Filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 22, 2021

1933 Act Registration File No. 033-20827

1940 Act Registration File No. 811-05518

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION 

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM N-1A

and/or

(Check Appropriate Box or Boxes)

THE RBB FUND, INC. 

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

615 East Michigan Street

Milwaukee, Wisconsin  53202

(Address of Principal Executive Offices, including Zip Code)

Registrant’s Telephone Number, including Area Code: (609) 731-6256 

Copies to:

Approximate Date of Proposed Public Offering: As soon as practicable after the Registration Statement becomes effective.

If appropriate, check the following box:

The information in this Prospectus is not complete and may be changed.  We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective.  This Prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.

Subject to Completion 

Dated March 22, 2021

YieldX Diversified Income ETF ([Exchange]: [Ticker]) 

YieldX High Income ETF ([Exchange]: [Ticker]) 

YieldX Short-Term Income ETF ([Exchange]: [Ticker])

Each a series of The RBB Fund, Inc.

Prospectus
[     ], 2021

The SEC has not approved or disapproved each Fund’s shares or determined whether this prospectus is accurate or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

No securities dealer, sales representative, or any other person has been authorized to give any information or to make any representations, other than those contained in this prospectus or in approved sales literature in connection with the offer contained herein, and if given or made, such other information or representations must not be relied upon as having been authorized by the YieldX Diversified Income ETF, the YieldX High Income ETF or the YieldX Short-Term Income ETF (each a “Fund” and together, the “Funds”) or The RBB Fund, Inc. This prospectus does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities offered hereby in any jurisdiction or to any person to whom it is unlawful to make such offer. 

YIELDX DIVERSIFIED INCOME ETF

Investment Objective: 

The investment objective of the YieldX Diversified Income ETF (the “Fund”) is to provide investors with current income.

Fees and Expenses: 

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). This table and the Example below do not include the brokerage commissions that investors may pay on their purchases and sales of Fund Shares.

Example 

This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that: (1) your investment has a 5% return each year, and (2) the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Portfolio Turnover  

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. The Fund does not have any portfolio turnover information as the Fund had not commenced operations prior to the date of this Prospectus.

Principal Investment Strategies:  

The Fund invests mainly in a diversified portfolio of securities of unaffiliated exchange-traded funds (“ETFs” or “Underlying Funds”). Underlying Funds will invest in income producing securities, including money market funds, corporate securities and municipal debt of any rating. To a limited extent, the Fund may also invest in direct investments. The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds that do not have income as an objective, and to the extent it does so, it may not generate as much current income.

Under normal market conditions, YieldX Advisers, LLC (the “Sub-Adviser”) will attempt to manage the Fund to achieve a portfolio yield to worst (i.e., the lowest potential yield that can be achieved on a bond without an issuer default) between 3% and 5%. The Sub-Adviser maintains a large database of eligible securities and their associated yields and expected risk profiles that is updated daily. The Sub-Adviser utilizes proprietary tools to filter the subset of eligible securities that fit the target yield range and then applies risk and optimal allocation models with the goal of meeting the yield target while optimizing the risk profile of the Fund. If yields of current holdings of the Fund fall below the target range, the Sub-Adviser may sell those Underlying Funds and capture the gain, if applicable, and reallocate to Underlying Funds that fall within the target range. If yields on current holdings go above the target range, the Sub-Adviser will assess the risk profile of the securities and may decide to sell those Underlying Funds and reallocate to other Underlying Funds. When determining whether to sell or hold Underlying Funds that have fallen outside the target yield range, the Sub-Adviser will consider the market and security-specific environment that led to the shift in yield, the relative risk-adjusted attractiveness of other Underlying Funds that could potentially replace the existing security in the portfolio and the tax implications of the transaction. There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its yield target at any given point in time. Further, if short-term market conditions are such that the Sub-Adviser determines that in order to achieve the yield target it would require taking undue risk, the portfolio management team may elect to maintain a lower yield profile for a period of time. 

Under normal market conditions, the Fund will invest primarily in Underlying Funds focusing on the following types of securities:

Underlying Funds may invest in securities that have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, but that may be resold to qualified institutional buyers in accordance with the provisions of Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933 (“Rule 144A Securities”).

Restricted securities, including Rule 144A Securities, are securities that have not been publicly issued and legally can be resold only to qualified buyers. Rule 144A Securities will not be considered illiquid if the Underlying Fund determines that an adequate trading market exists for the securities.

The Fund has no investment policy or restrictions regarding the duration or maturity of the securities it invests in or its portfolio in the aggregate.

Principal Investment Risks: 

The value of your investment in this Fund will change daily. You could lose money by investing in the Fund, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.

Active Management Risk – The Fund is subject to management risk as an actively-managed investment portfolio. The investment sub-adviser’s investment approach may fail to produce the intended results.

Authorized Participants, Market Makers and Liquidity Providers Concentration Risk – Only an Authorized Participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of financial institutions that are institutional investors and may act as authorized participants (“APs”). In addition, there may be a limited number of market makers and/or liquidity providers in the marketplace. To the extent either of the following events occur, Fund Shares may trade at a material discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts or delisting: (i) APs exit the business or otherwise become unable to process creation and/or redemption orders and no other APs step forward to perform these services, or (ii) market makers and/or liquidity providers exit the business or significantly reduce their business activities and no other entities step forward to perform their functions. In periods of market volatility, APs, market makers and/or liquidity providers may be less willing to transact in Fund Shares.

Call Risk – If, during periods of falling interest rates, an issuer calls higher-yielding debt instruments held by an Underlying Fund, such Underlying Fund may have to reinvest in securities with lower yields or less favorable credit characteristics, which may adversely impact the Underlying Fund’s, and therefore the Fund’s, performance.

Credit Risk – Credit risk is the risk that an issuer or other obligated party of a debt security may be unable or unwilling to make interest and principal payments when due and the related risk that the value of a debt security may decline because of concerns about the issuer’s ability or willingness to make such payments.

Credit Spread Risk – Credit spread risk is the risk that credit spreads (i.e., the difference in yield between securities that is due to differences in their credit quality) may increase when the market believes that bonds generally have a greater risk of default. Increasing credit spreads may reduce the market values of the Fund’s debt securities. Credit spreads often increase more for lower rated and unrated securities than for investment grade securities. In addition, when credit spreads increase, reductions in market value will generally be greater for longer-maturity securities. 

Cyber Security Risk – Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the investment adviser or sub-advisers, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and its investment adviser and sub-advisers have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders.

