John Templeton
Encyclopedia
Sir John Marks Templeton (November 29, 1912 – July 8, 2008) was an American
-born British
stock investor, businessman and philanthropist
.
and attended Yale University
and was selected for membership in the Elihu
society. He financed a portion of his tuition by playing poker, a game at which he excelled. He graduated in 1934 near the top of his class. He attended Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar and earned an M.A.
in law.
Templeton married Judith Folk in 1937, and the couple had three children: John Jr.
, Anne, and Christopher. Judith died in February 1951 in a motorbike accident. He remarried, to Irene Reynolds Butler in 1958; she died in 1993.
He was a lifelong member of the Presbyterian Church. He served as an elder of the First Presbyterian Church of Englewood (NJ). He was a trustee on the board of Princeton Theological Seminary
, the largest Presbyterian seminary, for 42 years and served as its chair for 12 years.
Templeton became a billionaire by pioneering the use of globally diversified mutual fund
s. His Templeton Growth, Ltd. (investment fund), established in 1954, was among the first who invested in Japan in the middle of the 1960s. He is noted for buying 100 shares of each company for less than $1 ($ today) a share in 1939 and making many times the money back in a 4 year period.
In 2006 he was listed in a 7-way tie for 129th place on the Sunday Times's "Rich List". He rejected technical analysis
for stock trading, preferring instead to use fundamental analysis
. Money magazine in 1999 called him "arguably the greatest global stock picker of the century”.
Templeton renounced his U.S. citizenship in 1968, thus avoiding U.S. income taxes. He had dual naturalized Bahamian and British citizenship and lived in the Bahamas.
Templeton College is now closely associated with Oxford's Saïd Business School
. In 2007, Templeton College transferred its executive education program to Saïd Business School. In 2008, Templeton College merged with Green College to form Green Templeton College. This is one of the exceptional mergers in recent history of the University of Oxford.
He was created a Knight Bachelor
in 1987 for his philanthropic efforts. Templeton was inducted into the Junior Achievement
U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1996, and in 2003 awarded the William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership
.
His philanthropic activities had been estimated at over 1 billion US dollars in total.
magazine's 100 Most Influential People (Time 100
) under the category of "Power Givers." Templeton was given this honor for his "pursuit of spiritual understanding, often through scientific research" through his establishment of the John Templeton Foundation.
Templeton attributed much of his success to his ability to maintain an elevated mood, avoid anxiety and stay disciplined. Uninterested in consumerism, he drove his own car, never flew first class and lived year-round in the Bahamas.
Templeton became known for his "avoiding the herd" and "buy when there's blood in the streets" philosophy. He also was known for taking profits when values and expectations were high.
Templeton was a Chartered Financial Analyst
(CFA) charter-holder. He received AIMR's first award for professional excellence in 1991.
In 2005, he wrote a brief memorandum predicting that within five years there would be financial chaos in the world. It was eventually made public in 2010.
Templeton asserts that the purpose of the Templeton Foundation is as follows:
, of pneumonia
at 12:20 local time. He was 95.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
-born British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
stock investor, businessman and philanthropist
Philanthropist
A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...
.
Biography
John Marks Templeton was an investor and mutual fund pioneer. He was born in the town of Winchester, TennesseeWinchester, Tennessee
Winchester is a city in and the county seat of Franklin County, Tennessee, United States. It is part of the Tullahoma, Tennessee Micropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...
and attended Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
and was selected for membership in the Elihu
Elihu (secret society)
Elihu, founded in 1903, is the sixth oldest secret society at Yale University, New Haven, CT. While similar to Skull and Bones, Scroll and Key and Wolf's Head societies in charter and function, Elihu favors privacy over overt secrecy...
society. He financed a portion of his tuition by playing poker, a game at which he excelled. He graduated in 1934 near the top of his class. He attended Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar and earned an M.A.
Master of Arts (Oxbridge)
In the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge and Dublin, Bachelors of Arts of these universities are admitted to the degree of Master of Arts or Master in Arts on application after six or seven years' seniority as members of the university .There is no examination or study required for the degree...
in law.
Templeton married Judith Folk in 1937, and the couple had three children: John Jr.
John Templeton, Jr
John Marks Templeton, Jr. is the elder son of the stock investor, businessman and philanthropist John Templeton and serves as the Chairman and President of the John Templeton Foundation....
