BlackRock, a leading asset management firm, anticipates that traditional financial assets will transition to their tokenized forms over the coming decades, as per CEO Larry Fink.
In a Tuesday interview with CNBC’s Squawk on the Street, Fink stated he sees the tokenization of all assets as a pivotal move for the firm and a chance to attract a broader audience.
“If we can tokenize an ETF, digitize that ETF, we can engage investors who are just starting to invest in markets through, let’s say, crypto. They’re investing, but we can also lead them into more traditional long-term retirement products,” he mentioned.
“We perceive this as the next wave of opportunity for BlackRock over the next decades, as we gradually move away from traditional financial assets by reimagining them digitally and keeping people within that digital ecosystem.”
BlackRock is the largest asset manager globally, overseeing $13.5 trillion in assets as reported in its latest earnings announcement. The firm manages $104 billion in crypto assets, which is about 1% of its total portfolio.
Tokenization is still in the early stages
Meanwhile, Fink elaborated to CNBC that he believes the tokenization of assets is still nascent, with significant growth potential across various sectors.
“I truly think we’re just at the inception of asset tokenization, from real estate to equities, to bonds—across the board,” he noted.
According to market research company Mordor Intelligence, the asset tokenization market is valued at over $2 trillion in 2025, with expectations to soar beyond $13 trillion by 2030.
Fink also revealed during the fund managers’ earnings call that BlackRock intends to enhance its involvement in tokenization going forward, with various teams currently investigating potential strategies.
BlackRock has already established the largest tokenized cash market fund, the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL), valued at $2.8 billion, which launched in March 2024.
Related: BlackRock CEO urges SEC to ‘quickly approve’ tokenization of bonds and stocks: Implications for crypto
Fink’s evolving perspective on crypto
Earlier this week, in an interview with CBS’s 60 Minutes, Fink also mentioned that he believes crypto should play a crucial role in a diversified investor portfolio, akin to gold.
“There is a place for crypto just like there is for gold; it serves as an alternative. For those looking to diversify, it’s a decent asset, but I don’t think it should dominate your portfolio.”
Previously a notable skeptic, Fink labeled crypto as a tool for money laundering in 2017, and in 2018 reaffirmed that none of his clients wanted to invest in it.
During the CNBC interview, Fink acknowledged that his views evolved over time because “I grow and learn.”
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