REM and the Rise of Real-World Utility Tokens (Beyond Bonds and Real Estate)

The Real World Asset (RWA) trend in crypto is gaining traction, but most of the attention is still on tokenized bonds, treasuries, or real estate. These are valid use cases, but they all follow a similar passive model — wrap a traditional asset, offer some yield, and market it as DeFi 2.0. But lately, I’ve noticed a new angle forming: tokenizing real-world services and infrastructure, not just financial products.

One project that really stood out to me is REM. It’s not another bond wrapper — instead, REM is focused on making things like logistics, utilities, and land-linked service operations investable through blockchain. It’s a shift from passive asset tokenization to active, service-based ownership, which feels a lot more innovative. The team is fully doxed, and the project seems genuinely committed to delivering real-world value, not just hyping tokenomics.

To me, this feels closer to the DePIN movement — projects building on-chain connections to physical infrastructure — but with an RWA backbone. If this trend catches on, tokens like REM could become a way to support and own pieces of real-world systems that produce actual value.

Anyone else tracking similar low-cap RWA plays with a utility-first approach?