Sherborne Investors, the activist pursuing F&C Asset Management, needs to be careful not to stalk its target to a point where it may start losing clients. Portuguese group Millennium BCP, among F&C's largest clients with £14.2bn with the manager, has the option to walk away if Sherborne controls more than 10% of the votes. Sherborne is not there yet, but it is ramping up its influence – it now controls just over 9% of the votes and a total of 15% of the equity through contracts for difference.

The latest move means Sherborne holds 9.13% of F&C's voting equity, up from around 6% previously. It also holds an equivalent to 5.5% of F&C shares through 'contracts for difference' - instruments that give investors the returns of a share, without owning the share.