Half-yearly Results

HALF-YEARLY RESULTS FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2011

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

PERFORMANCE

NAV per share refers to diluted NAV per share unless otherwise stated (see Note 3)

The following is derived from the Chairman's Statement which will appear in the Half -Yearly Financial Report.

CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

These have been some of the most torrid markets of my lifetime. Europe has been lead violinist in a discordant band: in the past six months to 30 September 2011, Europe fell 27%, European resource stocks and banks fell 36%, and Emerging Markets fell by 23% (all in £ terms). Only the more modest decline of 12% from US markets moderated the scale of global losses. It has all borne out my warning in June of the "glaring and global" risks confronting us.

I have a rooted objection as your Chairman to any fall in value of your RIT shares and in the underlying value of your Company. It is only mild consolation, therefore, that the decline in our net asset value per share in the six months to end-September has been less than that of our informal benchmarks. Our 9.6% decline to 1,165.9p per share compares with the 15.1% fall in the MSCI World Index (in £), and a 13.5% drop in the FTSE All-Share Index. Over the previous twelve months since September 2010, we are marginally up in value, whereas both the MSCI and FTSE are down. Over five and ten years, our record remains significantly ahead of these indices, and these latest results keep us ahead of the game - but it is the game itself which is unpleasant and which we are determined to address.

Anticipating many of these concerns, we reversed our previous focus on industrial commodities, we trimmed our emerging market investments, and we increased selected short futures positions. Sizeable positions in gold and gold shares were maintained and we continue to make selective investments in quality companies and managers focused in this area. We have remained cautious on Sterling and the Euro throughout, and have somewhat increased our US Dollar exposure while maintaining sizeable positions in the Canadian and Singapore Dollar.

It is increasingly clear that Europe's challenges have not been adequately addressed by recent developments. Initially markets rallied sharply in October, but these gains have been fading over the past few weeks with the MSCI now only 3.9% higher. A continued sense of caution and modest Sterling exposure limited our participation in the early rally and our most recent NAV of 1,160.6p, at 18 November, is broadly unchanged from our September figure. In these exceptionally volatile markets our main focus remains one of not chasing the pendulum swings between "risk-on" and "risk-off"; it is to identify areas of opportunity beyond the present uncertainty.

Four years and more ago, I commented on the paradox of investors' rising appetite for risk at a time when the level of risk was clearly rising. Yet over this extended period, markets are just 12% lower, albeit that this reflects a near 20% devaluation in Sterling. The issue confronting all investors now is whether equity markets are continuing to exhibit too much complacency about the outlook or whether, after a decade of flat global market returns, the price of equities takes account of the risks.

We now have, as you know, $400m of debt as an additional source of liquidity for opportunities. We continue to build exposure to areas of corporate credit that we find attractive. With yields of around 8% in some cases for senior credits, these are potentially competitive with equity returns, and the risk of loss is lower. We are exploring opportunities in distressed assets; banks, especially in Europe, will be selling assets possibly at much discounted levels. Our venture with Bill Winters in Renshaw Bay is an example of our wish to take advantage of this theme.

Large companies with strong franchises and balance sheets continue to appeal to us: their stability, when coupled with attractive dividend yields and cash flows, offers relatively safe exposure to equities. Increasingly, we see attractions too in those companies and sectors that can grow despite tepid GDP growth. If interest rates remain muted, the valuation that could be placed on such businesses could be considerably higher than at present. We are adding, from a modest starting level, to your Company's investment in growth sectors such as technology, healthcare and biotechnology.

Over the years, we have had much success in our unquoted investments. In addition to the successful realisations we reported in the previous year, we are pleased to have recently agreed the conditional sale of Harbourmaster to Blackstone. This will have been an exceptional investment; even prior to the sale, we have realised almost three times our original investment, made in 2005, by way of distributions. Harbourmaster has been a leading force in the European CLO market, a particularly difficult area over the last few years. We would like to express our thanks to management for the remarkable results which they have achieved.

We remain pleased with the progress of our investment in Agora, the North Sea oil exploration business, and have watched with interest the proposed acquisition by Premier Oil of Encore, a partner in the Catcher field, which is also Agora's key asset. Fund-raising for our joint venture with Creat, our Chinese private equity partner, is progressing well and this landmark fund is expected to close by our year-end.

Like others, I struggle with a sense that while the world is still fraught with danger, some investments appear to be increasingly attractively valued. On balance, it is too early to prioritise the valuation appeal of specific investments over global uncertainty but we are very conscious that this balance is the key decision confronting us.

BOARD AND MANAGEMENT

As we recently announced, Bill Winters has now joined our Board as a non-executive director. He was until recently the Co-CEO of the investment bank of JP Morgan Chase & Co and served as a member of the UK's Independent Commission on Banking. We are delighted to have the benefit of his extensive experience and, on behalf of shareholders, I would like to welcome him to our Board.

After 23 years with RIT, Duncan Budge has decided to retire from the Board and the role of Chief Operating Officer with effect from today. I am happy to say that he will continue to be involved with the Company as a non-executive director of our management company, J. Rothschild Capital Management Ltd, as well as chairman of our subsidiary, Spencer House Ltd. The successful growth of RIT has been in no small part the result of his efforts and I would like to take this opportunity to place on record, both on behalf of shareholders, and our Board, our appreciation for his significant contribution to your Company throughout this period.

I am pleased to announce that Jonathan Kestenbaum is joining JRCM as Chief Operating Officer with effect from today. Jonathan has recently completed a significant restructuring of my family's philanthropic interests, having previously served as Chief of Staff to the Chairman of Apax Partners, Chief Executive at The Portland Trust and Chief Executive at NESTA (National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts). Our team has been further strengthened by the recent joining of Graham Thomas as head of private equity. Graham has previously worked at Goldman Sachs, MidOcean Partners and latterly headed Standard Bank's global principal investment business.

