Franklin Templeton is launching a standalone crypto division called Franklin Crypto after agreeing to acquire digital asset firm 250 Digital to expand its institutional offerings.
The $1.7 trillion asset manager is targeting pension funds and sovereign wealth funds, signalling its most significant push yet into actively managed digital asset strategies.
The unit will be led by former CoinFund executives Christopher Perkins and Seth Ginns, with Franklin’s head of innovation Sandy Kaul overseeing the broader initiative.
The acquisition marks a strategic shift from passive products such as bitcoin ETFs and tokenised funds towards more active crypto investment management solutions.
The timing comes amid a sharp market downturn, with Bitcoin falling roughly 45% from its $126,000 peak and around $2 trillion wiped from the total crypto market capitalisation.
Franklin Templeton has been building its crypto capabilities since 2018 and now employs more than 50 digital asset specialists, positioning itself to scale during weaker market conditions.
Part of the acquisition will be paid using BENJI tokens backed by its blockchain-based government money fund, making it one of the first corporate deals partially settled on-chain, with completion expected by mid-2026.
At the time of reporting, Bitcoin price was $69,002.20.