From a purely data perspective, the RWA narrative is undoubtedly one of the clearest Alpha directions for the “Blockchain +” trend over the next decade.

According to data from the RWA research platform rwa.xyz, the current total market size of RWA exceeds $15 billion. Fidelity predicts that this figure will double to $30 billion by 2025, while BlackRock’s outlook is even more optimistic, forecasting that the market value of tokenized assets will reach $10 trillion by 2030.

In other words, in the next seven years, the potential growth space for the RWA narrative could exceed 700 times! However, this growth hides a core question: who will truly capture the incremental value of this epic narrative?

source:rwa.xyz

This question will likely define the $100 billion future of the entire RWA track, and the answer may lie in the infrastructure surrounding the RWAfi public blockchain.

RWAfi: The Historic Bus Ride for RWA

In essence, moving Real World Assets (RWA) onto the blockchain is merely the first step in tokenization. It is far from enough to unlock their true potential. To fully release the on-chain value, a more efficient underlying technology, an open infrastructure toolkit, and a well-developed ecosystem collaboration are necessary.

In simple terms, the on-chainization of RWA requires not only technological breakthroughs but also a comprehensive service framework that covers the entire lifecycle of RWA assets. Specifically, it involves securely and with low barriers integrating RWA assets into diversified on-chain DeFi scenarios, turning the stock dividends of traditional assets into on-chain incremental value.

This is exactly what RWAfi aims to achieve. Within the tokenization framework, RWA not only greatly enhances its liquidity but also allows DeFi operations such as lending and staking to generate yields, bringing real yield-generating assets into DeFi and strengthening the value foundation of the crypto market.

Vitalik Buterin once made an interesting analogy, saying that each blockchain network has a unique “soul.” Some networks deeply focus on a specific DeFi scenario, others on NFTs or DAO ecosystems, and some are dedicated to incubating ZK applications, etc.

However, when we turn our attention to the RWA ecosystem, we encounter a thought-provoking reality: despite the rising popularity of RWA, there are very few RWAfi public blockchains that specifically serve the management and on-chain circulation of real-world assets. Even though Ethereum, Avalanche, and others have made significant inroads in the RWA space, they were not originally designed to carry trillions of dollars worth of real-world assets.

The reason is simple: the core mission of RWAfi is to facilitate the free flow of real-world assets on the blockchain. Compared to DeFi and other on-chain applications, it faces a greater challenge: how to make RWA truly “active” on the blockchain.

On one hand, tokenizing real-world assets and securing them on-chain involves a complex process of asset tokenization and collaboration among multiple parties. It requires addressing issues such as security compliance, liquidity, cross-chain interoperability, and a developer-friendly technical environment, ultimately achieving efficient liquidity and transparency for on-chain assets.

On the other hand, tokenization alone is not enough. After tokenization, there is also the need for “empowerment”—i.e., the real value of RWA lies in how blockchain technology can build transparent, efficient, and liquid on-chain financial markets. Therefore, it is crucial to integrate deeply with DeFi protocols, manage yields, and handle risk management, granting RWA assets the liquidity, composability, and interoperability similar to crypto assets.

Take real estate as an example: after tokenization and on-chain integration, it is no longer a traditional “static” asset. It can participate in a variety of DeFi scenarios, such as using smart contracts to transparently distribute rental income or using the property as collateral for on-chain financing. This “empowerment” raises higher technical and ecosystem demands, while also breaking the inherent limitations of RWA as a real-world asset, injecting it with higher composability and application potential.

As a result, many may not realize that RWAfi is not just a technical solution—it essentially creates a new asset class with native real yield properties. By introducing real-world assets, capital, and cash flows, it injects “real yield attributes” into the blockchain ecosystem.

In this context, although many blockchain networks have begun exploring the RWA space, most of them remain superficial, lacking full-chain technical support and ecosystem development. After all, the success of RWAfi lies not only in asset tokenization but also in providing a comprehensive solution that spans both development and operations.

Developers and users need an environment with easily accessible development resources, more efficient and scalable infrastructure, and a secure and compliant underlying environment. Therefore, the core demand for the future RWA market—worth hundreds of billions or even trillions of dollars—is clear: a dedicated RWA public blockchain.

