Bradley Carris is a vice president, portfolio manager and research analyst with Franklin Equity Group. He is a member of the Franklin Small Cap Growth portfolio management team. He specializes in research analysis of the specialty finance and bank industries while leading the financial and business services team. His prior research experience includes analysis of European communications service providers. Prior to his employment with Franklin Templeton Investments, Mr. Carris was a commissioned officer in the United States Navy and a manager for Accenture PLC's Communications and High Tech Industry Group. Mr. Carris joined Franklin Templeton in 2001 after receiving an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School. He received a B.A. from Duke University in 1992. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder and member of the CFA Society of San Francisco and the CFA Institute.

Mr. Swartz has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since December 2025. He joined Franklin Templeton in 2022. Prior to joining Franklin Templeton, Mr. Swartz was a vice president at BlackRock.