Discount Delver: the 10 cheapest trusts on 30 January 2026

Investment trusts offer a potential bargain thanks to their closed-ended structure. Such an opportunity arises 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. 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. 

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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.

Rule changes dominate discounts

Two separate government announcements have had a bearing on this week’s table, sending one name to the top and pushing a different sector out of the list entirely.

We first saw the publication of the draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, which proposes to cap ground rents on most long residential leases in England and Wales at £250 per year, reducing to a “peppercorn” amount after 40 years.

That news sent shares in UK residential property trust Ground Rents Income Fund Ord (LSE:GRIO) to a record low, with the discount blowing out by nearly 12 percentage points to 67.9% over the course of a single week.

The trust’s response to the draft bill pointed to some dire consequences for the portfolio.

An “initial high-level assessment” noted that the proposed cap could reduce portfolio ground rent income by approximately 26% to £3.8 million compared with the level from the end of September.

This in turn could lead to a potential reduction in portfolio of around 44%. The timing and ultimate shape of the bill does remain uncertain, however.

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It’s also worth pointing to a government announcement that might explain the absence of a sector that often features pretty prominently in the table.

The government has opted to immediately switch some of its renewables subsidies from the retail prices index measure of inflation to the lower consumer prices index measure.

The proposal to make such a switch dealt a blow to the renewable trusts late last year, but this outcome is seen as less damaging than another option, of temporarily freezing said subsidies. Renewables trusts have rallied this week with some discounts receding, meaning that they (unusually) make no appearance in our list this week.

Private equity slips

Elsewhere, private equity trusts saw their (already wide) discounts move out further, with HgCapital Trust Ord (LSE:HGT) and Oakley Capital Investments Ord (LSE:OCI) in the list.

HgCapital, which has a good record generally but struggled last year, hasn’t seen any major news this week, while Oakley delivered a very solid trading update for 2025. The trust made a total NAV return of 6% and a shareholder return of 15%.

What’s more, the team has been busy in both buying and selling assets, while the trust also completed a £50 million share buyback programme.

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It’s worth noting, however, that one private equity giant, HarbourVest Global Priv Equity Ord (LSE:HVPE), saw some agitation from an activist investor last week.

Otherwise there’s quite an array of trusts subject to discount widening.

Impax Environmental Markets Ord (LSE:IEM), which published the details of its Saba-focused 100% tender offer this week, makes the list, as do the likes of VinaCapital Vietnam Opp Fund Ord (LSE:VOF), Cordiant Digital Infrastructure Ord (LSE:CORD) and RTW Biotech Opportunities Ord (LSE:RTW).

Source: Morningstar, close of trading 22 January to 29 January.