Tenev: Real-World Assets Will Fuel Crypto's Next Growth Phase

Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev believes that real-world assets will drive crypto's next growth phase. In a CNBC interview, he stated, 'I believe that the future of crypto is in real-world assets.' According to Tenev, productive tokenized assets are tied to underlying utility, while speculative tokens lack this connection.

Robinhood has launched a new suite of blockchain-based products built around its Robinhood Chain and Stock Tokens. These tokenized exposure to stocks and ETFs can be traded 24/7, used as collateral in DeFi venues, or deployed into lending pools. The company's argument puts tokenization at the center of its crypto strategy, not just a side product for crypto-native users.

Tenev emphasized that everything running on traditional rails will eventually become on-chain and tokenized. Robinhood's July rollout follows this logic, with Stock Tokens offering economic exposure to underlying securities without granting legal or beneficial rights in those securities.

The company has also pushed tokenized assets deeper into trading infrastructure, allowing eligible users to access Lighter perpetual futures inside Robinhood Wallet. European users can now trade commodity, ETF, and FX perpetuals with up to 10x leverage, while eligible U.S. users can lend USDG through a self-custody wallet using Morpho infrastructure.