Capturing value in a tokenized economy: Who controls the next revenue pools?

The banking industry is entering a period of sudden, structural change. Over the next two years, banking leaders will face a defining question: who will control payment flows and the new revenue pools that tokenization is beginning to unlock?

Once considered a niche innovation, tokenization is quickly becoming a strategic priority. New research from the IBM Institute for Business Value titled 2026 Global Outlook for Banking and Financial Markets: Banking in the tokenized economy suggests that tokenization could reshape how assets move, how liquidity is managed and where banks create value.

At its core, tokenization is the representation of ownership of financial assets such as cash, securities or real estate as digital tokens. This process makes assets easier to move, divide and settle—often in seconds rather than days.

But the real impact goes well beyond faster settlement.

Tokenization has the potential to fundamentally change how liquidity works and who can access it. Rather than depending on multiple intermediaries and manual reconciliation, markets can coordinate transactions in near real time with less friction.

That shift could alter the economics of financial services, opening the door to new business models and changing the role banks play in the movement of value. This evolution is why many banking leaders now see tokenization not as a niche innovation, but as a strategic priority.

Although many banking executives recognize the opportunity, progress remains uneven.

One major barrier is talent. According to the IBM Institute for Business Value study, 71% of executives say that they lack the critical skills needed for tokenization initiatives, with some describing the impact as “profoundly limiting.”

Technology is another obstacle. Many banks still rely on legacy core platforms that weren’t designed to support tokenized money or tokenized assets. Transforming those systems can be both complex and expensive.

When you add uncertainty about which platforms and partners to choose, many banking leaders hesitate to act at the exact moment when momentum matters.

The report also points to another possible disruption: about one-third of executives believe Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) could eventually replace traditional card networks.

If that happens, the implications for banks could be significant and immediate. Interchange fees and deposit-based income might come under pressure, while control over transaction data and customer relationships could transfer to new players.

That change would force banks to rethink the source of their value. Instead of deriving revenue primarily from processing transactions, banks might need to place greater emphasis on different services. These services include safeguarding digital money, securing tokenized assets and helping clients navigate increasingly complex digital financial ecosystems.

In a tokenized economy, trust and expertise might become key competitive differentiators.

As the tokenized economy takes shape, banking leaders are rethinking how to invest for the future.

Rather than treating tokenization as a series of isolated pilots or experimental use cases, leading institutions are starting to view it as part of the bank’s core infrastructure. That transition is changing investment priorities.

Instead of focusing only on protecting static assets, banks are increasingly looking at platforms that enable capital to move more efficiently—with fewer handoffs, less friction and greater flexibility. Modular, AI-ready architectures are especially important in this environment because they can help banks adapt as technology and regulation continue to evolve.

By 2030, these capabilities might no longer be differentiators; they might be table stakes.

The institutions that move early will likely be the ones best positioned to lead the next evolution of banking.

Tokenization is not merely the digitization of assets. It is a redefinition of how value moves through the financial system—and of who ultimately captures it. 

Read the IBV Report Banking in the Tokenized Economy