Franklin Templeton acquires CoinFund spinoff to grow crypto offerings

The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. The partnership is led by Seth Guinness and Chris Perkins, who previously served as CoinFund's Managing Partner and President and Managing Partner and Head of Liquid Investments.

250 Digital was officially founded in January when CoinFund announced a spinoff with Perkins and Jeans at the helm. Both executives have spent years building relationships with CoinFund's decentralized finance protocols, layer-one blockchain projects, and early stage token networks.

For over a decade, CoinFund has supported founders creating blockchain infrastructure and innovative products. The firm's portfolio includes well-known names such as Ondo Finance, Ether.fi, Flare, Flying Tulip and World, among others.

Franklin Templeton got into crypto and tokenization

After establishing the Digital Assets Group in 2018, Franklin Templeton has launched regulated investment options for crypto investors.

In the year In 2024, the company introduced the Franklin Bitcoin ETF and the Franklin Ethereum ETF, giving clients exposure to the largest array of crypto assets at low fees.

Franklin Templeton recently partnered with Ondo Finance to allow tokenized ETFs that allow investors to access stocks anytime through crypto wallets.

The company has partnered with Binance to provide institutional investors with a token-backed collateral solution, allowing shares from the Franklin Templeton Benji platform to be used as foreign exchange trading collateral on Binance.

The latest acquisition is aimed at providing institutional investors with customized crypto strategies while complementing the firm's existing mutual fund business.