VON EMSTER JOINS VENTURE CAPITAL FIRM

(Fundsupermart.com) Franklin Templeton's lead manager for its Life Sciences Discovery Fund, Kurt von Emster, has quit. He left on 17 Nov. The company says that co-manager Evan McCulloch has taken over his role. It adds that as McCulloch has been a manager of the fund as well since its inception, von Emster's departure will not affect the running of the fund. The feeder unit trust, introduced here in June, invests in the US-registered Biotechnology Discovery Fund, which was one of the best performing biotechnology funds last year, racking up a return of 97.9%. And for this year, amidst the volatility, it has posted 44.8% so far, according to Dow Jones. The wire agency also reported that von Emster has joined a venture capital firm that specialises in seeding biotech and biopharmaceutical companies.

In a news release given to Fundsupermart, Franklin Templeton points out that the other members of the biotech team are still managing the fund. They include Paul Walker, Jake Nunn and Tom Hahn. Chief Investment Officer of Franklin equity funds, Ed Jamieson assures: ?We believe our healthcare and biotechnology research group remains among the best in the industry.?

SNAPSHOT OF THE TEAM

Evan McCulloch joined Franklin in 1992 and has over seven years? experience analysing healthcare securities. He holds a degree in Economics from University Of California at Berkeley, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

Paul Walker, also a CFA, has specialised in biotechnology and healthcare analysis since joining Franklin in 1996 with a degree in Biochemistry and Cell Biology from University of California at San Diego.

Jake Nunn, joined Franklin in 1998 and has several years? experience in healthcare and specialty pharmaceutical securities analysis, including a stint at Alex Brown in corporate finance where he specialised in emerging healthcare companies. He holds an M.B.A. from Stanford and a Bachelor Of Arts degree in Economics from Dartmouth College.

Tom Hahn, who concentrates on generic drug and biotechnology companies, has nearly three years of biotechnology industry experience and holds a degree in Biochemistry from Harvard.

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