Tokenisation Is Becoming Financial Infrastructure

When Larry Fink speaks about the future of finance, markets listen. Not because he chases trends, but because BlackRock sits at the centre of global capital flows. So when The Economist published a December 2025 article authored by Fink and BlackRock COO Rob Goldstein, it marked a turning point in how tokenisation is framed.

This wasn’t crypto commentary. It wasn’t hype. It was something far more consequential: a structural argument that tokenisation is evolving into core financial infrastructure.

Their conclusion was understated but unmistakable. Tokenisation, they argued, is not about replacing the financial system. It is about upgrading it, in the same way the internet upgraded communication and commerce.

And crucially, they placed real assets — not speculative ones — at the centre of this transformation.

That single sentence explains why real estate is not a side-story in tokenisation. It is the main event.

The Infrastructure Problem No One Likes to Talk About

Modern finance looks advanced on the surface. Trades execute in milliseconds, capital moves globally, and portfolios rebalance automatically. But beneath that efficiency sits an uncomfortable truth: some of the world’s most valuable assets still run on outdated infrastructure.

Real estate is the clearest example.

Property markets remain slow, opaque, fragmented and capital-intensive. Ownership structures are rigid. Liquidity events are binary — sell the asset or don’t. Financing options are often limited to debt, refinancing, or full disposal. And once capital is locked into property, unlocking it again is costly and time-consuming.

Fink and Goldstein describe this problem plainly:

Tokenisation, when done properly, doesn’t disrupt real estate. It modernises its financial layer.

What Tokenisation Really Means (And What It Doesn’t)

One of the reasons tokenisation struggled for credibility in its early years is that it was framed poorly. Too often it was presented as speculative fractional ownership, fast liquidity promises, or crypto-native experimentation detached from real-world constraints.

Even Fink admits this misperception:

The big idea is not speculation. It is ownership representation and economic rights management at scale.

Tokenisation does not require transferring legal title. It does not require selling entire properties. And it does not require turning real estate into a crypto asset.

At its core, tokenisation is about digitally representing enforceable economic rights — such as revenue participation — on infrastructure that is transparent, auditable and programmable.

This distinction matters enormously for property owners.

Liquidity Without Selling the Building

One of the most important — and often misunderstood — benefits of real estate tokenisation is that it allows liquidity creation without title transfer.

In traditional markets, creating liquidity usually means one thing: sell the asset.

Blocksquare’s infrastructure supports a different model. It enables company-owned, revenue-generating properties to tokenize a portion of their economic value — typically through revenue-share rights — while the operating company retains ownership and control of the property.

This is not fractional ownership of land. It is not speculative flipping. It is alternative financing through tokenised economic participation.

For property owners, this unlocks powerful options:

• Access capital without refinancing

• Improve cash flow without increasing debt

• Fund expansion, development or upgrades

• Retain long-term ownership while sharing revenue upside

• Create liquidity from stabilized, income-producing assets

This is exactly what Fink and Goldstein describe when they write:

Not by replacing assets — but by restructuring how value is accessed.

Why Revenue-Generating Property Is Essential

A critical point often glossed over in tokenisation discussions is that real estate tokens must be backed by real economic activity.

Blocksquare’s model is intentionally designed around revenue-generating properties. Token holders receive economic rights linked to actual cash flows — rental income, operating revenue, or profit participation — not abstract promises.

This alignment is essential for trust, sustainability and regulatory clarity.

As the Economist article stresses repeatedly, tokenisation must be judged by economic substance, not technical novelty:

In the same way, a revenue-share agreement remains a revenue-share agreement — even when its ownership and distribution are managed on-chain.

Tokenisation does not change the fundamentals of real estate investing. It simply makes them more accessible, transparent and efficient.

Settlement, Transparency and Cash-Flow Efficiency

One of the strongest arguments Fink and Goldstein make is about settlement. Today’s financial markets still operate on fragmented settlement timelines, exposing participants to counterparty risk and operational friction.

They write:

In real estate, settlement inefficiencies go far beyond payments. They affect:

• revenue distribution

• investor reporting

• reconciliation between stakeholders

• trust between operators and capital providers

By representing economic rights digitally, Blocksquare’s infrastructure enables:

• automated revenue sharing

• transparent on-chain records

• real-time visibility for token holders

• simplified administration for property operators

Marketplaces Are the Missing Link

Another subtle but important theme in the Economist article is the idea of bridges.

This is not about speed for speed’s sake. It is about reducing friction in long-term income assets, where clarity and reliability matter more than hype.

On one side sit traditional institutions, real estate operators and regulated entities. On the other side sit blockchain infrastructure, smart contracts and digital wallets.

Bridges only work if people can cross them.

This is why marketplaces matter.

Blocksquare’s white-label marketplace infrastructure allows operators to create regulated environments where:

• revenue-backed property tokens can be issued

• investors can access offerings transparently

• secondary market trading can occur

• liquidity is not dependent on full asset sales

Without marketplaces, tokenisation remains static. With marketplaces, it becomes functional financial infrastructure.

Regulation Is Not the Enemy of Tokenisation

One of the most mature positions in the Economist article is its stance on regulation. Rather than calling for entirely new frameworks, Fink and Goldstein argue for evolution:

This philosophy mirrors how Blocksquare approaches real estate tokenisation.

Real estate already operates within complex legal and regulatory systems. The goal is not to bypass them, but to integrate tokenisation into existing structures in a way that improves transparency and investor protection.

Tokenisation succeeds when it:

• aligns with property law

• respects corporate ownership structures

• enforces contractual rights

• improves disclosure and reporting

In this sense, tokenisation is not a regulatory shortcut. It is a compliance-enhancing technology.

The Internet Analogy Is More Accurate Than It Sounds

When Fink compares tokenisation today to the internet in 1996, it is not a hype statement. It is a warning.

In 1996, the internet did not look inevitable. It looked clunky, fragmented and niche. What changed was not belief — it was infrastructure maturity.

The same is happening with tokenisation.

Real estate will not be transformed overnight. But as more revenue-generating properties use tokenisation as an alternative financing tool, the model compounds quietly.

Liquidity improves. Access broadens. Markets become more efficient.

The Real Endgame: Programmable Property Economics

Fink and Goldstein envision a future where assets are held, traded and managed through unified digital systems:

For real estate, this does not mean replacing deeds with wallets. It means digitising the economic layer of property ownership while leaving the legal foundations intact.

Blocksquare’s role sits precisely at this intersection — enabling property owners to:

• unlock capital

• improve cash flow

• retain ownership

and participate in a more liquid, transparent real estate economy

Tokenisation Is No Longer Optional — But How You Do It Matters

Tokenisation has crossed an important threshold. When the world’s largest asset manager frames it as infrastructure, not speculation, the debate is over.

The remaining question is not if real estate will tokenize, but how responsibly and effectively it will be done.

Real estate does not need disruption. It needs modern financial rails.

And tokenisation — grounded in revenue, compliance and real-world economics — is becoming exactly that.

Explore how real estate operators are already creating liquidity and alternative financing through revenue-backed tokenisation at 👉 marketplace.oceanpoint.fi