Trust Wallet, the self-custodial crypto wallet owned by Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, has launched tokenized stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on its platform, marking a significant step in the integration of real-world assets (RWAs).
After initially announcing the plan to introduce RWAs in June, the wallet now offers tokenized versions of US stocks and ETFs for global users.
This integration is a collaboration with Ondo Finance, a major DeFi platform focused on RWAs, and 1inch, a decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregator that powers the liquidity and pricing for the swaps.
Integrating RWAs into self-custodial wallets is an important step in making global finance more open and efficient, said Trust Wallet CEO Eowyn Chen. She emphasized that blockchain’s ability to democratize access to financial markets is laying the groundwork for a more inclusive future of finance.
How Ondo and 1inch power RWA integration
Through its partnership with Ondo Finance, Trust Wallet gains access to tokenized RWA assets, including stocks, ETFs, and bonds. These assets are initially issued on Ethereum using smart contracts, with plans for Solana support in the future.
1inch Fusion facilitates smooth, efficient liquidity and pricing for these RWA swaps, ensuring a seamless user experience. As Trust Wallet’s marketing head Sami Waittinen explained, “Ondo brings the assets, 1inch powers the rails, and Trust Wallet makes it accessible in self-custody.”
Trust Wallet’s philosophy remains multichain and provider-agnostic, and the company plans to integrate more RWA providers and liquidity sources in the future to ensure users have broad access to these assets.
However, RWA tokens are not available in all regions. Users in the United States, United Kingdom, and the European Economic Area will be unable to swap these tokens. Additionally, RWA trading follows US market hours, from 1:30 pm to 8:00 pm UTC, with potential future features like 24/7 trading and limit orders.
RWA support and the future of self-custody
By integrating RWA support into its self-custodial wallet, Trust Wallet is one of the first platforms to bridge self-custody and RWAs. While self-custody gives users control over their assets without centralized oversight, tokenized RWAs provide digital representations of real-world assets, such as stocks or ETFs, as certificates of ownership.
This collaboration aligns with mission of promoting freedom of ownership and providing secure, direct access to crypto and Web3 opportunities. Tokenized RWAs unlock traditionally gated assets, making them accessible to anyone, anywhere, directly from their own wallet.
Cryptocurrencies offer direct ownership via private keys, the underlying assets for RWAs (such as stocks or ETFs) remain with an issuer or custodian, even though the RWA token is secured by the user’s keys.