Citi drops Tokenization 2030 report

Citi Tokenization 2030 forecast 32,300% base-case growth for tokenized assets driven by U.S. equities, Treasuries, and money market funds in latest report. Key takeaways.

Current tokenized assets: ~$17B

2030 Bear Case: $2.7T (158x)

2030 Base Case: $5.5T (323x)

2030 Bull Case: $8.2T (482x)

1️⃣ Tokenization shifts from a private markets story to a public markets story

Earlier tokenization narratives focused on private equity, private credit and real estate.

Citi sees that public equities and public fixed income will dominate adoption through 2030 because they already possess: liquidity, investor demand, collateral utility and distribution channels.

- Public equities: $3.6T

- Public Fixed Income: $1.4T

- Private credit, equity and real estate: $0.4T

2️⃣ The biggest catalyst is incumbent market infrastructure adopting tokenization

The biggest catalyst is not another blockchain startup; it is existing systemic players moving:

- DTCC tokenization services

- NYSE tokenized securities platform

- Nasdaq tokenized issuance and settlement initiatives

Previous tokenization efforts struggled because settlement still relied on traditional payment rails. But now there are stablecoins, tokenized deposits and future CBDC possibilities to complete the transaction lifecycle.

3️⃣ Collateral mobility may be the first killer use case

While tokenized securities attract headlines, Citi repeatedly points to:

- repo

- treasury collateral

- liquidity management

- intraday funding

as areas where tokenization generates immediate economic benefits.

4️⃣ New winners will be "Structural Orchestrators"

Citi argues value will increasingly accrue to firms that control:

- Asset issuance

- Distribution

- Settlement rails

Rather than earning fees at a single point in the value chain, these players orchestrate the entire lifecycle.

5️⃣ Tokenization is ultimately a market structure transformation

Tokenization should not be viewed primarily as a technology upgrade. Instead, it changes:

- who controls markets

- how assets are distributed

- how liquidity moves

- where fees accrue

- how collateral is used

The report explicitly frames tokenization as a reconfiguration of capital markets rather than a digitization project.

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