Ben Barber Rejoins Franklin Templeton to Head Municipal Bond Team

Sheila Amoroso to Retire after 34 Years with the Firm

Franklin Templeton today announces that Ben Barber, who has most recently served as co-head of municipal bonds at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, will rejoin the firm to succeed Sheila Amoroso as senior vice president, director of Municipal Bonds on April 27, 2020, overseeing $68 billion in municipal bond investments.

Sheila Amoroso, who is currently senior vice president, director of Franklin Templeton Fixed Income’s municipal bond department, has announced her plans to retire after 34 years of service. She will work closely with Barber through a period of transition until her retirement date of July 1, 2020.

Barber has over 28 years of industry experience, having started his career in municipal bond investing with Franklin Templeton in 1991, working with several current investment team members, including Amoroso, through 1999, when he joined Goldman Sachs. He will be based in San Mateo, CA and will report to Sonal Desai, CIO, Franklin Templeton Fixed Income.

“We are very thankful for Sheila’s more than three decades of excellent service and wish her all the best in her retirement. She has been a key partner to me in my role of CIO, and I am grateful for the time we worked together,” said Desai, CIO, Franklin Templeton Fixed Income. “As Sheila transitions we are very lucky to have Ben back at Franklin Templeton, where he started his career. He brings strong leadership experience to the municipal bond team and our fixed income platform, and I couldn’t be more delighted to have him on board.”

Under Amoroso’s steadfast leadership, Franklin Templeton’s municipal bond group has become a premier municipal bond manager, with a very stable and experienced team consisting of long-tenured investment professionals that have maintained a consistent approach and philosophy for managing municipal bond portfolios.

“I am excited to be returning to Franklin Templeton to join a team of such talented investment professionals and helping to build on the world class platform,” said Barber. “Our industry continues to evolve right before us. I can see the commitment and enthusiasm that is core to Franklin Templeton’s culture, and I look forward to the opportunities that lie ahead.”

Franklin Templeton’s 31-member municipal bond team manages a wide variety of single state and national municipal bond strategies for investors in the US and beyond, via a comprehensive fund lineup and separately managed accounts and institutional accounts.

About Franklin Templeton

Franklin Resources, Inc. [NYSE:BEN] is a global investment management organization operating as Franklin Templeton. Franklin Templeton’s goal is to deliver better outcomes by providing global and domestic investment management to retail, institutional and sovereign wealth clients in over 170 countries. Through specialized teams, the Company has expertise across all asset classes, including equity, fixed income, alternatives and custom multi-asset solutions. The Company’s more than 600 investment professionals are supported by its integrated, worldwide team of risk management professionals and global trading desk network. With employees in over 30 countries, the California-based company has more than 70 years of investment experience and approximately $688 billion in assets under management as of January 31, 2020.

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Franklin Templeton Corporate Communications: Stacey Coleman, [phone], [e-mail] Becky Radosevich, [phone], [e-mail]