The US firm has been working with the South Korean institution for 22 years, investing in a variety of asset classes.

US asset management house Franklin Templeton has announced that it is opening an office in Jeonju, South Korea during the first half of 2023. The move will strengthen its ties with the country’s National Pension Service (NPS).

The firm is opening what it calls a “contact office” in Jeollabuk-do Province, where the NPS is based. The US firm set up its first office in Seoul in 1997 and the office in Jeonju will be a contact office dedicated to supporting NPS by performing a liaison function for NPS-related work, including market research and analysis.

“Franklin Templeton’s Jeonju office will not just strengthen their lines of communication and collaboration with NPS but will also play an important role in the overall development of the local financial services sector and the wider community in Jeollabuk-do Province,” Tae-hyun Kim, chairman and chief executive of NPS, said.

NPS has been managing its assets through Franklin Templeton since 2001, and invests in equities, fixed income, private assets, real estate and infrastructure.