Crypto critic Nouriel Roubini finds a use for the blockchain

Nouriel Roubini, the economist known for predicting the 2008 financial crisis and later for his sharp criticism of crypto, is putting one of his investment products on the blockchain.

Roubini is launching a digital token called USAFi that will be backed by the Atlas America Fund, a $17 million exchange-traded fund he oversees, according to a press release. The ETF, which trades on Nasdaq under the ticker USAF, invests in assets including US Treasuries, gold and real estate investment trusts.

The project highlights a broader push by Wall Street firms to use blockchain technology to represent ownership of traditional financial assets. The process, known as tokenization, creates digital versions of assets that can be traded and transferred on blockchain networks.

USAFi is aimed at investors outside the US and will launch under the supervision of Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, known as VARA. BlackRock-backed Securitize will provide the tokenisation technology, and the token is expected to trade on exchanges regulated by VARA.

The move is the latest in a gradual transition for Roubini, who has spent years criticizing cryptocurrencies. He has called Bitcoin a “self-fulfilling bubble,” and argued it is neither an effective payment system nor a reliable store of value. He later joined with Atlas Capital to develop a suite of financial products including a tokenised asset intended to act as a dollar replacement.

But while Bitcoin and most cryptocurrencies are speculative, scam-prone and poor substitutes for money or stores of value, their underlying blockchain technology is proving more useful, Roubini said in an interview.

“Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, they are not currencies. They are not even good stores of value,” Roubini said. “We need better collateral, better reserve assets and a better store of value.”

On Tuesday, Roubini and colleagues at Atlas Capital published a paper describing what they call “technodollars,” blockchain-based investment products backed by traditional assets. The paper argues such products could serve some of the functions crypto supporters seek while relying on assets with established value.

Interest in tokenized assets has grown rapidly across the financial industry. The value of tokenised assets has increased to about $32 billion from roughly $6 billion at the start of 2025, according to data provider rwa.xyz. Firms including BlackRock and JPMorgan Chase & Co have expanded efforts to bring traditional financial products onto blockchain-based platforms.

Advocates say tokenisation could make investment products more accessible to investors outside traditional financial systems. Deepa Raja Carbon, managing director and vice chair of VARA, said the technology could broaden access to asset classes that have historically been available to a relatively small group of investors.

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