KuCoin x BitGo AMA Recap: How Is The RWA Collateral Mirroring Solution (RCMS) Revolutionizing Institutional Trading

Tika Lum (KuCoin – Head of Global Institutional BD): Thank you so much for joining today’s AMA session. We’re very excited to welcome Abel Seow, Head of APAC at BitGo, as our guest speaker. Our topic today is a hot one: real-world assets (RWAs), which have seen a lot of discussion recently. Welcome, Abel.

Abel Seow (BitGo – Head of APAC): Thank you, Tika. Good afternoon, good morning, or good evening to everyone dialing in. I’m very happy to be here to share what BitGo has been doing together with KuCoin and how we see the future of tokenized assets.

Tika Lum: Before we dive in, Abel, could you briefly introduce yourself and BitGo?

Abel Seow: Of course. I lead BitGo’s business in Asia and have been with the firm for about three and a half years. BitGo is an institutionally focused company providing infrastructure across the digital asset stack. Custody and wallet services form the foundation, and on top of that we offer solutions like staking, financing, and other services that institutions need.

A big part of our business is enabling clients to access trading venues like KuCoin while reducing counterparty risk. This has become especially important in the past few years, given what the industry went through in 2022 and 2023. As crypto continues to institutionalize, clients increasingly value neutral, reliable partners like BitGo. That’s why we’re excited about our collaboration with KuCoin, which is a leading global venue for both institutional and retail clients.

Tika Lum: KuCoin and BitGo started our partnership in June this year with off-exchange settlement solutions. Now we’ve extended that collaboration to real-world assets, where we turned real-world-application come true. Could you explain BitGo’s role in supporting latest initiative of the RWA Collateral Mirroring Solution (RCMS), in terms of supporting RWA token such as UBS Asset Management’s very own uMINT token being used as collateral?

Abel Seow: BitGo provides neutral and objective infrastructure for the ecosystem. Today we support more than 1,500 coins and tokens, and the decision to support an asset is always driven by client demand.

Over the past year, we’ve seen a clear increase in demand for RWAs. With issuers like UBS Asset Management—trusted, regulated, and credible—that demand naturally flows into our platform. It shows both the diversity and the strength of BitGo’s infrastructure. We were also one of the first custodians to go live with RWA support, which positions us well to meet this growing demand.

Tika Lum: When KuCoin first initiated the idea of supporting high grade RWA token as collateral, what were your thoughts on the collaboration? How did integrating BitGo’s Go Network enable KuCoin to offer off-exchange collateral solutions?

Abel Seow: The BitGo Go Network is essentially a unified ledger within BitGo’s infrastructure. Clients can securely move funds off-chain among themselves while remaining under regulated custody.

The off-exchange settlement partnership allows clients to trade securely on KuCoin while keeping assets within BitGo’s regulated infrastructure. From the beginning, we recognized the upside of quickly and securely bringing this to market. Working with strong teams from UBS and BitGo in Asia helped iterate and find the best path forward. This allowed collateral that is understandable and easy to digest to be used for trading on a reputable exchange like KuCoin.

Tika Lum: Absolutely. We launched the RCMS program within three months, from ideation to live implementation, and received positive feedback from users.

Abel Seow: This was truly a partnership. Without the collaboration and push from both sides, it wouldn’t have happened. It also sets a benchmark for the industry and paves the way for subsequent tokenized assets we can support together.

Tika Lum: BitGo is one of the largest regulated crypto-native custodians. How does your expertise complement KuCoin’s exchange capabilities?

Abel Seow: BitGo provides secure infrastructure, custody, wallets, and full-stack services for B2B clients. We don’t compete with exchanges like KuCoin; instead, we enable clients to leverage our infrastructure for safe, compliant trading. KuCoin focuses on user experience and liquidity, while BitGo ensures security and regulatory compliance. Together, this partnership allows clients to confidently trade tokenized assets.

Tika Lum: What potential risks exist in custodying tokenized RWAs, and how does BitGo address them?

Abel Seow: There are two types of risk: technical and commercial. Technical risk relates to the tokens themselves. BitGo performs extensive audits and engineering checks to mitigate these risks at both the issuer and custody level. Commercial risk involves factors like distribution, use-case adoption, or partner success. We carefully evaluate these to ensure the effort invested yields meaningful outcomes. Given growing client demand and the maturity of tokenized assets, we’re confident in long-term success.

Tika Lum: KuCoin’s RCMS initiative is one of the first from the global perspective to enable liquid RWA tokens, like money market fund–backed tokens, as trading collateral on crypto exchange. How do you see this shaping the industry?

Abel Seow: We are still very early in the adoption of RWAs. Initial focus is on liquid and easily understandable assets. Over time, more varied funds and asset classes will likely be tokenized and used as collateral. Supporting this early sets a precedent and opens opportunities as the market and regulation evolve. Listening to client demand and maintaining an open mindset is key to capturing these opportunities.

Tika Lum: KuCoin aims to be a pioneer in tokenized RWAs, bridging traditional finance and crypto trading, even in the future of DeFi.

Tika Lum: Abel, could you share how does BitGo’s long-term roadmap for tokenized products and custodian services align with KuCoin’s strategic vision?

Abel Seow: BitGo will continue focusing on institutional clients, expanding services like wallets, custody, staking, financial services, off-exchange settlement, and stablecoins. As client demand for RWAs grows, we will incorporate new assets and use cases.

We’ve seen success with stablecoins and liquid assets, and anticipate growing interest from asset management, especially with regulatory developments. The potential for tokenized assets on-chain is vast, and we aim to support the ecosystem wherever regulation and demand allow.

Tika Lum: It’s been a pleasure speaking with you, Abel. Today’s discussion gave our audience valuable insights into RWA development, the KuCoin–BitGo partnership, and the future of tokenized assets. Thank you to everyone who joined.

Abel Seow: Thank you, Tika, and thank you to everyone attending. It’s exciting to collaborate with KuCoin and support the growth of this market.

Tika Lum: Stay tuned for more updates, and let’s keep pushing the boundaries of innovation together.