The investment trust launched a tender offer last month to allow shareholders to sell up to a quarter of the £1bn trust’s shares at a 2% discount to the formula asset value, which is the net asset value minus the costs of the scheme. Investec Bank has been hired to assist with the review.

The fund delivered a 28.04% total investment return in the five years to August 31, 2026 well  the MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Small Cap Index’s benchmark at 48.45%. On September 2, the board hinted at a consultation confirming it had started engaging with a number of its shareholders.

And now, the board has confirmed that discussions with shareholders highlighted “the importance of scale and secondary market liquidity, alongside investment performance, in meeting shareholders’ long-term needs”, noting that the board believes in the “merits of investing” in smaller Asian companies.

It said in a statement: “The strategic review will therefore focus on options that preserve shareholders’ access to this investment opportunity through a vehicle with the scale and liquidity appropriate to their needs. This will include consideration of a potential combination with another investment company.

“The board has appointed Investec Bank to assist with the strategic review and welcomes proposals from investment companies and investment management groups that would address these objectives. 

“The board has also considered shareholder feedback on the conditional tender offer announced on 2 September 2026, including indications of voting intentions in relation to the shareholder approval required to implement it.

“In the light of that feedback, the board has decided not to proceed with the tender offer at this time and instead to pursue the strategic review. In assessing proposals for the future of the company, the board will take account of shareholders’ expectations for a 25% cash exit opportunity which was to be delivered promptly following the triggering of the conditional tender offer, alongside its objective of providing continuing shareholders with an investment vehicle of greater scale and liquidity.

FSSA Investment Managers will continue to manage the company’s portfolio during the strategic review.