US arbitrageur ST Partners is seeking to make short-term profits from three UK-managed investment trusts by taking a stake and pushing the managers to buy their shares at a premium.

ST has acquired shares in Bankers Investment Trust, Foreign & Colonial Investment Trust and Perpetual European Investment Trust. In each case it has used its holding to force management to include an item on the annual general meeting agenda to the effect that the trust's management should offer to buy shares back at a premium to their current market price.