On December 19, 2016, Bulldog Investors, LLC sent a letter to company secretary of The Swiss Helvetia Fund Inc. In the letter, Bulldog Investors stated that the recent board changes appeared to be taken for the primary purpose of ‘reserving’ an unelected seat for a Schroder-friendly director and thwarting the effectiveness of a stockholder vote at the 2017 annual meeting, which is improper under Delaware law unless the Board has a compelling justification. In particular, the Board's previously undisclosed decision to effectively increase the size of the Board from 6 to 7 members immediately after the 2016 annual meeting by appointing a director to fill a ‘vacancy’ with a director that has a business relationship with the Fund's investment adviser (and who would not have to stand for election at the next annual meeting) and switching gears just a few months later to decrease the size of the Board to 5 is suspicious. Bulldog Investors stated that at a minimum, it requests (1) that the Board explain why it took each of the actions discussed herein, and (2) that Jay S. Calhoun stand for election at the 2017 annual meeting.
The Swiss Helvetia Fund, Inc. (the Fund) is a non-diversified, closed-end investment company. The Fund's investment objective is to seek long-term growth of capital through investment in equity and equity-linked securities of Swiss companies. The Fund may also acquire and hold equity and equity-linked securities of non-Swiss companies in limited instances. The Fund primarily invests in securities of Swiss issuers. The Fund also invests in various industries, such as banks, biotechnology, building materials, chemicals, computers, diversified financial services, electric, electronic components and equipment, food, healthcare products, industrials, insurance, machinery-diversified, metal fabricate/hardware, packaging and containers, pharmaceuticals, private equity, retail, semiconductors, preferred stock, short-term investment, and transportation. Schroder Investment Management North America Inc. acts as an investment advisor for the Fund.
THE SWISS HELVETIA FUND INC. 
