Nationwide's Virgin Money swoop blasted: Bank's investor 'disappointed' with £2.9bn takeover
Households with emergency savings pots rises in recent years - five financial trends revealed
86-year-old's woes with a faulty smart meter that sent his bills soaring show why so many people are shunning them, writes JEFF PRESTRIDGE
Gerald Seymour has written 40 pacy thrillers, but big screen success has yet to materialise: 'Hollywood silly money? I'd only have stuffed it in a tin under the bed'
TONY HETHERINGTON: Boss behind firms fined £340k for over a MILLION nuisance calls
Some sneaky estate agents only putting forward offers from buyers who use their in-house mortgage broker
Families with TWO retired generations will surge to one million in a decade: Savings have to stretch further if you want to help out your loved ones
Want to top up your state pension but baffled over what years to buy? There's a new online service - but check Steve Webb's six golden rules first
MIDAS SHARE TIPS: Why it soon won't be hip to give the cold shoulder to Smith & Nephew
A good week - not before time, but let's not get carried away, says HAMISH MCRAE: Remember old stock market adage, 'Sell in May and go away'
North Sea projects worth £21bn put at risk by Labour: Tax threat to British jobs and investment
British businesses awash with 'accidental' bosses who have received no formal training, research shows
Rachel Reeves wants to banish the idea that Labour is anti-business, but where is the 'white heat' revolution to revive Harold Wilson's glory days?
Cost-of-living crunch wipes shine off Thomas Sabo jewellery
Should the Bank of England have cut interest rates instead of holding firm? The This is Money podcast
From Victorian to Regency, the five most popular types of period property currently for sale revealed
Britain needs you... to help the classic car industry: Government wants classic car enthusiasts to shape future policy
'My oven is redundant': Almost half believe ovens will be obsolete as air fryer craze shows no signs of slowing
My uncle has £14,000 in Dart Charge fines despite trying to settle, now the bailiffs are at his door
From phishing to voice cloning, how criminals can use AI to scam Britons - and what you must do NOW to protect yourself
Bank of England holds interest rates at 5.25% for sixth time in a row - what it means for YOUR mortgages and savings
When will interest rates fall? Forecasts on when base rate will be cut - and what borrowers and savers should do
How much would a rate cut save you? Use our interest rate rise or fall mortgage calculator
We're financial experts - this is how you can use your Isa and pension to grow your wealth in the new tax year

Laxey Partners vows to fight on at Alliance Trust

By Simon Duke for MailOnline
Updated: 04:13 EDT, 6 May 2011

View
comments

The hedge fund agitating for a sweeping overhaul of Alliance Trust vowed to continue its fight even if shareholders fail to back its call for a formal share buy-back programme at the investment group.

Colin Kingsnorth: His hedge fund is calling for changes at 123-year Scottish investment trust

Laxey Partners said it would seek to bring in an external team to manage Alliance Trust's funds if its proposals are rejected at the group's annual general meeting in two weeks' time.

This would effectively render a raft of Alliance Trust's top executive surplus to requirements.

Laxey boss Colin Kingsnorth is unhappy at the performance of the Alliance Trust share price, which has persistently traded at a sharp discount to the company's net asset value – the underlying worth of the company's investments.

Shareholders will have to decide whether to back Laxey's demand for a so-called Discount Control Mechanism, which would force Alliance Trust to buy back its own shares if the price falls below 90% of net asset value.

Kingsnorth, who controls 1.8% of Alliance Trust, said his proposal would remove the 'lottery effect' of investing in the 123-year investment firm.

Laxey also hit out at the long-term bonus scheme for Alliance Trust executives, which he claimed could pay out handsome rewards even if the performance was substandard.

Alliance Trust boss Katherine Garrett-Cox, who is understood to be reluctant to be drawn into a slanging match with Laxey, declined to comment.

The Alliance camp argues that claims by Laxey that Garrett-Cox enjoyed a pay package of £6.1m last year are overstated as the figure assumes all her long term incentive programmes pay out in full.

Her supporters say £2.2m of awards that have already lapsed were included in their calculation and that the total paid to her was £2.45m.

Alliance's discount has averaged 17.4% over the past 12 months.

It has narrowed to around 15% but is still wider than the average among its peer group of 8.5%. Shares fell 3p to 378.65p.

Some links in this article may be affiliate links. If you click on them we may earn a small commission. That helps us fund This Is Money, and keep it free to use. We do not write articles to promote products. We do not allow any commercial relationship to affect our editorial independence.