485BPOS2020-06-30false0000765485N-1AINSTITUTIONAL FIDUCIARY TRUST0.00000.00000.00000.00000.00000.00000.00000.00500.01470.018600007654852020-11-012020-11-010000765485ift:S000007358Memberift:MoneyMarketPortfolio14Member2020-11-012020-11-010000765485ift:S000007358Memberift:MoneyMarketPortfolio14Memberift:C000020209Member2020-11-012020-11-010000765485ift:S000007358Memberift:MoneyMarketPortfolio14Memberift:ReturnBeforeTaxesMemberift:C000020209Member2020-11-012020-11-01iso4217:USDxbrli:pure

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 27, 2020

 

File Nos. 002-96634

 811-04267

 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C.  20549

FORM N-1A

 

REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

[X]

 

Pre-Effective Amendment No.

 

Post-Effective Amendment No. 69

[X]

 

and/or

 

 

REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940

[X]

 

 

Amendment No. 70

[X]

 

INSTITUTIONAL FIDUCIARY TRUST

(Exact name of Registrant Specified in Charter)

 

ONE FRANKLIN PARKWAY, SAN MATEO, CA  94403-1906

(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)

 

(650)312-2000

(Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code)

 

CRAIG S. TYLE, ONE FRANKLIN PARKWAY, SAN MATEO, CA 94403-1906

(Name and Address of Agent for Service of Process)

 

Approximate Date of Proposed Public offering:

 

It is proposed that this filing will become effective (check appropriate box)

 

[ ]

immediately upon filing pursuant to paragraph (b)

[X]

on November 1, 2020 pursuant to paragraph (b)

[ ]

60 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a)(1)

[ ]

on (date)pursuant to paragraph (a)(1)

[ ]

75 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a)(2)

[ ]

on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a)(2) of rule 485

 

If appropriate, check the following box:

 

[ ]

This post-effective amendment designates a new effective date for a previously filed post-effective amendment

 

The Money Market Portfolios (the Master Fund) has executed this registration statement.

 

This Amendment to the Registrant’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A (the “Amendment”) relates only to the prospectus and statement of additional information (“SAI”) of the Money Market Portfolio Fund, a series of the Registrant and does not otherwise delete, amend, or supersede any information relating to any other series of the Registrant.  This Amendment updates the registration statement of the above-referenced series under the Securities Act of 1933, and the Investment Company Act of 1940.

     

 
 

Prospectus

 
 

Money Market Portfolio

Institutional Fiduciary Trust

November 1, 2020


Franklin Templeton
decorative graphic    


 
TICKER: INFXX 
 

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.


Internet Delivery of Fund Reports Unless You Request Paper Copies: Effective January 1, 2021, as permitted by the SEC, paper copies of the Fund's shareholder reports will no longer be sent by mail, unless you specifically request them from the Fund or your financial intermediary. Instead, the reports will be made available on a website, and you will be notified by mail each time a report is posted and provided with a website link to access the report.

If you already elected to receive shareholder reports electronically, you will not be affected by this change and you need not take any action. If you have not signed up for electronic delivery, we would encourage you to join fellow shareholders who have. You may elect to receive shareholder reports and other communications electronically from the Fund by calling (800) 321-8563 or by contacting your financial intermediary.

You may elect to continue to receive paper copies of all your future shareholder reports free of charge by contacting your financial intermediary or, if you invest directly with a Fund, calling (800) 321-8563 to let the Fund know of your request. Your election to receive reports in paper will apply to all funds held in your account.

140 P 11/20

Contents

   
 

Fund Summary

Information about the Fund you should know before investing

   

Investment Goal
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
Principal Investment Strategies
Principal Risks
Performance
Investment Manager
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Taxes
Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

 

Fund Details

More information on investment policies, practices and risks/financial highlights

   

Investment Goal
Principal Investment Policies and Practices
Principal Risks
Management
Distributions and Taxes
Financial Highlights

 

Your Account

Information about account transactions and services

   

Buying Shares
Investor Services
Selling Shares
Exchanging Shares
Account Policies
Questions

 

For More Information

Where to learn more about the Fund

   

Back Cover

 



Fund Summary

Investment Goal

To provide investors with as high a level of current income as is consistent with the preservation of shareholders’ capital and liquidity. The Fund also tries to maintain a stable $1.00 share price.

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

These tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund.


Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases None


Annual Fund Operating Expenses

(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Management fees 0.15%
Other expenses 0.20%
Total annual Fund operating expenses1 0.35%

1. The fees and expenses shown in the table and included in the example below reflect the fees and expenses of both the Fund and The U.S. Government Money Market Portfolio (Master Portfolio), in which the Fund seeks to invest all of its assets in order to pursue its investment goal.

Example

This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of the period. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

  1 Year 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years
  $ 36 $ 113 $ 197 $ 443

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund is a "feeder fund" that invests, through the Master Portfolio, at least 99.5% of its total assets in Government securities, cash and repurchase agreements collateralized fully by Government securities or cash. For purposes of this policy, “Government securities” means any securities issued or guaranteed as to principal or interest by the United States, or by a person controlled or supervised by and acting as an instrumentality of the Government of the United States pursuant to authority granted by the Congress of the United States; or any certificate of deposit for any of the foregoing. Government securities include those issued by government agencies or instrumentalities, such as the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), Federal Home Loan Banks and Federal Farm Credit Banks, whose securities are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. Government. The Fund intends to be a “Government money market fund,” as such term is defined in or interpreted under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Shareholders will be given at least 60 days’ advance notice of any change to the 99.5% policy.

The Fund uses the amortized cost method of valuation to seek to maintain a stable $1.00 share price and does not currently intend to impose liquidity fees or redemption gates on Fund redemptions. Please note, however, that the board of trustees reserves the ability to subject the Fund to a liquidity fee and/or redemption gate in the future, after providing prior notice to shareholders.

Unless the context otherwise requires, references to the Fund's investments refer to those investments of the Master Portfolio to which the Fund is exposed and references to the investment manager or the Fund's investment manager refer to the Master Portfolio's investment manager.

The Fund invests in:

U.S. government securities which may include fixed, floating and variable rate securities.

Repurchase agreements which are agreements by the Fund to buy Government securities and then to sell the securities back on an agreed upon date (generally, less than seven days) at a higher price, which reflects prevailing short-term interest rates.

Portfolio maturity and quality The Fund only buys securities that the investment manager determines present minimal credit risks. The Fund maintains a dollar-weighted average portfolio maturity of 60 calendar days or less, maintains a dollar-weighted average life for its portfolio of 120 calendar days or less, and only buys securities that mature or are deemed to mature in 397 calendar days or less.

Principal Risks

You could lose money by investing in the Fund. Although the Fund seeks to preserve the value of your investment at $1.00 per share, it cannot guarantee it will do so. An investment in the Fund is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. The Fund’s sponsor has no legal obligation to provide financial support to the Fund, and you should not expect that the sponsor will provide financial support to the Fund at any time.

Interest Rate When interest rates rise, debt security prices generally fall. The opposite is also generally true: debt security prices rise when interest rates fall. Interest rate changes are influenced by a number of factors including government policy, monetary policy, inflation expectations, perceptions of risk, and supply and demand of debt securities. In general, securities with longer maturities or durations are more sensitive to these interest rate changes. The Fund’s yield will vary. A low interest rate environment may prevent the Fund from providing a positive yield or paying Fund expenses out of current income and could impair the Fund’s ability to maintain a stable net asset value. A sharp and unexpected rise in interest rates could cause the Fund’s share price to drop below a dollar.

Credit U.S. government investments generally have the least credit risk but are not completely free of credit risk. The Fund may incur losses on debt securities that are inaccurately perceived to present a different amount of credit risk by the market, the investment manager or the rating agencies than such securities actually do. Any downgrade of securities issued by the U.S. government may result in a downgrade of securities issued by its agencies or instrumentalities.

Income Because the Fund can only distribute what it earns, the Fund’s distributions to shareholders may decline when prevailing interest rates fall. Because the Fund limits its investments to high-quality, short-term securities, its portfolio generally will earn lower yields than a portfolio with lower-quality, longer-term securities subject to more risk.

U.S. Government Securities Not all obligations of the U.S. Government, its agencies and instrumentalities are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. Some obligations are backed only by the credit of the issuing agency or instrumentality, and in some cases there may be some risk of default by the issuer. Government agency or instrumentality issues have different levels of credit support. U.S. government-sponsored entities ("GSEs"), such as Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), may be chartered by Acts of Congress, but their securities are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. government. Although the U.S. government has provided financial support to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and certain other GSEs, no assurance can be given that the U.S. government will continue to do so. Accordingly, securities issued by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may involve a risk of non-payment of principal and interest. Investors should remember that guarantees of timely repayment of principal and interest do not apply to the market prices and yields of the securities or to the net asset value or performance of the Fund, which will vary with changes in interest rates and other market conditions.

Repurchase Agreements A repurchase agreement exposes the Fund to the risk that the party that sells the securities to the Fund may default on its obligation to repurchase them.

Market The market values of securities or other investments owned by the Fund will go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. The market value of a security or other investment may be reduced by market activity or other results of supply and demand unrelated to the issuer. This is a basic risk associated with all investments. When there are more sellers than buyers, prices tend to fall. Likewise, when there are more buyers than sellers, prices tend to rise.

Master/Feeder Structure The Fund seeks to achieve its investment goal by investing all of its assets in shares of the Master Portfolio. The Master Portfolio has the same investment goal and policies as the Fund. The Fund buys shares of the Master Portfolio at net asset value. An investment in the Fund is an indirect investment in the Master Portfolio. It is possible that the Fund may have to withdraw its investment in the Master Portfolio if the Master Portfolio changes its investment goal or if the Fund’s board of trustees, at any time, considers it to be in the Fund’s best interest.

Management The Fund is subject to management risk because it is exposed to an actively managed investment portfolio. The investment manager applies investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Master Portfolio, but there can be no guarantee that these decisions will produce the desired results.

Performance

The following bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows changes in the Fund's performance from year to year for shares. The table shows the Fund's average annual returns for 1 year, 5 years, 10 years or since inception, as applicable. The Fund's past performance is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. You can obtain updated performance information at ftinstitutional.com or by calling (800) 321-8563.

Annual Total Returns

Image

Best Quarter: June 30, 2019 0.51%
Worst Quarter: September 30, 2016 0.00%
As of September 30, 2020, the Fund's year-to-date return was 0.26%.


Average Annual Total Returns

For the periods ended December 31, 2019

  1 Year 5 Years 10 Years
Money Market Portfolio 1.86% 0.77% 0.38%

To obtain the Fund’s current yield information, please call (800) 321-8563.

Investment Manager

Franklin Advisers, Inc. (Advisers) (Master Portfolio's investment manager)

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

You may purchase or redeem shares of the Fund on any business day by mail (Franklin Templeton Institutional Services, One Franklin Parkway, San Mateo, CA 94403-1906), or by telephone at (800) 321-8563. The minimum initial purchase for most accounts is $100,000. There is no minimum investment for subsequent purchases.

Taxes

The Fund's distributions are generally taxable to you as ordinary income, unless you are investing through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account, in which case your distributions would generally be taxed when withdrawn from the tax-deferred account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and
Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your financial advisor or visit your financial intermediary's website for more information.



Fund Details

Investment Goal

The Fund's investment goal is to provide investors with as high a level of current income as is consistent with the preservation of shareholders' capital and liquidity. The Fund also tries to maintain a stable $1.00 share price.

Principal Investment Policies and Practices

The Fund is a "feeder fund" that invests, through The U.S. Government Money Market Portfolio (Master Portfolio), at least 99.5% of its total assets in Government securities, cash and repurchase agreements collateralized fully by Government securities or cash. For purposes of this policy, “Government securities” means any securities issued or guaranteed as to principal or interest by the United States, or by a person controlled or supervised by and acting as an instrumentality of the Government of the United States pursuant to authority granted by the Congress of the United States; or any certificate of deposit for any of the foregoing. Government securities include those issued by government agencies or instrumentalities, such as Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), Federal Home Loan Banks and Federal Farm Credit Banks, whose securities are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. government.The Fund intends to be a “Government money market fund,” as such term is defined in or interpreted under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Shareholders will be given at least 60 days’ advance notice of any change to the 99.5% policy.

The Fund uses the amortized cost method of valuation to seek to maintain a stable $1.00 share price and does not currently intend to impose liquidity fees or redemption gates on Fund redemptions. Please note, however, that the board of trustees reserves the ability to subject the Fund to a liquidity fee and/or redemption gate in the future, after providing prior notice to shareholders.

Unless the context otherwise requires, references to the Fund's investments refer to those investments of the Master Portfolio to which the Fund is exposed and references to the investment manager or the Fund's investment manager refer to the Master Portfolio's investment manager.

The Fund invests in:

U.S. government securities which may include fixed, floating and variable rate securities.

Repurchase agreements which are agreements by the Fund to buy Government securities and then to sell the securities back on an agreed upon date (generally, less than seven days) at a higher price, which reflects prevailing short-term interest rates.

Portfolio maturity and quality The Fund only buys securities that the investment manager determines present minimal credit risks. The Fund maintains a dollar-weighted average portfolio maturity of 60 calendar days or less, maintains a dollar-weighted average life for its portfolio of 120 calendar days or less, and only buys securities that mature or are deemed to mature in 397 calendar days or less.

Temporary Investments

When the investment manager believes market or economic conditions are unusual or unfavorable for investors, the investment manager may invest up to 100% of the Fund's assets in a temporary defensive manner by holding all or a substantial portion of its assets in cash. The investment manager may also hold cash when securities meeting the Fund's investment criteria are unavailable or to maintain liquidity. In these circumstances, the Fund may be unable to achieve its investment goal.

Principal Risks

Interest Rate

Interest rate changes can be sudden and unpredictable, and are influenced by a number of factors including government policy, monetary policy, inflation expectations, perceptions of risk, and supply and demand of debt securities. Changes in government or central bank monetary policy, including changes in tax policy or changes in a central bank’s implementation of specific policy goals, may have a substantial impact on interest rates. There can be no guarantee that any particular government or central bank policy will be continued, discontinued or changed or that any such policy will have the desired effect on interest rates. Debt securities generally tend to lose market value when interest rates rise and increase in value when interest rates fall. A rise in interest rates also has the potential to cause investors to rapidly move out of fixed-income securities. A substantial increase in interest rates may also have an adverse impact on the liquidity of a security, especially those with longer maturities or durations. Securities with longer maturities or durations or lower coupons or that make little (or no) interest payments before maturity tend to be more sensitive to these interest rate changes.

The Fund’s yield will vary; it is not fixed for a specific period like the yield on a bank certificate of deposit. A low interest rate environment may prevent the Fund from providing a positive yield or paying Fund expenses out of current income and could impair the Fund’s ability to maintain a stable net asset value. A sharp and unexpected rise in interest rates could cause the Fund’s share price to drop below a dollar. However, the short maturities of the securities held in the Fund’s portfolio reduce their potential for price fluctuation.

Credit

U.S. government investments generally have the least credit risk but are not completely free of credit risk. The Fund may incur losses on debt securities that are inaccurately perceived to present a different amount of credit risk by the market, the investment manager or the rating agencies than such securities actually do. Any downgrade of securities issued by the U.S. government may result in a downgrade of securities issued by its agencies or instrumentalities.

Income

The Fund's distributions to shareholders may decline when prevailing interest rates fall, when the Fund experiences defaults on debt securities it holds or when the Fund realizes a loss upon the sale of a debt security. The Fund’s income generally declines during periods of falling interest rates because the Fund must reinvest the proceeds it receives from existing investments (upon their maturity, prepayment, amortization, call or buy-back) at a lower rate of interest or return. Because the Fund limits its investments to high-quality, short-term securities, its portfolio generally will earn lower yields than a portfolio with lower-quality, longer-term securities subject to more risk.

U.S. Government Securities

Not all obligations of the U.S. Government, its agencies and instrumentalities are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. Some obligations are backed only by the credit of the issuing agency or instrumentality, and in some cases there may be some risk of default by the issuer. Government agency or instrumentality issues have different levels of credit support. U.S. government-sponsored entities ("GSEs"), such as Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), may be chartered by Acts of Congress, but their securities are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. government. Although the U.S. government has provided financial support to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and certain other GSEs, no assurance can be given that the U.S. government will continue to do so. Accordingly, securities issued by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may involve a risk of non-payment of principal and interest. Investors should remember that guarantees of timely repayment of principal and interest do not apply to the market prices and yields of the securities or to the net asset value or performance of the Fund, which will vary with changes in interest rates and other market conditions.

Repurchase Agreements

A repurchase agreement exposes the Fund to the risk that the party that sells the securities to the Fund may default on its obligation to repurchase them.

Market

The market values of securities or other investments owned by the Fund will go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. The Fund’s investments may decline in value due to factors affecting individual issuers (such as the results of supply and demand), or sectors within the securities markets. The value of a security or other investment also may go up or down due to general market conditions that are not specifically related to a particular issuer, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions, changes in interest rates or exchange rates, or adverse investor sentiment generally. In addition, unexpected events and their aftermaths, such as the spread of diseases; natural, environmental or man-made disasters; financial, political or social disruptions; terrorism and war; and other tragedies or catastrophes, can cause investor fear and panic, which can adversely affect the economies of many companies, sectors, nations, regions and the market in general, in ways that cannot necessarily be foreseen. During a general downturn in the securities markets, multiple asset classes may decline in value. When markets perform well, there can be no assurance that securities or other investments held by the Fund will participate in or otherwise benefit from the advance.

Master/Feeder Structure

The Fund seeks to achieve its investment goal by investing all of its assets in shares of the Master Portfolio. The Master Portfolio has the same investment goal and policies as the Fund. The Fund buys shares of the Master Portfolio at net asset value. An investment in the Fund is an indirect investment in the Master Portfolio.

It is possible that the Fund may have to withdraw its investment in the Master Portfolio if the Master Portfolio changes its investment goal or if the Fund's board of trustees, at any time, considers it to be in the Fund's best interest.

Management

The Fund is exposed to an actively managed investment portfolio and could experience losses (realized and unrealized) if the investment manager's judgment about markets, interest rates or the attractiveness, relative values, liquidity, or potential appreciation of particular investments made for the Master Portfolio prove to be incorrect. There can be no guarantee that these techniques or the investment manager's investment decisions will produce the desired results. Additionally, legislative, regulatory, or tax developments may affect the investment techniques available to the investment manager in connection with managing the Master Portfolio and may also adversely affect the ability of the Fund to achieve its investment goal.

More detailed information about the Fund and its policies and risks can be found in the Fund's Statement of Additional Information (SAI).

A description of the Fund's policies and procedures regarding the release of portfolio holdings information is also available in the Fund's SAI. Portfolio holdings information can be viewed online at ftinstitutional.com.

Management

Franklin Advisers, Inc. (Advisers), One Franklin Parkway, San Mateo, CA 94403-1906, is the Master Portfolio's investment manager. Advisers is a wholly owned subsidiary of Franklin Resources, Inc. (Resources). Together, Advisers and its affiliates manage, as of September 30, 2020, over $1.41 trillion in assets, and have been in the investment management business since 1947.

The Master Portfolio pays Advisers a fee for managing the Master Portfolio's assets. For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2020, the Master Portfolio's management fees were 0.15% of the Master Portfolio's average daily net assets.

In efforts to prevent a negative yield, management (i.e., the investment manager and certain of its affiliates) has voluntarily agreed to waive or limit its fees, assume as its own expense certain expenses otherwise payable by the Fund or the Master Portfolio, and if necessary, make a capital infusion into the Fund or the Master Portfolio. These waivers, expense reimbursements and capital infusions are voluntary and may be modified or discontinued by management at any time and without further notice. There is no guarantee that the Fund or the Master Portfolio will be able to avoid a negative yield. With these reductions, net Fund operating expenses for the fiscal year were as shown in the Financial Highlights.

A discussion regarding the basis for the approval of the investment management contract for the Master Portfolio is available in the Fund's annual report to shareholders for the fiscal year ended June 30.

Manager of Managers Structure

The investment manager and the Master Portfolio have received an exemptive order from the SEC that allows the Master Portfolio to operate in a “manager of managers” structure whereby the investment manager can appoint and replace both wholly-owned and unaffiliated sub-advisors, and enter into, amend and terminate sub-advisory agreements with such sub-advisors, each subject to board approval but without obtaining prior shareholder approval (Manager of Managers Structure). The Master Portfolio will, however, inform shareholders of the hiring of any new sub-advisor within 90 days after the hiring. The SEC exemptive order provides the Master Portfolio with greater flexibility and efficiency by preventing the Master Portfolio from incurring the expense and delays associated with obtaining shareholder approval of such sub-advisory agreements.

The use of the Manager of Managers Structure with respect to the Master Portfolio is subject to certain conditions that are set forth in the SEC exemptive order. Under the Manager of Managers Structure, the investment manager has the ultimate responsibility, subject to oversight by the Master Portfolio’s board of trustees, to oversee sub-advisors and recommend their hiring, termination and replacement. The investment manager will also, subject to the review and approval of the Master Portfolio’s board of trustees: set the Master Portfolio’s overall investment strategy; evaluate, select and recommend sub-advisors to manage all or a portion of the Master Portfolio’s assets; and implement procedures reasonably designed to ensure that each sub-advisor complies with the Master Portfolio’s investment goal, policies and restrictions. Subject to review by the Master Portfolio’s board of trustees, the investment manager will allocate and, when appropriate, reallocate the Master Portfolio’s assets among sub-advisors and monitor and evaluate the sub-advisors’ performance.

Distributions and Taxes

Income and Capital Gain Distributions

As a regulated investment company, the Fund generally pays no federal income tax on the income and gains it distributes to you. The Fund intends to declare income dividends from its net investment income each day that its net asset value (NAV) is calculated and pay them monthly. Your account begins to receive dividends on the day the Fund receives your investment and continues to receive dividends through the day before it receives a request to sell your shares. Capital gains, if any, may be paid at least annually. The Fund may distribute income dividends and capital gains more frequently, if necessary, in order to reduce or eliminate federal excise or income taxes on the Fund. The amount of any distribution will vary, and there is no guarantee the Fund will pay either income dividends or capital gain distributions. Your income dividends and capital gain distributions will be automatically reinvested in additional shares at NAV unless you elect to receive them in cash.

Annual statements. After the close of each calendar year, you will receive tax information from the Fund with respect to the federal income tax treatment of the Fund’s distributions occurring during the prior calendar year. If the Fund finds it necessary to reclassify its distributions after you receive your tax information, the Fund will send you revised tax information. Distributions declared in December to shareholders of record in such month and paid in January are taxable as if they were paid in December.

Tax Considerations

If you are a taxable investor, Fund distributions are generally taxable to you as ordinary income. This is the case whether you reinvest your distributions in additional Fund shares or receive them in cash.

Dividend income. Income dividends are generally subject to tax at ordinary rates. Because the Fund invests primarily in debt securities indirectly through its investment in the Master Portfolio, it is expected that none of the Fund's income dividends will be qualified dividends subject to reduced rates of taxation to individuals. A return-of-capital distribution is generally not taxable but will reduce the cost basis of your shares, and will result in a higher capital gain or a lower capital loss when you later sell your shares.

Capital gains. Fund distributions of short-term capital gains are also subject to tax at ordinary rates. Because the Fund is a money market fund, it does not expect to realize and distribute any long-term capital gains on its investments.

Sales of Fund shares. Because the Fund seeks to maintain a $1.00 per share NAV, sales of its shares will not generally result in a taxable capital gain or loss for federal or state income tax purposes.

Medicare tax. An additional 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on certain net investment income (including ordinary dividends and capital gain distributions received from the Fund and net gains from redemptions or other taxable dispositions of Fund shares) of U.S. individuals, estates and trusts to the extent that such person’s “modified adjusted gross income” (in the case of an individual) or “adjusted gross income” (in the case of an estate or trust) exceeds a threshold amount. Any liability for this additional Medicare tax is reported on, and paid with, your federal income tax return.

Backup withholding. A shareholder may be subject to backup withholding on any distributions of income and capital gains if the shareholder has provided either an incorrect tax identification number or no number at all, is subject to backup withholding by the IRS for failure to properly report payments of interest or dividends, has failed to certify that the shareholder is not subject to backup withholding, or has not certified that the shareholder is a U.S. person (including a U.S. resident alien). The backup withholding rate is currently 24%. State backup withholding may also apply.

State and local taxes. Distributions of ordinary income and capital gains, if any, are generally subject to state and local taxes. However distributions of ordinary income paid to individual shareholders from interest earned by the Master Portfolio on certain U.S. Government obligations may be exempt from state and local income taxation depending on the state. Since the Fund invests in U.S. government obligations indirectly by investing in the Master Portfolio, shareholders should contact their tax advisors with respect to the state and local income tax consequences of investing in the Fund, including whether Fund dividends derived from interest on U.S. government obligations held by the Master Portfolio qualify for tax free treatment.

Non-U.S. investors. Non-U.S. investors may be subject to U.S. withholding tax at 30% or a lower treaty rate on Fund dividends of ordinary income. Non-U.S. investors may be subject to U.S. estate tax on the value of their shares. They are subject to special U.S. tax certification requirements to avoid backup withholding, claim any exemptions from withholding and claim any treaty benefits. Exemptions from U.S. withholding tax are generally provided for capital gains realized on the sale of Fund shares, capital gain dividends paid by the Fund from net long-term capital gains, short-term capital gain dividends paid by the Fund from net short-term capital gains and interest-related dividends paid by the Fund from its qualified net interest income from U.S. sources. However, notwithstanding such exemptions from U.S. withholding tax at source, any such dividends and distributions of income and capital gains will be subject to backup withholding at a rate of 24% if you fail to properly certify that you are not a U.S. person.

Other reporting and withholding requirements. Payments to a shareholder that is either a foreign financial institution or a non-financial foreign entity within the meaning of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) may be subject to a 30% withholding tax on income dividends paid by the Fund. The FATCA withholding tax generally can be avoided by such foreign entity if it provides the Fund, and in some cases, the IRS, information concerning the ownership of certain foreign financial accounts or other appropriate certifications or documentation concerning its status under FATCA. The Fund may be required to report certain shareholder account information to the IRS, non-U.S. taxing authorities or other parties to comply with FATCA.

