AlphabloQ: Investing in Tokenized Real Estate in Africa
Feb 3, 2025
Shouldn’t we get too excited that the digital economy is fast evolving? Blockchain technology has now reached a point where it is replacing traditional investment methods, with real estate being one of the most impacted sectors.
Asset tokenization, in particular, has taken the industry by storm, and several platforms have emerged that offer this service. Africa hasn’t been left behind either, with Kenyan startup AlphabloQ taking on the daunting task of serving the continent’s investment needs in the digital space.
With a few real estate investors only now learning about tokenization, it seems way too early to make much fuss about mass adoption—particularly as the standard hasn’t been firmly established. Today, you’ll learn more about the technology and how AlphabloQ is using it to bridge the gap between traditional methods and the digital economy.
Understanding Asset Tokenization
Tokenizing assets is the process of converting the ownership rights of physical resources, what we call, in fancy parlance, real-world assets (RWAs), into digital tokens on a blockchain. In other words, tokenization right now is enhancing the accessibility, liquidity, and security of real estate assets. Anyone can invest in assets that were previously out of reach.
“Investing in tokenization today is like having invested in eCommerce back in the early 2000s. Just like how platforms like Amazon reshaped how we shop, tokenization is going to reshape how we invest and access assets,” said Max Folaron, founder of Asset Cut.
This is what prompted two young Kenyans, Trevor Kimani and John Mbui, to found AlphabloQ, a blockchain-powered investment platform that enables individuals to put their money into fractionalized digital assets, including real estate.
The project intends to eliminate barriers to investing in high-value assets and allow developers, investors, and newcomers to participate in the digital economy.
Photos by @@TrojanMining on X
What About The Opportunity?
It’s difficult to ignore the hype when you’re discussing a simplified investment process for tokenized assets. Alphabloq is focusing on digitizing real estate into blockchain-based tokens, where each token represents a share of the asset and is then listed on its platform.
Think about how one can own a property fractionally by buying tokens of their choice using cryptocurrency or fiat. This makes high-value investments more accessible because you don’t have to own the entire asset, just a portion of it represented by a digital token.
So, you have a secure system, greater liquidity, and all the opportunity that comes from earning returns through asset appreciation or rental income.
I’m going to repeat myself in stressing that mass adoption is still out of the cards. But it may be useful to note that Alphabloq reduces barriers to entry significantly. Adoption of such platforms becomes appealing due to smart contracts that automate processes like ownership verification and revenue distribution. While this isn’t stressed enough, imagine if you could eliminate the opaqueness associated with traditional investment methods. In part, that’s the kind of difference AlphabloQ aims to make.
The aim at present is to enable regular folk to benefit from real estate investments without the inconvenience of property management. You can access AlphabloQ from anywhere in the world and also invest in resources outside your locality.
That’s a simple way to bridge the gap between traditional investments and the digital economy. But the real benefits of tokenization to the digital economy include supporting economic growth, empowering local investors, and driving financial inclusion.
Regulatory Sandboxing
AlphabloQ’s platform may never have seen the light of day, but the company has been working with the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) in Kenya to achieve regulatory compliance.
That’s important, as at least some of the hope for such innovations is that a government authority is willing to test its platform to understand its customers’ needs and AML/CFT/CPF requirements.
“From day one we’ve engaged the regulator, kept them close and let them know how we’re designing the product. And the baseline regulation, even from a reach perspective and simple consumer protection, is what we’ve used to design our base product,” said Trevor Kimani. Think about how early engagement with regulators can shape a more compliant and scalable product.
But since the regulatory framework isn’t established yet, let’s revisit this around 2026.
Future of Asset Tokenization
As blockchain technology expands, asset digitization is reshaping the global economy. Giant investment firms like the U.S.-based BlackRock have demonstrated the potential of this sector, creating the BUIDL fund, which, at the end of 2024, boasted assets under management valued at an eye-watering $520 million.
Market watchers, including 21.co, previously estimated the RWA market could be worth as much as $10 trillion by 2030. That’s just five years away, and AlphabloQ seems to be leading the African charge for a slice of this cake.
Based on watching this evolution over the last couple of years, then, asset tokenization is expected to become a mainstream investment option.
AlphaBloQ is a good model with which to analyze how tokenized assets can bridge traditional finance and blockchain innovation.
This is technology for the next-frontier era.
With that in mind, there’s no need to overpopulate the speculation pool—just take note and observe it to create a more inclusive financial ecosystem where investors can diversify their portfolios. Institutional adoption will be fast, but it’s much more than that. The anticipated growth process is already witnessing a streamlined regulatory landscape.
The problem AlphaBloq is attempting to solve is allowing individuals to invest in real estate without the need to purchase the entire property.
As real estate tokenization-driven products and services take shape, the hope is for a smoother adoption with minimal lag in adoption and more seamless integration with traditional markets.
If this is something you might be interested in, you can learn more about them by checking out their website.
And if you want to know more about similar projects or other opportunities in blockchain and crypto, sign up for the Chaintum newsletter or join our growing online community on X and LinkedIn.
Subsribe To Our Newsletter
Get the Inaugural Edition of Chaintum Magazine Right at Your Inbox
