Franklin Templeton Canada Lists Emerging Markets and Global Equity ETFs from Established In-House ESG Investment Manager

TORONTO, July 26, 2021 /CNW/ - Franklin Templeton Canada is listing Franklin Martin Currie Sustainable Emerging Markets Active ETF (FSEM) and Franklin Martin Currie Sustainable Global Equity Active ETF (FGSG) on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) today, July 26, 2021.

"Martin Currie combines an active, high conviction strategy with robust ESG expertise when investing in global and emerging markets as they have done so for many decades, having invested in global equities since the 1920s and Asian equities since the 1980s," said Duane Green, president and CEO, Franklin Templeton Canada. "We continue to focus on providing Canadian investors with a world-class fund line-up¹ featuring boutique investment managers with global and sustainability expertise to help them achieve their desired investment outcomes."

Franklin Martin Currie Sustainable Emerging Markets Active ETF (FSEM) invests primarily in units of Franklin Martin Currie Sustainable Emerging Markets Fund, which invests in quality emerging market equities with long-term growth potential, while using a fully integrated ESG investment approach. The portfolio managers seek undervalued stocks with high potential to create shareholder value based on their assessment of a company's quality, growth prospects, governance and sustainability. The fund's U.S. equivalent is a 5-star Morningstar rated fund.¹ 

Franklin Martin Currie Sustainable Global Equity Active ETF (FGSG) invests primarily in units of Franklin Martin Currie Global Equity Fund, which invests in companies that have a strong history of offering high and sustainable returns on invested capital over time. The portfolio managers take a high-conviction, flexible approach to investing across sectors, geographies and market capitalizations, while seeking to manage risk on an absolute basis. The fund's U.S. equivalent is a 4-star Morningstar rated fund.¹

"As the need for high-conviction funds with genuine stewardship and ESG outcomes becomes ever more important to investors, we are bringing our expertise in sustainable investing to the Canadian market," said Mel Bucher, co-head of Global Distribution, Martin Currie. "As Martin Currie continues to expand its global reach, it now has one-third of its assets under management based in North America."

FSEM and FGSG are the latest additions to the recently announced sustainable ETF listings from Franklin Templeton's specialist investment managers, which include Franklin Brandywine Global Sustainable Income Optimiser Active ETF (FBGO), Franklin ClearBridge Sustainable Global Infrastructure Income Active ETF (FCII) and Franklin ClearBridge Sustainable International Growth Active ETF (FCSI). 

Franklin Templeton's diverse and innovative ETF platform was built to provide better client outcomes for a range of market conditions and investment opportunities. The product suite offers active, smart beta and passive ETFs that span multiple asset classes and geographies.

About Martin Currie
Martin Currie, LLC ("Martin Currie") is a global active equity specialist with leading credentials in sustainable investing, crafting high-conviction portfolios for client-focused solutions. With approximately US$23 billion in assets under management as of June 30, 2021, investment excellence is at the heart of its business. Central to its philosophy is a stock-driven approach, based on in-depth fundamental research, active ownership and engagement and skilled portfolio construction. Martin Currie is rated A+ in all three categories under the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) 2020. As a specialist investment manager of Franklin Templeton, it also has the backing of one of the world's largest asset management firms.

About Franklin Templeton
Franklin Templeton Investments Corp. (also known as Franklin Templeton Canada) is a subsidiary of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE: BEN), a global investment management organization with subsidiaries operating as Franklin Templeton and serving clients in over 165 countries. Franklin Templeton's mission is to help clients achieve better outcomes through investment management expertise, wealth management and technology solutions. Through its specialist investment managers, the company brings extensive capabilities in equity, fixed income, multi-asset solutions and alternatives. With offices in more than 30 countries and approximately 1,300 investment professionals, the California-based company has over 70 years of investment experience and over US$1.5 trillion (over CAN$1.9 trillion) in assets under management as of June 30, 2021. For more information, please visit franklintempleton.ca and connect with Franklin Templeton on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, and read the Beyond Bulls & Bears blog.

Commissions, trailing commissions, management fees, brokerage fees and expenses may be associated with investments in mutual funds and ETFs. Please read the prospectus and fund/ETF facts document before investing. Mutual funds and ETFs are not guaranteed. Their values change frequently. Past performance may not be repeated.

1. Franklin Martin Currie Sustainable Emerging Markets Fund shares the same investment strategy and management as the Martin Currie Emerging Markets Fund, a 5-star Morningstar rated fund in the Diversified Emerging Markets category with a 5-year track record in the U.S.

Franklin Martin Currie Global Equity Fund shares the same investment strategy and management as the Martin Currie International Unconstrained Equity Fund, a 4-star Morningstar rated fund in the Foreign Large Growth category with a 5-year track record in the U.S. 

Source: Morningstar®. For each mutual fund and exchange traded fund with at least a 3-year history, Morningstar calculates a Morningstar Rating based on how a fund ranks on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure against other funds in the same category. This measure takes into account variations in a fund's monthly performance, and does not take into account the effects of sales charges and loads, placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of funds in each category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4 stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. The weights are: 100% 3-year rating for 36-59 months of total returns, 60% 5-year rating/40% 3-year rating for 60-119 months of total returns, and 50% 10-year rating/30% 5-year rating/20% 3-year rating for 120 or more months of total returns. While the 10-year overall star rating formula seems to give the most weight to the 10-year period, the most recent 3-year period actually has the greatest impact because it is included in all three rating periods. Morningstar Rating is for the named share class only; other classes may have different performance characteristics. Past performance is not an indicator or a guarantee of future performance.

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