ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Blockchain
Sec. Blockchain Economics
Volume 8 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fbloc.2025.1649131
Regulatory Dynamics and Empirical Evidence in Medical Device Tokenization
Provisionally accepted- University of Applied Sciences Rosenheim, Rosenheim, Germany
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Background: The medical device sector, valued at $569 billion, faces persistent financing challenges. Around 78% of startups fail because of capital shortages, not due to lacking technical quality. Blockchain-based tokenization emerges as a way to broaden access, yet success relies on economic factors of platforms and clear regulations. Methods: Transaction cost data from Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP Ledger covered 540 days from January 2024 to June 2025, providing 3,240 observations per network. Experts, numbering 12, participated in a mod-ified Delphi method to form a framework tailored to healthcare. Project outcomes came from Monte Carlo simulations running 10,000 iterations, checked by a triple control-loop system, and compared against two real-world examples. Volumes of transactions drew from stochastic models involving monthly, quarterly, and annual elements, mixing fixed regulatory needs with variable market influences. Results: Layer-1 (L1) fees differ by orders of magnitude; representative 2025 snapshots show BTC and ETH L1 far above XRPL and major ETH L2s. XRPL fees are typically a tiny fraction of a cent; the base cost is 10 drops (0.00001 XRP) and is dynamically adjusted by network load. Probabilities of success varied from 10.1% to 12.3% on Bitcoin, 31.4% to 48.3% on Ethereum based on Layer-2 adoption, and 71.6% to 73.2% on XRP Ledger. Investor involvement correlated negatively with logarithms of costs, showing Spearman ρ of -0.91. Differences in success exceeded 60 percentage points across platforms. Examples illustrated how elevated expenses reduce engagement in VitaDAO on Ethereum, whereas low-cost systems like XRP Healthcare support ongoing involvement. Conclusion: Choosing a blockchain platform critically influences viability in tokenizing medical devices. Layer-2 options reduce cost gaps but add complexities in bridging and use. Platforms offering stability, minimal fees, and regulatory alignment promote wider inclusion and reliable funding. Technical features, steady costs, and readiness for compliance together shape whether tokenization boosts innovation in healthcare or maintains barriers.
Keywords: medical device tokenization, blockchain platforms, Transactioncosts, Monte Carlo simulation, Layer-2 scaling, Healthcare Financing, investorparticipation, regulatory clarity
Received: 18 Jun 2025; Accepted: 22 Sep 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Peters. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Andreas Peters, a.peters81@icloud.com
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