Franklin Templeton has expanded access to its tokenized U.S. government money market fund in Asia through a new distribution partnership with Hong Kong-licensed HashKey Exchange, giving professional investors another channel for compliant onchain yield.
The Partnership
HashKey Exchange has added the Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Liquidity Fund, known as grBENJI, to its Earn channel. The fund invests mainly in U.S. government money market instruments and U.S. dollar cash assets. Access in Hong Kong is restricted to professional investors, and the product cannot be offered to the general public.
Chetan Karkhanis, Franklin Templeton's senior vice president of digital assets client engagement, said the listing gives the firm access to HashKey's digital banking, wealth management and institutional client base. He highlighted blockchain technology's ability to provide enhanced transparency, security, accessibility, speed and cost efficiency.
Plans for Additional Tokenized Products
Following the grBENJI rollout, Franklin Templeton and HashKey plan to explore additional tokenized investment products and asset classes across several markets. Karkhanis said the companies expect to expand their relationship past money market funds, using HashKey's operations in Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, Dubai and Bermuda as potential distribution points.
HashKey Exchange BG CEO Haiyang Ru said the addition of grBENJI responds to institutional demand for compliant yield products backed by real-world assets. HashKey Exchange operates under Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission with Type 1 and Type 7 licenses, along with a license under the Anti-Money Laundering Ordinance.
Franklin Templeton's Growing Tokenization Business
The HashKey deal follows Franklin Templeton's earlier introduction of a tokenized money market product in Hong Kong in November 2025. The fund was registered in Luxembourg and launched in Hong Kong with support from HSBC and OSL. Franklin Templeton has continued adding distribution channels during 2026, including adding BENJI to MoonPay for stablecoin swaps and completing its acquisition of 250 Digital to create a new Franklin Crypto division.
Franklin Templeton's total assets under management stand at $1.80 trillion as of July 31, with operations spanning more than 35 countries. The firm's tokenized assets have increased from approximately $768 million in June 2025 to more than $2.5 billion within a year.
The Broader RWA Market
Demand for tokenized government debt has increased alongside institutional activity. RWA.xyz data showed the total value of tokenized real-world assets at $38.2 billion as of Aug. 23, compared with $20.6 billion one year earlier. Tokenized U.S. Treasury debt accounted for about $15.6 billion, making government securities one of the largest categories within the onchain RWA market.
Franklin Templeton has also worked with Ondo Finance on tokenized ETFs for round-the-clock trading through crypto wallets, and with Binance on institutional collateral structures using tokenized fund shares as collateral for crypto trading.
