The battle for control of the Scottish investment trust is raging as a crunch vote looms, writes Ian McConnell.

The attempt to oust the board of the Scottish investment trust seems a bit like a re-run but there are some major differences. One of the differences relates to simple arithmetic.

As another crunch vote looms for a major Scottish investment trust – its second in less than a year – the war of words between this fund’s board and the activist investor seeking to remove all of the directors has been intense.

At the start of last year, US hedge fund manager Boaz Weinstein’s Saba Capital Management was targeting seven investment trusts in the UK.

Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust, which is managed by Baillie Gifford and had total assets of around £831.55 million at November 30, was early last year the last of the seven to see off Saba, with its shareholders voting decisively against the US activist’s attempt to oust its entire board on Valentine’s Day 2025.

However, these seven defeats for Saba have apparently not put the US activist off requisitioning shareholder meetings and tabling resolutions in the UK investment trust sector.

In late November, Saba revealed another campaign to remove the entire board of Edinburgh Worldwide.

The general meeting at which shareholders will decide what happens next is set for January 20.

What has been striking this time round – perhaps a reflection of Saba focusing on Edinburgh Worldwide currently rather than spreading its salvo across seven funds as it did last year – has been the very public and robust nature of the back and forth between the two sides.

Open letters seem to have been the order of the day.

Mr Weinstein kicked off the open letters in late November, revealing Saba’s renewed attempt to oust the Edinburgh Worldwide board.

In some ways, it seems a bit like watching a re-run.

However, there are some clear differences this time round.........

© Herald Scotland