Other tax information. This discussion of "Distributions and Taxes" is for general information only and is not tax advice. You should consult your own tax advisor regarding your particular circumstances, and about any federal, state, local and foreign tax consequences before making an investment in the Fund. Additional information about the tax consequences of investing in the Fund may be found in the SAI.

Financial Highlights

The Financial Highlights present the Fund's financial performance for the past five years or since its inception. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Fund share. The total returns represent the rate that an investor would have earned or lost on an investment in the Fund assuming reinvestment of dividends. This information has been audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, whose report, along with the Fund's financial statements, are included in the annual report, which is available upon request.

  Year Ended June 30,
  2020 2019 2018 2017 2016
Per share operating performance
(for a share outstanding throughout the year)
         
Net asset value, beginning of year $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00
Income from investment operations:          
Net investment income 0.011 0.019 0.009 0.002
Less distributions from:          
Net investment income -0.011 -0.019 -0.009 -0.002
Net asset value, end of year $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00 $ 1.00
Total return 1.10% 1.90% 0.94% 0.16% —%
Ratios to average net assets          
Expenses before waiver and payments by affiliatesa 0.35% 0.35% 0.35% 0.35% 0.35%
Expenses net of waiver and payments by affiliatesa 0.33% 0.35% 0.35% 0.34% 0.19%
Net investment income 1.17% 1.88% 0.95% 0.17% —%
Supplemental data          
Net assets, end of year (000’s) $ 14,571,556 $ 20,274,082 $ 20,728,903 $ 18,970,507 $ 19,608,162

a. The expense ratio includes the Fund's share of the Portfolio's allocated expenses.


Your Account

Buying Shares

The Fund is available for investment by individuals and institutional investors, such as corporations, banks, savings and loan associations, trust companies, and other institutional and government entities, for investment of their own capital and of monies held in accounts for which they act in a fiduciary, advisory, agency, custodial, or other similar capacity. Fund shares are offered without a sales charge.


Minimum Investments

  Initial
Regular accounts $ 100,000
States, counties, cities and their instrumentalities, departments, agencies and authorities $ 1,000

Please note that you may only buy shares (including the purchase side of an exchange) of a fund eligible for sale in your state or jurisdiction. The Fund and other Franklin Templeton funds are intended for sale to residents of the United States, and, with very limited exceptions, are not registered or otherwise offered for sale in other jurisdictions.

In particular, the Fund is not registered in any provincial or territorial jurisdiction in Canada, and shares of the Fund have not been qualified for sale in any Canadian jurisdiction. The shares offered by this prospectus may not be directly or indirectly offered or sold in any provincial or territorial jurisdiction in Canada or to or for the benefit of residents thereof. Prospective investors may be required to declare that they are not Canadian residents and are not acquiring shares on behalf of any Canadian residents. Similarly, the Fund is not registered, and shares of the Fund have not been qualified for distribution, in any member country of the European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA), and may not be directly or indirectly offered or distributed in any such country. If an investor becomes a Canadian, EU or EEA resident after purchasing shares of the Fund, the investor will not be able to purchase any additional shares of the Fund (other than reinvestment of dividends and capital gains) or exchange shares of the Fund for other U.S. registered Franklin Templeton funds.

The Fund does not permit investments by futures commission merchants or derivatives clearing organizations for their futures customers.

Certain Franklin Templeton funds offer multiple share classes not offered by this Fund. Please note that for selling or exchanging your shares, or for other purposes, the Fund's shares are considered Class A shares.

Many of the Fund's investments, through the Master Portfolio, must be paid for in federal funds, which are monies held by the Fund's custodian on deposit at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and elsewhere. The Fund generally cannot invest money it receives from you until it is available to the Fund in federal funds, which may take up to two days. Until then, your purchase may not be considered in proper form. If the Fund is able to make investments within one business day, it may accept your order with payment in other than federal funds.

Franklin Templeton funds include all of the U.S. registered mutual funds of Franklin Templeton. They do not include the funds in the Franklin Templeton Variable Insurance Products Trust.

Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees

The Fund has a distribution plan, sometimes known as a Rule 12b-1 plan, that allows the Fund to pay distribution and other fees of up to 0.15% per year for the sale of shares and for services provided to shareholders. No payments have been made for 12b-1 expenses since inception and the Fund has no intention to use the Rule 12b-1 plan.

Account Application

If you are opening a new account, please complete and sign an Institutional Account Application. Institutional applications can be obtained by calling Institutional Services at (800) 321-8563. We do not accept cash, credit card convenience checks, pre-paid debit cards, non-bank money orders, travelers checks or checks drawn from foreign banks as forms of payment to purchase shares.

Buying Shares

  Opening an account Adding to an account

Through your investment representative

Contact your investment representative

Contact your investment representative

By Mail

Make your check, Federal Reserve Draft or negotiable bank draft payable to the Fund. Instruments drawn on other mutual funds may not be accepted.

Mail the check, Federal Reserve Draft or negotiable bank draft and your signed account application to Institutional Services.

Make your check, Federal Reserve Draft or negotiable bank draft payable to the Fund. Include your account number on the check or draft.

Fill out the deposit slip from your account statement. If you do not have a slip, include a note with your name, the Fund name, and your account number.

Mail the check, Federal Reserve Draft or negotiable bank draft and deposit slip or note to Institutional Services.

By Wire
See "Holiday Schedule" under "Account Policies"
(800) 321-8563
or (916) 463-5078 collect

Call by 11:15 a.m. Pacific time to receive that day's credit and be eligible to receive that day's dividend. The Fund will supply a wire control number and wire instructions.

Wire the funds and mail your signed account application to Institutional Services. For investments over $100,000, you also need to complete the Institutional Telephone Privileges section of the application. Please include the wire control number or your new account number on the application.

To make a same day wire investment, the wired funds must be received and accepted by us prior to 1 p.m. Pacific time or the regularly scheduled close of the New York Stock Exchange, whichever is earlier.

Call by 11:15 a.m. Pacific time to receive that day's credit and be eligible to receive that day's dividend. The Fund will supply a wire control number and wire instructions.

Wire the funds to Institutional Services. For investments over $100,000, you also need to complete the Institutional Telephone Privileges section of the application.

To make a same day wire investment, the wired funds must be received and accepted by us prior to 1 p.m. Pacific time or the regularly scheduled close of the New York Stock Exchange, whichever is earlier.

By Exchange
(800) 321-8563
or (916) 463-5078 collect

Call Institutional Services at (800) 321-8563, or send signed written instructions.

For requests over $100,000, you must complete the Institutional Telephone Privileges section of the application.

(Please see “Exchanging Shares” for more information on exchanges.)

Call Institutional Services at (800) 321-8563, or send signed written instructions.

For requests over $100,000, you must complete the Institutional Telephone Privileges section of the application.

(Please see “Exchanging Shares” for more information on exchanges.)

Franklin Templeton Institutional Services
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Call toll-free: (800) 321-8563

Investor Services

Automated Telephone System

Our automated system offers around-the-clock access to information about your account or any Franklin Templeton fund. This service is available by dialing any of the following numbers from a touch-tone phone:

Shareholder Services (800) 632-2301
Advisor Services (800) 524-4040
Retirement Services (800) 527-2020

Distribution Options

You may reinvest distributions you receive from the Fund, you can have your distributions mailed by check or you can have your distributions wired to you.

Please indicate on your application the distribution option you have chosen, otherwise we will reinvest your distributions in the Fund. If you choose not to reinvest your distributions, the Fund will distribute distributions paid during the month as directed on the last business day of each month.

Telephone/Online Privileges

You will automatically receive telephone privileges when you open your account, allowing you and your investment representative to sell or exchange your shares and make certain other changes to your account by phone.

For accounts with more than one registered owner, telephone privileges also allow the Fund to accept written instructions signed by only one owner for transactions and account changes that could otherwise be made by phone. For all other transactions and changes, all registered owners must sign the instructions. In addition, our telephone exchange privilege allows you to exchange shares by phone from a fund account requiring two or more signatures into an identically registered money fund account requiring only one signature for all transactions. This type of telephone exchange is available as long as you have telephone exchange privileges on your account.

As long as we follow reasonable security procedures and act on instructions we reasonably believe are genuine, we will not be responsible for any losses that may occur from unauthorized requests. We will request passwords or other information, and also may record calls. We have the right (but have no obligation) to refuse a telephone request if the caller is unable to provide the requested information or if we reasonably believe the caller is not an individual authorized to act on the account. To help safeguard your account, keep your password confidential, and verify the accuracy of your confirmation statements immediately after you receive them. Contact us immediately if you believe someone has obtained unauthorized access to your account or password. Certain methods of contacting us (such as by phone) may be unavailable or delayed during periods of unusual market activity. Of course, you can decline telephone exchange or sell privileges on your account application. If you have telephone privileges on your account and want to discontinue them, please contact us for instructions. You may reinstate these privileges at any time in writing.

Note: Digital communication channels are not necessarily secure. If you do choose to send confidential or sensitive information to us via digital communication channels (e.g. email, chat, text messaging, fax), you are accepting the associated risks related to potential lack of security, such as the possibility that your confidential or sensitive information may be intercepted/accessed by a third party and subsequently used or sold.

You may also view your account information online by registering for this service on our website at ftinstitutional.com. You will be asked to accept the terms of an online agreement and establish a password. However, this does not allow you to perform any transactions or account changes allowable by phone.

The telephone transaction options available to retirement plans are limited to those that are provided under the plan.

Franklin Templeton VIP Services®

You may be eligible for Franklin Templeton VIP Services® if you are currently eligible for the $500,000 sales charge breakpoint for Franklin Templeton fixed income funds based solely on shares registered directly with the Franklin Templeton funds' transfer agent and excluding shares held indirectly through brokerage accounts. Franklin Templeton VIP Services® shareholders enjoy enhanced service and transaction capabilities. Please contact Shareholder Services at (800) 632-2301 for additional information on this program.

Selling Shares

You can sell your shares at any time.

Selling Shares in Writing

Generally, requests to sell $100,000 or less can be made over the phone or in writing. With an Institutional Telephone Privileges Agreement form on file you may redeem amounts of over $100,000. Sometimes, however, to protect you and the Fund we will need written instructions signed by all registered owners, with a signature guarantee for each owner, if:

We also may require a signature guarantee when: we receive instructions from an agent, not the registered owners; you want to send your proceeds to a bank account that was added or changed on your account without a signature guarantee within the last 15 days; you want to send proceeds to your address that was changed without a signature guarantee within the last 15 days; or we believe it would protect the Fund against potential claims based on the instructions received.

The amount may be higher for members of Franklin Templeton VIP Services®. Please see “Franklin Templeton VIP Services®” above for more information regarding eligibility.

A signature guarantee helps protect your account against fraud. You can obtain a signature guarantee at most banks and securities dealers.

A notary public CANNOT provide a signature guarantee.

Selling Recently Purchased Shares

If you sell shares recently purchased with a check or draft, we may delay sending you the proceeds until your check or draft has cleared, which may take seven business days.

Redemption Proceeds

Your redemption check will be sent within seven days after we receive your request in proper form. We are not able to receive or pay out cash in the form of currency.

Contingent Deferred Sales Charge (CDSC)

Most Franklin Templeton funds impose a 1% CDSC on certain investments of Class A shares sold within 18 months of purchase. While the Fund generally does not have a CDSC, it will impose one if you sell shares exchanged into the Fund from another Franklin Templeton fund and those shares would have been assessed a CDSC in the other fund.

The CDSC is based on the current value of the shares being sold or their net asset value when purchased, whichever is less. To keep your CDSC as low as possible, each time you place a request to sell shares we will first sell any shares in your account that are not subject to a CDSC. If there are not enough of these to meet your request, we will sell the shares in the order they were purchased.

Selling Shares


To sell some or all of your shares

Through your investment representative

Contact your investment representative

By Mail

Send written instructions to Institutional Services. Corporate, partnership or trust accounts may need to send additional documents.

Specify the Fund, the account number and the dollar value or number of shares you wish to sell. Be sure to include all necessary signatures and any additional documents, as well as signature guarantees if required.

A check will be mailed to the name(s) and address on the account, or otherwise according to your written instructions.

By Wire

(800) 321-8563See "Holiday Schedule" under "Account Policies"

As long as your transaction is for $100,000 or less, or you have completed the Institutional Telephone Privileges section of the application, you can call or write to have redemption proceeds wired to you. If you have changed your address within the last 15 days without a signature guarantee, requests to sell your shares and mail the check to the name(s) and address on the account must be in writing and we may require a signature guarantee. If requested, redemption proceeds may also be wired directly to a commercial bank previously designated by you on an application, or in a signature-guaranteed letter of instruction. A payment may be transmitted by wire the same business day if the phone request is received before 11:15 a.m. Pacific time. For later requests, payments will be transmitted by wire on the following business day. If you anticipate requesting a same day wire redemption over $5 million, please notify the Fund about this on the prior business day. In order to maximize efficient Fund management, please request your same day wire redemption (regardless of size) as early in the day as possible. Prior business day notification of the trade may be required.

Before requesting a bank wire, please make sure we have your bank account information on file. If we do not have this information, you will need to send written instructions with your bank’s name, your bank account number, the ABA routing number, and a signature guarantee. If there is a difference between the Fund account owner(s) and the bank account owner(s), you must provide written instructions signed by all Fund and bank account owners, and each individual must have his or her signature guaranteed. If the Fund account is registered to FTIOS as custodian/trustee for a retirement plan or education savings account, or as a custodial account for a minor (UGMA/UTMA) and there is at least one common owner on the Fund account and the bank account, signature guarantees are not required.

If the bank account was added or changed without a signature guarantee within the last 15 days, you may be required to provide written instructions signed by all Fund account owners, with a signature guarantee for each Fund account owner.

Amounts of under $100 will be sent out by check.

By Phone

(800) 321-8563

As long as your transaction is for $100,000 or less, you do not hold share certificates and you have not changed your address by phone within the last 15 days, you can sell your shares by phone.

(Amounts in excess of $100,000 are only available if you have completed and sent the Institutional Telephone Privileges Agreement)

A check will be mailed to the name(s) and address on the account, or a pre-authorized secondary address. Written instructions, with a signature guarantee, are required to send the check to another address or to make it payable to another person.

If you have changed your address within the last 15 days without a signature guarantee, requests to sell your shares and mail the check to the name(s) and address on the account must be in writing and we may require a signature guarantee. Requests to sell your shares and send the proceeds to a pre-authorized secondary address may be requested by phone.

By Electronic Funds Transfer (ACH)

You can call or write to have redemption proceeds sent to a bank account. See the policies at left for selling shares by mail or phone.

Before requesting to have redemption proceeds sent to a bank account, please make sure we have your bank account information on file. If we do not have this information, you will need to send written instructions with your bank’s name and a voided check or savings account deposit slip. All bank and Fund account owners must sign the request. If the bank and Fund accounts do not have at least one common owner, each individual must also have his or her signature notarized.

If the bank account was added or changed without a signature guarantee within the last 15 days, you may be required to provide written instructions signed by all Fund account owners, with a signature guarantee for each Fund account owner.

If we receive your request in proper form prior to 1 p.m. Pacific time, or the regularly scheduled close of the New York Stock Exchange, whichever is earlier, proceeds sent by ACH generally will be available within two to three business days.

By Exchange

Obtain a current prospectus for the fund you are considering. Prospectuses are available online at ftinstitutional.com.

Call Institutional Services at the number below or send signed written instructions. See the policies at left for selling shares by mail or wire.

Franklin Templeton Institutional Services
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Call toll-free: (800) 321-8563

Exchanging Shares

Exchange Privilege

If you exchange shares from the Fund to another Franklin Templeton fund, a sales charge may apply unless you acquired your Fund shares by exchange or through the reinvestment of dividends, or you otherwise qualify to buy shares without an initial sales charge.

From the Fund into Class A shares of other Franklin Templeton funds. The exchange will be effected at the respective net asset value or offering price of the funds involved next computed on the day on which the request is received in proper form prior to the above deadlines. Requests received after the deadlines will be effective at the next day's price.

From another fund in the Franklin Templeton funds into the Fund. The transaction will be processed as a liquidation from the other fund on the day the exchange is received in proper form prior to the time of valuation for that fund (as noted in that fund's prospectus) and shares of the Fund will be bought on the following business day when the money for purchase is available.

Retirement plan participants may exchange shares in accordance with the options available under, and the requirements of, their plan and plan administrator. Retirement plan administrators may charge a fee in connection with exchanges.

Generally exchanges may only be made between identically registered accounts, unless you send written instructions with a signature guarantee.

An exchange is really two transactions: a sale of one fund and the purchase of another. In general, the same policies that apply to purchases and sales also apply to exchanges, including minimum investment amounts (except exchanges of an entire account balance). Exchanges also generally have the same tax consequences as ordinary sales and purchases.

Rejected exchanges. If the Fund rejects an exchange request involving the sale of Fund shares, the rejected exchange request will also mean rejection of the request to purchase shares of another fund with the proceeds of the sale. Of course, you may generally redeem shares of the Fund at any time.

Exchanges through financial intermediaries. If you are investing indirectly in the Fund through a financial intermediary such as a broker-dealer, a bank, an insurance company separate account, an investment advisor, an administrator or trustee of an IRS-recognized tax-deferred savings plan such as a 401(k) retirement plan and a 529 college savings plan that maintains a master account (an Omnibus Account) with the Fund for trading on behalf of its customers, different exchange and/or transfer limit guidelines and restrictions may apply. The financial intermediary through whom you are investing may choose to adopt different trading restrictions designed to discourage short-term or excessive trading. Consult with your financial intermediary (or, in the case of a 401(k) retirement plan, your plan sponsor) to determine what trading restrictions, including exchange/transfer limitations, may be applicable to you.

Fund exchange privilege changes/waiver. The Fund may terminate or modify (temporarily or permanently) this exchange privilege in the future. You will receive at least 60 days' notice of any material changes, unless otherwise provided by law.

Other funds' exchange privileges. If there is a conflict between the exchange privileges of two funds involved in an exchange transaction, the stricter policy will apply to the transaction. Other Franklin Templeton funds may have different exchange restrictions. Check each fund's prospectus for details.

Frequent Trading Policy

The Fund's board of trustees has adopted the following policies and procedures with respect to frequent trading in Fund shares (Frequent Trading Policy).

The Fund does not intend to accommodate short-term or frequent purchases and redemptions of Fund shares that may be detrimental to the Fund. For example, this type of trading activity could interfere with the efficient management of the Fund's portfolio or materially increase the Fund's transaction costs, administrative costs or taxes.

Through its transfer agent, the Fund performs ongoing monitoring of shareholder trading in shares of the Fund and other Franklin Templeton funds in order to try and identify shareholder trading patterns that suggest an ongoing short-term trading strategy. If shareholder trading patterns identified by the transfer agent through monitoring or from other information regarding the shareholder’s trading activity in non-Franklin Templeton funds leads the transfer agent to reasonably conclude that such trading may be detrimental to the Fund as described in this Frequent Trading Policy, the transfer agent, on behalf of the Fund, may temporarily or permanently bar future purchases into the Fund or, alternatively, may limit the amount, number or frequency of any future purchases and/or the method by which you may request future purchases and redemptions (including purchases and/or redemptions by an exchange or transfer between the Fund and any other mutual fund).

In considering an investor’s trading patterns, the Fund may consider, among other factors, the investor’s trading history both directly and, if known, through financial intermediaries, in the Fund, in other Franklin Templeton funds, in non-Franklin Templeton mutual funds, or in accounts under common control or ownership (see, for example, “Buying and Selling Shares - Investment by asset allocators and large shareholders” in the SAI). The transfer agent may also reject any purchase request, whether or not it represents part of any ongoing trading pattern, if the Fund's investment manager or transfer agent reasonably concludes that the amount of the requested transaction may disrupt or otherwise interfere with the efficient management of the Fund’s portfolio. In determining what actions should be taken, the Fund's transfer agent may consider a variety of factors, including the potential impact of such remedial actions on the Fund and its shareholders. If the Fund is a "fund of funds," the Fund's transfer agent may consider the impact of the trading activity and of any proposed remedial action on both the Fund and the affiliated underlying funds in which the Fund invests.

Frequent trading through financial intermediaries. You are an investor subject to this Frequent Trading Policy whether you are a direct shareholder of the Fund or you are investing indirectly in the Fund through a financial intermediary, such as a broker-dealer, bank, trust company, insurance company product such as an annuity contract, investment advisor, or an administrator or trustee of an IRS-recognized tax-deferred savings plan such as a 401(k) retirement plan and a 529 college savings plan.

Some financial intermediaries maintain master accounts with the Fund on behalf of their customers (“omnibus accounts”). The Fund has entered into “information sharing agreements” with these financial intermediaries, which permit the Fund to obtain, upon request, information about the trading activity of the intermediary’s customers that invest in the Fund. If the Fund’s transfer agent identifies omnibus account level trading patterns that have the potential to be detrimental to the Fund, the transfer agent may, in its sole discretion, request from the financial intermediary information concerning the trading activity of its customers. Based upon its review of the information, if the transfer agent determines that the trading activity of any customer may be detrimental to the Fund, it may, in its sole discretion, request the financial intermediary to restrict or limit further trading in the Fund by that customer. There can be no assurance that the transfer agent’s monitoring of omnibus account level trading patterns will enable it to identify all short-term trading by a financial intermediary’s customers.

Revocation of trades. While the Fund reserves the right to reject any purchase order for any reason, the Fund may also revoke executed purchase orders that the transfer agent reasonably concludes in its sole discretion may have been contrary to the objectives of the Fund's Frequent Trading Policy.

Account Policies

Calculating Share Price

When you buy shares, you pay the NAV per share. When you sell shares, you receive the NAV minus any applicable contingent deferred sales charge (CDSC).

The Fund calculates the NAV per share each business day as of 1 p.m. Pacific time or the regularly scheduled close of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), whichever is earlier. The Fund does not calculate the NAV on days the NYSE is closed for trading, which include New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, President’s Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. If the NYSE has a scheduled early close, the Fund’s share price would be determined as of the time of the close of the NYSE. If, due to weather or other special or unexpected circumstances, the NYSE has an unscheduled early close on a day that it has opened for business, the Fund reserves the right to consider that day as a regular business day and accept purchase and redemption orders and calculate its share price as of the normally scheduled close of regular trading on the NYSE.

The Fund's assets are generally valued at their amortized cost.

Requests to buy and sell shares are processed at the NAV next calculated after we or an approved financial intermediary receive your request in proper form.

Holiday Schedule

In order to receive same day credit for transactions, you need to transmit your request to buy, sell or exchange shares before 11:15 a.m. Pacific time, except on holidays or the day before or after a holiday.

The Fund is informed that the NYSE and/or the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco observe the following holidays: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents' Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day (observed), Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day (observed), Veterans' Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Although the Fund expects the same holiday schedule to be observed in the future, the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco or the NYSE may modify its holiday schedule at any time. On any day before or after a NYSE or Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco holiday, or on any day when the Public Securities Association recommends an early closing, the Fund reserves the right to set an earlier time for notice and receipt of wire order purchase and redemption orders submitted for same day credit or redemption. Please place your trades as early in the day as possible on a day before or after a holiday. To the extent that the Fund's portfolio securities are traded in other markets on days the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco or the NYSE is closed, the Fund's NAV may be affected when investors do not have access to the Fund to buy or sell shares. Other Franklin Templeton funds may follow different holiday closing schedules.

Accounts with Low Balances

If your account has been open for more than one year and its value falls below $500, we will mail you a notice asking you to bring the account back up to its applicable minimum investment amount. If you choose not to do so within 30 days, we will close your account and proceeds will be sent by Electronic Fund Transfer (ACH) to your bank information on file. If we do not have this information, proceeds will be mailed to the address of record. You will not be charged a CDSC if your account is closed for this reason. This policy does not apply to: (1) certain broker-controlled accounts established through the National Securities Clearing Corporation’s Networking system; (2) Class A or A1 accounts established pursuant to a conversion from Class C or C1, and any remaining Class C or C1 accounts involved in the conversion, with a low balance due to the conversion; (3) tax-deferred retirement plan accounts; (4) active automatic investment plan accounts; (5) accounts in an Advisory Fee Program; (6) accounts held through a 529 college savings program; (7) Coverdell Education Savings Plan accounts; and (8) accounts currently maintained via robo advice driven services where account investments and reallocations are done through an automated, algorithm-driven platform.

Redemptions

Typically, the Fund uses cash and cash equivalents held in its portfolio or sells portfolio assets to meet all redemption needs. In unusual circumstances or under stressed market conditions, the Fund may use other methods to meet redemptions, such as the use of lines of credit or interfund lending in reliance on exemptive relief from the SEC. Also, see “Account Policies – Redemptions in Kind” for information regarding redemption requests that exceed $250,000 or 1% of the value of the Fund’s assets, whichever is less.

Redemptions in Kind

If your redemption requests during any 90-day period exceed $250,000 (or 1% of the value of the Fund’s net assets, if less), the Fund reserves the right to make payments in whole or in part in securities or other assets of the Fund. You should expect to incur transaction costs upon the disposition of the securities received in the distribution. In addition, you will bear the market risk of the securities you hold until the securities are sold.

Redemptions by Large Shareholders

At times, the Fund may experience adverse effects when certain large shareholders redeem large amounts of shares of the Fund. Large redemptions may cause the Fund to sell portfolio securities at times when it would not otherwise do so. In addition, these transactions may also accelerate the realization of taxable income to shareholders if such sales of investments resulted in gains, and may also increase transaction costs and/or increase in the Fund's expense ratio. When experiencing a redemption by a large shareholder, the Fund may delay payment of the redemption request up to seven days to provide the investment manager with time to determine if the Fund can redeem the request in-kind or to consider other alternatives to lessen the harm to remaining shareholders. Under certain circumstances, however, the Fund may be unable to delay a redemption request, which could result in the automatic processing of a large redemption that is detrimental to the Fund and its remaining shareholders.

