A pivotal juncture in finance: It's time for tokenisation to shine

Despite ongoing regulatory hurdles, a string of painful crypto debacles and the loss of billions in investor funds, the “almost forgotten” world of tokenisation is finally getting the attention and exposure it deserves. Gathering steam and slowly permeating through traditional finance, there are even whispers it could be the game-changer the investment community has been waiting for. 

In essence, tokenisation isn’t a disruptive technology. In the same way the internet wasn’t inherently disruptive, it became the backbone that redefined and reshaped the existing landscape. It represents a pivotal shift rather than a revolution. A streamlined process that solves many of the problems experienced by the current system: Limited accessibility, low liquidity, delayed settlement and no transparency. 

But be sure to not confuse tokenisation with crypto. The two are worlds apart. 

While crypto enthusiasts sought the creation of a new decentralised world, devoid of banks and financial intermediaries, their innovative solutions did solve many technical problems, but failed to address the primary issue that had plague d the banking sector for years… 

Human behaviour. 

Deep rooted, and often touted as the cause of the GFC, was capitalism’s ugly head i.e. human behaviour such as greed, corruption, abuse of power and dishonesty. Much of the strict regulation, longer settlement times, strict licensing and high fees were measures put in place to address behavioural issues following major collapses that have occurred throughout human history. 

And so, the finance world is now at a pivotal juncture where a holistic approach using the strengths and lessons learned from cryptocurrency can be combined with traditional finance’s robust measures to combat behavioural issues. 

It's not just about introducing a new whiz bang "blockchain" technology; it's about creating a system where the existing world is made better by encouraging positive human behaviours, while negative ones are not given the chance to infect and thrive. A system that considers all, including the health of the planet.

Much like the internet, the true transformative power of tokenisation lies not in the technology itself but in the applications and systems built upon it. Using smart contracts, digital ledger technology and tokenisation, it's these new innovative applications that will disrupt the status quo, solving accessibility, liquidity, transparency, slow transaction times and high costs, all while adhering to the existing regulations that govern human behaviour.

As with the internet, the biggest innovations will come innovators who leverage tokenisation to build the financial applications of tomorrow, reshaping entire sectors in subtle but profound ways.