On January 22, 2026, a campus session centered on Real-World Assets (RWA) was held at the Penn Museum at the University of Pennsylvania. The event was part of the University Engagement Tour and was jointly promoted by several student-led, non-profit organizations on campus, including GAIA, PRIA, PGELA, GTRA, PWCS, AACCGP, and CASTGP.
Unlike typical industry gatherings, the session was held entirely within the university setting, with all attendees being Penn students. This created an atmosphere more aligned with academic discussion and industry analysis than a promotional event.
Academic and Industry Perspectives on the Core Questions Around RWA
The discussion centered around the theme “Real-World Assets: Infrastructure, Markets, and Emerging Career Paths.” Conversations explored how RWA is becoming a meaningful bridge between digital concepts, financial systems, and the real economy, and how emerging digital infrastructure may influence traditional settlement and value transfer processes.
Participants examined how real-world assets and commercial activity can be meaningfully represented within digital systems, as well as how next-generation financial infrastructure may influence future career paths for students entering the field.
During the guest speaker segment, Henry Zhao, a Wall Street investment banking professional and Penn alumnus, offered a financial investor’s perspective on the relationship between digital systems and real-world assets. He emphasized that the significance of RWA is not simply about “putting assets online,” but about how programmable digital infrastructure is beginning to reshape how assets are issued, settled, and circulated. He noted that future financial instruments and securitization models may increasingly rely on such infrastructure, gradually narrowing the gap between digital systems and real economic activity.
A representative from PRIA approached the topic from a research and technology evolution standpoint, analyzing current trends in this space and the practical trajectory of RWA adoption. The discussion highlighted that RWA is not a single technical direction, but rather a broader transformation involving financial systems, infrastructure design, commercial application, and user participation models—particularly in how real-world behavior can be effectively integrated into digital networks.
Student representatives from PGAIA, PGELA, and GTRA also contributed perspectives from artificial intelligence, sustainability, and interdisciplinary research angles, discussing how emerging financial infrastructure is creating demand for hybrid skill sets that combine finance, technology, and business understanding.
A Practical Case Response During the Sponsor Spotlight
During the Sponsor Spotlight segment, MiniDoge delivered a session titled “From Meme Culture to Real-World Assets Infrastructure,” aligning its remarks with the broader RWA themes discussed throughout the event.
The presentation approached the topic from the perspective of everyday life and commercial activity, exploring how people might begin to rethink concepts such as “assets,” “participation,” and “value movement” as real-world economic behavior increasingly intersects with digital systems. In doing so, the talk offered a practical lens that complemented the academic and industry discussions taking place during the session.
The conversation also extended into a broader reflection: as consumption, commerce, and digital environments become more interconnected, these concepts may be viewed less as purely technical or financial topics and more as new ways to interpret real economic activity.
Overall, this segment functioned as a continuation of the academic and industry dialogue, helping translate abstract themes into more relatable discussion points rather than serving as a traditional product presentation.
Academic Exchange and Career Conversations
The event concluded with an extended networking and career discussion session, where students engaged directly with speakers and participants to talk about practical applications of RWA concepts and emerging opportunities in related fields. The atmosphere remained focused on discussion and analysis rather than promotion.
Discussion Within a University Setting
By hosting the session within the University of Pennsylvania, topics related to RWA were brought directly into an academic context. Alongside a broader trend of industry initiatives engaging in real-world, offline interactions across North America, campus sessions like this are becoming a way to connect industry practice with future talent communities.