Closed-End Salomon Brothers Fund Attracts Proxy War

Elliott Associates, a $5.2 billion hedge fund, is leading a proxy fight against the closed-end Salomon Brothers Fund(SBF Quote) managed by Citigroup Asset Management.

As is often the case with closed-end funds trading at a deep discount to net asset value, the activists' agenda is to narrow -- and in this case, to eliminate -- the discount. Right now, the fund is trading at 8.5% below net asset value.

A similar battle took place recently between Sowood Capital Management -- Harvard's investment arm -- and the Korea Equity Fund(KEF Quote), in which Nomura Asset Management, the fund's manager, succeeded in blocking the liquidation of the fund. ...