The annual dividend was 2.6% ahead of UK consumer price index (CPI) inflation. Over ten years, City of London’s dividend has grown by 39.3%, slightly behind UK CPI inflation of 41.7%.

Chairman Sir Laurie Magnus said: “The last decade has been a difficult period for real dividend growth, adversely affected both by the widespread cuts during the Covid pandemic and a period when, mainly because of rising energy costs, the annual rate of inflation exceeded 10%. Over 20 years, City of London’s dividend has risen by 136.6%, compared to UK CPI inflation of 78.0%.”

The trust produced a net asset value (NAV) total return over the year to 30 June 2026, equal to the FTSE All-Share Index total return, with the firm exceeding FTSE All-Share Index total return over three, five and 10 years. The City of London was also ahead of the Association of Investment Companies (AIC) UK Equity Income and IA UK Equity Income OEIC sector averages over one, three, five and 10 years.

Gearing, which contributed 0.76 percentage points towards the NAV, was financed mainly by secured debt. The £30m 2.67% secured notes (maturing in 2046) and the £50m 2.94% secured notes (maturing in 2049) is expected to continue to provide low-cost debt financing over the next 20 years for investment in equities.

City of London’s earnings per share increased by 4.4%, citing that the most positive contributor for third year in a row was the banking sector with special dividends accounting for £300.000 of revenue, down from £600,000 for the previous year, reflecting the corporate trend for effecting shareholder distributions through share buybacks rather than dividend payments.

The management fee for the wealth managers Janus Henderson is 0.3% for net assets up to £3bn, dropping to 0.275% on any excess above £3bn. Net assets amounted to £2.85bn as at 30 June 2026.

Mr Magnus explained that the dividend increases were achieved by investing predominantly in the UK stock market and “harnessing the benefits of the investment trust structure, including the facility to use revenue reserves and to raise low-cost long-term debt.”

He added: “It has also been achieved through the exemplary custodianship of the fund management team, led by Job Curtis, who has consistently steered the portfolio through numerous unpredictable market challenges over a tenure of 35 years with skill, humility and dedicated commitment.”

The trust’s revenue reserved increased by £3.6m to £52.3m, with the revenue reserve per share rising by 3.0% to 10.2p. The company’s capital reserves rose by £61m to £459.4m, due to investments sold.

“There was a significant number of takeover bids for UK listed companies by overseas companies and private equity firms, as has been the case for several years. City of London’s portfolio benefited with the proposed acquisitions of Beazley by Zurich Insurance, Schroders by Nuveen of the US, Tate & Lyle by Ingredion of the US and Segro by Prologis of the US.

He said: “The huge amount being spent on rolling out the infrastructure for AI suggests it will be a groundbreaking new technology. While there will be significant medium-term productivity benefits for the world economy, there will also be disruption for some industries and related labour markets.

“The returns on the vast sums being invested could also be disappointing, with adverse consequences for the highly valued stocks that have capitalised on the speculation associated with the AI ‘revolution. In addition, this capital expenditure is having a short-term upward impact on inflation, with price rises in commodities and components, such as copper and semiconductors, even if the adoption of AI will ultimately be deflationary. 

“The UK equity market offers a diverse range of sectors and is not dominated by technology companies, as is the case with the US stock market. The board is confident that companies in industries with large weightings in the UK stock market, such as financials, resources and consumer staples, will grow in the years ahead. The share prices of UK companies remain at a considerable valuation discount to comparable companies overseas and therefore likely to continue to attract takeover bids. The board believes City of London’s portfolio is well placed to build on its record-breaking 60 years of consecutive dividend growth and to provide shareholders with a competitive total return.”

Annabel Brodie-Smith, director of the Association of Investment Companies (AIC), said: “Congratulations to The City of London Investment Trust on achieving a record 60 years of dividend rises. This investment trust’s inspiring diamond jubilee highlights the remarkable resilience of the dividend hero investment trusts. They have continued to raise dividends during high inflationary periods in the 1970s, the recession of the 1990s, the global financial crisis in 2008 and the pandemic.

“Investment trusts can achieve these impressive long records of dividend growth because they can smooth their flow of dividends. A trust can retain up to 15% of the income it receives each year, and this reserve of income can be used to boost dividends when markets are difficult. Dividends are never guaranteed, but these long records of resilient dividend growth are much appreciated by income investors.”

Job Curtis, fund manager at The City of London Investment Trust, said: “By reaching this milestone we celebrate not only 60 years of consecutive annual dividend increases, but also the resilience of the UK market and indeed the benefits afforded to us by the investment trust structure. Our investment approach prioritises patience, valuation discipline and long-term thinking, all of which has allowed us to navigate the varied market conditions of the past six decades. 

“Most importantly, we focus on creating a portfolio of brilliant, dividend-paying businesses, of which there are many in the UK. Underpinning all of this is our ability, as an investment trust, to draw on revenue reserves when needed in trickier times, which has allowed us to deliver 60 years of uninterrupted dividend growth for our shareholders.”