The Canton Network said Franklin Templeton’s Benji Technology Platform is now live on its blockchain, expanding the asset manager’s presence in regulated digital markets and giving institutional investors broader access to tokenized investment products.
The move links Franklin Templeton’s blockchain infrastructure to Canton’s Global Collateral Network, a distributed system designed to connect traditional financial markets with on-chain markets. The integration gives market makers and institutions a new source of liquidity and collateral while maintaining compliance and privacy standards, according to an emailed announcement on Wednesday.
Tokenization is the process of converting real-world assets (RWA) into blockchain-based tokens. In a report last month, investment bank Standard Chartered (STAN) predicted that tokenized RWA will reach $2 trillion by 2028.
Franklin Templeton’s Benji platform supports its tokenization strategy and forms the basis for the first US registered mutual fund to use blockchain for transactions and record-keeping in 2021. Since then, the company has rolled out several tokenized products for retail, wealth and institutional clients.
“Our premise is to meet institutions where they are, and just as importantly, where they are going,” said Roger Bayston, head of digital assets at Franklin Templeton, in the press release. “Integration with the Canton Network gives customers interoperability and privacy without compromising transparency or security.”
The partnership also strengthens Canton’s role in institutional decentralized finance (DeFi), particularly through its Global Collateral Network. Singapore-based trading firm QCP plans to tap the platform for liquidity, the release said.
Canton Network, developed by Digital Asset and supported by companies such as Goldman Sachs (GS), BNP Paribas (BNP) and Broadridge (BR), aims to create a permissioned blockchain infrastructure that connects traditional and digital markets. The addition of Franklin Templeton’s technology brings a new layer of tokenized financial products to its growing institutional ecosystem.
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