REG-Ashoka WhiteOak Emerging Markets Trust Plc: Annual Report and Notice of AGM

Ashoka WhiteOak Emerging Markets TrustAnnouncement

23/06/2025 07:02

23 June 2025

 

Ashoka WhiteOak Emerging Markets Trust plc

(the `Company')

 

Annual Report and Notice of AGM

For the year ended 31 March 2025

 

Ashoka WhiteOak Emerging Markets Trust plc is pleased to report the Company's
Annual Report and Audited Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March
2025 (the `Annual Report').

 

The Company also announces that its Annual General Meeting (`AGM') will be
held at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, 22 July 2025 at the offices of JTC (UK) Limited,
The Scalpel, 18th Floor, 52 Lime Street, London, EC3M 7AF.

 

The Annual Report and Notice of AGM (included in the Annual Report) are
available on the Company's website at
https://www.awemtrust.com/reports-account and will also shortly be available
to view on the FCA's National Storage Mechanism
https://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism.

 

 

Highlights for the period:
* The Company has delivered a NAV total return of 8.8% during the year,
outperforming the benchmark MSCI EM (GBP) Index by 3.0%.
* Since its IPO in May 2023, the Company's NAV has increased by 21.7% compared
to the MSCI EM (GBP) index of 14.5%, thereby delivering an outperformance
versus the Benchmark of 7.2%. This places the Company in the top decile of the
combined open and closed-ended Emerging Market universe.
* The Company's share price has increased to 122.5p in FY25 (previous period
105.0p), and recorded a Share Price Total Return of 16.7% (previous period
5.0%).
* Over this period, the team generated strong positive stock selection
attribution in the industrials, financials, healthcare, and materials sectors
and saw the Company's mid and small caps names outperform the market despite
the wider segment lagging the large caps.
* 55 per cent of portfolio names generated positive stock selection
attribution, with the key contributions during the period being from:	* KRN
Heat Exchanger and Refrigeration (leading Indian manufacturer of heat
exchangers for the heat ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration
industry) 
* Awfis Space Solutions (India's leading workspace solutions provider with
more than 200 centres)
* Alibaba Group (Chinese company specializing in e-commerce, cloud computing,
and digital media)
* Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (world's leading semiconductor
manufacturing company)
* Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing (Hong Kong stock and commodity exchange)
	
* Since launch the Company's share price has consistently traded close to its
NAV supported by its best-in-class discount control mechanism in the form of
its annual redemption facility. 
* During the period, the Company issued 3,280,000 new Ordinary Shares through
eighteen separate issues representing 10.2% of the shares in issue at the
beginning of the financial year.
Post period highlights:
* The Company has carefully negotiated the `tariff-driven' market volatility
since the financial period end, producing a NAV total return of 3.8% between
31 March 2025 to 19 June 2025 (latest available reported NAV).
* As part of the Company's share issuance programme, a further 1,325,000
shares were issued post year end to 20 June 2025 raising additional funds of
£1,624,285.
 

Martin Shenfield, Chair of the Company, commented:

 

"We are pleased to present the Company's second Annual Report, covering the
second consecutive year of outperformance. The Company's NAV total return of
8.8% was 3.0% ahead of the MSCI EM (GBP) Index. Since inception the Company's
NAV has grown by 21.7% versus the MSCI EM (GBP) Index of 14.5%.

 

Whilst the current macro environment presents the potential for disruption to
equities globally, the Company's Investment Manager nonetheless continues to
find attractive opportunities through active stock selection. This is
reinforced by the Investment Manager's stock picking edge within the more
alpha rich small and mid cap companies segments of emerging markets and an
emphasis on high quality corporate governance, both of which assisted in
delivering outperformance during the period under review. Furthermore,
emerging markets remain cheap and under-owned on a historic basis despite
recent outperformance of the MSCI All Country World Index in the first quarter
of 2025. All of these factors strongly position the Company's investment
strategy in the current environment.

 

We are pleased to have continued to trade at a premium rating during the
period and are particularly encouraged that the Company has been able to grow
further through the issuance of 3,280,000 shares during the period and I would
like to thank shareholders for their continued support."

 

 

For further information:

 

Company Secretary

 AWEMT.Cosec@jtcgroup.com  +44 207 409 0181  
                                             

Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte. Ltd

 Prashant Khemka               Via Burson Buchanan  
 Fadrique Balmaseda Loong Lim                       
 Ben Hayward                                        

 

Marex

 Mark Thompson  +44 (0) 20 7016 6711  
 Eddie Nissen   +44 (0) 20 7016 6713  
 Priyan Rayatt  +44 (0) 20 7016 6724  

 

Burson Buchanan

 Henry Harrison-Topham       +44 (0) 20 7466 5000      
 Henry Wilson                AWEM@buchanancomms.co.uk  
 Nick Croysdill Jesse McNab                            

 

About Ashoka WhiteOak Emerging Markets Trust plc

Ashoka WhiteOak Emerging Markets Trust plc (AWEMT) is a UK investment trust
seeking to achieve long-term capital appreciation primarily through investing
in a multi-cap portfolio of equities that provide exposure to global emerging
markets. Advised by Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte. Ltd, founded by Prashant
Khemka with leading Emerging Markets investment experience.  White Oak
Capital Group has delivered an exceptional track record for its other
strategies, and has £5.1 billion in assets under management or advisory4.
Analytical approach is integral to disciplined research process underpinned by
proprietary frameworks OpcoFinco™ for valuation and ABLEx™ for ESG
research.  The team at WhiteOak believes that emerging markets present
potential for higher alpha. EM markets remain under-researched and
inefficient. AWEM leverages WhiteOak's investment approach to capture the
higher alpha potential in these markets.  No fixed management fee. Manager
remuneration is aligned with alpha generation and hence shareholders'
interest.  The Investment Manager is remunerated solely as a function of
outperformance over the benchmark.

 

4 Data as at 30 April 2025. AUM data refers to aggregate assets under
management or investment advisory for WhiteOak Group, excluding retail assets
of the domestic AMC (£1.7 billion).

 



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