Aberdeen EM fund-of-funds trust to merge with New Thai and overhaul mandate

Will become Chinese equity trust

The board of the £372.6m Aberdeen Emerging Markets Investment Company (AEMC) has proposed a merger with the £82.5m Aberdeen New Thai investment trust, which will see the combined portfolios become a Chinese equity mandate.

The plans, which will also see AEMC move from a fund-of-funds structure to investing directly in equities, will lead to a tender offer for up to 15% of the company's shares. According to AEMC's board, plans to overhaul the trust have been in place for some time, given the "attractiveness of the company's shares have been adversely affected by the current aversion to fund-of-funds structures and consequent look-through costs, particularly among wealth managers". While the trust has comfortably outperformed its sector average and MSCI Emerging Markets benchmark over one, three and five ...