Overview of TOKEN2049 Conference
At the TOKEN2049 conference in Singapore, which took place on October 8, Jenny Johnson, the CEO of Franklin Templeton, expressed her skepticism regarding competing tokenized fund frameworks. She emphasized that many of these alternatives are merely ‘digital twins’ of their traditional counterparts, lacking the fundamental use of blockchain technology for recordkeeping. Johnson’s remarks were made during a panel that also included Richard Teng, co-CEO of Binance, and Yuval Rooz, CEO of Canton Network, where discussions revolved around the intricacies of tokenized assets and liquidity within onchain settlement.
Franklin Templeton’s Tokenized Offerings
Franklin Templeton has distinctly categorized its tokenized offerings, particularly the BENJI series, as different from these so-called digital twins. According to the firm, a digital twin is a token whose ownership record is kept off the blockchain, thus serving only as a mere representation of an asset recorded through conventional means. In contrast, Franklin’s approach integrates ownership details directly into a blockchain system, resulting in a more transparent and efficient model.
Significance of the BENJI Fund
The BENJI fund, launched in 2021 via the Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund (FOBXX), marked a significant milestone as it was the first U.S.-registered mutual fund to fully utilize a public blockchain for its record-keeping processes. Initially based on the Stellar platform, BENJI has since broadened its reach to include multiple public networks such as Polygon, Ethereum, and Solana, among others.
Cost Efficiency and Transaction Insights
Further illustrating her points at TOKEN2049, Johnson compared processing costs related to BENJI with those of traditional methods. A report from the conference noted that transactions on BENJI cost approximately $1.13, starkly contrasting with the reported $150 average for conventional transaction methods. However, discrepancies arose when earlier statements from Johnson indicated that when compared to Franklin’s legacy system, the traditional costs were about $1.50 per transaction for a sample of 50,000 operations, suggesting that the $150 figure from the conference might not be entirely accurate without further verification from Franklin Templeton.
Innovations and Strategic Partnerships
In addition to transaction efficiency, Franklin Templeton has made strides with its Intraday Yield feature, which was unveiled in June 2025, enabling the calculation of yields on a per-second basis as tokenized securities shift between investors. This enhancement is complemented by the fund’s onchain performance, which has seen BENJI assets reach above $2.6 billion in distributed value across multiple products, establishing it as a leading player in the tokenized U.S. Treasury space.
As of August 31, reports indicate that the FOBXX fund had net assets totaling around $686.64 million, and while BENJI’s total distributed assets reach approximately $760 million, iBENJI alone accounted for about $1.71 billion. These figures exemplify the varying sizes depending on the context and definitions used in different calculations.
Further diversifying its offerings, Franklin Templeton has entered institutional trading partnerships, notably allowing institutions to utilize BENJI collateral on platforms like Bybit. Additionally, a strategic integration with MoonPay is set to facilitate smoother trading between stablecoins and access to Franklin’s tokenized money market offerings.
Regulatory Developments and Future Directions
Franklin Templeton’s efforts to internalize onchain fund usage gained further momentum in August when the SEC granted no-action relief enabling Franklin’s affiliated funds to invest in BENJI. This arrangement allows for improved internal operations under specific conditions set by the SEC, emphasizing the importance of meticulous recordkeeping and independent audits. Ultimately, Franklin Templeton has not only leveraged BENJI for operational efficiencies but incorporated it into larger strategic frameworks, including an acquisition of the crypto-focused investment entity, 250 Digital, further solidifying its innovative approach in the finance and crypto sectors.
