Pan-European fund manager APS became the first institutional investor to directly acquire tokenized real estate assets through MetaWealth’s blockchain-based investment platform, according to an announcement shared with Cointelegraph.
APS, which manages over 12 billion euros ($13.7 billion) in assets, purchased 3 million euros ($3.4 million) in tokenized bonds tied to two Italian residential properties listed on MetaWealth: Fo.Ro Living Rome and Porta Pamphili Rome. Each tranche was split evenly at 1.5 million euros.
APS acquired the same tokenized assets that are available to retail investors. The bonds were transacted and recorded on the blockchain, which adds transparency and programmability to the process.
“Tokenisation represents a transformative shift in investing, offering increased liquidity and streamlined transactions while maintaining compliance and security,” said Mihai Pop, a manager at APS.
MetaWealth tokenizes Pan-European real estate
Founded in 2023, MetaWealth tokenizes Pan-European real estate, enabling fractional ownership and near-instant transfers of real estate tokens.
The platform has tokenized properties across Romania, Spain, Greece and Italy, facilitating over $50 million in tokenized transactions. Each token on MetaWealth represents fractional ownership, allowing institutional and retail investors to trade real estate stakes in seconds.
“The investment brings increased trust to the space, an important source of liquidity to the ecosystem and increased access to real-world assets for customers and institutions alike,” MetaWealth CEO Amr Adawi said.
MetaWealth said it now ranks among the top 10 global real-world assets (RWA) tokenization platforms, with users from 23 countries.
Tokenization picks up speed
There has been a wave of interest in RWA tokenization, with major players from both traditional finance and crypto making headlines as of late.
On April 30, BlackRock filed to create a blockchain-based share class for its $150 billion Treasury Trust Fund, allowing a digital ledger to mirror investor ownership. On the same day, Libre revealed plans to tokenize $500 million in Telegram debt via its new Telegram Bond Fund.
On May 1, MultiBank Group inked a $3 billion tokenization deal with UAE real estate firm MAG and blockchain provider Mavryk.