Shareholders have been told to ‘act now’ if they want to vote on the final attempt by US hedge fund Saba Capital to oust the board of a London-listed investment trust.
Edinburgh Worldwide, which is listed on the FTSE 250, is the last trust to face a shareholder vote this Friday after six others fought off plans by Saba boss Boaz Weinstein to clear out their directors and replace them with his own allies.
But investors wanting to cast their ballots through some of the UK’s largest investment platforms will need to move fast to make their voices heard.
The deadline for voting through AJ Bell and Hargreaves Lansdown is today while the cut-off for Interactive Investor is tomorrow.
‘The Edinburgh Worldwide vote is on Valentine’s Day and shareholders need to act now to be sure of meeting platform deadlines,’ said Richard Stone, head of industry body the Association of Investment Companies (AIC).
Small investors hold an estimated 50 per cent of Edinburgh Worldwide compared to around 21 per cent owned by Saba, although the US hedge fund could control the votes a larger share through financial instruments. As a result, investor turnout will be crucial in deciding the outcome.
Predator: Six trusts have fought off plans by Saba boss Boaz Weinstein (pictured) to clear out their directors and replace them with his own allies
Edinburgh’s chairman Jonathan Simpson-Dent has been one of the more vocal critics of Weinstein during the campaign, accusing the US financier of staging an ‘overt land grab’ and trying to ‘exploit’ the fact that the trust’s large number of retail shareholders do not normally vote.
So far, Weinstein’s campaign against the ‘miserable seven’ has failed to gain any real traction, with Saba being decisively defeated in each of the first six votes. Results have shown the US raider receiving little sympathy from other investors despite running a bellicose campaign accusing the bosses of each trust of poor performance and claiming that his team would do better.
At least 98 per cent of votes cast by investors that are not Saba have been against the firm’s proposals, while Saba’s high-water mark for support has been the 41 per cent vote in favour at the CQS Natural Resources Growth and Income trust last Tuesday, most of which came from its own shares.
Weinstein is likely to face questions about the efficacy of his campaign today and tomorrow when he speaks at the LSE Alternative Investments Conference which Saba sponsors.
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