Franklin Templeton leads tokenized Treasury issuers with explosive AUM growth in 2026

Franklin Templeton’s tokenized US government money fund has quietly become the biggest story in real-world asset tokenization this year. The firm’s BENJI token, which represents shares in the Franklin OnChain US Government Money Fund (FOBXX), grew from roughly $594 million in January 2026 to over $2.5 billion by July, a pace that makes most DeFi yield farms look sluggish by comparison.

That’s more than 100% year-to-date growth for a product that invests in the least exciting asset class on Earth: US Treasuries.

From first mover to market leader

Franklin Templeton launched FOBXX in April 2021, making it the first US-registered mutual fund to use a public blockchain for recording share ownership.

The fund initially lived on the Stellar blockchain but has since expanded to at least seven public networks, including Ethereum, Polygon, Avalanche, Arbitrum, and Solana. That multi-chain approach has been central to driving adoption. Cumulative peer-to-peer transfer volume on the BENJI token exceeded $211 million as of March 31, 2026.

For context, Franklin Templeton manages approximately $1.74 trillion in total firm assets as of April 30, 2026. The BENJI fund represents a tiny fraction of that, roughly 0.14% even at its current size.

Strategic partnerships fueling expansion

Franklin Templeton announced a partnership with DigiFT in May 2026 to improve accessibility for Asian investors. A month later, the firm linked up with MoonPay Trade to facilitate stablecoin swaps into BENJI tokens, allowing investors to move from stablecoins directly into a tokenized Treasury fund without off-ramping to traditional finance first.

On July 1, 2026, Franklin Templeton executed an on-chain Treasury transaction via Tradeweb on the Canton Network. Tradeweb is one of the largest electronic trading platforms for fixed income, handling trillions in daily volume across institutional markets.