Franklin Templeton, a leading asset manager, is reportedly exploring the launch of a new private fund catering to institutional investors, offering exposure to alternative cryptocurrencies (altcoins) and staking rewards. This potential move would extend the company’s investment offerings beyond its existing Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) funds. With assets under management totaling around $1.64 trillion as of March 2024, Franklin Templeton ranks among the largest global investment firms.
The company has been actively engaged in the cryptocurrency space, introducing various funds, including a widely received spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) rolled out in January.
Although specific altcoins to be included in the fund are not mentioned in the report, Franklin Templeton has lauded the growth of the Solana network, citing Anatoly Yakovenko’s concept of “a single atomic state machine” as a compelling decentralized blockchain use case.
Additionally, Franklin Templeton has advocated for a spot Ether ETF, recently greenlit by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) pending launch approval. The asset manager updated its S-1 filing for the Ethereum ETF, disclosing a 0.19% fee for the fund.
In a separate update, Franklin Templeton announced on June 6 that investors on its Benji Investments platform could now utilize USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin to finance investments in its money market fund, the Franklin OnChain US Government Money Fund (FOBXX).
This fund, managing $357 million in assets, marks the first US-registered mutual fund to conduct transactions and record ownership via a public blockchain, with each share represented by the BENJI token. The conversion process will be facilitated by Zero Hash, a crypto and stablecoin infrastructure platform.
June 2024, Cryptoniteuae
