Premium Gold Deal, Regulatory Push, and Wall Street Backing Fuel RWA Breakout

1. As of the date of this article, officers, contractors, shareholders, and/or employees of Streetwise Reports LLC (including members of their household) own securities of Streamex Corp.
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1. Ownership and Share Structure Information
The information listed above was updated on the date this article was published and was compiled from information from the company and various other data providers.

Streamex Corp. (STEX:NASDAQ) announced that it had acquired a 9.9% equity interest in Empress Royalty Corp. (TSXV: EMPR) through a premium-priced share-for-share transaction with Terra Capital Natural Resource Fund (40513.AX) The agreement involved Streamex issuing 2,443,750 restricted common shares at a price of US$5.00 per STEX share, valuing the transaction at US$12,218,751 and representing a premium to STEX’s current market price.

Streamex received 12,671,297 common shares of Empress, a precious metals royalty and streaming company with a diversified portfolio of producing, development-stage, and exploration-stage gold and silver assets. The move marks a strategic step in Streamex’s plan to expand exposure to real-world, yield-generating commodity assets.

“We are very pleased to complete this transaction and to align Terra Capital with the Streamex team,” said Jeremy Bond, CEO of Terra Capital Natural Resources Fund Pty Ltd, in the news release. “Streamex is building one of the most forward-thinking platforms in the real-world asset space, and we believe their vision for bringing commodity-backed assets into modern financial infrastructure is both compelling and timely. This transaction represents a strong outcome for our fund, and we are excited to be long-term partners alongside Streamex as they continue to grow their footprint in the commodities and tokenization sectors.”

Henry McPhie, CEO of Streamex, stated: “Securing a 9.9% strategic position in Empress Royalty Corp. is an important milestone for Streamex as we advance our mission to expand deeply into the commodities space. Empress’s portfolio gives us direct exposure to real, cash-flowing precious-metal assets that complement our broader strategy of building institutional pathways for tokenized commodity markets. This investment strengthens our foundation as we continue developing regulated, on-chain infrastructure for a new generation of asset-backed financial products across gold, silver, royalties and streams.”

On December 10, the company also announced it has joined the Solana Policy Institute's Project Open, a regulatory initiative designed to establish a compliant framework for the issuance and trading of tokenized securities on public blockchains. The coalition, which has submitted its proposal to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), aims to modernize capital markets by enabling regulated, 24/7 trading of real-world assets (RWAs), including Streamex's flagship gold-backed stablecoin, GLDY.

"Project Open represents one of the most forward-thinking regulatory initiatives in modern capital markets, and we are proud to join Solana Policy Institute in driving it forward," said Henry McPhie, Co-Founder and CEO of Streamex Corp, in the news release. He emphasized that the initiative will help unlock on-chain markets at scale while keeping the U.S. competitive in financial innovation.

The move directly supports Streamex's goal of expanding the market accessibility of GLDY, a yield-bearing digital asset backed by physical gold. GLDY is designed to give investors exposure to spot gold prices while earning yield through gold leasing, tokenized via a proprietary system that offers transparent on-chain settlement, fractional ownership, and regulatory compliance.

Participation in Project Open is expected to help Streamex broaden the reach of its offerings by aligning its blockchain-native asset infrastructure with traditional investor protections. As outlined in the news release, the coalition's framework would maintain full SEC reporting and disclosure standards while reducing overhead, counterparty risk, and inefficiencies in traditional capital markets.

A Look Into Tokenized Gold and The Commodity Digitization

On December 9, Ledger Insights reviewed regulatory developments from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which launched a tokenized collateral pilot that applies existing asset treatment to blockchain-based representations. While the CFTC provided specific rules for crypto firms, it adopted a broader, principles-based framework for traditional firms engaging in tokenization. The article noted that regulatory clarity was still evolving, with questions remaining around custody standards and legal enforceability for tokenized assets.

Despite this, Ledger Insights reported that the CFTC's guidance affirmed the application of existing regulations to tokenized real-world assets, establishing a foundational framework for future development. The Global Markets Advisory Committee had previously requested specific methodologies and standards related to tokenized structures, suggesting that the groundwork was being laid for broader institutional adoption.

