Kulkarni head of Templeton fixed income business

Franklin Templeton Investments has redesignated Samir Kulkarni as the head of fixed income at the Templeton AMC. He was earlier a senior portfolio manager.

Nilesh Shah, director and chief investment officer at Templeton, who headed the fixed income business earlier, has put in his papers.

Confirming the development, Ravi Mehrotra, president, Templeton AMC, said, "We had redesignated Samir Kulkarni as head of fixed income on the April 1. This was done after the excellent performance of the fixed income team."

He added that Kulkarni and Rahul Goswami, another fund manager, had played a significant role in managing the assets in an optimal manner.

When asked about the effect of Nilesh Shah's exit on Templeton and its investors, Mehrotra said that he did not see any significant impact on the business or the way the fixed income unit is managed. He added that Templeton followed a disciplined process driven and a team-based approach to investing.

Kulkarni will team up with R Sukumar, chief investment officer-equity, and Stephen Dover, international chief investment officer.