- Franklin Templeton has been pioneering in blockchain technology since 2018, with a patent on their digital wallet.
- Launched the intraday yield feature on the tokenized money market fund Benji in 2025, enabling real-time yield updates and collateral use.
- Blockchain's capabilities include ownership verification, executing smart contracts, and facilitating payments, which could disintermediate traditional financial 'toll takers' and reduce transaction costs.
- The firm believes blockchain will fundamentally change financial system rails, enabling more efficient, transparent, and accessible investment services.
- Active conversations with international and U.S. distributors about white-labeling their blockchain infrastructure, especially following regulatory clarity from the Gensler Act.
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- Adjusted operating income was $378 million, flat from prior quarter, driven by lower compensation expenses offset by Western outflows and lower average AUM.
- Assets under management ended the quarter at $1.61 trillion, increased from the prior quarter due to positive markets and strengthening flows, partially offset by long-term outflows at Western Asset Management.
- Equity net outflows were $645 million, impacted by market volatility affecting growth strategies; positive net flows into large cap value, international, and emerging market strategies.
- Fixed income net outflows improved to $1.3 billion; excluding Western, fixed income net inflows were $3.5 billion, driven by Franklin Templeton Fixed Income and Brandywine Global.
- Institutional pipeline of 1 but unfunded mandates rose by net $4 billion to a record $24.4 billion, including $14.8 billion in new wins across all asset classes and multiple regions.
- Long-term net outflows totaled $9.3 billion, an improvement from the prior quarter's $26.2 billion outflows; excluding Western Asset Management, long-term net inflows were $7.8 billion this quarter.
- Multi-asset and alternatives generated combined $4.3 billion in positive net flows; multi-asset flows have been positive for 16 consecutive quarters.
- Over half of mutual fund AUM outperformed peer median across 3-, 5-, and 10-year periods; mutual fund investment performance increased in 3-, 5-, and 10-year periods but declined in 1-year period due to a large yield fund.
- Western net outflows moderated to the lowest since September 2024; money market balances grew with cash management net inflows for 4 of the last 5 quarters, increasing cash management AUM to $72 billion.
- State Street announced a $100 million repositioning charge related to its ongoing operating model transformation, primarily aimed at driving expense savings and operational efficiency.
- The company is leveraging AI and platform scaling to unlock further productivity gains, indicating a focus on next-generation technology modernization.
- Management highlighted a significant software and processing revenue growth driven by client renewals and SaaS platform conversions, emphasizing technological innovation as a core strategic pillar.
- The transformation includes a focus on interoperability of their Alpha platform, supporting multi-platform front-office operations and extending development IP to other clients.
- Over $1 billion of expense savings have been generated over the past three years from productivity initiatives, with a target to reach over $1.5 billion by year-end 2025.
- The company views its platform transformation as a key opportunity to add value for clients and shareholders, supporting long-term growth and operational excellence.
- Truist announced a strategic investment to build 100 new insight-driven branches in high-growth markets during Q3 2025.
- The new branches will incorporate advanced AI-driven technology and dedicated premier advisor spaces to enhance client engagement.
- Investments also include renovating over 300 locations, enhancing digital capabilities, and hiring premier advisors to serve complex financial needs.
- These initiatives aim to deepen client relationships, improve profitability, and strengthen presence in dynamic communities.
- Management emphasized that these investments are part of a broader strategy to deliver personalized, technology-enabled experiences to clients.
- Announced a 5-year expansion of relationship with Block, adding debit and prepaid card issuance for Cash App customers.
- Additional services expected to begin as early as Q1 2026.
- Program aims to significantly boost GDV and fee growth, leveraging over 50 million Cash App users.
- Management emphasizes the strategic importance of this partnership for future revenue and GDV growth.
- Coinbase aims to build the 'everything exchange' to enable trading of all asset classes on crypto rails, starting with over 300 assets listed and plans to integrate decentralized exchanges into the app.
- The company is working towards tokenized equities, real-world assets, and prediction markets, with a focus on compliance and global coverage.
- Tokenized securities are seen as a way to unlock significant value, with potential to double the current crypto market by capturing just 3% of equities trading.
- Coinbase plans to integrate with traditional brokers and emphasizes risk management and custody as key components of this strategy.
- Management highlighted reports that the U.S. administration may issue an executive order to open the $12 trillion U.S.-defined contribution channel for alternative investments.
- This development could significantly diversify Blackstone's investor base and create a vast new market for delivering superior returns.
- Management emphasized the strategic importance of large-scale perpetual products and the need for regulatory clarity before full market entry.
- Average cost of debt on core portfolio was SOFR plus 2.3%.
- Book value ended the quarter at $14.82 per fully converted share.
- Distributable earnings were $29 million or $0.27 per fully converted share.
- FBRT delivered economic returns of 6.6% over 12 months and 11.9% over 24 months, placing it at the top of its peer group.
- FBRT reported GAAP earnings of $24.4 million or $0.21 per fully converted common share for Q2 2025.
- Net leverage position was 2.2x with recourse leverage at 0.3x.
- NewPoint acquisition expected to contribute GAAP net income between $23 million and $27 million and distributable earnings between $13 million and $17 million for 2025.
- NewPoint's MSR portfolio valued at approximately $217 million with an implied life of 6.8 years.
- The Board maintained the Q2 dividend at $0.355 per share.
- Visa is advancing its product development in AI and stablecoins, with a product drop in April showcasing new capabilities.
- Visa Intelligent Commerce enables consumers to shop with AI agents, with over 30 partners testing in sandbox and plans for live transaction pilots later this year.
- The company sees stablecoins as a solution for emerging markets with volatile fiat currencies and for cross-border money movement, with deployment of stablecoin-linked cards in multiple markets including Africa and Latin America.
- Visa has expanded its stablecoin capabilities by adding euro-backed stablecoin EURC and partnering with Paxos for USDG and PYUSD, supporting multiple blockchains and currencies for settlement.
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