Franklin Templeton CEO warns rising capital costs will slow activities

Franklin Templeton CEO Jenny Johnson is sounding the alarm on what higher capital costs mean for the broader economy. In short: banks are getting pickier, borrowing is getting harder, and companies that need financing are being forced to look elsewhere. Johnson, who has led the $1.7 trillion asset management giant since February 2020, pointed to the post-Silicon Valley Bank regulatory environment and elevated interest rates as the twin forces squeezing traditional lending. Banks, she noted, now treat capital as “expensive and precious.” The lending squeeze and what’s filling the gap Franklin Templeton’s own numbers tell the story. The firm reported $18.4 billion in long-term net inflows for its fiscal third quarter of 2026, with alternative assets under management hitting a record $294.2 billion. Through the first three quarters of fiscal 2026, private markets fundraising reached $33.0 billion, already surpassing the firm’s annual targets with a quarter still to go. Total long-term net inflows for the same nine-month period came in at $63.3 billion. How Franklin Templeton got here Johnson’s warning isn’t abstract corporate commentary. It’s context for a strategic bet that Franklin ...