Franklin Templeton Expands Benji Tokenization to Canton Network

Franklin Templeton, one of the world’s largest asset managers with $1.5 trillion in assets under management, is extending its proprietary Benji Technology Platform to the Canton Network, a private blockchain specifically designed for regulated institutions. This strategic integration represents a significant deepening of the firm’s involvement in the rapidly evolving market for tokenized financial products. The move allows Franklin Templeton to offer its tokenized funds and investment vehicles to banks, market makers, and trading firms active on Canton’s Global Collateral Network, creating new pathways for institutional participation in digital assets.

Roger Bayston, head of digital assets at Franklin Templeton, emphasized the strategic importance of this expansion, stating the integration is meant “to deliver a private blockchain option alongside the interoperability clients expect.” This approach reflects the growing demand among institutional investors for blockchain solutions that combine the efficiency of distributed ledger technology with the privacy and regulatory compliance requirements of traditional finance. The Benji platform, which was initially presented to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2019 and launched publicly in 2021, has already demonstrated its viability through the Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund (FOBXX), the first SEC-registered fund to process transactions and record ownership on a public blockchain.

The Benji platform represents Franklin Templeton’s blockchain-native infrastructure for issuing, recording, and settling tokenized fund shares. The technology supports real-time transfers between approved wallets, enforces compliance at the protocol level, and allows assets to settle in stablecoins or cash equivalents. This comprehensive approach addresses key concerns for institutional adoption, including transaction speed, regulatory compliance, and settlement finality. According to data from RWA.xyz, the platform has accrued over $844 million in distributed asset value since its launch, demonstrating growing market acceptance.

While Benji was initially deployed on public chains including Stellar, Polygon, Arbitrum, Avalanche, and Aptos, its expansion to Canton Network marks a strategic shift toward permissioned, purpose-built infrastructure designed specifically for institutional requirements. This transition highlights the evolving preferences within traditional finance for blockchain solutions that prioritize privacy, composability, and regulatory alignment over the open-access nature of public blockchains like Bitcoin and Ethereum. The move to Canton represents a calculated step toward meeting the specific needs of regulated financial institutions while maintaining the technological benefits of blockchain infrastructure.

The Canton Network positions itself as a “public-permissioned” hybrid approach to blockchain design, built specifically for institutional coordination. Unlike permissionless networks such as Bitcoin and Ethereum where anyone can join and use the network, Canton distinguishes itself through its ability to synchronize with other domains in its ecosystem in parallel, overcoming traditional scaling bottlenecks. The network’s Global Synchronizer maintains consensus across connected sub-ledgers, enabling real-time, privacy-preserving settlement of tokenized assets without exposing counterparty positions.

According to the network’s own estimates, Canton processes over $6 trillion in tokenized U.S. Treasury activity and supports $280 billion in daily repo transactions, making it one of the most significant institutional blockchain infrastructures in operation. Data from digital asset terminal The Tie indicates average daily transactions have reached approximately 807,000, reflecting substantial institutional activity. These figures underscore the network’s growing importance in the tokenization ecosystem, particularly for U.S. Treasury instruments and repurchase agreements that form the backbone of institutional finance.

Despite the network’s substantial transaction volumes and institutional adoption, Canton Coin, the Canton Network’s native token, experienced significant volatility following its market debut. Hours after launching on Monday, the token plunged roughly 30% despite receiving listings on major exchanges including KuCoin, Bybit, and MEXC. This price decline occurred despite considerable market buzz around the network’s tokenized-treasury ecosystem and a substantial $540 million private investment from publicly-listed Tharimmune Inc.

According to CoinGecko data, Canton Coin opened trading at approximately $0.14 with a $5 billion market capitalization. Following the initial decline, the token has since recovered to about $0.12, with trading volume topping $54 million and a market capitalization of $4.3 billion. This volatility highlights the complex relationship between institutional blockchain infrastructure development and token market performance, suggesting that while the underlying technology may gain significant institutional traction, token valuation dynamics can follow different patterns influenced by broader market sentiment and speculative activity.