The European Smaller Companies Trust aims to turn investments in Europe’s dynamic smaller businesses into capital growth. Evidence* shows that smaller companies have historically achieved greater growth, as a group, than their larger peers. That’s why the trust’s team of expert managers harness regional experience and diverse information sources to find Europe’s undiscovered and promising businesses.
Alongside long-term growth, ESCT offers regular income in the form of quarterly dividends. The trust aims to deliver at least 5% of its Net Asset Value (NAV) each year as income.
Investment Objective: The Company seeks capital growth by investing in smaller and medium sized companies which are quoted, domiciled, listed or have operations in Europe (excluding the UK).
Statistics
Latest half-year results
The 2025 half-year report for The European Smaller Companies Trust has been published. Click to read the report.
Ollie Beckett, fund manager of The European Smaller Companies Trust, has recorded a video discussing the results. Watch here.
Investing in companies at different stages of their lifecycle, including key moments of transition, helps the trust benefit from their long term potential.
The managers aim to uncover overlooked small businesses, without overpaying.
Marketing Communication. Past performance does not predict future returns. The value of an investment and the income from it may go down as well as up and you may lose the amount originally invested. Past performance can be viewed here.
Awards and ratings
AIC ISA Millionaire 2026
The European Smaller Companies Trust PLC has been awarded the AIC ISA Millionaire for 2026.
View methodology. Source: AIC, 26/02/2026 Past performance does not predict future returns.
Kepler Growth Rating 2026
The European Smaller Companies Trust has been awarded the Kepler Growth Rating for 2026.
View methodology. Source: Morningstar, Kepler calculations, 01/01/2025 – 31/12/2025. Past performance does not predict future returns.
Kepler Growth Rating 2025
The European Smaller Companies Trust has been awarded the Kepler Growth Rating for 2025.
View methodology. Source: Morningstar, Kepler calculations, 01/01/2024 – 31/12/2024. Past performance does not predict future returns.
European through and through
The managers choose companies on an individual basis from across the region to capture the emerging trends shaping tomorrow.
Kepler Trust Intelligence has outlined everything from investment objectives to key stats to a detailed overview of The European Smaller Companies Trust.
The value of the trusts and the income from them is not guaranteed and may fall as well as rise. You may get back less than
you originally invested.
Past performance does not predict future returns.
Third party data is believed to be reliable, but its completeness and accuracy is not guaranteed.
Shares can lose value rapidly, and typically involve higher risks than bonds or money market instruments. The value of your investment may fall as a result.
Active management techniques that have worked well in normal market conditions could prove ineffective or negative for performance at other times.
Most of the investments in this portfolio are in smaller companies shares. They may be more difficult to buy and sell, and their share prices may fluctuate more than those of larger companies.
Using derivatives exposes the Company to risks different from - and potentially greater than - the risks associated with investing directly in securities. It may therefore result in additional loss, which could be significantly greater than the cost of the derivative.
This Company is suitable to be used as one component of several within a diversified investment portfolio. Investors should consider carefully the proportion of their portfolio invested in this Company.
The Company could lose money if a counterparty with which it trades becomes unwilling or unable to meet its obligations to the Company.
The return on your investment is directly related to the prevailing market price of the Company's shares, which will trade at a varying discount (or premium) relative to the value of the underlying assets of the Company. As a result, losses (or gains) may be higher or lower than those of the Company's assets.
If a Company's portfolio is concentrated towards a particular country or geographical region, the investment carries greater risk than a portfolio that is diversified across more countries.
Where the Company invests in assets that are denominated in currencies other than the base currency, the currency exchange rate movements may cause the value of investments to fall as well as rise.
If the Company seeks to minimise risks (such as exchange rate movements), the measures designed to do so may be ineffective, unavailable or negative for performance.
The Company may use gearing (borrowing to invest) as part of its investment strategy. If the Company utilises its ability to gear, the profits and losses incurred by the Company can be greater than those of a Company that does not use gearing.
The Company confirms that it currently conducts its affairs so that its ordinary shares of 1.5625p each can be recommended by IFAs to ordinary retail investors in accordance with the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) rules in relation to non-mainstream investment products and intends to continue to do so for the foreseeable future.
The shares are excluded from the FCA’s restrictions which apply to non-mainstream investment products because they are shares in an investment trust.
For detailed product information including the risks associated with investing please read the relevant Prospectus or Annual Report. Please refer to the AIFMD Disclosure document and Annual Report of the AIF before making any final investment decisions.
The Company underwent a 8 for 1 stock split on 13 December 2021; comparative NAV, share price and dividend figures have, where possible, been adjusted to reflect this, but historic dividends and earnings per share up to 13 December 2021 may reflect the previous position, unless otherwise stated.
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