Statements, Reports and Prospectuses

You will receive quarterly account statements that show all your account transactions for the calendar quarters. You will receive monthly accounts statements for all other months.

You also will receive, or receive notice of the availability of, the Fund's financial reports every six months. In addition, you will receive an annual updated summary prospectus (prospectus available upon request). To reduce Fund expenses, we try to identify related shareholders in a household and send only one copy of the financial reports (to the extent received by mail) and summary prospectus. This process, called “householding,” will continue indefinitely unless you instruct us otherwise. If you prefer not to have these documents householded, please call us at (800) 321-8563. At any time you may view currentprospectuses/summary prospectuses and financial reports on our website. If you choose, you may receive these documents through electronic delivery.

You may elect to receive your statements, prospectuses and other documents through electronic delivery (please see "Investor Services - Telephone/Online Privileges").

Investment Representative Account Access

If there is a dealer or other investment representative of record on your account, he or she will be able to obtain your account information, conduct transactions for your account, and also will receive copies of all notifications and statements and other information about your account directly from the Fund.

Street or Nominee Accounts

You may transfer your shares from the street or nominee name account of one dealer to another, as long as both dealers have an agreement with Distributors. We will process the transfer after we receive authorization in proper form from your delivering securities dealer.

Joint Accounts

Unless you specify a different registration, shares issued to two or more owners are registered as "joint tenants with rights of survivorship" (shown as "Jt Ten" on your account statement). To make any ownership changes to jointly owned shares, or to sever a joint tenancy in jointly owned shares, all owners must agree in writing.

Joint Account Risk with Telephone Privileges

You will automatically receive telephone privileges when you open your account. If your account has more than one registered owner, telephone privileges allow the Fund to accept transaction instructions by telephone from only one registered owner. This means that any one registered owner on your account, acting alone and without the consent of any other registered owner, may give the Fund instructions by telephone or in writing (subject to any limitations in telephone privileges) to:

If you do NOT want another registered owner on your account to be able to issue these kinds of instructions to the Fund without your consent, you must instruct the Fund to deny/terminate the ability to issue such instructions by telephone so that these types of instructions will only be accepted in writing signed by all account owners. This decision will apply to any other fund into which you may exchange your jointly owned Fund shares. Any later decision to permit these types of instructions by telephone will need to be given to the Fund in a written instruction signed by all registered owners.

Additional Policies

Please note that the Fund maintains additional policies and reserves certain rights, including:

Questions

If you have any questions about the Fund or your account, you can write to us at Institutional Services, One Franklin Parkway, San Mateo, CA 94403-1906. You also can call us at one of the following numbers. For your protection and to help ensure we provide you with quality service, all calls may be monitored or recorded.

Department Name Telephone Number  
Institutional Services (800) 321-8563  
Shareholder Services (800) 632-2301  
Fund Information (800) DIAL BEN
(800) 342-5236
 
Retirement Services (800) 527-2020  
Advisor Services (800) 524-4040  
Hearing Impaired Assistance For hearing impaired assistance,
please contact us via a Relay Service.
Automated Telephone System (800) 632-2301
(800) 524-4040
(800) 527-2020
 




For More Information

You can learn more about the Fund in the following documents:

Annual/Semiannual Report to Shareholders

Includes a discussion of recent market conditions and Fund strategies that significantly affected Fund performance during its last fiscal year, financial statements, detailed performance information, portfolio holdings and, in the annual report only, the independent registered public accounting firm’s report.

Statement of Additional Information (SAI)

Contains more information about the Fund, its investments and policies. It is incorporated by reference (is legally a part of this prospectus).

For a free copy of the current annual/semiannual report or the SAI, please contact your investment representative or call us at the number below. You also can view the current annual/semiannual report and the SAI online through ftinstitutional.com.

Reports and other information about the Fund are available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC's Internet site at http://www.sec.gov, and copies of this information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following email address: publicinfo@sec.gov.




Franklin Templeton

One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Institutional Services
(800) 321-8563
ftinstitutional.com

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Investment Company Act file #811-04267

 

© 2020 Franklin Templeton. All rights reserved.


 

Statement of Additional Information

 
 

Money Market Portfolio

Institutional Fiduciary Trust

November 1, 2020

Franklin Templeton
decorative-graphic    


 
TICKER: INFXX

This Statement of Additional Information (SAI) is not a prospectus. It contains information in addition to the information in the Fund's prospectus. The Fund's prospectus, dated November 1, 2020, which we may amend from time to time, contains the basic information you should know before investing in the Fund. You should read this SAI together with the Fund's prospectus.

The audited financial statements and Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm in the Fund's Annual Report to shareholders, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2020, are incorporated by reference (are legally a part of this SAI).

For a free copy of the current prospectus or annual report, contact your investment representative or call (800) DIAL BEN/342-5236.

CONTENTS
Goal, Strategies and Risks
Officers and Trustees
Management and Other Services
Portfolio Transactions
Distributions and Taxes
Organization, Voting Rights and Principal Holders
Buying and Selling Shares
Pricing Shares
The Underwriter
Performance
Miscellaneous Information
Description of Ratings

Mutual funds, annuities, and other investment products:

  • are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board, or any other agency of the U.S. government;
  • are not deposits or obligations of, or guaranteed or endorsed by, any bank; and
  • are subject to investment risks, including the possible loss of principal.

One Franklin Parkway, San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
(800) 321-8563 (FT Institutional Services)

140 SAI 11/20




Goal, Strategies and Risks

The following information provided with respect to the Fund is in addition to that included in the Fund’s prospectus.

In addition to the main types of investments and strategies undertaken by the Fund as described in the prospectus, the Fund also may invest in other types of instruments and engage in and pursue other investment strategies, which are described in this SAI. Investments and investment strategies with respect to the Fund are discussed in greater detail in the section below entitled "Glossary of Investments, Techniques, Strategies and Their Risks."

Generally, the policies and restrictions discussed in this SAI and in the prospectus apply when the Fund makes an investment. In most cases, the Fund is not required to sell an investment because circumstances change and the investment no longer meets one or more of the Fund's policies or restrictions. If a percentage restriction or limitation is met at the time of investment, a later increase or decrease in the percentage due to a change in the value of portfolio investments will not be considered a violation of the restriction or limitation, with the exception of the Fund's limitations on borrowing as described herein or unless otherwise noted herein.

The Fund has adopted certain investment restrictions as fundamental and non-fundamental policies. A fundamental policy may only be changed if the change is approved by (i) more than 50% of the Fund's outstanding shares or (ii) 67% or more of the Fund's shares present at a shareholder meeting if more than 50% of the Fund's outstanding shares are represented at the meeting in person or by proxy, whichever is less. A non-fundamental policy may be changed without the approval of shareholders.

Unless the context otherwise requires, references to the Fund's investments refer to those investments of The U.S. Government Money Market Portfolio (Master Portfolio) to which the Fund is exposed and references to the investment manager or the Fund's investment manager refer to the Master Portfolio's investment manager.

You could lose money by investing in the Fund. Although the Fund seeks to preserve the value of your investment at $1.00 per share, it cannot guarantee it will do so. An investment in the Fund is not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board, or any other agency of the U.S. government. The Fund’s sponsor has no legal obligation to provide financial support to the Fund, and you should not expect that the sponsor will provide financial support to the Fund at any time. Shares of the Fund are not deposits or obligations of, or guaranteed or endorsed by, any bank.

For more information about the restrictions of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act) on the Fund with respect to borrowing and senior securities, see “Glossary of Investments, Techniques, Strategies and Their Risks - Borrowing” below.

Fundamental Investment Policies

The Fund’s investment goal is to provide investors with as high a level of current income as is consistent with the preservation of shareholders’ capital and liquidity. The Fund also tries to maintain a stable $1.00 share price.

The Fund seeks to achieve its investment goal by investing all of its assets in shares of the Master Portfolio, a series of The Money Market Portfolios. The Master Portfolio has the same investment goal and substantially similar investment policies as the Fund, except, in all cases, the Fund may pursue its policies by investing in another registered investment company with the same investment goal and substantially similar policies and restrictions as the Fund. The investment goal of the Master Portfolio also is fundamental and may not be changed without shareholder approval.

The Fund and the Master Portfolio each may not:

1. Borrow money, except to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act, or any rules, exemptions or interpretations thereunder that may be adopted, granted or issued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

2. Act as an underwriter except to the extent the Fund or the Master Portfolio may be deemed to be an underwriter when disposing of securities it owns or when selling its own shares.

3. Make loans if, as a result, more than 33 1/3% of its total assets would be lent to other persons, including other investment companies to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act or any rules, exemptions or interpretations thereunder that may be adopted, granted or issued by the SEC. This limitation does not apply to (i) the lending of portfolio securities, (ii) the purchase of debt securities, other debt instruments, loan participations and/or engaging in direct corporate loans in accordance with its investment goals and policies, and (iii) repurchase agreements to the extent the entry into a repurchase agreement is deemed to be a loan.

4. Purchase or sell real estate unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments and provided that this restriction does not prevent the Fund or the Master Portfolio from (i) purchasing or selling securities or instruments secured by real estate or interests therein, securities or instruments representing interests in real estate or securities or instruments of issuers that invest, deal or otherwise engage in transactions in real estate or interests therein, and (ii) making, purchasing or selling real estate mortgage loans.

5. Purchase or sell commodities, except to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act or any rules, exemptions or interpretations thereunder that may be adopted, granted or issued by the SEC.

6. Issue senior securities, except to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act or any rules, exemptions or interpretations thereunder that may be adopted, granted or issued by the SEC.

7. Invest more than 25% of its net assets in securities of issuers in any one industry (other than securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or any of its agencies or instrumentalities or securities of other investment companies or certificates of deposit, bankers' acceptances and other similar obligations of domestic banks).

8. Purchase the securities of any one issuer (other than the U.S. government or any of its agencies or instrumentalities or securities of other investment companies, whether registered or excluded from registration under Section 3(c) of the 1940 Act) if immediately after such investment (i) more than 5% of the value of its total assets would be invested in such issuer or (ii) more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer would be owned by the Fund or the Master Portfolio, except that up to 25% of the value of its total assets may be invested without regard to such 5% and 10% limitations.1

1. The Fund or the Master Portfolio will be considered to have satisfied this restriction if it is in compliance with Rule 2a-7(d)(3) and (e) under the 1940 Act (or any successor rule thereto).

Non-Fundamental Investment Policies

The Fund, through the Master Portfolio:

1. Will invest in obligations or instruments issued by banks and savings institutions with assets of at least $1 billion.

2. May invest in an obligation issued by a branch of a bank only if the parent bank has assets of at least $5 billion.

3. May not make any new investments while any outstanding loans exceed 5% of its total assets.

4. Only intends to buy stripped securities that are issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury or by an agency or instrumentality of the U.S. government.

5. May not invest more than 5% of its total assets (measured at the time of acquisition) in illiquid securities, as defined under applicable regulation.

6. Will invest 100% of its assets in securities with remaining maturities of 397 calendar days or less, or in another open-end management investment company that has the same investment goals and policies. Maturity, for purposes of this policy, is calculated in accordance with Rule 2a-7, including Rule 2a-7’s maturity shortening provisions.

Glossary of Investments, Techniques, Strategies and Their Risks

Certain words or phrases may be used in descriptions of Fund investment policies and strategies to give investors a general sense of the Fund's levels of investment. They are broadly identified with, but not limited to, the following percentages of Fund total assets:

"small portion" less than 10%
"portion" 10% to 25%
"significant" 25% to 50%
"substantial" 50% to 66%
"primary" 66% to 80%
"predominant" 80% or more


If the Fund intends to limit particular investments or strategies to no more than specific percentages of Fund assets, the prospectus or SAI will clearly identify such limitations. The percentages above are not limitations unless specifically stated as such in the Fund's prospectus or elsewhere in this SAI.

The Fund may invest in securities that are rated by various rating agencies such as Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) and S&P® Global Ratings (S&P®), as well as securities that are unrated.

The following are requirements for money market fund investments, and securities and techniques used by the Fund:

Liquidity The Fund may not invest more than 5% of its total assets (measured at the time of acquisition) in illiquid securities, as defined under applicable regulation.

The Fund is required to invest at least 10% of its total assets (measured at the time of acquisition) in "daily liquid assets" and at least 30% of its total assets (measured at the time of acquisition) in "weekly liquid assets." "Daily liquid assets" are cash (including demand deposits), direct obligations of the U.S. Government and securities (including repurchase agreements) that will mature or are subject to a demand feature that is exercisable and payable within one business day or amounts receivable and due unconditionally within one business day on pending sales of portfolio securities. "Weekly liquid assets" are cash (including demand deposits), direct obligations of the U.S. Government, U.S. Government agency/instrumentality discount notes (without provision for the payment of interest) with remaining maturities of 60 calendar days or less, and securities (including repurchase agreements) that will mature or are subject to a demand feature that is exercisable and payable within five business days or amounts receivable and due unconditionally within five business days on pending sales of portfolio securities. For purposes of these two definitions, maturity is determined without reference to the maturity shortening exceptions in Rule 2a-7 regarding interest rate readjustments.

Maturity. The Fund is required to maintain a dollar-weighted average portfolio maturity of no greater than 60 calendar days and the Fund is required to maintain a dollar-weighted average life of no greater than 120 calendar days. “Weighted average life” is portfolio maturity measured without reference to provisions that otherwise permit the maturity of certain adjustable rate securities to be deemed to be “shortened” to their interest rate reset dates.

Suspension of redemptions. In the event that (a) the Fund, at the end of a business day, has invested less than 10% of its total assets in weekly liquid assets or (b) the Fund’s price per share as computed for the purpose of distribution, redemption and repurchase, rounded to the nearest 1%, has deviated from the stable price established by the Fund’s board of trustees or (c) the Trust’s board of trustees, including a majority of trustees who are not interested persons of the Trust as defined in the 1940 Act, determines that such a deviation is likely to occur, and the board of trustees, including a majority of trustees who are not interested persons of the Trust, irrevocably has approved the liquidation of the Fund, the Fund's board of trustees has the authority to suspend redemptions of Fund shares.

The following is a description of various types of securities, instruments and techniques that may be purchased and/or used by the Fund:

Borrowing The 1940 Act and the SEC's current rules, exemptions and interpretations thereunder, permit the Fund to borrow up to one-third of the value of its total assets (including the amount borrowed, but less all liabilities and indebtedness not represented by senior securities) from banks. The Fund is required to maintain continuous asset coverage of at least 300% with respect to such borrowings and to reduce the amount of its borrowings (within three days excluding Sundays and holidays) to restore such coverage if it should decline to less than 300% due to market fluctuations or otherwise. In the event that the Fund is required to reduce its borrowings, it may have to sell portfolio holdings, even if such sale of the Fund's holdings would be disadvantageous from an investment standpoint.

If the Fund makes additional investments while borrowings are outstanding, this may be considered a form of leverage. Leveraging by means of borrowing may exaggerate the effect of any increase or decrease in the value of portfolio securities on the Fund's net asset value, and money borrowed will be subject to interest and other costs (which may include commitment fees and/or the cost of maintaining minimum average balances), which may or may not exceed the income or gains received from the securities purchased with borrowed funds.

In addition to borrowings that are subject to 300% asset coverage and are considered by the SEC to be permitted "senior securities," the Fund is also permitted under the 1940 Act to borrow for temporary purposes in an amount not exceeding 5% of the value of its total assets at the time when the loan is made. A loan will be presumed to be for temporary purposes if it is repaid within 60 days and is not extended or renewed.

Debt securities - general description In general, a debt security represents a loan of money to the issuer by the purchaser of the security. A debt security typically has a fixed payment schedule that obligates the issuer to pay interest to the lender and to return the lender's money over a certain time period. A company typically meets its payment obligations associated with its outstanding debt securities before it declares and pays any dividend to holders of its equity securities. Bonds, notes and commercial paper are examples of debt securities and differ in the length of the issuer's principal repayment schedule, with bonds carrying the longest repayment schedule and commercial paper the shortest:

Bonds. A bond is a debt security in which investors lend money to an entity that borrows for a defined period of time, usually a period of more than five years, at a specified interest rate.

Commercial paper. Commercial paper is an unsecured, short-term loan to a corporation, typically for financing accounts receivable and inventory with maturities of up to 270 days.

Debentures. A debenture is an unsecured debt security backed only by the creditworthiness of the borrower, not by collateral.

Bills. A bill is a short-term debt instrument, usually with a maturity of two years or less.

Notes. A note is a debt security usually with a maturity of up to ten years.

For purposes of the discussion in this SAI of the risks of investing in debt securities generally, loans or other short-term instruments, which otherwise may not technically be considered securities, are included.

Debt securities are all generally subject to interest rate, credit, income and prepayment risks and, like all investments, are subject to liquidity and market risks to varying degrees depending upon the specific terms and type of security. The Fund's investment manager attempts to reduce credit and market risk through diversification of the Fund's portfolio and ongoing credit analysis of each issuer, as well as by monitoring economic developments, but there can be no assurance that it will be successful at doing so.

Illiquid securities Generally, an “illiquid security” or “illiquid investment” is any investment that cannot be disposed of partially or in full in the ordinary course of business within seven days at approximately the amount at which the Fund has valued the instruments. Illiquid investments generally include investments for which no market exists or which are legally restricted as to their transfer (such as those issued pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of the federal securities laws). Restricted securities are generally sold in privately negotiated transactions, pursuant to an exemption from registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (1933 Act). If registration of a security previously acquired in a private transaction is required, the Fund, as the holder of the security, may be obligated to pay all or part of the registration expense and a considerable period may elapse between the time it decides to seek registration and the time it will be permitted to sell a security under an effective registration statement. If, during such a period, adverse market conditions were to develop, the Fund might obtain a less favorable price than prevailed when it decided to seek registration of the security. To the extent it is determined that there is a liquid institutional or other market for certain restricted securities, the Fund would consider them to be liquid securities. An example is a restricted security that may be freely transferred among qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the 1933 Act, and for which a liquid institutional market has developed. Rule 144A securities may be subject, however, to a greater possibility of becoming illiquid than securities that have been registered with the SEC.

The following factors may be taken into account in determining whether a restricted security is properly considered a liquid security: (i) the frequency of trades and quotes for the security; (ii) the number of dealers willing to buy or sell the security and the number of other potential buyers; (iii) any dealer undertakings to make a market in the security; and (iv) the nature of the security and of the marketplace trades (e.g., any demand, put or tender features, the method of soliciting offers, the mechanics and other requirements for transfer, and the ability to assign or offset the rights and obligations of the security). The nature of the security and its trading includes the time needed to sell the security, the method of soliciting offers to purchase or sell the security, and the mechanics of transferring the security including the role of parties such as foreign or U.S. custodians, subcustodians, currency exchange brokers, and depositories.

The sale of illiquid investments often requires more time and results in higher brokerage charges or dealer discounts and other selling expenses than the sale of investments eligible for trading on national securities exchanges or in the over-the-counter (OTC) markets. Illiquid investments often sell at a price lower than similar investments that are not subject to restrictions on resale.

The risk to the Fund in holding illiquid investments is that they may be more difficult to sell if the Fund wants to dispose of the investment in response to adverse developments or in order to raise money for redemptions or other investment opportunities. Illiquid trading conditions may also make it more difficult for the Fund to realize an investment's fair value.

The Fund may also be unable to achieve its desired level of exposure to a certain investment, issuer, or sector due to overall limitations on its ability to invest in illiquid investments and the difficulty in purchasing such investments.

Interfund lending program Pursuant to an exemptive order granted by the SEC (Lending Order), the Fund has the ability to lend money to, and borrow money from, other Franklin Templeton funds for temporary purposes (Interfund Lending Program) pursuant to a master interfund lending agreement (Interfund Loan). Lending and borrowing through the Interfund Lending Program provides the borrowing fund with a lower interest rate than it would have paid if it borrowed money from a bank, and provides the lending fund with an alternative short-term investment with a higher rate of return than other available short-term investments. All Interfund Loans would consist only of uninvested cash reserves that the lending fund otherwise would invest in short-term repurchase agreements or other short-term instruments. The Fund may only participate in the Interfund Lending Program to the extent permitted by its investment goal(s), policies and restrictions and only subject to meeting the conditions of the Lending Order.

The limitations of the Interfund Lending Program are described below and these and the other conditions of the Lending Order permitting interfund lending are designed to minimize the risks associated with interfund lending for both the lending and borrowing fund. However, no borrowing or lending activity is without risk. When a fund borrows money from another fund under the Interfund Lending Program, there is a risk that the Interfund Loan could be called on one business day’s notice, in which case the borrowing fund may have to utilize a line of credit, which would likely involve higher rates, seek an Interfund Loan from another fund, or liquidate portfolio securities if no lending sources are available to meet its liquidity needs. Interfund Loans are subject to the risk that the borrowing fund could be unable to repay the loan when due, and a delay in repayment could result in a lost opportunity by the lending fund or force the lending fund to borrow or liquidate securities to meet its liquidity needs.

Under the Interfund Lending Program, the Fund may borrow on an unsecured basis through the Interfund Lending Program if its outstanding borrowings from all sources immediately after the borrowing total 10% or less of its total assets, provided that if the Fund has a secured loan outstanding from any other lender, including but not limited to another fund, the Fund’s Interfund Loan will be secured on at least an equal priority basis with at least an equivalent percentage of collateral to loan value as any outstanding loan that requires collateral. If the Fund’s total outstanding borrowings immediately after an Interfund Loan exceed 10% of its total assets, the Fund may borrow through the Interfund Lending Program on a secured basis only. The Fund may not borrow under the Interfund Lending Program or from any other source if its total outstanding borrowings immediately after such borrowing would be more than 33 1/3% of its total assets or any lower threshold provided for by the Fund’s investment restrictions.

If the Fund has outstanding bank borrowings, any Interfund Loans to the Fund would: (a) be at an interest rate equal to or lower than that of any outstanding bank loan, (b) be secured at least on an equal priority basis with at least an equivalent percentage of collateral to loan value as any outstanding bank loan that requires collateral, (c) have a maturity no longer than any outstanding bank loan (and in any event not over seven days), and (d) provide that, if an event of default by the Fund occurs under any agreement evidencing an outstanding bank loan to the Fund, that event of default will automatically (without need for action or notice by the lending Fund) constitute an immediate event of default under the interfund lending agreement, entitling the lending fund to call the Interfund Loan (and exercise all rights with respect to any collateral), and that such call would be made if the lending bank exercises its right to call its loan under its agreement with the borrowing fund.

In addition, no fund may lend to another fund through the Interfund Lending Program if the loan would cause the lending fund’s aggregate outstanding loans through the Interfund Lending Program to exceed 15% of its current net assets at the time of the loan. A fund’s Interfund Loans to any one fund shall not exceed 5% of the lending fund’s net assets. The duration of Interfund Loans will be limited to the time required to obtain cash sufficient to repay such Interfund Loan, either through the sale of portfolio securities or the net sales of the fund’s shares, but in no event more than seven days, and for purposes of this condition, loans effected within seven days of each other will be treated as separate loan transactions. Each Interfund Loan may be called on one business day’s notice by a lending fund and may be repaid on any day by a borrowing fund.

Investment grade debt securities Investment grade debt securities are securities that are rated at the time of purchase in the top four ratings categories by one or more independent rating organizations such as S&P (rated BBB- or better) or Moody’s (rated Baa3 or higher) or, if unrated, are determined to be of comparable quality by the Fund’s investment manager. Generally, a higher rating indicates the rating agency's opinion that there is less risk of default of obligations thereunder including timely repayment of principal and payment of interest. Debt securities in the lowest investment grade category may have speculative characteristics and more closely resemble high-yield debt securities than investment-grade debt securities. Lower-rated securities may be subject to all the risks applicable to high-yield debt securities and changes in economic conditions or other circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity to make principal and interest payments than is the case with higher grade debt securities.

A number of risks associated with rating agencies apply to the purchase or sale of investment grade debt securities.

Master/feeder structure The Fund seeks to achieve its investment goal by investing all of its assets in shares of the Master Portfolio.

The Fund’s structure, where it seeks to invest all of its assets in the Master Portfolio, is sometimes known as a “master/feeder” structure. References to the Fund’s investments are references to the Master Portfolio’s investments where the context requires. By investing all of its assets in shares of the Master Portfolio, the Fund, other mutual funds and institutional investors can pool their assets. This may result in asset growth and lower expenses, although there is no guarantee this will happen.

If the Fund, as a shareholder of the Master Portfolio, has to vote on a matter relating to the Master Portfolio, it will hold a meeting of Fund shareholders and will cast its votes in the same proportion as the Fund’s shareholders' votes.

There are some risks associated with the Fund’s master/feeder structure. If other shareholders in the Master Portfolio sell their shares, the Fund’s expenses may increase. Additionally, any economies of scale the Fund has achieved as a result of the structure may be diminished. Institutional investors in the Master Portfolio that have a greater ownership interest in the Master Portfolio than the Fund could also have effective voting control.

If the Master Portfolio changes its investment goal or any of its fundamental policies and Fund shareholders do not approve the same change for the Fund, the Fund may need to withdraw its investment from the Master Portfolio. Likewise, if the board of trustees considers it to be in the Fund’s best interest, it may withdraw the Fund’s investment from the Master Portfolio at any time. If either situation occurs, the board of trustees will decide what action to take. Possible solutions might include investing all of the Fund’s assets in another pooled investment entity with the same investment goal and policies as the Fund, or hiring an investment manager to manage the Fund’s investments. Either circumstance could increase the Fund’s expenses.

