Standard Chartered Predicts Continued Growth in Tokenized Real-World Assets

Standard Chartered's latest report highlights that despite the significant impact of the KelpDAO rsETH theft on the DeFi ecosystem, the long-term growth trend of tokenized real-world assets (RWA) remains unchanged. According to Odaily, the bank maintains its forecast that the RWA tokenization market will expand from $35 billion in October 2025 to $2 trillion by the end of 2028. The primary drivers of this growth are expected to be the ongoing expansion of the DeFi banking system and stablecoin liquidity. Geoffrey Kendrick, Standard Chartered's Head of Digital Asset Research, remarked that the incident represents a scenario where DeFi is 'bent, not broken,' and may even serve as a pivotal moment for the industry to develop a more resilient structure.