Early Close/Trading Halt Risk – An exchange or market may close or issue trading halts on specific securities, or the ability to buy or sell certain securities or financial instruments may be restricted, which may result in an Underlying Fund being unable to buy or sell certain securities or financial instruments or in the Fund being unable to buy or sell certain Underlying Funds or other investments. In such circumstances, an Underlying Fund and/or the Fund may be unable to rebalance its portfolio, may be unable to accurately price its investments, and/or may incur substantial losses and may limit or stop purchases.

High Yield Securities Risk – High yield securities, which are rated below investment grade and commonly referred to as “junk” bonds, are high risk investments that may cause income and principal losses for the Fund. They generally have greater credit risk, are less liquid and have more volatile prices than investment grade securities.

Income Risk – The Fund’s income could decline during periods of falling interest rates or when an Underlying Fund experiences defaults on debt securities it holds.

Interest Rate Risk – Interest rate risk is the risk that the value of the Underlying Funds’ portfolios, and therefore the Fund’s, will decline because of rising interest rates. The Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates than would normally be the case due to the possibility that the current period of relatively low rates may be ending. The effect of potential government fiscal policy initiatives and resulting market reaction to those initiatives is unknown. Duration is a measure of a security’s price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The duration of a debt security is the weighted average term to maturity, expressed in years, of the present value of all future cash flows, including coupon payments and principal repayments. When interest rates change, the values of longer-duration debt securities usually change more than the values of shorter-duration debt securities. Rising interest rates also may lengthen the duration of debt securities with call features, since exercise of the call becomes less likely as interest rates rise, which in turn will make the securities more sensitive to changes in interest rates and result in even steeper price declines in the event of further interest rate increases. For example, if a bond has an effective duration of three years, a 1% increase in general interest rates would be expected to cause the bond’s value to decline about 3% while a 1% decrease in general interest rates would be expected to cause the bond’s value to increase 3%.

Liquidity Risk – Dealer inventories of bonds and other fixed income securities, which provide an indication of the ability of financial intermediaries to “make markets” in those securities, are at or near historic lows in relation to market size. This reduction in market making capacity has the potential to decrease liquidity and increase price volatility in the fixed income markets in which the Underlying Funds invest, particularly during periods of economic or market stress. In addition, recent federal banking regulations may cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of bonds and other fixed income securities, which may further decrease the Underlying Fund’s ability to buy or sell such securities. As a result of this decreased liquidity, an Underlying Fund may have to accept a lower price to sell a security, sell other securities to raise cash, or give up an investment opportunity, any of which could have a negative effect on performance. If the Underlying Fund needed to sell large blocks of securities to meet shareholder redemption requests or to raise cash, those sales could further reduce the securities’ prices and hurt performance of the Underlying Fund, and therefore the Fund.

Mortgage- and Asset-Backed Securities Risk – Mortgage-related and asset-backed securities, including certain agency obligations, collateralized loan obligations and collateralized debt obligations, are subject to certain other risks. The value of these securities will be influenced by the factors affecting the housing market or the other assets underlying such securities. As a result, during periods of declining asset values, difficult or frozen credit markets, significant changes in interest rates, or deteriorating economic conditions, mortgage-related and asset-backed securities may decline in value, face valuation difficulties, become more volatile and/or become dramatically less liquid. These securities are also subject to prepayment and call risk. In periods of declining interest rates, the Fund may be subject to contraction risk which is the risk that borrowers will increase the rate at which they prepay the maturity value of mortgages and other obligations. When mortgages and other obligations are prepaid and when securities are called, the Underlying Funds may have to reinvest in securities with a lower yield or fail to recover additional amounts (i.e., premiums) paid for securities with higher interest rates, resulting in an unexpected capital loss and/or a decrease in the amount of dividends and yield. In periods of rising interest rates, the Underlying Funds may be subject to extension risk which is the risk that the expected maturity of an obligation will lengthen in duration due to a decrease in prepayments. As a result, in certain interest rate environments, the Underlying Funds, and therefore the Fund, may exhibit additional volatility. 

New Fund Risk – The Fund is a recently organized, diversified management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors have a limited track record on which to base their investment decision. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Fund will grow to, or maintain, an economically viable size, in which case the Board of the Company may determine to liquidate the Fund.

New Investment Sub-Adviser Risk – The Sub-Adviser is a newly formed investment adviser with no operating history. There is no guarantee that the Sub-Adviser will be able to produce satisfactory returns for the Fund or preserve the Fund’s assets. Furthermore, the technology that the Sub-Adviser uses to manage the Fund’s portfolio has no operating history and has no history of performance.

Other Investment Companies Risk – The Fund will invest in shares of mutual funds or unit investment trusts that are traded on a stock exchange, called exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”). Investments in ETFs are subject to the risks of the securities in which those investment companies invest. Your cost of investing in the Fund, as a fund of funds, may be higher than the cost of investing in a fund that only invests directly in individual securities. Fund shareholders will indirectly pay a portion of the operating costs of the Underlying Funds in addition to the expenses of the Fund’s own operation. These costs include management, brokerage, shareholder servicing and other operational expenses. Unlike shares of typical mutual funds or unit investment trusts, shares of ETFs are designed to be traded throughout the trading day, bought and sold based on market prices rather than net asset value. An investment in an ETF generally presents the following risks: (i) the same primary risks as an investment in a conventional mutual fund (i.e., one that is not exchange-traded) that has the same investment objectives, strategies and policies; (ii) the risk that an ETF may fail to accurately track the market segment or index that underlies its investment objective; (iii) price fluctuation, resulting in a loss to the Fund; (iv) the risk that an ETF may trade at a discount to its net asset value; (v) the risk that an active market for an ETF’s shares may not develop or be maintained; and (vi) the risk that an ETF may no longer meet the listing requirements of any applicable exchanges on which that ETF is listed. 

Preferred Securities Risk – Preferred securities generally are subordinated to bonds and other debt instruments in a company’s capital structure and therefore will be subject to greater credit risk than those debt instruments. In addition, preferred securities are subject to other risks, such as having no or limited voting rights, being subject to special redemption rights, having distributions deferred or skipped, having floating interest rates or dividends, which may result in a decline in value in a falling interest rate environment, having limited liquidity, changing or unfavorable tax treatments and possibly being issued by companies in heavily regulated industries.

Prepayment Risk – Prepayment risk is the risk that the issuer of a debt security will repay principal prior to the scheduled maturity date. Debt securities allowing prepayment may offer less potential for gains during a period of declining interest rates, as Underlying Funds may be required to reinvest the proceeds of any prepayment at lower interest rates. These factors may adversely impact the value of the Underlying Funds’ portfolio, and therefore the Fund’s.

Rule 144A Securities Risk – The market for Rule 144A securities typically is less active than the market for publicly-traded securities. Rule 144A securities carry the risk that their liquidity may become impaired and the Fund may be unable to dispose of the securities promptly or at reasonable prices.

