MutualFundWire.com
The insiders' edge for 40 Act industry executives!
an InvestmentWires' Publication
an InvestmentWires' Publication
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MutualFundWire.com
The insiders' edge for 40 Act industry executives!
an InvestmentWires' Publication |
|
Thursday, August 30, 2007 Franklin's Paw Brushes With the WSJ In the age of full-internet-disclosure, mutual fund connections are showing up in the unlikliest of places. Take, for example, the current most read story from The Wall Street Journal: "Big Source of Clinton's Cash Is an Unlikely Address." The article itself has nothing to do with the fund industry, but it does shine a spotlight on one of the industry's members. The paper reports that the Paws, a six-member family living at 41 Shelbourne Avenue in Daly City, California -- are the largest donors to Hillary Clinton's various campaigns. In all, they donated $45,000 to Clinton and some $200,000 to all Democratic candidates since 2005. While the article questions how the family could have afforded the donations (the primary earner is a letter carrier for the US Postal Service), it does drop a hint: One of the family members "is listed on campaign records as an executive at a mutual fund," reports the paper. The paper does not name the family member nor does it identify the mutual fund firm in question. In the age of Google and its ilk, however, that information is simple to find. According to OpenSecrets.com -- a Web site that compiles data from government filings -- the family member in question is Winkle Paw and his mutual fund employer was Franklin Resources. It would not be out of the realm of possibility for Franklin to pay a six-figure (or higher) bonus, so it is a little surprising that the paper did not pursue that lead. Winkle Paw himself is quoted in the article (via email) as writing that "I have been fortunate in my investments and all of my contributions have been my money." Yet, Paw does not appear to hold a key role at Franklin. While he is listed on the records as being a "business analyst" with Franklin Resources as recently as May, his name is not listed on any Franklin Resources SEC filing, nor can he be found on the FINRA BrokerCheck database. Those lack of hits suggest that he does not play a key role in the business. Meanwhile, Winkle Paw has become something of a celebrity on the "blogosphere" -- just Google him to see. He is popular in the real world as well. The San Francisco Chronicle relates that "reporters and TV crews descended on the pastel bungalow" listed as the Paw family address after the WSJ hit the streets on Tuesday. Unfortunately for the reporters, no Paw was home. If you want to connect go virtual. You can ping him at LinkedIn.com. Printed from: MFWire.com/story.asp?s=15570 Copyright 2007, InvestmentWires, Inc. All Rights Reserved |