Digital wallets will hold 'totality' of people's assets, says Franklin Templeton

Finance Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Digital wallets will hold 'totality' of people's assets, says Franklin Templeton At the Ondo Summit in New York, top asset managers said tokenization has moved beyond theory but warned that trust, education, and real-world utility are now the biggest hurdles. By Helene Braun , AI Boost | Edited by Stephen Alpher Feb 3, 2026, 8:11 p.m. Make us preferred on Google Digital wallets are the future, says Franklin Templeton (slendersnakewallet/Pixabay) What to know : Asset managers at the Ondo Summit said the next phase of investing will be “wallet-native,” with most financial assets held and managed in tokenized digital wallets. Panelists from Franklin Templeton, Fidelity, State Street and WisdomTree agreed that tokenization infrastructure is now real, but said the main challenge is building utility, trust and education rather than the technology itself. They argued that tokenized funds could improve liquidity and collateral management and predicted that, like early ETFs, successful tokenized products will be adopted because they work better, not because investors seek them out by name. New York —The next evolution of asset management will be “wallet-native,” not just digital, according to Franklin Templeton's head of innovation, Sandy Kaul. Speaking at the Ondo Summit in New York on Tuesday, Kaul said she envisions a future where all financial assets — stocks, bonds, funds, and more — are held and managed through tokenized digital wallets. STORY CONTINUES BELOW Don't miss another story. Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today . See all newsletters Sign me up By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms & conditions and privacy policy . “The totality of people’s assets is going to be represented in these wallets,” she said. The panel, which included Cynthia Lo Bessette of Fidelity, Kim Hochfeld of State Street, and Will Peck of WisdomTree, agreed that tokenization is no longer a theoretical concept. After years of slow progress, real infrastructure is now in place, and use cases are expanding beyond early experiments. But panelists also cautioned that building utility and trust is now the industry’s biggest challenge. “The idea of bringing an asset and representing it onchain with a token is the easiest part,” said Lo Bessette, head of digital asset management at Fidelity. “The hardest part is building the ecosystem for utility.” Despite recent growth, adoption remains early. Hochfeld, State Street’s global head of digital and cash, said much of the current work is focused on internal and client education. “We’re not yet seeing a rush to the door,” Hochfeld said. “We’ve got to experiment… and see what works.” That includes explaining tokenization’s systemic benefits. Hochfeld pointed to the 2022 UK mini-budget crisis, when traditional fund redemptions created a liquidity spiral. She argued tokenized funds could have served as instant collateral, easing the disruption. “Here’s your perfect use case,” she said. “It suits money fund managers, collateral pledgers, regulators — everyone.” Will Peck of WisdomTree said client interest is growing, particularly from crypto-native firms managing stablecoin treasuries or seeking yield-bearing assets that stay on-chain. He compared today’s tokenization wave to the launch of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) 30 years ago. “No one at the time was like, ‘I want an ETF,’” Peck said. “The ETF just worked better.” That same pattern may now apply to tokenized products. With new “universal liquidity layers” forming on blockchain rails, asset managers are preparing for a future of seamless, global access, and hyper-personalized portfolios. “You’re not even going to notice it,” said Kaul. “It’s going to be so seamless and smooth.” Franklin Templeton AI Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our standards . For more information, see CoinDesk's full AI Policy .