Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, is partnering with asset manager Franklin Templeton to build a new suite of onchain investment products aimed at institutional investors — and potentially retail users in some regions.
The collaboration will focus on tokenized offerings such as yield products, tokenized equities and custody solutions tied to digital assets. Kraken also plans to add Franklin Templeton’s BENJI tokenized money market funds to its platform, enabling those funds to be used as collateral or cash-management tools for institutional trading clients that want blockchain-native alternatives to traditional treasury functions.
Tokenization — the practice of representing conventional assets like stocks, bonds or money market funds on blockchain networks — has become a hot area for big financial firms. BlackRock, Fidelity and JPMorgan have all rolled out blockchain-based products in recent years, particularly tokenized Treasuries and money market funds. Proponents say tokenization can cut settlement times, broaden market access and let assets move seamlessly between platforms, including around-the-clock collateral transfers that aren’t constrained by banking hours or multiday settlement cycles.
The deal pairs two firms that have taken different paths into tokenized finance. Franklin Templeton has spent years developing blockchain-backed investment products, while Payward has focused on crypto trading infrastructure through Kraken and its xStocks tokenized-equities platform — which the company says has processed more than $30 billion in trading volume since launching in 2025. Together they plan to explore actively managed tokenized products that could trade onchain and be marketed to institutional investors and, where permitted, to Kraken’s retail user base.
Analysts point to tokenized Treasury and money-market funds as among the fastest-growing areas in digital assets because they combine yields tied to government securities with the operational efficiencies of blockchain rails. For institutions, that can mean faster, more flexible collateral movements and a digital-native approach to liquidity and cash management.
The partnership is the latest sign of traditional finance’s increasing embrace of tokenization, and comes as Payward reportedly seeks fresh funding at a roughly $20 billion valuation ahead of a planned IPO.
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