Franklin unitholders to get Rs 1,200 cr in second tranche next week

Sources said SBI Funds Management will distribute the proceeds to unitholders following liquidation of some securities held under the scheme

Unitholders of Franklin India Ultra Short Bond Fund, which was shuttered last April, will get their second payment next week.

Sources said SBI Funds Management (SBI) will distribute Rs 1,200 crore to unitholders following liquidation of some securities held by the scheme.

“We have got the securities from Franklin Templeton MF a few days ago and have started to sell it. This week, we have sold a security with a Rs 10 crore profit. Our aim is to start the liquidation and return the money to investors as early as possible,” said a senior official from the SBI MF on condition of anonymity.

Earlier, SBI Funds Management had distributed Rs 9,122 crore to investors.

The Supreme Court on March 18 accepted the standard operating procedure (SOP) prepared by SBI Funds Management (SBI MF) to monetise assets and distribute the proceeds to unitholders of the six debt schemes of Franklin Templeton (FT) Mutual Fund.

FT had wound up six debt schemes with combined assets of Rs 25,800 crore on April 23, 2020, citing severe market dislocation and illiquidity caused by the covid-19 pandemic.

Sanjay Sapre, President, Franklin Templeton Asset Management (India) in its letter to investors on March 20 said that, “Our focus remains on liquidating the portfolio and returning monies at the earliest, while preserving value. We look forward to supporting SBI in the monetization of the portfolio and anticipate that active monetization will commence shortly.”

The letter also states that the net asset value (NAV) of all the six schemes, as on March 15, 2021 was higher than the NAV on April 23, 2020.