Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, has partnered with asset management giant Franklin Templeton to develop onchain investment products. The collaboration is aimed at accelerating the integration of traditional finance with blockchain technology, with a focus on capital efficiency and broadening market access, according to the firms.
The deal
Payward and Franklin Templeton will work together to create investment vehicles that live directly on blockchain networks. The specific products haven't been detailed, but the goal is to let investors access traditional-style returns through decentralized infrastructure. For Franklin Templeton, it's another step into crypto: the firm already manages a blockchain-based money market fund. For Payward, the tie-up strengthens its institutional offering beyond spot trading and custody.
Why it's different
Most crypto exchange partnerships with traditional asset managers focus on tokenizing existing funds or listing ETFs. This one goes a layer deeper—building products natively onchain from the start. That could mean smart-contract-driven funds, automated rebalancing, or compliance features baked into the code. The companies say the approach should cut costs and speed up settlement for investors, though they haven't shared a launch date.
The move follows a wave of traditional finance firms pushing into blockchain. Franklin Templeton's earlier blockchain fund, launched in 2021, now holds over $400 million in assets. Payward, meanwhile, has been expanding its institutional services, including a custody platform and a prime brokerage desk. The partnership signals that both sides see onchain products as a real distribution channel, not just an experiment.
No timeline for the first products has been announced. But the deal is one of the most direct links yet between a major asset manager and a crypto exchange—a sign that the line between TradFi and DeFi keeps blurring.