Secondary Market Trading Risk – Although Shares are listed on a national securities exchange, [insert exchange (“Exchange”)] and may be traded on U.S. exchanges other than the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active or liquid trading market for them will develop or be maintained. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted.

Shares May Trade at Prices Other Than NAV – As with all ETFs, Shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at market prices. Although it is expected that the market price of Shares will approximate the Fund’s NAV, there may be times when the market price of Shares is more than the NAV intra-day (premium) or less than the NAV intra-day (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market volatility or periods of steep market declines. 

Sovereign Debt Risk – Sovereign debt instruments are subject to the risk that a governmental entity may delay or refuse to pay interest or repay principal on its sovereign debt. This may be due to, for example, cash flow problems, insufficient foreign currency reserves, political considerations, the relative size of the governmental entity’s debt position in relation to the economy or the failure to put in place economic reforms required by the International Monetary Fund or other multilateral agencies.

Unrated Security Risk – Unrated securities determined by an Underlying Fund’s adviser to be of comparable quality to rated securities which the Underlying Fund may purchase may pay a higher interest rate than such rated securities and be subject to a greater risk of illiquidity or price changes. Less public information is typically available about unrated securities or issuers than rated securities or issuers.

U.S. Government Securities Risk – U.S. government securities are guaranteed only as to the timely payment of interest and the payment of principal when held to maturity. Accordingly, the current market values for these securities will fluctuate with changes in interest rates. Securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government agencies and instrumentalities are supported by varying degrees of credit but generally are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. No assurance can be given that the U.S. government will provide financial support to its agencies and instrumentalities if it is not obligated by law to do so.  

Valuation Risk – The debt securities in which the Underlying Funds invest typically are valued by a pricing service utilizing a range of market-based inputs and assumptions, including readily available market quotations obtained from broker-dealers making markets in such instruments, cash flows and transactions for comparable instruments. There is no assurance that the Underlying Funds will be able to sell a portfolio security at the price established by the pricing service, which could result in a loss to the Underlying Funds, and therefore the Funds. Pricing services generally price debt securities assuming orderly transactions of an institutional “round lot” size, but some trades may occur in smaller, “odd lot” sizes, often at lower prices than institutional round lot trades. Different pricing services may incorporate different assumptions and inputs into their valuation methodologies, potentially resulting in different values for the same securities. As a result, if an Underlying Fund were to change pricing services, or if an Underlying Fund’s pricing service were to change its valuation methodology, there could be a material impact, either positive or negative, on the Underlying Fund’s, and therefore the Fund’s, net asset value.

Performance Information:  

Performance information for the Fund is not included because the Fund did not commence operations prior to the date of this Prospectus. In the future, performance information for the Fund will be presented in this section. Updated performance information is available on the Fund’s website at [  ] or by calling the Fund toll free at [  ].

Management: 

Investment Adviser and Sub-Advisers

Red Gate Advisers, LLC serves as the investment adviser to the Fund. YieldX Advisers, LLC and Vident Investment Advisory, LLC each serve as a sub-adviser to the Fund.

Portfolio Managers 

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares: 

Shares are listed on a national securities exchange, such as the Exchange, and most investors will buy and sell Shares through brokers at market prices, rather than NAV. Because Shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, Shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less than NAV (discount).

The Fund issues and redeems Shares at NAV only in large blocks known as “Creation Units,” which only APs (typically, broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. Creation Units generally consist of 25,000 Shares, though this may change from time to time. Creation Unit transactions are typically conducted in exchange for the deposit or delivery of in-kind securities and/or cash.

Tax Information: 

Fund distributions are generally taxable as ordinary income, qualified dividend income, or capital gains (or a combination), unless your investment is in an individual retirement account (“IRA”) or other tax-advantaged account. Distributions on investments made through tax-deferred arrangements may be taxed later upon withdrawal of assets from those accounts.

Financial Intermediary Compensation: 

If you purchase Shares through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an “Intermediary”), the Fund’s investment adviser, or its affiliates may pay Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more knowledgeable about exchange traded products, including the Fund, or for other activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related to the sale or promotion of Shares. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more information. 

YIELDX HIGH INCOME ETF

Investment Objective: 

The investment objective of the YieldX High Income ETF (the “Fund”) is to provide investors with current income.

Fees and Expenses: 

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). This table and the Example below do not include the brokerage commissions that investors may pay on their purchases and sales of Fund Shares.

Example 

This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that: (1) your investment has a 5% return each year, and (2) the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Portfolio Turnover  

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. The Fund does not have any portfolio turnover information as the Fund had not commenced operations prior to the date of this Prospectus.

Principal Investment Strategies: 

The Fund invests mainly in a diversified portfolio of securities of unaffiliated exchange-traded funds (“ETFs” or “Underlying Funds”). Underlying Funds will invest in income producing securities, including money market funds, corporate securities and municipal debt of any rating. To a limited extent, the Fund may also invest in direct investments. The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds that do not have income as an objective, and to the extent it does so, it may not generate as much current income.

Under normal market conditions, YieldX Advisers, LLC (the “Sub-Adviser”) will attempt to manage the Fund to achieve a portfolio yield to worst (i.e., the lowest potential yield that can be achieved on a bond without an issuer default) between 5% and 7%. The Sub-Adviser maintains a large database of eligible securities and their associated yields and expected risk profiles that is updated daily. The Sub-Adviser utilizes proprietary tools to filter the subset of eligible securities that fit the target yield range and then applies risk and optimal allocation models with the goal of meeting the yield target while optimizing the risk profile of the Fund. If yields of current holdings of the Fund fall below the target range, the Sub-Adviser may sell those Underlying Funds and capture the gain, if applicable, and reallocate to Underlying Funds that fall within the target range. If yields on current holdings go above the target range, the Sub-Adviser will assess the risk profile of the securities and may decide to sell those Underlying Funds and reallocate to other Underlying Funds. When determining whether to sell or hold portfolio securities that have fallen outside the target yield range, the Sub-Adviser will consider the market and security-specific environment that led to the shift in yield, the relative risk-adjusted attractiveness of other securities that could potentially replace the existing security in the portfolio and the tax implications of the transaction. There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its yield target at any given point in time. Further, if short-term market conditions are such that the Sub-Adviser determines that in order to achieve the yield target it would require taking undue risk, the portfolio management team may elect to maintain a lower yield profile for a period of time. 

Under normal market conditions, the Fund will invest primarily in Underlying Funds focusing on the following types of securities:

The Underlying Funds may invest in securities that have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, but that may be resold to qualified institutional buyers in accordance with the provisions of Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933 (“Rule 144A Securities”).

Restricted securities, including Rule 144A Securities, are securities that have not been publicly issued and legally can be resold only to qualified buyers. Rule 144A Securities will not be considered illiquid if the Underlying Fund determines that an adequate trading market exists for the securities.

