Tokenization platform Ondo Finance has denied reports of seeking buyers after founder and CEO Nathan Allman's death on May 25, 2026, according to a company spokesperson who called reports of a possible sale "wholly untrue" and stated "Nobody at the company has shopped it for sale, been in sales talks, or engaged or asked anyone to do so on its behalf." The denial comes after CoinDesk reported that outreach to prospective buyers took place sometime after Allman's death, citing three people familiar with the matter. Two sources placed the outreach after May 25, but the report said it could not establish who initiated the effort or what valuation may have been discussed. The estate declined to comment to CoinDesk.
The disputed sale account comes as control of Ondo remains before Delaware courts following Allman's unexpected death at age 32. After probate proceedings in Hawaii, Allman's parents, Kathleen and Lawrence Allman, became heirs to his estate, with Kathleen later receiving authority as personal representative and asserting that the estate's voting rights allowed her to reconstitute Ondo's board. The Delaware Court of Chancery case, Kathleen C. Allman v. Ondo Finance Inc., Case No. 2026-0978, was filed on July 24 and remains active before Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick, with no scheduled case events on the public page. The present court arrangement allows Ian De Bode to oversee ordinary business while restricting major changes until the corporate-control dispute is resolved. De Bode remains Ondo's public-facing leader as "Acting CEO and President," while Allman is listed as founder.
Ondo Finance has launched an expanded in-kind conversion route that enables approved institutional clients to convert traditional stocks and ETFs directly into tokenized equivalents, or redeem tokens for the underlying shares. According to reports from crypto.news, TradingView News, and PRNewswire, the service is live on Ethereum and BNB Chain, adding a primary-market route alongside its existing cash-funded minting process. As per the latest announcement from PRNewswire, the functionality is powered by Ondo Stocks and Alpaca's Instant Tokenization Network (ITN), enabling approved institutions to contribute existing shares to mint corresponding Ondo Stocks tokens, or redeem tokens to receive the underlying shares. Access remains limited to institutions approved by Alpaca case by case, with participants required to maintain active accounts with both companies before activation.
The in-kind conversion model minimizes additional capital requirements and reduces financing costs by enabling direct share transfers instead of requiring extra cash to mint tokens. For a mint, an approved institution transfers the underlying stock or ETF from its Alpaca account to Ondo's Alpaca account through an internal book transfer. Ondo then issues the corresponding tokenized position on a supported blockchain. Redemption reverses the process, sending the underlying shares back to the institution's Alpaca account after the tokens are redeemed. As reported by PRNewswire, the integration automates the conversion process, removing the need for manual approval on each transaction and allowing institutions to move quickly between traditional share inventory and tokenized positions. This direct access to Alpaca's ITN removes the step where institutions must source separate cash to mint tokens, making it easier for market makers to replenish token inventory and respond to demand across trading venues.
According to onchain data from RWA.xyz, Ondo operates at a significant scale with $3.63 billion in distributed asset value across 441 tracked products as of September 22. As reported by crypto.news and TradingView News, monthly transfer volume stands at $1.58 billion. The company ranks second in the asset tokenization market behind Securitize, highlighting growing competition in the real-world asset tokenization sector. Ondo offers tokenized U.S. Treasuries and stocks and has more than $3.8 billion across its products, making it one of the largest platforms for real-world assets on blockchain. The company's OUSG fund holds investments in BlackRock's tokenized BUIDL fund. Ondo has raised $24 million in equity funding: $4 million in 2021 and $20 million in 2022, with a separate $10 million token sale bringing publicly reported fundraising to $34 million. Equity backers include Pantera Capital, Founders Fund, Coinbase Ventures and Tiger Global.
The launch follows a September 17 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission order creating temporary, conditional exemptions for Tokenized Securities Venues. Among the SEC's conditions, a venue must verify that a tokenized NMS stock provides the same rights and privileges as the equivalent traditional stock. Ondo's current Ondo Stocks platform remains unavailable to U.S. persons through the main product unless registration or another applicable exemption permits an offering. The move comes as institutional adoption of tokenized securities widens, with platforms looking for ways to reduce the capital burden of moving traditional assets onchain. As per PRNewswire, the Tokens are issued by Ondo Global Markets (BVI) Limited, a British Virgin Islands business company, with Ondo Finance Inc. providing tokenization services and being an equity holder of the issuer.
Alpaca describes its Instant Tokenization Network as infrastructure for instant in-kind minting and redemption against stocks held through brokerage accounts. Conversions under the Ondo integration currently cover Ethereum and BNB Chain, while Ondo Stocks themselves have a larger network footprint with listings on Ethereum, BNB Chain and Solana. The company has not announced a separate fee schedule, minimum conversion size, Solana activation date or timetable for opening ITN access more generally. Institutions seeking the service must maintain accounts with Ondo and Alpaca, complete the applicable onboarding process and request activation from both firms. Ondo Finance is a blockchain technology company founded in 2021 by former Goldman Sachs executives, with the company being shopped amid a wave of crypto dealmaking including acquisitions aimed at expanding tokenized finance. Announced crypto mergers and acquisitions totaled $12.9 billion in the second quarter, the industry's second-largest quarterly sum.
