The SEC has extended deadlines for crypto funds tracking Solana and XRP, along with proposals targeting Ether staking. The US Securities and Exchange Commission has delayed decisions on multiple crypto exchange traded funds (ETF) proposals Wednesday, pushing back deadlines for funds including BlackRock and Franklin Templeton. According to SEC filings, the agency has set a new deadline of Nov. 13 for Franklin’s Ethereum staking amendment, and Nov. 14 for its Solana and XRP ETFs. A proposal seeking to permit staking in BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust is now slated for Oct. 30. The filings do not indicate how the SEC is leaning on the applications; only that more time is needed to evaluate them. The commission is using the maximum extension available before issuing a final decision. Read more
Binance has partnered with the crypto ETF issuer Franklin Templeton to explore the tokenization of securities combined with a global trading infrastructure. Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volume, has entered into a partnership with the US crypto exchange-traded fund (ETF) provider, Franklin Templeton. Binance and Franklin Templeton are collaborating to explore tokenization of securities combined with a global trading infrastructure, the crypto exchange announced on Wednesday. “Our goal is to take tokenization from concept to practice for clients to achieve efficiencies in settlement, collateral management, and portfolio construction at scale,” said Roger Bayston, Franklin Templeton’s head of digital assets. Read more
Franklin Templeton has launched the BENJI platform on at least seven blockchains, with the fund’s largest market share on Stellar. VeChain, a layer-1 blockchain for real-world applications, is partnering with $1.5 trillion asset manager Franklin Templeton to integrate the company’s BENJI platform for enterprise payments. The move extends the reach of Franklin Templeton’s platform while providing businesses operating on VeChain another stablecoin option, according to a statement shared with Cointelegraph. Franklin Templeton’s BENJI platform permits tokenized access to the company’s Franklin Templeton OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund (FOBXX), an onchain US government money fund worth about $780 million. The fund invests in cash, government securities and collateralized repurchase agreements. One BENJI token is equivalent to one share in the fund, which the company tries to peg to $1. Read more
Yield for assets is often calculated over at least one-day periods, a problem that blockchain composability could address, according to the asset manager. Franklin Templeton, an investment management company with $1.53 trillion in assets under management, has debuted a feature that offers investors yield down to the second when holding tokenized assets. According to a Tuesday announcement, the “Intraday Yield” feature will allow investors to accrue yield proportional to the time they hold a tokenized security, even if it’s transferred before the day’s end. In addition, investors can earn yield on non-banking days, including holidays and weekends. The feature will be integrated into Franklin Templeton’s tokenization platform Benji. The company said it can potentially improve the crypto industry’s current model of calculating yield over a longer period. Read more