Repurchase agreements Under a repurchase agreement, the Fund agrees to buy securities guaranteed as to payment of principal and interest by the U.S. government or its agencies or instrumentalities from a qualified bank, broker-dealer or other counterparty and then to sell the securities back to such counterparty on an agreed upon date (generally less than seven days) at a higher price, which reflects currently prevailing short-term interest rates. Entering into repurchase agreements allows the Fund to earn a return on cash in the Fund's portfolio that would otherwise remain un-invested. The counterparty must transfer to the Fund's custodian, as collateral, securities with an initial market value of at least 102% (in the case of a counterparty that is a bank or broker-dealer) or 100% (if the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRBNY) is the counterparty) of the dollar amount paid by the Fund to the counterparty. The investment manager will monitor the value of such collateral daily to determine that the value of the collateral equals or exceeds the repurchase price. The Fund considers repurchase agreements with the FRBNY to be U.S. Government securities for purposes of the Fund’s investment policies.

Repurchase agreements may involve risks in the event of default or insolvency of the counterparty, including possible delays or restrictions upon the Fund's ability to sell the underlying securities and additional expenses in seeking to enforce the Fund's rights and recover any losses. The Fund will enter into repurchase agreements only with parties who meet certain creditworthiness standards, i.e., the FRBNY or banks or broker-dealers that the investment manager has determined, based on the information available at the time, present no serious risk of becoming involved in bankruptcy proceedings within the time frame contemplated by the repurchase agreement. Although the Fund seeks to limit the credit risk under a repurchase agreement by carefully selecting counterparties and accepting only high quality collateral, some credit risk remains. The counterparty could default which may make it necessary for the Fund to incur expenses to liquidate the collateral. In addition, the collateral may decline in value before it can be liquidated by the Fund.

A repurchase agreement with more than seven days to maturity is considered an illiquid security and is subject to the Fund's investment restriction on illiquid securities.

Stripped securities Stripped securities are debt securities that have been transformed from a principal amount with periodic interest coupons into a series of zero coupon bonds, each with a different maturity date corresponding to one of the payment dates for interest coupon payments or the redemption date for the principal amount. Stripped securities are subject to all the risks applicable to zero coupon bonds as well as certain additional risks.

Like zero coupon bonds, stripped securities do not provide for periodic payments of interest prior to maturity. Rather they are offered at a discount from their face amount that will be paid at maturity. This results in the security being subject to greater fluctuations in response to changing interest rates than interest-paying securities of similar maturities. Federal income taxes generally accrue on stripped securities each year although no cash income is received until maturity, and the Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities that it would otherwise continue to hold in order to obtain sufficient cash to make distributions to shareholders required for U.S. tax purposes.

The riskiness of an investment in stripped securities depends on the type involved. Some stripped securities are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. Others receive an implied backing by the U.S. government as a sponsor or partner in the agency or entity issuing the stripped security. A few are secured with a guarantee from the financial institution or broker or dealer through which the stripped security is held. Others are supported only by the collateral, revenue stream or third party guarantee securing the underlying debt obligation from which zero coupon bonds were stripped. Stripped securities include: U.S. Treasury STRIPS, Stripped Government Securities, Stripped Corporate Securities, and Stripped Eurodollar Obligations.

Stripped government securities are issued by the U.S. federal, state and local governments and their agencies and instrumentalities, and by "mixed-ownership government corporations." Stripped government securities vary widely in the terms, conditions and relative assurances of payment. The type of debt obligation from which the stripped government security was taken will indicate many of the risks associated with that investment. U.S. Treasury STRIPS is a type of stripped government securities.

U.S. Treasury STRIPS (Separate Trading of Registered Interest and Principal of Securities) are considered U.S. Treasury securities for purposes of the Fund's investment policies and are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. Their risks are similar to those of other U.S. government securities, although their price may be more volatile. The U.S. Treasury has facilitated transfers of ownership of zero coupon securities by accounting separately for the beneficial ownership of particular interest coupon and principal payments on Treasury securities through the Federal Reserve book-entry record-keeping system.

U.S. government securities U.S. government securities include obligations of, or guaranteed by, the U.S. federal government, its agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises. Some U.S. government securities are supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. These include U.S. Treasury obligations and securities issued by the Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA). A second category of U.S. government securities are those supported by the right of the agency, instrumentality or sponsored enterprise to borrow from the U.S. government to meet its obligations. These include securities issued by Federal Home Loan Banks.

A third category of U.S. government securities are those supported by only the credit of the issuing agency, instrumentality or sponsored enterprise. These include securities issued by the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC). In the event of a default, an investor like the Fund would only have legal recourse to the issuer, not the U.S. government. Although the U.S. government has provided support for these securities in the past, there can be no assurance that it will do so in the future. The U.S. government has also made available additional guarantees for limited periods to stabilize or restore a market in the wake of an economic, political or natural crisis. Such guarantees, and the economic opportunities they present, are likely to be temporary and cannot be relied upon by the Fund. Any downgrade of the credit rating of the securities issued by the U.S. government may result in a downgrade of securities issued by its agencies or instrumentalities, including government-sponsored entities.

Variable rate securities Variable rate securities are debt securities that provide for periodic adjustments in the interest rate paid on the debt security. Floating rate securities, adjustable rate securities and inverse floating rate securities (referred to as "inverse floaters") are types of variable rate securities. An adjustable rate security is a debt security with an interest rate which is adjusted according to a formula that specifies the interval at which the rate will be reset and the interest rate index, benchmark or other mechanism upon which the reset rate is based. A floating rate debt security has a rate of interest which is usually established as the sum of a base lending rate (e.g., the London Inter-Bank Offered Rate (LIBOR), the U.S. Prime Rate, the Prime Rate of a designated U.S. bank or the certificate of deposit rate) plus a specified margin. The interest rate on prime rate-based loans and securities floats periodically as the prime rate changes. The interest rate on LIBOR-based and CD-based loans and securities is reset periodically, typically at regular intervals ranging between 30 days and one year. Certain floating rate securities will permit the borrower to select an interest rate reset period of up to one year.

Some variable rate securities are structured with put features that permit holders to demand payment of the unpaid principal balance plus accrued interest from the issuers or certain financial intermediaries at or about the time the interest rate is reset. If the Fund purchases a variable rate security with a put feature and market movements make exercise of the put unattractive, the Fund will forfeit the entire amount of any premium paid plus related transaction costs.

Movements in the relevant index or benchmark on which adjustments are based will affect the interest paid on these securities and, therefore, the current income earned by the Fund and the securities' market value. The degree of volatility in the market value of the variable rate securities held by the Fund will generally increase along with the length of time between adjustments, the degree of volatility in the applicable index, benchmark or base lending rate and whether the index, benchmark or base lending rate to which it resets or floats approximates short-term or other prevailing interest rates. It will also be a function of the maximum increase or decrease of the interest rate adjustment on any one adjustment date, in any one year, and over the life of the security. These maximum increases and decreases are typically referred to as "caps" and "floors," respectively.

During periods when short-term interest rates move within the caps and floors of the security held by the Fund, the interest rate of such security will reset to prevailing rates within a short period. As a result, the fluctuation in market value of the variable rate security held by the Fund is generally expected to be limited.

In periods of substantial short-term volatility in interest rates, the market value of such debt securities may fluctuate more substantially if the caps and/or floors prevent the interest rates from adjusting to the full extent of the movements in the market rates during any one adjustment period or over the term of the security. In the event of dramatic increases in interest rates, any lifetime caps on these securities may prevent the securities from adjusting to prevailing rates over the term of the security. In either the case of caps or floors, the market value of the securities may be reduced.

The income earned by the Fund and distributed to shareholders will generally increase or decrease along with movements in the relevant index, benchmark or base lending rate. Thus the Fund's income will be more unpredictable than the income earned on similar investments with a fixed rate of interest.

In addition, on July 27, 2017, the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (the “FCA”) announced its intention to cease sustaining the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) after 2021. There remains uncertainty regarding the future utilization of LIBOR and the nature of any replacement rate. As such, the potential effect of a transition away from LIBOR on the Fund or the Fund’s investments that use or may use a floating rate based on LIBOR cannot yet be determined.

The transition process might lead to increased volatility and illiquidity in markets that currently rely on LIBOR to determine interest rates. It could also lead to a reduction in the value of some LIBOR-based investments and reduce the effectiveness of new hedges placed against existing LIBOR-based instruments. Since the usefulness of LIBOR as a benchmark could deteriorate during the transition period, these effects could occur prior to the end of 2021.

In June 2017, the Alternative Reference Rates Committee, a group of large U.S. banks working with the Federal Reserve, announced a replacement for LIBOR, the Secured Overnight Funding Rate (SOFR). The Federal Reserve Bank of New York began publishing the SOFR in April 2018, which is a broad measure of the cost of overnight borrowing of cash collateralized by Treasury securities. SOFR is intended to serve as a reference rate for U.S. dollar-based debt and derivatives and ultimately reduce the markets’ dependence on LIBOR. Bank working groups and regulators in other countries have suggested other alternatives for their markets, including the Sterling Overnight Interbank Average Rate in the UK.

When-issued and delayed delivery transactions When-issued and delayed delivery transactions are arrangements under which the Fund buys securities that have been authorized but not yet issued, with payment for and delivery of the security scheduled for a future time. To the extent the Fund engages in these transactions, it will do so only for the purpose of acquiring portfolio securities consistent with its investment goals and policies. Although the Fund will generally buy securities on a when-issued basis with the intention of holding the securities, the Fund may sell the securities before the settlement date if the investment manager believes it is advisable to do so.

Entering into a when-issued or delayed delivery transaction may be viewed as a form of leverage and will result in associated risks for the Fund. To mitigate these risks, when the Fund enters into this type of transaction, it will segregate liquid assets (consisting of cash, cash equivalents or other liquid portfolio securities) equal to the Fund’s obligations under the transaction, as determined on a daily basis. However, the Fund does not consider the purchase and/or sale of securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis to be a borrowing for purposes of the Fund’s fundamental investment restrictions or other limitations on borrowing.

The Fund also relies on the counterparty to complete the transaction. The counterparty's failure to do so may cause the Fund to miss a price or yield considered advantageous to the Fund. Although their price typically reflects accrued interest, securities purchased on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis do not generally earn interest until their scheduled delivery date. Purchases of securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis are also subject to the risk that the market value or the yield at delivery may be more or less than the market price or yield available when the transaction was entered into.

Many when-issued or delayed-delivery transactions also are subject to the risk that a counterparty may become bankrupt or otherwise fail to perform its obligations due to financial difficulties, including making payments or fulfilling other obligations to the Fund. The Fund may obtain no or only limited recovery in a bankruptcy or other organizational proceedings, and any recovery may be significantly delayed.

The following is a description of the general risks associated with the Fund's investing in debt securities:

Credit Debt securities are subject to the risk of an issuer's (or other party's) failure or inability to meet its obligations under the security. Multiple parties may have obligations under a debt security. An issuer or borrower may fail to pay principal and interest when due. A guarantor, insurer or credit support provider may fail to provide the agreed upon protection. A counterparty to a transaction may fail to perform its side of the bargain. An intermediary or agent interposed between the investor and other parties may fail to perform the terms of its service. Also, performance under a debt security may be linked to the obligations of other persons who may fail to meet their obligations. The credit risk associated with a debt security could increase to the extent that the Fund's ability to benefit fully from its investment in the security depends on the performance by multiple parties of their respective contractual or other obligations. The market value of a debt security is also affected by the market's perception of the creditworthiness of the issuer.

The Fund may incur substantial losses on debt securities that are inaccurately perceived to present a different amount of credit risk than they actually do by the market, the investment manager or the rating agencies. Credit risk is generally greater where less information is publicly available, where fewer covenants safeguard the investors' interests, where collateral may be impaired or inadequate, where little legal redress or regulatory protection is available, or where a party's ability to meet obligations is speculative. Additionally, any inaccuracy in the information used by the Fund to evaluate credit risk may affect the value of securities held by the Fund.

Obligations under debt securities held by the Fund may never be satisfied or, if satisfied, only satisfied in part.

Some securities are subject to risks as a result of a credit downgrade or default by a government, or its agencies or, instrumentalities. Credit risk is a greater concern for high-yield debt securities and debt securities of issuers whose ability to pay interest and principal may be considered speculative. Debt securities are typically classified as investment grade-quality (medium to highest credit quality) or below investment grade-quality (commonly referred to as high-yield or junk bonds). Many individual debt securities are rated by a third party source, such as Moody's or S&P to help describe the creditworthiness of the issuer.

Debt securities ratings The investment manager performs its own independent investment analysis of securities being considered for the Fund's portfolio, which includes consideration of, among other things, the issuer's financial resources, its sensitivity to economic conditions and trends, its operating history, the quality of the issuer's management and regulatory matters. The investment manager also considers the ratings assigned by various investment services and independent rating agencies, such as Moody's and S&P, that publish ratings based upon their assessment of the relative creditworthiness of the rated debt securities. Generally, a lower rating indicates higher credit risk. Higher yields are ordinarily available from debt securities in the lower rating categories. These ratings are described at the end of this SAI under "Description of Ratings."

Using credit ratings to evaluate debt securities can involve certain risks. For example, ratings assigned by the rating agencies are based upon an analysis completed at the time of the rating of the obligor's ability to pay interest and repay principal. Rating agencies typically rely to a large extent on historical data which may not accurately represent present or future circumstances. Ratings do not purport to reflect the risk of fluctuations in market value of the debt security and are not absolute standards of quality and only express the rating agency's current opinion of an obligor's overall financial capacity to pay its financial obligations. A credit rating is not a statement of fact or a recommendation to purchase, sell or hold a debt obligation. Also, credit quality can change suddenly and unexpectedly, and credit ratings may not reflect the issuer's current financial condition or events since the security was last rated. Rating agencies may have a financial interest in generating business, including from the arranger or issuer of the security that normally pays for that rating, and providing a low rating might affect the rating agency's prospects for future business. While rating agencies have policies and procedures to address this potential conflict of interest, there is a risk that these policies will fail to prevent a conflict of interest from impacting the rating.

Income Income risk is the risk that the Fund's income will decline during periods of falling interest rates, when the Fund experiences defaults on debt securities it holds or when the Fund realizes a loss upon a sale of a debt security. The Fund's income declines when interest rates fall because, as the Fund's higher-yielding debt securities mature, are prepaid or are sold, the Fund may have to re-invest the proceeds in debt securities that have lower interest rates. The amount and rate of distributions that the Fund's shareholders receive are affected by the income that the Fund receives from its portfolio holdings. If the income is reduced, distributions by the Fund to shareholders may be less.

Fluctuations in income paid to the Fund are generally greater for variable rate debt securities. The Fund will be deemed to receive taxable income on certain securities which pay no cash payments until maturity, such as zero-coupon securities. The Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities that it would otherwise continue to hold in order to obtain sufficient cash to make the distribution to shareholders required for U.S. tax purposes.

Inflation The market price of debt securities generally falls as inflation increases because the purchasing power of the future income and repaid principal is expected to be worth less when received by the Fund. Debt securities that pay a fixed rather than variable interest rate are especially vulnerable to inflation risk because variable-rate debt securities may be able to participate, over the long term, in rising interest rates which have historically corresponded with long-term inflationary trends.

Interest rate The market value of debt securities generally varies in response to changes in prevailing interest rates. Interest rate changes can be sudden and unpredictable. In addition, short-term and long-term rates are not necessarily correlated to each other as short-term rates tend to be influenced by government monetary policy while long-term rates are market driven and may be influenced by macroeconomic events (such as economic expansion or contraction), inflation expectations, as well as supply and demand. During periods of declining interest rates, the market value of debt securities generally increases. Conversely, during periods of rising interest rates, the market value of debt securities generally declines. This occurs because new debt securities are likely to be issued with higher interest rates as interest rates increase, making the old or outstanding debt securities less attractive. In general, the market prices of long-term debt securities or securities that make little (or no) interest payments are more sensitive to interest rate fluctuations than shorter-term debt securities. The longer the Fund's average weighted portfolio duration, the greater the potential impact a change in interest rates will have on its share price. Also, certain segments of the fixed income markets, such as high quality bonds, tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes than other segments, such as lower-quality bonds.

Prepayment Debt securities, especially bonds that are subject to "calls," such as asset-backed or mortgage-backed securities, are subject to prepayment risk if their terms allow the payment of principal and other amounts due before their stated maturity. Amounts invested in a debt security that has been "called" or "prepaid" will be returned to an investor holding that security before expected by the investor. In such circumstances, the investor, such as a fund, may be required to re-invest the proceeds it receives from the called or prepaid security in a new security which, in periods of declining interest rates, will typically have a lower interest rate. Prepayment risk is especially prevalent in periods of declining interest rates and will result for other reasons, including unexpected developments in the markets for the underlying assets or mortgages. For example, a decline in mortgage interest rates typically initiates a period of mortgage refinancings. When homeowners refinance their mortgages, the investor in the underlying pool of mortgage-backed securities (such as a fund) receives its principal back sooner than expected, and must reinvest at lower, prevailing rates.

Securities subject to prepayment risk are often called during a declining interest rate environment and generally offer less potential for gains and greater price volatility than other income-bearing securities of comparable maturity.

Call risk is similar to prepayment risk and results from the ability of an issuer to call, or prepay, a debt security early. If interest rates decline enough, the debt security's issuer can save money by repaying its callable debt securities and issuing new debt securities at lower interest rates.

The following is a description of other risks associated with the Fund's investments:

Liquidity Liquidity risk exists when particular investments are or become difficult to purchase or sell at the price at which the Fund has valued the security, whether because of current market conditions, the financial condition of the issuer, or the specific type of investment. If the market for a particular security becomes illiquid (for example, due to changes in the issuer's financial condition), the Fund may be unable to sell such security at an advantageous time or price due to the difficulty in selling such securities. To the extent that the Fund and its affiliates hold a significant portion of an issuer's outstanding securities, the Fund may also be subject to greater liquidity risk than if the issuer's securities were more widely held. The Fund may also need to sell some of the Fund's more liquid securities when it otherwise would not do so in order to meet redemption requests, even if such sale of the liquid holdings would be disadvantageous from an investment standpoint. Reduced liquidity may also have an adverse impact on a security's market value and the sale of such securities often results in higher brokerage charges or dealer discounts and other selling expenses. Reduced liquidity in the secondary market for certain securities will also make it more difficult for the Fund to obtain market quotations based on actual trades for purposes of valuing the Fund's portfolio and thus pricing may be prone to error when market quotations are volatile, infrequent and/or subject to large spreads between bid and ask prices. In addition, prices received by the Fund for securities may be based on institutional “round lot” sizes, but the Fund may purchase, hold or sell smaller, “odd lot” sizes, which may be harder to sell. Odd lots may trade at lower prices than round lots, which may affect the Fund’s ability to accurately value its investments.

The market for certain equity or debt securities may become illiquid under adverse market or economic conditions independent of any specific adverse changes in the conditions of a particular issuer. For example, dealer capacity in certain fixed income markets appears to have undergone fundamental changes since the financial crisis of 2008, which may result in low dealer inventories and a reduction in dealer market-making capacity. An increase in interest rates due to the tapering of the Federal Reserve Board’s quantitative easing program and other similar central bank actions, coupled with a reduction in dealer market-making capacity, may decrease liquidity and increase volatility in the fixed income markets. Liquidity risk generally increases (meaning that securities become more illiquid) as the number, or relative need, of investors seeking to liquidate in a given market increases; for example, when an asset class or classes fall out of favor and investors sell their holdings in such classes, either directly or indirectly through investment funds, such as mutual funds.

Management The investment manager's judgments about markets, interest rates or the attractiveness, relative values or potential appreciation of particular investment strategies or sectors or securities purchased for the Fund's portfolio may prove to be incorrect, all of which could cause the Fund to perform less favorably and may result in a decline in the Fund's share price.

The investment manager selects investments for the Fund based on its own analysis and information as well as on external sources of information, such as information that the investment manager obtains from other sources including through conferences and discussions with third parties, and data that issuers of securities provide to the investment manager or file with government agencies. The investment manager may also use information concerning institutional positions and buying activity in a security. The investment manager is not in a position to confirm the completeness, genuineness or accuracy of any of such information that is provided or filed by an issuer, and in some cases, complete and accurate information is not readily available. It is also possible that information on which the investment manager relies could be wrong or misleading. Additionally, legislative, regulatory, or tax developments may affect the investment techniques available to the investment manager in connection with managing the Fund and may also adversely affect the ability of the Fund to achieve its investment goal. Management risk is greater when less qualitative information is available to the investment manager about an investment.

Market The market value of securities owned by the Fund may go up or down, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably due to general market conditions which are not specifically related to a single corporate borrower or security issuer. These general market conditions include real or perceived adverse economic or regulatory conditions, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency exchange rates or adverse investor sentiment generally. Market values may also decline due to factors which affect a particular industry or sector, such as labor shortages or increased production costs and competitive conditions within an industry, or a particular segment, such as mortgage or government securities. During a general downturn in the securities markets, multiple asset classes may decline in value simultaneously. When markets perform well, there can be no assurance that the Fund's securities will participate in or otherwise benefit from the advance.

Policies and Procedures Regarding the Release of Portfolio Holdings 

The Fund's overall policy with respect to the release of portfolio holdings is to release such information consistent with applicable legal requirements and the fiduciary duties owed to shareholders. Subject to the limited exceptions described below, the Fund will not make available to anyone non-public information with respect to its portfolio holdings, until such time as the information is made available to all shareholders or the general public.

For purposes of this policy, portfolio holdings information does not include aggregate, composite or descriptive information that does not present risks of dilution, arbitrage, market timing, insider trading or other inappropriate trading for the Fund. Information excluded from the definition of portfolio holdings information generally includes, without limitation: (1) descriptions of allocations among asset classes, regions, countries or industries/sectors; (2) aggregated data such as average or median ratios, market capitalization, credit quality or duration; (3) performance attributions by industry, sector or country; or (4) aggregated risk statistics. Such information, if made available to anyone, will be made available to any person upon request, but, because such information is generally not material to investors, it may or may not be posted on the Fund's website. In addition, other information may also be deemed to not be portfolio holdings information if, in the reasonable belief of the Fund's Chief Compliance Officer (or his/her designee), the release of such information would not present risks of dilution, arbitrage, market timing, insider trading or other inappropriate trading for the Fund.

Information concerning the Fund's portfolio holdings as well as its dollar-weighted average portfolio maturity as of the last business day or any subsequent calendar day of the preceding month will be posted on its website no later than five business days after the end of the month and remain posted on the website for six months thereafter. In addition, the Fund files monthly with the SEC portfolio holdings and other information about the Fund and its portfolio as of the last business day of the preceding month (or any subsequent calendar day of such month) within five business days of the end of each month. This information is made public upon filing.

In addition, a complete list of the Fund's portfolio holdings is generally released no sooner than 20 calendar days after the end of each calendar month. Commentaries and other materials that may reference specific holdings information of the Fund as of the most recent calendar quarter end are also subject to the same 20-day lag requirement. Other descriptive information, such as the Fund's top 10 holdings, may be released monthly, no sooner than five days after the end of each month. Released portfolio holdings information can be viewed at ftinstitutional.com.

To the extent that this policy would permit the release of portfolio holdings information regarding a particular portfolio holding for the Fund that is the subject of ongoing purchase or sale orders/programs, or if the release of such portfolio holdings information would otherwise be sensitive or inappropriate, the portfolio manager for the Fund may request that the release of such information be withheld.

Exceptions to the portfolio holdings release policy will be made only when: (1) the Fund has a legitimate business purpose for releasing portfolio holdings information in advance of release to all shareholders or the general public; (2) the recipient is subject to a duty of confidentiality pursuant to a signed non-disclosure agreement; and (3) the release of such information would not otherwise violate the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws or fiduciary duties owed to Fund shareholders. The determination of whether to grant an exception, which includes the determination of whether the Fund has a legitimate business purpose for releasing portfolio holdings information in advance of release to all shareholders or the general public shall be made by the Fund's Chief Compliance Officer or his/her designee, following a request submitted in writing.

The eligible third parties to whom portfolio holdings information may be released in advance of general release fall into the following categories: data consolidators (including rating agencies), fund rating/ranking services and other data providers, service providers to the Fund, and municipal securities brokers using the Investor Tools product which brings together buyers and sellers of municipal securities in the normal operation of the municipal securities markets. In addition, should the Fund process a shareholder’s redemption request in-kind, the Fund may, under certain circumstances, provide portfolio holdings information to such shareholder to the extent necessary to allow the shareholder to prepare for receipt of such portfolio securities.

The specific entities to whom the Fund may provide portfolio holdings in advance of their release to the general public are:

In all cases, eligible third parties are required to execute a non-disclosure agreement. Non-disclosure agreements include the following provisions:

In no case does the Fund receive any compensation in connection with the arrangements to release portfolio holdings information to any of the above-described recipients of the information.

Several investment managers within Franklin Templeton (F-T Managers) serve as investment managers to offshore funds that are registered or otherwise authorized for sale with foreign regulatory authorities. The release of portfolio holdings information for such offshore funds is excluded from the Fund's portfolio holdings release policy if such information is given to offshore banks, broker-dealers, insurance companies, registered investment managers and other financial institutions (offshore investment managers) with discretionary authority to select offshore funds on behalf of their clients. Because such offshore funds may from time to time invest in securities substantially similar to those of the Fund, there is the risk that such portfolio holdings information may be used to trade inappropriately against the Fund. To mitigate such risks, such information may only be disclosed for portfolio analytics, such as risk analysis/asset allocation, and the offshore investment manager will be required to execute a non-disclosure agreement, whereby such offshore investment manager: (1) agrees to maintain such information as confidential, including limiting the dissemination of such information, (2) is prohibited from trading on the information received, including (a) purchasing or selling any portfolio securities based on any information received; (b) trading against any U.S. registered Franklin or Templeton fund, including the Fund; (c) knowingly engaging in any trading practices that are adverse to any such fund; and (d) trading in shares of any such fund that is substantially similar to the offshore fund, and (3) agrees to refresh its representation as to confidentiality and abstention from trading upon request from Franklin Templeton. In addition, an offshore fund may release information regarding the top contributors and detractors to such fund’s portfolio performance monthly to those recipients who have executed a non-disclosure agreement containing the provisions described above, or who have confirmed electronically its agreement to such provisions. Country-specific offshore funds that are not, in the aggregate, substantially similar to the holdings of a U.S. registered Franklin or Templeton fund, are not subject to the restrictions imposed by the policy.

