The $107 billion stablecoin behemoth Tether is readying the launch of an ambitious new platform that could finally unlock one of crypto's core promises - seamlessly tokenizing virtually any real-world asset.

According to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, the upcoming offering will be "a masterpiece" - a fully non-custodial, multi-chain tokenization platform capable of representing everything from stocks and bonds to loyalty reward points as digital tokens.

"[You can] tokenize anything from any bonds, stocks or funds to coffee shop reward points," Ardoino said.

If successful, the platform would transition Tether from pioneering stablecoin into a prime liquidity rail for onboarding traditional assets into crypto's rapidly expanding digital ecosystem.

It also represents a critical evolution beyond crypto's reliance on idiosyncratic, highly correlated assets like Bitcoin and Ether. Unlocking tokenized real-world exposure could finally deliver the diversification and stability craved by long-term crypto investors.

"Holders of this [crypto] wealth can do two things with it," explains Qiao Wang, Partner at Alliance DAO, a mega fund that has accelerated over 160 crypto startups globally. "They can leave it as a store of value, or exchange it for something else."

So far, exchanges have largely involved swapping one volatile crypto asset for another in speculative trading. However, Wang sees diversification as the natural evolution of crypto token holders.

"RWAs are the answer to crypto-natives' need for diversification, by giving them access to novel sources of uncorrelated and less volatile returns," he said in a Medium post.

Prominent asset managers like BlackRock, Franklin Templeton and Ondo Finance have already raced to tokenize over $1 billion worth of U.S. Treasuries for crypto exposure. Equities and real estate are expected to be next in line.

Navigating the Booming Trend of Tokenized T-Bills - Tokeny Image source: Tokeny

For Tether, its upcoming tokenization platform could swiftly establish it as a centrepiece of this emerging real-world asset (RWA) ecosystem. Already riding "the most-used digital dollar in numerous emerging markets" wave, Tether now has ambitions to power a much larger tokenized financial world spanning asset classes and use cases.

From tokenized loyalty points to enabling global investors to construct diversified portfolios by escaping traditional market gatekeepers, Tether could be on the cusp of mainstreaming crypto’s promise of bringing the world on-chain.

"Hundreds of millions of people that live in countries subject to the fast devaluation of the local currency use it as their checking account and savings account," reflects Ardoino. "A good portion of this community does not have a single bank account because they are too poor to be of interest to the banking industry. This is the real-world use case for stablecoins."

Now with composable tokenization capabilities, that unbanked population could gain access to an entire universe of tokenized stocks, bonds, real estate and more. The crypto dream of digitally representing any asset and making it globally accessible may finally be inching closer to reality. And Tether—which last week signed with Bitfinex Securities to power HILSV, El Savador’s first tokenized debt token—is positioning to be at the centre of this execution.

Image source: cryptoslate