Franklin Templeton partners with HashKey Exchange to offer tokenized money market fund in Asia

Franklin Templeton has partnered with Hong Kong-licensed HashKey Exchange to distribute its tokenized Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Liquidity Fund, known as grBENJI, to professional investors in Asia. Launched on HashKey's Earn channel on August 24, 2026, the fund provides exposure to short-term U.S. government securities and dollar cash. The partnership taps into a rapidly growing real-world asset tokenization market, which reached $38.2 billion by August 23, 2026, with U.S. Treasury debt accounting for $15.6 billion. Both firms plan to expand their collaboration into other tokenized asset classes across jurisdictions including Singapore, Tokyo, Dubai, and Bermuda.

Franklin Templeton–HashKey partnership

• ▪Franklin Templeton partnered with HashKey Exchange to distribute its tokenized Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Liquidity Fund, known as grBENJI, to professional investors in Asia.
• ▪HashKey Exchange launched the grBENJI fund through its Earn channel on August 24, 2026, restricting access to professional investors in Hong Kong while excluding the general public.

grBENJI tokenized fund structure

• ▪Franklin Templeton first launched the underlying U.S.-registered mutual fund, formally named FOBXX, in April 2021, and has since expanded its BENJI platform across multiple blockchains.
• ▪The grBENJI fund mainly invests in short-term U.S. government money market instruments, repurchase agreements, and U.S. dollar cash assets, aiming for a stable $1.00 net asset value.
• ▪Each share of the grBENJI fund corresponds to one BENJI token, with ownership recorded on public blockchain infrastructure while Franklin Templeton Investor Services maintains the official shareholder record.

Hong Kong SFC licensing requirements

• ▪HashKey Exchange operates under Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission Type 1 licenses for dealing in securities and Type 7 licenses for automated trading services.
• ▪HashKey Exchange restricts its virtual asset trading platform services, excluding users in mainland China, the United States, and other specified jurisdictions.

Tokenized Treasury market growth

• ▪The total real-world asset tokenization market grew to $38.2 billion as of August 23, 2026, representing an approximate 85% increase from $20.6 billion a year earlier.
• ▪Tokenized U.S. Treasury debt accounted for approximately $15.6 billion of the total real-world asset tokenization market by August 2026.

Asia multi-jurisdiction expansion

• ▪Franklin Templeton plans to leverage HashKey Exchange's multi-jurisdictional platform to expand distribution across Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, Dubai, and Bermuda.
• ▪Franklin Templeton and HashKey Exchange plan to explore additional tokenized investment products and asset classes beyond money market funds over time.