The US Securities and Exchange Commission has officially concluded its investigation into the New York-based tokenization platform Ondo Finance, which commenced in 2023.
Ondo Finance received formal notification that a confidential, multi-year SEC investigation into the platform has been closed without any charges, the company announced on Monday.
“The inquiry assessed whether Ondo’s tokenization of specific real-world assets adhered to federal securities laws and whether the ONDO token qualified as a security,” the statement indicated.
The SEC’s decision to terminate the investigation represents a broader transformation in US policy regarding real-world asset (RWA) tokenization, moving it onto the authority’s formal agenda, Ondo pointed out.
A new chapter of tokenization in the US
According to a report by Crypto in America, the SEC opened the investigation in October 2023 under former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, who maintained a stringent approach toward the crypto industry.
However, since Paul Atkins assumed the role of SEC chair, the agency has closed several crypto-related cases involving major firms like Coinbase, Ripple, and Kraken.
“At the time the inquiry started in 2024, the US regulatory landscape for digital assets was characterized by caution, confusion, and sometimes excessive enforcement actions,” Ondo Finance stated in its blog post.
In this context, Ondo was “one of the few companies focused on tokenizing publicly listed equities at scale,” they noted, adding: “Being early and successful attracted scrutiny.”
According to Ondo, the closure of the SEC inquiry signifies the conclusion of one chapter and the onset of another, wherein tokenized securities become a “core part of the US capital markets.”
“The future of global finance, including U.S. capital markets, will be onchain, and Ondo will help steer that transition,” Ondo affirmed.
Most US tokenization platforms serve overseas markets
The news arrives as most tokenization platforms primarily offer tokenized equity products to customers outside the US, including companies like Kraken-owned Backed, the issuer of xStocks.
While these platforms tokenize significant US-listed stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), many offerings are focused on clients overseas, especially in Europe.
“The reality is that users in the US already have relatively seamless access to traditional equities, such as stocks and ETFs, via well-established brokerage platforms,” stated Alchemy Pay chief marketing officer Ailona Tsik to Cointelegraph in June.
With the resolution of the SEC investigation, it remains uncertain whether RWA platforms like Ondo will begin extending services to clients based in the US.
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The news followed Ondo Global Markets receiving regulatory approval to provide tokenized stocks to European investors in November.
Securitize, a competing US tokenization platform, also secured regulatory approval to operate as both an Investment Firm and a Trading & Settlement System (TSS) in the EU on Nov. 26. According to the company, this approval has positioned it as one of the pioneering operators for regulated digital securities infrastructure in both the US and EU.
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