Late Ondo founder's mother seeks company control in lawsuit against CEO

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Ondo mother against CEO

Claims of unlawful takeover

According to the complaint, Kathleen Allman alleges that after her son's death, Ian de Bode declared himself Ondo's chief executive officer and president without following the required corporate procedures.

The lawsuit argues that Ondo's board of directors effectively did not exist at the time of Nathan Allman's death. One senior executive had died, while the second board seat remained vacant, meaning there was no board capable of approving a new chief executive.

Kathleen Allman also claims that, as the personal representative of her son's estate, she controls a majority of Ondo's voting shares. She therefore argues that she has the authority to appoint a new board of directors.

The size of her shareholding was redacted from the publicly available version of the complaint.

The lawsuit further alleges that shortly after the founder's death, de Bode used company resources to persuade Kathleen Allman to sign corporate documents that would have allowed him to cement control over Ondo.

The complaint also states that the company's management refused to provide a shareholder register and contact information for shareholders.

Rival boards

According to court filings, a Hawaii court formally appointed Kathleen Allman as the personal representative of Nathan Allman's estate in late June.

She subsequently adopted a written shareholder resolution appointing herself as the company's sole director. The board was later expanded to four seats. It included the founder's sister, Taani Tauill, while invited expert Gordon Liao declined the appointment for reasons unrelated to the legal dispute.

On July 24, the newly formed board voted to remove Ian de Bode from all executive positions, including his role as company president. At the same time, Kathleen Allman was appointed chair of the board, chief executive officer, secretary, and treasurer of Ondo.

De Bode, however, continues to maintain that he is the company's lawful chief executive.

Ondo rejects the allegations

In a statement, Ian de Bode said Kathleen Allman's claims are without merit and will be challenged in court.

He added that the company continues to enjoy the support of key stakeholders, including leading investors and the Ondo Foundation, and that the current management team remains committed to executing the strategy established by the project's founder.

Representatives of the Allman family, meanwhile, said they intend to preserve Ondo's development while continuing Nathan Allman's vision and beginning the search for a permanent chief executive.

The legal dispute comes during a period of active expansion for the company.

Recently, Ondo disclosed that it is evaluating a potential $250 million to $500 million acquisition, including targets in the wealth management and investment technology sector.

Earlier, Ondo Finance strengthened its position among the leaders of the real-world asset (RWA) tokenization market. Analysts said growing adoption by major financial institutions reflects accelerating demand for tokenized assets.

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