OECD Report: Tokenization Faces Challenges, Liquidity and Network Effects are Key Barriers

ChainCatcher news, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report analyzes the reasons why tokenization has not become more widespread. It points out that although tokenization brings efficiency improvements, securities settlement enhancements, and innovation opportunities, it faces numerous challenges.

The report mentions that the lack of a sufficient investor base is a major obstacle, leading to insufficient liquidity, which makes issuers cautious about tokenization. The issuance of sovereign bonds can help promote the development of tokenization, as seen in the case of Slovenia.

At the same time, the OECD emphasizes that quasi-sovereign issuers, such as the World Bank and the European Investment Bank, are more active, but liquidity issues are often resolved through integration with traditional systems, which also undermines the potential advantages of tokenization.

Another challenge is the "chicken or egg" problem of network effects; when network effects have not yet manifested, it is difficult to prove the value of investments. Additionally, many institutions face technical debt and lack the funds to upgrade to distributed ledger technology (DLT).