Franklin Templeton CEO Warns Legacy Finance Faces "Blockbuster Moment" Without Crypto Adoption

Franklin Templeton CEO Jenny Johnson has issued a bold warning to traditional finance: embrace blockchain and crypto—or risk obsolescence. In a recent Fortune op-ed, Johnson stressed that the financial industry can no longer afford to ignore digital assets, calling blockchain "the future of finance."

Comparing hesitant institutions to Blockbuster, the now-defunct video rental chain, she cautioned that legacy firms risk being "wiped out" within five years if they don’t innovate. According to Johnson, today’s financial systems are geographically siloed, slow, and outdated. In contrast, blockchain technology offers greater efficiency, transparency, and around-the-clock trading. She also highlighted tokenization, seamless asset tracking, and DeFi platforms like Uniswap, which now process trillions in volume, as key disruptors.

Johnson noted that blockchain networks like Solana and Sui are already matching Visa in transaction speed, reinforcing the scalability and performance of next-gen decentralized finance. Her remarks reflect Franklin Templeton’s aggressive push into the digital asset space. The firm began exploring crypto in 2018, launched a blockchain venture fund in 2021, and now manages multiple cryptocurrency ETFs.

In late 2024, Franklin Templeton became the first to gain approval for a dual Bitcoin-Ether ETF in partnership with Hashdex. The asset management giant has also filed for spot-based Solana and XRP ETFs—moves that further signal its commitment to blockchain innovation.

With over $1.5 trillion in assets under management, Franklin Templeton’s crypto strategy is a strong endorsement of blockchain’s role in the future of global finance. Johnson’s message is clear: firms that fail to adapt to this digital shift risk being left behind in a rapidly evolving financial ecosystem.