Free Newsletter
Get the hottest Fintech Singapore News once a month in your Inbox
Franklin Templeton plans to acquire 250 Digital and launch a new unit called Franklin Crypto.
The deal would bring in the 250 Digital investment team and all liquid cryptocurrency strategies previously run by CoinFund.
Franklin Templeton will also invest in those strategies as part of the agreement.
After the acquisition closes, Christopher Perkins will head Franklin Crypto and Seth Ginns will serve as Chief Investment Officer, working alongside Franklin Templeton Digital Assets investment veteran Tony Pecore.
The unit will report to Sandy Kaul, Head of Innovation at Franklin Templeton.
Jenny Johnson
“This is an exciting addition for Franklin Templeton, and we’re pleased to welcome Chris, Seth and the 250 Digital team to our firm.
Together, their investment talent and differentiated strategies strengthen our capabilities in digital assets and position us among a small group of global asset managers with a dedicated, institutional-grade crypto investment management team, enhancing our ability to serve clients worldwide.”
said Jenny Johnson, CEO of Franklin Templeton.
The new unit will expand its existing crypto and blockchain venture capital offerings and broaden its digital assets investment management platform.
Franklin Templeton Digital Assets managed about US$1.8 billion in global assets as of 31 December 2025.
The transaction is expected to close in the second calendar quarter of 2026, subject to definitive transaction agreements, client consents and other customary closing conditions.
BENJI tokens will be used as part of the payment consideration, in what it described as a step toward conducting M&A transactions on chain.
It is linked to the Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund, or FOBXX, which launched in 2021 and uses blockchain-integrated technology to process transactions and record share ownership.
The firm said the fund was the first U.S.-registered mutual fund to do so.
Franklin Templeton has been investing in digital assets and blockchain innovation since 2018.
Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by mkmult via Freepik
