Metals.io’s copper tokenization launch gives investors ownership of metal already in storage—not shares in a miner or a futures contract. The platform has issued 25,000 xCu tokens , each backed by one kilogram of refined copper in Hamburg, Germany. Together, they represent 25 tonnes worth approximately $366,000 .
Key takeaways
xCu links digital ownership to refined copper held in Germany.
Physical withdrawals start at approximately 125 kilograms and require compliance checks.
Archax checks stored copper against the circulating token supply.
Metals.io’s copper tokenization launch starts small
Metals.io says xCu is designed to track copper’s spot price , with backing held in industry-standard bonded warehouses. Copper becomes the platform’s sixth metal, joining uranium, gold, rare earths, cobalt and nickel.
Ben Elvidge, who leads Metals.io and heads alternative assets at Trilitech, said the business hopes to tokenize millions of dollars’ worth of copper over the next year. It is deliberately beginning with a smaller offering to test investor appetite.
According to Metals.io, xCu is the first product of its kind to offer physically backed spot copper investment. Elvidge said the platform was created to widen access to metals supporting technological change.
Physical ownership comes with redemption conditions
xCu represents ownership of stored physical copper , rather than exposure through mining-company shares or futures. Elvidge said holders own a portion of refined copper cathodes in Hamburg, not unextracted resources.
The tokens support around-the-clock trading without a minimum investment, Elvidge said. Physical redemption has a separate threshold: each copper sheet weighs approximately 125 kilograms , making that the minimum amount available for withdrawal.
Holders seeking delivery must have a suitable storage account and complete identity and anti-money laundering checks .
Archax verifies backing; Trilitech supplies infrastructure
Archax acts as trustee , checking that the copper in storage matches the circulating xCu supply. The regulated digital asset platform is based in the UK and has a presence in the US, EU and United Arab Emirates.
London-based Trilitech, a Tezos development company, provides Metals.io’s trading platform and technical infrastructure.
Demand forecasts frame the copper market opportunity
S&P Global projects that global copper demand could rise 50% by 2040 , as electric vehicles, power grids and AI data centers expand. Metals.io’s copper tokenization launch targets a metal with growing uses across electrification and computing infrastructure.
According to material provided by the company, electric vehicles consume roughly 2.9 times more copper than traditional cars do. Metals.io also cites estimates that a large AI data center can require up to 50,000 tonnes, with data-center demand projected to reach as much as 1.1 million tonnes annually by 2030.
On supply, Metals.io says bringing a mine online can take more than 17 years. It cites 14 copper discoveries in the past decade, compared with 225 during the preceding 23 years.
Elvidge said further token issuance will depend on investor demand. Within Metals.io’s current lineup, uranium holds the top spot with a market capitalization near $9.2 million, with gold trailing at $4.1 million, while copper’s starting value surpasses the combined total of its nickel, cobalt and rare-earth offerings.
Physical-metal tokens already include Tether’s XAUT and Paxos’ PAXG, both backed by gold. xCu also differs from Bridgetower’s $11 billion Arizona copper-gold tokenization project: that project covers mineral resources still awaiting extraction, while xCu represents refined copper already held in storage.
Article produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the editorial team.
