WisdomTree CEO Jonathan Steinberg believes that Bitcoin and crypto are on the brink of “mainstream” adoption and will achieve that status within the next few years.
Steinberg expressed his conviction during a July 29 CNBC interview, citing regulatory clarity, the emergence of publicly traded crypto funds, and the tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs) as the primary catalysts of this trend.
Regulatory clarity
During the interview, Steinberg emphasized the significance of former President Donald J. Trump’s speech at the Bitcoin 2024 conference on July 27 and the ripple effects it will have on the industry over the long term.
According to the WisdomTree CEO, Trump’s ambitious promise of regulatory clarity for crypto and digital assets marked a pivotal moment for the industry. He added that such regulatory frameworks will have a profoundly positive impact on both crypto as an asset class and on blockchain-enabled finance overall.
Steinberg said:
“[Trump] could not have spoken in a more ambitious tone for what he would do with crypto and Bitcoin as an asset class.”
He also highlighted that Bitcoin has been the best-performing asset class for 15 years and will continue to outperform the market, further fueling adoption as it gains regulatory acceptance.
Steinberg said that Bitcoin is the natural evolution of money, just like smartphones replaced landlines; he predicts digital assets will eventually become the dominant form of transacting.
He added:
“In money, you had gold and then paper money — we’re moving toward programmable money, which will really transform financial services broadly.”
Real-world assets
Steinberg also highlighted that the narrative around crypto is expanding beyond core assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum to include a broader range of tokenized real-world assets.
He explained:
“Crypto is an asset class, and then there’s this broader tokenization of all real-world assets. We see it all converging.”
Steinberg noted that traditional financial institutions are already venturing into the RWA market, citing examples like BlackRock’s BUIDL and Franklin Templeton’s FOBXX. Wall Street banking giant Goldman Sachs is also set to launch three new tokenization products later this year for institutional clients.
According to McKinsey & Company, the market for RWAs is projected to reach $2 trillion by 2030. However, the firm also said that the sector faces a “cold start” problem, primarily due to limited liquidity and transaction volume.