Such a blockchain can meet the diverse needs of institutional users and crypto-native users alike. In this vision, the RWAfi public blockchain does not just empower RWA assets; it is more likely to become the central value capture for the incremental growth of the RWA ecosystem. By becoming a hub for liquidity and value settlement, all DeFi operations involving RWA tokenized assets—such as farming and collateral interactions—can converge value through the RWAfi blockchain, further expanding the RWA track’s growth.

In short, a dedicated RWA L1 public blockchain is merely a tool, not the ultimate goal. The true players who will capture the incremental value in the RWA track are likely to be those providing comprehensive solutions that cover the entire chain from “on-chain” to “empowerment.” These solutions will ensure the seamless and efficient operation of the full RWA process from tokenization to empowerment.

Therefore, from this perspective, the golden era of RWA-specific chains has already arrived.

Analyzing Plume’s New Interpretation of the “One-Stop RWA-Specific Blockchain”

For RWAfi, there’s another inherent advantage that keeps it securely positioned:

Regardless of which track or product under the RWA narrative eventually succeeds, as long as the overall market continues to grow, the RWAfi public blockchain platform, which provides the most fundamental infrastructure support, can tap into a future market potentially worth hundreds of billions or even trillions of dollars, capturing the incremental value behind it.

After all, RWA has gradually become a major driver of on-chain digital asset growth, allowing Web3 to effectively tap into the vast asset pools of traditional markets, such as the global bond market ($133 trillion) and the gold market ($13.5 trillion).

Since Compound ignited the DeFi summer of 2020, the total volume of on-chain digital assets has seen significant growth. Even though it still faces a considerable pullback compared to the $180 billion in November 2021, as of January 13, 2025, the total value locked (TVL) on-chain still stands at $113.5 billion.

source:DeFiLlama

However, compared to tokenizable RWA assets worth trillions of dollars (bonds, gold, stocks, real estate, etc.), this total still appears minuscule. Therefore, the tokenization of RWA will undoubtedly bring a whole new wave of incremental power to the on-chain world, opening up unprecedented market space for on-chain expansion.

Currently, very few L1 public blockchains are positioned around RWAfi. Recently, Plume completed a $20 million funding round, and it is practically the only true RWAfi public blockchain, making this funding event a significant milestone in the RWAfi space.

Plume’s distinctive feature lies in its modular design. Through its one-stop solution, it systematically addresses the issues of tokenization, compliance, liquidity, and interoperability of RWA, offering developers and institutions a comprehensive solution that covers the full lifecycle of RWA tokenization.

This systematic approach is worth noting. After all, for a public blockchain, the technical “complexity” is not what matters most. The key to success is whether you can attract developers and users and get them to stick around, especially for products like RWA, which involve highly complex on-chain and off-chain integration. If a platform only provides fragmented services for one part of the process, developers and institutional users will not commit to it.

Plume’s advantage lies in its integration of multiple modular tools, building a complete on-chain RWA asset solution for developers. This toolkit not only reduces the technical barrier but also integrates “compliance-as-a-service,” bringing compliance vendors directly into the platform’s upstream supply chain, ensuring that tokenized assets meet regulatory requirements from the outset:

• Arc - Tokenization Engine: Arc simplifies the tokenization process by integrating compliance workflows and reducing barriers for asset issuers, providing an effective pathway for bringing RWA onto the blockchain.
• Passport - Smart Wallet: Passport allows users to directly store contract code in their externally owned accounts (EOA). This native feature supports RWAfi’s composability, yield management, and advanced account abstraction features.
• Nexus - Data Superhighway: Nexus uses cutting-edge technologies like zkTLS to securely integrate real-world data into the blockchain. This not only enhances the security and transparency of on-chain assets but also unlocks new opportunities.

In summary, Plume’s unique design and comprehensive approach address the full spectrum of challenges associated with RWA tokenization and blockchain integration, positioning it as a key player in the emerging RWAfi space.

Through these modular tools, Plume not only empowers developers but also significantly lowers the entry barriers for traditional financial institutions to enter Web3. Developers, by leveraging these modular tools, can reduce the technical complexities and quickly deploy sophisticated RWA solutions. The “compliance-as-a-service” model also helps traditional institutions address compliance challenges while providing efficient technical support.

This means that Web2 giants such as UBS, Blackstone, and others looking to enter Web3 can directly embed RWA tokenization services into their existing products through Plume’s one-stop solution. This allows them to rapidly iterate products and expand into new markets.

