The portfolio will invest in a portfolio of predominantly large cap quoted companies and will be managed by BlackRock’s US-based equity income team led by Bob Shearer and Kathleen Anderson.
A spokesperson for BlackRock said the firm had decided on the closed-end structure for the launch because of its ability to hold back a proportion of dividends in good years which could then be paid out in lean years.
The company intends to raise in excess of £100m as seed capital for the investment trust and admission to the London Stock Exchange is expected in October.
Shearer and Anderson have a 27-year and 28-year track record respectively and have managed US equity funds since 1997 with a team of six colleagues based in Princeton in New Jersey.
They run similar closed-end US equity income strategies in the US market: BlackRock Dividend Achievers, BlackRock Enhanced Dividend Achievers and BlackRock Strategic Dividend Achievers.
“US equities are currently trading at attractive valuations and offer the potential for long-term stable income yields. The cash US companies are generating today is at high levels, suggesting equities are inexpensive and attractive in yield terms as compared with government and corporate bonds,” BlackRock said.
Dividends from the trust will be paid quarterly in sterling and a management fee of 1% of market capitalisation will be charged.
The fund expects gearing to be on average 10%, but not in excess of 20% net assets.
