Ondo Perps CEO sees major US opportunity for perpetual futures, but no launch confirmed

Ondo Perps CEO David Wells has flagged the US as a significant opportunity for perpetual futures trading, though he stopped short of confirming any plans to bring the platform stateside. The comment comes as the offshore platform, which launched its phased rollout earlier this year, continues to rack up impressive volume numbers from its non-US user base.

Ondo Finance and Oasis Pro recently sent letters to both the SEC and CFTC arguing that cash-settled perpetual futures can fit within the existing US regulatory framework, no new legislation required.

The offshore engine is humming

Ondo Perps, operated through Ondo Global Panama Inc., has carved out a niche offering 24/7 leveraged trading on US equities, ETFs, indices, and commodities. The platform supports up to 20x leverage and accepts tokenized securities and stablecoins as collateral.

By mid-August, the platform had surpassed $8 billion in cumulative trading volume. For a platform that only began early access in March 2026, opened its public beta in June, and rolled out full features in July, that adoption curve is steep.

On September 28, Ondo Perps expanded further by launching spot trading for 12 tokenized stocks and ETFs, including tickers like NVDAon, TSLAon, and SPYon. The platform waived trading fees for the first 30 days to encourage buy-and-hedge strategies among early adopters.

The regulatory play

In August, Ondo Finance and Oasis Pro formally petitioned US regulators, making the case that cash-settled perpetual futures don’t require a new legal framework. Their argument: the existing securities law structure can accommodate these instruments if regulators are willing to interpret it that way.

The platform remains explicitly off-limits to US persons and users in certain other jurisdictions. That’s a compliance firewall Ondo has maintained from day one, and it’s unlikely to come down without clear regulatory blessing.

What this means for the tokenization race

Ondo Finance’s broader ecosystem provides a structural advantage. The company’s existing infrastructure for tokenized securities gives Ondo Perps a collateral layer that competitors would need to build from scratch. Traders can pledge tokenized assets as margin, creating a capital-efficient loop between spot holdings and leveraged positions.