According to Forbes, Fasset is now processing about half a billion dollars monthly in tokenized real-world asset transactions across ten licensed jurisdictions from Bahrain to Malaysia. Founder Mohammad Raafi Hossain built the platform specifically to serve the estimated two billion people locked out of global financial markets due to capital controls. The company acts as a distribution layer for tokenized equities, sukuk, and gold from regulated partners, serving 1.7 million customers who can now invest small amounts in global assets previously inaccessible to them. Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) has become a key enabler alongside regulators in Bahrain and Malaysia, creating formal frameworks that distinguish this wave from the failed security token offerings of 2019. Hossain describes the platform as “the Revolut for the region from Morocco to Malaysia,” with Dubai serving as the digital fulcrum of this new global trade system.
Why this time is different
Remember 2019? The security token hype was everywhere, and then… nothing. The timing was wrong, regulators were confused, and liquidity never materialized. So what’s changed now? Basically, regulation has become the infrastructure instead of the obstacle. When you have established frameworks from authorities like Dubai’s VARA and Bahrain’s central bank, you’re building on solid ground rather than sand.
And here’s the thing – the institutional players are quietly legitimizing the movement. BlackRock, Franklin Templeton, even Tether are getting involved. That’s a far cry from the wild west days of ICOs. Fasset’s approach of working with licensed issuers rather than tokenizing assets themselves shows how the model has matured. They’re not trying to disrupt everything – they’re building bridges between traditional finance and blockchain.
The human impact
Hossain’s example of the Stanford-educated Google engineer in Bangladesh who can’t invest in Alphabet stock really hits home. That’s the absurd reality of capital controls. People can use global products but can’t participate in the companies behind them. Tokenization changes that at a fundamental level – someone can invest ten dollars in the companies whose products they use daily.
But the philosophical shift is even more interesting. Hossain talks about bringing barter back – swapping tokenized gold for Nvidia stock or Malaysian sukuk for Bitcoin without touching fiat currency. That’s not just financial innovation, it’s rethinking what value exchange means. The idea of swapping “a tokenized diamond for a tokenized warehouse” sounds crazy until you realize we’re rebuilding the logic of finance from the ground up.
Skepticism and reality
Okay, let’s be real – we’ve heard “all assets will be tokenized” before. The crypto industry has a habit of overpromising and underdelivering. So what makes this different from previous hype cycles? The numbers matter. Half a billion dollars monthly in real transactions isn’t theoretical – that’s real economic activity.
And the regulatory footprint across ten jurisdictions suggests this isn’t some regulatory arbitrage play. They’re building something that works within existing systems rather than trying to blow them up. Still, I wonder about the scalability. Tokenizing unique assets like diamonds or warehouses is one thing – creating liquid markets for them is another entirely.
Where this is headed
Hossain believes all assets will be on blockchain faster than we think. Looking at the trajectory, he’s probably right. The infrastructure is falling into place, and the demand from underserved markets is massive. But the real story isn’t just about technology – it’s about policy conversations happening in places like Dubai rather than traditional financial centers.
New York and London had their turn writing the rules of global finance. Now it’s Dubai’s moment. The combination of progressive regulation, geographic positioning, and visionary founders creates a perfect storm for innovation. Whether you’re in manufacturing looking for industrial computing solutions from providers like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com or in finance exploring tokenization, the center of gravity is shifting. And this time, it feels different.
