# Market Background

### 2.1 Changes in the Gold Market

Gold has long been recognized worldwide as a reliable physical asset. As inflation, financial uncertainty, and geopolitical risks increase, gold is gaining attention as a safe haven asset and store of value.

According to the World Gold Council's 2025 full-year gold demand report, global gold demand including OTC exceeded 5,000 tonnes for the first time in 2025, with gold demand value reaching approximately $550 billion. Gold prices also broke all-time highs 53 times in 2025.[<sup>1</sup>](#user-content-fn-1)[^1]

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### 2.2 Growth of the RWA Market

RWA stands for Real World Asset, referring to a structure that represents and circulates real-world assets as blockchain-based digital assets. Real estate, bonds, commodities, gold, and private credit are being tokenized, and RWA is growing as core infrastructure connecting real assets and digital finance.

Based on RWA.xyz standards, the Distributed Asset Value of tokenized RWAs is approximately $26.7 billion, with the total stablecoin value displayed at approximately $299.3 billion.[<sup>2</sup>](#user-content-fn-2)[^2]

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### 2.3 Stablecoins and the Regulatory Environment

Stablecoins are growing as payment and settlement infrastructure in the digital asset market. At the same time, each country is strengthening regulatory frameworks for stablecoins and digital assets. In Hong Kong, from August 1, 2025, the issuance of fiat-referenced stablecoins has been classified as a regulated activity, requiring issuers to obtain licenses.[<sup>3</sup>](#user-content-fn-3)[^3]

This trend shows that **verification, custody, audit, legal review, and AML/KYC** will become increasingly important competitive advantages in the gold RWA and gold stablecoin markets.

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### 2.4 Opportunities in Gold RWA and Gold Stablecoins

Gold is a trusted asset, RWA is the mobilization infrastructure, and stablecoins are the payment and settlement infrastructure. Gold RWAs and gold stablecoins sit at the intersection of these three flows.

However, the current gold RWA and gold stablecoin market is fragmented by project, country, and exchange, and the shared utility layer connecting them is insufficient. GoldBridge Alliance aims to connect this fragmented market into a single verification-based bridge · distribution · settlement network.

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[^1]: World Gold Council, Gold Demand Trends 2025&#x20;

[^2]: RWA.xyz, Tokenized RWA Market Data&#x20;

[^3]: Hong Kong Monetary Authority, Stablecoin Regulation 2025&#x20;


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