The Fund has no investment policy or restrictions regarding the duration or maturity of the securities it invests in or its portfolio in the aggregate.

Principal Investment Risks: 

The value of your investment in this Fund will change daily. You could lose money by investing in the Fund, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.

Active Management Risk – The Fund is subject to management risk as an actively-managed investment portfolio. The investment sub-adviser’s investment approach may fail to produce the intended results.

Authorized Participants, Market Makers and Liquidity Providers Concentration Risk – Only an Authorized Participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of financial institutions that are institutional investors and may act as authorized participants (“APs”). In addition, there may be a limited number of market makers and/or liquidity providers in the marketplace. To the extent either of the following events occur, Fund Shares may trade at a material discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts or delisting: (i) APs exit the business or otherwise become unable to process creation and/or redemption orders and no other APs step forward to perform these services, or (ii) market makers and/or liquidity providers exit the business or significantly reduce their business activities and no other entities step forward to perform their functions. In periods of market volatility, APs, market makers and/or liquidity providers may be less willing to transact in Fund Shares.

Call Risk – If, during periods of falling interest rates, an issuer calls higher-yielding debt instruments held by an Underlying Fund, such Underlying Fund may have to reinvest in securities with lower yields or less favorable credit characteristics, which may adversely impact the Underlying Fund’s, and therefore the Fund’s performance.

Credit Risk – Credit risk is the risk that an issuer or other obligated party of a debt security may be unable or unwilling to make interest and principal payments when due and the related risk that the value of a debt security may decline because of concerns about the issuer’s ability or willingness to make such payments.

Credit Spread Risk – Credit spread risk is the risk that credit spreads (i.e., the difference in yield between securities that is due to differences in their credit quality) may increase when the market believes that bonds generally have a greater risk of default. Increasing credit spreads may reduce the market values of the Fund’s debt securities. Credit spreads often increase more for lower rated and unrated securities than for investment grade securities. In addition, when credit spreads increase, reductions in market value will generally be greater for longer-maturity securities. 

Cyber Security Risk – Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the investment adviser or sub-advisers, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and its investment adviser and sub-advisers have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders.

Early Close/Trading Halt Risk – An exchange or market may close or issue trading halts on specific securities, or the ability to buy or sell certain securities or financial instruments may be restricted, which may result in an Underlying Fund being unable to buy or sell certain securities or financial instruments or in the Fund being unable to buy or sell certain Underlying Funds or other investments. In such circumstances, an Underlying Fund and/or the Fund may be unable to rebalance its portfolio, may be unable to accurately price its investments, and/or may incur substantial losses and may limit or stop purchases.

High Yield Securities Risk—High yield securities, which are rated below investment grade and commonly referred to as “junk” bonds, are high risk investments that may cause income and principal losses for the Fund. They generally have greater credit risk, are less liquid and have more volatile prices than investment grade securities.

Income Risk – The Fund’s income could decline during periods of falling interest rates or when an Underlying Fund experiences defaults on debt securities it holds.

Interest Rate Risk – Interest rate risk is the risk that the value of the Underlying Funds’ portfolios, and therefore the Fund’s, will decline because of rising interest rates. The Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates than would normally be the case due to the possibility that the current period of relatively low rates may be ending. The effect of potential government fiscal policy initiatives and resulting market reaction to those initiatives is unknown. Duration is a measure of a security’s price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The duration of a debt security is the weighted average term to maturity, expressed in years, of the present value of all future cash flows, including coupon payments and principal repayments. When interest rates change, the values of longer-duration debt securities usually change more than the values of shorter-duration debt securities. Rising interest rates also may lengthen the duration of debt securities with call features, since exercise of the call becomes less likely as interest rates rise, which in turn will make the securities more sensitive to changes in interest rates and result in even steeper price declines in the event of further interest rate increases. For example, if a bond has an effective duration of three years, a 1% increase in general interest rates would be expected to cause the bond’s value to decline about 3% while a 1% decrease in general interest rates would be expected to cause the bond’s value to increase 3%.

Liquidity Risk – Dealer inventories of bonds and other fixed income securities, which provide an indication of the ability of financial intermediaries to “make markets” in those securities, are at or near historic lows in relation to market size. This reduction in market making capacity has the potential to decrease liquidity and increase price volatility in the fixed income markets in which the Underlying Funds invest, particularly during periods of economic or market stress. In addition, recent federal banking regulations may cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of bonds and other fixed income securities, which may further decrease the Underlying Funds’ ability to buy or sell such securities. As a result of this decreased liquidity, the Underlying Funds may have to accept a lower price to sell a security, sell other securities to raise cash, or give up an investment opportunity, any of which could have a negative effect on performance. If the Underlying Fund needed to sell large blocks of securities to meet shareholder redemption requests or to raise cash, those sales could further reduce the securities’ prices and hurt performance of the Underlying Fund, and therefore the Fund.

Mortgage- and Asset-Backed Securities Risk – Mortgage-related and asset-backed securities, including certain agency obligations, collateralized loan obligations and collateralized debt obligations, are subject to certain other risks. The value of these securities will be influenced by the factors affecting the housing market or the other assets underlying such securities. As a result, during periods of declining asset values, difficult or frozen credit markets, significant changes in interest rates, or deteriorating economic conditions, mortgage-related and asset-backed securities may decline in value, face valuation difficulties, become more volatile and/or become dramatically less liquid. These securities are also subject to prepayment and call risk. In periods of declining interest rates, the Underlying Fund may be subject to contraction risk which is the risk that borrowers will increase the rate at which they prepay the maturity value of mortgages and other obligations. When mortgages and other obligations are prepaid and when securities are called, the Fund may have to reinvest in securities with a lower yield or fail to recover additional amounts (i.e., premiums) paid for securities with higher interest rates, resulting in an unexpected capital loss and/or a decrease in the amount of dividends and yield. In periods of rising interest rates, the Underlying Funds may be subject to extension risk which is the risk that the expected maturity of an obligation will lengthen in duration due to a decrease in prepayments. As a result, in certain interest rate environments, the Underlying Funds, and therefore the Fund, may exhibit additional volatility. 

New Fund Risk – The Fund is a recently organized, diversified management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors have a limited track record on which to base their investment decision. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Fund will grow to, or maintain, an economically viable size, in which case the Board of the Company may determine to liquidate the Fund.

New Investment Sub-Adviser Risk – The Sub-Adviser is a newly formed investment adviser with no operating history. There is no guarantee that the Sub-Adviser will be able to produce satisfactory returns for the Fund or preserve the Fund’s assets. Furthermore, the technology that the Sub-Adviser uses to manage the Fund’s portfolio has no operating history and has no history of performance.

