Highlights

Plume Network’s Vision for RWAs: Chris, co-founder and CEO of Plume Network, explains that Plume is building a chain specifically for real-world assets (RWAs). Their goal is to simplify interaction with RWAs through crypto rails, making them as accessible and liquid as crypto-native assets. Plume combines RWA-Fi with DeFi, allowing users to take out loans, trade, and speculate on RWAs with the same ease as crypto assets.
Why an RWA-Specific Chain?: Hazel asks why a separate chain is necessary for RWAs. Chris explains that RWAs require specialized infrastructure to work efficiently on-chain. Customization is needed to handle issues like permissioning, compliance (AML/KYC), and liquidity. Existing chains like Ethereum aren't optimized for these features, leading Plume to develop its own ecosystem to facilitate seamless onboarding, governance, and execution of real-world assets.
Institutional Challenges and the Role of Blockchain: Chris highlights that institutions have been interacting with private blockchain networks but are now recognizing the value of public blockchains. Public chains provide open, permissionless ecosystems that can drive innovation and efficiency, making them more suitable for large-scale adoption by institutions. This realization is a key driver for Plume’s vision of integrating RWAs into the crypto ecosystem.
RWA Examples & Use Cases: Plume is tokenizing tangible real-world assets like solar farms, oil fields, and corporate bonds. For instance, users can invest in solar farms that have 30-40 year contracts with government agencies or schools, earning stable yields. These assets offer consistent returns (e.g., 12-15% APY), paid out in both stables and governance tokens. This enables investors to access stable, yield-bearing assets on-chain, with the liquidity and flexibility of DeFi.
Cross-Chain Liquidity & Seamless Experience: Chris addresses concerns about cross-chain liquidity by highlighting how advancements in technology, such as bridging between EVM chains, have made moving assets more seamless. Liquidity fragmentation is less of an issue, and Plume focuses on building tools to facilitate easy movement of assets and capital across networks.
The Success of Plume’s Testnet: The Plume testnet has been a major success, with over 3.5 million active wallets and more than 251 million transactions in just four weeks. The testnet has seen significant activity, with users bridging assets and over 150 protocols already building on the network. This early success demonstrates a strong appetite for Plume’s RWA solutions.
Plume’s Approach to RWA-Fi: Unlike other projects that focus on tokenizing real-world assets for the sake of it, Plume is more focused on creating RWA-Fi—bringing utility to these assets in a DeFi-native way. Chris emphasizes that most RWA projects today fail to capture the interest of crypto-native users because they’re too focused on traditional finance methods. Plume’s approach integrates RWAs into existing DeFi ecosystems, providing liquidity, flexibility, and yield opportunities for users.
Speculative Markets: Plume is exploring innovative speculative markets based on real-world data, such as Pokémon cards, sneakers, GPUs, and even social or economic indicators like crime rates or inflation. Users can take out leveraged positions (e.g., 10x or 50x) on these assets, providing unique opportunities for speculation. This opens up new markets for crypto users, combining real-world assets with the dynamic nature of DeFi.
Yield Strategies Beyond Treasury Bonds: Chris explains how Plume offers yields ranging from 10% to 30-40%, depending on the asset and risk level. For example, users can park stables in yield-bearing assets like solar farms or corporate bonds, earning stable yields paid out in both stables and tokens. Plume aims to provide higher yields compared to traditional finance products, offering crypto-native users more lucrative opportunities to park their assets.
Global Reach & Community Building: Plume’s community is diverse, with participants from Asia, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The network has attracted both RWA enthusiasts and crypto traders. Plume’s aggressive growth strategy involves building communities globally and working closely with partners to expand use cases for RWAs. Their focus areas include high-yielding assets, active secondary markets (e.g., for collectibles like sneakers and Pokémon cards), and innovative financial products for speculation.
Tokenomics & Utility: Chris reveals that Plume will launch a native token, which will be integral to the ecosystem. Token holders will gain exposure to the yields generated by various RWA projects on the network. The token will also serve governance purposes and provide users with additional ways to engage with the ecosystem. Through launchpads and launchpools, token holders can participate in RWA projects and earn stable yields.
Institutional Partnerships: Hazel asks about the role of institutions in the RWA space, and Chris highlights the growing interest from institutions like BlackRock and Fidelity. However, the shift toward public blockchains has been slow due to the complexity of adopting decentralized systems. Chris predicts that institutions will increasingly recognize the benefits of open networks over private ones, and Plume is positioning itself to capitalize on this trend by building infrastructure that aligns with institutional needs.
Real-World Transparency and Risk Mitigation: Plume ensures transparency for RWAs through partnerships with reputable custodians and real-time monitoring of assets. For example, solar farms on the platform provide real-time data on energy generation and revenue, allowing users to verify yields in real-time. This transparency builds trust and mitigates the risks associated with tokenizing real-world assets.