Shires Income PLC on Wednesday announced a tie-up with abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth Trust PLC, spelling an end to the latter’s strategic review which saw proposals from ‘more than a dozen candidates’.

abrdn UK Smaller shareholders can choose to receive cash, or shares in Shires. Around 40% of abrdn UK Smaller’s assets will be transferred to Shire, ‘ensuring continued UK small cap exposure for all Shires shareholders’. Small-cap exposure will amount to 20% of the Shires portfolio going forward.

‘The board of ASCI has conducted a thorough and extensive review of options for the future of the company. The board was very pleased with the interest shown, with proposals being received from more than a dozen candidates. Most of the proposals envisaged a combination of the company’s assets with another investment trust, which was an outcome the board expected to consider as part of the strategic review,’ abrdn UK Smaller said.

Shires is ‘substantially invested in UK equities’ but also in preference shares, convertibles and other fixed income securities.

abrdn UK Smaller kicked off a strategic review in February, amid its shares trading at a discount to its net asset value.

Shires shares fell 1.1% to 230.00 pence on Wednesday. abrdn UK Smaller edged up slightly to 422.14p.

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