Other Investment Companies Risk – The Fund will invest in shares of mutual funds or unit investment trusts that are traded on a stock exchange, called exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”). Investments in ETFs are subject to the risks of the securities in which those investment companies invest. Your cost of investing in the Fund, as a fund of funds, may be higher than the cost of investing in a fund that only invests directly in individual securities. Fund shareholders will indirectly pay a portion of the operating costs of the Underlying Funds in addition to the expenses of the Fund’s own operation. These costs include management, brokerage, shareholder servicing and other operational expenses. Unlike shares of typical mutual funds or unit investment trusts, shares of ETFs are designed to be traded throughout the trading day, bought and sold based on market prices rather than net asset value. An investment in an ETF generally presents the following risks: (i) the same primary risks as an investment in a conventional mutual fund (i.e., one that is not exchange-traded) that has the same investment objectives, strategies and policies; (ii) the risk that an ETF may fail to accurately track the market segment or index that underlies its investment objective; (iii) price fluctuation, resulting in a loss to the Fund; (iv) the risk that an ETF may trade at a discount to its net asset value; (v) the risk that an active market for an ETF’s shares may not develop or be maintained; and (vi) the risk that an ETF may no longer meet the listing requirements of any applicable exchanges on which that ETF is listed. 

Preferred Securities Risk – Preferred securities generally are subordinated to bonds and other debt instruments in a company’s capital structure and therefore will be subject to greater credit risk than those debt instruments. In addition, preferred securities are subject to other risks, such as having no or limited voting rights, being subject to special redemption rights, having distributions deferred or skipped, having floating interest rates or dividends, which may result in a decline in value in a falling interest rate environment, having limited liquidity, changing or unfavorable tax treatments and possibly being issued by companies in heavily regulated industries.

Prepayment Risk – Prepayment risk is the risk that the issuer of a debt security will repay principal prior to the scheduled maturity date. Debt securities allowing prepayment may offer less potential for gains during a period of declining interest rates, as Underlying Funds may be required to reinvest the proceeds of any prepayment at lower interest rates. These factors may adversely impact the value of the Underlying Funds’ portfolio, and therefore the Fund’s..

Rule 144A Securities Risk – The market for Rule 144A securities typically is less active than the market for publicly-traded securities. Rule 144A securities carry the risk that their liquidity may become impaired and the Fund may be unable to dispose of the securities promptly or at reasonable prices.

Secondary Market Trading Risk – Although Shares are listed on a national securities exchange, [insert exchange (“Exchange”)] and may be traded on U.S. exchanges other than the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active or liquid trading market for them will develop or be maintained. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted.

Shares May Trade at Prices Other Than NAV – As with all ETFs, Shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at market prices. Although it is expected that the market price of Shares will approximate the Fund’s NAV, there may be times when the market price of Shares is more than the NAV intra-day (premium) or less than the NAV intra-day (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market volatility or periods of steep market declines. 

Sovereign Debt Risk – Sovereign debt instruments are subject to the risk that a governmental entity may delay or refuse to pay interest or repay principal on its sovereign debt. This may be due to, for example, cash flow problems, insufficient foreign currency reserves, political considerations, the relative size of the governmental entity’s debt position in relation to the economy or the failure to put in place economic reforms required by the International Monetary Fund or other multilateral agencies.

Unrated Security Risk – Unrated securities determined by an Underlying Fund’s adviser to be of comparable quality to rated securities which the Underlying Fund may purchase may pay a higher interest rate than such rated securities and be subject to a greater risk of illiquidity or price changes. Less public information is typically available about unrated securities or issuers than rated securities or issuers.

U.S. Government Securities Risk – U.S. government securities are guaranteed only as to the timely payment of interest and the payment of principal when held to maturity. Accordingly, the current market values for these securities will fluctuate with changes in interest rates. Securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government agencies and instrumentalities are supported by varying degrees of credit but generally are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. No assurance can be given that the U.S. government will provide financial support to its agencies and instrumentalities if it is not obligated by law to do so.  

Valuation Risk – The debt securities in which the Underlying Funds invest typically are valued by a pricing service utilizing a range of market-based inputs and assumptions, including readily available market quotations obtained from broker-dealers making markets in such instruments, cash flows and transactions for comparable instruments. There is no assurance that the Underlying Funds will be able to sell a portfolio security at the price established by the pricing service, which could result in a loss to the Underlying Funds, and therefore the Funds. Pricing services generally price debt securities assuming orderly transactions of an institutional “round lot” size, but some trades may occur in smaller, “odd lot” sizes, often at lower prices than institutional round lot trades. Different pricing services may incorporate different assumptions and inputs into their valuation methodologies, potentially resulting in different values for the same securities. As a result, if an Underlying Fund were to change pricing services, or if an Underlying Fund’s pricing service were to change its valuation methodology, there could be a material impact, either positive or negative, on the Underlying Fund’s, and therefore the Fund’s, net asset value.

Performance Information:  

Performance information for the Fund is not included because the Fund did not commence operations prior to the date of this Prospectus. In the future, performance information for the Fund will be presented in this section. Updated performance information is available on the Fund’s website at [  ] or by calling the Fund toll free at [  ].

Management: 

Investment Adviser and Sub-Advisers

Red Gate Advisers, LLC serves as the investment adviser to the Fund. YieldX Advisers, LLC and Vident Investment Advisory, LLC each serve as a sub-adviser to the Fund.

Portfolio Managers 

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares: 

Shares are listed on a national securities exchange, such as the Exchange, and most investors will buy and sell Shares through brokers at market prices, rather than NAV. Because Shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, Shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less than NAV (discount).

The Fund issues and redeems Shares at NAV only in large blocks known as “Creation Units,” which only APs (typically, broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. Creation Units generally consist of 25,000 Shares, though this may change from time to time. Creation Unit transactions are typically conducted in exchange for the deposit or delivery of in-kind securities and/or cash.

Tax Information: 

Fund distributions are generally taxable as ordinary income, qualified dividend income, or capital gains (or a combination), unless your investment is in an individual retirement account (“IRA”) or other tax-advantaged account. Distributions on investments made through tax-deferred arrangements may be taxed later upon withdrawal of assets from those accounts.

Financial Intermediary Compensation: 

If you purchase Shares through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an “Intermediary”), the Fund’s investment adviser, or its affiliates may pay Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more knowledgeable about exchange traded products, including the Fund, or for other activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related to the sale or promotion of Shares. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more information. 

YIELDX SHORT-TERM ETF

Investment Objective: 

The investment objective of the YieldX Short-Term ETF (the “Fund”) is to provide investors with current income.