Certain F-T Managers serve as investment advisers to privately placed funds that are exempt from registration, including Canadian institutional pooled funds and commingled trusts maintained by a Franklin Templeton trust company. In certain circumstances, such unregistered private funds may have portfolio holdings that are not, in the aggregate, substantially similar to the holdings of a U.S. registered fund, as determined by the Chief Compliance Officer or his/her designee. Under such circumstances the release of portfolio holdings information to a client or potential client of the unregistered private fund may be permissible. In circumstances where an unregistered private fund invests in portfolio securities that, in the aggregate, are substantially similar to the holdings of a U.S. registered fund, such private funds are subject to the restrictions imposed by the policy, except that the release of holdings information to a current investor in the private fund is permissible conditioned upon such investor’s execution of a non-disclosure agreement to mitigate the risk that portfolio holdings information may be used to trade inappropriately against a fund. Such non-disclosure agreement must provide that the investor: (1) agrees to maintain such information as confidential, including limiting the dissemination of such information (except that the investor may be permitted to disseminate such information to an agent as necessary to allow the performance of portfolio analytics with respect to the investor’s investment in the private fund), and (2) is prohibited from trading on the information received, including (a) trading against any U.S. registered Franklin or Templeton fund, including the Fund; (b) knowingly engaging in any trading practices that are adverse to any such fund; and (c) trading in shares of any U.S. registered Franklin or Templeton fund that is managed in a style substantially similar to that of the private fund.

Some F-T Managers serve as sub-advisers to other mutual funds not within the Franklin Templeton fund complex ("other funds"), which may be managed in a style substantially similar to that of a U.S. registered Franklin or Templeton fund. Such other funds are not subject to the Fund's portfolio holdings release policy. The sponsors of such funds may disclose the portfolio holdings of such funds at different times than the Fund discloses its portfolio holdings.

In addition, some F-T Managers also serve as investment managers to separate accounts, which are subject to the Fund’s policy with respect to the release of the separate account’s holdings to consultants and potential clients. Separate accounts that are not, in the aggregate, substantially similar to the holdings of a U.S. registered Franklin or Templeton fund, however, are not subject to the restrictions imposed by the policy.

The Fund's portfolio holdings release policy and all subsequent amendments have been reviewed and approved by the Fund's board, and any other material amendments shall also be reviewed and approved by the board. The investment manager's compliance staff conducts periodic reviews of compliance with the policy and provides at least annually a report to the board regarding the operation of the policy and any material changes recommended as a result of such review. The investment manager's compliance staff also will supply the board yearly with a list of exceptions granted to the policy, along with an explanation of the legitimate business purpose of the Fund that is served as a result of the exception.

Officers and Trustees

Institutional Fiduciary Trust (Trust) has a board of trustees. Each trustee will serve until that person resigns, retires and/or a successor is elected and qualified. The board is responsible for the overall management of the Trust, including general supervision and review of the Fund's investment activities. The board, in turn, elects the officers of the Trust who are responsible for administering the Fund's day-to-day operations.

The name, year of birth and address of the officers and board members, as well as their affiliations, positions held with the Trust, principal occupations during at least the past five years, number of portfolios overseen in the Franklin Templeton fund complex and other directorships held during at least the past five years are shown below.

Independent Board Members

Name, Year of Birth and Address Position Length of Time Served Number of Portfolios
in Fund Complex
Overseen by
Board Member1
Other Directorships Held During at Least the Past 5 Years
Harris J. Ashton (1932)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Trustee Since 1985 126 Bar-S Foods (meat packing company) (1981-2010).
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Director of various companies; and formerly, Director, RBC Holdings, Inc. (bank holding company) (until 2002); and President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, General Host Corporation (nursery and craft centers) (until 1998).
 
Terrence J. Checki (1945)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Trustee Since 2017 107 Hess Corporation (exploration of oil and gas) (2014-present).
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Member of the Council on Foreign Relations (1996-present); Member of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations (1999-present); member of the board of trustees of the Economic Club of New York (2013-present); member of the board of trustees of the Foreign Policy Association (2005-present); member of the board of directors of Council of the Americas (2007-present) and the Tallberg Foundation (2018- present); and formerly, Executive Vice President of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Head of its Emerging Markets and Internal Affairs Group and Member of Management Committee (1995-2014); and Visiting Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations (2014).
 
Mary C. Choksi (1950)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Trustee Since 2014 126 Omnicom Group Inc. (advertising and marketing communications services) (2011-present) and White Mountains Insurance Group, Ltd. (holding company) (2017-present); and formerly, Avis Budget Group Inc. (car rental) (2007-May 2020).
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Director of various companies; and formerly, Founder and Senior Advisor, Strategic Investment Group (investment management group) (2015-2017); Founding Partner and Senior Managing Director, Strategic Investment Group (1987-2015); Founding Partner and Managing Director, Emerging Markets Management LLC (investment management firm) (1987-2011); and Loan Officer/Senior Loan Officer/Senior Pension Investment Officer, World Bank Group (international financial institution) (1977-1987).
 
Edith E. Holiday (1952)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Lead Independent Trustee Trustee since 2005 and Lead Independent Trustee since 2019 126 Hess Corporation (exploration of oil and gas) (1993-present), Canadian National Railway (railroad) (2001-present), White Mountains Insurance Group, Ltd. (holding company) (2004-present), Santander Consumer USA Holdings, Inc. (consumer finance) (2016-present), Santander Holdings USA (holding company) (2019-present); formerly, RTI International Metals, Inc. (manufacture and distribution of titanium) (1999-2015) and H.J. Heinz Company (processed foods and allied products) (1994-2013).
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Director or Trustee of various companies and trusts; and formerly, Assistant to the President of the United States and Secretary of the Cabinet (1990-1993); General Counsel to the United States Treasury Department (1989-1990); and Counselor to the Secretary and Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs and Public Liaison-United States Treasury Department (1988-1989).
 
J. Michael Luttig (1954)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Trustee Since 2009 126 Boeing Capital Corporation (aircraft financing) (2006-2010).
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Private investor; and formerly, Counselor and Senior Advisor to the Chairman, CEO, and Board of Directors, of The Boeing Company (aerospace company), and member of the Executive Council (May 2019-January 1, 2020); Executive Vice President, General Counsel and member of the Executive Council, The Boeing Company (2006-2019); and Federal Appeals Court Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (1991-2006).
 
Larry D. Thompson (1945)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Trustee Since 2007 126 Graham Holdings Company (education and media organization) (2011-present); and formerly, The Southern Company (energy company) (2014-May 2020; previously 2010-2012), Cbeyond, Inc. (business communications provider) (2010-2012).
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Director of various companies; Counsel, Finch McCranie, LLP (law firm) (2015-present); John A. Sibley Professor of Corporate and Business Law, University of Georgia School of Law (2015-present; previously 2011-2012); and formerly, Independent Compliance Monitor and Auditor, Volkswagen AG (manufacturer of automobiles and commercial vehicles) (2017-September 2020); Executive Vice President - Government Affairs, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, PepsiCo, Inc. (consumer products) (2012-2014); Senior Vice President - Government Affairs, General Counsel and Secretary, PepsiCo, Inc. (2004-2011); Senior Fellow of The Brookings Institution (2003-2004); Visiting Professor, University of Georgia School of Law (2004); and Deputy Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice (2001-2003).
 


Interested Board Members and Officers

Name, Year of Birth and Address Position Length of Time Served Number of Portfolios
in Fund Complex
Overseen by
Board Member1
Other Directorships Held During at Least the Past 5 Years
Gregory E. Johnson2 (1961)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Trustee Since 2007 137 None
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Executive Chairman, Chairman of the Board and Director, Franklin Resources, Inc.; officer and/or director or trustee, as the case may be, of some of the other subsidiaries of Franklin Resources, Inc. and of 39 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton; Vice Chairman, Investment Company Institute; and formerly, Chief Executive Officer (2013-2020) and President (1994-2015), Franklin Resources, Inc.
 
Rupert H. Johnson, Jr.3 (1940)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Chairman of the Board and Trustee Since 2013 126 None
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Director (Vice Chairman), Franklin Resources, Inc.; Director, Franklin Advisers, Inc.; and officer and/or director or trustee, as the case may be, of some of the other subsidiaries of Franklin Resources, Inc. and of 37 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton.
 
Alison E. Baur (1964)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Vice President Since 2012 Not Applicable Not Applicable
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Deputy General Counsel, Franklin Templeton; and officer of some of the other subsidiaries of Franklin Resources, Inc. and of 41 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton.
 
Breda M. Beckerle (1958)
280 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10017
Chief Compliance Officer Since October 2020 Not Applicable Not Applicable
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Chief Compliance Officer, Fiduciary Investment Management International, Inc., Franklin Advisers, Inc., Franklin Advisory Services, LLC, Franklin Mutual Advisers, LLC, Franklin Templeton Institutional, LLC; and officer of 41 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton.
 
Sonal Desai, Ph.D. (1963)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
President and Chief Executive Officer - Investment Management Since 2018 Not Applicable Not Applicable
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Director and Executive Vice President, Franklin Advisers, Inc.; Executive Vice President, Franklin Templeton Institutional, LLC; and officer of 17 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton.
 
Gaston Gardey (1967)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer Since 2009 Not Applicable Not Applicable
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Treasurer, U.S. Fund Administration & Reporting and officer of 24 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton.
 
Steven J. Gray (1955)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Vice President and Co-Secretary Vice President since 2009 and Co-Secretary since 2019 Not Applicable Not Applicable
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Senior Associate General Counsel, Franklin Templeton; Vice President, Franklin Templeton Distributors, Inc. and FASA, LLC; and officer of 41 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton.
 
Matthew T. Hinkle (1971)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Chief Executive Officer - Finance and Administration Since 2017 Not Applicable Not Applicable
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Senior Vice President, Franklin Templeton Services, LLC; officer of 41 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton; and formerly, Vice President, Global Tax (2012-April 2017) and Treasurer/Assistant Treasurer, Franklin Templeton (2009-2017).
 
Robert Lim (1948)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Vice President - AML Compliance Since 2016 Not Applicable Not Applicable
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Vice President, Franklin Templeton Companies, LLC; Chief Compliance Officer, Franklin Templeton Distributors, Inc. and Franklin Templeton Investor Services, LLC; and officer of 41 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton.
 
Navid J. Tofigh (1972)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Vice President Since 2015 Not Applicable Not Applicable
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Associate General Counsel and officer of 41 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton.
 
Craig S. Tyle (1960)
One Franklin Parkway
San Mateo, CA 94403-1906
Vice President Since 2005 Not Applicable Not Applicable
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
General Counsel and Executive Vice President, Franklin Resources, Inc.; and officer of some of the other subsidiaries of Franklin Resources, Inc. and of 41 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton.
 
Lori A. Weber (1964)
300 S.E. 2nd Street
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301-1923
Vice President and Co-Secretary Vice President since 2011 and Co-Secretary since 2019 Not Applicable Not Applicable
Principal Occupation During at Least the Past 5 Years:
Senior Associate General Counsel, Franklin Templeton; Assistant Secretary, Franklin Resources, Inc.; Vice President and Secretary, Templeton Investment Counsel, LLC; and officer of 41 of the investment companies in Franklin Templeton.
 

Note 1: Rupert H. Johnson, Jr. is the uncle of Gregory E. Johnson.

Note 2: Officer information is current as of the date of this SAI. It is possible that after this date, information about officers may change.



1. We base the number of portfolios on each separate series of the U.S. registered investment companies within the Franklin Templeton fund complex. These portfolios have a common investment manager or affiliated investment managers.

2. Gregory E. Johnson is considered to be an interested person of the Fund under the federal securities laws due to his position as an officer and director of Franklin Resources, Inc. (Resources), which is the parent company of the Fund's investment manager and distributor.

3. Rupert H. Johnson, Jr. is considered to be an interested person of the Fund under the federal securities laws due to his position as an officer and director and a major shareholder of Resources, which is the parent company of the Fund's investment manager and distributor.

The Trust's independent board members constitute the sole independent board members of 24 investment companies in the Franklin Templeton complex for which each independent board member currently is paid a $304,000 annual retainer fee, together with a $7,000 per meeting fee for attendance at each regularly scheduled board meeting, a portion of which fees are allocated to the Trust. To the extent held, compensation may also be paid for attendance at specially held board meetings. The Trust's lead independent board member is paid an annual supplemental retainer of $40,000 for services to such investment companies, a portion of which is allocated to the Trust. Board members who serve on the Audit Committee of the Trust and such other funds are paid a $10,000 annual retainer fee, together with a $3,000 fee per Committee meeting in which they participate, a portion of which is allocated to the Trust. Terrence J. Checki, who serves as chairman of the Audit Committee of the Trust and such other funds receives a fee of $50,000 per year in lieu of the Audit Committee member retainer fee, a portion of which is allocated to the Trust. The following table provides the total fees paid to independent board members by the Trust and by other funds in Franklin Templeton.

Name Total Fees
Received
from
the Trust
($)1
Total Fees
Received
from Franklin
Templeton
($)2
Number
of Boards
in Franklin
Templeton
on which
Each Serves3
Harris J. Ashton 13,817 642,000 36
Terrence J. Checki 18,376 437,111 24
Mary C. Choksi 16,127 685,000 36
Edith E. Holiday 18,380 767,111 36
J. Michael Luttig 15,962 707,000 36
Larry D. Thompson 16,127 685,000 36


1. For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2020.

2. For the calendar year ended December 31, 2019.

3. We base the number of boards on the number of U.S. registered investment companies in Franklin Templeton. This number does not include the total number of series or portfolios within each investment company for which the board members are responsible.

Independent board members are reimbursed for expenses incurred in connection with attending board meetings and such expenses are paid pro rata by each fund in Franklin Templeton for which they serve as director or trustee. No officer or board member received any other compensation, including pension or retirement benefits, directly or indirectly from the Trust or other funds in Franklin Templeton. Certain officers or board members who are shareholders of Franklin Resources, Inc. (Resources) may be deemed to receive indirect remuneration by virtue of their participation, if any, in the fees paid to its subsidiaries.

Board members historically have followed a policy of having substantial investments in one or more of the Franklin Templeton funds, as is consistent with their individual financial goals. In February 1998, this policy was formalized through the adoption of a requirement that each board member invest one-third of fees received for serving as a director or trustee of a Templeton fund (excluding committee fees) in shares of one or more Templeton funds and one-third of fees received for serving as a director or trustee of a Franklin fund (excluding committee fees) in shares of one or more Franklin funds until the value of such investments equals or exceeds five times the annual retainer and regular board meeting fees paid to such board member. Investments in the name of family members or entities controlled by a board member constitute fund holdings of such board member for purposes of this policy, and a three-year phase-in period applies to such investment requirements for newly elected board members. In implementing such policy, a board member's fund holdings existing on February 27, 1998, are valued as of such date with subsequent investments valued at cost.

The board, with approval of all independent and interested board members, has adopted written procedures designed to deal with potential conflicts of interest that may arise from the Fund and the Master Portfolio having substantially the same boards. These procedures call for an annual review of the Fund's relationship with the Master Portfolio. If a conflict exists, the boards may take action, which may include the establishment of a new board. The board has determined that there are no conflicts of interest at the present time.

The following tables provide the dollar range of equity securities beneficially owned by the board members of the Trust on December 31, 2019.

Independent Board Members

Name of
Board Member
Dollar Range of
Equity Securities
in the Fund
Aggregate
Dollar Range of
Equity Securities in
All Funds Overseen
by the Board
Member in the
Franklin Templeton
Fund Complex
Harris J. Ashton None Over $100,000
Terrence J. Checki None Over $100,000
Mary C. Choksi None Over $100,000
Edith E. Holiday None Over $100,000
J. Michael Luttig None Over $100,000
Larry D. Thompson None Over $100,000


Interested Board Members

Name of
Board Member
Dollar Range of
Equity Securities
in the Fund
Aggregate
Dollar Range of
Equity Securities in
All Funds Overseen
by the Board
Member in the
Franklin Templeton
Fund Complex
Gregory E. Johnson None Over $100,000
Rupert H. Johnson, Jr. None Over $100,000


Board committees The board maintains two standing committees: the Audit Committee and the Nominating Committee. The Audit Committee is generally responsible for recommending the selection of the Trust's independent registered public accounting firm (auditors), including evaluating their independence and meeting with such auditors to consider and review matters relating to the Trust's financial reports and internal controls. The Audit Committee is comprised of the following independent trustees of the Trust: Terrence J. Checki, Mary C. Choksi, Edith E. Holiday, J. Michael Luttig and Larry D. Thompson. The Nominating Committee is comprised of the following independent trustees of the Trust: Harris J. Ashton, Terrence J. Checki, Mary C. Choksi, Edith E. Holiday, J. Michael Luttig and Larry D. Thompson.

The Nominating Committee is responsible for selecting candidates to serve as board members and recommending such candidates (a) for selection and nomination as independent board members by the incumbent independent board member and the full board; and (b) for selection and nomination as interested board members by the full board.

When the board has or expects to have a vacancy, the Nominating Committee receives and reviews information on individuals qualified to be recommended to the full board as nominees for election as board members, including any recommendations by “Qualifying Fund Shareholders” (as defined below). To date, the Nominating Committee has been able to identify, and expects to continue to be able to identify, from its own resources an ample number of qualified candidates. The Nominating Committee, however, will review recommendations from Qualifying Fund Shareholders to fill vacancies on the board if these recommendations are submitted in writing and addressed to the Nominating Committee at the Trust's offices at One Franklin Parkway, San Mateo, CA 94403-1906 and are presented with appropriate background material concerning the candidate that demonstrates his or her ability to serve as a board member, including as an independent board member, of the Trust. A Qualifying Fund Shareholder is a shareholder who (i) has continuously owned of record, or beneficially through a financial intermediary, shares of the Fund having a net asset value of not less than two hundred and fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) during the 24-month period prior to submitting the recommendation; and (ii) provides a written notice to the Nominating Committee containing the following information: (a) the name and address of the Qualifying Fund Shareholder making the recommendation; (b) the number of shares of the Fund which are owned of record and beneficially by such Qualifying Fund Shareholder and the length of time that such shares have been so owned by the Qualifying Fund Shareholder; (c) a description of all arrangements and understandings between such Qualifying Fund Shareholder and any other person or persons (naming such person or persons) pursuant to which the recommendation is being made; (d) the name, age, date of birth, business address and residence address of the person or persons being recommended; (e) such other information regarding each person recommended by such Qualifying Fund Shareholder as would be required to be included in a proxy statement filed pursuant to the proxy rules of the SEC had the nominee been nominated by the board; (f) whether the shareholder making the recommendation believes the person recommended would or would not be an “interested person” of the Trust, as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act); and (g) the written consent of each person recommended to serve as a board member of the Trust if so nominated and elected/appointed.

The Nominating Committee may amend these procedures from time to time, including the procedures relating to the evaluation of nominees and the process for submitting recommendations to the Nominating Committee.

During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2020, the Audit Committee met three times; the Nominating Committee did not meet.

Board role in risk oversight The board, as a whole, considers risk management issues as part of its general oversight responsibilities throughout the year at regular board meetings, through regular reports that have been developed by management, in consultation with the board and its counsel. These reports address certain investment, valuation and compliance matters. The board also may receive special written reports or presentations on a variety of risk issues (e.g., COVID-19 related issues), either upon the board’s request or upon the investment manager’s initiative. In addition, the Audit Committee of the board meets regularly with the investment manager’s internal audit group to review reports on their examinations of functions and processes within Franklin Templeton that affect the Fund.

With respect to investment risk, the board receives regular written reports describing and analyzing the investment performance of the Fund. In addition, the portfolio managers of the Fund meet regularly with the board to discuss portfolio performance, including investment risk. To the extent that the Fund changes a particular investment strategy that could have a material impact on the Fund’s risk profile, the board generally is consulted with respect to such change. To the extent that the Fund invests in certain complex securities, including derivatives, the board receives periodic reports containing information about exposure of the Fund to such instruments. In addition, the investment manager’s investment risk personnel meet regularly with the board to discuss a variety of issues, including the impact on the Fund of the investment in particular securities or instruments, such as derivatives and commodities.

With respect to valuation, the Fund’s administrator provides regular written reports to the board that enable the board to monitor the number of fair valued securities in a particular portfolio, the reasons for the fair valuation and the methodology used to arrive at the fair value. Such reports also include information concerning illiquid securities within the Fund’s portfolio. The board also reviews dispositional analysis information on the sale of securities that require special valuation considerations such as illiquid or fair valued securities. In addition, the Fund’s Audit Committee reviews valuation procedures and results with the Fund’s auditors in connection with such Committee’s review of the results of the audit of the Fund’s year-end financial statements.

With respect to compliance risks, the board receives regular compliance reports prepared by the investment manager’s compliance group and meets regularly with the Fund’s Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) to discuss compliance issues, including compliance risks. In accordance with SEC rules, the independent board members meet regularly in executive session with the CCO, and the Fund’s CCO prepares and presents an annual written compliance report to the board. The Fund’s board adopts compliance policies and procedures for the Fund and approves such procedures for the Fund’s service providers. The compliance policies and procedures are specifically designed to detect and prevent violations of the federal securities laws.

The investment manager periodically provides an enterprise risk management presentation to the board to describe the way in which risk is managed on a complex-wide level. Such presentation covers such areas as investment risk, reputational risk, personnel risk, and business continuity risk.

Board structure Seventy-five percent of board members consist of independent board members who are not deemed to be “interested persons” by reason of their relationship with the Fund’s management or otherwise as provided under the 1940 Act. While the Chairman of the Board is an interested person, the board is also served by a lead independent board member. The lead independent board member, together with independent counsel, reviews proposed agendas for board meetings and generally acts as a liaison with management with respect to questions and issues raised by the independent board members. The lead independent board member also presides at separate meetings of independent board members held in advance of each scheduled board meeting where various matters, including those being considered at such board meeting are discussed. It is believed such structure and activities assure that proper consideration is given at board meetings to matters deemed important to the Fund and its shareholders.

Trustee qualifications Information on the Fund’s officers and board members appears above including information on the business activities of board members during the past five years and beyond. In addition to personal qualities, such as integrity, the role of an effective Fund board member inherently requires the ability to comprehend, discuss and critically analyze materials and issues presented in exercising judgments and reaching informed conclusions relevant to his or her duties and fiduciary obligations. The board believes that the specific background of each board member evidences such ability and is appropriate to his or her serving on the Fund’s board. As indicated, Harris J. Ashton has served as a chief executive officer of a NYSE-listed public corporation; Terrence J. Checki has served as a senior executive of a Federal Reserve Bank and has vast experience evaluating economic forces and their impact on markets, including emerging markets; Mary C. Choksi has an extensive background in asset management, including founding an investment management firm; Larry D. Thompson and Edith E. Holiday each have legal backgrounds, including high level legal positions with departments of the U.S. government; J. Michael Luttig has fifteen years of judicial experience as a Federal Appeals Court Judge and eleven years of experience as Executive Vice President and General Counsel of a major public company; and Gregory E. Johnson and Rupert H. Johnson, Jr. are both high ranking executive officers of Franklin Templeton.

Management and Other Services

Investment manager and services provided The Master Portfolio's investment manager is Franklin Advisers, Inc. (Advisers). The investment manager is a wholly owned subsidiary of Resources, a publicly owned company engaged in the financial services industry through its subsidiaries. Charles B. Johnson (former Chairman and Director of Resources) and Rupert H. Johnson, Jr. are the principal shareholders of Resources.

The investment manager provides investment research and portfolio management services, and selects the securities for the Master Portfolio to buy, hold or sell. The investment manager also selects the brokers who execute the Master Portfolio's portfolio transactions. The investment manager provides periodic reports to the board, which reviews and supervises the investment manager's investment activities. To protect the Master Portfolio, the investment manager and its officers, directors and employees are covered by fidelity insurance.

The investment manager makes decisions for the Fund in accordance with its obligations as investment adviser to the Fund. From time to time, certain affiliates may request that the investment manager focus the Fund’s investments on certain securities, strategies or markets or shift the Fund’s strategy slightly to enhance its attractiveness to specific investors, which may create a conflict of interest. The investment manager may, but is not required to, focus or shift the Fund’s investments in the manner requested provided that the investment manager believes that such investments are consistent with the Fund’s stated investment goals and strategies and are in the best interests of the Fund and its shareholders. In addition, the investment manager and its affiliates manage numerous other investment companies and accounts. The investment manager may give advice and take action with respect to any of the other funds it manages, or for its own account, that may differ from action taken by the investment manager on behalf of the Master Portfolio. Similarly, with respect to the Master Portfolio, the investment manager is not obligated to recommend, buy or sell, or to refrain from recommending, buying or selling any security that the investment manager and access persons, as defined by applicable federal securities laws, may buy or sell for its or their own account or for the accounts of any other fund. The investment manager is not obligated to refrain from investing in securities held by the Master Portfolio or other funds it manages.

The Fund, the Master Portfolio, its investment manager and the Fund's principal underwriter have each adopted a code of ethics, as required by federal securities laws. Under the code of ethics, employees who are designated as access persons may engage in personal securities transactions, including transactions involving securities that are being considered for the Master Portfolio or that are currently held by the Master Portfolio, subject to certain general restrictions and procedures. The personal securities transactions of access persons of the Fund, the Master Portfolio, its investment manager and the Fund's principal underwriter will be governed by the code of ethics. The code of ethics is on file with, and available from, the SEC.

Management fees The Master Portfolio pays the investment manager a fee equal to an annual rate of 0.15% of the value of the Master Portfolio’s average daily net assets.

The fee is calculated at the close of business each day according to the terms of the management agreement. For the last three fiscal years ended June 30, the Master Portfolio paid the following management fees:

  Management Fees Paid ($)
2020 28,902,560
2019 34,370,929
2018 33,566,608


Administrator and services provided Franklin Templeton Services, LLC (FT Services) has an agreement with the Fund to provide various administrative, statistical and other services to the Fund. FT Services is an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of Resources and is an affiliate of the Fund's investment manager and principal underwriter.

