Deng Tong, Golden Finance
On December 9, 2025, Ondo Finance announced: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's secret investigation into Ondo has concluded without any charges. "The purpose of this investigation was to examine whether Ondo's tokenization of certain real-world assets complies with federal securities laws and whether the ONDO token qualifies as a security."
I. Original Post from Ondo Finance Official Blog
A Significant Step for Tokenized Securities in the U.S.
Ondo Finance has received formal notification that a multi-year secret investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), initiated during the Biden administration and aimed at strict scrutiny of digital asset companies, has concluded without any charges.
The investigation aimed to assess whether Ondo's tokenization of certain real-world assets complies with federal securities laws and whether the ONDO token qualifies as a security. Ondo fully cooperated throughout the investigation. Ondo has always believed that regulated and transparent tokenization models like Ondo not only align with investor protection principles but also strengthen these principles.
This moment is not only a significant milestone for Ondo but also for the entire tokenization industry.
At the start of the investigation in 2024, the regulatory environment for digital assets in the U.S. was cautious, chaotic, and occasionally marked by overzealous enforcement. Against this backdrop, Ondo:
Became the first and largest tokenization platform for U.S. Treasury bonds;
Emerged as one of the few companies focused on large-scale tokenization of publicly listed stocks;
Quickly gained favor with global investors.
Starting early and achieving success naturally invites scrutiny.
Amid discussions of cryptocurrency exchange failures and speculative tokens, Ondo leveraged public blockchain technology to build practical, user-friendly, and regulated financial products. As a result, these innovators dedicated to developing the safest assets in traditional finance found themselves caught up in broader enforcement actions.
Ondo's growth and leadership in the emerging tokenization space have made us a focal point, but not a reasonable target for investigation. With the conclusion of the investigation, we will continue to uphold our consistent philosophy, firmly committed to innovation, compliance, safety, and investor protection.
Shifts in Washington: A Clearer Path for Tokenized Securities Development
This decision also reflects a broader shift in U.S. policy.
Regulators are reassessing the Biden-era policies on digital assets. Washington has begun to reverse or ease some of the aggressive measures taken by the previous administration, recognizing that innovation and investor protection are not mutually exclusive.
Tokenization has now officially made it onto the SEC's agenda. The SEC's Investor Advisory Committee is evaluating how tokenization can revolutionize the issuance, trading, and settlement processes of publicly offered stocks, which is a stark contrast to the SEC's recent enforcement-first stance.
The market has already provided answers, and the adoption of tokenization technology is accelerating. Tokenization of U.S. Treasury bonds has become one of the fastest-growing asset classes on-chain, and the recently launched stock tokenization is also showing strong growth momentum.
The U.S. infrastructure is continuously evolving to support tokenization. Ondo recently acquired Oasis Pro, obtaining broker-dealer, alternative trading system (ATS), and transfer agent licenses, thereby establishing a fully regulated business foundation in the U.S. tokenized securities space.
The resolution of the SEC investigation marks the end of one chapter for Ondo and the beginning of another. In short, the time has come for tokenized securities to become a core component of the U.S. capital markets. The future of global finance, including the U.S. capital markets, will move towards on-chain solutions, and Ondo will lead this transformation.
So what’s next? On February 3, 2026, we will share the next phase of our roadmap at the Ondo Summit in New York, where we will gather leading regulators, policymakers, and executives from traditional finance to articulate our vision for the new era of on-chain finance.
II. Overview of Ondo's Development
Ondo Finance officially launched on July 27, 2021. Founded by Nathan Allman and Pinku Suran, Ondo aims to "accelerate the adoption of DeFi among mainstream investors by enabling refined trading of risks." The protocol went live on its launch day, offering four vaults at the outset. Ondo's goal is to "bring institutional-grade financial products and services to a wide audience," allowing ordinary users to access the returns and liquidity of traditional financial assets (such as U.S. Treasury bonds, money market funds, bonds, stocks/ETFs, etc.) through tokenization.
Ondo's development trajectory clearly illustrates a strategic upgrade from DeFi infrastructure to a core player in RWA, with its two major version iterations reflecting the industry's transformation.
Ondo V1: Focused on DeFi Infrastructure
When the Ondo V1 project launched, it was already operating on Ethereum, serving as the first implementation version of the protocol, with vaults and liquidity as a service (LaaS) as its core products. Significant developments during this implementation version include:
In November 2021, Ondo partnered with Fei Protocol to launch liquidity as a service (LaaS), aimed at replacing traditional liquidity mining models. LaaS allows project teams to increase the liquidity of their tokens on decentralized exchanges. Project teams can deposit their tokens into Ondo's liquidity vault, while Fei matches them with an equivalent amount of FEI stablecoins. Ondo expanded its LaaS service through the following collaborations:
In December 2021, Ondo partnered with Frax Finance to expand its LaaS product, with Frax Finance providing liquidity for tokens like AMP using its FRAX stablecoin.
In May 2022, Ondo partnered with Angle Protocol to expand its LaaS product, with Angle Protocol providing liquidity for tokens like PAL using its agEUR stablecoin.
It is worth noting that Ondo V1 has ceased operations, and from March 5, 2024, users can only withdraw funds from it.
Ondo V2: Becoming a Core Player in RWA
Ondo V2 officially launched in January 2023, marking the second implementation version of the protocol. Significant developments during this implementation version include:
In January 2023, Ondo announced the launch of three tokens collateralized by U.S. Treasury bonds and corporate bonds. While OSTB and OHYG have ceased issuance, the Ondo U.S. Government Bond Fund (OUSG) remains the most widely circulated token of Ondo.
