Franklin Templeton is preparing two ETFs (exchange traded funds) that hold US stocks and convert every dividend into bitcoin. According to Journal du Coin, their prospectus takes effect on October 27, 2026, ahead of a listing on the Nasdaq. A new kind of bitcoin ETF: exposure to the cryptocurrency grows in step with the dividends.
How Franklin Templeton's bitcoin ETFs work
The two funds are called Franklin US Equity Bitcoin DRIP Index ETF (FBEQ) and Franklin US Innovation Bitcoin DRIP Index ETF (FIBT). DRIP is the American acronym for automatic dividend reinvestment. The formula is a stock market classic, but here the dividend goes into another asset.
The mechanism is set out in the prospectus filed on October 22, 2026 with the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), the US market regulator. Every dividend, ordinary or special, is reinvested in bitcoin at the market open. The purchase takes place the day after the ex-dividend date. At launch, the index holds 95% stocks and 5% bitcoin.
Both funds track indices built by VettaFi:
- FBEQ tracks the VettaFi US Large-Cap 500 Bitcoin DRIP Index, built on large US companies;
- FIBT replicates a variant based on the VettaFi US Innovation 100, i.e. the hundred largest companies listed on the Nasdaq, excluding financials.
Nate Geraci, president of The ETF Store, summed up the idea on October 25, 2026 on X: "Basically, it's like investing in the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100, with the dividends going into BTC." The shortcut speaks to savers. But the indices remain VettaFi's own in-house creations.
A 5% bitcoin cap, reviewed every quarter
Dividends mechanically push up the bitcoin share. A safeguard kicks in at each quarterly rebalancing. If bitcoin exceeds 5% of the index, it is brought back to 4.5%, and the surplus goes back into stocks.
A second limit applies between two rebalancings. If bitcoin exceeds 20% of the index at a close, its share returns to 4.5% two business days later. The price used is the Kaiko Bitcoin New York Reference Rate at 16h, New York time.
The flow remains modest, Journal du Coin points out. Large US companies pay out few dividends, and the tech giants in the second index even fewer. Annual fees come to 0.09% for FBEQ and 0.19% for FIBT. An investment of 1,000 dollars in FBEQ therefore costs 90 cents a year.
Not necessarily real bitcoins in these funds
These ETFs will not necessarily hold bitcoins directly. The prospectus allows bitcoin ETPs (exchange traded products), including those of companies affiliated with Franklin. It also permits futures contracts, options and depositary receipts. Part of the holdings may pass through a subsidiary in the Cayman Islands, up to a limit of 25% of assets.
The distinction matters when assessing the risk. As our comparison bitcoin held directly or via an ETP shows, the holder of an ETP owns no bitcoin. They hold a claim on the issuer and can neither withdraw real bitcoins nor pay with them.
Classic or hybrid bitcoin ETF: what changes
This is not Franklin Templeton's first bitcoin product. Its spot bitcoin ETF EZBC has been listed since January 11, 2024, with fees of 0.19%. It targets those who want pure bitcoin. FBEQ and FIBT are aimed instead at savers who already buy an index fund and accept a pinch of bitcoin, without having to dose it themselves.
Spot bitcoin ETFs carry a lot of weight. According to SoSoValue, US funds had accumulated 57.96 billion dollars in net inflows since January 2024, as of October 21, 2026. Their flows remain choppy and weigh on the bitcoin price: they gave back 635.6 million dollars on October 22, 2026, according to Farside Investors.
The hybrid format already exists at Simplify. Its SPBC fund, listed on the NYSE since 2021, targets 100% exposure to US stocks plus 10% bitcoin. That bitcoin is held in VanEck's HODL ETF. Simplify treats bitcoin as a fixed layer, rebalanced when it approaches 5% or 15% of the portfolio. Franklin, for its part, feeds it with dividends.
| Fund | Issuer | Exposure | Bitcoin share | Annual fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EZBC | Franklin Templeton | Spot bitcoin | Bitcoin only | 0.19% |
| FBEQ | Franklin Templeton | Large US companies | 5% at launch, fed by dividends | 0.09% |
| FIBT | Franklin Templeton | Hundred largest Nasdaq stocks excluding financials | 5% at launch, fed by dividends | 0.19% |
| SPBC | Simplify | 100% US stocks | An extra 10%, via VanEck's HODL ETF | 0.54% |
Source: Journal du Coin. SPBC's assets under management stood at 43.6 million dollars as of June 30, 2026.
Bitcoin ETFs and crypto ETPs: what options in Switzerland?
The landscape is shifting in Switzerland too. On October 20, 2026, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) authorised the first Swiss bitcoin ETF open to the public. It is a fund governed by Swiss law, listed on the stock exchange and invested directly in bitcoins. The press release named neither the provider nor the listing date.
This Swiss fund differs from Franklin's products on one key point: it offers direct exposure to a single asset, bitcoin. FINMA therefore had to grant an exemption from the risk diversification rules. At the point of sale, the rules of the Financial Services Act (FinSA) apply, with clear warnings about volatility.
Crypto ETPs remain the other route in Europe. They are often debt securities issued by a dedicated company. So-called "physical" products actually hold the bitcoins, entrusted to a professional custodian. The Journal du Coin guide cites the issuers Amundi, Bitwise, 21Shares, BlackRock and VanEck.
Their fees vary widely. In Europe, the cheapest ETPs charge from 0.05% to 0.25% a year, according to the same source. Some older products go up to 1%, or even 2%. Our sources cite no hybrid stocks-and-bitcoin product listed in Switzerland.
The risks to keep in mind
A listed fund does not protect against volatility. Bitcoin has already lost more than 50% of its value on several occasions, and a listed product falls by the same amount. In JPMorgan's assumptions, bitcoin's assumed annual volatility reaches 55%, compared with around 18% for large US stocks.
At Franklin, the cap frames the bitcoin share without freezing it. Between two quarters, only a share above 20% at a close triggers a return to 4.5%. The time lag also plays a role: bitcoin trades around the clock, while the stock exchange closes in the evening and at weekends. This article does not constitute investment advice.
What we don't know yet
- The date of the first trading session: none has been announced. The first filing dates back to June 18, 2026 and targeted an effective date of September 1; the timetable has slipped by eight weeks.
- Access from Switzerland: our sources do not say whether FBEQ and FIBT will be offered by Swiss banks and brokers.
- The name of the first Swiss bitcoin ETF and its listing date, which FINMA has not disclosed.
The market, for its part, remains jittery. Bitcoin was trading at 79,928 dollars on the morning of Monday, October 26, 2026, down 1.2% over 24 hours, according to CoinGecko as cited by Journal du Coin.
