Larry Fink views the fractionalization of traditional assets through tokenization as shifting rapidly from experimental technology to the core nexus for a global plumbing upgrade that could completely rewire the financial system. The chairman and chief executive officer of the world's largest asset manager compared the current state of tokenization directly with the nascent internet in 1996 during his annual letter to investors.
BlackRock Chair Fink Compares Tokenization to Early Internet
24 March 2026 - 08:50 CET
He noted that he and Rob Goldstein wrote late last year that the technology is currently positioned where the internet was three decades ago.
Bridging traditional finance with digital infrastructure
Tokenization cannot serve as an overnight substitute for the legacy financial system. The optimal path forward involves picturing a bridge being built from both sides of a river that eventually converges in the middle, he said. Traditional institutions stand firmly on one side while digital first innovators including stablecoin issuers, financial technology firms and public blockchains stand on the other. The primary task for global policymakers is to help build that critical bridge as quickly and safely as possible, Fink detailed in the investor letter.
BlackRock currently commands roughly $14tn in assets under management and has established dominant market positions across the digital sector. Nearly $150bn of its total assets are directly connected to the digital asset ecosystem. The firm also operates the largest tokenized treasury fund in the world while actively managing $65bn in stablecoin reserves alongside $80bn in digital asset exchange traded products, company data shows.
Multiple institutional uses for digital wallets
The asset manager experienced a remarkably strong start to 2026, recording net inflows of $103bn across its iShares division through the end of February. This figure represents nearly double the volume seen during the same period in 2025. The flagship iShares Bitcoin Trust has consistently dominated liquidity within the crypto fund space since its launch in early 2024, typically capturing the vast majority of daily inflows despite the severe volatility rocking the broader digital asset market since October 2025.
Roughly half of the global population currently carries a digital wallet on their smartphones. These ubiquitous applications could soon move far beyond basic payments to provide broader retail and institutional access to digital euros, tokenized bonds and fractional interests in assets that were once completely unreachable. This expanded access will eventually include complex instruments like infrastructure projects and private credit funds, according to Fink.
The views expressed by the BlackRock leader are highly synchronized with emerging consensus among his institutional peers. Executives from leading asset management firms including Franklin Templeton, Fidelity, WisdomTree and State Street have previously indicated the next major phase of tokenization adoption will be heavily driven by collateral efficiency, continuous markets and balance sheet management rather than mere retail demand for digital versions of existing products.
