Ondo Finance launches tokenization platform for open onchain access to US securities

Tokenized real-world asset issuer Ondo Finance launched Ondo Global Markets, a new platform designed to open up onchain exposure to U.S. public securities such as stocks, bonds and exchange-traded funds.

“What stablecoins did for dollars, Ondo Global Markets will do for securities,” Ondo wrote in its Tuesday announcement . “By leveraging blockchain technology, we can bring institutional-grade financial markets onchain, making them more accessible, transparent, and efficient.”

Ondo GM is expected to solve issues in the current securities investment environment such as high fees, limited access, transfer friction and lack of interoperability.

The newly launched tokenization platform will offer exposure to over one thousand securities listed on the NYSE and NASDAQ, including fixed-income ETFs and individual stocks of companies such as Apple and Tesla, according to the announcement.

“Tokens issued in the Ondo GM platform will be each backed 1:1 by an underlying asset, like a public stock, and will be freely transferable, like stablecoins, outside the US,” Ondo said.

The platform is also said to offer issuers permissioning integrated into the distribution layer to give decision-making power to stakeholders.

Apart from benefits to individual investors and issuers, Ondo said the platform can also provide a new distribution channel for asset managers to a global pool of investors.

Meanwhile, Ondo Finance has a total value locked of over $650 million, according to data from DefiLlama.