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    Franklin Templeton acquires 250 Digital to launch Franklin Crypto, a new dedicated digital assets unit according to CNBC

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    The $1.5 trillion asset manager is pivoting from passive crypto exposure to active digital asset management

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    Deal follows surging institutional demand for sophisticated crypto investment strategies beyond basic ETFs

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    Move positions Franklin Templeton to compete directly with Grayscale and Bitwise in active crypto management

Traditional finance giant Franklin Templeton is making its boldest crypto bet yet. The $1.5 trillion asset manager has agreed to acquire 250 Digital, an active digital assets investment firm, and is launching a dedicated Franklin Crypto business unit. The move signals Wall Street’s accelerating shift from passive crypto products to sophisticated active management strategies as institutional demand deepens.

Franklin Templeton just made the kind of acquisition that shows where institutional crypto is really headed. The asset management giant has agreed to buy 250 Digital, an active cryptocurrency investment firm, and is folding the team into a newly created division called Franklin Crypto, according to CNBC.

This isn’t Franklin Templeton dipping its toes in crypto waters – the firm’s been swimming in them for years. But this acquisition represents something different. While most traditional finance giants have focused on launching passive Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, Franklin is betting that the real opportunity lies in active management of digital assets. It’s a strategy that mirrors how the firm built its legacy mutual fund business, and it’s a direct challenge to crypto-native firms like Grayscale and Bitwise.

The timing tells you everything about where institutional crypto stands in 2026. Financial advisors aren’t just asking clients if they want Bitcoin exposure anymore – they’re having conversations about DeFi yields, staking strategies, and portfolio optimization across dozens of digital assets. That’s the kind of complexity that demands active management, and it’s exactly what 250 Digital brings to the table.

Franklin Templeton manages roughly $1.5 trillion in assets, making it one of the world’s largest investment firms. The company has been quietly building its crypto infrastructure since at least 2021, launching one of the first money market funds on a public blockchain. But running tokenized versions of traditional products is vastly different from actively trading and managing pure digital assets. That’s the expertise gap 250 Digital fills.