Tokenized Gold Outpaced Physical Gold in 2025: Report

Tokenized gold had a better performance than physical gold in 2025, according to a new report by CEX.io. The report written by Ilya Otychenko noted that the market capitalization of tokenized gold rose by 177% last year.

This was 2.6 times faster than the growth in market cap for physical gold, highlighting how more people are increasingly turning to tokenized real-world assets (RWA).

RWA Soars by 184% in 2025; Driven by Tokeized Gold

According to the report, RWA experienced significant growth in 2025, with total value locked (TVL) increasing by 184%. Tokenized gold accounts for 25% of this growth, primarily due to an increase in its market capitalization.

With a market cap of $1.6 billion at the start of 2025, the asset’s market cap increased to $4.4 billion by the end of the year. This was the second-largest percentage growth, after non-US treasuries, which had an over 600% increase in market cap.

However, the $2.8 billion in absolute inflows for tokenized gold was more than the combined inflows for tokenized corporate bonds, stocks, and non-US treasuries.

Interestingly, the growth in market cap was also matched with a rise in the number of holders. Holders increased by 198% which meant an additional 115,000 new holders in 2025. This surpassed the increase in holders for tokenized US treasuries and other bonds.

However, two tokenized gold products, Tether Gold (XAUT),  Whale Larp up Tether Gold as the Precious Metal Value Rises, and Paxos Gold (PAXG), account for over 95% of the tokenized gold market cap. XAUT is the largest, with a market cap of $2.41 billion, while PAXG has a market cap of $1.768 billion.

What is Driving Tokenized Gold Performance

Meanwhile, the performance of tokenized gold in 2025 is due to increased interest from investors. Several factors, including the performance of the underlying asset, drove this.

Gold prices reached record highs in 2025 with the largest increase in 46 years as the market cap rose 67% to $30 trillion. This was a result of increased demand amidst geopolitical uncertainties and fraying global alliances.

However, tokenized gold still outperformed physical gold and most gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs), showing that there was more interest in it. The report attributed this to the unique features that make it suitable for both institutional and retail investors.

It said:

“Unlike some tokenized assets, it’s not limited only to accredited investors, has no minimum investment threshold, and offers fractional ownership, allowing investors of all sizes, from institutions to individuals with very small capital, to easily gain exposure by simply purchasing a token.”

This interest from investors was evident in the trading, which reached $178 billion, a 1,550% increase year-on-year. Compared to Gold ETFs, only the largest gold ETF, the SPDR Gold Trust, posted more volume year-round.