Fees and Expenses: 

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). This table and the Example below do not include the brokerage commissions that investors may pay on their purchases and sales of Fund Shares.

Example 

This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that: (1) your investment has a 5% return each year, and (2) the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Portfolio Turnover  

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. The Fund does not have any portfolio turnover information as the Fund had not commenced operations prior to the date of this Prospectus.

Principal Investment Strategies: 

The Fund invests mainly in a diversified portfolio of securities of unaffiliated exchange-traded funds (“ETFs” or “Underlying Funds”). Underlying Funds will invest in income producing securities, including money market funds, corporate securities and municipal debt of any rating. To a limited extent, the Fund may also invest in direct investments. The Fund may invest in Underlying Funds that do not have income as an objective, and to the extent it does so, it may not generate as much current income.

Under normal market conditions, YieldX Advisers, LLC (the “Sub-Adviser”) will attempt to manage the Fund to achieve a portfolio yield to worst (i.e., the lowest potential yield that can be achieved on a bond without an issuer default) 1% to 1.50% greater than the current yield of the 1-Year U.S. Treasury Bill. The Sub-Adviser maintains a large database of eligible securities and their associated yields and expected risk profiles that is updated daily. The Sub-Adviser utilizes proprietary tools to filter the subset of eligible securities that fit the target yield range and then applies risk and optimal allocation models with the goal of meeting the yield target while optimizing the risk profile of the Fund. If yields of current holdings of the Fund fall below the target range, the Sub-Adviser may sell those Underlying Funds and capture the gain, if applicable, and reallocate to Underlying Funds that fall within the target range. If yields on current holdings go above the target range, the Sub-Adviser will assess the risk profile of the securities and may decide to sell those Underlying Funds and reallocate to other Underlying Funds. When determining whether to sell or hold portfolio securities that have fallen outside the target yield range, the Sub-Adviser will consider the market and security-specific environment that led to the shift in yield, the relative risk-adjusted attractiveness of other Underlying Funds that could potentially replace the existing Underlying Funds in the portfolio and the tax implications of the transaction. There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its yield target at any given point in time. Further, if short-term market conditions are such that the Sub-Adviser determines that in order to achieve the yield target it would require taking undue risk, the portfolio management team may elect to maintain a lower yield profile for a period of time. 

Under normal market conditions, the Fund will invest primarily in Underlying Funds focusing on the following types of securities:

The Underlying Funds may invest in securities that have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, but that may be resold to qualified institutional buyers in accordance with the provisions of Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933 (“Rule 144A Securities”).

Restricted securities, including Rule 144A Securities, are securities that have not been publicly issued and legally can be resold only to qualified buyers. Rule 144A Securities will not be considered illiquid if the Underlying Fund determines that an adequate trading market exists for the securities.

The Fund has no investment policy or restrictions regarding the duration or maturity of the securities it invests in or its portfolio in the aggregate.

Principal Investment Risks: 

The value of your investment in this Fund will change daily. You could lose money by investing in the Fund, and there can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors. The Fund’s principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors.

Active Management Risk – The Fund is subject to management risk as an actively-managed investment portfolio. The investment sub-adviser’s investment approach may fail to produce the intended results.

Authorized Participants, Market Makers and Liquidity Providers Concentration Risk – Only an Authorized Participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of financial institutions that are institutional investors and may act as authorized participants (“APs”). In addition, there may be a limited number of market makers and/or liquidity providers in the marketplace. To the extent either of the following events occur, Fund Shares may trade at a material discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts or delisting: (i) APs exit the business or otherwise become unable to process creation and/or redemption orders and no other APs step forward to perform these services, or (ii) market makers and/or liquidity providers exit the business or significantly reduce their business activities and no other entities step forward to perform their functions. In periods of market volatility, APs, market makers and/or liquidity providers may be less willing to transact in Fund Shares.

Call Risk – If, during periods of falling interest rates, an issuer calls higher-yielding debt instruments held by an Underlying Fund, such Underlying Fund may have to reinvest in securities with lower yields or less favorable credit characteristics, which may adversely impact the Underlying Fund’s, and therefore the Fund’s, performance.

Credit Risk – Credit risk is the risk that an issuer or other obligated party of a debt security may be unable or unwilling to make interest and principal payments when due and the related risk that the value of a debt security may decline because of concerns about the issuer’s ability or willingness to make such payments. 

Credit Spread Risk – Credit spread risk is the risk that credit spreads (i.e., the difference in yield between securities that is due to differences in their credit quality) may increase when the market believes that bonds generally have a greater risk of default. Increasing credit spreads may reduce the market values of the Fund’s debt securities. Credit spreads often increase more for lower rated and unrated securities than for investment grade securities. In addition, when credit spreads increase, reductions in market value will generally be greater for longer-maturity securities.

Cyber Security Risk – Cyber security risk is the risk of an unauthorized breach and access to Fund assets, Fund or customer data (including private shareholder information), or proprietary information, or the risk of an incident occurring that causes the Fund, the investment adviser or sub-advisers, custodian, transfer agent, distributor and other service providers and financial intermediaries to suffer data breaches, data corruption or lose operational functionality or prevent Fund investors from purchasing, redeeming or exchanging shares or receiving distributions. The Fund and its investment adviser and sub-advisers have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers. Successful cyber-attacks or other cyber-failures or events affecting the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact and cause financial losses to the Fund or its shareholders.

Early Close/Trading Halt Risk – An exchange or market may close or issue trading halts on specific securities, or the ability to buy or sell certain securities or financial instruments may be restricted, which may result in an Underlying Fund being unable to buy or sell certain securities or financial instruments. In such circumstances, the Fund may be unable to rebalance its portfolio, may be unable to accurately price its investments, may incur significant tracking differences with its Index, and/or may incur substantial losses and may limit or stop purchases of the Fund.

Income Risk – The Fund’s income could decline during periods of falling interest rates or when an Underlying Fund experiences defaults on debt securities it holds.

Interest Rate Risk – Interest rate risk is the risk that the value of the Underlying Funds’ portfolios, and therefore the Fund’s, will decline because of rising interest rates. The Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates than would normally be the case due to the possibility that the current period of relatively low rates may be ending. The effect of potential government fiscal policy initiatives and resulting market reaction to those initiatives is unknown. Duration is a measure of a security’s price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The duration of a debt security is the weighted average term to maturity, expressed in years, of the present value of all future cash flows, including coupon payments and principal repayments. When interest rates change, the values of longer-duration debt securities usually change more than the values of shorter-duration debt securities. Rising interest rates also may lengthen the duration of debt securities with call features, since exercise of the call becomes less likely as interest rates rise, which in turn will make the securities more sensitive to changes in interest rates and result in even steeper price declines in the event of further interest rate increases. For example, if a bond has an effective duration of three years, a 1% increase in general interest rates would be expected to cause the bond’s value to decline about 3% while a 1% decrease in general interest rates would be expected to cause the bond’s value to increase 3%.

