Ondo Brings Pre-IPO AI Company Exposure Onchain

TL;DR

• Ondo Finance announced a platform for onchain exposure to selected private companies.

• The first offering involves a pre-IPO AI company, with secondary trading expected this week.

• Investors receive tokenized notes linked to per-share value at qualifying liquidity events, rather than company shares.

Ondo Expands Into Private Markets

Ondo Finance announced Tuesday that it plans to bring private-company exposure onchain through a new platform called Ondo Private Markets.

The first offering will involve a pre-IPO artificial intelligence company, with secondary-market trading of its tokenized notes expected to begin this week. The announcement did not identify the company.

Ondo said the platform will allow eligible investors to enter, exit or adjust positions around the clock through transferable onchain instruments.

The initiative extends the company’s tokenization strategy beyond its existing stock and Treasury products into businesses that have not yet listed publicly.

However, the first market remains an expected launch. The announcement does not establish that secondary trading has already begun.

Ondo Private Markets will issue tokenized notes tied to the per-share value of selected private companies at qualifying liquidity events.

That structure differs from holding shares directly. Ondo clarified that the notes are obligations of the issuer and do not confer ownership in the underlying business or shareholder rights.

The distinction is central to understanding the offering. Investors receive contractual financial exposure through a tokenized instrument, rather than becoming shareholders of the private company.

Access is also restricted. The notes will be available only to eligible non-U.S. investors in permitted jurisdictions.

Although Ondo describes the tokens as freely transferable and composable onchain, those features should be understood alongside the stated eligibility requirements. Onchain transferability does not make the offering available to every investor everywhere.

Secondary Trading Targets Round-the-Clock Access

Ondo expects the first market to support permissionless, 24/7 secondary trading once launched.

For eligible participants, that could provide more flexibility to adjust exposure than an investment requiring them to wait for a company’s eventual liquidity event.

Continuous trading availability, however, is distinct from guaranteed liquidity. The ability to sell a position will depend on available buyers and market conditions.

Ondo said companies in robotics, cybersecurity, biotechnology and infrastructure are expected to follow the initial AI offering. The statement did not provide individual launch dates for those additional markets.

Acting CEO and President Ian De Bode framed the platform as an effort to broaden investment access. He said 87% of companies generating more than $100 million in revenue are private, while most retail-accessible U.S. investment options involve public companies.

Despite that comparison, the announced notes are specifically intended for eligible investors outside the United States.

The private-markets initiative follows Ondo’s expansion into other tokenized financial assets.

In July, the company partnered with Japan’s SBI Holdings to tokenize Japanese equities through Ondo Global Markets.

Under that partnership, SBI planned to distribute Ondo products across its network and use its JPYSC stablecoin for settlement and collateral.

Ondo said its tokenized stock and Treasury platforms together hold $3.7 billion in total value locked and have reached more than 1 million cumulative holders.

Those figures describe the existing platforms collectively, rather than assets already committed to the new private-markets offering.

Private-Company Products Join a Growing Onchain Market

Tokenized equities have exceeded $42 billion in market capitalization, representing approximately 35% of the broader $121 billion tokenized-asset market, according to The Block’s data.

Ondo’s proposed launch adds another type of exposure to that expanding sector, with private-company valuations providing the basis for its new notes.

The immediate milestones are the first offering and the start of secondary trading. Beyond those steps, investor participation and market liquidity will help determine whether the platform can support a broader range of private-company instruments.