With the worldwide digital asset market projected to hit $16 trillion by 2030, the race to weave blockchain technology into the fabric of global finance is rapidly heating up. Turning the immense potential into reality, however, will require more than just speed. Economies and financial institutions need a clear roadmap to move forward, anchored in strong legal frameworks and smart risk management.
Experts emphasize that winning in the multi-trillion-dollar digital asset and tokenized asset market is no simple tech sprint. It’s experiencing a sweeping transformation that calls for a blend of strategic vision, airtight regulation, agile risk governance, and unified commitment from the top down.
Booming market
According to forecasts from Boston Consulting Group (BCG), the digital and tokenized asset market is heading into a decade of explosive growth. From a modest $300 billion in 2022, the market is expected to reach $16 trillion by 2030. In an even more optimistic scenario, that figure could soar to as high as $68 trillion. BCG attributes this extraordinary expansion to three key drivers.
The first is a clearer regulatory framework. As governments worldwide refine laws and regulations, a more transparent and secure playing field will emerge.
The second is intergenerational wealth transfer. Younger generations, raised in the digital era, tend to be more open to and interested in alternative investments such as digital assets.
And the third is market appeal. Asset tokenization opens a new gateway for investors to access markets. Blockchain technology “democratizes” access to tokenized and digital assets, attracting a vast pool of investors.
However, the market’s development is not uniform across the globe.
Speaking at the recent “Digital Assets: Transforming Financial Markets” conference hosted by Var Meta in Hanoi, Mr. Jeffrey Tchui, Vice President and Head of APAC Ecosystem at the Hedera Foundation, noted that the level of adoption for asset tokenization technology depends heavily on each country’s legal framework.
In major financial hubs such as Hong Kong (China), Singapore, and Japan, open regulatory environments and high-quality talent pools have made it easier to test and adopt the technology. In contrast, in many developing markets, the technology remains confined to tightly controlled regulatory sandboxes, largely serving traditional financial activities.
Against this backdrop, Vietnam is adopting a proactive stance, having officially laid the initial legal foundations for digital assets. The upcoming pilot of a tokenized asset exchange at its planned international financial center is expected to be a breakthrough step, helping Vietnam integrate more deeply into the global fintech market.
Regulation key
As digital assets gain ground, security and risk management have become critical concerns. Lessons from Thailand and Malaysia show that a strong legal framework is the bedrock of trust.
In Thailand, custodial risk is addressed through strict regulations; a response to the collapse of FTX, once the world’s second-largest crypto exchange and valued in the tens of billions of dollars. “Exchanges, brokers, and investment funds must keep 90 per cent of total assets in cold wallets managed by a licensed third-party custodian,” Mr. Arthit Sriumporn, Founder and CEO of Rakkar Digital, explained. This separation of control prevents exchanges from misusing customer funds, ensuring most assets are held securely by an independent, regulated entity.
To maintain daily liquidity, exchanges can keep up to 10 per cent of assets in hot wallets under their own management, with constant rebalancing between hot and cold storage to meet withdrawals while maximizing safety.
In Malaysia, regulatory oversight is equally strict. “Anyone operating an asset tokenization platform must be licensed by the Securities Commission, and comply with all stringent rules,” said Ms. Selvarany Rasiah, Founder and CEO of KLDX. The country enforces a Group Technology Risk Management (GTRM) framework across all licensed entities, ensuring they meet the highest security standards, on par with traditional financial institutions.
She noted that blockchain does not create new risks but requires tailored management, especially across multiple chains or in DeFi (decentralized finance). “The risks are similar to those faced by traditional stock exchanges, from custody to security,” she explained, emphasizing the need for robust internal controls such as multi-factor authentication, alongside using reputable cloud service providers to guard against cyberattacks.
Business before tech
With their vast potential, digital assets are drawing increasing interest from banks and financial institutions. But for those looking to enter the space, experts share one core piece of advice: start with the business case, not the technology.
“I’ve worked with many financial institutions and banks on digital transformation projects, such as core banking solutions,” Mr. Tchui said. “The focus is often on risk management and risk profiles. Innovation teams usually work with business teams to explore new technologies. But I urge banks and financial institutions not to take a technology-first approach to blockchain, because it won’t solve the underlying business problem.”
He pointed to digital asset custody as an example. Starting from the tech side can often bog down complex discussions about wallets and private keys, confusing business teams and leaving IT unable to offer support since it falls outside standard operational processes.
Instead, he recommended creating a sandbox targeting a specific market with a clear deployment goal, avoiding far-fetched use cases with no clear destination, while actively engaging with the community, platforms, and custodians to learn from their experience and define a clear role in the risk management journey.
According to Ms. Rasiah, successful digital asset adoption rests on three pillars.
The first is regulatory clarity. “This is the most critical factor,” she continued. “Without it, banks, bound by strict risk management, will struggle to proceed. Ecosystem partners and investors will hesitate, and scaling will be difficult.” She added that regulators should apply traditional financial rules to tokenized assets.
The second is market and investor education, to build understanding and consensus. A major challenge, Ms. Rasiah believes, is ignorance leading to fear of unknown risks. Education must start at the top: Boards of Directors need to know why this matters and the competitive risks of moving too slowly. That knowledge should then cascade down to managers and staff. The entire partner ecosystem, including custodians, law firms, and auditors, must also be educated so that all parts of the chain operate smoothly in a new environment.
And the third is identifying a concrete use case and market need. There must be a clear business problem to solve: Why tokenize an asset? What customer issue does it address?
Vietnam is now entering a pivotal stage in its digital asset development strategy. According to Mr. Frank Le, Head of Growth at Var Meta, pilots such as stablecoin payments in central Da Nang city exhibited the clear real-world potential when banks, technology, and government work hand-in-hand. “When Vietnam’s Law on Digital Technology Industry takes effect and the government sets out a clear legal framework, it will mark a crucial moment in the country’s digital transformation,” he said.
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