Not only does this make it easy for institutions to tokenize their assets and integrate into the blockchain ecosystem, but it also preserves the smooth user experience of Web2, while granting users asset ownership and Web3 properties.

From a broader perspective, in the Web2 world, where private traffic ruled, the companies that could capture and consolidate private traffic reaped the greatest rewards. This led to the rise of “fat apps and thin protocols,” where super apps like WeChat, Alipay, and Meituan grew increasingly massive, locking in users within their closed ecosystems.

In contrast, in Web3, the product logic has clearly flipped—products in the form of underlying components or middleware are becoming more valuable. These can be inserted as “building blocks” or serve as foundational infrastructure to capture the greatest aggregation benefits. Plume’s modular infrastructure perfectly aligns with this Web3 product logic. It provides traditional financial institutions and Web2 giants with lightweight RWA integration tools, enabling them to quickly transition to Web3.

This is where Plume’s appeal lies. For the RWAfi space, future competition will not merely be a contest of technological prowess but will hinge on whether developers and users can be effectively supported with an efficient and user-friendly ecosystem. This model, which connects on-chain innovation with off-chain assets, will likely become the defining pivot point for the development of the RWA space.

The Inevitable Path of RWAfi: A Two-Way Link Between Institutions and DeFi’s “Circle of Friends”

For Web3, “incremental growth” is a constant theme—whether it is the infusion of incremental capital or the expansion of incremental users.

The core appeal of RWAfi lies in its inherent “two-way connection” property: on one hand, it links new and old players in Web3, and on the other, it connects massive accumulated assets from traditional finance. This not only offers new asset classes and yield opportunities for crypto-native users but also paves the way for traditional financial giants to deeply integrate with the on-chain DeFi world, creating a “1+1>2” synergistic effect.

Taking Plume as an example, it has built an ecosystem network focused on institutional partnerships at the core and DeFi partnerships as its extension:

• Institutional Partners: These partners are responsible for providing compliance, trust, and high-quality assets, forming the trusted foundation of the RWAfi ecosystem.
• DeFi Partners: These partners offer flexible, high-yield asset participation options to on-chain users, further enhancing the liquidity and composability of RWAs.

Looking closer, Plume’s institutional network primarily focuses on the tokenization, compliance, and asset management of traditional assets. It uses Plume’s on-chain infrastructure to bring higher liquidity and transparency to RWA, thus paving the way for a deep integration between traditional financial giants and RWAfi. Some examples include:

• Anchorage Digital Bank: Provides compliant custodial services for Plume’s on-chain assets, allowing institutional clients to directly access RWA yields on-chain.
• DeFiMaseer: An institutional partner focusing on tokenizing carbon markets, bringing $200 million in carbon emission quotas on-chain, enhancing market efficiency and accessibility.
• DigiFT + UBS (Union Bank of Switzerland): Collaborates to launch uMint, promoting the tokenization of on-chain financial assets.
• Dinari Global + Blackstone: Brings Blackstone’s ETFs on-chain to provide greater liquidity for institutional assets.
• Elixir + Blackstone: Supports Elixir in creating more asset circulation infrastructure on-chain.
• NestCredit + MountainUSDM + m0 Foundation + Anemoy Capital/Centrifuge: A multi-party collaboration to drive the sustainable development of diverse on-chain assets.
• Pistachiofi: Introduces real yield services for Latin America (LATAM) and Asia-Pacific (APAC) markets, expanding regional market coverage.
• Busha: Provides on-chain real yield services to African markets, extending global financial service boundaries.
• Cultured RWA: Explores the on-chain potential of speculative RWA ecosystems.
• Google Cloud: Uses AI to provide RWA pricing services, making on-chain asset pricing smarter and more efficient.

