Franklin K2 Alternative Strategies Fund NCSRS Certified semi-annual shareholder report (management investment company)

1. Organization and Significant Accounting Policies (continued)

d. Derivative Financial Instruments (continued)

OTC derivatives traded under an ISDA master agreement, posting of collateral is required by either the Fund or the applicable counterparty if the total net exposure of all OTC derivatives with the applicable counterparty exceeds the minimum transfer amount, which typically ranges from $100,000 to $250,000, and can vary depending on the counterparty and the type of agreement. Generally, collateral is determined at the close of Fund business each day and any additional collateral required due to changes in derivative values may be delivered by the Fund or the counterparty the next business day, or within a few business days. Collateral pledged and/or received by the Fund for OTC derivatives, if any, is held in segregated accounts with the Fund’s custodian/counterparty broker and can be in the form of cash and/or securities. Unrestricted cash may be invested according to the Fund’s investment objectives. To the extent that the amounts due to the Fund from its counterparties are not subject to collateralization or are not fully collateralized, the Fund bears the risk of loss from counterparty non-performance.

The Fund entered into exchange traded futures contracts primarily to manage and/or gain exposure to commodity price, interest rate, equity price and foreign exchange rate risk. A futures contract is an agreement between the Fund and a counterparty to buy or sell an asset at a specified price on a future date. Required initial margins are pledged by the Fund, and the daily change in fair value is accounted for as a variation margin payable or receivable in the Consolidated Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Futures contracts outstanding at period end, if any, are listed in the Fund’s Consolidated Schedule of Investments.

The Fund entered into OTC forward exchange contracts primarily to manage and/or gain exposure to certain foreign currencies. A forward exchange contract is an agreement between the Fund and a counterparty to buy or sell a foreign currency at a specific exchange rate on a future date. Forward exchange contracts outstanding at period end, if any, are listed in the Fund’s Consolidated Schedule of Investments.

The Fund entered into credit default swap contracts primarily to manage and/or gain exposure to credit risk. A credit default swap is an agreement between the Fund and a counterparty whereby the buyer of the contract receives credit protection and the seller of the contract guarantees the credit worthiness of a referenced debt obligation. These agreements may be privately negotiated in the over-the-counter market (OTC credit default swaps) or may be executed in a multilateral trade facility platform, such as a registered exchange (centrally cleared credit default swaps). The underlying referenced debt obligation may be a single issuer of corporate or sovereign debt, a credit index, a basket of issuers or indices, or a tranche of a credit index or basket of issuers or indices. In the event of a default of the underlying referenced debt obligation, the buyer is entitled to receive the notional amount of the credit default swap contract from the seller in exchange for the

referenced debt obligation, a net settlement amount equal to the notional amount of the credit default swap less the recovery value of the referenced debt obligation, or other agreed upon amount. For centrally cleared credit default swaps, required initial margins are pledged by the Fund, and the daily change in fair value is accounted for as a variation margin payable or receivable in the Consolidated Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Over the term of the contract, the buyer pays the seller a periodic stream of payments, provided that no event of default has occurred. Such periodic payments are accrued daily as an unrealized appreciation or depreciation until the payments are made, at which time they are realized. Upfront payments and receipts are reflected in the Consolidated Statement of Assets and Liabilities and represent compensating factors between stated terms of the credit default swap agreement and prevailing market conditions (credit spreads and other relevant factors). These upfront payments and receipts are amortized over the term of the contract as a realized gain or loss in the Consolidated Statement of Operations, if any. Credit default swap contracts outstanding at period end, if any, are listed in the Fund’s Consolidated Schedule of Investments.

The Fund entered into OTC cross-currency swap contracts primarily to manage and/or gain exposure to certain foreign currencies. A cross-currency swap is an agreement between the Fund and a counterparty to exchange cash flows (determined using either a fixed or floating rate) based on the notional amounts of two different currencies. The notional amounts are typically determined based on the spot exchange rates at the opening of the contract. Cross-currency swaps may require the exchange of notional amounts at the opening and/or closing of the contract. Over the term of the contract, contractually required payments to be paid and to be received are accrued daily and recorded as unrealized appreciation or depreciation until the payments are made, at which time they are realized. Any upfront payments and receipts are reflected in the Consolidated Statement of Assets and Liabilities and represent compensating factors between stated terms of the cross-currency swap contract and prevailing market conditions (interest rate spreads and other relevant factors). These upfront payments and receipts are amortized over the term of the contract as a realized gain or loss in the Consolidated Statement of Operations, if any. Cross-currency swap contracts outstanding at period end, if any, are listed in the Fund’s Consolidated Schedule of Investments.

The Fund entered into interest rate swap contracts primarily to manage and/or gain exposure to interest rate risk. An interest rate swap is an agreement between the Fund and a counterparty to exchange cash flows based on the difference between two interest rates, applied to a notional amount. These agreements may be privately negotiated in the over-the-counter market (OTC interest rate swaps) or may be executed on a registered exchange (centrally cleared interest rate swaps). For centrally cleared interest rate swaps, required initial margins are pledged by the Fund, and the daily change in fair value is accounted for as a variation margin payable or receivable in the Consolidated Statement of Assets and Liabilities. Over the term of the contract, contractually required payments to be paid and to be received are accrued daily and


Class Name	Costs of a $10,000 investment	Costs paid as a percentage of a $10,000 investment^*^,^†
Class A	$122	2.40%


Total Net Assets	$570,657,731
Total Number of Portfolio Holdings^*	720
Portfolio Turnover Rate	113.74%


Strategy Allocation (% of Total Net Assets)	Long Positions	Short Positions
Long Short Equity	48.2	-31.2
Relative Value	49.2	-33.6
Event Driven	3.3	-2.0
Global Macro	117.9	-101.1
Strategic Overlay	2.4	--
Total	221.0	-167.9


Class Name	Costs of a $10,000 investment	Costs paid as a percentage of a $10,000 investment^*^,^†
Class C	$161	3.16%


Total Net Assets	$570,657,731
Total Number of Portfolio Holdings^*	720
Portfolio Turnover Rate	113.74%


K2 Alternative Strategies Fund
Class A [FAAAX]
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report \| November 30, 2024


	WHERE CAN I FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUND?
	Additional information is available on https://www.franklintempleton.com/regulatory-fund-documents, including its:
	• prospectus • proxy voting information • financial information • holdings • tax information


K2 Alternative Strategies Fund
Class C [FASCX]
Semi-Annual Shareholder Report \| November 30, 2024


	WHERE CAN I FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUND?
	Additional information is available on https://www.franklintempleton.com/regulatory-fund-documents, including its:
	• prospectus • proxy voting information • financial information • holdings • tax information

Franklin K2 Alternative Strategies Fund (FABZX) N-CSRSCertified semi-annual shareholder report (management investment company)