If you've got an alts shop you're looking to unload, keep Greg Johnson on your speed dial.

The Financial Times scored an interview with Johnson, Franklin Templeton's CEO and president, who told the paper that he is still looking to deal, following last month's purchase of K2 Advisor Holdings.

Johnson wants to raise Franklin's presence in alts, which he thinks will be buoyed by stronger institutional and retail demand in the coming years. But he doesn't want to make big, "transformational" buys; rather, he's looking at "smaller, experienced specialist asset managers," according to FT reporter Ruth Sullivan.

Discussing Franklin's deals over the last decade, Johnson said, "At some point you get diminishing returns on your distribution. You can't keep adding large asset managers and think you're going to just leverage that through your existing distribution system."

He went on to say that integrating newly purchased companies "is a huge challenge because it is a people-driven business. Many [acquisitions] will not be successful." He added, "[i]t's the boutique feeling with the big firm benefits that works."

For Johnson's further pontifications on Franklin and the mutual fund business in general, read the full article. 

Edited by: Chris Cumming


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