Centrifuge Report Highlights Limited DeFi Integration for Tokenized Assets

The tokenized asset market grew from approximately $25 billion to $37 billion during the first seven months of 2026, representing a 48% increase. Despite this expansion, a report released by Centrifuge on September 2 suggests that most of these assets lack the necessary functionality to operate effectively within decentralized finance ecosystems.

Data from the Tokenization Progress Index, developed by Pantera Capital, indicates that only 12% of the 542 assets evaluated are meaningfully integrated into DeFi. The analysis suggests that the majority of these assets function as digital wrappers for traditional financial products rather than as composable on-chain instruments.

Pantera Capital utilized a five-point scale to assess the assets, resulting in an average score of 2.04. The lowest performing metric was issued redemption, which received a score of 1.82. The taxonomy categorized 77.6% of the assets as wrappers, 11.1% as hybrid, and 2.7% as native, with native assets defined as those built specifically for DeFi activities such as lending, borrowing, and liquidity provision.

The report notes that real-world asset deposits in decentralized exchanges and lending markets have tripled over the past year to reach $7.4 billion. Centrifuge reported its total value locked was between $1.6 billion and $1.8 billion in late August 2026, supported by institutional products such as the JTRSY and JAAA treasury funds from Janus Henderson.

While broader crypto markets contracted, the tokenized asset sector experienced growth of nearly 50%. The findings suggest that while demand for integrated tokenized assets exists, the current market remains dominated by assets that do not meet DeFi standards.