Putnam has about $142 billion in assets under management
Great-West Lifeco Inc. (Lifeco), an international financial services holding company, has announced that its transaction with Franklin Resources Inc. (Frank Templeton), a multinational holding company regarding the sale of Putnam Investments, an investment management firm, was completed.
“As client needs for asset management continue to evolve, Franklin Templeton's scale and breadth, together with Putnam's complementary capabilities, will drive positive outcomes for their stakeholders,” said Paul Mahon, president and chief executive officer, Great-West Lifeco.
“This transaction furthers Lifeco's strategy of building and extending strategic partnerships with best-in-class asset managers to support our clients' retirement, group benefits, and personal wealth management needs,” added Mahon.
The sale was first announced last May 2023 where Franklin Templeton was set to pay upfront consideration worth US$950 million to US$1 billion, which consisted of 33.33 million shares at closing and US$100 million in cash 6 months after closing. Up to US$375 million will be payable between 3 and 7 years tied to the partnership’s growth.
The agreement also entailed that Lifeco will be holding a 4.9% interest in Franklin Templeton on a long-term basis as well as retain its controlling interest in PanAgora, a quantitative asset manager as well as certain deferred tax assets related to Putnam.
The financial services holding firm will also be providing an initial long-term asset allocation to Franklin Templeton’s investment managers that amounted to US$25 billion within 12 months of closing. The amount also has a potential to increase over the next several years.
Lifeco also stated that the sale was expected to not bear any material financial impact on the firm upon its closing and that further details will be provided in February 2024 as part of its year-end disclosures.
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Rockefeller Capital Management were the financial advisors for the transaction while Sullivan & Cromwell LLP was the legal counsel to Lifeco and Putnam Investments.
As of November 30, 2023, Putnam Investments has about $142 billion in assets under management while Franklin Templeton has over $1.4 trillion.
