Saba Capital looks to oust IEM board in latest trust tussle

Saba Capital Management, the $6 billion New York-based hedge fund run by poker-playing financier Boaz Weinstein, is pressing ahead with its third attempt to seize control of Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust's board despite consecutive shareholder rejections. On April 10, EWIT shareholders voted decisively against Saba's plan to remove six directors and replace them with three Saba-backed candidates, with 53.2% of votes cast opposing the measure and 92.7% of non-Saba shareholders rejecting the proposal. This marks the second defeat for Saba in less than a year, following a failed January 2026 attempt. Despite these setbacks, Saba—which has increased its EWIT stake from 25% to 30%—has not abandoned its campaign and is targeting approval at the April 30 annual general meeting.

The activist's persistent challenge centers on EWIT's dismal long-term performance and structural issues. Over the past five years, EWIT has ranked 66th out of 66 equity trusts with more than £500 million in assets, representing what Saba characterizes as "unprecedented value destruction." The trust has also traded at a significant discount to net asset value, a metric Weinstein has emphasized throughout his campaign. On April 10, EWIT shareholders also rejected the board's proposed tender offer, which Saba criticized as "deeply flawed" because it would have converted shareholders into untradeable SpaceX tracker shares while exposing them to potential tax liabilities. Saba argued the board's failure to develop shareholder-approved tender terms demonstrates directional misalignment with investor interests.

EWIT, a Baillie Gifford-managed closed-end investment fund with £847.15 million in total assets, invests in cutting-edge public and private technology companies, including significant SpaceX exposure. Chair Jonathan Simpson-Dent has characterized Saba's campaign as a "significant and costly distraction" while signaling openness to "constructive engagement" with the hedge fund to develop solutions. However, he emphasized that shareholders have voted decisively twice against Saba's board removal proposals. Major shareholder advisory firms ISS and PIRC have recommended investors reject Saba's nominees ahead of the April 30 AGM, and board representatives have urged small investors to vote early, with platform-specific deadlines ranging from April 24 (Fidelity) to April 27 (Hargreaves Lansdown, Interactive Investor, AJ Bell).

Saba has reiterated that its "Enhanced Liquidity Proposal" remains the optimal outcome for shareholders, emphasizing that if newly elected independent directors are appointed, they should prioritize an improved liquidity proposal. The hedge fund's campaign represents one of several recent governance battles in the investment trust sector and reflects broader tensions between activist investors seeking operational or strategic change and incumbent boards defending existing management structures and shareholder composition.