Exclusive: Mantra aims to bring real-world assets on-chain, CEO says ‘proven tech is secure and scalable’
According to a recent report by McKinsey & Company, we are still a long way from bringing real-world assets (RWAs) onto the blockchain, but the potential is there, as the total tokenized market cap could reach around $2 trillion by 2030.
Mantra, a “security-first” Layer-1 blockchain, aims to provide standardization for tokenization and serve the needs of financial services firms interested in bringing their entire portfolios on-chain.
Mantra co-founder and CEO John Patrick Marin spoke to Benzinga about the benefits of traditional finance (TradFi) entering the tokenized space and the potential for RWAs in 2024 and beyond.
BZ: Why is there such strong interest in RWAs?
Marin: The RWA revolution is gaining momentum due to a confluence of technology maturity, regulatory advancements, and a growing understanding and acceptance of blockchain's potential in traditional finance. The early days of stablecoins and other blockchain technologies laid the necessary groundwork by demonstrating that blockchain was viable for real-world applications. Now, as the technology has proven secure and scalable, and regulatory clarity is beginning to emerge, both the market and institutions are poised to leverage these innovations on a larger scale.
BZ: What do TradFi companies expect from RWA? What about consumers?
Marin: Traditional finance (TradFi) institutions are recognizing the efficiency, liquidity and global reach that blockchain can offer, with cryptocurrencies becoming a new frontier for investment and operations. Consumers are seeking more stable and tangible investment opportunities in the cryptocurrency space, and RWAs provide this by linking digital assets to real-world goods and real estate.
BZ: Which RWAs do you see as the “tip of the spear” leading the revolution?
Marin: Commodities like real estate, gold and oil are often seen as the “tip of the spear” of the RWA revolution. But it will be US securities, equities, bonds, private credit etc. that will come first. The real estate market is the least liquid and will benefit most from fractional ownership and increased liquidity, making investments more accessible. These may come later, but in my opinion, this is where they will add the most value. Commodities that traditionally require complex logistics and have high barriers to entry are also good candidates for tokenization, simplifying transactions and opening up new markets.
BZ: Will RWA help bring liquidity to the cryptocurrency ecosystem?
Marin: RWA introduces a new way to buy, sell, and trade real-world assets on a blockchain platform. By tokenizing assets like real estate, art, and commodities, large assets can be divided into smaller, more liquid units. This not only makes these assets more accessible to a wider audience, but also allows them to be integrated into the broader crypto trading and lending ecosystem, increasing overall market liquidity. Over time, on-chain will become the new online, and at Mantra we are working towards our vision of putting finance on-chain.
The story continues
BZ: What are your plans to make RWAs accessible to everyone?
Marin: Mantra Chain's broader strategy is to work closely with all major RWA projects to create the most liquid layer-1 blockchain specifically for RWA. Enabling Ondo USDY, the market-leading tokenized US Treasury product, will significantly expand the ecosystem. Having a base layer of fungible interest-bearing liquidity via USDY is critical to strengthening our on-chain liquidity profile, and this is one of many enhancements we are making to the Mantra ecosystem.
Future cooperation between Blockchain and TradFi
Mantra recently announced news that Nomura’s digital assets division, Laser Digital, will become a strategic investor and partner, partnering with Ondo Finance. Mantra also mentioned other partnerships in talks with TradFi and other major blockchain companies.
While it seems unlikely that the big phenomenon of on-chain RWA tokenization will become the domain of any L1, the existence of projects like Mantra shows that the space is maturing and solving the challenges of tokenizing commodities and traditional financial instruments.
Projects like Mantra will be important to this trend as they can negotiate partnerships with traditional financial institutions, which have shown varying degrees of willingness to move in line with the digital trend.
Over the next decade, fractional asset sales will likely become a stable part of the industry, accessible to global buyers around the world with lower barriers to entry than ever before. In the meantime, it's worth keeping an eye on projects like Mantra and Chintai, or tokenization leaders like Tokenize and Securitize, to see how traditional finance is forging new relationships with digital assets and embracing the new challenges and opportunities of the cryptocurrency space.
Investors and experts will have the opportunity to delve deeper into these trends at Benzinga's “The Future of Digital Assets” event on Nov. 19, where the evolving landscape of digital assets will be at the center of discussion.
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This article is exclusive: Mantra aims to bring real-world assets on-chain, CEO says 'proven technology is secure and scalable' originally appeared on Benzinga.com.
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