A new study from the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre (DFCRC) estimates Australia could capture about A$24 billion a year (roughly US$17 billion) from the expansion of tokenized markets and digital assets — but only if policymakers establish clear, coordinated regulation.
The DFCRC report, which was developed with the Digital Economy Council of Australia and funded by crypto exchange OKX, identifies regulatory uncertainty, fragmented oversight and limited routes for pilot projects to scale as the primary obstacles to unlocking that value. To address these gaps, the researchers recommend creating a regulatory sandbox where tokenized financial market use cases can be trialed, regulators and industry can collaborate continuously, and licensing frameworks can be refined based on real-world tests.
Among the pilots the report proposes are tokenized government bonds and a wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) run inside the sandbox. Those trials would provide a foundation for tokenized trading venues, collateralized lending, and other services that rely on secure, fast settlement and programmable assets.
Sources of economic benefit
DFCRC breaks the potential gains into three main categories: wider investor access and deeper liquidity in markets; more efficient payments — including tokenized money such as stablecoins and CBDCs — that could lower reliance on costly correspondent banking; and new asset classes enabled by tokenization. Tokenized assets can provide increased transparency, programmability and native compatibility with automated trading, lending and collateral-management systems.
The report notes that nearly half of the asset-related uplift would come from enabling collateralized lending, repo markets and invoice financing on tokenized rails, where smart contracts automate collateral management, margining and settlement processes.
Regulation will determine outcomes
Kate Cooper, CEO of OKX, cautioned that without clearer rules and institutional-grade infrastructure Australia risks missing much of the upside. Under current policy settings, DFCRC projects the country would capture only about A$1 billion (around US$710 million) in crypto-related economic gains by 2030. Cooper said delivering the larger, longer-term benefits requires legal clarity, trusted infrastructure and frameworks that attract institutional capital and support scaled market activity.
The report frames the opportunity as contingent on policy action: with targeted regulatory reform and practical sandbox testing, tokenization could become a meaningful contributor to Australia’s financial sector and broader economy.