Kepler Trust Intelligence Podcast

Join Jo Groves, David Brenchley and guest presenter Thomas McMahon from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in March, brought to you in association with Schroders.
In the news, Thomas looks at the prospects for Seraphim Space’s (SSIT) bumper fundraise with plans to raise up to £350m by way of a C share. This leads onto news of Scottish Mortgage (SMT) also issuing shares, largely as a result of the impact of SpaceX on performance and commentary of what these raises say about the health of the sector.
Elsewhere, David picks over the impact of more government policy changes in the renewables space, and what impact this will have on Greencoat UK Wind’s (UKW) NAV and dividend. 
Jo then takes on the monthly Saba update, wrapping up what is happening with the Edinburgh Worldwide (EWI) and Impax Environmental Markets (IEM) situations.
Going into results, Thomas looks over Vietnam Enterprises (VEIL) and their strong year in absolute terms, as well as running through the compelling growth story for the country. Elsewhere in Asia, Jo looks over the half year results for Schroder Japan (SJG), identifying the key drivers of performance and noting the high dividend, before turning her attention to the discount which has inexplicably widened. Thomas then runs through the results of BlackRock Latin America (BRLA) and how the trust managed a 44% NAV return
Moving to podcasts, David runs through his chat with Liontrust’s Sharmin Rahman, including the outlook for the both the high-yield sector and markets more generally. Then, in an orbital moment, David looks at the stat of the month, which focuses on the outstanding performance of ‘unicorns’, private companies over $1bn in value, which includes a number of space related companies. This then leads into a debate between our the team on their approach to space investing to close the show.  
00:00 Introduction 00:27 What’s to come00:59 Seraphim’s fundraise02:38 Scottish Mortgage share issuance 04:42 Govt policy changes for UKW06:08 Saba update on IEM and EWIT07:40 Results from Vietnam’s VEIL10:23 Schroder Japan’s strong results12:19 BRLA’s bumper results14:29 High yield podcast summary16:03 Stat of the month & unicorn success17:48 Debate on space investing20:38 Risk warning 
Special thanks to our sponsors at Schroders, whose support makes this podcast possible - click here to view all of our research on the Schroders investment trust range. 
This podcast was recorded on 06/05/2026.

Our monthly podcast brings you big-picture insights from leading investment experts, exploring the opportunities, challenges and risks shaping investor portfolios.
In this month's episode, our guest is Sharmin Rahman, an investment manager specialising in fixed income for Liontrust and fund manager on the Liontrust GF High Yield Bond fund.
We discuss all things high-yield bond and fixed income, thoughts on the indiscriminate sell-off in software names, how the quality of the high-yield space has improved over the years and investors should put more emphasis on sell discipline.
00:00 Introduction
00:56 Background to becoming a fund manager
04:30 Thoughts on the software sell off in credit
06:16 Why investors shouldn't be trying to time the market now
08:07 Why we will still see interest rate cuts despite higher energy prices
09:15 Why artificial intelligence companies are tapping credit markets
11:07 How high yield differs from investment grade credit
12:14 How the high-yield asset class has changed over the years
13:27 Where Sharmin is seeing the best opportunities at the moment
17:32 The role high-yield plays in an investor's portfolio
19:52 Will private credit troubles spill into the public markets?
23:39 Best piece of investment advice
25:01 Further information
25:23 Risk warning
Please note that this podcast was recorded on 16 April 2026.
Our latest market insights: https://www.trustintelligence.co.uk/investor/articles

