In a move that reaffirms it bet on offering alts in the wealth channelasset manager Franklin Templeton has appointed George Stephan to the newly created position of global chief operating officer of wealth management alternatives.
Stephan, who previously spent five years at Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. as head of strategy and business development for the firm's global client solutions business, will report to Adam Spector, Franklin Templeton's executive vice president and head of global distribution.
Stephan will oversee the development of alternative investment products and investor services and assist with business development, management and operations. Stephan will also work with the firm's distribution leaders worldwide to help drive the overall distribution strategy, in addition to educating advisors on the alternative investment business in the private wealth channel.
In recent years, Franklin Templeton has acquired or partnered with several specialist investment managers to build a suite of products for financial advisers, including limited liquidity vehicles, SMAs and custom wallets. It has sub-brands such as Clarion Partnersa private real estate investment manager, and Benefit Street Partners, an alternative credit manager, among others.
These are part of a wider trend of high-profile asset managers including The Black Stone, Apollo, BlackRock, KKR and others, which are heavily focused on building products for the wealth space.
Overall, 16% ($264 billion) of Franklin Templeton's $1.65 trillion in AUM is devoted to alternative investments, according to the firm, although that figure includes products for institutional investors as well as those for retail investors.
“With more than 40 years of experience in alternatives and 382 alternative investment professionals worldwide, we have been intentional about building our capabilities in multiple ways – through acquisitions of specialists such as Benefit Street Partners, Lexington and Clarion and by introducing our offerings on advisory platforms to make them more accessible to investors,” Spector said in a statement. “The result is that Franklin Templeton is one of the few traditional asset managers building a successful alternatives business spread across a wide range of strategies and geographies.”
Stephan's additional prior experience includes stints as COO and head of investor relations for KKR's global wealth solutions business in the Americas. Prior to joining KKR, Stephan spent nine years in the wealth management division of Morgan Stanley.