Franklin Templeton’s two MMFs now eligible for use
15 January 2026 US
Image: Rifqi/stock.adobe.com
Franklin Templeton has announced that two institutional money market funds managed by its affiliate Western Asset Management are now eligible for use in two segments of the evolving market for tokenised money market funds.
The first segment is supporting stablecoin issuers in the regulated stablecoin reserves under the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, and the other is acting as a distribution product across blockchain-enabled platforms.
The firm says that these changes underscore its focus on leveraging blockchain-based technologies to enhance traditional investment vehicles.
Matt Jones, head of Institutional Liquidity at Franklin Templeton, comments: “The Western Asset Liquidity business has long focused on helping clients move forward without choosing between innovation and managing risk.
“Being early only matters if you do it responsibly, and these updates prove how we can help institutions adopt tokenised infrastructure with products they already know.”
The updates apply to two existing traditional Rule 2a-7 government money market funds and are intended for Western Asset Management to continue meeting the needs of its institutional clients and distribution partners as the market for delivery of digital products evolves.
The fund aims at supporting stablecoin reserve management as institutional adoption accelerates.
The Western Asset Institutional Treasury Reserves Fund introduced a new Digital Institutional Share Class ($DIGXX) designed for distribution through blockchain-enabled intermediary platforms.
The update allows approved intermediaries to leverage blockchain technology for recording and transferring fund share ownership.
According to the fund, this provides faster settlement, 24/7 transactions, and easier integration with digital collateral and cash management systems, while the fund itself remains a traditional, SEC-registered money market fund.
Roger Bayston, head of Digital Assets at Franklin Templeton, adds: “Traditional funds are already beginning to move on-chain, so rather than question their ability, our focus is to make them more accessible and useful by many.
“By prioritising interoperability and flexibility, we’re opening more ways for clients to access and deploy regulated funds across the platforms they rely on, giving investors greater choice in how they put their capital to work.”
The first segment is supporting stablecoin issuers in the regulated stablecoin reserves under the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, and the other is acting as a distribution product across blockchain-enabled platforms.
The firm says that these changes underscore its focus on leveraging blockchain-based technologies to enhance traditional investment vehicles.
Matt Jones, head of Institutional Liquidity at Franklin Templeton, comments: “The Western Asset Liquidity business has long focused on helping clients move forward without choosing between innovation and managing risk.
“Being early only matters if you do it responsibly, and these updates prove how we can help institutions adopt tokenised infrastructure with products they already know.”
The updates apply to two existing traditional Rule 2a-7 government money market funds and are intended for Western Asset Management to continue meeting the needs of its institutional clients and distribution partners as the market for delivery of digital products evolves.
The fund aims at supporting stablecoin reserve management as institutional adoption accelerates.
The Western Asset Institutional Treasury Reserves Fund introduced a new Digital Institutional Share Class ($DIGXX) designed for distribution through blockchain-enabled intermediary platforms.
The update allows approved intermediaries to leverage blockchain technology for recording and transferring fund share ownership.
According to the fund, this provides faster settlement, 24/7 transactions, and easier integration with digital collateral and cash management systems, while the fund itself remains a traditional, SEC-registered money market fund.
Roger Bayston, head of Digital Assets at Franklin Templeton, adds: “Traditional funds are already beginning to move on-chain, so rather than question their ability, our focus is to make them more accessible and useful by many.
“By prioritising interoperability and flexibility, we’re opening more ways for clients to access and deploy regulated funds across the platforms they rely on, giving investors greater choice in how they put their capital to work.”
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