The administrative services FT Services provides include preparing and maintaining books, records, and tax and financial reports, and monitoring compliance with regulatory requirements.

Administration fees The Fund pays FT Services a fee equal to an annual rate of 0.20 of 1% of the value of the Fund's average daily net assets.

For the last three fiscal years ended June 30, FT Services was paid the following administration fees:

  Administration Fees Paid ($)
20201 29,024,630
2019 39,690,493
2018 39,434,027


1. For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2020, administration fees, before any advance waivers, totaled $31,963,397. Under a voluntary fee waiver by Advisers and FT Services, the Fund paid the administration fees shown.

Shareholder servicing and transfer agent Franklin Templeton Investor Services, LLC (Investor Services) is the Fund's shareholder servicing agent and acts as the Fund's transfer agent and dividend-paying agent. Investor Services is located at 3344 Quality Drive, Rancho Cordova, CA 95670-7313. Please send all correspondence to Institutional Services, One Franklin Parkway, San Mateo, CA 94403-1906.

Investor Services receives a fee for servicing Fund shareholder accounts. The Fund also will reimburse Investor Services for certain out-of-pocket expenses necessarily incurred in servicing the shareholder accounts in accordance with the terms of its servicing contract with the Fund.

In addition, Investor Services may make payments to financial intermediaries that provide administrative services to defined benefit plans. Investor Services does not seek reimbursement by the Fund for such payments.

Investor Services may also pay servicing fees, that will be reimbursed by the Fund, in varying amounts to certain financial institutions (to help offset their costs associated with client account maintenance support, statement preparation and transaction processing) that (i) maintain omnibus accounts with the Fund in the institution's name on behalf of numerous beneficial owners of Fund shares who are either direct clients of the institution or are participants in an IRS-recognized tax-deferred savings plan (including Employer Sponsored Retirement Plans and Section 529 Plans) for which the institution, or its affiliate, provides participant level recordkeeping services (called "Beneficial Owners"); or (ii) provide support for Fund shareholder accounts by sharing account data with Investor Services through the National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC) networking system. In addition to servicing fees received from the Fund, these financial institutions also may charge a fee for their services directly to their clients. Investor Services will also receive a fee from the Fund for services provided in support of Beneficial Owners and NSCC networking system accounts.

Sub-administrator JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. (JPMorgan) has an agreement with FT Services to provide certain sub-administrative services for the Fund. The administrative services JPMorgan provides include, but are not limited to, certain fund accounting, financial reporting, tax, corporate governance and compliance and legal administration services.

Custodian Investor Services, as the transfer agent for the Master Portfolio, effectively acts as the Fund’s custodian and holds the Fund’s shares of the Master Portfolio on its books. The Bank of New York Mellon, Mutual Funds Division, 100 Church Street, New York, NY 10286, acts as custodian of the Fund’s cash, pending investment in Master Portfolio shares. The Bank of New York Mellon also acts as custodian of the securities and other assets of the Master Portfolio.

Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Three Embarcadero Center, San Francisco, CA 94111-4004, is the Fund's independent registered public accounting firm. The independent registered public accounting firm audits the financial statements included in the Fund's Annual Report to shareholders.

Portfolio Transactions

The Fund will not incur any brokerage or other costs in connection with buying or selling shares of the Master Portfolio.

Since most purchases by the Master Portfolio are principal transactions at net prices, the Master Portfolio incurs little or no brokerage costs. The Master Portfolio deals directly with the selling or buying principal or market maker without incurring charges for the services of a broker on its behalf, unless it is determined that a better price or execution may be obtained by using the services of a broker. Purchases of portfolio securities from underwriters will include a commission or concession paid to the underwriter, and purchases from dealers will include a spread between the bid and ask price. The Master Portfolio seeks to obtain prompt execution of orders at the most favorable net price. Transactions may be directed to dealers in return for research and statistical information, as well as for special services provided by the dealers in the execution of orders.

It is not possible to place an accurate dollar value on the special execution or on the research services the investment manager receives from dealers effecting transactions in portfolio securities. The allocation of transactions to obtain additional research services allows the investment manager to supplement its own research and analysis activities and to receive the views and information of individuals and research staffs from many securities firms. The receipt of these products and services does not reduce the investment manager's research activities in providing investment advice to the Master Portfolio.

As long as it is lawful and appropriate to do so, the investment manager and its affiliates may use this research and data in their investment advisory capacities with other clients.

If purchases or sales of securities of the Master Portfolio and one or more other investment companies or clients supervised by the investment manager are considered at or about the same time, transactions in these securities will be allocated among the several investment companies and clients in a manner deemed equitable to all by the investment manager, taking into account the respective sizes of the accounts and the amount of securities to be purchased or sold. In some cases this procedure could have a detrimental effect on the price or volume of the security so far as the Master Portfolio is concerned. In other cases it is possible that the ability to participate in volume transactions may improve execution and reduce transaction costs to the Master Portfolio.

For the last three fiscal years ended June 30, the Master Portfolio did not pay any brokerage commissions.

As of June 30, 2020, neither the Fund nor the Master Portfolio owned any securities issued by their regular broker-dealers.

Distributions and Taxes

The following discussion is a summary of certain additional tax considerations generally affecting the Fund and its shareholders, some of which may not be described in the Fund’s prospectus. No attempt is made to present a complete detailed explanation of the tax treatment of the Fund or its shareholders. The discussions here and in the prospectus are not intended as a substitute for careful tax planning.

The following discussion is based on the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and applicable regulations in effect on the date of this SAI, including any amendments to the Code resulting from 2017 legislation commonly known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Future legislative, regulatory or administrative changes, including any provisions of law that sunset and thereafter no longer apply, or court decisions may significantly change the tax rules applicable to the Fund and its shareholders. Any of these changes or court decisions may have a retroactive effect. Where indicated below, IRS refers to the United States Internal Revenue Service.

This is for general information only and not tax advice. All investors should consult their own tax advisors as to the federal, state, local and foreign tax provisions applicable to them.

Distributions The Fund intends to declare income dividends from its net investment income each day that its net asset value is calculated and pay them monthly. Capital gains, if any, may be paid at least annually. The Fund may distribute income dividends and capital gains more frequently, if necessary or appropriate in the board’s discretion. The amount of any distribution will vary, and there is no guarantee the Fund will pay either income dividends or capital gain distributions. Your income dividends and capital gain distributions will be automatically reinvested in additional shares at net asset value unless you elect to receive them in cash. Distributions declared in December to shareholders of record in such month and paid in January are taxable as if they were paid in December.

Distributions of net investment income. The Fund receives taxable income generally in the form of dividends on its investments in the Master Portfolio. The Fund may also earn taxable income from temporary investments, and net short-term capital gains from the sale or other disposition of its investment in the Master Portfolio. This income, less expenses incurred in the operation of the Fund, constitutes the Fund's net investment income from which dividends may be paid to you. The Fund does not pay “interest” to you. If you are a taxable investor, any income dividends the Fund pays from this income will be taxable to you as ordinary income.

The Master Portfolio earns taxable income from many sources, including interest on domestic money market obligations, U.S. government securities, repurchase agreements, and ordinary income from the sale of market discount bonds.

Distributions of capital gains. The Master Portfolio may realize short-term capital gains and losses in connection with sales of its portfolio securities. Distributions of the Master Portfolio’s net short-term capital gains (if any) will be taxable to the Fund, and, in turn, to you as ordinary income. Net short-term capital gains will normally be included in ordinary income distributions only once a year, but may be included in these distributions more frequently to assist the Fund in maintaining a stable $1 offering price. Because the Fund and the Master Portfolio are each money funds, neither anticipates realizing any long-term capital gains on its investments.

Returns of capital. If the Fund's distributions exceed its earnings and profits (i.e., generally, its taxable income and realized capital gains) for a taxable year, all or a portion of the distributions made in that taxable year may be characterized as a return of capital to you. A return of capital distribution will generally not be taxable, but will reduce the cost basis in your Fund shares and will result in a higher capital gain or in a lower capital loss when you sell your shares. Any return of capital in excess of the basis in your Fund shares, however, will be taxable as a capital gain. In the case of a non-calendar year fund, earnings and profits are first allocated to distributions made on or before December 31 of its taxable year and then to distributions made thereafter. The effect of this provision is to “push” returns of capital into the next calendar year.

Undistributed capital gains. The Fund may retain or distribute to shareholders its net capital gain for each taxable year. The Fund currently intends to distribute net capital gains. If the Fund elects to retain its net capital gain, the Fund will be taxed thereon (except to the extent of any available capital loss carryovers) at the applicable corporate tax rate. If the Fund elects to retain its net capital gain, it is expected that the Fund also will elect to have shareholders treated as if each received a distribution of its pro rata share of such gain, with the result that each shareholder will be required to report its pro rata share of such gain on its tax return as long-term capital gain, will receive a refundable tax credit for its pro rata share of tax paid by the Fund on the gain, and will increase the tax basis for its shares by an amount equal to the deemed distribution less the tax credit.

Information on the amount and tax character of distributions The Fund will inform you of the amount of your income dividends at the time they are paid, and will advise you of their tax status for federal income tax purposes shortly after the close of each calendar year.

Election to be taxed as a regulated investment company The Fund has elected to be treated as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Code. It has qualified as a regulated investment company for its most recent fiscal year, and intends to continue to qualify during the current fiscal year. As a regulated investment company, the Fund generally pays no federal income tax on the income and gains it distributes to you. In order to qualify for treatment as a regulated investment company, the Fund must satisfy the requirements described below.

Distribution requirement. The Fund must distribute an amount equal to the sum of at least 90% of its investment company taxable income and 90% of its net tax-exempt income, if any, for the tax year (including, for purposes of satisfying this distribution requirement, certain distributions made by the Fund after the close of its taxable year that are treated as made during such taxable year).

Income requirement. The Fund must derive at least 90% of its gross income from dividends, interest, certain payments with respect to securities loans, and gains from the sale or other disposition of stock, securities or foreign currencies, or other income (including, but not limited to, gains from options, futures or forward contracts) derived from its business of investing in such stock, securities or currencies and net income derived from qualified publicly traded partnerships (QPTPs).

Asset diversification test. The Fund must satisfy the following asset diversification test at the close of each quarter of the Fund’s tax year: (1) at least 50% of the value of the Fund’s assets must consist of cash and cash items, U.S. government securities, securities of other regulated investment companies, and securities of other issuers (as to which the Fund has not invested more than 5% of the value of the Fund’s total assets in securities of an issuer and as to which the Fund does not hold more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of the issuer); and (2) no more than 25% of the value of the Fund’s total assets may be invested in the securities of any one issuer (other than U.S. government securities or securities of other regulated investment companies) or of two or more issuers which the Fund controls and which are engaged in the same or similar trades or businesses, or, in the securities of one or more QPTPs.

In some circumstances, the character and timing of income realized by the Fund for purposes of the income requirement or the identification of the issuer for purposes of the asset diversification test is uncertain under current law with respect to a particular investment, and an adverse determination or future guidance by the IRS with respect to such type of investment may adversely affect the Fund’s ability to satisfy these requirements. In other circumstances, the Fund may be required to sell portfolio holdings in order to meet the income requirement, distribution requirement, or asset diversification test, which may have a negative impact on the Fund’s income and performance. In lieu of potential disqualification, the Fund is permitted to pay a tax for certain failures to satisfy the asset diversification test or income requirement, which, in general, are limited to those due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect.

If for any taxable year the Fund does not qualify as a regulated investment company, all of its taxable income (including its net capital gain) would be subject to tax at the applicable corporate tax rate without any deduction for dividends paid to shareholders, and the dividends would be taxable to the shareholders as ordinary income (or possibly as qualified dividend income) to the extent of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits. Failure to qualify as a regulated investment company, subject to savings provisions for certain qualification failures, which, in general, are limited to those due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect, would thus have a negative impact on the Fund’s income and performance. In that case, the Fund would be liable for federal, and possibly state, corporate taxes on its taxable income and gains, and distributions to you would be taxed as dividend income to the extent of the Fund’s earnings and profits. Even if such savings provisions apply, the Fund may be subject to a monetary sanction of $50,000 or more. Moreover, the board reserves the right not to maintain the qualification of the Fund as a regulated investment company if it determines such a course of action to be beneficial to shareholders.

Capital loss carryovers The capital losses of the Fund, if any, do not flow through to shareholders. Rather, the Fund may use its capital losses, subject to applicable limitations, to offset its capital gains without being required to pay taxes on or distribute to shareholders such gains that are offset by the losses. If the Fund has a "net capital loss" (that is, capital losses in excess of capital gains), the excess (if any) of the Fund's net short-term capital losses over its net long-term capital gains is treated as a short-term capital loss arising on the first day of the Fund's next taxable year, and the excess (if any) of the Fund's net long-term capital losses over its net short-term capital gains is treated as a long-term capital loss arising on the first day of the Fund's next taxable year. Any such net capital losses of the Fund that are not used to offset capital gains may be carried forward indefinitely, subject to certain limitations, to reduce any future capital gains realized by the Fund in succeeding taxable years. Because the Fund is a money fund, it does not anticipate realizing any long-term capital losses.

Excise tax distribution requirements 

Required distributions. To avoid federal excise taxes, the Code requires the Fund to distribute to you by December 31 of each year, at a minimum, the following amounts:

The Fund intends to declare and pay these distributions in December (or to pay them in January, in which case you must treat them as received in December), but can give no assurances that its distributions will be sufficient to eliminate all taxes.

Tax reporting for income and excise tax years. Because the periods for measuring a regulated investment company’s income are different for income (determined on a fiscal year basis) and excise tax years (determined as noted above), special rules are required to calculate the amount of income earned in each period, and the amount of earnings and profits needed to support that income. For example, if the Fund uses the excise tax period ending on October 31 as the measuring period for calculating and paying out capital gain net income and realizes a net capital loss between November 1 and the end of the Fund’s fiscal year, the Fund may calculate its earnings and profits without regard to such net capital loss in order to make its required distribution of capital gain net income for excise tax purposes. The Fund also may elect to treat part or all of any "qualified late year loss" as if it had been incurred in the succeeding taxable year in determining the Fund’s taxable income, net capital gain, net short-term capital gain, and earnings and profits. The effect of this election is to treat any such “qualified late year loss” as if it had been incurred in the succeeding taxable year, which may change the timing, amount, or characterization of Fund distributions.

A "qualified late year loss” includes (i) any net capital loss incurred after October 31 of the current taxable year, or, if there is no such loss, any net long-term capital loss or any net short-term capital loss incurred after October 31 of the current taxable year (“post-October capital losses”), and (ii) the sum of (1) the excess, if any, of (a) specified losses incurred after October 31 of the current taxable year, over (b) specified gains incurred after October 31 of the current taxable year and (2) the excess, if any, of (a) ordinary losses incurred after December 31 of the current taxable year, over (b) the ordinary income incurred after December 31 of the current taxable year. The terms “specified losses” and “specified gains” mean ordinary losses and gains from the sale, exchange, or other disposition of property (including the termination of a position with respect to such property) and foreign currency losses and gains. The terms “ordinary losses” and “ordinary income” mean other ordinary losses and income that are not described in the preceding sentence. The Fund may only elect to treat any post-October capital loss, specified gains and specified losses incurred after October 31 as if it had been incurred in the succeeding year in determining its taxable income for the current year.

Because these rules are not entirely clear, the Fund may be required to interpret the "qualified late-year loss" and other rules relating to these different year-ends to determine its taxable income and capital gains. The Fund’s reporting of income and its allocation between different taxable and excise tax years may be challenged by the IRS, possibly resulting in adjustments in the income reported by the Fund on its tax returns and/or by the Fund to you on your year-end tax statements.

Medicare tax A 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on net investment income earned by certain individuals, estates and trusts. “Net investment income,” for these purposes, means investment income, including ordinary dividends and capital gain distributions received from the Fund and net gains from redemptions or other taxable dispositions of Fund shares, reduced by the deductions properly allocable to such income. In the case of an individual, the tax will be imposed on the lesser of (1) the shareholder’s net investment income or (2) the amount by which the shareholder’s modified adjusted gross income exceeds $250,000 (if the shareholder is married and filing jointly or a surviving spouse), $125,000 (if the shareholder is married and filing separately) or $200,000 (in any other case). Any liability for this additional Medicare tax will be reported on, and paid with, your federal income tax return.

Sales of Fund shares Sales of Fund shares will not generally result in a taxable capital gain or loss for federal or state income tax purposes.

Tax certification and backup withholding Tax laws require that you certify your tax information when you become an investor in the Fund. For U.S. citizens and resident aliens, this certification is made on IRS Form W-9. Under these laws, you may be subject to federal backup withholding at 24%, and state backup withholding may also apply, on a portion of your taxable distributions unless you:

The Fund must also withhold if the IRS instructs it to do so. Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld may be credited against the shareholder’s U.S. federal income tax liability, provided the appropriate information is furnished to the IRS. Certain payees and payments are exempt from backup withholding and information reporting.

Qualified dividends and the corporate dividends-received deduction Because the income of the Fund is primarily derived from investments in the Master Portfolio earning interest rather than dividend income, generally none of its income dividends will be qualifying dividend income or dividends eligible for the corporate dividends-received deduction.

U.S. government securities The income earned on certain U.S. government obligations is generally exempt from state and local personal income taxes if earned directly by you. States also grant tax-free status to mutual fund dividends paid to you from interest earned on these obligations, subject in some states to minimum investment or reporting requirements that must be met by a fund. Distributions of ordinary income paid by the Fund to individual shareholders from interest earned by the Master Portfolio on U.S. Government obligations may be exempt from state and local income taxation depending on the state. Since the Fund invests in U.S. government obligations indirectly by investing in the Master Portfolio, shareholders should contact their tax advisors with respect to the state and local income tax consequences of investing in the Fund, including whether Fund dividends derived from interest on U.S. government obligations held by the Master Portfolio qualify for tax free treatment.

Investment in complex securities The Master Portfolio may invest in securities issued or purchased at a discount that may require it to accrue and distribute income not yet received. In order to generate sufficient cash to make these distributions, the Master Portfolio may be required to sell securities in its portfolio that it otherwise might have continued to hold. These rules could affect the amount, timing and tax character of income distributed to the Fund by the Master Portfolio, and, in turn, by the Fund to you.

State income taxes Some state tax codes adopt the Code through a certain date. As a result, such conforming states may not have adopted the version of the Code as amended by enactment of 2017 legislation commonly known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the Regulated Investment Company Modernization Act of 2010, or other federal tax laws enacted after the applicable conformity date. Other states may have adopted an income or other basis of tax that differs from the Code.

The tax information furnished by the Fund to shareholders and the IRS annually with respect to the amount and character of dividends paid by the Fund will be prepared on the basis of current federal income tax law to comply with the information reporting requirements of the Code and not necessarily on the basis of the law of any state in which a shareholder is resident or otherwise subject to tax. Under the current California Revenue and Taxation Code, certain funds are required to report tax information to the California Franchise Tax Board annually.

Accordingly, the amount and character of income for state income tax purposes may differ from that for federal income tax purposes. Franklin Templeton provides additional tax information on franklintempleton.com (under the Tax Center) to assist shareholders with the preparation of their federal and state income tax returns. Shareholders are solely responsible for determining the amount and character of income to report on their federal, state and local income tax returns each year as a result of their purchase, holding and sale of Fund shares.

Non-U.S. investors Non-U.S. investors may be subject to U.S. withholding and estate tax, and are subject to special U.S. tax certification requirements.

In general. The United States imposes a flat 30% withholding tax (or a tax at a lower treaty rate) on U.S. source dividends. Exemptions from U.S. withholding tax are provided for capital gain dividends paid by the Fund from long-term capital gains (if any), interest-related dividends paid by the Fund from its qualified net interest income from U.S. sources, and short-term capital gain dividends, unless you are a nonresident alien individual present in the United States for a period or periods aggregating 183 days or more during the calendar year. “Qualified interest income” includes, in general, the sum of the Fund’s U.S. source: i) bank deposit interest, ii) short-term original issue discount, iii) portfolio interest, and iv) any interest-related dividend passed through from another regulated investment company.

However, notwithstanding such exemptions from U.S. withholding tax at source, any taxable distributions will be subject to backup withholding at a rate of 24% if you fail to properly certify that you are not a U.S. person.

It may not be practical in every case for the Fund to report to shareholders, and the Fund reserves the right in these cases to not report, interest-related or short-term capital gain dividends. Additionally, the Fund’s reporting of interest-related or short-term capital gain dividends may not, in turn, be passed through to shareholders by intermediaries who have assumed tax reporting responsibilities for this income in managed or omnibus accounts due to systems limitations or operational constraints.

Effectively connected income. Taxable ordinary income dividends paid by the Fund to non-U.S. investors on portfolio investments are generally subject to U.S. withholding tax at 30% or a lower treaty rate. However, if you hold your Fund shares in connection with a U.S. trade or business, your income and gains may be considered effectively connected income and taxed in the U.S. on a net basis at graduated income tax rates in which case you may be required to file a nonresident U.S. income tax return.

U.S. estate tax. An individual who is a non-U.S. investor will be subject to U.S. federal estate tax on the value of the Fund shares owned at the time of death, unless a treaty exemption applies between the country of residence of the non-U.S. investor and the U.S. Even if a treaty exemption is available, a decedent’s estate may nevertheless be required to file a U.S. estate tax return to claim the exemption, as well as to obtain a U.S. federal transfer certificate. The transfer certificate will identify the property (i.e., Fund shares) on which a U.S. federal tax lien has been released and is required before the Fund can release a nonresident alien decedent’s investment in the Fund to his or her estate. A transfer certificate is not required for property administered by an executor or administrator appointed, qualified and acting within the United States. For estates with U.S. situs assets of not more than $60,000 (there is a statutory estate tax credit for this amount of property), an affidavit from the executor of the estate or other authorized individual along with additional evidence requested by the IRS relating to the decedent’s estate evidencing the U.S. situs assets may be provided in lieu of a federal transfer certificate. Transfers by gift of shares of the Fund by a non-U.S. investor who is a nonresident alien individual will not be subject to U.S. federal gift tax. The tax consequences to a non-U.S. investor entitled to claim the benefits of a treaty between the country of residence of the non-U.S. investor and the U.S. may be different from the consequences described above.

Tax certification and backup withholding as applied to non-U.S. investors. Non-U.S. investors have special U.S. tax certification requirements to avoid backup withholding at a rate of 24% and, if applicable, to obtain the benefit of any income tax treaty between the non-U.S. investor’s country of residence and the United States. To claim these tax benefits, the non-U.S. investor must provide a properly completed Form W-8BEN (or other Form W-8, where applicable) to establish his or her status as a non-U.S. investor, to claim beneficial ownership over the assets in the account, and to claim, if applicable, a reduced rate of or exemption from withholding tax under the applicable treaty. A Form W-8BEN generally remains in effect for a period of three years beginning on the date that it is signed and ending on the last day of the third succeeding calendar year. In certain instances, Form W-8BEN may remain valid indefinitely unless the investor has a change of circumstances that renders the form incorrect and necessitates a new form and tax certification. Non-U.S. investors must advise the Fund of any change of circumstances that would render the information given on the form incorrect and must then provide a new W-8BEN to avoid the prospective application of backup withholding.

Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act Under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), foreign entities, referred to as foreign financial institutions (FFI) or non-financial foreign entities (NFFE) that are shareholders in the Fund may be subject to a 30% withholding tax on income dividends paid by the Fund. The FATCA withholding tax generally can be avoided: (a) by an FFI, if it reports certain direct and indirect ownership of foreign financial accounts held by U.S. persons with the FFI, and (b) by an NFFE, if it: (i) certifies that it has no substantial U.S. persons as owners, or (ii) if it does have such owners, reports information relating to them to the withholding agent, which will, in turn, report that information to the IRS. The U.S. Treasury has negotiated intergovernmental agreements (IGA) with certain countries and is in various stages of negotiations with a number of other foreign countries with respect to one or more alternative approaches to implement FATCA. An entity in one of those countries may be required to comply with the terms of an IGA and applicable local law instead of U.S. Treasury regulations.

An FFI can avoid FATCA withholding if it is deemed compliant or by becoming a “participating FFI,” which requires the FFI to enter into a U.S. tax compliance agreement with the IRS under section 1471(b) of the Code (FFI agreement) under which it agrees to verify, report and disclose certain of its U.S. accountholders and provided that such entity meets certain other specified requirements. The FFI will report to the IRS, or, depending on the FFI’s country of residence, to the government of that country (pursuant to the terms and conditions of an applicable IGA and applicable law), which will, in turn, report to the IRS. An FFI that is resident in a country that has entered into an IGA with the U.S. to implement FATCA will be exempt from FATCA withholding provided that the FFI shareholder and the applicable foreign government comply with the terms of such agreement.

An NFFE that is the beneficial owner of a payment from the Fund can avoid the FATCA withholding tax generally by certifying that it does not have any substantial U.S. owners or by providing the name, address and taxpayer identification number of each substantial U.S. owner. The NFFE will report information either (i) to the Fund, or other applicable withholding agent, which will, in turn, report information to the IRS, or (ii) directly to the IRS.

Such foreign shareholders also may fall into certain exempt, excepted or deemed compliant categories as established by U.S. Treasury regulations, IGAs, and other guidance regarding FATCA. An FFI or NFFE that invests in the Fund will need to provide the Fund with documentation properly certifying the entity’s status under FATCA in order to avoid FATCA withholding. The requirements imposed by FATCA are different from, and in addition to, the U.S. tax certification rules to avoid backup withholding described above.

Organization, Voting Rights and Principal Holders

The Fund is a diversified series of Institutional Fiduciary Trust (Trust), an open-end management investment company, commonly called a mutual fund. The Trust was originally organized as a Massachusetts business trust on January 15, 1985, was reorganized effective November 1, 2007, as a Delaware statutory trust and is registered with the SEC.

