A Big Move in Crypto Finance: Ondo and Figure Team Up

Ondo Finance just made a bold move, buying $25 million worth of YLDS, a stablecoin from Figure Technology Solutions. This isn't just any purchase; it's a strategic step to make Ondo's tokenized fund more diverse and appealing. The YLDS stablecoin is now part of a bigger portfolio that already includes tokenized Treasury products from big names like BlackRock, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton, and WisdomTree. This fund, called the Ondo Short-Term US Government Bond Fund (OUSG), is designed for big investors. It offers access to Treasurys with the convenience of 24/7 redemptions and an estimated annual return of 3. 68%. Right now, it has about $777 million in total value locked (TVL). Figure Technology Solutions is no small player. They run lending and capital-markets infrastructure on the Provenance blockchain and have originated over $19 billion in loans. These loans cover home-equity lines, mortgage products, and crypto-backed credit. Figure recently completed its Nasdaq IPO, adding to its credibility. The YLDS stablecoin, according to DefiLlama data, has a market capitalization of around $100 million. Ondo Finance, founded in 2021, is all about tokenizing traditional financial assets. They recently expanded their offerings to BNB Chain, adding over 100 tokenized Wall Street stocks and exchange-traded funds. On Wednesday, they got regulatory approval from the Liechtenstein Financial Market Authority (FMA) to offer tokenized stocks in Europe. Figure’s stock price saw a nearly 4% increase in early trading on Monday, according to Yahoo Finance data. Crypto-backed lending is becoming more popular. In July, Block Earner introduced Bitcoin-backed home loans in Australia, allowing borrowers to get cash worth up to half a property’s value. Tether, a stablecoin issuer, recently invested in Ledn, a platform that provides Bitcoin-backed consumer loans. Ledn reported originating over $390 million in BTC-backed loans in the third quarter. Centralized exchanges are also jumping into this space. Coinbase, for example, rolled out Ether-backed loans for US customers, letting users borrow up to $1 million in USDC against their Ether (ETH) holdings. Coinbase’s onchain lending markets have handled about $1. 28 billion in loan originations since launching earlier this year, according to Dune data.