Franklin Templeton’s $410M Money Market Fund Expands to Coinbase’s Base Blockchain

Franklin Templeton’s OnChain U.S. Government Money Market Fund (FOBXX) has expanded to Coinbase’s Base, marking a significant milestone in the fund’s blockchain journey. As Base becomes the sixth blockchain hosting FOBXX shares, the fund’s reach now spans an impressive lineup that includes Arbitrum, Polygon, Avalanche, Aptos, and Stellar, the latter serving as the primary public blockchain.

Coinbase’s head of tokenization, Anthony Bassili, highlighted the importance of this move, saying it positions Franklin Templeton as the first major asset manager to directly integrate with Base. This partnership hints at an evolving investment landscape and signals a wave of institutional interest in blockchain technology.

Since its launch in 2022, Base has accelerated Coinbase’s diversification beyond crypto trading. The layer-2 blockchain is now a vital part of Coinbase’s business, with transaction volumes rising by 55% in the third quarter compared to the second. According to L2Beat, Base now holds over $8 billion in total value locked (TVL), placing it among the most popular layer-2 solutions, second only to Arbitrum in TVL.

Layer 2 blockchains like Base are gaining traction for their efficiency, enabling faster and more cost-effective transactions than the Ethereum mainnet. This makes them particularly attractive for financial products like FOBXX, which benefit from reduced transaction costs and enhanced speed.

Since its inception in 2021, FOBXX has been a trailblazer in the finance sector, using blockchain for transaction and ownership records. With a market cap of $410 million, FOBXX remains one of the largest tokenized funds, highlighting the growing acceptance of blockchain technology among traditional financial institutions.