Key facts
- Ondo Finance has urged U.S. regulators (SEC and CFTC) to bring perpetual futures tied to individual stocks onshore.
- The company argues that existing U.S. securities laws can accommodate these products without new rules.
- Ondo's offshore affiliate has already launched stablecoin-settled perpetual stock futures, recording $8 billion in cumulative trading volume.
- Ondo believes scheduled funding payments can function similarly to expiration dates in traditional futures.
- The proposal comes as U.S. regulators review market rules for onchain products and tokenized securities.
- President Donald Trump has indicated efforts to bring the onchain perpetual futures market Hyperliquid to the U.S. compliantly.
Ondo Finance is advocating for U.S. regulators, specifically the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), to permit perpetual futures contracts based on individual stocks to be offered within the United States. The company contends that current U.S. securities laws are sufficient to regulate these products, negating the need for new regulatory frameworks. Ondo has already established an affiliate in Panama that provides stablecoin-settled perpetual futures on U.S.-listed stocks to international clients, accumulating $8 billion in trading volume since its launch approximately six weeks prior to the comment letters.
In its submissions, Ondo argued that the mechanism of scheduled funding payments effectively keeps perpetual contracts in alignment with their underlying stock prices, fulfilling a role analogous to expiration dates in traditional futures contracts. The company emphasized that the definition of a security futures product does not mandate a fixed expiration. Furthermore, Ondo pointed out that a significant portion of the stocks underlying these offshore perpetuals are primarily traded on U.S. exchanges, suggesting that bringing this trading activity back to the U.S. should be a regulatory priority.
This push by Ondo occurs as U.S. regulators are actively reviewing and modernizing market rules to encompass onchain financial products, including tokenized securities and perpetual futures. Notably, President Donald Trump recently commented on efforts to bring Hyperliquid, a prominent onchain perpetual futures market, into the U.S. in a compliant manner. The native token of Hyperliquid, HYPE, experienced a price surge following these remarks. The SEC and CFTC have also increased their collaboration, signing a memorandum of understanding to streamline oversight in areas of shared jurisdiction. In a related development, the SEC has proposed updates to its transfer agent framework, acknowledging the increasing demand for blockchain-based recordkeeping and tokenized securities.