Tokenization is Good: Native Issuance is Better
Over the past year, tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) have exploded into the spotlight with tokenization touted as the solution to inefficiencies in finance.
It’s a powerful trend. But here’s the overlooked truth:
Tokenization alone is just putting a digital skin on a system that’s already broken.
If we want to truly transform capital markets not just cosmetically improve them, we need to go deeper. At Dusk, we’re building the infrastructure for native issuance of financial instruments on-chain.
We believe that it is native issuance, not just tokenization, that will unlock the benefits of blockchain for regulated assets and overhaul to way we "do" finance.
Tokenization vs. Native Issuance
Let’s clarify the terms:
- Tokenization typically wraps an existing off-chain asset in an on-chain digital representation. The asset still lives in traditional databases, under legacy processes.
- Native issuance, by contrast, creates the asset directly on-chain, embedding compliance, trading rules, and settlement logic at the protocol level.
Why Isn’t Everyone Doing This?
Because it’s hard. Extremely hard.
Native issuance requires building blockchain infrastructure that meets the standards of institutional finance.
That means:
- Navigating securities law
- Embedding MiFID II and MiCA compliance
- Integrating with regulated market venues and institutions
- Enabling privacy-preserving compliance through advanced cryptography
- Delivering performance, stability, and trust at every level of the stack
You must be as flexible as a smart contract platform and as regulated as a central securities depository.
Very few can do both. Dusk can.
A European Framework, Built for Institutions
While many DeFi protocols operate in regulatory gray zones, Dusk builds with regulation as the starting point, not an afterthought.
We’re aligned with the EU’s MiCA framework and MiFID II requirements, enabling compliant issuance, transfer, and settlement of digital securities, including equity, debt, and structured financial products.
And we’re not doing it in isolation.
Through our close partnership with NPEX, the Dutch SME exchange, Dusk is supporting regulated primary issuances on-chain, making it possible for companies to raise capital in a fully digital, compliant environment.
Why It Matters
Traditional capital markets are riddled with inefficiencies:
- T+2 settlement cycles
- High costs and friction
- Fragmented databases and intermediaries
- Limited market access for smaller issuers
Even with tokenization, many of these problems remain, because the asset’s lifecycle is still governed by off-chain infrastructure.
With native issuance on Dusk, assets are born digital:
- Issuance, KYC, AML, and compliance are baked in
- Secondary trading is instant, private, and compliant
- Settlements are T+0, and accessible 24/7
- Institutions can meet regulatory standards while operating in a blockchain-native environment
It’s not just about modernizing finance but fundamentally re-architecting it.
What Comes Next
As institutional interest in RWAs intensifies, the market will quickly outgrow simple wrappers and synthetic tokens. Regulators, issuers, and investors will demand deeper integration, better compliance, and real efficiency gains.
That’s where Dusk comes in.
We’re not here to tokenize broken processes.
We’re here to replace them with programmable, compliant, privacy-preserving financial infrastructure.
