TOKEN2049 Singapore 2025 Kicks Off With Robinhood, GEMtrust DAO, and High-Profile Sessions

Singapore’s TOKEN2049 opened with a transparent message: the following chapter of crypto is being written on the crossroads of institutional infrastructure, real-world asset tokenization, and wise regulation.

The two-day flagship occasion at Marina Bay Sands drew over 25,000 attendees, together with founders, traders, policymakers, and Web3 builders, all desperate to see the place the business is heading.

On Day 1 alone, a collection of main bulletins had been made, from 24/7 tokenized equities and enterprise-level privateness layers to daring predictions about Bitcoin’s subsequent part, that set the stage for a brand new period of adoption.

Institutional Rails & Tokenization Take the Stage in TOKEN2049

Alpaca launched its Instant Tokenization Network (ITN), an open, token-agnostic platform that mints and redeems U.S. shares into tokenized variations 24/7. Supported by Ondo Finance, Dinari, and DRW, with Solana because the settlement layer, ITN goals to capitalize on a projected multi-trillion-dollar wave of tokenization by 2030.

On Bitcoin, Citrea previewed its upcoming mainnet, designed to unlock deep BTC liquidity and improve miner income streams.

Meanwhile, Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev known as tokenization a “freight practice,” unveiling tokenized shares in Europe and hinting at actual property tokenization subsequent, arguing that the U.S. should catch as much as European digital-asset frameworks.

Capital Flows, DeFi–TradFi Convergence & Enterprise Privacy

Capital deployment accelerated as Maelstrom (Arthur Hayes) launched Maelstrom Equity, a personal fairness arm concentrating on management and minority stakes in crypto and associated companies. MEXC Ventures elevated its ENA (Ethena) stake to $30M, elevating complete Ethena ecosystem publicity to $66M (together with USDe).

On the product aspect, Hypersurface launched HyperEVM, providing absolutely on-chain lined calls with clear strikes and upfront stablecoin premiums, bridging a technique lengthy dominated by OTC desks in TradFi.

Celo reached two milestones: XAUt0 (omnichain Tether Gold) for 150+ nations and Nightfall, EY’s zero-knowledge privateness layer, as Layer 3 for auditable, non-public B2B funds, opening a wedge into the $180T cross-border market.

Security and entry additionally improved: Digital Shield Pro launched with CC EAL6+ safe ingredient and air-gapped QR signing; KuCoin rebranded to “Trust First. Trade Next” and launched KuMining for verifiable cloud hashrate.

Real-World Assets, Market Structure & Marquee Moments

GEMtrust DAO launched GEM DiCom, a gemstone-backed ERC-20 token the place every unit is linked to lab-certified property saved in Swiss vaults. Its aim is to make high-value stones extra accessible by gemNFTs and on-chain minting, solely backed by absolutely collateralized treasury holdings.

From a regulatory perspective, Indonesia’s CFX highlighted its “Three-Pillar” mannequin, comprising an change, clearing home, and custodian underneath OJK oversight, which has helped develop the platform to 16.5 million registered traders and offers a mannequin for tokenized RWAs and stablecoin improvement.

The program’s prominence matched its substance: Donald Trump Jr. and Michael Ho drew massive crowds discussing coverage and institutional adoption, whereas Sheeraz Hasan’s AI-infused fame session emphasised crypto’s cultural affect.

Cover picture from ChatGPT, HYPEUSD chart from Tradingview