Franklin Templeton Investments
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Investment management |
| Founded | 1 January 1947 in New York City, United States |
| Founder | Rupert H. Johnson Sr. |
| Headquarters | San Mateo, California , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Greg Johnson (Chairman, CEO, President) |
| Products | Mutual funds, ETFs, wealth management, private equity secondary market offerings, alternative credit |
Number of employees | 9,200 |
| Website | franklintempleton |
Franklin Resources, Inc. is a worldwide investment management conglomerate, widely recognized under the name Franklin Templeton. Founded in 1947 by entrepreneur Rupert H. Johnson Sr. in New York City, the company draws its name from Benjamin Franklin to symbolize principles of carefulness and thrift. In 1973, the corporate headquarters relocated to San Mateo, California. Franklin Resources is publicly listed on the New York Stock Exchange with the ticker symbol BEN.
History
The company was founded by Rupert H. Johnson Sr., a prominent Wall Street broker, who launched Franklin Distributors, Inc. with an emphasis on conservative equity and fixed-income mutual funds. Leadership passed to his son, Charles B. Johnson, who assumed the CEO role in 1957 when assets under management (AUM) stood at $2.5 million. Rupert Johnson Jr. joined the firm in 1965, contributing to leadership continuity.
Franklin Resources became a publicly traded entity in 1971 and pursued growth through acquisitions such as Winfield & Company in 1973, which coincided with the headquarters’ move to California. The Franklin Money Fund emerged as the company’s first fund to surpass $1 billion by 1979, fueling rapid asset accumulation throughout the 1980s. The firm’s AUM escalated from $2 billion in 1982 to more than $40 billion by 1989, alongside its initial international expansion into Taiwan in 1986.
A pivotal moment came in 1992 with the acquisition of Templeton, Galbraith & Hansberger Ltd., which led to the creation of the Franklin Templeton brand and expanded its global market footprint. Further acquisitions included Heine Securities in 1996, Bissett Funds in 2000 to enhance Canadian market penetration, and Fiduciary Trust Company International in 2001, broadening wealth management services.
The company faced a tragic loss during the September 11 attacks when 87 Fiduciary Trust employees died at the World Trade Center.
Franklin Templeton provides a wide range of investment products and services across various asset classes under distinct brands—Franklin for fixed income funds, Templeton for global equity funds, and Mutual Series for value-oriented funds—catering to both retail and institutional client segments.
By April 2007, Franklin Resources was ranked 445th on the Fortune 500 list and earned recognition for outstanding stock market performance over a quarter-century. As of mid-2008, it managed assets exceeding $570 billion worldwide. In 2009, Barron’s honored it as "King of the Decade" based on fund family achievements.
In 2013, leadership transitioned as Greg Johnson took over from Charles Johnson as chairman, CEO, and president, maintaining family leadership continuity.
Recent years have seen accelerated strategic acquisitions: Benefit Street Partners (2019) expanded alternative credit capabilities; Legg Mason (2020) significantly boosted AUM to $1.4 trillion while enhancing global reach; Lexington Partners (2021) strengthened private equity secondary market offerings; O'Shaughnessy Asset Management (2022) introduced custom indexing expertise; Alcentra (2022) reinforced credit strategies; and Putnam Investments (2024) increased presence in the U.S. market.
In August 2023, reports indicated that Franklin Templeton’s China-based executives were mandated to study Xi Jinping Thought, highlighting regulatory influences affecting its international operations.
Currently, Franklin Templeton employs roughly 9,200 professionals and operates through multiple subsidiaries such as Clarion Partners, ClearBridge Investments, K2 Advisors, Legg Mason, and Western Asset Management Company—illustrating a diversified organizational framework that supports ongoing growth and competitive positioning across investment disciplines.
Mutual funds and ETFs
Franklin Templeton manages a portfolio of 455 open-ended mutual funds alongside seven closed-end funds, which includes 27 tax-exempt income funds at both state and federal levels—a sector where the firm has been an early innovator.
Among the prominent offerings are the Templeton Growth Fund (established in 1954), Mutual Shares Fund (since 1949), Mutual Discovery Fund (launched in 1992), and Templeton Growth (Euro) Fund. The Franklin Income Fund (FKINX), initiated in 1948, is distinguished by its consistent dividend payments for over six decades, primarily investing in dividend-yielding equities and fixed income securities.
Franklin Templeton expanded into the ETF space in 2013 and, by 2021, oversaw 55 ETFs across active, smart beta/multifactor, and passive strategies within the U.S., managing assets totaling $9.7 billion. In that same year, the company pioneered a "tokenised" US mutual fund pilot utilizing blockchain technology on the Stellar network. This advancement seeks to lower expenses by streamlining transactions and removing intermediaries; however, due to its experimental phase and concurrent traditional record maintenance, current costs remain relatively high.