India Debates Tokenization Bill to Enable Fractional Ownership of Assets and Boost Financial Inclusion
On December 16, 2025, India's Rajya Sabha debated a dedicated Tokenization Bill aimed at enabling fractional ownership of assets such as real estate, infrastructure, and intellectual property. MP Raghav Chadha emphasized the legislation's potential to widen financial inclusion and keep capital onshore by dividing assets into digital units purchasable in small portions.
The proposal includes the creation of a regulatory sandbox to test new tokenization models under supervision. Currently, India's tokenization efforts are limited and mostly pilot-based, with activity concentrated in GIFT City through players like Tokeny and Terazo using special purpose vehicles (SPVs) and the Polygon network. These pilots operate under existing securities and virtual digital asset (VDA) regulations rather than under a unified tokenization law.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) have permitted limited pilot projects but emphasize investor protection and settlement risk management. At the state level, Maharashtra plans to unlock about ₹50 trillion of idle capital by digitizing asset transfers in Mumbai real estate. RBI's central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilots have reportedly enhanced settlement efficiency.
Despite these initiatives, India trails global peers like the UAE, Singapore, Germany, Hong Kong, and the US, which have established clearer legal standards enabling regulated fractional ownership for retail investors. Dubai has reduced entry points for tokenized property investments to thousands of dirhams, while Singapore's Project Guardian focuses on institutional-grade frameworks.
International developments include the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approving the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation’s (DTCC) blockchain market integration, signaling regulatory openness to asset tokenization.
However, India remains cautious due to challenges related to land title complexities, fragmented state laws, and data privacy concerns. As a result, tokenization remains narrow in scope in India, despite significant grassroots crypto adoption.
