Franklin Templeton taps Ondo Finance to launch tokenized ETFs

Franklin Templeton has partnered with Ondo Finance to introduce tokenized versions of five exchange-traded funds (ETFs), according to an announcement on Wednesday.

The offering is aimed at users who do not want to rely on traditional financial systems, brokerage accounts or standard market hours, providing 24/7 access to securities via blockchain infrastructure.

Franklin tokenized offering spans five ETFs across equities, commodities and credit markets

The tokenized funds will include the Franklin Focused Growth ETF (FFOG), the Franklin US Large Cap Multifactor Index ETF (FLQL), the Franklin Responsibly Sourced Gold ETF (FGDL), the Franklin High Yield Corporate ETF (FLHY) and the Franklin Income Equity Focus ETF (INCE).

Under the structure, Ondo Finance will acquire shares of the ETFs and issue corresponding tokens through a special-purpose vehicle. Investors will receive economic exposure to the underlying assets, including income rights, rather than direct ownership of the ETF shares.

The tokens can also be used as collateral in decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystems, extending their functionality beyond traditional investment use cases.

The rollout will initially target markets across Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and Latin America, with access in the US subject to regulatory approval. The products will be distributed through the Ondo Global Markets platform.

The initiative builds on Franklin Templeton’s earlier experience with tokenized products. The firm launched the Franklin OnChain US Government Money Fund (FOBXX) in 2021, marking one of the first US-registered mutual funds to record transactions on a public blockchain.

Similarly, Ondo Finance oversees $2.7 billion in tokenized assets and continues to expand its footprint in the real-world asset (RWA) sector. The firm recently added more than 60 tokenized US stocks and ETFs to its platform, raising the total number of available assets to over 250.