Ondo Finance is preparing to launch Ondo Perps, a platform for trading perpetual contracts on real-world assets. The launch is expected in the coming weeks. The announcement coincided with an important event for the market: U.S. regulators recently approved the country’s first perpetual futures contract. This could accelerate the development of trading in tokenized stocks and commodities.
This was shared by the new Ondo Finance CEO Ian De Bode. He took over the company after the unexpected death of project founder Nathan Allman last month.
Currently, Ondo holds a leading position in the tokenized assets market. According to the company, its products account for about 60% of this segment, and the amount of funds in the ecosystem has already grown to $3.5 billion. Therefore, the launch of Ondo Perps could become an important milestone for the entire RWA industry.
CFTC Approval Opens the Door for Regulated Perpetual Contracts
At the end of May, the Kalshi platform received approval from the CFTC to launch the BTCPERP contract. This is the first perpetual futures contract that can be traded on a regulated U.S. exchange. At the same time, the regulator issued clarifications on such instruments and outlined the rules that market participants will follow.
At Ondo Perps, this event was called an important step for the entire industry.
“We welcome the recent approval of the first perpetual derivative contract registered in the U.S., as well as the published CFTC guidelines and clarifications. This is a landmark moment for the perpetuals market,” the company said.
At Ondo, they believe that the CFTC decision could simplify the path for new products of this type to appear in the U.S..
The perpetuals market itself has long gone beyond just bitcoin. These contracts allow traders to hold positions without an expiration date, making them one of the most in-demand tools among traders. According to the company, total trading volume in this market has exceeded $86 trillion.
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Meanwhile, the traditional derivatives market is much larger. That is why interest in perpetual contracts on stocks, ETFs, and other real-world assets is now growing rapidly. For many market participants, this is an opportunity to combine familiar financial instruments with blockchain infrastructure.
Ondo Perps Targets Tokenized Stocks, ETFs, and Commodities
At launch, Ondo Perps will allow users to open perpetual positions on U.S. stocks and ETFs with leverage up to 20x. Trading will be available 24/7, but for now, only clients outside the U.S. will be able to use the platform.
A test launch took place back in March. At that time, users were given access to contracts on shares of Apple, Nvidia, Tesla, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft. In addition, gold, silver, and oil are available on the platform.
Unlike most crypto exchanges, Ondo Perps takes a different approach to collateral. The company wants to allow not only stablecoins to be used as collateral, but also tokenized securities. Traders will also be able to use one asset to secure several positions at once. The company reported this back in February when it announced the platform.
This approach fits well with the current strategy of Ondo Finance. By the end of May, the volume of assets under management in the tokenized treasury bond fund OUSG exceeded $620 million. Another company product, the yield token USDY, has already gained popularity among DeFi investors outside the U.S..
How Ondo Perps Differs From dYdX, Hyperliquid, and GMX
The main difference between Ondo Perps and its competitors is not the size of the leverage, but which assets traders can use as collateral.
Ondo Perps offers leverage up to 20x. By the standards of crypto perpetual platforms, this is a fairly moderate level. For example, Hyperliquid offers from 3x to 40x, depending on the asset. GMX supports trading with leverage up to 100x. On dYdX, for certain instruments, leverage could previously reach up to 25x.
But more important here is not the leverage itself, but the collateral structure. Hyperliquid mainly uses collateral based on USDC and supports cross-margin. GMX relies on pool liquidity and oracle prices. dYdX popularized perpetual trading with cross-margin, where one collateral can be used for several positions at once.
See also: Trezor Launched Yield Support for USDT and USDC via Morpho
Ondo, however, wants to take a different path. The platform plans to allow tokenized securities themselves to be used as collateral. Traders will also be able to link positions between tokenized stocks, ETFs, and other real-world assets.
This approach aligns well with Ondo‘s overall tokenization strategy. The platform does not focus solely on crypto assets. Instead, it aims to combine tokenized treasury bonds, stocks, and yield assets into a single system for trading and collateral.
If Ondo Perps succeeds in implementing this model, the platform could carve out a niche between traditional brokerage services and crypto perpetual exchanges. Users will be able to trade tokenized securities with leverage without leaving the blockchain infrastructure.
The New CEO Faces His First Major Test
The launch of Ondo Perps will be one of the first major products to be released under the leadership of Ian De Bode. He became CEO after the death of company founder Nathan Allman on May 26.
Before joining Ondo, De Bode was a partner and head of digital assets at McKinsey. At Ondo Finance itself, he served as company president for more than two years, responsible for strategy and day-to-day business management.
As of the end of May, the ONDO token was trading around $0.43. This is about 80% below the all-time high of $2.14, which was set in December 2024.
Now much will depend on whether Ondo Perps can attract sufficient trading volume. For the new team, this will be an important test, especially amid the still uncertain regulatory environment and the company’s transition to new management.
Regulatory Risks for Stock Perpetuals Still Remain
Despite the recent approval from the CFTC, the regulator is not yet ready to give a full green light to all perpetual contracts on real-world assets.
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In its decision on the BTCPERP contract from Kalshi, the commission specifically noted that this model may not be suitable for all asset classes. In addition, the CFTC recommended that companies consult with agency staff in advance before launching perpetuals on new instruments.
This indicates that the regulator will consider such products individually, rather than granting automatic approval for all new platforms. This approach could slow the expansion of the asset lineup on Ondo Perps and complicate the platform’s entry into the U.S. market.
For now, Ondo Perps operates outside the U.S. and is not subject to U.S. jurisdiction. However, after the CFTC decision, the situation has changed significantly. If just a week ago the path for such products was almost completely closed, now companies have a real chance to develop a regulated perpetuals market for tokenized assets.
