Karla Barker 
Tokenization’s Urgent Timeline
Stablecoins and tokenization continued to dominate conversations at DAS London’s second day, but the discussion took a more urgent turn. While these topics have been circulating for years, industry leaders are now emphasizing the need for immediate action rather than continued speculation.
Algorand Foundation CEO Staci Warden set the tone early, calling tokenization crypto’s killer application. The numbers support this perspective – stablecoins have grown to nearly $300 billion in market value, serving as what many call the “top of the funnel” for tokenization. Meanwhile, tokenized real-world assets like private credit and money market funds have reached about $33 billion according to RWA.xyz data.
Industry Frustration Builds
What struck me was the palpable frustration from Inversion founder Santiago Roel Santos during a panel discussion. “I’m tired of sitting behind a screen or coming to these panels and pontificating about this technology,” Santos said. “It’s good, we use it, but someone has to deploy it at scale.”
His words resonated because they reflect a broader industry sentiment. We’ve been talking about tokenization’s potential for years, and even traditional finance players like Vanguard were testing blockchain technology over five years ago to streamline asset-backed securities markets. The conversation isn’t new, but the urgency is.
The Execution Window
Santos presented a clear timeline that I think many in the space would agree with. He argued there’s a three-to-five year “execution window” before tokenization becomes “table stakes” – essentially, before it becomes standard practice. The implication is clear: if the industry can’t make it happen within this timeframe, there are no excuses left.
“The tech is ready, the regulation is there and so let’s accelerate that, let’s actually muscle our way to go-to-market and development,” Santos emphasized. This shift from planning to execution seems to be where the industry is heading, moving beyond theoretical discussions to practical implementation.
Perhaps what’s most telling is that we’re seeing this urgency emerge at major industry events. When leaders start expressing frustration with continued discussion rather than action, it signals a turning point. The technology has proven itself, the regulatory landscape is becoming clearer, and now the focus must shift to deployment at scale.
I think Santos’s comments capture where we are in the tokenization journey. The pieces are in place, and the industry recognizes that the time for talking is ending while the time for building and scaling is beginning. It’s a challenging but necessary transition that will define the next phase of blockchain adoption in traditional finance.