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City of London Investment Group PLC Trading Update

City of London Investment Group PLC, also known as CLIG, has recently shared a trading update for the quarter ending September 30, 2025. As a prominent asset management group, CLIG specializes in a variety of institutional and retail products, particularly focusing on closed-end funds (CEFs). This latest report highlights significant growth and solid performance across multiple investment strategies.

Funds Under Management

In a notable development, the funds under management (FuM) surged by 4%, reaching $11.2 billion as of September 30, 2025. This is an increase from $10.8 billion reported on June 30, 2025. Such growth underscores the trust investors place in the Group's management capabilities and strategic investment decisions.

Investment Management Performance

The performance of CLIG’s management strategies over the quarter has been exceptional, particularly in emerging markets and private equity. The highlights include:

Emerging Markets Strategy

The emerging markets strategy reported a staggering return of +13.8%, significantly outpacing the benchmark of +9.6%. The standout performer within this category was the Chinese market, which yielded a remarkable 20.7% return. CLIG’s strategy proved effective due to favorable country allocations, particularly an overweight position in Mexico and South Korea, as well as underweight positioning in India. The strategic focus on smaller-cap stocks and technology exposure further bolstered performance.

Listed Private Equity Strategy

This strategy also enjoyed remarkable returns, achieving +13.7% against a benchmark return of +1.9%. The success can be attributed to key corporate events from major holdings that drove an impressive price appreciation of over 30% in U.S. dollar terms.

International Equity Strategy

The International Equity strategy posted a robust return of +7.0%, just above the benchmark of +6.9%. Positive contributions came from overweight positions in China and Emerging Asia alongside an underweight in Europe ex-UK.

Opportunistic Value Strategy

Although the Opportunistic Value strategy lagged behind relative benchmarks, it still performed positively on an absolute basis. This strategy remains heavily influenced by event-driven opportunities, which are likely to yield returns in the long run.

Fluctuations in Investments

Despite strong overall performance, there were net outflows of $419 million across the Group during the quarter. Notably, the Emerging Markets strategy saw outflows totaling $197 million, though it managed to generate impressive returns nonetheless.

Leadership Update

CLIG is actively working to enhance its leadership teams. Rian Dartnell, the Chairman, is collaborating closely with the Board on evaluating CEO candidates to guide the Group into its next chapter.

Dividend Announcement

In a display of commitment to shareholder value, the Company announced a final dividend of 22p per share, following the decision to pay 33p total dividends for the financial year ending June 2025. This dividend is pending approval at the upcoming AGM on October 27, 2025.

Looking Ahead

With a promising pipeline of corporate opportunities and strong market performance, the City of London Investment Group is expected to leverage these trends for sustainable long-term growth. The strategic focus on emerging markets and listed private equity is particularly encouraging for future performance. As the company positions itself for continued success, market participants remain keenly interested in leveraging CLIG's insights and performance metrics.