YLDS vs Franklin Benji (FOBXX) 2026

They are different securities under the same law. YLDS is a face-amount certificate: an unsecured debt obligation of Figure Certificate Company, a Figure subsidiary registered under the Investment Company Act, paying overnight SOFR minus 0.35% and redeemable at its $0.01 face. A BENJI token is one share of the Franklin OnChain U.S. Government Money Fund (FOBXX), an SEC-registered government money market fund at a $1.00 net asset value, so the holder owns a pro rata slice of the fund's Treasuries rather than a claim on an issuer. AltStreet scores Benji 7.3 (A) and YLDS 6.5 (B+).

Neither is a stablecoin in the legal sense, and both say so. Figure's own site calls YLDS 'Not a stablecoin. A security that acts like one', and its prospectus says FCC 'does not seek to maintain a stable value of $1.00 per share'; the $0.01 face is the amount FCC contracts to pay on surrender. FOBXX is a money market fund that has held a $1.00 net asset value since April 2021 under Rule 2a-7's portfolio rules; the BENJI token is its share register on public blockchains, not a bearer coin.

On September 30, 2026, with SOFR at 3.90%, YLDS's stated rate was 3.55% (a simple annual rate, paid monthly) and FOBXX reported a seven-day net yield of 3.73% (the annualized yield for the seven days ending that date, after expenses, as filed on Form N-MFP3; not Franklin's compounded 'effective' yield). They are different measures, so compare them on one date rather than from marketing pages captured months apart. YLDS's rate is a fixed formula below SOFR; FOBXX's yield moves with what its Treasury portfolio earns.

Benji's holder owns a share of a fund that must keep at least 99.5% of assets in government securities, cash and government-collateralized repurchase agreements; losses, if any, are borne pro rata, and the sponsor is not required to cover them. YLDS's holder is a creditor of FCC, which must hold statutory reserves at least equal to its certificate obligations (Treasury bills and Treasury repo at June 30, 2026) but had only $4.2 million of reserves above that requirement and $994,000 of GAAP equity. Its parent, Figure Technology Solutions, committed by a June 30, 2026 letter to cover obligations FCC cannot meet through September 30, 2027; the letter is addressed to FCC, and whether holders could enforce it is not stated. Neither product is insured.

Both are open to US retail investors after identity checks. YLDS has no minimum (one certificate is $0.01), is bought at ylds.com or through Figure Markets by wire, ACH, a Figure Payments balance or an accepted stablecoin, and its FAQ says eligible holders may be global. FOBXX is intended for US residents and its minimum depends on the network: $20 on Stellar, $100 on Aptos, Base or Solana, $1,000 on Polygon or Arbitrum, $20,000 on Avalanche and $5,000,000 on Ethereum.

YLDS can be surrendered to FCC at any time at face plus accrued interest; the prospectus says surrenders are processed within 24 hours but may take longer with blockchain congestion, and wire or ACH proceeds can take up to 5 days (a stablecoin payout up to 10). FCC paid $762.8 million of surrenders in the first half of 2026, $319.8 million of it to Figure entities. FOBXX shares are redeemed at NAV, which the fund seeks to hold at $1.00, on business days through the Benji app or portal, with dollars returned to the linked bank account. Both allow peer-to-peer transfers between approved wallets; neither has a public market, and FOBXX's prospectus says such transfers need not occur at NAV.

Both registers are concentrated, with the caveat that a record holder can represent underlying investors. At June 30, 2026, $477.5 million of the $556.0 million of YLDS outstanding (85.9%) was classified as related-party holdings and third parties held $78.5 million; FCC reported 3,450 accounts in total. Figure's parent separately reports $347.7 million of YLDS borrowed through its Democratized Prime marketplace. For FOBXX, five holders were reported as beneficial owners or holders of record of 74.9% on July 1, 2026, including two Franklin companies with 30.94% between them, and the August 2026 monthly report classified 6.91% of shares of record as retail.

Neither charges a purchase or redemption fee, apart from an ACH fee FCC passes through on surrender, and both sponsors pay the blockchain gas. YLDS charges no fee; its rate is fixed at SOFR minus 0.35%, and FCC's spread is its reserve earnings minus the certificate interest, before expenses that include a 0.10% fee to its affiliated adviser. FOBXX charges a 0.20% net expense ratio (0.15% management fee plus other expenses, capped through July 2027), which is already deducted from its reported yield.

YLDS interest is reported on Form 1099-INT and is taxable when credited, including the monthly interest paid in additional certificates; withdrawals are reported on Form 1099-DA. FOBXX pays daily dividends reinvested as shares, reported on Form 1099-DIV as ordinary income (all $29.96 million distributed in the year to March 2026 was ordinary income). Transferring either token to another person is a disposition. AltStreet is not a tax adviser.

USDC is a payment stablecoin: Circle pays holders no yield, so any 'USDC yield' comes from a separate rewards, lending or DeFi arrangement with its own terms and risks; the relevant comparison is then between YLDS and that arrangement. USDY is Ondo's yield-bearing tokenized note, sold under Regulation S and closed to US and Canadian persons, so a US investor cannot hold it. That leaves YLDS and Benji as two SEC-registered options available to US retail investors.