As gold and silver continue to hit new record highs, smaller-cap metals such as copper are also attracting capital inflows. Blockchain technology could serve as a bridge, enabling this capital to enter the crypto market through tokenization.
Several indicators suggest that copper may be entering a rally similar to silver, and tokenized copper could see explosive growth in 2026.
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Copper Demand Could Keep Rising Sharply Over the Next 15 Years
Toto Finance, an institutional commodity tokenization platform, forecasts that global copper demand could reach around 42 million tons by 2040. Meanwhile, supply is expected to peak around 2030 and then decline.
According to Toto Finance’s “Copper Demand vs Supply (2025–2040)” chart, demand steadily rises to nearly 40 million tons by 2040. In contrast, the supply curve peaks at around 28–30 million tons in 2030 and then drops sharply. This creates an increasingly wide supply-demand gap.
This is not a temporary cycle. It represents a structural imbalance, making copper a strategic resource. Toto Finance emphasizes that tokenization will become a new way to access, own, and add liquidity to copper, turning it into a digital asset that can be traded more easily.
“This isn’t a cycle, it’s a structural gap. As copper becomes strategic, tokenization is how access, ownership, and liquidity evolve,” Toto Finance predicted.
Many analysts believe that copper scarcity has officially begun and will likely worsen over time. Mike Investing argues that over the next 18 years, the amount of copper that needs to be mined will equal the amount extracted over the previous 10,000 years. He believes copper prices could rise 2–5 times within the next 14 months.
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AI and Grid Expansion Are Major Drivers
One of the key drivers of rising copper demand is the AI boom and the expansion of global power grids. Katusa Research notes that demand from AI infrastructure and electrification will make copper increasingly scarce.
Copper demand from new data centers alone is projected to reach roughly 400,000 metric tons per year through 2035. Electric vehicles also require three times as much copper as traditional internal combustion engine cars.
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Modern defense systems and drones are further increasing demand for electronics, pushing global supply toward dangerously low levels.
New mining projects can take up to 17 years before reaching production. At the same time, ore quality is declining, and major mines are shutting down. These factors are deepening the supply-demand imbalance.
Early Signals Emerging in the Crypto Market
Crypto investor exposure to tokenized copper and copper-related real-world assets (RWAs) remains limited. However, trading demand for tokenized gold and silver has recently shown signs of growth.
Some early indicators are already appearing. Ondo’s tokenized version of the Global X Copper Miners ETF (COPXON) saw its market capitalization expand in January. COPXON quickly reached a $3 million market cap in its first week.
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Remora Markets, a platform for trading tokenized stocks on Solana, also reported revenue growth reaching $110 million. This increase was driven by demand for tokenized NASDAQ stocks and metals-related assets.
The total value of Copper rStock (CPERr) on Remora Markets surged during the final week of January. The numbers remain small, but this may represent an early sign of how crypto investors want exposure to metal assets such as copper.
Tokenization is also a theme that industry leaders expect to accelerate in 2026. This could create opportunities for new startup ideas and open new possibilities for traders.