Franklin Templeton registered two exchange-traded funds with the SEC on June 19, 2026, that would automatically redirect U.S. equity dividends into Bitcoin rather than back into stocks. The firm calls the structure a Bitcoin DRIP, borrowing the name from dividend reinvestment plans common in equity markets, but routes dividend cash into BTC rather than additional shares.
The two funds, the Franklin U.S. Equity Bitcoin DRIP Index ETF and the Franklin U.S. Innovation Bitcoin DRIP Index ETF, both launch with a 95% equity, 5% Bitcoin allocation, per Decrypt. Dividend income is not returned to investors or reinvested in equities; it flows into Bitcoin-linked instruments: spot Bitcoin ETPs, futures, options, and a Cayman Islands subsidiary. Both funds rebalance quarterly, trimming Bitcoin back to 4.5% when exposure climbs above 5%; a hard cap prevents Bitcoin from exceeding 20% between rebalancing periods.
Both indices come from VettaFi. The equity fund tracks the VettaFi US Large-Cap 500 Bitcoin DRIP Index, a basket of 498 securities from the 500 largest U.S. companies by market cap, ranging from approximately $7.5 billion to $4.9 trillion. The innovation fund tracks the VettaFi US Innovation 100 Bitcoin DRIP Index, covering the 100 largest non-financial Nasdaq-listed companies, per Bitcoin Magazine.
How these funds differ from a standard DRIP
A conventional DRIP reinvests dividends into additional shares of the same stock. These funds send that cash to BTC instead. The mechanism more closely resembles a systematic Bitcoin purchasing program than a typical ETF, funded not by new investor capital but by income the underlying equities generate. If the funds attract meaningful assets, the structure becomes a standing, rules-based accumulation of Bitcoin exposure inside an equity wrapper. No investor action is required.
The filings are preliminary. Under SEC rules, the funds could become effective approximately 75 days after the June 19 submission, pointing to an earliest possible launch of September 1, 2026, per Decrypt. No expense ratios have been disclosed. Franklin Templeton has not set a launch date, and SEC approval is not guaranteed. The company already operates a spot Bitcoin ETF.
