Tokenization

Real estate tokenization is the conversion of ownership rights in a property, or in its income, into encrypted digital units (tokens), each representing a defined share, so they can be owned and traded in relatively small amounts with an electronic trail of ownership. In Saudi Arabia tokenization has moved from concept to regulated practice. In November 2025 REGA announced the completion of the first tokenization of a title deed, traded between a real estate developer and investors under government supervision, and stated that the tokens are encrypted, machine-readable units linked to official property records. REGA then launched a regulatory sandbox with a tokenization track and, in February 2026, allowed a number of technology companies to start tokenizing properties into small digital shares during the pilot period. Under the Real Estate Registration Law the Real Estate Registry remains the legal reference for rights, and anything that takes the form of a security or fund falls under the Capital Market Authority. Tokenization opens the door to small investors and adds liquidity to large, hard-to-divide assets, but it does not remove the risks of the property itself: value swings, vacancies, fees and difficulty selling if demand for the tokens is weak. It differs from investing in REITs in that the holder may own a share linked to the property itself rather than a unit in a fund.