Saba's Weinstein says investment trust campaigns have unlocked £600m for investors

Saba Capital founder Boaz Weinstein has defended his activist campaign against UK-listed investment trusts, claiming the hedge fund's interventions have generated more than £600m in gains for shareholders, according to a report by The Times.Weinstein said Saba has invested more than £2bn across as many as 50 London-listed companies, with the majority of its positions concentrated in investment trusts. The hedge fund has also expanded into the property sector, building stakes in companies including Workspace and Grainger.Saba's campaign, launched in late 2024, has focused on trusts trading at persistent discounts to the value of their underlying assets. Weinstein has sought to narrow those discounts by pushing for changes to boards, investment strategies and management arrangements.The latest campaign is targeting Baillie Gifford US Growth, a roughly £1bn investment trust with holdings including SpaceX and Stripe. Shareholders are due to vote later this month on proposals that would see three Saba nominees appointed to the trust's board.Weinstein said the £600m figure was based on 12 investment trusts where Saba has succeeded in forcing changes, arguing that the benefits have extended beyond his own investors to retail shareholders and pensioners holding the trusts.He rejected criticism that Saba's activist approach has damaged the companies it has targeted, saying several of the trusts had suffered from poor performance and that his campaigns had encouraged boards to take steps to address persistent discounts.Among Saba's notable successes was Edinburgh Worldwide, where three Saba-backed directors were elected to the board in April. The trust had holdings in private companies including SpaceX.Other trusts targeted by Saba have responded with measures designed to address discounts or provide shareholders with liquidity. Herald Investment Trust, for example, agreed to a tender offer that enabled Saba to exit while Aberdeen was appointed as investment manager. Smithson Investment Trust has also changed its structure after Saba became a significant shareholder.Weinstein said his campaigns had also encouraged other investment trusts to take action independently to narrow their discounts, potentially increasing the gains for shareholders.The Saba founder acknowledged that the strategy has come at the expense of some investment managers' fees. He estimated that managers at the trusts affected by his campaigns had lost about £26m in fees, arguing that the money had effectively been redirected towards investors.The activist's approach has attracted considerable opposition from some investment trust boards, which have criticised Saba's tactics and complained about difficulties engaging with Weinstein. His strategy has included accumulating stakes approaching 30%, below the level that would generally trigger a mandatory takeover offer, before seeking shareholder votes to change boards or management.Weinstein rejected suggestions that the approach exploits low shareholder participation. He argued that shareholders have a choice over whether to vote and that Saba's ability to win support reflects its engagement with investors.Despite the criticism, Weinstein said Saba intends to continue targeting investment trusts, pointing to the results of its campaigns as evidence that the strategy is working.