Franklin Templeton Expands Benji Platform to BNB Chain

Franklin Templeton, a major global asset manager, is broadening the reach of its Benji Technology Platform by expanding its operations to BNB Chain. This move is a significant step in the firm's ongoing strategy to bring traditional financial products into the digital asset space through tokenization. The decision follows a recent partnership with Binance, highlighting a concerted effort to expand access to digital investment products across various platforms.

What is the Benji Technology Platform?

The Benji platform is Franklin Templeton's proprietary blockchain-integrated system for managing and administering token-based investments. It was pioneered in 2021 with the launch of the Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund (FOBXX), which was the first U.S.-registered mutual fund to operate on a public blockchain.

One share of FOBXX is represented by one BENJI token, and the fund currently holds a total locked value of about $732 million. By using blockchain technology for transaction processing and ownership record-keeping, the Benji platform aims to increase efficiency and transparency. It supports several public blockchains, including Ethereum, Solana, Base, Stellar, Polygon, Arbitrum, Avalanche, and Aptos.

Why BNB Chain?

By deploying on BNB Chain, Franklin Templeton aims to access more users and leverage the network's low-cost and compliance-focused infrastructure. The move aligns with BNB Chain’s strategic focus on becoming a hub for real-world asset (RWA) tokenization, with a growing ecosystem of tokenized money market funds, credit instruments, and other financial products.

Sarah Song, BNB Chain's Head of Business Development, noted that Franklin Templeton's decision validates BNB Chain's capability to support regulated, real-world assets at scale. This integration is a key outcome of the firm's recent partnership with Binance to explore joint initiatives in the digital asset space.

The Growing Trend of Tokenization in Traditional Finance 

Tokenization, the process of converting ownership rights of a real-world asset into a digital token on a blockchain, is gaining momentum in traditional finance. Institutions are increasingly exploring this technology to improve settlement times, increase accessibility, and enhance transparency in historically opaque markets. The tokens, representing a fractional ownership, allow for greater liquidity and lower investment minimums, opening up new opportunities for investors.

While there's a clear trend towards adoption, institutional tokenization still faces barriers. According to a recent report by JPMorgan, key challenges include:

• Fragmented cross-border regulations.
• Lack of legal clarity on on-chain investments.
• Concerns over the enforceability and reliability of protocols.

Despite these hurdles, the industry is pushing forward. A notable example is a rule change filed by Nasdaq with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which, if approved, could allow tokenized versions of listed stocks and ETFs to trade alongside their traditional counterparts, potentially bringing blockchain-based settlement into the national market system.