Franklin Templeton brings tokenized US money fund to Asia as market hits $15 billion

A new tokenized US money fund is heading to Asia, and the deal behind it says a lot about how fast traditional finance is warming up to blockchain-based products. Franklin Templeton and HashKey have agreed to distribute the asset manager’s flagship on-chain product, the Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Liquidity Fund (grBENJI), to digital asset investors across the region. It’s a partnership that pairs one of the world’s largest fund managers with a regulated crypto exchange, at a moment when demand for yield-bearing, blockchain-based versions of ordinary government debt products is climbing fast.

Key takeaways

• Franklin Templeton and HashKey will jointly distribute the grBENJI tokenized fund to professional investors in Asia.
• The fund gives investors blockchain-based exposure to US government money market instruments and dollar cash assets.
• Tokenized US Treasury and money market funds have surged 1,500% to $15 billion in just two years, according to rwa.xyz.
• HashKey operates under Type 1 and Type 7 licenses from Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission.
• Franklin Templeton manages $1.8 trillion in assets across more than 35 countries.

Partnership Launches Tokenized US Money Market Fund in Asia

The core of this deal is simple: a globally recognized fund manager is putting a tokenized US money fund directly in front of digital asset investors through a licensed Hong Kong exchange. HashKey said in a statement that grBENJI is built for professional investors seeking exposure to a fund that invests mainly in US government money market products and dollar cash assets, all represented on-chain.

That structure matters because it doesn’t ask investors to choose between traditional safety and blockchain convenience. Instead, the fund wraps a familiar, conservative instrument, government money market holdings, inside a token that can move and settle using blockchain infrastructure. HashKey described the tokenized wrapper as a blockchain-based claim on the underlying asset, meaning the token itself represents ownership in the fund rather than a separate synthetic product.

For Asian investors who already hold digital assets but have limited access to regulated dollar-denominated cash instruments, this kind of product fills a gap that has existed since tokenized Treasuries first gained traction in the United States.

Market Growth and Institutional Demand for Tokenized Funds

Institutional appetite for regulated, yield-generating digital assets has grown sharply, and the numbers back that up. Tokenized US Treasury and money market funds expanded by 1,500% to reach $15 billion over the past two years, according to data tracked by rwa.xyz. That pace of growth helps explain why a firm the size of Franklin Templeton is pushing further into tokenized products rather than treating them as a side experiment.

Why does this matter beyond the headline figure? Because it signals that tokenization is moving past the pilot-project stage and into something closer to standard market infrastructure. When a $15 billion category grows fifteen-fold in two years, it stops looking like a niche crypto trend and starts looking like a genuine shift in how cash-equivalent assets get distributed and settled.

The appeal is straightforward for institutions: exposure to low-risk, dollar-denominated instruments, but with the settlement speed and accessibility that blockchain rails can offer. That combination is exactly what’s driving demand for a tokenized US money fund like grBENJI among professional investors in Asia who want yield without straying from familiar, government-backed collateral.

Regulatory Compliance and Operational Details

Regulatory standing is what makes this distribution deal credible rather than experimental. HashKey possesses Type 1 and Type 7 licenses issued by Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission, enabling securities trading on behalf of clients and to operate an automated trading service. Those licenses are what allow the exchange to legally offer a product like grBENJI to professional investors in the region, rather than operating in a regulatory gray zone.

On the other side of the partnership, Franklin Templeton brings scale that few asset managers can match: it oversees $1.8 trillion in assets across more than 35 countries. That global footprint gives the tokenized fund a level of institutional backing that smaller, crypto-native issuers typically can’t offer, which is likely part of why HashKey pursued the partnership in the first place.

This listing also fits into a broader pattern for HashKey, which has been building out real-world asset partnerships beyond this single fund. Just last week, Hong Kong’s largest exchange announced plans to begin stablecoin transactions spanning borders between the UAE and broader Middle East markets, leveraging one of Hong Kong’s two regulated digital dollars, HKDAP. Taken together, the grBENJI distribution and the HKDAP cross-border initiative point to an exchange actively positioning itself as a bridge between regulated traditional finance and blockchain settlement across multiple markets, not just within Hong Kong.

Future Plans for Tokenized Asset Expansion

Both companies have said they intend to expand beyond money market funds into other tokenized products over time, though neither has detailed which asset classes come next or on what timeline. That open-ended commitment matters because it suggests grBENJI is being treated as a starting point rather than a one-off listing.

If tokenized US Treasury and money market products keep growing at anything close to the pace seen over the past two years, distribution partnerships like this one, pairing established asset managers with regulated exchanges, could become the standard path for bringing traditional fixed-income products on-chain across Asia. For now, grBENJI stands as one of the clearest examples yet of a major fund manager treating tokenization as core business rather than a side project.

FAQ

What is the Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Liquidity Fund (grBENJI)?

It is a tokenized money market fund designed to provide professional investors access to U.S. government money market products and U.S. dollar cash assets via blockchain tokens.

Who are the partners behind the grBENJI fund distribution in Asia?

Hong Kong crypto exchange HashKey and financial firm Franklin Templeton have partnered to distribute the grBENJI fund in Asia.

What licenses does HashKey hold that enable it to distribute the tokenized fund?

HashKey possesses Type 1 and Type 7 licenses issued by Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission, enabling securities trading and run automated trading services.

How has the market for tokenized US Treasury and money market funds evolved recently?

The market has grown by 1,500% to reach $15 billion in total value over the past two years, according to data from rwa.xyz.

Article produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the editorial team.