Tokenized commodities reached $5.55 billion at end-March as Paxos and Theo pitch lending

Tokenized commodities had a market capitalization of $5.55 billion at the end of March 2026, up from $1.43 billion at the beginning of 2025, according to CoinGecko figures cited by CoinDesk. Gold-backed tokens from Paxos and Tether accounted for almost 90% of that growth. The category covers blockchain-based tokens that represent ownership of, or exposure to, physical assets including gold, silver and oil.

Executives at Paxos Labs, Theo and Energy Substantiation expect tokenized commodities to grow beyond gold into metals financing, energy trading and lending against physical assets, CoinDesk reported Oct. 5. Their argument, as described in that report, is that putting commodities on blockchain networks should do more than make them easier to buy: it could connect investors seeking exposure and income with businesses that need inventory financing, opening markets that have traditionally been reserved for large institutions.

Paxos Labs' PAXGy token is backed by PAX Gold, with reserves deployed to institutional borrowers. Each token is designed to become redeemable for more PAXG as underlying lending rates are paid back in ounce terms, allowing holders to potentially increase their gold holdings while retaining price exposure.

"The big proposition is access," co-founder Bhau Kotecha told CoinDesk, saying gold lending has historically required scale and relationships unavailable to many investors. He sees demand from individuals, family offices and institutions, with borrowing against PAXGy a possible next step. Lending returns are not guaranteed, and borrower defaults could erode the token's value, according to the report.

Theo's thSLVR product passes income from institutional silver leases to holders while maintaining exposure to the metal's price. Chief investment officer Iggy Ioppe sees growth coming from existing commodity owners and users: institutions seeking productive collateral, refiners financing inventory and corporate treasuries seeking assets that settle quickly. He called silver "the natural second" after gold, citing industrial demand and an established leasing market, although greater volatility and a tighter supply of available metal complicate the opportunity. Ioppe forecasts a tokenized commodities market worth tens of billions within five years and more than $100 billion within a decade.