DeFi protocols that have deeply integrated or partnered with Plume focus on converting the “stock dividends” of traditional assets into incremental on-chain value. Through liquidity support, yield optimization, and new scenario exploration, they offer on-chain users diverse participation opportunities. Some examples include:

• Ondo Finance: A leading protocol in tokenizing U.S. Treasury Bonds (USDY), injecting trustworthy asset liquidity into Plume’s RWA ecosystem.
• Anzen Finance: Supports the on-chain stable asset innovation of USDz, optimizing the tokenization experience of U.S. dollar-related assets.
• Royco (Berachain): Provides a transparent yield liquidity market designed for DApp development and expands into the RWAfi ecosystem through cooperation with Plume.
• Bouncebit: A partner of CeDeFi gateways, helping users access trusted institutional-grade yield products and strengthening RWAfi’s influence in the CeDeFi field.
• Midas: A DeFi project focusing on high-yield, institutional-grade assets, offering more on-chain yield choices to Plume’s users.
• PinLink: A DeFi infrastructure provider working with Plume to bring fragmented DePIN assets and yield opportunities, increasing ecosystem liquidity.
• Avalon Finance: Plume’s BTCfi liquidity layer partner, focusing on the lending and circulation of Bitcoin within the RWAfi environment, further expanding the application scenarios for on-chain assets.

Objectively speaking, Plume’s team background inherently carries a “tech + market” gene. The team includes Degen players from Web3 giants like Coinbase, BNB Chain, and Galaxy Digital, as well as seasoned professionals from traditional finance and tech sectors, such as Robinhood, JPMorgan, and Google. This blend of experience allows Plume to effectively address the complex demands of traditional financial markets while leveraging the unique advantages of blockchain technology. Their approach enables the creation of modular, compliance-friendly infrastructure.

Overall, Plume has successfully built a large and expanding ecosystem that connects both new and old players in Web3 (spanning the on-chain and token domains) with traditional financial giants (involving off-chain and RWA domains). This dual-pronged approach has already led to over 180 applications and protocols, while its testnet has attracted over 3.75 million users and generated hundreds of millions of transactions, demonstrating impressive results.

The dual-engine cooperation network further strengthens Plume’s position as an indispensable infrastructure component bridging Web3 players (on-chain, DeFi protocols) with traditional financial giants (off-chain, RWA). With this synergy, Plume is set to become a fundamental building block as the RWAfi ecosystem continues to grow, positioning it as a “must-have” player in the space.

This development reinforces Plume’s unique position as a “dedicated RWAfi full-chain infrastructure” provider. It has the potential to directly capture the core value generated by RWA assets through tokenization, liquidity integration, and on-chain operations. Plume can offer complete technical and ecosystem support, from asset minting to deep integration into DeFi scenarios, ensuring the seamless transformation of traditional asset value into on-chain increments.

From this perspective, this “full lifecycle empowerment” is the irreplaceable competitive advantage of RWAfi public chains like Plume. Not only does it serve institutions and developers, but it also directly engages all RWA users, capturing the value of end-user participation. This way, Plume can share in the scaling growth of the broader RWA ecosystem and become a key engine driving the expansion of the trillion-dollar market.

Interestingly, as a sector closely tied to regulation, Plume enjoys a potential policy advantage that is often overlooked: Plume’s investor, Katie Haun, previously served as the U.S. Department of Justice Assistant U.S. Attorney and Digital Currency Coordinator, as well as a former partner at a16z and board member of Coinbase. Haun is one of the few in the crypto industry who has a deep understanding of the U.S. regulatory landscape and its profound impact on blockchain.

Her investment background places Plume closer to the center of regulatory policy, a positive signal for the project. As the U.S. regulatory framework gradually solidifies, especially after the January 20th appointments of crypto-friendly individuals to key roles within Trump’s cabinet, Plume is well-positioned to become one of the RWAfi projects closest to the “core” of U.S. regulation. This proximity could bring Plume significant policy support and market benefits, placing it in a prime position to capitalize on future regulatory clarity.

Conclusion

The winds of change often begin with the smallest of movements, and the logic of markets is never straightforward. Every narrative’s value discovery follows an inherent development trajectory.

RWAfi can be said to be one of the few narrative directions that effectively bridges the gap between on-chain and off-chain realms. Its potential comes not only from the innovation of Web3 but also from the immense dormant assets in traditional finance.

The value of RWAfi public chains is self-evident. They serve as the infrastructure capable of transforming RWA tokenization into a true “RWA asset internet,” offering a practical solution for the multibillion-dollar growth of the RWA narrative.

As for top players like Plume, which integrate both on-chain (DeFi) and off-chain (traditional financial institutions) elements, whether they will emerge successfully depends on their ability to continually attract developers and foster ecosystem growth. The true prosperity of the on-chain and off-chain integration of RWA hinges on whether it can thrive. After all, a blue ocean with no competitors signals the beginning of opportunities, and everything is still uncertain.

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