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Franklin Templeton CEO Jenny Johnson has projected a rapid transformation in traditional finance driven by blockchain and digital asset technologies, asserting that the shift will not be “slow or incremental.”
In an opinion piece published in Fortune, Johnson stated that the structural advantages of blockchain—ranging from increased transparency to operational efficiency—are too significant to ignore. “We expect our industry will evolve more in the next five years than in the last 50,” she said. “The question is whether financial institutions will embrace this digital wave, resist it, or ignore it at their peril.”
The comments underscore a growing trend among legacy financial institutions that are actively engaging with digital assets. Franklin Templeton, which manages $1.5 trillion in assets, has steadily expanded its blockchain initiatives since 2021, including the launch of its OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund and the rollout of Bitcoin and Ether index ETFs. More recently, the firm introduced an intraday yield feature using blockchain infrastructure and extended its tokenized fund to public chains such as Solana and Base.
Johnson pointed to blockchain’s transformative potential across financial services, including the promise of new financial instruments, enhanced global market integration, and scalable transaction throughput capable of handling millions of transactions per second.
This strategic pivot is mirrored by other major players in traditional finance. BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager with $11.6 trillion in AUM, has launched spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs. Its iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) has become the largest U.S.-listed Bitcoin ETF, amassing $72.6 billion in net assets. Meanwhile, JPMorgan Chase has adopted blockchain technology through initiatives such as its stablecoin, JPM Coin, and is reportedly preparing to accept crypto ETFs as collateral for loans. CEO Jamie Dimon recently stated that clients would soon be able to buy Bitcoin through the firm, albeit without in-house custody.
However, the increasing overlap between traditional finance and crypto is not without concern. Outgoing Financial Stability Board Chair Klaas Knot recently cautioned that while crypto currently poses limited systemic risk, a “tipping point” may be near. His remarks highlighted regulatory concerns around crypto ETFs and stablecoins, signalling that oversight may intensify as institutional adoption grows.
As blockchain continues to gain traction across financial markets, industry stakeholders are closely monitoring whether innovation and regulation can maintain a balanced path forward.
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