Ripple Partners with DBS and Franklin Templeton in Major Tokenization Breakthrough

TL;DR: DBS, Franklin Templeton and Ripple have signed a memorandum of understanding to launch trading and lending solutions powered by tokenized money market funds and stablecoins, marking a watershed moment for institutional crypto adoption and tokenized asset integration.

Ripple has struck a game-changing partnership with Asia's largest bank, DBS, and investment giant Franklin Templeton, creating the world's first integrated trading and lending platform that combines tokenized money market funds with regulated stablecoins. The collaboration aims to enhance liquidity and efficiency in global financial markets, with potential for sgBENJI tokens to be used as collateral for borrowing.

Revolutionary Trading Infrastructure

The partnership introduces an unprecedented financial ecosystem where DBS Digital Exchange (DDEx) will list sgBENJI – the token of Franklin Templeton's tokenised money market fund, Franklin Onchain U.S. Dollar Short-Term Money Market Fund – alongside RLUSD. This setup enables accredited investors to seamlessly trade between Ripple's RLUSD stablecoin and Franklin Templeton's yield-generating sgBENJI tokens 24/7.

This gives investors the ability to move between a stablecoin and a money market fund within minutes. The design allows them to maintain liquidity while earning returns, without having to leave digital markets for traditional banking channels.

The innovation addresses a critical challenge in digital asset investing: managing volatility while earning yield. Traditional cryptocurrency investors typically face periods of zero returns while holding volatile assets, but this partnership enables continuous yield generation even during market uncertainty.

XRP Ledger: The Chosen Blockchain

Franklin Templeton's decision to tokenise sgBENJI on the XRP Ledger – a public and enterprise-grade blockchain represents a significant validation of Ripple's technology. The XRP Ledger was chosen for its speed, efficiency and low transaction costs, providing an ideal platform for managing the lifecycle of a high-volume, low-latency asset like a tokenised money market fund.

This expansion strengthens Franklin Templeton's blockchain interoperability strategy, adding XRP Ledger to its existing blockchain infrastructure and enabling greater accessibility across different networks.

Unlocking Collateralized Lending

The second phase of this partnership introduces groundbreaking lending capabilities. DBS will explore helping clients unlock liquidity by using their sgBENJI tokens as collateral. Potential use cases include obtaining credit either from the bank via a repurchase transaction (repo), or from third-party platforms where DBS will act as an agent holding the collateral.

This creates what industry experts describe as the first fully tokenized repo market, where digital assets can serve as collateral for traditional lending products with institutional-grade security.

Market Context and Timing

The partnership arrives at a pivotal moment for institutional crypto adoption. Some 87% of institutional investors expect to make investments into digital assets in 2025, reflecting unprecedented institutional demand for regulated blockchain solutions.

2025 has been marked by a series of industry-firsts when it comes to traditional financial institutions moving onchain – and the linkup between Ripple, DBS and Franklin Templeton to enable repo trades for a tokenised money market fund with a regulated, stable and liquid mode of exchange, such as RLUSD, is truly a game-changer, said Nigel Khakoo, VP and Global Head of Trading and Markets at Ripple.

Monica Long, President of Ripple, emphasized the strategic importance of the partnership, stating: "In order for tokenized financial assets to solve the problems they've been promised to solve, we need both liquid secondary markets and utility for these assets (such as with collateralization). That's exactly what Ripple, DBS and Franklin Templeton are working towards with this announcement." Long noted that tokenized assets must offer utility and liquid secondary markets to achieve their potential, pointing to this collaboration as an example of how stablecoins and tokenized funds can work together to provide practical financial infrastructure.

XRP/Ripple Analysis: Strategic Implications

This partnership represents a major milestone for Ripple's institutional strategy and could significantly impact XRP's market position:

RLUSD Growth Momentum: The current CoinMarketCap ranking is #106, with a live market cap of $729,141,864 USD, showing remarkable growth from its December 2024 launch. Since early 2025, RLUSD's market cap has grown more than 36-fold, with over 90% growth in the last quarter alone, signaling surging investor interest.

Enterprise Adoption: The partnership validates Ripple's enterprise blockchain strategy, positioning RLUSD as a bridge between traditional finance and digital assets. This institutional endorsement could accelerate broader RLUSD adoption.

XRP Utility Enhancement: As RLUSD transactions require XRP for fees on the XRP Ledger, increased RLUSD usage directly benefits XRP demand. The tokenization of major financial products on XRPL strengthens the network's value proposition.

Regulatory Positioning: With DBS being a highly regulated institution and Franklin Templeton managing over $1.62 trillion in assets, this partnership reinforces Ripple's compliance-first approach and could facilitate further regulatory approvals.

Competitive Advantage: This first-mover advantage in tokenized repo markets positions Ripple ahead of competitors in the institutional tokenization space, potentially attracting more traditional financial institutions to the XRP ecosystem.

Industry Impact

Roger Bayston, Head of Digital Assets at Franklin Templeton, emphasized the broader implications: "We believe that blockchain and tokenisation unlock powerful new use cases that have the potential to reshape the global financial ecosystem... This collaboration represents a meaningful advancement in the utility of tokenised securities and a significant step forward in the growth of Asia's digital asset ecosystem".

The partnership sets a new standard for how traditional financial products can be enhanced through blockchain technology, potentially inspiring similar collaborations across the industry.

Key Takeaways

This groundbreaking partnership between Ripple, DBS, and Franklin Templeton marks a defining moment in the evolution of tokenized finance. By enabling seamless trading between stablecoins and yield-bearing tokenized funds, the collaboration addresses critical institutional needs while advancing the practical utility of blockchain technology in traditional finance.

The initiative not only strengthens RLUSD's position in the competitive stablecoin market but also validates the XRP Ledger as an enterprise-grade platform for complex financial products. As institutional adoption accelerates throughout 2025, this partnership positions all three companies at the forefront of the digital asset revolution.

Sources

• Official Ripple Press Release
• CoinDesk Coverage
• CoinMarketCap RLUSD Data
• EY-Parthenon and Coinbase Institutional Survey

DISCLAIMER: This newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, advertising, or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any securities. This content is not sponsored by or affiliated with any of the mentioned entities. Investments in cryptocurrencies or other financial assets carry significant risks, including the potential for total loss, extreme volatility, and regulatory uncertainty. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Always consult a qualified financial professional and conduct thorough research before making any investment decisions.