The major players tokenizing real-world assets split into three groups: traditional asset managers (BlackRock, Franklin Templeton), crypto-native issuers and infrastructure (Ondo, Securitize, Paxos), and protocols focused on a single asset class (Centrifuge and Maple in credit, RealT in real estate, Figure in lending). Each one specializes - some originate the asset, some only run the issuance rails - so knowing who does what tells you a lot about any token's quality. This is the shortlist and what each firm actually does, as of 2026.

Key takeaways

• No single company dominates every real-world asset class - leadership is split by asset type.
• Asset managers lead in Treasuries and funds; crypto-native firms lead in credit and property.
• Some names are issuers of the asset; others, like Securitize, are the platform that issues for them.
• The firm behind a token is a first-order quality signal, alongside the asset and the legal wrapper.

The major RWA players at a glance

Here is who the main firms are and what they tokenize.

BlackRock

The world's largest asset manager runs BUIDL, a tokenized money-market fund issued on-chain. Its arrival in 2024 signaled that tokenized Treasuries and funds were an institutional product, not an experiment. BlackRock supplies the fund; the on-chain issuance runs through Securitize.

Franklin Templeton

An early mover, Franklin Templeton launched one of the first tokenized money-market funds (BENJI / FOBXX), recording share ownership directly on a public blockchain. It is notable for building its own transfer-agent infrastructure rather than relying on a third party.

Ondo Finance

Ondo is a crypto-native issuer that packages US Treasuries and short-term yield into on-chain tokens (OUSG, USDY) aimed at both institutions and on-chain users. It sits between traditional assets and DeFi, routing underlying funds into formats that plug into on-chain systems.

Securitize

Securitize is less a single product than the plumbing: a registered transfer agent and issuance platform that many large tokenized funds, including BlackRock's BUIDL, are built on. If an asset manager wants to tokenize a fund, Securitize is often the firm doing the on-chain work.

Paxos

Paxos tokenizes gold - each PAXG token is backed by a specific quantity of physical metal in a vault - making it a leader in tokenized commodities. It is also a regulated issuer of stablecoins, so it operates as both an asset tokenizer and a payments-infrastructure firm.

Centrifuge

Centrifuge is a protocol for tokenized private credit, connecting real-world lenders to on-chain capital through structured credit pools. It focuses on the infrastructure that lets a loan book be funded and tracked transparently on-chain.

RealT

RealT is one of the best-known names in tokenized real estate, dividing individual US rental properties into fractional tokens and distributing rental income to holders, historically in a stablecoin. It made single-property fractional ownership accessible at low minimums.

Maple Finance

Maple runs institutional lending on-chain, originating and managing private-credit loans to vetted borrowers and issuing tokens that represent a share of the returns. It is a core player in the largest RWA class by value.

Figure

Figure originates real-world loans - notably home-equity lines of credit - on its own blockchain and is one of the highest-volume private-credit issuers in the space. It is an example of a firm that both creates the asset and runs the rails it settles on.

How to compare them

The useful question is not "which firm is biggest" but "what role does this firm play in the token I'm looking at." Three roles recur: the firm that owns or originates the asset, the firm that structures and issues the token, and the firm that runs the regulated infrastructure (transfer agent, custody). One company sometimes fills all three; often they are different.

The pattern across the list is clear. In standardized products - tokenized funds and Treasuries - incumbent asset managers lead, because the product and distribution are already theirs. In credit and property, crypto-native firms built the market first, because those assets needed new origination and legal rails. When you evaluate a token, trace it back to the firm behind each role and check their track record - that is as much a part of due diligence as the asset itself.

Where to go next

• Next: why tokenized assets are securities and how that shapes who can invest.
• The market view: see who leads the RWA market.
• Glossary: issuer.

Sources: rwa.xyz, as of 2026.