Dubai is taking a monumental leap in real estate innovation. The Dubai Land Department (DLD) has launched a pioneering Real Estate Tokenization Project, issuing property title deeds on the XRP Ledger (XRPL). This ambitious initiative will leverage Ripple's institutional-grade custody technology, with Ctrl Alt serving as Ripple's first major custody partner in the UAE, marking a significant milestone in the tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs).
According to a recent press release, the collaboration will securely store Dubai's tokenized property title deeds, reflecting the surging regional demand for secure and compliant digital asset infrastructure.
This partnership further expands Ripple's burgeoning custody network, which now spans across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America, serving an increasingly diverse client base.
"This is the first time a government real estate registration authority in the Middle East has tokenized property title deeds on a public blockchain," stated Reece Merrick, Ripple’s Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa. "That the DLD has chosen the XRPL for this is really exciting and reinforces the XRPL’s credentials as the blockchain of choice for serious financial use cases."
Ctrl Alt's recent acquisition of a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license from the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) was a crucial enabler. As the first authorized entity to provide issuer-related services in the UAE, Ctrl Alt ensures a fully compliant tokenization process, encompassing asset issuance, secure custody, on-chain settlement, and lifecycle management.
The DLD project represents a pivotal moment for asset tokenization and property investment. By enabling fractional ownership and enhancing market transparency, Dubai continues its strategic push to make real estate more accessible and efficient, attracting a broader spectrum of investors.
Ripple has significantly strengthened its presence in the UAE since becoming the first blockchain-enabled payments provider licensed by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) earlier this year. The company has forged strategic partnerships with Zand Bank and Mamo, and its stablecoin, RLUSD, gained DFSA recognition for use within the Dubai International Financial Centre. Ripple currently holds more than 60 regulatory licenses worldwide.
The tokenization of real estate is gaining significant traction globally. In May, Bergen County, New Jersey, the largest county by population in the state, struck a five-year deal with Balcony to tokenize 370,000 property deeds on the Avalanche blockchain. This massive undertaking, covering an estimated $240 billion in real estate, marks the biggest deed tokenization effort in U.S. history and is backed by the Avalanche-focused venture fund, Blizzard. Bergen County aims to modernize land record management and significantly accelerate deed processing through this blockchain integration.
Industry reports underscore the immense potential of this nascent sector. A joint report by the Global Financial Markets Association (GFMA) and Boston Consulting Group projects the global value of tokenized illiquid assets to reach a staggering $16 trillion by 2030. Even more conservative estimates from Citigroup suggest that $4 trillion to $5 trillion worth of tokenized digital securities could be minted by the same year.
Recognizing this transformative potential, major financial institutions are making strategic moves into the tokenization space. For instance, Goldman Sachs plans to launch three new tokenization products, driven by burgeoning client interest in this innovative financial frontier.
July 2025, Cryptoniteuae