Franklin Templeton is considering a new altcoin-focused crypto fund.
Asset manager Franklin Templeton is exploring a new crypto fund for institutional investors, expanding its offerings beyond Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH).
According to a June 6 report from The Information, the mutual fund is considering a private fund to expose institutional investors to altcoins. Citing sources familiar with the matter, the report said the fund would offer a large reward.
The report does not specify which altcoins will complete the fund's basket, but the asset manager recently praised the development of the Solana network in 2024. According to the analytical firm Messari, in the first quarter of 2024, the decentralized exchange rate of the Solana site increased by 319%. $1.5 billion from the previous quarter.
Franklin Templeton manages approximately $1.64 trillion in assets as of March 2024. This figure places the asset manager among the largest investment management companies globally.
The company is actively involved in the crypto space with several currencies. One of its most popular projects is a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) launched in January.
Franklin is one of the proponents of the SpaceEther ETF, which was recently approved by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The ETF is currently awaiting agency clearance to begin.
“We are very excited about ETH and its ecosystem. Despite the recent mid-life crisis, we see a bright future with plenty of strong tailwinds to push the Ethereum ecosystem forward,” the company said in an earlier post on X.
USDC conversions on money market funds
On June 6, Franklin Templeton announced a new feature for investors on its Benji Investments platform. The company now allows investors to use the USD Coin (USDC) stablecoin to invest in its money market fund, the Franklin Onchain US Government Fund (FOBXX).
The fund is the first US-registered mutual fund to process transactions and record ownership using a public blockchain. Each share in the fund is represented by a BENJI token.
The exchange will be facilitated by the crypto and stablecoin infrastructure platform Zero Hash, the company said in a statement.
According to Dune Analytics, Franklin Money Market Fund currently manages $357 million in assets.
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