Martin Currie

Investment decisions are made by the firm's specialist equity teams in Edinburgh, with portfolio managers running concentrated portfolios of 25–55 stocks across emerging markets and Asia Pacific mandates. The firm operates with portfolio-level autonomy under the Franklin Templeton umbrella, a structure that has persisted through two parent-company acquisitions. CEO Julian Ide oversees the business but day-to-day stock selection rests with the investment floor.

Martin Currie employs a research-led stock selection process that relies on fundamental, on-the-ground analysis rather than broker-driven consensus calls. Its investment teams, located in Edinburgh, Melbourne, and Singapore, conduct direct meetings with corporate management in Asia-Pacific markets. The firm has historically positioned its edge as originating from this local presence and long-tenured analyst coverage in less-followed emerging-market equities.

Martin Currie is neither a family office nor a venture firm. It is an institutional asset manager specializing in public equities, originally founded as an investment trust in Edinburgh in 1881. The firm runs long-only and long-short equity portfolios for pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and intermediary platforms globally.

Martin Currie invests exclusively in public equities through direct stock selection within its portfolio mandates. The firm does not operate as a fund-of-funds and does not make commitments to third-party private equity or venture capital vehicles. Its strategies are built around owning listed companies in global emerging markets and Asia Pacific, both in long-only and concentrated long-short structures.

Martin Currie was acquired by Legg Mason in 2014, and then by Franklin Templeton in 2020 when the California-based group purchased Legg Mason for $4.5 billion. Martin Currie now operates as a specialist equity capability within Franklin Templeton's multi-boutique structure, retaining its Edinburgh headquarters and brand identity. The firm's investment teams maintain portfolio-level autonomy despite sitting inside a $1.6 trillion parent.

Martin Currie invests exclusively in listed public equities and does not participate in private funding rounds or venture-stage investments. The firm targets established, publicly traded companies—primarily large-cap and mid-cap—across global emerging markets and Asia Pacific. Its concentrated mandates mean portfolios hold fewer than 60 names, favoring high-conviction positions over broad market exposure.

Martin Currie does not publicly publish a formal exclusion list, but its strategy is confined to listed equities and it does not operate in private equity, venture capital, real estate, or infrastructure. The firm does offer dedicated sustainable investing mandates, which incorporate ESG screens, but sector avoidance varies by client mandate rather than a firm-wide prohibition.