Franklin Templeton acquires a new mandate for the administration of Fondul Proprietatea

By Andra Beltz
At the Fund’s General Shareholders’ Meeting (GSM) organized today, the shareholders of Fondul Proprietatea approved the key terms for a new administrator mandate for Franklin Templeton International Services S.À RL for a period of two years, starting with 1 April 2022. This is the 11th year since Franklin Templeton has been managing Fondul Proprietatea, with the initial management mandate signed in 2010. Over the last 11 years, Fondul Proprietatea has continuously supported the development of the Romanian capital market and has generated substantial value for its shareholders.
Ilinca von Derenthall, Chairperson of the Board of Nominees said: “The Board of Nominees appreciates the results obtained by Franklin Templeton as Fondul Proprietatea Fund Manager and its efforts towards increased corporate governance standards, transparency and profitability of portfolio companies. Along with attracting numerous new local and international investors, private and institutional, the Fund has contributed significantly to the development of the capital market in Romania and will continue doing so with a view to support further listings of Romanian SOEs on the Bucharest Stock Exchange. Under the professional management of Franklin Templeton, Fondul Proprietatea will continue to bring value and benefit all stakeholders in the future. We are very pleased to see that amongst our valued shareholders Fondul Proprietatea counts all locally active private pension funds and contributes to the future welfare of a significant number of Romanians.”
On this occasion, Johan Meyer, CEO of Franklin Templeton Bucharest Branch and portfolio manager of Fondul Proprietatea said: “Across the organization, Franklin Templeton’s mission is to help its clients achieve better outcomes by leveraging our 70-year expertise in investment management. In Romania, this is of particular relevance as we have been working closely with the portfolio companies for more than a decade, in order to generate value for Fondul Proprietatea’s shareholders. I am particularly grateful to the very talented and dedicated team in Bucharest, without whom these results would not have been possible. It’s encouraging to note that Franklin Templeton has continued to secure shareholders support in the continuation of its mandate as the Fund Manager of Fondul Proprietatea. Going forward, we will continue to focus on managing the investments in the portfolio companies to generate the highest possible outcomes for investors. We have an unwavering commitment to professionalism, corporate governance and transparency and believe that this will enable us to unlock more value for shareholders through initiatives such as the listing of portfolio companies like Hidroelectrica and Salrom.”
In the coming period a new GSM will be organized (to be called during the next weeks) asking shareholders to vote on the detailed terms of the mandate included in the draft of the Management Agreement.
Launched in December 2005, Fondul Proprietatea (“the Fund”) was established to compensate Romanians whose properties were confiscated by the former communist government. Following an international tender announced in December 2008, Franklin Templeton Investments was officially appointed as investment manager and sole administrator of the Fund on 29 September 2010.
The Fund is an alternative investment fund and its investment objective is the maximization to shareholders and the increase of the net asset value per share via investments mainly in Romanian equities and equity-linked securities. The Fund was listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange on 25 January 2011 and on the Specialist Fund Market of the London Stock Exchange by means of global depositary receipts (“GDRs”) on 29 April 2015.