Ascend Information

Ascend is the standards-first protocol building the credit market structure for onchain, regulated securities; and is built by the team behind PSG Digital. Designed for issuers, licensed asset managers, and institutional borrowers, Ascend brings the credit mechanics of established markets onchain under explicit constraints. Ascend's permissioned vaults enforce eligibility and transfer rules at the asset layer through the identity-aware ERC-3643 token standard, allowing restricted securities to serve as collateral without entering permissionless venues. Its Distressed Default Facility resolves distressed positions through a controlled auction open to qualified, KYC'd bidders. The team behind PSG Digital has run institutional collateral, structured credit, and asset management businesses at firms including Marshall Wace, Citigroup, Silver Point Capital, and Bank of New York Mellon. Ascend co-founder Dennis O'Connell is President of the ERC-3643 Association, the body advancing the standard, with over 140 institutional members.