Certain Franklin Templeton funds offer multiple classes of shares. The different classes have proportionate interests in the same portfolio of investment securities. They differ, however, primarily in their sales charge structures and Rule 12b-1 plans. Please note that for selling or exchanging your shares, or for other purposes, the Fund’s shares are considered Class A shares.

The Trust has noncumulative voting rights. For board member elections, this gives holders of more than 50% of the shares voting the ability to elect all of the members of the board. If this happens, holders of the remaining shares voting will not be able to elect anyone to the board.

The Trust does not intend to hold annual shareholder meetings. The Trust or a series of the Trust may hold special meetings, however, for matters requiring shareholder approval.

As of October 1, 2020, the principal shareholders of the Fund, beneficial or of record, were:

Name and Address Percentage (%)
Templeton Global Bond Fund*
Templeton Income Trust
300 SE 2nd Street, 8th Floor
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301-1965
19.25
Franklin Income Fund*
Franklin Custodian Funds
3310 Quality Drive
Rancho Cordova, CA 95670-7342
16.47


*For the benefit of its customer(s).

To the best knowledge of the Fund, no other person holds beneficially or of record more than 5% of the outstanding shares of any class.

As of October 1, 2020, the officers and board members, as a group, owned of record and beneficially less than 1% of the outstanding shares of the Fund. The board members may own shares in other funds in Franklin Templeton Investments.

Buying and Selling Shares

The Fund continuously offers its shares through securities dealers who have an agreement with Franklin Templeton Distributors, Inc. (Distributors). A securities dealer includes any financial institution that, either directly or through affiliates, has an agreement with Distributors to handle customer orders and accounts with the Fund. This reference is for convenience only and does not indicate a legal conclusion of capacity. Banks and financial institutions that sell shares of the Fund may be required by state law to register as securities dealers. If you buy or sell shares through your securities dealer, you may be charged a transaction processing fee by your securities dealer. Your securities dealer will provide you with specific information about any transaction processing fees you will be charged.

The Fund and other U.S. registered investment companies within the Franklin Templeton fund complex are intended for sale to residents of the U.S., and, with very limited exceptions, are not registered or otherwise offered for sale in other jurisdictions. The above restrictions are generally not applicable to sales in U.S. territories or to diplomatic staff members or members of the U.S. military with an APO or FPO address outside of the U.S. Investors are responsible for compliance with tax, securities, currency exchange or other regulations applicable to redemption and purchase transactions in any state or jurisdiction to which they may be subject. Investors should consult with their financial intermediary and appropriate tax and legal advisors to obtain information on the rules applicable to these transactions.

In particular, the Fund is not registered in any provincial or territorial jurisdiction in Canada, and shares of the Fund have not been qualified for sale in any Canadian jurisdiction. Shares of the Fund may not be directly or indirectly offered or sold in any provincial or territorial jurisdiction in Canada or to or for the benefit of residents thereof. Prospective investors may be required to declare that they are not Canadian residents and are not acquiring shares on behalf of any Canadian residents. If an investor becomes a Canadian resident after purchasing shares of the Fund, the investor will not be able to purchase any additional shares of the Fund (other than reinvestment of dividends and capital gains) or exchange shares of the Fund for other U.S. registered Franklin Templeton funds.

Similarly, the Fund is not registered, and shares of the Fund have not been qualified for distribution, in any member country of the European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA). The shares offered by this prospectus may not be directly or indirectly offered or distributed in any such country. If an investor becomes an EU or EEA resident after purchasing shares of the Fund, the investor will not be able to purchase any additional shares of the Fund (other than reinvestment of dividends and capital gains) or exchange shares of the Fund for other U.S. registered Franklin Templeton funds.

All purchases of Fund shares will be credited to you, in full and fractional Fund shares (rounded to the nearest 1/100 of a share). All checks, drafts, wires and other payment mediums used to buy or sell shares of the Fund must be denominated in U.S. dollars. We may, in our sole discretion, either (a) reject any order to buy or sell shares denominated in any other currency or (b) honor the transaction or make adjustments to your account for the transaction as of a date and with a foreign currency exchange factor determined by the drawee bank. We may deduct any applicable banking charges imposed by the bank from your account.

When you buy shares, if you submit a check or a draft that is returned unpaid to the Fund we may impose a $10 charge against your account for each returned item.

Investment by asset allocators and large shareholders Particularly during times of overall market turmoil or price volatility, the Fund may experience adverse effects when certain large shareholders such as other funds, institutional investors (including those trading by use of non-discretionary mathematical formulas) and asset allocators (who make investment decisions on behalf of underlying clients), purchase or redeem large amounts of shares of the Fund. Such large shareholder redemptions may cause the Fund to sell portfolio securities at times when it would not otherwise do so. Similarly, large Fund share purchases may adversely affect the Fund’s performance to the extent that the Fund is delayed in investing new cash and is required to maintain a larger cash position than it ordinarily would.

These transactions may also accelerate the realization of taxable income to shareholders if such sales of investments resulted in gains, and may also increase transaction costs. In addition, a large redemption could result in the Fund's current expenses being allocated over a smaller asset base, leading to an increase in the Fund's expense ratio.

When experiencing such purchases and redemptions by large shareholders, the Fund may restrict or reject purchases, in accordance with the Frequent Trading Policy of the Fund as set forth in the Fund’s Prospectus. The Fund also may delay payment of redemptions up to seven days to provide the investment manager with time to determine if the Fund can redeem the request in-kind or to consider other alternatives to lessen the harm to remaining shareholders. Under certain circumstances, however, the Fund may be unable to delay a purchase or redemption request, which could result in the automatic processing of a large transaction that is detrimental to the Fund and its shareholders.

Purchases of certain share classes through financial intermediaries (Advisor Class) There are no associated sales charges or Rule 12b-1 distribution and service fees for the purchase of Advisor Class shares. However, pursuant to SEC guidance, certain financial intermediaries acting as agents on behalf of their customers may directly impose on shareholders sales charges or transaction fees determined by the financial intermediary related to the purchase of these shares. These charges and fees are not disclosed in this prospectus. You should consult with your financial advisor or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

The Fund’s service providers also may pay financial intermediaries for marketing support and other related services as disclosed below for Advisor Class shares, but not for Class R6 shares. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the financial intermediary and your salesperson to recommend one share class over another. There is some uncertainty concerning whether marketing support or other similar payments may be made or received in connection with Advisor Class shares where a financial intermediary has imposed its own sales charges or transaction fees. Based on future regulatory developments, such payments may be terminated.

Financial intermediary compensation Financial intermediaries may at times receive the entire sales charge. A financial intermediary who receives 90% or more of the sales charge may be deemed an underwriter under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. Financial institutions or their affiliated brokers may receive an agency transaction fee in the percentages indicated in the financial intermediary compensation table in the Fund’s prospectus.

Distributors may pay the following commissions to financial intermediaries who initiate and are responsible for purchases of Class A shares in the following amounts:

Amount of Investment For Funds with an initial sales charge of 5.50% (%) For Funds with an initial sales charge of 3.75% (%) For Funds with an initial sales charge of 2.25% (%)
Under $50,000 5.00 3.50 2.00
$50,000 but under $100,000 4.00 3.50 2.00
$100,000 but under $250,000 3.00 3.00 1.75
$250,000 but under $500,000 2.25 2.25 1.25
$500,000 but under $1 million 1.75 1.00 1.00
$1 million but under $4 million 1.00 1.00 1.00
$4 million but under $10 million 1.00 1.00 1.00
$10 million but under $50 million 0.50 0.50 0.50
$50 million or more 0.25 0.25 0.25


These payments may be made in the form of contingent advance payments, which may be recovered from the financial intermediary or set off against other payments due to the financial intermediary if shares are sold within 18 months of the calendar month of purchase. Other conditions may apply. Other terms and conditions may be imposed by an agreement between Distributors, or one of its affiliates, and the financial intermediary.

In addition to the sales charge payments described above and the distribution and service (12b-1) fees described below under “The Underwriter - Distribution and service (12b-1) fees,” Distributors and/or its non-fund affiliates may make the following additional payments to financial intermediaries that sell shares of Franklin Templeton mutual funds:

Marketing support payments (applicable to all classes of shares except Class R6). Distributors may make payments to certain financial intermediaries in connection with their efforts to educate financial advisors and provide services which may facilitate, directly or indirectly, investment in Franklin Templeton mutual funds. A financial intermediary’s marketing support services may include business planning assistance, advertising, educating financial intermediary personnel about Franklin Templeton mutual funds and shareholder financial planning needs, placement on the financial intermediary’s list of offered funds, and access to sales meetings, sales representatives and management representatives of the financial intermediary. Distributors compensates financial intermediaries differently depending upon, among other factors, sales and assets levels, redemption rates and the level and/or type of marketing and educational activities provided by the financial intermediary. Such compensation may include financial assistance to financial intermediaries that enable Distributors to participate in and/or present at conferences or seminars, sales or training programs for invited registered representatives and other employees, client and investor events and other financial intermediary-sponsored events. These payments may vary depending upon the nature of the event. Distributors will, on an annual basis, determine whether to continue such payments. In the case of any one financial intermediary, marketing support payments will generally not exceed 0.05% of the total assets of Franklin Templeton mutual funds attributable to that financial intermediary, on an annual basis. For a financial intermediary exceeding $15 billion in total assets of Franklin Templeton mutual funds, Distributors may agree to make annual marketing support payments exceeding 0.05% of such assets. For a financial intermediary exceeding $50 billion in total assets of Franklin Templeton mutual funds, Distributors may agree to make annual marketing support payments up to a limit of 0.06% of such assets. Any assets held on behalf of Employer Sponsored Retirement Plans for which payment is made to a financial intermediary pursuant to the following paragraph will be excluded from the calculation of marketing support payments pursuant to this paragraph.

Distributors may also make marketing support payments to financial intermediaries in connection with their activities that are intended to assist in the sale of shares of Franklin Templeton mutual funds, directly or indirectly, to certain Employer Sponsored Retirement Plans that have retained such financial intermediaries as plan service providers. Payments may be made on account of activities that may include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: business planning assistance for financial intermediary personnel, educating financial intermediary personnel about Franklin Templeton mutual funds, access to sales meetings, sales representatives, wholesalers, and management representatives of the financial intermediary, and detailed sales reporting. A financial intermediary may perform the services itself or may arrange with a third party to perform the services. In the case of any one financial intermediary, such payments will not exceed 0.10% of the total assets of Franklin Templeton mutual funds held, directly or indirectly, by such Employer Sponsored Retirement Plans, on an annual basis. Distributors will, on an annual basis, determine whether to continue such payments.

Consistent with the provisions and limitations set forth in its Rule 12b-1 distribution plans, the Fund may reimburse Distributors for the cost of a portion of these marketing support payments.

Marketing support payments may be in addition to any servicing and other fees paid by Investor Services, as described further below and under “Management and Other Services - Shareholder servicing and transfer agent” above.

The following list includes FINRA member firms (or, in some instances, their respective affiliates) that, as of March 31, 2020, Distributors anticipates will receive marketing support payments. Any firm indicated by one asterisk receives annual marketing support payments exceeding 0.05% of the total assets of Franklin Templeton mutual funds attributable to that firm. Any firm indicated by two asterisks receives annual marketing support payments of up to a limit of 0.06% of the total assets of Franklin Templeton mutual funds attributable to that firm. In addition to member firms of FINRA, Distributors also makes marketing support payments, and Distributors’ non-fund affiliates may make administrative services payments, to certain other financial intermediaries, such as banks, insurance companies, and plan administrators, that sell mutual fund shares or provide services to Franklin Templeton mutual funds and shareholders. These firms may not be included in this list. You should ask your financial intermediary if it receives such payments.

ADP Retirement Services, American Portfolios Financial Services, Inc., American Enterprise Investment Services, Inc., American United Life Insurance Company, Ascensus, Inc., AXA Advisors, LLC, BBVA Securities, Inc., Benjamin F. Edwards & Company, Inc., Cadaret Grant & Co., Inc., Cambridge Investment Research, Inc., Cetera Advisors LLC, Cetera Advisor Networks LLC, Cetera Financial Specialists LLC, Cetera Investment Services LLC, Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., Citizens Securities, Inc., Commonwealth Financial Network, CUNA Brokerage Services, Inc., CUSO Financial Services, L.P., Digital Retirement Solutions, Edward D. Jones & Co., L.P. (dba Edward Jones)*, Empower Retirement, ePlan Services, Inc., Fidelity Investments Institutional Operations Company, Inc., First Allied Securities, Inc., First Command Financial Planning, Inc., FPS Services LLC, FSC Securities Corporation, Goldman, Sachs & Co., Group 3 Financial LLC, Investacorp, Inc., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC, John Hancock Distributors LLC, KMS Financial Services, Inc., Lincoln Financial Advisors Corporation, Lincoln Financial Securities Corporation, Lincoln Investment Planning, Inc., Lincoln Retirement Services Company LLC, LPL Financial LLC, M&T Securities, Inc., Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc., Minnesota Life Insurance Company, MML Investors Services, LLC, Morgan Stanley, MSCS Financial Services LLC, Nationwide Financial Services, Inc., Newport Retirement Services, Inc., NEXT Financial Group, Inc., Northwestern Mutual Investment Services, LLC, Paychex Securities Corporation, PFS Investments Inc., PNC Investments LLC, Principal Financial Group, Prudential Insurance Company of America, Raymond James & Associates, Inc., Raymond James Financial Services, Inc., RBC Capital Markets LLC, Robert W. Baird & Co., Inc., Royal Alliance Associates, Inc., SagePoint Financial, Inc., Securities America, Inc., Securities Service Network, Inc., Sorrento Pacific Financial, LLC, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, TD Ameritrade Trust Company, TFS Securities, Inc., The Huntington Investment Company, The Investment Center, Inc., TIAA-CREF Individual & Institutional Services, LLC, Transamerica Advisors Life Insurance Company, Transamerica Retirement Solutions Corporation, Triad Advisors, Inc., UBS Financial Services Inc., UnionBanc Investment Services, LLC, U.S. Bancorp Investments, Inc., Voya Financial Advisors, Inc., Voya Institutional Plan Services LLP, Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC and Woodbury Financial Services, Inc.

Marketing support payments made to organizations located outside the U.S., with respect to investments in the Fund by non-U.S. persons, may exceed the above-stated limitation.

In addition to marketing support payments, to the extent permitted by SEC and FINRA rules and other applicable laws and regulations, Distributors may from time to time at its expense make or allow other promotional incentives or additional payments to financial intermediaries that sell or arrange for the sale of shares of the Fund. These payments may include additional compensation to financial intermediaries, including financial intermediaries not listed above, related to transaction support, various financial intermediary-sponsored events intended to educate financial advisers and their clients about the Franklin Templeton mutual funds, and data analytics and support.

Transaction support payments. The types of payments that Distributors may make under this category include, among others, payment of ticket charges of up to $20 per purchase or exchange order placed by a financial intermediary. Other payments may include ancillary services such as set-up, ongoing support, and assistance with a financial intermediary’s mutual fund trading system.

Conference support payments. Compensation may include financial assistance to financial intermediaries that enable Distributors to participate in and/or present at conferences or seminars, sales or training programs for invited registered representatives and other employees, client and investor events, co-operative advertising, newsletters, and other financial intermediary-sponsored events. These payments may vary depending upon the nature of the event, and can include travel expenses, such as lodging incurred by registered representatives and other employees in connection with training and educational meetings, client prospecting and due diligence trips.

Distributors routinely sponsors due diligence meetings for registered representatives during which they receive updates on various Franklin Templeton mutual funds and are afforded the opportunity to speak with portfolio managers. Invitation to these meetings is not conditioned on selling a specific number of shares. Those who have shown an interest in Franklin Templeton mutual funds, however, are more likely to be considered. To the extent permitted by their firm’s policies and procedures, registered representatives’ expenses in attending these meetings may be covered by Distributors.

Data support payments. Compensation may include data support payments to certain holders or financial intermediaries of record for accounts in one or more of the Franklin Templeton mutual funds. A financial intermediary’s data support services may include the provision of analytical data on such accounts.

Other payments. Other compensation may be offered to the extent not prohibited by federal or state laws or any self-regulatory agency, such as FINRA. Distributors makes payments for events it deems appropriate, subject to Distributors’ guidelines and applicable law.

You should ask your financial intermediary for information about any payments it receives from Distributors and any services provided.

In addition, Investor Services may make payments to financial intermediaries that provide administrative services to defined benefit plans. Investor Services does not seek reimbursement by the Fund for such payments.

Exchange privilege If you request the exchange of the total value of your account, declared but unpaid income dividends and capital gain distributions will be reinvested in the Fund and exchanged into the new fund at net asset value when paid. Backup withholding and information reporting may apply.

If a substantial number of shareholders should, within a short period, sell their Fund shares under the exchange privilege, the Fund might have to sell portfolio securities it might otherwise hold and incur the additional costs related to such transactions.

The proceeds from the sale of shares of an investment company may not be available until the seventh day following the sale. The funds you are seeking to exchange into may delay issuing shares pursuant to an exchange until that seventh day. The sale of Fund shares to complete an exchange will be effected at net asset value at the close of business on the day the request for exchange is received in proper form.

Redemptions in kind The Fund has committed itself to pay in cash (by check) all requests for redemption by any shareholder of record, limited in amount, however, during any 90-day period to the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of the value of the Fund's net assets at the beginning of the 90-day period. This commitment is irrevocable without the prior approval of the SEC. In the case of redemption requests in excess of these amounts, the board reserves the right to make payments in whole or in part in securities or other assets of the Fund, in case of an emergency, or if the payment of such a redemption in cash would be detrimental to the existing shareholders of the Fund. In these circumstances, the securities distributed would be valued at the price used to compute the Fund's net assets and you may incur brokerage fees in converting the securities to cash.

Share certificates We will credit your shares to your Fund account. We do not issue share certificates. This eliminates the costly problem of replacing lost, stolen or destroyed certificates.

All purchases of Fund shares will be credited to you, in full and fractional Fund shares (rounded to the nearest 1/100 of a share), in an account maintained for you by the Fund's transfer agent. No share certificates will be issued.

General information If the Fund receives notification of the shareholder’s death or if mail is returned to the Fund by the postal service, we will consider this a request by you to change your dividend option to reinvest all future distributions until we receive new instructions. If the item of mail returned is a check, the proceeds may be reinvested in additional shares at the current day’s net asset value.

Distribution or redemption checks sent to you do not earn interest or any other income during the time the checks remain uncashed. Neither the Fund nor its affiliates will be liable for any loss caused by your failure to cash such checks. The Fund is not responsible for tracking down uncashed checks, unless a check is returned as undeliverable.

In most cases, if mail is returned as undeliverable we are required to take certain steps to try to find you free of charge. If these attempts are unsuccessful, however, we may deduct the costs of any additional efforts to find you from your account. These costs may include a percentage of the account when a search company charges a percentage fee in exchange for its location services.

Sending redemption proceeds by wire or electronic funds transfer (ACH) is a special service that we make available whenever possible. By offering this service to you, the Fund is not bound to meet any redemption request in less than the seven-day period prescribed by law. Neither the Fund nor its agents shall be liable to you or any other person if, for any reason, a redemption request by wire or ACH is not processed as described in the prospectus.

There are special procedures for banks and other institutions that wish to open multiple accounts. An institution may open a single master account by filing one application form with the Fund, signed by personnel authorized to act for the institution. Individual sub-accounts may be opened when the master account is opened by listing them on the application, or by providing instructions to the Fund at a later date. These sub-accounts may be registered either by name or number. The Fund's investment minimums apply to each sub-account. The Fund will send confirmation and account statements for the sub-accounts to the institution.

If you buy or sell shares through your securities dealer, we use the net asset value next calculated after your securities dealer receives your request, which is promptly transmitted to the Fund. If you sell shares through your securities dealer, it is your dealer's responsibility to transmit the order to the Fund in a timely fashion. Your redemption proceeds will not earn interest between the time we receive the order from your dealer and the time we receive any required documents. Any loss to you resulting from your dealer's failure to transmit your redemption order to the Fund in a timely fashion must be settled between you and your securities dealer.

Certain shareholder servicing agents may be authorized to accept your transaction request.

For institutional and bank trust accounts, there may be additional methods of buying or selling Fund shares than those described in this SAI or in the prospectus. Institutional and bank trust accounts include accounts opened by or in the name of a person (includes a legal entity or an individual) that has signed an Institutional Account Application or Bank Trust Account Application accepted by Franklin Templeton Institutional, LLC or entered into a selling agreement and/or servicing agreement with Distributors or Investor Services. For example, the Fund permits the owner of an institutional account to make a same day wire purchase if a good order purchase request is received (a) before 1 p.m. Pacific time or (b) through the National Securities Clearing Corporation’s automated system for processing purchase orders (Fund/SERV), even though funds are delivered by wire after 1 p.m. Pacific time. If funds to be wired are not received as scheduled, the purchase order may be cancelled or reversed and the institutional account owner could be liable for any losses or fees the Fund, Distributors and/or Investor Services may incur. “Good order” refers to a transaction request where the investor or financial intermediary (or other person authorized to make such requests) has provided complete information (e.g., fund and account information and the dollar amount of the transaction) to enable the processing of such request.

In the event of disputes involving conflicting claims of ownership or authority to control your shares, the Fund has the right (but has no obligation) to: (i) restrict the shares and require the written agreement of all persons deemed by the Fund to have a potential interest in the shares before executing instructions regarding the shares; or (ii) interplead disputed shares or the proceeds from the court-ordered sale thereof with a court of competent jurisdiction.

Should the Fund be required to defend against joint or multiple shareholders in any action relating to an ownership dispute, you expressly grant the Fund the right to obtain reimbursement for costs and expenses including, but not limited to, attorneys’ fees and court costs, by unilaterally redeeming shares from your account.

The Fund or its transfer agent may be required (i) pursuant to a validly issued levy, garnishment or other form of legal process, to sell your shares and remit the proceeds to a levying officer or other recipient; or (ii) pursuant to a final order of forfeiture or other form of legal process, to sell your shares and remit the proceeds to the U.S. or state government as directed.

As long as we follow reasonable security procedures and act on instructions we reasonably believe are genuine, we will not be responsible for any losses that may occur from unauthorized requests in any form (written or telephone). We will investigate any unauthorized request that you report to us and we will ask you to cooperate with us in the investigation, which may require you to file a police report and complete a notarized affidavit regarding the unauthorized request. We will assist in the claims process, on your behalf, with other financial institutions regarding the unauthorized request.

Using good faith efforts, the investment manager attempts to identify class action litigation settlements and regulatory or governmental recovery funds involving securities presently or formerly held by the Fund or issuers of such securities or related parties (Claims) in which the Fund may be eligible to participate. When such Claims are identified, the investment manager will cause the Fund to file proofs of claim. Currently, such Claim opportunities predominate in the U.S. and in Canada; the investment manager’s efforts are therefore focused on Claim opportunities in those jurisdictions. The investment manager may learn of such class action lawsuit or victim fund recovery opportunities in jurisdictions outside of North America (Foreign Actions), in which case the investment manager has complete discretion to determine, on a case-by-case basis, whether to cause the Fund to file proofs of claim in such Foreign Actions. In addition, the investment manager may participate in bankruptcy proceedings relating to securities held by the Fund and join creditors’ committees on behalf of the Fund.

Further, the investment manager may on occasion initiate and/or recommend, and the board of trustees of the Fund may approve, pursuit of separate litigation against an issuer or related parties in connection with securities presently or formerly held by the Fund (whether by opting out of an existing class action lawsuit or otherwise).

Pricing Shares

The valuation of the Master Portfolio's portfolio securities, including any securities set aside on the Master Portfolio's books for when-issued securities, is based on the amortized cost of the securities, which does not take into account unrealized capital gains or losses. This method involves valuing an instrument at its cost and thereafter assuming a constant amortization to maturity of any discount or premium, regardless of the impact of fluctuating interest rates on the market value of the instrument. While this method provides certainty in calculation, it may result in periods during which value, as determined by amortized cost, is higher or lower than the price the Master Portfolio would receive if it sold the instrument. During periods of declining interest rates, the daily yield on shares of the Master Portfolio computed as described above may tend to be higher than a like computation made by a fund with identical investments but using a method of valuation based upon market prices and estimates of market prices for all of its portfolio instruments. Thus, if the use of amortized cost by the Master Portfolio resulted in a lower aggregate portfolio value on a particular day, a prospective investor in the Master Portfolio would be able to obtain a somewhat higher yield than would result from an investment in a fund using only market values, and existing investors in the Master Portfolio would receive less investment income. The opposite would be true in a period of rising interest rates. The Master Portfolio's use of amortized cost, which helps the Master Portfolio maintain a $1.00 share price, is permitted by a rule adopted by the SEC.

The board has established procedures designed to stabilize, to the extent reasonably possible, the Master Portfolio's price per share at $1.00, as computed for the purpose of sales and redemptions. These procedures include a review of the Master Portfolio's holdings by the board, at such intervals as it may deem appropriate, to determine if the Master Portfolio's net asset value calculated by using available market quotations deviates from $1.00 per share based on amortized cost. The extent of any deviation will be examined by the board. If a deviation exceeds 1/2 of 1%, the board will promptly consider what action, if any, will be initiated. If the board determines that a deviation exists that may result in material dilution or other unfair results to investors or existing shareholders, it will take corrective action that it regards as necessary and appropriate, which may include selling portfolio instruments before maturity to realize capital gains or losses or to shorten average portfolio maturity, withholding dividends, redeeming shares in kind, or establishing a net asset value per share by using available market quotations.

The Underwriter

Franklin Templeton Distributors, Inc. (Distributors) acts as the principal underwriter in the continuous public offering of the Fund's shares. Distributors is located at One Franklin Parkway, San Mateo, CA 94403-1906.

Distributors received no compensation in connection with redemptions or repurchases of the Fund's shares for the last three fiscal years ended June 30.

Distributors may be entitled to payments from the Fund under the Rule 12b-1 plan, as discussed below. Distributors received no compensation from the Fund for acting as underwriter.

