BNB Chain's Thomas Chen says tokenized assets need wallet access at TOKEN2049
In brief
- Thomas Chen spoke at TOKEN2049 Singapore, held October 7-8, 2026.
- Tokenized assets need wallet access to reach users and drive adoption, Chen said.
- Binance's bStocks neared $1 billion in assets within months, according to Chen.
- Chen was named BNB Chain's Chief Business Officer on September 28, 2026.
The last-mile argument
Chen's case is about distribution, not issuance. He argued that tokenized assets need seamless integration into user-friendly wallets, and he suggested that without it the sector risks staying stuck in speculation instead of delivering real utility, Crypto Briefing reported.
He didn't describe a mature market, either. Crypto Briefing summed up his framing this way:
He described the current state of tokenized asset adoption as the “bottom of the first inning.”
What bStocks shows (according to Chen)
Chen pointed to Binance's bStocks platform, which launched on June 11, 2026, as evidence that demand is already there. According to Chen, bStocks reached nearly $1 billion in assets under management within its first three to four months.
The rest of the figures, as reported by Crypto Briefing, go further. The platform started with five tokenized assets and grew to nearly 100 by mid-October, covering tokenized versions of traditional equities and ETFs. Cumulative trading volume passed $40 billion over that stretch, and more than $6 billion in conversions were completed. The outlet also said bStocks has shown potential to attract trading outside traditional market hours.
Even while pointing to bStocks' early traction, Chen argued the industry is at the very beginning.
In his telling, demand isn't the bottleneck. Wallet access is.
A new role at BNB Chain
Chen's TOKEN2049 appearance came roughly ten days after he was appointed Chief Business Officer of BNB Chain on September 28, 2026, per Crypto Briefing. He previously served as CEO of Function and worked at BitGo, where custody assets grew above $100 billion during his tenure (a background that's heavy on institutional infrastructure). The outlet said his leadership at BNB Chain is expected to focus on building deeper institutional partnerships and strengthening the ecosystem's value.
So where does that leave tokenized stocks? On Chen's reading, the products and the early demand exist, but it's the wallets people already use that'll decide whether those assets do anything beyond trading.
Frequently asked questions
What is the tokenization 'last-mile problem' Thomas Chen described?
Chen said at TOKEN2049 Singapore that tokenized assets need wallet access to reach users and drive adoption. He argued the industry still lacks robust distribution channels and user access. Without seamless wallet integration, he suggested, the sector risks staying stuck in speculation.
What has been reported about bStocks' growth?
According to Chen, Binance's bStocks reached nearly $1 billion in assets under management within three to four months of its June 11, 2026 launch. Separately, Crypto Briefing reported the platform grew from five to nearly 100 tokenized assets by mid-October, with cumulative trading volume above $40 billion.