, Anne, and Christopher. Judith died in February 1951 in a motorbike accident. He remarried, to Irene Reynolds Butler in 1958; she died in 1993.
He was a lifelong member of the Presbyterian Church. He served as an elder of the First Presbyterian Church of Englewood (NJ). He was a trustee on the board of Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey in the United States...
, the largest Presbyterian seminary, for 42 years and served as its chair for 12 years.
Templeton became a billionaire by pioneering the use of globally diversified mutual fund
Mutual fund
A mutual fund is a professionally managed type of collective investment scheme that pools money from many investors to buy stocks, bonds, short-term money market instruments, and/or other securities.- Overview :...
s. His Templeton Growth, Ltd. (investment fund), established in 1954, was among the first who invested in Japan in the middle of the 1960s. He is noted for buying 100 shares of each company for less than $1 ($ today) a share in 1939 and making many times the money back in a 4 year period.
In 2006 he was listed in a 7-way tie for 129th place on the Sunday Times's "Rich List". He rejected technical analysis
Technical analysis
In finance, technical analysis is security analysis discipline for forecasting the direction of prices through the study of past market data, primarily price and volume. Behavioral economics and quantitative analysis incorporate technical analysis, which being an aspect of active management stands...
for stock trading, preferring instead to use fundamental analysis
Fundamental analysis
Fundamental analysis of a business involves analyzing its financial statements and health, its management and competitive advantages, and its competitors and markets. When applied to futures and forex, it focuses on the overall state of the economy, interest rates, production, earnings, and...
. Money magazine in 1999 called him "arguably the greatest global stock picker of the century”.
Templeton renounced his U.S. citizenship in 1968, thus avoiding U.S. income taxes. He had dual naturalized Bahamian and British citizenship and lived in the Bahamas.
Philanthropy
As a philanthropist, Templeton established- the John Templeton FoundationJohn Templeton Foundation"The John Templeton Foundation is a philanthropic organizationthat funds inter-disciplinary research about human purpose and ultimate reality. It is usually referred to simply as the Templeton Foundation...
; - the Templeton Prize for Progress Toward Research or Discoveries about Spiritual RealitiesTempleton PrizeThe Templeton Prize is an annual award presented by the Templeton Foundation. Established in 1972, it is awarded to a living person who, in the estimation of the judges, "has made an exceptional contribution to affirming life's spiritual dimension, whether through insight, discovery, or practical...
in 1972; - the Templeton Library in Sewanee, TennesseeSewanee, TennesseeSewanee is an unincorporated locality in Franklin County, Tennessee, United States, treated by the U.S. Census as a census-designated place . The population was 2,361 at the 2000 census...
; - the Templeton College of the University of OxfordUniversity of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
(by endowing the Oxford Centre for Management Studies to become a full college of the university having as a focus business and management studies).
Templeton College is now closely associated with Oxford's Saïd Business School
Saïd Business School
Saïd Business School is the business school of the University of Oxford in England, located on the north side of Frideswide Square on the former site of Oxford Rewley Road railway station. It is the University's centre of learning for graduate and undergraduate students in business, management...
. In 2007, Templeton College transferred its executive education program to Saïd Business School. In 2008, Templeton College merged with Green College to form Green Templeton College. This is one of the exceptional mergers in recent history of the University of Oxford.
He was created a Knight Bachelor
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
in 1987 for his philanthropic efforts. Templeton was inducted into the Junior Achievement
Junior Achievement
Junior Achievement or JA or JA Worldwide is a non-profit youth organization that was founded in 1919 by Horace A. Moses, Theodore Vail, and senator Winthrop M. Crane. JA focuses on educating kids in K-12 about the free enterprise system...
U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1996, and in 2003 awarded the William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership
William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership
The William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership is an annual award given by the William E. Simon Foundation in honor of its founder, former Secretary of the Treasury and financier William E...
.
His philanthropic activities had been estimated at over 1 billion US dollars in total.
Recognition
In 2007, Templeton was named one of TimeTime (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine's 100 Most Influential People (Time 100
Time 100
Time 100 is an annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, as assembled by Time. First published in 1999 as a result of a debate among several academics, the list has become an annual event.-History and format:...
) under the category of "Power Givers." Templeton was given this honor for his "pursuit of spiritual understanding, often through scientific research" through his establishment of the John Templeton Foundation.
