Key Highlights
- The SEC ended its two-year investigation into Ondo Finance with no charges.
- The decision allows Ondo to expand its tokenized asset services in the U.S.
- New SEC leadership under Paul Atkins is taking a more supportive approach to tokenization.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has officially ended its two-year investigation into Ondo Finance, a company that creates tokenized versions of real-world assets on blockchain platforms.
The investigation started in October 2023, during the time Gary Gensler was the chair of the agency. It focused on Ondo’s product offerings and how the company handled the ONDO token. The formal closure notice reached the firm in late November, fully removing the cloud hanging over its work in the United States, according to a report.
An Ondo spokesperson confirmed that the SEC examined whether the company’s tokenized Treasury products followed U.S. securities rules and whether the ONDO token should be treated as a security.
“With the investigation now closed, the overhang on Ondo and the tokenization of securities is over and signals openness and a cleared way ahead for the tokenization of securities,” the spokesperson said.
In an X post on December 8, the Ondo team also commented on the development, writing, “Against this backdrop, Ondo never wavered from its core conviction: tokenizing some of the safest and most established assets in global finance, like U.S. Treasuries and publicly listed equities, can be both transformative and compliant.”
Following the news, the ONDO token moved up nearly 7% in hours as traders reacted to the update. It is currently trading near $0.4861, still down 77% from its all-time high, as per CoinMarketCap data.
Clearer rules under new SEC chair
The closure matches the recent direction of the SEC under its new chair, Paul Atkins. Since taking over, Atkins has pushed for a friendlier and clearer approach toward crypto projects and tokenization. Several other crypto cases from the previous administration have already been closed or reversed. These include actions involving Coinbase, Ripple, and Kraken.
In a recent interview on FOX Business, Atkins said tokenization “has the potential to change the financial system over the next couple years.” Last week, he highlighted its value in remarks to the SEC’s Investor Advisory Committee, noting that distributed ledger tools could improve how public equities are issued and traded.
For Ondo, the end of the investigation opens the door to growth inside the United States without the fear of legal trouble slowing it down. The company recently registered as an investment advisor and bought Oasis Pro Markets, a regulated broker-dealer and trading system operator.
Ondo has also submitted written suggestions to the SEC asking for simple and clear rules for digital asset securities, including guidelines for tokenized Treasuries. The company is preparing to launch new tools and products at its Ondo Summit on February 3 in New York, which will focus on expanding tokenized real-world assets for global users.
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