The "Great Tokenization Shift" report also analyzed the rise of tokenized commodities. It described tokenized gold as one of the most advanced use cases for on-chain asset representation. According to the report, gold tokenization typically avoids the regulatory complexity associated with securities, functioning instead like a "digital warehouse receipt" with regulatory emphasis on custodianship and asset transparency.

The report emphasized that while physical gold remains one of the world's most traded commodities, its tokenized derivatives still face liquidity gaps in decentralized finance markets. However, the authors viewed tokenized gold as a positive early example of how blockchain could enable "transparent, verifiable proof of ownership" and unlock 24/7 global trading for physical assets.

According to a December 11 report by Michal Steve, tokenized gold was expected to become a strategic asset class by 2026, combining the inflation-resistant benefits of physical gold with the liquidity and accessibility of digital assets. The report highlighted that tokenization allowed investors to gain "fractionalized, blockchain-secured versions of physical assets," enabling participation in gold markets without the logistical burdens of storage, authentication, or transfer.

The same report explained that tokenized gold relies on a custodial model in which physical gold is securely vaulted and verified, while digital tokens representing ownership are issued and traded on blockchain networks. These tokens typically operate via smart contracts, ensuring transparent and permanent records of ownership and transaction history. Steve noted that "this creates a modern, frictionless version of gold ownership…more secure than simple digital gold accounts, and more transparent than traditional financial products."

The strategic value of tokenized gold was further underscored by expectations of macroeconomic instability. The report projected that ongoing inflation and geopolitical tensions would drive institutional and retail investors toward hard assets with intrinsic value, positioning tokenized gold as "perfectly aligned with modern investor expectations." It also stated that younger, digitally native investors favored blockchain-backed assets due to their fast settlement times, transparent ownership tracking, and low entry barriers.

According to a December report from Jan Baltensweiler of Von Greyerz AG, global efforts to expand gold-backed financial infrastructure were already advancing at the 2025 BRICS Summit, where China's launch of an international vault network drew attention. Baltensweiler noted that "gold's remonetization is no longer theory," citing the opening of an offshore delivery vault in Hong Kong and upcoming expansion into Saudi Arabia and Southeast Asia. This physical buildout has coincided with rising demand for gold-backed financial instruments and underscores a broader structural shift. As tokenized gold emerges on blockchain platforms, these parallel developments reflect converging momentum around gold as both a traditional store of value and a digitally accessible financial asset.

Analysts Highlight Streamex's Positioning in Tokenized Gold and RWAs

On October 17, Siebert Capital Markets analyst Brian Vieten initiated coverage on Streamex, with a Buy rating and a 12-month price target of CA$0.40. According to Vieten, the company was "a pioneer in the rapidly evolving streaming entertainment and fintech sectors," combining live commerce functionality with integrated micropayments to create a seamless ecosystem for content creators and users. He highlighted Streamex's "first-mover advantage in merging social streaming with real-time commerce," which he believed could drive monetization beyond traditional ad-based models. Vieten also noted the company's scalable infrastructure and potential for geographic expansion.

On November 4, Vieten reiterated a Buy rating on Streamex Corp., with a 12-month price target of US$11. He estimated the company could reach US$3 billion in gold-backed token AUM by 2027, capturing 0.75% of the US$400 billion spot gold ETF market. His valuation was based on a 13x 2027 EV/Revenue multiple and projected revenue of US$137 million.

Vieten highlighted GLDY, Streamex's yield-bearing gold token, as "a unique product" offering up to 4% yield, 24/7 liquidity, and legal ownership—features he said outperformed traditional spot gold ETFs. The yield is backed by a third-party leasing agreement with Monetary Metals, a U.S. firm with a decade-long track record and no defaults. He noted that the exclusivity of this partnership gave Streamex "a meaningful moat in Gold yield generation capabilities."

According to Vieten, the product's ability to improve long-term gold returns by up to 50% and eliminate management fees could accelerate institutional adoption, especially if integrated into regulated ETFs. He projected 2026 and 2027 revenues of US$27 million and US$137 million, with earnings per share of -US$0.04 and US$0.45, respectively.

