Glider and Ondo Finance have unveiled a groundbreaking platform that allows retail investors to build and automate custom portfolios of tokenized U.S. stocks, providing direct exposure to equities without the need for a traditional brokerage account.
According to the announcement, the platform enables users to create personalized baskets of on-chain stocks that mirror real-world assets, eliminating the need for wallets, gas fees, or manual transaction management. This innovative approach democratizes access to the stock market, offering a seamless and automated experience for retail investors.
Direct Indexing for On-Chain Stocks
Glider co-founder and CEO Brian Huang emphasized that the platform’s direct indexing model sets it apart from traditional exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which typically bundle assets into fixed products. “Unlike ETFs, our platform allows users to construct index-like portfolios with custom weightings that are automatically maintained, avoiding reliance on pooled products,” Huang told Cointelegraph.
The platform’s automated rebalancing feature ensures that users can gain exposure to tokenized equities without the hassle of managing individual trades. The assets track underlying shares and can be traded beyond standard market hours, providing flexibility and accessibility.
Avoiding Liquidity Constraints
Huang highlighted a significant advantage of the platform: it avoids the liquidity constraints that have plagued earlier tokenized ETF offerings. “This is the first time direct indexing has been offered for on-chain stocks. The problem that all ETFs have had on-chain is liquidity. There’s no liquidity constraint on Glider because these are directly indexed. You hold the underlying assets and tap into their underlying liquidity,” he explained.
The tokenized stocks on Ondo’s platform are designed to mirror the price of their underlying shares and can be transferred and traded on-chain. Glider automates the portfolio construction and rebalancing process, making it user-friendly and efficient.
Initial Focus and Future Plans
The initial rollout of the platform will focus on tokenized U.S. equities, with plans to expand into additional asset classes such as commodities. The company also aims to introduce features that allow users to lend positions and generate yield on their holdings, further enhancing the platform’s utility and appeal.
A spokesperson for Ondo noted that the platform is not currently available to U.S. users but emphasized that the company holds several SEC registrations, positioning it for a potential future launch in the United States.
Growth of Tokenized Real-World Assets
The rise of tokenized equities and crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs) has been rapid over the past year. Data from RWA.xyz shows that the total value of tokenized real-world assets (RWAs) has surged to around $26.5 billion, up from approximately $7.5 billion the same time last year. Among these RWAs, tokenized stocks account for around $908.5 million.
Crypto ETPs have also evolved, moving beyond spot Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) funds to include more complex and actively managed products. For instance, 21Shares launched a new product in February, offering European investors exposure to a preferred stock issued by Michael Saylor’s Strategy, the largest public holder of Bitcoin. The 21Shares Strategy Yield ETP is available to both institutional and retail investors and provides a dividend linked to Strategy’s Bitcoin holdings.
21Shares president Duncan Moir highlighted the product’s appeal, stating, “It’s probably the product we’re seeing the most interest in across multiple regions. From the day we launched it, we’ve had more inbound inquiries to the sales team than for any crypto product, to be honest.” The ETP structure simplifies tax treatment for European investors by handling reporting and withholding at the product level.
Future Outlook
The launch of Glider and Ondo’s platform marks a significant step forward in the tokenization of real-world assets, particularly in the realm of retail investing. As the market continues to evolve, the integration of tokenized stocks and innovative financial products is expected to expand, offering more opportunities for retail investors to participate in the global economy.
With plans to introduce additional asset classes and features, the platform is poised to play a pivotal role in the future of decentralized finance (DeFi) and the broader financial ecosystem.
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