The R2 Protocol officially went live on the Ethereum mainnet on September 26, 2025, at 07:00 UTC, marking a significant milestone in the real-world asset (RWA) tokenization space. The launch was accompanied by two flagship vault products: a T-Bills Vault offering a 4% net Annual Percentage Yield (APY) backed by tokenized U.S. Treasuries, and a Private Credit Vault with a target net APY of 9-10%, temporarily boosted to approximately 32% through subsidies.
Integration with 12 major asset management institutions, including BlackRock, Apollo, VanEck, Fasanara Capital, Mercado Bitcoin, and Centrifuge, underscores the protocol's institutional credibility. These partners collectively manage over $11.39 trillion in assets, facilitating large-scale tokenized RWA flows. The protocol also leverages Wormhole for cross-chain transactions, which has handled over $59 billion in volume.
However, the launch faced user backlash over its rewards program. Eligible testnet participants—over 385,000 registered addresses with 50,000 daily active users—must deposit 100 USDC for 60 days to unlock 100 R2 tokens, earning a 50% APY on the deposit. Users criticized this as "trickery," arguing it excludes smaller participants. The R2 team defended the mechanism, stating it aims to grow Total Value Locked (TVL)—currently at $121,290 with 154,000+ users—to secure better institutional offers.
The native R2 token launch is scheduled for late 2025, with the protocol supporting seven blockchain networks and a cross-chain bridge launched in July 2025 for scalability.