Alternatives

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This is a marketing communication. Please refer to the prospectus or information document of the UCITS and, where available, to the KID before making any final investment decisions.

US$258 bn

Alternative assets under management

40+ years

Alternative investing experience

50+ strategies

Across alternative asset classes and investment vehicles

Data as of 30/06/2025.

Welcome

It’s good to have alternatives

Alternative investing has traditionally been confined by high minimum investment levels, operational complexities, and strict asset and income threshold requirements, limiting access to institutions and high net-worth individuals.

At Franklin Templeton, we’re committed to breaking down these barriers with a clear mission to democratise alternative investing, transforming it into an accessible and essential source of returns for all.

Our alternative investment capabilities

At Franklin Templeton, our extensive asset class coverage ensures that we have the flexibility and expertise to provide tailored solutions for our clients’ diverse financial needs.

TBD

Private equity

Private equity involves investing in privately held companies that aren’t listed on the stock market.

These investments can range from startups to established businesses, offering opportunities for growth at various stages.

TBD

Private credit

Private credit involves investing in various types of debt provided directly to companies or individuals, bypassing traditional banks.

This can offer unique opportunities for income and diversification.

TBD

Digital assets

Digital assets include electronic forms of assets like cryptocurrencies

(e.g., Bitcoin and Ethereum), digital tokens, and blockchain-based assets, offering new opportunities for investment and diversification.

TBD

Venture capital

Venture capital focuses on early-stage, high-growth companies by investing for equity ownership.

This approach supports rapid growth and aims to make money when these companies are bought or go public, taking advantage of their innovation and substantial expansion potential.

TBD

Real estate

Real estate involves investing in various properties such as:

residential homes, commercial buildings, land, and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). This asset class offers stability, income and potential long-term growth, appealing to investors looking to diversify in the dynamic property market.

TBD

Hedged strategies

Hedged strategies use various techniques to reduce overall risk in a portfolio.

These methods include derivatives, short selling* and alternative investments, providing a diversified and resilient approach to investing.

Products corresponding to each capability may not be available for distribution in all jurisdictions and prospective investors should confirm availability with their local Franklin Templeton representative before making any plans to invest.
*Short selling is a trading strategy where investors speculate on a stock’s decline. They are selling borrowed stocks which they anticipate will decrease in value, with the plan to repurchase them once the price has fallen.

Our family of alternative investment specialists

At Franklin Templeton, we are dedicated to expanding our alternative investment capabilities by acquiring and partnering with independent specialist investment managers. Each of these managers possesses deep expertise in a specific asset class with extensive experience managing assets for some of the world's largest institutions. This approach enables us to offer our clients access to innovative and institutional-quality products.

Clarion Partners logo
1982
2021

Clarion Partners is one of the largest pure-play real estate investment managers offering a broad range of real estate strategies across the risk-return spectrum for global investors. 

Clarion Partners logo
1984

Franklin Real Asset Advisors provides global expertise in private real estate funds, including core, non-core and impact investing strategies. 

Clarion Partners logo
2008/2002
Acquired by FT 2019/2022

BSP-Alcentra is one of the largest alternative credit asset managers globally, utilising a multi-strategy approach targeting attractive opportunities in the global credit markets.

Clarion Partners logo
1994
2022

Lexington Partners is one of the world's largest managers of secondary private equity and co-investment funds. 

Clarion Partners logo
1994

Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions (FTIS) Absolute Return Portfolio Management team is a well-established team with deep experience in hedge fund investing.  The team provides a full range of hedge fund investment capabilities covering all aspects of hedge fund and liquid alternatives.

Clarion Partners logo
2015

Franklin Venture Partners is the private investing platform within the Franklin Equity Group focused on mid- and late-stage private companies with access to early-stage ideas sourced through industry, academic and venture capital networks. 

Clarion Partners logo
2021

Franklin Templeton Digital Assets has the expertise and resources to help advance your digital asset investment strategy or business. From launching the industry’s first on-chain money market fund, to funding blockchain start-up, Franklin Templeton Digital Assets is setting the pace of innovation for the global asset management industry.

Clarion Partners logo
2021

Franklin Templeton Digital Assets has the expertise and resources to help advance your digital asset investment strategy or business. From launching the industry’s first on-chain money market fund, to funding blockchain start-up, Franklin Templeton Digital Assets is setting the pace of innovation for the global asset management industry.

Understanding potential portfolio impact

Alternative investments offer appealing characteristics on their own, but their true potential shines when viewed within the context of a total portfolio. The charts below illustrate how adding a mix of alternative investments to a hypothetical 60/40 portfolio can enhance performance and reduce volatility. Select the buttons below to explore different desired outcomes and allocations, and see the impact of incorporating alternative investments into your portfolio.

ALLOCATION

Choose an allocation to alternative investments and compare the results of the hypothetical portfolio.

10%
20%
30%

Hypothetical Traditional Portfolio

Chart

Chart with 2 data points.
End of interactive chart.