Join Jo Groves, Ryan Lightfoot-Aminoff and David Brenchley from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in March, brought to you in association with Schroders.
In the news, Ryan looks at the impact of manager changes at the highly successful Golden Prospects Precious Metals (GPM), Geiger Counter (GCL) and CQS Natural Resources Growth & Income (CYN) trusts. Next, he summarises the fee changes at Alliance Witan (ALW) and STS Global Income & Growth (STS), before briefly running through the updates of the Saba saga on Edinburgh Worldwide (EWI) and Impax Environmental Markets (IEM).
Onto results, and we start with a brief overview of the annual results of Schroder Asian Total Return (ATR) including looking at what their macro indicators were saying ahead of the market volatility this year. Elsewhere, David looks at Octopus Renewables Infrastructure (ORIT)’s results and whether the increase in energy prices will lead to a change in the trust’s revenue outlook.
In this month’s final set of results, Jo looks at BlackRock World Mining (BRWM) and summarises how they have achieved such high returns. In a well-timed moved, BRWM’s manager Olivia Markham was our guest on the Market Matters podcast this month, allowing Jo to also summarise her thoughts on the wider sector including the outlook for gold.
Next up, David talks through his highlights of his Ashoka India Equity (AIE) podcast, discussing why India has suffered and whether this affects the outlook for the country. In light of this, the team discuss their thoughts on India and reveal who has been brave enough to add to their exposure.
Jo takes her turn for stat of the month discussing a Bank of America Merrill Lynch survey as to whether the period of US exceptionalism has peaked following rising geopolitical risks including what sectors this has led to a rotation to, and from.
00:00 Introduction
00:22 What’s to come
00:51 GPM, GCL & CYN manager changes
02:17 Fee cuts for ALW and STS
03:42 Saba approaches an IEM and EWI endgame
05:06 ATR’s results
06:44 ORIT’s results and dividend outlook
08:29 BRWM’s strong results
09:36 Olivia Markham’s thoughts on gold
12:50 AIE’s insights on India’s issues
15:17 India discussion
19:13 Stat of the month & US rotation
20:23 Risk warning
Special thanks to our sponsors at Schroders, whose support makes this podcast possible - click here to view all of our research on the Schroders investment trust range.
This podcast was recorded on 07/04/2026.

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Ayush Abhijeet, investment director at WhiteOak Capital Partners, the investment advisor to Ashoka India Equity (AIE).
Ayush talks us through the reasons why the Indian stock market has been going through a period of weakness, what catalysts could cause a recovery and why, despite the difficult backdrop, Indian companies remain committed to initial public offerings. Ayush also tells us how AIE's knowledge and expertise enables management to take advantage of this through pre-IPO investing.
00:00 Introduction
01:37 Why has India's stock market underperformance other emerging markets in recent months?
04:52 Who owns Indian equities and why is this dynamic important?
06:50 Why Indian households are diversifying away from gold and real estate and into stocks
09:04 Are you seeing value emerging in Indian markets?
11:53 How much does WhiteOak's experienced, on-the-ground team benefit AIE?
13:52 Why India's IPO market is thriving and how this benefits AIE
17:30 Potential drivers of a possibly powerful recovery in the Indian equity market
20:22 Why AIE is well-placed to capitalise on these drivers
22:25 How AIE focuses on economic cashflows to derive a company's valuation and compare relative valuations
24:14 Balancing high active share with diversification
27:27 Further information
27:51 Risk warning
Our latest note on AIE - https://www.trustintelligence.co.uk/investor/articles?fund_id=397
AIE website - https://www.ashokaindiaequity.com/
Please note that this podcast was recorded on 23 March 2026.

Our monthly podcast brings you big-picture insights from leading investment experts, exploring the opportunities, challenges and risks shaping investor portfolios.
In this month's episode, our guest is Olivia Markham, manager of BlackRock World Mining. We cover a wide range of topics including the forces driving gold and silver higher, why copper and uranium could be the defining metals of the energy transition and whether the long-awaited rotation into commodities is finally becoming a reality.
00:00 Introduction
00:32 Background to fund management
01:40 Key drivers of the gold rally
03:24 Impact of issues in Middle East
05:05 Physical ETFs vs mining equities
07:03 Outlook for gold prices
07:57 Silver: gold's shadow v industrial drivers?
09:25 Is copper the new oil?
12:07 Investment case for uranium
14:23 Commodity demand in China
16:41 M&A in the mining sector
20:02 Rotation into commodities
23:10 Best investment advice
24:57 Risk warning
Please note that this podcast was recorded on 20 March 2026.

