Ondo Finance governance battle erupts after founder Nathan Allman's death

A corporate control dispute has broken out at tokenised real-world asset issuer Ondo Finance following the death of its founder, Nathan Allman, with three filings in Delaware Chancery Court seeking a judicial determination of who lawfully controls the company. The estate of Allman, who died in May while serving as Ondo’s chief executive, sole director and controlling shareholder, alleges that former President Ian De Bode improperly assumed control during the window between Allman’s death and the completion of Hawaii probate proceedings on 26 June, when Allman’s mother, Kathleen Allman, was formally appointed personal representative.

The estate’s complaint argues that De Bode wrongly claimed automatic succession to the chief executive role under Ondo’s bylaws, elected himself sole director through a voting agreement, and took a series of corporate actions, including hiring advisers, approving performance grants and attempting to add a director, before any lawful authority had been established to vote the estate’s shares. The complaint contends that under the bylaws the CEO vacancy required board action to fill, rendering those steps invalid. De Bode, now described as CEO, has publicly called the lawsuit “regretful” and characterised the estate’s claims as meritless, stating that the company retains the support of its lead investors and the Ondo Foundation.

Kathleen Allman initially sought a cooperative transition after gaining the right to vote the estate’s shares, reaffirming De Bode as president and requesting basic corporate records before moving toward confrontation. After De Bode and outside counsel declined to recognise her board actions or provide a shareholder list, she expanded the board, appointed new directors and, at a 24 July meeting, voted to remove De Bode from all company positions while appointing herself chair and interim chief executive. The filings frame her leadership as transitional, with the stated objective of stabilising governance while a permanent successor to Nathan Allman is found.

For counterparties, token holders and institutional clients of Ondo Finance, the immediate question is operational continuity during contested leadership; the court’s determination of which board and which officer have valid authority will govern every material corporate action the firm takes until the dispute is resolved.