Distribution and service (12b-1) fees The board has adopted a plan pursuant to Rule 12b-1. The plan is designed to benefit the Fund and its shareholders. The plan is expected to, among other things, increase advertising of the Fund, encourage purchases of Fund shares and service to its shareholders, and increase or maintain assets of the Fund so that certain fixed expenses may be spread over a broader asset base, with a positive impact on per share expense ratios. In addition, a positive cash flow into the Fund is useful in managing the Fund because the manager has more flexibility in taking advantage of new investment opportunities and handling shareholder redemptions.

Under the plan, the Fund may pay Distributors or others for the expenses of activities that are primarily intended to sell shares of the Fund. These expenses also may include service fees paid to securities dealers or others who have executed a servicing agreement with the Fund, Distributors or its affiliates and who provide service or account maintenance to shareholders (service fees); and the expenses of printing prospectuses and reports used for sales purposes, of marketing support and of preparing and distributing sales literature and advertisements. Together, these expenses, including the service fees, are "eligible expenses." The 12b-1 fees charged to each class are based only on the fees attributable to that particular class and are calculated, as a percentage of such class' net assets, over the 12-month period of February 1 through January 31. Because this 12-month period may not match the Fund's fiscal year, the amount, as a percentage of a class' net assets, for the Fund's fiscal year may vary from the amount stated under the applicable plan, but will never exceed that amount during the 12-month period of February 1 through January 31.

The Fund may pay up to 0.15% per year of the Fund's average daily net assets.

The plan is a reimbursement plan. It allows the Fund to reimburse Distributors for eligible expenses that Distributors has shown it has incurred. The Fund will not reimburse more than the maximum amount allowed under the plan. Any unreimbursed expenses from one year may not be carried over to or reimbursed in later years.

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 2020, the Fund did not incur any expenses pursuant to the plan. No payments have been made for 12b-1 expenses since inception and the Fund has no intention to use the Rule 12b-1 plan.

In addition to the payments that Distributors or others are entitled to under the plan, the plan also provides that to the extent the Fund, the investment manager or Distributors or other parties on behalf of the Fund, the investment manager or Distributors make payments that are deemed to be for the financing of any activity primarily intended to result in the sale of Fund shares within the context of Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act, then such payments shall be deemed to have been made pursuant to the plan.

To the extent fees are for distribution or marketing functions, as distinguished from administrative servicing or agency transactions, certain banks may not participate in the plan because of applicable federal law prohibiting certain banks from engaging in the distribution of mutual fund shares. These banks, however, are allowed to receive fees under the plan for administrative servicing or for agency transactions.

Distributors must provide written reports to the board at least quarterly on the amounts and purpose of any payment made under the plan and any related agreements, and furnish the board with such other information as the board may reasonably request to enable it to make an informed determination of whether the plan should be continued.

The plan has been approved according to the provisions of Rule 12b-1. The terms and provisions of the plan also are consistent with Rule 12b-1.

Performance

Performance quotations are subject to SEC rules. These rules require the use of standardized performance quotations or, alternatively, that every non-standardized performance quotation furnished by the Fund be accompanied by certain standardized performance information computed as required by the SEC. Average annual total return, current yield and effective yield quotations used by the Fund are based on the standardized methods of computing performance mandated by the SEC. An explanation of these and other methods used by the Fund to compute or express performance follows. Regardless of the method used, past performance does not guarantee future results, and is an indication of the return to shareholders only for the limited historical period used.

Average annual total return Average annual total return is determined by finding the average annual rates of return over certain periods that would equate an initial hypothetical $1,000 investment to its ending redeemable value. The calculation assumes income dividends are reinvested at net asset value. The quotation assumes the account was completely redeemed at the end of each period and the deduction of all applicable charges and fees.

The following SEC formula is used to calculate these figures:

[ graphic: AATR before taxes ]

where:

P = a hypothetical initial payment of $1,000

T = average annual total return

n = number of years

ERV = ending redeemable value of a hypothetical $1,000 payment made at the beginning of each period at the end of each period

Current yield Current yield shows the income per share earned by the Fund. It is calculated by determining the net change, excluding capital changes, in the value of a hypothetical pre-existing account with a balance of one share at the beginning of the period, subtracting a hypothetical charge reflecting deductions from shareholder accounts, and dividing the difference by the value of the account at the beginning of the base period to obtain the base period return. The result is then annualized by multiplying the base period return by 365/7.

Effective yield The Fund’s effective yield is calculated in the same manner as its current yield, except the annualization of the return for the seven day period reflects the results of compounding.

The following SEC formula is used to calculate these figures:

Effective yield = [(Base period return + 1)365/7] - 1

Other performance quotations The Fund may include in its advertising or sales material information relating to investment goals and performance results of funds belonging to Franklin Templeton. Resources is the parent company of the advisors and underwriter of Franklin Templeton funds.

Miscellaneous Information

The Fund may help you achieve various investment goals such as accumulating money for retirement, saving for a down payment on a home, college costs and other long-term goals. The Franklin College Savings Planner may help you in determining how much money must be invested on a monthly basis to have a projected amount available in the future to fund a child's college education. (Projected college cost estimates are based upon current costs published by the College Board.) The Franklin Retirement Savings Planner leads you through the steps to start a retirement savings program. Of course, an investment in the Fund cannot guarantee that these goals will be met.

The Fund is a member of Franklin Templeton, one of the largest mutual fund organizations in the U.S., and may be considered in a program for diversification of assets. Founded in 1947, Franklin is one of the oldest mutual fund organizations and now services more than 2 million shareholder accounts. In 1992, Franklin, a leader in managing fixed-income mutual funds and an innovator in creating domestic equity funds, joined forces with Templeton, a pioneer in international investing. The Mutual Series team, known for its value-driven approach to domestic equity investing, became part of the organization four years later. In 2001, the Fiduciary Trust team, known for providing global investment management to institutions and high net worth clients worldwide, joined the organization. Together, Franklin Templeton has, as of September 30, 2020, over $1.41 trillion in assets under management for more than 3 million U.S. based mutual fund shareholder and other accounts. Franklin Templeton offers 161 U.S. based open-end investment companies to the public. The Fund may identify itself by its NASDAQ symbol or CUSIP number.

Currently, there are more mutual funds than there are stocks listed on the NYSE. While many of them have similar investment goals, no two are exactly alike. Shares of the Fund are generally sold through securities dealers, whose investment representatives are experienced professionals who can offer advice on the type of investments suitable to your unique goals and needs, as well as the risks associated with such investments.

Description of Ratings

Corporate Obligation Ratings

Moody's

INVESTMENT GRADE

Aaa: Bonds rated Aaa are judged to be of the highest quality, with minimal credit risk.

Aa: Bonds rated Aa are judged to be high quality and are subject to very low credit risk.

A: Bonds rated A are considered upper medium-grade obligations and are subject to low credit risk.

Baa: Bonds rated Baa are subject to moderate credit risk and are considered medium-grade obligations. As such they may have certain speculative characteristics.

BELOW INVESTMENT GRADE

Ba: Bonds rated Ba are judged to have speculative elements and are subject to substantial credit risk.

B: Bonds rated B are considered speculative and are subject to high credit risk.

Caa: Bonds rated Caa are judged to be of poor standing and are subject to very high credit risk.

Ca: Bonds rated Ca are considered highly speculative and are likely in, or very near, default, with some prospect of recovery of principal and interest.

C: Bonds rated C are the lowest rated class of bonds and are typically in default. They have little prospects for recovery of principal or interest.

Note: Moody's appends numerical modifiers 1, 2 and 3 to each generic rating classification from Aa through Caa. The modifier 1 indicates that the obligation ranks in the higher end of its generic rating category; modifier 2 indicates a mid-range ranking; and modifier 3 indicates a ranking in the lower end of that generic rating category.

S&P®

The issue rating definitions are expressions in terms of default risk. As such, they pertain to senior obligations of an entity. Junior obligations are typically rated lower than senior obligations, to reflect the lower priority in bankruptcy. (Such differentiation applies when an entity has both senior and subordinated obligations, secured and unsecured obligations, or operating company and holding company obligations.) Accordingly, in the case of junior debt, the rating may not conform exactly with the category definition.

INVESTMENT GRADE

AAA: This is the highest rating assigned by S&P to a debt obligation. The obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is extremely strong.

AA: Obligations rated AA differ from AAA issues only in a small degree. The obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is very strong.

A: Obligations rated A are somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in the higher ratings categories. However, the obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is still strong.

BBB: Obligations rated BBB exhibit adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity of the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

BELOW INVESTMENT GRADE

BB, B, CCC, CC, C: Obligations rated BB, B, CCC, CC and C are regarded as having significant speculative characteristics. BB indicates the least degree of speculation and C the highest degree of speculation. While these obligations will likely have some quality and protective characteristics, these may be outweighed by large uncertainties or major exposures to adverse conditions.

BB: An obligation rated BB is less vulnerable to nonpayment than other speculative issues. However, it faces major ongoing uncertainties or exposure to adverse business, financial, or economic conditions which could lead to the obligor's inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

B: An obligation rated B is more vulnerable to nonpayment than obligations rated BB, but the obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation. Adverse business, financial, or economic conditions will likely impair the obligor's capacity or willingness to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

CCC: An obligation rated CCC is currently vulnerable to nonpayment, and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation. In the event of adverse business, financial, or economic conditions, the obligor is not likely to have the capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

CC: An obligation rated CC is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment.

C: A subordinated debt or preferred stock obligation rated C is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment. The C rating may be used to cover a situation where a bankruptcy petition has been filed or similar action taken, but payments on this obligation are being continued. The C rating is also assigned to a preferred stock issue in arrears on dividends or sinking fund payments, but that is still making payments.

D: Obligations rated D are in payment default. The D rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due even if the applicable grace period has not expired, unless S&P believes that such payments will be made during such grace period. The D rating is also used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of a similar action if payments on an obligation are jeopardized.

Plus (+) or minus (-): The ratings from "AA" to "CCC" may be modified by the addition of a plus or minus sign to show relative standing within the major rating categories.

r: This symbol is attached to the ratings of instruments with significant noncredit risks and highlights risks to principal or volatility of expected returns that are not addressed in the credit rating.

Short-Term Debt Ratings

Moody's

Moody's short-term debt ratings are opinions of the ability of issuers to honor short-term financial obligations. Ratings may be assigned to issuers, short-term programs and to individual short-term debt instruments. These obligations generally have an original maturity not exceeding 13 months, unless explicitly noted. Moody's employs the following designations to indicate the relative repayment capacity of rated issuers:

P-1 (Prime-1): Issuers (or supporting institutions) so rated have a superior ability to repay short-term debt obligations.

P-2 (Prime-2): Issuers (or supporting institutions) so rated have a strong ability to repay short-term debt obligations.

P-3 (Prime-3): Issuers (or supporting institutions) so rated have an acceptable ability to repay short-term debt obligations.

NP: Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Not Prime do not fall within any of the Prime rating categories.

S&P®

S&P's ratings are a current opinion of the creditworthiness of an obligor with respect to a specific financial obligation, a specific class of financial obligations, or a specific financial program. Short-term ratings are generally assigned to those obligations considered short-term in the relevant market. In the U.S., for example, that means obligations with an original maturity of no more than 365 days -- including commercial paper. Short-term ratings are also used to indicate the creditworthiness of an obligor with respect to put features on long-term obligations. The result is a dual rating, in which the short-term rating addresses the put feature, in addition to the usual long-term rating.

A-1: This designation indicates that the obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is strong. Within this category, certain obligations are designated with a plus sign (+). This indicates that the obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitment on these obligations is extremely strong.

A-2: Issues carrying this designation are somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations carrying the higher designations. However, the obligor's capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is satisfactory.

A-3: Issues carrying this designation exhibit adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity of the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

B: Issues carrying this designation are regarded as having significant speculative characteristics. The obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation. However, it faces major ongoing uncertainties which could lead to the obligor's inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

C: Issues carrying this designation are currently vulnerable to nonpayment and are dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.

D: Issues carrying this designation are in payment default. The D rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the due date even if the applicable grace period has not expired, unless S&P believes that such payments will be made during such grace period. The D rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of a similar action if payments on an obligation are jeopardized.


INSTITUTIONAL FIDUCIARY TRUST

FILE NOS. 002-96634 & 811-04267

 

PART C

OTHER INFORMATION

 

Item 28.

Exhibits

The following exhibits are incorporated by reference to the previously filed documents indicated below, except as noted:

 

(a)

Agreement and Declaration of Trust

 

 

(i)

Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of Institutional Fiduciary Trust, a Delaware statutory trust dated May 18, 2018

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 57 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 26, 2018

 

(b)

By-Laws

 

 

(i)

Second Amended and Restated By-Laws dated May 18, 2018 of Institutional Fiduciary Trust

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 57 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 26, 2018

 

 

 

 

(ii)

Certificate of Amendment of By-Laws of Institutional Fiduciary Trust dated January 17, 2019

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 59 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 31, 2019

 

(c)

Instruments Defining Rights of Security Holders

 

 

(i)

Agreement and Declaration of Trust

 

 

(a)

Article III, Shares

 

 

(b)

Article V, Shareholders’ Voting Powers and Meetings

 

 

(c)

Article VI, Net Asset Value, Distributions, Redemptions and Transfers

 

 

(d)

Articles VIII, Certain Transactions – Section 4

 

 

(e)

Articles X, Miscellaneous – Section 4

 

 

 

 

(ii)

By-Laws

 

 

(a)

Article II, Meetings of Shareholders

 

 

(b)

Article VI, Records and Reports – Section 1, 2 and 3

 

 

(c)

Article VII, General Matters: - Sections 3, 4, 6 and 7

 

 

(d)

Articles VIII, Amendment – Section 1

 

 

 

 

(iii)

Part B:  Statement of Additional Information – Item 22

 

(d)

Investment Advisory Contract

 

 

(i)

Administration Agreement between Registrant on behalf of Money Market Portfolio, and Franklin Advisers, Inc. dated November 1, 2007

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 39 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 27, 2008

 

 

 

 

(ii)

Form of Investment Management Agreement between Registrant on behalf of Franklin Money Market Fund and Franklin Advisers, Inc.

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 61 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: January 31, 2020

 

 

 

(e)

Underwriting Contracts

 

 

(i)

Distribution Agreement between Registrant and Franklin/Templeton Distributors, Inc. dated January 1, 2011 with amended Attachment A dated December 2019

 

 

(ii)

Forms of Selling Agreements between Franklin/Templeton Distributors, Inc., and Securities Dealers dated May 1, 2010

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 41 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: September 1, 2010

 

(f)

Bonus or Profit Sharing Contracts

 

 

Not Applicable

 

(g)

Custodian Agreements

 

 

(i)

Master Custody Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated February 16, 1996

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 25 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 31, 1996

 

 

(ii)

Amendment dated May 7, 1997 to Master Custody Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated February 16, 1996

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 26 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing date: October 30, 1997

 

 

(iii)

Amendment dated February 27, 1998 Master Custody Agreement between the Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated February 16, 1996

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 27 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing date: August 24, 1998

 

 

(iv)

Amendment dated February 25, 2020, and to Exhibit A of the Master Custody Agreement between the Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated February 16, 1996

 

 

 

 

(v)

Terminal Link Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated February 16, 1996

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 25 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 31, 1996

 

 

 

 

(vi)

Amendment dated February 25, 2020 to Exhibit A of the Terminal Link Agreement between the Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated February 16, 1996

 

 

 

(h)

Other Material Contracts

 

 

(i)

Amended and Restated Fund Administration Agreement between Institutional Fiduciary Trust, on behalf of Money Market Portfolio and Franklin Templeton Services, LLC dated April 17, 2012

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 44 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 29, 2012

 

 

 

 

(ii)

Amended and Restated Transfer Agent and Shareholder Services Agreement between the Registrant and Franklin Templeton Investor Services, LLC dated November 1, 2017

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 57 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 26, 2018

 

 

 

 

(iii)

Amendment to Fund Services Agreement dated January 22, 2020 between Franklin Templeton Services, LLC and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.

 

(i)

Legal Opinion

 

 

(i)

Legal Opinion and Consent of Counsel dated October 26, 2007

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 38 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 26, 2007

 

(j)

Other Opinions

 

 

 

(i)

Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

 

 

(k)

Omitted Financial Statements

 

 

Not Applicable

 

(l)

Initial Capital Agreements

 

 

Not Applicable

 

(m)

Rule 12b-1 Plan

 

 

(i)

Amended and Restated Class A Distribution Plan pursuant to Rule 12b-1 between Registrant, on behalf of Money Market Portfolio, and Franklin/Templeton Distributors, Inc. dated February 1, 2009

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 40 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 26, 2009

 

(n)

Rule 18f-3 Plan

 

 

Not Applicable

 

(p)

Code of Ethics

 

 

(i)

Code of Ethics dated December 31, 2018

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 59 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 31, 2019

 

(q)

Power of Attorney

 

 

(i)

Power of Attorney for Institutional Fiduciary Trust dated May 21, 2019

 

 

(ii)

Power of Attorney for The Money Market Portfolios dated May 21, 2019

Filing: Post-Effective Amendment No. 59 to Registration Statement on Form N-1A

File No. 002-96634

Filing Date: October 31, 2019

 

         

 

Item 29.    Persons Controlled by or Under Common Control with

Registrant

 

None

 

Item 30.    Indemnification

 

The Agreement and Declaration of Trust (the "Declaration") provides that any person who is or was a Trustee, officer, employee or other agent, including the underwriter, of such Trust shall be liable to the Trust and its shareholders only for (1) any act or omission that constitutes a bad faith violation of the implied contractual covenant of good faith and fair dealing, or (2) the person's own willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of such person (such conduct referred to herein as Disqualifying Conduct) and for nothing else. Except in these instances and to the fullest extent that limitations of liability of agents are permitted by the Delaware Statutory Trust Act (the "Delaware Act"), these Agents (as defined in the Declaration) shall not be responsible or liable for any act or omission of any other Agent of the Trust or any investment adviser or principal underwriter. Moreover, except and to the extent provided in these instances, none of these Agents, when acting in their respective capacity as such, shall be personally liable to any other person, other than such Trust or its shareholders, for any act, omission or obligation of the Trust or any trustee thereof.

 


 

The Trust shall indemnify, out of its property, to the fullest extent permitted under applicable law, any of the persons who was or is a party, or is threatened to be made a party to any Proceeding (as defined in the Declaration) because the person is or was an Agent of such Trust. These persons shall be indemnified against any Expenses (as defined in the Declaration), judgments, fines, settlements and other amounts actually and reasonably incurred in connection with the Proceeding if the person acted in good faith or, in the case of a criminal proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe that the conduct was unlawful. The termination of any Proceeding by judgment, order, settlement, conviction or plea of nolo contendere or its equivalent shall not in itself create a presumption that the person did not act in good faith or that the person had reasonable cause to believe that the person's conduct was unlawful. There shall nonetheless be no indemnification for a person's own Disqualifying Conduct.

 

Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, may be permitted to Trustees, officers and controlling persons of the Trust pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Trust has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Trust of expenses incurred or paid by a Trustee, officer or controlling person of the Trust in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such Trustee, officer or controlling person in connection with securities being registered, the Trust may be required, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, to submit to a court or appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

 

 

Item 31.    Business and Other Connections of the Investment Adviser

 

The officers and directors of Franklin Advisers, Inc. (Advisers), administrator of the Fund and investment advisor of the Master Fund, also serve as officers and/or directors/trustees for (1) Advisers' corporate parent, Franklin Resources, Inc., and/or (2) other investment companies in Franklin Templeton. For additional information please see Part B and Schedules A and D of Form ADV of Advisers (SEC File 801-26292), incorporated herein by reference, which sets forth the officers and directors of Advisers and information as to any business, profession, vocation or employment of a substantial nature engaged in by those officers and directors during the past two years.

 

 

Item 32.    Principal Underwriters

 

a)    Franklin/Templeton Distributors, Inc. (Distributors), also acts as principal underwriter of shares of:

 

Franklin Alternative Strategies Funds

Franklin California Tax-Free Income Fund

Franklin California Tax-Free Trust

Franklin Custodian Funds

Franklin EFT Trust

Franklin Federal Tax-Free Income Fund

Franklin Fund Allocator Series


 

Franklin Global Trust

Franklin Gold and Precious Metals Fund

Franklin High Income Trust

Franklin Investors Securities Trust

Franklin Managed Trust

Franklin Municipal Securities Trust

Franklin Mutual Series Funds

Franklin New York Tax-Free Income Fund

Franklin New York Tax-Free Trust

Franklin Real Estate Securities Trust

Franklin Strategic Mortgage Portfolio

Franklin Strategic Series

Franklin Tax-Free Trust

Franklin Templeton ETF Trust

Franklin Templeton Variable Insurance Products Trust

Franklin U.S. Government Money Fund

Franklin Value Investors Trust

Templeton China World Fund

Templeton Developing Markets Trust

Templeton Funds

Templeton Global Investment Trust

Templeton Global Smaller Companies Fund

Templeton Growth Fund, Inc.

Templeton Income Trust

Templeton Institutional Funds

 

b)    The information required with respect to each director and officer of Distributors is incorporated by reference to Part B of this N-1A and Schedule A of Form BD filed by Distributors with the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to the Securities Act of 1934 (SEC File No. 008-05889).

 

c)    Not Applicable.  Registrant's principal underwriter is an affiliated person of an affiliated person of the Registrant.

 

 

Item 33.    Location of Accounts and Records

 

The accounts, books or other documents required to be maintained by Section 31 (a) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 are kept by the Fund at One Franklin Parkway, San Mateo, CA  94403-1906 or by its shareholder services agent, Franklin Templeton Investor Services, LLC at 3344 Quality Drive, Rancho Cordova, CA 95670-7313.

 

 

Item 34.    Management Services

 

There are no management-related service contracts not discussed in Part A or Part B.

 

 

Item 35.    Undertakings

 

Not Applicable


 

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Registrant certifies that it meets all of the requirements for effectiveness of this Registration Statement pursuant to Rule 485(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized in the City of San Mateo and the State of California, on the 26th day of October, 2020.

 

INSTITUTIONAL FIDUCIARY TRUST (Registrant)

 

By:  /s/Steven J. Gray

Steven J. Gray

Vice President and Co-Secretary

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this

Registration Statement has been signed below by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated:

 

SONAL DESAI, Ph.D *

President and Chief Executive Officer -

SONAL DESAI, Ph.D

Investment Management

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

MATTHEW T. HINKLE*

Chief Executive Officer-Finance and

Matthew T. Hinkle

Administration

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

GASTON GARDEY*

Chief Financial Officer and Chief

Gaston Gardey

Accounting Officer

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

HARRIS J. ASHTON*

Trustee

Harris J. Ashton

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

TERRENCE J. CHECKI*

Trustee

Terrence J. Checki

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

MARY C. CHOKSI*

Trustee

Mary C. Choksi

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

EDITH E. HOLIDAY*

Trustee

Edith E. Holiday

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

GREGORY E. JOHNSON*

Trustee

Gregory E. Johnson

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

RUPERT H. JOHNSON, JR.*

Trustee

Rupert H. Johnson, Jr.

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

J. MICHAEL LUTTIG*

Trustee

J. Michael Luttig

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

LARRY D. THOMPSON*

Trustee

Larry D. Thompson

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 


 

 

*By   /s/ Steven J. Gray

Steven J. Gray,

Attorney-in-Fact

(Pursuant to Power of Attorney filed herewith)


 

SIGNATURES

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Registrant certifies that it meets all of the requirements for effectiveness of this Registration Statement pursuant to Rule 485(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized in the City of San Mateo and the State of California, on the 26th day of October, 2020.

 

THE MONEY MARKET PORTFOLIOS

 

By: /s/Steven J. Gray

Steven J. Gray

Vice President and Co-Secretary

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this Registration Statement has been signed below by the following Trustees and Officers of The Money Market Portfolios in the capacities and on the dates indicated:

 

SONAL DESAI, Ph.D *

President and Chief Executive Officer -

SONAL DESAI, Ph.D

Investment Management

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

MATTHEW T. HINKLE*

Chief Executive Officer-Finance and

Matthew T. Hinkle

Administration

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

GASTON GARDEY*

Chief Financial Officer and Chief

Gaston Gardey

Accounting Officer

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

HARRIS J. ASHTON*

Trustee

Harris J. Ashton

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

TERRENCE J. CHECKI*

Trustee

Terrence J. Checki

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

MARY C. CHOKSI*

Trustee

Mary C. Choksi

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

EDITH E. HOLIDAY*

Trustee

Edith E. Holiday

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

GREGORY E. JOHNSON*

Trustee

Gregory E. Johnson

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

RUPERT H. JOHNSON, JR.*

Trustee

Rupert H. Johnson, Jr.

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

J. MICHAEL LUTTIG*

Trustee

J. Michael Luttig

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 

LARRY D. THOMPSON*

Trustee

Larry D. Thompson

Dated: October 26, 2020

 

 


 

*By   /s/Steven J. Gray

Steven J. Gray,

Attorney-in-Fact

(Pursuant to Power of Attorney previously filed)


 

INSTITUTIONAL FIDUCIARY TRUST

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

EXHIBIT INDEX

 

The following exhibits are attached:

 

EXHIBIT NO.

DESCRIPTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

EX-99. (e)(i)

Distribution Agreement between Registrant and Franklin/Templeton Distributors, Inc. dated January 1, 2011 with amended Attachment A dated December 2019

 

EX-99. (g)(iv)

Amendment dated February 25, 2020, and to Exhibit A of the Master Custody Agreement between the Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated February 16, 1996

 

EX-99. (g)(vi)

Amendment dated February 25, 2020 to Exhibit A of the Terminal Link Agreement between the Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated February 16, 1996

 

 

EX-99. (h)(iii)

Amendment to Fund Services Agreement dated January 22, 2020 between Franklin Templeton Services, LLC and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.

 

 

EX-99. (j)(i)

Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

 

 

EX-99. (q)(i)

Power of Attorney for Institutional Fiduciary Trust dated May 21, 2019