Join Jo Groves, Ryan Lightfoot-Aminoff and David Brenchley from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in February, brought to you in association with Schroders.
In the news, Ryan looks over the corporate activity in the year, including the proposed combination of BlackRock Throgmorton (THRG) and BlackRock UK Smaller Companies (BRSC). Elsewhere, he looks at the potential outcomes for European Opportunities (EOT)’s strategic review, before a quick update on Impax Environmental Markets (IEM)’s ongoing battle with Saba.
Meanwhile, David recaps the Greencoat UK Wind (UKW) results, looking at both the positives and negatives, whilst Ryan summarises the results of BlackRock Energy and Resource Income (BERI)’s latest year, which involves another year of strong outperformance.
Over in podcasts, Jo runs through her conversation with Baillie Gifford’s Lucie Majstrova, including the growth trajectory of SpaceX, the potential for Anthropic’s AI disruption and why companies are taking longer to go public. Next up, David talks through his highlights of his Ashoka Whiteoak Emerging Markets (AWEM) video, including how they balance both their India and China exposures. Meanwhile, Jo summarises her conversation with Randy Sandstrom of Sequioa Economic Infrastructure (SEQI), including why the investment trust structure is a great way of accessing the private credit space, and where the best opportunities lie at present.
David takes his turn for stat of the month, with some interesting data on the concentration of emerging markets winners, as well as how he used this information to consider some new portfolio allocations. Finally, we look at which companies and trusts make the AJ Bell’s ISA millionaire list, which includes a usual suspect as well as a number of UK equity income trusts.
00:00 Introduction
00:22 What’s to come
00:44 THRG’s and BRSC’s proposed combination
03:50 European Opportunities strategic review
05:09 IEM’s open letter to Saba
06:28 Ups and downs from UKW results
09:33 BERI benefits from flexibility
10:50 Baillie Gifford on SpaceX & Anthropic
13:27 Highlights from AWEM’s video
16:08 What SEQI offers in private credit
17:55 Stat of the month: Asia’s attribution
20:55 Most bought trusts
21:34 ISA millionaire ownership
23:43 Risk warning
Special thanks to our sponsors at Schroders, whose support makes this podcast possible - click here to view all of our research on the Schroders investment trust range.
This podcast was recorded on 03/03/2026.

In this month’s episode, our guest is Lucie Majstrova, investment specialist for private companies at Baillie Gifford. We discuss a range of topics including the investment case for private companies, why companies are staying private for longer, her thoughts on Anthropic and the most compelling opportunities across private markets.
00:00 Introduction00:34 Background to asset management01:28 Investment case for private companies03:31 What is growth capital05:06 Why companies are staying private07:44 Potential IPOs of private companies08:26 Misconceptions around growth equity11:16 Thoughts on Anthropic and AI labs13:58 Growth trajectory of SpaceX16:44 Benefit of investment trust structure18:27 Most exciting opportunities19:49 Risk warning
Please note that this podcast was recorded on 11 February 2026.

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to SEQI’s Randall Sandstrom about the investment case for infrastructure debt, including recent performance, exposure to data centres and the most compelling opportunities across the sector.
00:00 Introduction00:43 What SEQI offers investors 06:27 Recent performance10:03 Exposure to data centres12:00 Green flags for investment14:30 Sensitivity to interest rates16:59 Level of construction risk18:56 Most compelling opportunities20:44 Further information21:00 Risk warning
Our latest note on SEQI - https://www.trustintelligence.co.uk/investor/articles?fund_id=1742 SEQI website - https://www.seqi.fund/ 
Please note that this podcast was recorded on 11 February 2026.

