Franklin Templeton’s SMA models find shelf space on Orion

Franklin Templeton is looking to enlarge its slice of the SMA pie as its models find another home with a leading fintech and TAMP provider.

On Tuesday, the leading asset manager announced that a wide range of its equity SMA models are now available on Orion’s wealth technology platforms.

This new offering will enhance advisors' access to Franklin Templeton’s diverse SMA products through the Orion Communities and Orion Portfolio Solutions platforms.

Orion Communities, which allows for significant flexibility and choice through its open-architecture model marketplace, provides advisors with a variety of investment models from across different providers. Meanwhile, the Orion Portfolio Solutions platform offers a curated list of research-backed, high-quality investment options.

Franklin Templeton’s equity SMA models are designed to deliver customized investment solutions by leveraging its in-house investment expertise.

The firms SMA models are also powered by investment managers it’s snapped up since 2020 including ClearBridge Investments, Putnam Investments, Martin Currie, and Royce Investment Partners.

Sam Marciano, head of SMA distribution at Franklin Templeton, said the move gives advisors on Orion’s platforms “a broader array of compelling options to meet their clients’ investment goals.”

“This launch underscores our commitment to expanding our reach within the advisor community by making our SMA models available on the platforms with which advisors are actively engaging,” he said in a statement on Wednesday.

Echoing the sentiment, Ron Pruitt, president of Orion Wealth Management, said the collaboration “aligns with our mission to build a wealth-tech community where every advisor and investor thrives.”

With over $137 billion in SMA assets under management as of March 31, Franklin Templeton has cemented itself as a key player in the growing SMA industry. In June, the firm rolled out a suite of tax-managed strategies on UBS Wealth Management’s SMA platforms through Canvas, its custom indexing solution.