Calling Streamex a "one of one" asset, Vieten wrote: "Streamex is laser-focused on bringing gold on-chain, which we view as a massive, untapped market."

On November 25, Needham & Co. analyst John Todaro provided coverage of Streamex with a Buy rating and a US$12 per share price target. At the time of the report, Streamex was trading at approximately US$4.16 per share, implying a potential return of 188%. Todaro described Streamex as "an attractive way to gain exposure to the early stages of real-world asset (RWA) tokenization" and cited its GLDY token as a key differentiator within the digital gold space. According to the report, GLDY offered up to 4% annualized yield in gold, which set it apart from traditional gold ETFs that typically do not generate income. Todaro noted that "in today's market, GLDY addresses the usual drawback of gold being a non-income-generating asset."

Todaro projected that Streamex's tokenized gold product could scale from an initial US$100 million to over US$1 billion by the end of 2026. He attributed this growth potential to the firm's partnership with Monetary Metals, which manages gold leasing programs with terms typically ranging from six to twelve months. The report highlighted that Streamex's revenue model included a 1.25–1.5% annualized fee on gold leased through the platform, tokenization fees of 15 basis points, and wallet transfer fees of 5 basis points per side. Todaro wrote that "Streamex has the potential for material operating leverage as it scales its platform," noting that early legal and structural work could be reused for future offerings.

Needham estimated total revenue for Streamex to reach US$20 million in FY26, US$140 million in FY27, and US$365 million in FY28, with a projected 60% net income margin by 2027. While noting these projections were conservative, Todaro stated that revenue could be higher if the company increased the number of gold lease transactions and sustained its yield-on-assets model. He added, "If Streamex can increase the number of turns and continue to generate about a 1.25–1.5% yield on gold-originated assets under management and the industrial borrow market remains high, then revenue could potentially be much higher than our estimates."

Todaro concluded that Streamex's GLDY product offered a significant improvement over traditional gold exposure methods, providing both income generation and fractional ownership with blockchain-based transparency. He stated that Streamex was well-positioned to expand into other metal commodities and asset classes over time, writing that "with GLDY, Streamex is well-positioned, with the operational foundation and credibility required, to scale into other precious metals, commodities, or similarly standardized assets as institutional adoption gains ground."

Unlocking Scale: Tokenized Gold Meets Regulatory Momentum

The partnership with Project Open builds on Streamex's broader strategy to capitalize on the projected US$16 trillion real-world asset tokenization market by 2030, as noted in its investor presentation. The company's platform has been built to deliver institutional-grade tokenization of commodities, with a specific focus on gold as its initial entry point.

Streamex has already secured exclusive rights with Monetary Metals to tokenize yield-bearing gold instruments and has developed an integrated model where physical gold is vaulted and then digitized into tokens that offer on-chain yield.

The GLDY token is positioned as a next-generation alternative to traditional gold ETFs like SPDR Gold Shares (GLD), with Streamex, highlighting that GLD's US$87 billion market cap does not offer any yield to unit holders. In contrast, the GLDY model delivers returns through lease payments from industrial lessees, with all yield denominated in gold and distributed on-chain to token holders.

Streamex's roadmap includes further expansion beyond gold into other tokenized commodities and RWAs such as silver, copper, oil, and uranium, with the aim of scaling 12–24 tokenized asset sales by 2028.

The company operates under a Canadian Exempt Market Dealer license and is pursuing a U.S. Broker Dealer license, reinforcing its commitment to compliance, a core requirement for participation in Project Open.

Ownership and Share Structure¹

About 21% of the company is owned by insiders and management, and about 29% is owned by institutions. The rest is retail.

Top shareholders include Legacy Wealth Management LLC with 19.39%, Donald Garlikov with 8.6%, Anthony Amato with 8.6%, The Vanguard Group Inc. with 2.81%, and Armistice Capital LLC with 2.42%, Refinitiv noted.

Its market cap is US$808.31 million with 144.34 million shares outstanding. It trades in a 52-week range of US$0.23 and US$14.11.