What happened
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's Investment Management Division has issued a no-action letter to Franklin Templeton, allowing its registered funds to hold shares of the firm's on-chain money market fund for cash management purposes without meeting certain requirements related to physical securities certificates and vault custody.
Why it matters for the market
This decision lets Franklin Templeton's traditional funds use the OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund (FOBXX), commonly known as BENJI, for cash management, giving them access to operational benefits from blockchain-based systems such as faster transaction processing and more frequent pricing updates.
BENJI uses a hybrid recordkeeping system that combines internal ledger books with transaction records on the Stellar blockchain. Franklin Templeton's transfer agent controls the wallet private keys and maintains the official shareholder register, while Franklin Templeton Investor Services is responsible for creating and controlling Stellar blockchain wallets for funds that invest in BENJI.
What traders should watch
Launched on Stellar in 2021, BENJI has since expanded to Ethereum and Solana. The fund primarily invests in U.S. government securities. According to RWA.xyz data, BENJI currently manages around $726 million in assets, with the majority of those assets held on the Stellar network.
