Franklin Templeton, a major global asset management firm, officially announced the completion of its acquisition of crypto asset management company 250 Digital. Based on this acquisition, a new dedicated crypto division, Franklin Crypto, has been established to fully focus on institutional crypto asset investment. The acquisition was first announced in April 2026, but the transaction amount was not disclosed.

It is understood that 250 Digital originated from the spin-off of crypto investment firm CoinFund. Earlier this year, CoinFund spun off its crypto liquidity trading business, establishing 250 Digital as an independent entity focused on the crypto venture capital sector. Following the acquisition, 250 Digital’s entire crypto investment strategy and professional research team have been integrated into the new crypto unit, which will be jointly managed by former 250 Digital executives Christopher Perkins and Seth Ginns, along with Tony Pecore, head of digital assets at Franklin Templeton.

The new Crypto division, Franklin Crypto, will focus on institutional client services, integrating 250 Digital’s active crypto asset management capabilities with Franklin Templeton’s global distribution channels to provide compliant active cryptocurrency investment solutions for institutional investors worldwide. Franklin Templeton currently manages $1.78 trillion in assets, operating in over 35 countries. Its existing digital asset team will collaborate with the new Crypto division to handle asset risk control and investment research modeling.

This acquisition is a key strategic move by Franklin Templeton to strengthen its position in the crypto space and Real-World Asset Tokenization (RWA). This year, the company has been actively expanding, collaborating with Binance and Ondo Finance to launch tokenized funds and on-chain ETFs, while also applying for a hybrid ETF product linking stock dividends to Bitcoin investment, thus bridging traditional finance and crypto assets.

Industry data shows that tokenized assets have experienced explosive growth over the past year. Franklin Templeton’s on-chain tokenized assets have surged from $768 million to $2.5 billion; global on-chain RWA assets have also grown from $11.8 billion to $32.2 billion. Industry insiders say that the establishment of an independent crypto department by a traditional asset management company with assets exceeding one trillion yuan signifies that traditional financial institutions are becoming more accustomed to entering the crypto industry, and that compliant institutions’ crypto businesses will usher in a new round of development.