Templeton attributed much of his success to his ability to maintain an elevated mood, avoid anxiety and stay disciplined. Uninterested in consumerism, he drove his own car, never flew first class and lived year-round in the Bahamas.
Templeton became known for his "avoiding the herd" and "buy when there's blood in the streets" philosophy. He also was known for taking profits when values and expectations were high.
Templeton was a Chartered Financial Analyst
Chartered Financial Analyst
The Chartered Financial Analyst Program is a graduate level self-study program offered by the CFA Institute to investment and financial professionals...
(CFA) charter-holder. He received AIMR's first award for professional excellence in 1991.
In 2005, he wrote a brief memorandum predicting that within five years there would be financial chaos in the world. It was eventually made public in 2010.
Spirituality and the Templeton Foundation
As a member of the Presbyterian Church, Templeton was dedicated to his faith. However, Templeton remained open to the benefits and values of other faiths. Commenting on his commitment to what he called spiritual progress, “But why shouldn't I try to learn more? Why shouldn't I go to Hindu services? Why shouldn't I go to Muslim services? If you are not egotistical, you will welcome the opportunity to learn more." Similarly, one of the major goals of the Templeton Foundation is to proliferate the monetary support of spiritual discoveries. The Templeton Foundation encourages research into "big questions" by awarding philanthropic aid to institutions and people who pursue the answers to such questions through "explorations into the laws of nature and the universe, to questions on the nature of love, gratitude, forgiveness, and creativity."Templeton asserts that the purpose of the Templeton Foundation is as follows:
Death
On July 8, 2008, Templeton died at Doctors Hospital in Nassau, BahamasNassau, Bahamas
Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. The city has a population of 248,948 , 70 percent of the entire population of The Bahamas...
, of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
at 12:20 local time. He was 95.
Selected publications
- Riches for the Mind and Spirit: John Marks Templeton's Treasury of Words to Help, Inspire, and Live By, 2006. ISBN 1-5994-7101-9
- Faithful Finances 101: From The Poverty Of Fear And Greed To The Riches Of Spiritual Investing, 2005. ISBN 1-9320-3175-8
- Golden Nuggets from Sir John Templeton, 1997. ISBN 1-8901-5104-1
- Discovering the Laws of Life, 1994. ISBN 0-8264-0861-3
- Is God the Only Reality? Science Points to a Deeper Meaning of the Universe, 1994. ISBN 0-8264-0650-5
- Templeton Plan: 21 Steps to Personal Success and Real Happiness, 1992. ISBN 0-0610-4178-5
- The humble approach: Scientists discover God, 1981. ISBN 0-8164-0481-X
- Worldwide Laws of Life: 200 Eternal Spiritual Principles, 1998. ISBN 1890151157.
See also
- John Templeton FoundationJohn Templeton Foundation"The John Templeton Foundation is a philanthropic organizationthat funds inter-disciplinary research about human purpose and ultimate reality. It is usually referred to simply as the Templeton Foundation...
- Templeton PrizeTempleton PrizeThe Templeton Prize is an annual award presented by the Templeton Foundation. Established in 1972, it is awarded to a living person who, in the estimation of the judges, "has made an exceptional contribution to affirming life's spiritual dimension, whether through insight, discovery, or practical...
- Franklin Templeton InvestmentsFranklin Templeton InvestmentsFranklin Resources Inc. is a holding company which, together with its subsidiaries, is referred to as Franklin Templeton Investments; it is an investment firm originally founded in New York in 1947 as Franklin Distributors, Inc. It is listed on the NYSE under the ticker BEN, in honor of Benjamin...
- Investing the Templeton Way by Lauren C. Templeton and Scott Phillips, McGraw-Hill, 2008
External links
- John Templeton Foundation
- Sir John Templeton Biography Templeton Foundation
- Obituary of Sir John Templeton in Philanthropy magazine
- God's Venture Capitalist SlateSlate (magazine)Slate is a US-based English language online current affairs and culture magazine created in 1996 by former New Republic editor Michael Kinsley, initially under the ownership of Microsoft as part of MSN. On 21 December 2004 it was purchased by the Washington Post Company...
article by David Plotz - 16 RULES FOR INVESTMENT SUCCESS by Sir John Templeton
- The John Templeton Award for Theological Promise A research award funded by the John Templeton Foundation