Join Jo Groves, Ryan Lightfoot-Aminoff and David Brenchley from Kepler Trust Intelligence for a roundup of all the news that matters to investment trust investors in January, brought to you in association with Schroders. In the news, David talks through what the recent changes in government policy could have on Greencoat UK Wind (UKW) and how this changes their dividend outlook. Elsewhere Ryan runs the rule over some corporate activity, including the proposed combination of Aberdeen Equity Income (AEI) and Shires Income (SHRS) as well as a sizeable tender offer at Vietnam Enterprises (VEIL).
Meanwhile, the Saba saga rumbles on, although Ryan discusses whether Herald (HRI) and Impax Environmental Markets (IEM) have found a way of dealing with the activist once and for all, whilst David recaps the outcome of the Edinburgh Worldwide (EWIT) and Saba battle, following on from last month’s mention. Elsewhere in the news, Ryan runs through recent comments from AVI (AGT) over the performance of HarbourVest. 
Over in podcasts, Jo runs through her conversation with Emily Fletcher of BlackRock Frontiers (BRFI) including the opportunities in the asset class and how they are dealing with trade and tariffs. Similarly in emerging markets, David talks through his highlights of his Ashoka Whiteoak Emerging Markets (AWEM) podcast, including the outlook for India and their nuanced take on China exposure. 
Returning closer to home, Jo summarised her conversation with Rockwood Strategic (RKW)’s Richard Staveley and his thoughts on everything from valuations to M&A. In the same vein, David spoke to Alexandra Jackson of Rathones to get her thoughts on the opportunity set in UK mid-caps, and what sectors she is most excited about. Sticking with the UK, Ryan introduced the new “Stat of the month” section where he identified a remarkable pick up in UK IPOs and what this means for the outlook of the UK and Schroder UK Mid Cap (SCP).
Finally, Jo and David went head-to-head on their portfolios, seeing who came out in the second half of 2025. Despite sharing top honours with International Biotech (IBT), would an allocation to BlackRock World Mining (BRWM) or Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) pip one or the other to the lead position?
00:00 Introduction 00:21 What’s to come00:50 ROC’s impact on UKW’s dividend 03:20 Equity income peers merge 04:51 VEIL’s corporate activity05:35 An endgame for Saba?08:09 AVI target HarbourVest 09:27 EWIT vs Saba outcome11:24 BRFI’s offering 13:44 Highlights from AWEM’s podcast 15:34 What is the outlook for RKW?17:43 Stat of the month: UK IPOs20:06 In conversation with Rathbone’s Alexandra Jackson 21:42 Head-to-head portfolio analysis24:00 Risk warning 
Special thanks to our sponsors at Schroders, whose support makes this podcast possible - click here to view all of our research on the Schroders investment trust range. This podcast was recorded on 04/02/2026.

In this episode of Trust Issues, we speak to Emily Fletcher, manager of BlackRock Frontiers, about the investment case for frontier and emerging markets, including recent performance, portfolio allocations, navigating through geopolitical issue and the most exciting opportunities across the sector.
00:00 Introduction00:38 How BRFI differs from other funds02:24 What BRFI offers investors 03:52 Sourcing opportunities05:37 Navigating geopolitical risk11:44 Managing liquidity 13:06 Thoughts on performance15:17 Income generation16:51 Case for Saudi Arabia and the UAE20:05 Balance of export v domestic growth21:38 Exposure to smaller markets23:38 Thoughts on current valuations24:38 Key drivers over next year25:28 Further information25:46 Risk warning
Our latest note on BRFI - https://www.trustintelligence.co.uk/investor/articles?fund_id=12 
BRFI website - https://www.blackrock.com/uk/solutions/investment-trusts/our-range/blackrock-frontiers-investment-trust/trust-information 
Please note that this podcast was recorded on 14 January 2026.