One of the largest brokerages in the US has picked a favorite in the tokenization race. Charles Schwab has recognized Avalanche as a leader in real-world assets (RWAs) and institutional use cases, according to research the firm circulated on October 21, 2026.
When a firm overseeing approximately $12 to $13.3 trillion in client assets singles out one blockchain, people notice.
What Schwab said, and why Avalanche
Schwab’s designation centers on two things Avalanche does well. The first is letting organizations deploy their own custom Layer-1 blockchains. The second is supporting what the research describes as high-utility financial activity.
The recognition comes from Schwab’s own analysis rather than from an independent report.
The numbers behind the tokenization push
Avalanche’s RWA figures give Schwab’s view some backing. As of October 12, 2026, the network had distributed over $1.7 billion in tokenized real-world assets.
As of mid-October 2026, Avalanche hosted 1,255 tokenized RWAs valued at more than $13 billion. That total includes around $484 million held in BlackRock’s BUIDL fund.
The institutional projects running on Avalanche also span an unusually wide range. They include:
California DMV: digital car titles, which turns one of the most paper-heavy bureaucratic processes into an onchain record.
Wyoming’s FRNT stablecoin: a state-level digital dollar project built on the network.
UAEPASS: a digital vault migration project in the United Arab Emirates.
Schwab’s own crypto expansion
Schwab has been steadily building out its own crypto business, called Schwab Crypto. The platform launched Bitcoin and Ether trading in May 2026. It charges a trading fee of 0.75%.
On August 27, 2026, Schwab announced plans to add AVAX, Solana (SOL) and Chainlink (LINK) to the platform by the end of 2026. Those additions are still on the roadmap, not yet live.
Schwab hosts over 39 million active brokerage accounts.
What this means for Avalanche, AVAX and the RWA race
For AVAX holders, the more concrete catalyst is the planned Schwab Crypto listing. If AVAX arrives on the platform by the end of 2026 as planned, it would gain access to a brokerage audience that has historically sat outside crypto-native exchanges.
The listing also puts AVAX in a specific peer group. Schwab chose to add it alongside SOL and LINK, after starting with Bitcoin and Ether.
There are caveats. Schwab’s view is an analysis, not an independent audit of Avalanche’s dominance. The AVAX, SOL and LINK listings are announced plans with a deadline, and plans can slip.
The things to watch are straightforward. First, whether Schwab Crypto delivers AVAX trading by its end-of-2026 target. Second, whether Avalanche’s RWA totals, currently above $13 billion in tokenized value, keep climbing as more institutions build custom chains.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Kaye Quema. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.