Tokenization as a Driver for Growth and Financial Inclusion: Lessons from Emerging Markets

July 2025

By Nick Clark, Head of the Regulatory Innovation Hub, Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance; and
Hugo Coelho, Head of Digital Policy and Regulation, Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance 

This note summarises the discussion that took place at the roundtable titled “Tokenization as a driver for growth and financial inclusion: Lessons from Emerging Markets”, held at the Point Zero Forum, in Zurich, Switzerland, on 7 May 2025. 

The roundtable was co-hosted by the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF), Financial Innovation for Impact (Fii) and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). The session was held under the Chatham House Rule, and this note does not attribute statements to individual participants or institutions. 

The objective of the roundtable was to gauge the impact of tokenization use cases on financial inclusion and economic growth in Emerging Markets and Developing Economies (EMDEs) and discuss regulatory pathways. The discussion was divided into three parts: 

1. Presentations from CCAF and industry participants on current research and use cases; 
2. A discussion on emerging applications of tokenization; 
3. An exchange on barriers to adoption of DLT in financial markets and policy and regulatory considerations. 
   

1. CCAF introduction and research insights 

The roundtable started with a presentation of the findings from a forthcoming CCAF/Fii paper on policy and regulatory approaches to tokenized assets, with a focus on EMDEs.  

The paper categorises regulatory initiatives into four groups: legal and regulatory reform, central bank-led pilots, sandbox and innovation initiatives, and public-private collaborations.  

While tokenization holds the potential to reshape financial market infrastructure, regulatory strategies and adoption patterns vary significantly across jurisdictions. EMDEs often prioritise the tokenization of tangible assets such as real estate and commodities, whereas advanced economies tend to focus on areas such as collateral management, equity and funds.  

The presentation also highlighted the relevance of CCAF’s broader technical assistance programmes and its digital platform for regulatory peer learning — the Regulator Knowledge Exchange (RKE) — as tools to build capacity and share emerging practices. 

2. Industry presentations: gold and real-estate tokenisation 

Two use cases in EMDE markets were presented during the roundtable: 

• A tokenized gold product backed 1:1 by physical gold reserves, designed to offer fractional ownership and improve accessibility to gold investment, particularly in jurisdictions with high inflation and limited access to traditional financial products. 
• A tokenized real estate platform developed under a regulatory sandbox, aiming to improve liquidity and broaden investor access to real estate funds. The platform integrates issuance, trading, and lending, and is structured to align with legal and regulatory requirements for asset custody and investor protection. 

Both use cases highlighted the need for regulatory clarity and robust risk management frameworks to enable adoption in EMDEs. Presenters emphasised that fractionalisation, transparency, and reduced transaction costs can contribute to financial inclusion — especially in contexts where conventional asset ownership remains inaccessible to most of the population. Other participants argued there is insufficient evidence yet of a causal link between tokenization and financial inclusion, including women’s financial inclusion.   

3. Policy and regulatory discussion 

Emerging use cases in EMDEs 

Participants reported a variety of pilots and initiatives in their jurisdictions, including:  

• Tokenization of gold, government bonds, and income-generating real estate; 
• Applications within central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilots aimed at unlocking credit through tokenized collateral; 
• Sandbox testing of tokenized real estate via fund structures designed for retail access. 

These initiatives are often framed as part of broader efforts to reform capital markets, broaden participation, and deepen liquidity. Fractionalisation of assets and efficiencies arising from the changed role of intermediaries were highlighted as factors that can help Small and Medium-sized Entreprises to raise capital as well as contribute to reduce barriers to entry for retail investors. 

Barriers to scaling tokenization 

Several common barriers to the widespread adoption of DLT in financial markets were identified and discussed: 

• Legal ambiguity regarding asset ownership and enforceability of rights attached to tokens; 
• Availability of tokenized money or payment systems to enable atomic settlement; 
• Fragmentation of pilot initiatives, lack of coordination between market participants, and interoperability across platforms, including legacy and DLT, and jurisdictions; 
• Limited liquidity in secondary markets, exacerbated by small user bases and lack of network effects

Participants noted that while the technology has matured significantly, infrastructure coordination and market incentives are still missing in many settings. A recurring theme was the need for trust, both in the technology and in the institutions offering tokenized products. One participant argued that regulation is not a major impediment. 

From sandbox to scale 

Several participants reflected on the challenge of moving from pilot initiatives to live, scaled applications. Key issues included: 

• Designing sandbox “graduation” pathways that enable safe and credible transition to the open market; 
• Building domestic capacity for custodianship, investor onboarding, and secondary market operation; 
• Harmonising cross-agency mandates, particularly in jurisdictions with fragmented supervisory landscapes. 

The importance of regional and international regulatory coordination was emphasised, with participants expressing support for thematic regulatory sandboxes and joint research initiatives. 

 Conclusion and next steps 

The roundtable discussion showed some alignment on the potential of tokenization in EMDEs, particularly for widening access to and contributing to the development of capital markets, thus increasing growth and promoting inclusion. At the same time, participants said that sufficient evidence of genuine positive impact could be stronger. 

Participants acknowledged significant hurdles to scale — ranging from legal clarity to ecosystem maturity — and highlighted the importance of balancing innovation with other policy objectives, such as financial stability and consumer protection. It has also been argued that use cases must be grounded in actual demand and take into account national rules, policy preferences and market structures. The need for stronger coordination between market participants, interoperability arrangements and enhanced cooperation between regulators within and across jurisdictions were also highlighted throughout the discussion.  

Insights from this roundtable will inform future research and technical assistance work by CCAF/Fii. A follow-up roundtable on the tokenization of money instruments will be held at the Singapore FinTech Festival in November 2025, to conclude the series.