Rothschild

28 November 2011

Enquiries: 020 7514 1926

ATTRIBUTION ANALYSIS

The Company's net asset value as at 30 September 2011 was £1,793.9 million (31 March 2011: £1,984.0 million). This represents a decrease of £190.1 million which is analysed below:

NET ASSET VALUE BY ASSET CATEGORY (%)

DIRECTORS' RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT

In accordance with the Disclosure and Transparency Rules 4.2.7R and 4.2.8R, we confirm that to the best of our knowledge:

(a) The condensed set of financial statements has been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34, Interim Financial Reporting, as adopted by the European Union, as required by the Disclosure and Transparency Rule 4.2.4R;

(b) The Chairman's Statement includes a fair review of the information required to be disclosed under the Disclosure and Transparency Rule 4.2.7R, interim management report. This includes an indication of important events that have occurred during the first six months of the financial year, and their impact on the condensed set of financial statements presented in the half-yearly financial report. A description of the principal risks and uncertainties for the remaining six months of the financial year is set out below; and

(c) There were no changes in the transactions or arrangements with related parties as described in the Group's Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2011 that would have had a material effect on the financial position or performance of the Group in the first six months of the current financial year.

PRINCIPAL RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES

The principal risks and uncertainties facing the Group are referred to in the Chairman's Statement. As with any investment company, the main risk is market risk. The key risks facing the Group's activities for the second half of the financial year are substantially the same as those described in the Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2011.

Mikael Breuer-Weil

Investment Director

28 November 2011

For and on behalf of the Board, the members of which are listed on page 22 of the Half-Yearly Financial Report.

CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT

The total column of this statement represents the Group's Income Statement, prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards. The supplementary revenue return and capital return columns are both prepared under guidance published by the Association of Investment Companies. All items in the above statement derive from continuing operations.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY

CONSOLIDATED CASH FLOW STATEMENT

(1) Shares are disclosed in 'own shares reserve' on the consolidated balance sheet.

(2) The reconciliation of cash and cash equivalents in the period ended 30 September 2010 and the year ended 31 March 2011 included bank loans and overdrafts of £0.5m and £249.0m respectively. Bank loans and overdrafts have been reclassified as financing activities in accordance with IAS 7 and the corresponding periods restated.

NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

1. BASIS OF ACCOUNTING

These financial statements are the half-yearly consolidated financial statements of RIT Capital Partners plc and its subsidiaries for the six months ended 30 September 2011. They are prepared in accordance with the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the Financial Services Authority, and with International Accounting Standard IAS 34, Interim Financial Reporting, as adopted by the European Union, and were approved on 28 November 2011. These half-yearly financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 March 2011, which were prepared in accordance with IFRS, as adopted by the European Union, as they provide an update of previously reported information. The half-yearly consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in the notes to the consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2011, with the exception of the adoption of IAS 24 Related Party Disclosures (revised) and amendments as set out below.

From 22 September 2011 the Group converted its long term incentive plan (which uses share appreciation rights or SARs) from a cash-settled to a share-settled basis. In accordance with IFRS 2, we have used an option pricing model to determine the value of these SARs at the date of conversion. This value will be spread over the relevant service period. This change in accounting had no material impact on the results in the period under review. Further details will be provided in the 31 March 2012 Annual Report and Accounts.

The unquoted portfolio has been re-valued as at 30 September 2011 by the Valuation Committee as part of its detailed, six-monthly review of the fair value of these investments. This determination requires significant management judgement.

2. DILUTED/BASIC EARNINGS PER ORDINARY SHARE

The earnings per ordinary share for the six months ended 30 September 2011 is based on the net loss of £182.2 million (six months ended 30 September 2010: net loss of £27.3 million; year ended 31 March 2011: net profit of £171.8 million) and the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during the period of 153.9 million (six months ended 30 September 2010:153.9 million; year ended 31 March 2011: 153.9 million). Towards the end of September 2011 the Group purchased 364,400 of its own shares through an Employee Benefit Trust (EBT) to settle its expected future liability under its SAR plan. This resulted in a diluted weighted average number of shares for the period of 153.9 million and as such had no impact on the earnings per ordinary share.

The earnings per ordinary share figure can be further analysed between revenue and capital as set out below:

3. DILUTED/BASIC NET ASSET VALUE PER ORDINARY SHARE

The basic NAV per ordinary share as at 30 September 2011 was 1,168.7p, based on the net assets attributable to equity shareholders of £1,793.9 million (30 September 2010: £1,784.5 million; 31 March 2011: £1,984.0 million) and the number of ordinary shares in issue (excluding shares held by the EBT) at 30 September 2011 of 153.5 million (30 September 2010: 153.9 million; 31 March 2011: 153.9 million). On a fully diluted basis (including the shares held by the EBT) the number of ordinary shares in issue was 153.9 million resulting in a diluted NAV per share of 1,165.9p.

4. DIVIDENDS PAID

5. COMPARATIVE INFORMATION

The financial information contained in this Half-Yearly Financial Report does not constitute statutory accounts as defined in section 434 of the Companies Act 2006. The financial information for the half years ended 30 September 2011 and 30 September 2010 has been reviewed, not audited.

The information for the year ended 31 March 2011 has been extracted from the latest published audited financial statements. The audited financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2011 have been filed with the Registrar of Companies and the report of the auditors on those accounts contained no qualification or statement under section 498(2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.