about the need for a digital euro to maintain financial autonomy.
Solana’s Stablecoin Supply Hit $10B All-Time High: Solana’s ecosystem has experienced significant growth, with its stablecoin supply surpassing $10B for the first time. The surge can be attributed to factors such as the launch of TRUMP memecoins and increased user adoption.
Coinbase CEO: Future Stablecoin Regulations Likely to Demand Full US Treasury Backing: Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said he anticipates that upcoming U.S. regulations will require stablecoin issuers to fully back their tokens with U.S. Treasury bills and undergo regular audits. He suggests that such regulations could pose challenges for offshore companies like Tether. Armstrong also indicated that Coinbase might delist Tether’s USDT if it fails to comply with new U.S. laws.
EU Regulator Urged Firms to Restrict Non-MiCA-Compliant Stablecoins: The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) called on cryptoasset service providers to limit stablecoins that don’t comply with the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). Firms are expected to implement these restrictions by January 31, 2025, with a “sell-only” period allowed until the end of March 2025 to enable investors to liquidate their positions. This move could affect major stablecoins like Tether’s USDT, which currently lacks a MiCA license.
Former Binance.US Chief Raised $20M for Stablecoin Network: Brian Shroder, the former CEO of Binance.US, launched 1Money, a Layer-1 stablecoin payments network, securing over $20M in seed funding from various venture capital firms. 1Money aims to develop a protocol exclusively for stablecoin payments, offering instant transactions, fixed costs, and support for multiple stablecoins. Shroder envisions stablecoins as foundational to a modernized global financial system, bridging the gap between Web3 technology and mainstream users.
Stablecoin Issuer ‘Usual’ Faced Sell-Off After Redemption Update: Usual’s recent update to its USD0++ protocol introduced dual exit mechanisms, which caused its staked USD0 stablecoin USD0++ to drop as low as $0.89, prompting community debate and concerns over the sudden shift in redemption options. The update aims to align USD0++ with a bond-like financial instrument backed by real-world revenue streams.
Frax Community Approved frxUSD Stablecoin Backed by BlackRock’s BUIDL: The Frax Finance community unanimously voted to use BlackRock’s USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) as collateral for its upcoming frxUSD stablecoin. The move is intended to provide yield-bearing opportunities for frxUSD holders while minimizing counterparty risk by leveraging BlackRock’s extensive asset management capabilities.
Thai Government Plans Baht Stablecoin Backed by Government Bonds: Thailand’s Ministry of Finance, led by Minister Pichai Chunhavajira, said it is developing a Thai Baht stablecoin backed by government bonds, with a target launch in October 2025. The initiative aims to make government bonds more accessible to individual investors and facilitate everyday payments using the stablecoin. A centralized platform for secondary market trading of these stablecoins is also in development.
Trump Order Embraces Stablecoins, Bars CBDCs: President Donald Trump issued an executive order supporting the growth of dollar-backed stablecoins and prohibiting federal agencies from pursuing work on a central bank digital currency (CBDC). The order establishes a digital asset market working group to make policy recommendations and emphasizes U.S. leadership in digital financial technology. It also aims to promote the use of blockchain networks without unlawful censorship.
Cedar Money Raised $9.9M Seed Round Led by QED Investors to Enable Cross-Border Stablecoin Payments: Cedar Money, a payments company, secured a $9.9M seed round led by QED Investors, with participation from North Island Ventures, Wischoff Ventures, Lattice, and Stellar. The company plans to use stablecoins to provide faster, more reliable, and cost-effective cross-border payments between developed and emerging markets, addressing challenges in the traditional correspondent banking network.
Circle’s USDC Goes Live on Aptos to End Stablecoin Bridging: Circle launched its native stablecoin, USDC, on the Aptos Layer-1 blockchain, eliminating the need for bridged versions of the token. This integration enhances Aptos’s DeFi capabilities and provides users with a more secure and efficient way to transact using USDC within the Aptos ecosystem.

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