Franklin Boosted Ukraine Bet to $6 Billion as Selloff Began

Franklin Resources Inc.’s biggest funds ramped up their bet on Ukraine by more than $1.4 billion in the third quarter, adding to the asset manager’s status as the country’s largest international bondholder weeks before street protests deepened the worst rout in developing markets.

The U.S. and European versions of the Templeton Global Bond Fund and the Templeton Global Total Return Fund increased holdings of Ukrainian international dollar debt by $1.4 billion in face value to more than $6 billion, or about 40 percent of the country’s outstanding overseas securities, quarterly filings from the end of August and September show.