The Board of The European Smaller Companies Trust PLC is pleased to announce that shareholders have voted against all resolutions proposed at the Requisitioned General Meeting, held on 5 February 2025. For full details of the result, read Result of Requisitioned General Meeting.

For all notices relating to this vote, go to Shareholder resources.

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Today’s vote is a clear and complete rejection of Saba’s proposals and a resounding endorsement of ESCT’s proven investment strategy, the quality of its independent Board and the manager’s ability to deliver outperformance.

Our shareholders have spoken loudly and clearly with 99.5% of votes cast by shareholders, other than Saba, voting against the resolutions.

We are grateful for the overwhelming support from shareholders, which demonstrates confidence in the manager’s ability to continue delivering long-term outperformance. Over 76% of the share capital was voted today and we sincerely thank every investor who took the time to safeguard their Company.

Saba’s failure to articulate a coherent investment strategy or provide clarity on fees and governance has been a key concern throughout this process. Shareholders have rejected uncertainty in favour of stability, performance, and a strategy that has consistently delivered returns.

We will continue to focus on generating value for shareholders through disciplined, long-term investment in European smaller companies. The sector is attractively valued, and we are committed to executing our proven investment strategy to identify and invest in high-potential businesses. We hope that, with today’s result, Saba will choose to engage constructively in the best interests of all shareholders.

James Williams
Chairman of The European Smaller Companies Trust PLC
5 February 2025

Hear from the Portfolio Manager

Ollie Beckett, Portfolio Manager

Ollie Beckett, portfolio manager of The European Smaller Companies Trust, discusses how he manages the trust with the aim of generating long-term returns for shareholders.

Enquiries

For media enquiries, please contact:
ESCT@edelmansmithfield.com

For all other enquiries, please contact:
ESCT@janushenderson.com or +44 (0)20 7818 1818

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