In January 2023, Ondo announced the launch of Flux Finance (referred to as Flux) and initiated the Ondo DAO to manage Flux. In February 2023, Flux officially launched, and the first proposals using ONDO tokens were approved.
In April 2023, Ondo announced the establishment of the Ondo Money Market Fund (OMMF).
In August 2023, Ondo announced the launch of Ondo U.S. Dollar Yield (USDY).
In November 2023, Ondo opened the Ondo Bridge.
In January 2024, the Ondo Foundation proposed to lift the "global lock" on ONDO tokens. This proposal included official details on the distribution, use, and future unlocking plans for ONDO tokens. The passage of this proposal marked the "public issuance" of ONDO tokens.
In January 2024, the Ondo Foundation announced the Ondo Points Program and launched the "first wave" of the program later that month.
In February 2024, Ondo announced its plans for Ondo Global Markets (Ondo GM), a platform that will allow users to access traditional securities on-chain through tokenization.
In March 2024, Ondo Finance launched 24/7/365 instant subscription and redemption services for OUSG, with a significant portion of OUSG's assets transferred to BlackRock's BUIDL Treasury Fund.
In February 2025, Ondo Global Markets officially launched. The announcement stated that the tokens issued by Ondo GM would be backed 1:1 by the underlying assets.
In March 2025, TVL reached $1 billion, thanks to the introduction of compliance-focused clients, collaboration with BitGo, and smart contracts compliant with U.S. regulations.
In June 2025, the team announced the establishment of the Global Markets Alliance, aimed at "coordinating industry standards and promoting interoperability of tokenized securities," with members including the Solana Foundation, Bitget Wallet, Jupiter, Trust Wallet, Rainbow Wallet, BitGo, Fireblocks, 1inch, and Alpaca.
In October 2025, Ondo submitted a letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission proposing amendments to Nasdaq's rules regarding the trading of tokenized securities.
III. Ondo's Secret: Seizing Every Market Opportunity
From the timeline above, it is evident that Ondo has seized every market opportunity from DeFi to RWA, and now with the SEC concluding its investigation, this may be the secret to Ondo's continued prominence.
In June 2020, the DeFi Summer erupted when Compound launched its governance token COMP and initiated a liquidity mining mechanism—users could earn COMP token rewards by borrowing and lending on the Compound platform. This innovative model quickly ignited market enthusiasm and became a core driver of the DeFi Summer. However, by the second half of 2021, the unsustainability of liquidity mining became apparent: continued mining would lead to token inflation, while halting it would result in liquidity depletion.
Ondo recognized the pain points in the crypto market and launched "Liquidity as a Service": project teams could deposit their native tokens into a dedicated liquidity pool built by Ondo, based on their needs and within flexible timeframes; Ondo would pair the deposited tokens with equivalent asset pools provided by partners like Frax, Fei, and Angle, thus forming compliant and balanced liquidity pairs; the completed liquidity pairs would be deployed to designated decentralized exchanges, injecting trading liquidity into the project's native tokens to ensure smooth trading; after the collaboration period ended, Ondo would withdraw the corresponding liquidity and profits generated from mining from the exchanges. The assets would first be returned to the project team, along with fixed interest payments to the partners as previously agreed, while the remaining profits would also be returned to the project team.
At this point, Ondo was a DeFi infrastructure provider, solving the unsustainability issues brought about by liquidity mining.
In 2022, the algorithmic stablecoin UST and its native token LUNA from the Terra ecosystem faced a death spiral collapse, triggering a trust crisis in DeFi overnight. Against this backdrop, Ondo turned its attention to the RWA sector, which was truly rising and entering a rapid development phase.
In 2023, Ondo V2 was launched, with its core product being the tokenization of U.S. Treasury bonds (OUSG). The core underlying asset of OUSG is the iShares Short-Term U.S. Treasury Bond ETF managed by BlackRock, which ensures both safety and liquidity, giving OUSG a low-risk attribute. OUSG can connect to DeFi protocols like Flux Finance that support compliant licensed assets, allowing investors to transfer ownership after obtaining the tokens and engage in financial activities such as lending through smart contracts that have undergone compliance review. The launch of OUSG demonstrates the feasibility of tokenizing low-risk traditional financial assets.
The SEC, led by Gensler, has frequently challenged the crypto market, and the crypto industry faced a regulatory "winter" two years ago. In October 2023, the SEC initiated an investigation into Ondo. The core of the SEC's review was whether Ondo's tokenization process for U.S. Treasury products complied with securities regulations and whether the ONDO token should be considered a security. This investigation lasted for two years.
On October 6, 2025, Ondo Finance completed the acquisition of Oasis Pro, a broker-dealer licensed by the SEC. This acquisition aimed to help Ondo promote the development of its tokenized securities business within a compliant framework. On December 6, ONDO submitted its tokenized securities roadmap to the SEC, advocating for support of multiple asset ownership models and promoting broader on-chain integration to help the U.S. maintain its leading position in the asset tokenization transformation.
After compliance efforts, Ondo faced no charges, marking a significant regulatory positive for the crypto industry.
Conclusion
From DeFi to RWA, and now to compliance development, Ondo has accurately grasped industry trends and seized every opportunity presented by the market. Now that the SEC's investigation has concluded, Ondo is completely unshackled. Where will Ondo set its sights in the future? Perhaps the New York summit in February 2026 will provide us with an opportunity to find out.
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