Has RIT Capital fallen out of favour?

RIT Capital saw its discount soar amid weak returns, and investors remain sceptical of a turnaround

RIT Capital Partners plc company logo seen displayed on a smart phone
(Image credit: Igor Golovniov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

The performance of the shares of RIT Capital Partners (LSE: RCP) must be an acute embarrassment to the Rothschild family, whose reputation for financial acumen stretches back centuries.

With more than 20% of the £3.8 billion trust, the family is the largest shareholder, but its performance has been lamentable since the late Jacob Rothschild finally stepped down five years ago. In that time, the shares are down 4% while the MSCI ACWI index has risen 70%. Over three years, the figures are -25% versus 25%.

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Max King
Investment Writer

Max has an Economics degree from the University of Cambridge and is a chartered accountant. He worked at Investec Asset Management for 12 years, managing multi-asset funds investing in internally and externally managed funds, including investment trusts. This included a fund of investment trusts which grew to £120m+. Max has managed ten investment trusts (winning many awards) and sat on the boards of three trusts – two directorships are still active.

After 39 years in financial services, including 30 as a professional fund manager, Max took semi-retirement in 2017. Max has been a MoneyWeek columnist since 2016 writing about investment funds and more generally on markets online, plus occasional opinion pieces. He also writes for the Investment Trust Handbook each year and has contributed to The Daily Telegraph and other publications. See here for details of current investments held by Max.