Investment trust insider on Achilles – James Carthew: Activist Achilles could pack a powerful punch
The new activist trust targeting the alternative assets sectors is not Saba in different form and could be a force for good.
It has been so long since we saw a meaningful IPO in the investment trust sector that I was beginning to despair. However, hot off the press is a prospectus for Achilles Investment Company and shares in this new vehicle should start trading on Tuesday if all goes to plan.
It is domiciled in Guernsey and, to reflect its plan for a concentrated portfolio, the listing is on the London Stock Exchange’s Specialist Fund Segment (which regular readers might remember I would like to see abolished and merged in with the main market).
It is not huge – £54m – but could pack a powerful punch. It plans to target some of the more egregious discount opportunities in the alternative assets sectors (things like property, infrastructure, renewables, and perhaps also private equity), which is a potentially far more lucrative hunting ground than the largely equity trusts that Saba has been targeting.
The team cites a £39bn valuation gap between market caps and asset values in these sectors.
It will seek to ‘maximise value for shareholders through constructive activism’. This is not Saba in a different form, although there are superficial similarities… read more here