It would be difficult to overstate the degree to which Boaz Weinstein’s salvo at seven investment trusts, three of them run from Edinburgh by Baillie Gifford, has rattled the sector.

The investment trust sector is of course no stranger to activist investors or arbitrageurs, who have had some high-profile battles over the decades with major Scottish players, among others, sometimes with very major ramifications for particular funds.

However, the nature of what Mr Weinstein’s Saba Capital Management hedge fund has come up with is causing very big worries indeed among many senior figures in the investment trust world in terms of what it means for the overall sector.

It will be a couple of weeks before we know to what extent Saba succeeds, or otherwise, in its drive to oust the boards of the seven investment trusts and ultimately take control of the management of these funds. Most of the general meetings requisitioned by Saba are being held early next month, with shareholders in the trusts voting on the proposals.

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Mr Weinstein has revealed plans to combine funds if he wins control of them, creating a platform to have a tilt at other investment trusts.

Saba’s campaign was the subject of much discussion during and on the sidelines of a presentation by the managers of Baillie Gifford’s £12 billion Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust to investors in this fund on Wednesday.

Scottish Mortgage is not in Mr Weinstein’s sights in his........

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