Franklin hires Citic fund manager for Shanghai

Tony Zhang, portfolio manager at Citic Capital in Hong Kong, has left to join Franklin Templeton Sealand Fund Management in Shanghai, a joint venture between Franklin Templeton and Sealand Securities.

Jack Lin, the JV's CEO, says Zhang has recently started work in the Shanghai office. Zhang's role will be to manage the JV's inaugural mutual fund once it is launched. He will report to Stephen Dover, CIO at Franklin Templeton Sealand, who has been on the ground for some time. Dover transferred from Franklin Templeton's international base in San Mateo, California, as a veteran global manager for the organization.

Franklin Templeton Sealand has a preliminary license from the China Securities Regulatory Commission and expects to get an operating license soon, after which it can start launching products. CEO Lin declined to discuss the nature of the firm's product ideas or its distribution arrangements.

Zhang joined the newly founded Citic Capital in Hong Kong under Yeh Ching-ju, managing director of asset management. Yeh says the firm's four-person investment team is sufficient and won't seek to replace Zhang immediately.

Prior to that, he co-authored "Investment Funds in China" with Stuart Leckie (a book published by FinanceAsia). From 1993-98 he served as a fund manager at Newport Pacific Management in California.