Gold tokenization is not a niche anymore. Rather, it is gradually gaining ground as one of the most reliable real world assets of crypto. Although traders are interested in volatility and stories, capital is pouring into gold-backed tokens quietly and unannounced. This gradual build up is an indication of something bigger. Investors are not pursuing returns in this case. They are chasing stability.
Why Capital Is Moving On-Chain
To begin with, there is a high global doubt. Second, the traditional safe havens become more difficult to reach across the borders. Consequently, tokenized gold represents a special halfway covenantal. It is a blend of the historical reliability of the physical gold and the speed, as well as the programmability of blockchain rails. It is due to this that investors are able to have gold exposure and remain fully on-chain.
Nonetheless, this is by no means a decentralized market. Paxos Gold and Tether Gold control almost the whole supply. The two possess over 96% of tokenized gold in circulation. On the one hand, such a focus enhances liquidity and trust. On the other hand, it hinders competition and innovation amongst issuers.
Utility Is Growing out of Holding
Meanwhile, usage is evolving. it has ceased to be a passive store of value that is tokenized. It is becoming popular as DeFi collateral, treasury backing and settlement-grade collateral to crypto-native institutions. The fact that it does not come with yield anticipations makes it useful in low-risk portfolio constructions. Hence, its demand remains to increase in the times of uncertainty on the market.
Above all, tokenized gold is an indication of a structural change in crypto. Markets are gradually losing the element of pure speculation. They are instead accepting asset-backed tools that have real-life credibility. Whereas tokenized treasuries are under the news headline, gold-backed tokens are leading by a significant margin in terms of real usage. This makes tokenized gold the most mature real-world asset category of crypto nowadays.
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