Jane Trust
About Jane E. Trust
Jane E. Trust, CFA (born 1962), is an interested Trustee of Putnam Premier Income Trust (PPT) and has served on the Putnam Funds Board since 2024; she currently serves as Senior Vice President, Fund Board Management at Franklin Templeton and is President and Chief Executive Officer of Franklin Templeton Fund Advisor, LLC (FTFA) . She is deemed an “interested person” of PPT by virtue of her positions with affiliates of Franklin Advisers (the fund’s investment adviser), rather than an independent director . Ms. Trust also serves as an officer and/or trustee/director of 123 other funds associated with FTFA, reflecting extensive fund governance experience .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin Templeton | Senior Vice President, Fund Board Management | Since 2020 | Fund board management leadership |
| Franklin Templeton Fund Advisor, LLC (FTFA) | President & Chief Executive Officer | Since at least 2015 | Senior leadership at adviser affiliate |
| Legg Mason & Co., LLC | Senior Managing Director | 2018–2020 | Executive leadership |
| Legg Mason & Co., LLC | Managing Director | 2016–2018 | Executive leadership |
| FTFA | Senior Vice President | 2015 | Senior leadership |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Since | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin/Putnam/Templeton fund complexes | Officer and/or Trustee/Director of 123 funds | Since 2015 | Broad oversight across fund family |
| Franklin Templeton closed-end funds | Director/Trustee | Since 2015 | Director of certain closed-end funds advised by Franklin Templeton affiliates |
Board Governance
- Independence status: Interested Trustee (not independent) under the Investment Company Act due to positions with affiliates of Franklin Advisers .
- Tenure: Trustee since 2024 on the Putnam Funds Board .
- Attendance: During calendar 2024, each Trustee attended at least 75% of Board and applicable committee meetings; average Trustee participated in ~35 Board and committee meetings .
- Board leadership: Barbara M. Baumann serves as Board Chair (Vice Chair 2022–2024; Chair since 2024) .
- Committee structure and independence: Following the proposed transition to the Franklin CEF Board, the Audit, Nominating, Compensation, and Pricing & Valuation Committees will be composed entirely of Independent Trustees and chaired by an Independent Trustee; interested persons do not serve on these committees .
- Governance transition: In January 2025, Franklin Advisers recommended electing an 8-member Franklin CEF Board to oversee PPT to promote efficiency and consistent oversight across Franklin Templeton closed-end funds; the Putnam Funds Board conducted diligence and nominated the slate .
Fixed Compensation
- Employees, officers, or directors of Franklin Advisers or its affiliates receive no remuneration for serving as Trustees of the funds .
- In the compensation tables for the most recent fiscal periods, Ms. Trust has “N/A” for aggregate compensation from PPT and for total compensation from the Putnam funds complex (as an interested Trustee) .
| Compensation Item | PPT (Latest disclosed) | Putnam funds complex (CY2024) |
|---|---|---|
| Aggregate cash compensation | N/A | N/A |
| Pension/retirement benefits from fund | N/A | N/A |
| Notes | Persons affiliated with Franklin Advisers receive no fund remuneration | — |
Performance Compensation
- No equity-based compensation or option awards are disclosed for Trustees; proxy disclosures present cash fees/retainers only and show “N/A” for Ms. Trust as an interested Trustee .
- No performance metric-linked compensation, bonuses, or incentive plans are disclosed for Trustees .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Company/Entity | Role | Since | Potential Interlock/Conflict Consideration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin/Templeton/Putnam fund complexes | Officer and/or Trustee/Director of 123 funds | 2015 | Affiliation with adviser complex; deemed “interested person” |
| Certain Franklin Templeton closed-end funds | Director/Trustee | 2015 | Ongoing oversight across adviser-affiliated funds |
Expertise & Qualifications
- CFA charterholder with investment management and risk oversight experience as an executive and portfolio manager; leadership roles within Franklin Templeton and affiliated entities .
- Extensive governance experience across a large family of funds (officer/trustee/director of 123 funds) .
Equity Ownership
As of December 31, 2024:
| Fund | Dollar Range of Shares Owned | Shares Beneficially Owned |
|---|---|---|
| Putnam Premier Income Trust (PPT) | $0 | 0 |
| Putnam Managed Municipal Income Trust | $0 | 0 |
| Putnam Master Intermediate Income Trust | $0 | 0 |
| Putnam Municipal Opportunities Trust | $0 | 0 |
| Aggregate across Putnam family of funds overseen | $0 | — |
Additional ownership context:
- As of March 1, 2025, each Trustee and the officers/Trustees of the fund as a group owned less than 1% of each fund’s outstanding common shares .
Governance Assessment
- Strengths: Deep fund-governance and adviser leadership experience; CFA credential; broad exposure to risk oversight across many funds; Board/committee attendance at least 75% in 2024 supports engagement .
- Risks/Red flags:
- Not independent: Deemed an “interested person” due to senior roles at Franklin affiliates, which can create perceived conflicts in oversight of the adviser and service providers (alignment risk) .
- No personal ownership in PPT or other Putnam funds as of 12/31/2024, reducing “skin-in-the-game” alignment signal .
- Adviser-driven board transition: Franklin Advisers recommended replacing the current Putnam Funds Board with the Franklin CEF Board; while rationales include efficiency and consistency, the shift was initiated by the adviser, which may raise independence optics; Board conducted diligence before nominating the slate .
- Mitigants: Post-transition committees (Audit, Nominating, Compensation, Pricing & Valuation) will be entirely independent and chaired by Independent Trustees; independent counsel and charters are in place .
Overall signal: Ms. Trust brings significant governance capacity and fund-complex expertise, but her non-independence and zero ownership in PPT warrant monitoring for potential alignment concerns; the independent-only committee structure and documented due diligence around the board transition help mitigate risk .