Liquidity Risk – Dealer inventories of bonds and other fixed income securities, which provide an indication of the ability of financial intermediaries to “make markets” in those securities, are at or near historic lows in relation to market size. This reduction in market making capacity has the potential to decrease liquidity and increase price volatility in the fixed income markets in which the Underlying Funds invest, particularly during periods of economic or market stress. In addition, recent federal banking regulations may cause certain dealers to reduce their inventories of bonds and other fixed income securities, which may further decrease the Underlying Fund’s ability to buy or sell such securities. As a result of this decreased liquidity, the Underlying Fund may have to accept a lower price to sell a security, sell other securities to raise cash, or give up an investment opportunity, any of which could have a negative effect on performance. If the Underlying Fund needed to sell large blocks of securities to meet shareholder redemption requests or to raise cash, those sales could further reduce the securities’ prices and hurt performance of the Underlying Fund, and therefore the Fund.

Mortgage- and Asset-Backed Securities Risk – Mortgage-related and asset-backed securities, including certain agency obligations, collateralized loan obligations and collateralized debt obligations, are subject to certain other risks. The value of these securities will be influenced by the factors affecting the housing market or the other assets underlying such securities. As a result, during periods of declining asset values, difficult or frozen credit markets, significant changes in interest rates, or deteriorating economic conditions, mortgage-related and asset-backed securities may decline in value, face valuation difficulties, become more volatile and/or become dramatically less liquid. These securities are also subject to prepayment and call risk. In periods of declining interest rates, the Underlying Funds may be subject to contraction risk which is the risk that borrowers will increase the rate at which they prepay the maturity value of mortgages and other obligations. When mortgages and other obligations are prepaid and when securities are called, the Fund may have to reinvest in securities with a lower yield or fail to recover additional amounts (i.e., premiums) paid for securities with higher interest rates, resulting in an unexpected capital loss and/or a decrease in the amount of dividends and yield. In periods of rising interest rates, the Underlying Funds may be subject to extension risk which is the risk that the expected maturity of an obligation will lengthen in duration due to a decrease in prepayments. As a result, in certain interest rate environments, the Underlying Funds, and therefore the Fund, may exhibit additional volatility. 

New Fund Risk – The Fund is a recently organized, diversified management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors have a limited track record on which to base their investment decision. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Fund will grow to, or maintain, an economically viable size, in which case the Board of the Company may determine to liquidate the Fund.

New Investment Sub-Adviser Risk – The Sub-Adviser is a newly formed investment adviser with no operating history. There is no guarantee that the Sub-Adviser will be able to produce satisfactory returns for the Fund or preserve the Fund’s assets. Furthermore, the technology that the Sub-Adviser uses to manage the Fund’s portfolio has no operating history and has no history of performance.

Other Investment Companies Risk – The Fund will invest in shares of mutual funds or unit investment trusts that are traded on a stock exchange, called exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”). Investments in ETFs are subject to the risks of the securities in which those investment companies invest. Your cost of investing in the Fund, as a fund of funds, may be higher than the cost of investing in a fund that only invests directly in individual securities. Fund shareholders will indirectly pay a portion of the operating costs of the Underlying Funds in addition to the expenses of the Fund’s own operation. These costs include management, brokerage, shareholder servicing and other operational expenses. Unlike shares of typical mutual funds or unit investment trusts, shares of ETFs are designed to be traded throughout the trading day, bought and sold based on market prices rather than net asset value. An investment in an ETF generally presents the following risks: (i) the same primary risks as an investment in a conventional mutual fund (i.e., one that is not exchange-traded) that has the same investment objectives, strategies and policies; (ii) the risk that an ETF may fail to accurately track the market segment or index that underlies its investment objective; (iii) price fluctuation, resulting in a loss to the Fund; (iv) the risk that an ETF may trade at a discount to its net asset value; (v) the risk that an active market for an ETF’s shares may not develop or be maintained; and (vi) the risk that an ETF may no longer meet the listing requirements of any applicable exchanges on which that ETF is listed. 

Preferred Securities Risk – Preferred securities generally are subordinated to bonds and other debt instruments in a company’s capital structure and therefore will be subject to greater credit risk than those debt instruments. In addition, preferred securities are subject to other risks, such as having no or limited voting rights, being subject to special redemption rights, having distributions deferred or skipped, having floating interest rates or dividends, which may result in a decline in value in a falling interest rate environment, having limited liquidity, changing or unfavorable tax treatments and possibly being issued by companies in heavily regulated industries.

Prepayment Risk – Prepayment risk is the risk that the issuer of a debt security will repay principal prior to the scheduled maturity date. Debt securities allowing prepayment may offer less potential for gains during a period of declining interest rates, as Underlying Funds may be required to reinvest the proceeds of any prepayment at lower interest rates. These factors may impact the value of the Underlying Funds’ portfolio, and therefore the Fund’s.

Rule 144A Securities Risk – The market for Rule 144A securities typically is less active than the market for publicly-traded securities. Rule 144A securities carry the risk that their liquidity may become impaired and the Fund may be unable to dispose of the securities promptly or at reasonable prices.

Secondary Market Trading Risk – Although Shares are listed on a national securities exchange, [insert exchange (“Exchange”)] and may be traded on U.S. exchanges other than the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active or liquid trading market for them will develop or be maintained. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted.

Shares May Trade at Prices Other Than NAV – As with all ETFs, Shares may be bought and sold in the secondary market at market prices. Although it is expected that the market price of Shares will approximate the Fund’s NAV, there may be times when the market price of Shares is more than the NAV intra-day (premium) or less than the NAV intra-day (discount). This risk is heightened in times of market volatility or periods of steep market declines. 

Sovereign Debt Risk – Sovereign debt instruments are subject to the risk that a governmental entity may delay or refuse to pay interest or repay principal on its sovereign debt. This may be due to, for example, cash flow problems, insufficient foreign currency reserves, political considerations, the relative size of the governmental entity’s debt position in relation to the economy or the failure to put in place economic reforms required by the International Monetary Fund or other multilateral agencies.

Unrated Security Risk – Unrated securities determined by an Underlying Fund’s adviser to be of comparable quality to rated securities which the Underlying Fund may purchase may pay a higher interest rate than such rated securities and be subject to a greater risk of illiquidity or price changes. Less public information is typically available about unrated securities or issuers than rated securities or issuers.

U.S. Government Securities Risk – U.S. government securities are guaranteed only as to the timely payment of interest and the payment of principal when held to maturity. Accordingly, the current market values for these securities will fluctuate with changes in interest rates. Securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government agencies and instrumentalities are supported by varying degrees of credit but generally are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. No assurance can be given that the U.S. government will provide financial support to its agencies and instrumentalities if it is not obligated by law to do so.