Risk and Return

12/31/2005 - 12/31/2024

11.4%

Annualised risk1

6.5%

Annualised return

224.5%

Cumulative
return2

Hypothetical Portfolio with Alternatives

64% Global Stocks

26% Global Bonds

10% Alternatives:

  • 2% Global Private Equity
  • 2% Global Private Debt
  • 2% Global Private Real Estate
  • 2% Global Venture Capital
  • 2% Global Hedge Fund Composite

Chart

Chart with 3 data points.
End of interactive chart.

Risk and Return

12/31/2005 - 12/31/2024

12.2%

Annualised risk1

7.3%

Annualised return

276.7%

Cumulative
return2

NOTE:
Hypothetical 18-year portfolio return with or without alternative investments as of 30/06/2025. For illustrative purposes only. Hypothetical portfolio results shown do not represent the performance of an actual investment. Stocks, bonds, private equity, private credit, private real estate and hedge funds are respectively represented by the MSCI World NR USD Index, Bloomberg Global Aggregate Bond Index, MSCI Global Private Equity Closed-End Fund Index (Unfrozen; USD), MSCI Global Private Credit Closed-End Fund Index (Unfrozen; USD), MSCI Global Private Real Estate Closed-End Fund Index (Unfrozen; USD), MSCI Global Venture Capital Closed-End Fund Index (Unfrozen; USD) and HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index USD. Please note that an investor cannot invest directly in an index. Unmanaged index returns do not reflect any fees, expenses or sales charges. Diversification does not assure a profit or protect against market loss. All investments involve risk, including loss of principal. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

Learn about our investment strategies

Innovative strategies from independent investment specialists are available across a number of liquid and semi-liquid vehicles.

Franklin Alternative Strategies Fund

The Fund’s investment objective is to seek capital appreciation with lower volatility relative to the broad equity markets. The Fund seeks to achieve its investment goal by allocating its assets across multiple alternative strategies.

Total net assets
31/01/2025
$605.58m
Dividend frequency
Monthly

Franklin K2 Athena Uncorrelated Strategies UCITS Fund

The Fund’s investment objective is to seek capital appreciation with lower volatility relative to the broader equity markets by pursuing various risk premia strategies, which seek to profit from persistent behavioural and/or structural anomalies or other factors. 

Total net assets
31/01/2025
$126.53m
Dividend frequency
Monthly

Franklin K2 Cat Bond UCITS Fund

The Fund’s investment objective is to seek to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns over time with limited correlation to other asset classes through investment in a portfolio of natural catastrophe bonds. 

Total net assets
31/01/2025
$142.41m
Dividend frequency
Monthly

Contact us

Please contact us for any questions on our products or services.

 

Our knowledge hub

Private Markets Insights: Private Equity Secondaries - A primary allocation

Private equity is at a turning point, with investors and advisors exploring the best ways to allocate across sub-strategies. There is a compelling case for private equity secondaries serving as the cornerstone of a core/satellite evergreen model.

Read now

Private Markets Insights: Not a simple open and closed case

Evergreen and closed-ended funds offer different paths to private markets - understanding their strengths can help investors optimise allocations.

Read now

Unlocking opportunities: Understanding the growing secondary market

The global secondary market has grown over the past three decades primarily because of the increased supply of capital committed to private investment funds, according to Lexington Partners. They believe the backdrop for the secondary market continues to remain attractive.

Read now

2024 Alternative Investment Outlook: Challenges create opportunities

Many of the same issues that impact traditional investments also impact alternative investments. Explore our outlook for private credit, private equity, real estate, and hedge funds.

Read now

Glossary

Private credit/debt

Private credit/debt funds typically invest in non-listed debt issues, including bonds, notes and loans issued by private companies. Private debt has the potential to provide greater returns, control and reduced liquidity, than public markets.

Alternative credit

Alternative credit invests in below-investment-grade fixed income sectors that are relatively illiquid. Alternative credit may not be available to investors for direct investment as individuals but can be accessed through professionally managed traditional mutual funds.

Unconstrained investing

Unconstrained strategies trades securities with few restrictions on when and how they buy and sell. Many unconstrained strategies do set a formal or informal a target for volatility that provides a limitation on the level of risks incurred. 

Hedged strategies

Hedge strategies (also referred to as alternative strategies) use both long and short positions in markets. Some of the most common strategies are long and short equity, global macro, relative value and credit. Hedge strategies appeal to investors who are looking to diversify their investment, in an attempt to minimise market beta returns while seeking alpha and risk-adjusted returns.

Real assets

Real assets typically invest in tangible assets that derive value from their substance and physical presence. These include real estate, public and private infrastructure, natural resources, precious metals and commodities.

  1. Annualised standard deviation: A measure of the degree to which an investment’s or index’s return varies from the average of its previous returns. The larger the standard deviation, the greater likelihood (and risk) that the performance will fluctuate from the average return.
  2. Cumulative return: Cumulative return shows the change in the investment’s or index’s value over the time period indicated.

Investments entail risks, the value of investments can go down as well as up and investors should be aware they might not get back the full value invested.

Individual securities mentioned are intended as examples only and are not to be taken as advice nor are they intended as a recommendation to buy or sell any investment or interest.