Bitcoin as Digital Gold: Franklin Templeton CEO Signals Crypto–Traditional Finance Convergence at Fintechweek 2025

During Hong Kong Fintech Week 2025, Franklin Templeton CEO Jenny Johnson reframed the crypto debate: the traditional finance world and the crypto ecosystem were once two parallel universes—broad in scale, with minimal overlap. Her view is that convergence is accelerating as assets migrate on-chain and digital assets attract growing institutional interest and investor crypto exposure demand.

Johnson also highlighted the generational lens: Bitcoin is viewed by many millennials as digital gold, with Bitcoin positioned as an asset offering a conviction-driven appeal.

The executive stressed that Franklin Templeton is monitoring crypto developments as disruption is likely to arise from both legacy players and crypto-native models. She anticipates a wave of new business models in crypto and expects leading firms to emerge in this domain alongside AI-powered ventures.