Discount Delver: the 10 cheapest trusts on 2 October 2026

Investment trusts offer a potential bargain thanks to their closed-ended structure.    

That happens when a trust’s share price is lower than the value of its underlying investments (the net asset value, or NAV).            

However, a trust trading on a discount to NAV is not necessarily a buying opportunity.    

• Our Services: SIPP Account | Stocks & Shares ISA | See all Investment Accounts

There’s likely a good reason why the trust is cheap, such as subdued short- or long-term performance, or poor investor sentiment towards it.           

In this weekly series, interactive investor highlights the 10 biggest investment trust discount moves over the past week.         

In total, nearly 400 investment trusts have been screened, with the data sourced from Morningstar.    

Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs) have been excluded. We also strip out trusts with less than £30 million in assets and those that are not available on the interactive investor platform.  

Farewells 

The investment trust universe is littered with vehicles in the process of winding down or returning capital to shareholders, and many of these tend to see their discounts widen over time. 

This week, we once again see a handful of trusts that, nearing the end of their life, move on to “cheaper” valuations. 

Corporate actions associated with such activity can sometimes appear to push out a discount, and that seems to be the case with former Neil Woodford fund Schroders Capital Global Innov Trust Ord (LSE:INOV). 

It carried out a substantial tender offer towards the end of September. 

• Portfolio Dilemma: what to do after a 20% drop?
• Sign up to our free newsletter for investment ideas, latest news and award-winning analysis

SDCL Efficiency Income Trust plc. (LSE:SEIT) has meanwhile advanced its wind-down strategy, including making some amendments to finance arrangements. 

We have also seen the board recommend the appointment of both Boaz Weinstein, of US activist Saba Capital, and Richard Pavry as directors. 

The fund is joined in the table by another renewable energy infrastructure trust in the process of winding down, Aquila European Renewables Ord (LSE:AERI). 

Brighter prospects 

Plenty of trusts that might hope to have a much longer life also sit in the table, after some modest discount widening. 

There’s The European Smaller Companies Trust PLC (LSE:ESCT), whose recently published financial results pointed to an impressive 16.8% NAV return over a 12-month period. 

We also see another European equity trust in the table, Baillie Gifford European Growth Ord (LSE:BGEU). 

• Ian Cowie: my winners and losers in Q3
• Top 10 most-popular investment trusts: September 2026

There’s also CT UK High Income Ord (LSE:CHI), a name that has lagged behind its peers this year, plus the UK smaller companies vehicle Onward Opportunities Ltd (LSE:ONWD). These trusts have not announced any major updates in the last week. 

BlackRock Latin American Ord (LSE:BRLA), which recently published its half-year report, also features. 

That update pointed to the fact the trust had made a positive return, but lagged its benchmark index over the period. 

Source: Morningstar, close of trading 24 September to 1 October 2026.