Valuation Risk – The debt securities in which the Underlying Funds invest typically are valued by a pricing service utilizing a range of market-based inputs and assumptions, including readily available market quotations obtained from broker-dealers making markets in such instruments, cash flows and transactions for comparable instruments. There is no assurance that the Underlying Funds will be able to sell a portfolio security at the price established by the pricing service, which could result in a loss to the Underlying Funds, and therefore the Funds. Pricing services generally price debt securities assuming orderly transactions of an institutional “round lot” size, but some trades may occur in smaller, “odd lot” sizes, often at lower prices than institutional round lot trades. Different pricing services may incorporate different assumptions and inputs into their valuation methodologies, potentially resulting in different values for the same securities. As a result, if the Underlying Funds were to change pricing services, or if an Underlying Fund’s pricing service were to change its valuation methodology, there could be a material impact, either positive or negative, on the Underlying Fund’s, and therefore the Fund’s, net asset value.

Performance Information:  

Performance information for the Fund is not included because the Fund did not commence operations prior to the date of this Prospectus. In the future, performance information for the Fund will be presented in this section. Updated performance information is available on the Fund’s website at [  ] or by calling the Fund toll free at [  ].

Management: 

Investment Adviser and Sub-Advisers

Red Gate Advisers, LLC serves as the investment adviser to the Fund. YieldX Advisers, LLC and Vident Investment Advisory, LLC each serve as a sub-adviser to the Fund.

Portfolio Managers 

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares: 

Shares are listed on a national securities exchange, such as the Exchange, and most investors will buy and sell Shares through brokers at market prices, rather than NAV. Because Shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, Shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (premium) or less than NAV (discount). 

The Fund issues and redeems Shares at NAV only in large blocks known as “Creation Units,” which only APs (typically, broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. Creation Units generally consist of 25,000 Shares, though this may change from time to time. Creation Unit transactions are typically conducted in exchange for the deposit or delivery of in-kind securities and/or cash.

Tax Information: 

Fund distributions are generally taxable as ordinary income, qualified dividend income, or capital gains (or a combination), unless your investment is in an individual retirement account (“IRA”) or other tax-advantaged account. Distributions on investments made through tax-deferred arrangements may be taxed later upon withdrawal of assets from those accounts.

Financial Intermediary Compensation: 

If you purchase Shares through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an “Intermediary”), the Fund’s investment adviser, or its affiliates may pay Intermediaries for certain activities related to the Fund, including participation in activities that are designed to make Intermediaries more knowledgeable about exchange traded products, including the Fund, or for other activities, such as marketing, educational training or other initiatives related to the sale or promotion of Shares. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the Intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Any such arrangements do not result in increased Fund expenses. Ask your salesperson or visit the Intermediary’s website for more information. 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDS

Principal Investment Strategies: 

YieldX Hub is the Sub-Adviser’s proprietary analytics engine for identifying investments and managing portfolios optimized for risk/reward and fit to the investment guidelines of our clients. YieldX Hub’s capabilities include a range of quantitative pricing, risk factor, stress testing and economic sensitivity models that are run daily by our investment team. The YieldX Asset Analyzer toolkit allows the Sub-Adviser to compute security-specific attributes and to view, search, and compare securities and expected risk profiles daily. The Sub-Adviser then utilizes the YieldX Portfolio Analyzer and Optimizer toolkits to calculate portfolio level metrics and determine the optimal portfolio of investments that the Sub-Adviser believes are mostly likely to meet the current income objectives of the Funds while minimizing the risk and volatility of the Funds to the extent possible The team reviews the output from YieldX Hub daily and makes adjustments to the portfolios as necessary considering the investment objective and strategy of each Fund.

Each of the Funds’ principal investment strategies includes a target yield (calculated as yield to worst) as follows:

In order to achieve the applicable yield targets, the Sub-Adviser maintains a large database of eligible securities and their associated yields and expected risk profiles that is updated daily. The Sub-Adviser utilizes proprietary tools to filter the subset of eligible investments that fit the target yield range and then applies risk and optimal allocation models with the goal of meeting the yield target while optimizing the risk profile of the Fund. Yields of current holdings of the Fund that fall below the target range the Sub-Adviser may sell those investments and capture the gain if applicable and reallocate to investments that fall within the target range. If yields on current holdings go above the target range the Sub-Adviser will assess the risk profile of the investments and may decide to sell those investments and reallocate to other investments. There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve its yield target at any given point in time. Further, if short term market conditions are such that the Sub-Adviser determines that in order to achieve the yield target it would require taking undue risk the portfolio management team may elect to maintain a lower yield profile for a period of time.

Each of the Funds’ investment objective is to provide investors with current income. These objectives may be changed without shareholder approval. If your Fund’s investment objective changes, you will be notified at least 60 days in advance.

The Funds’ investment policies may be changed by the Board without shareholder approval unless otherwise noted in this Prospectus or the Statement of Additional Information.

The Funds’ principal and non-principal investment strategies are discussed below. The principal investment strategies are the strategies that the Funds’ investment adviser believes are most likely to be important in trying to achieve the Funds’ investment objectives. This section provides more information about these strategies, as well as information about some additional strategies that the Sub-Adviser uses, or may use, to achieve the Funds’ objectives. You should be aware that each Fund may also use strategies and invest in securities that are not described in this Prospectus, but that are described in the Statement of Additional Information. For a copy of the Statement of Additional Information, call the Funds at (800) [ ] or visit the Sub-Adviser’s website at www.[ ].

U.S. government securities: The Underlying Funds will invest in U.S. government securities. U.S. government securities include U.S. Treasury obligations and securities issued or guaranteed by various agencies of the U.S. government, or by various instrumentalities which have been established or sponsored by the U.S. government. U.S. government securities include securities of non-U.S. issuers that are guaranteed by the U.S. government or its agencies or instrumentalities. U.S. Treasury obligations are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. government. Securities issued or guaranteed by federal agencies and U.S. government sponsored instrumentalities may or may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.

Corporate debt securities: The Underlying Funds will invest in corporate debt securities issued by companies of all kinds, including those with small-, mid- and large-capitalizations. Corporate debt securities are fixed income securities issued by businesses to finance their operations. Notes, bonds, debentures and commercial paper are the most common types of corporate debt securities, with the primary difference being their maturities and secured or unsecured status. Commercial paper has the shortest term and is usually unsecured. Corporate debt securities may be rated investment-grade or below investment-grade and may carry fixed or floating rates of interest.

High yield debt securities: The Underlying Funds of the YieldX High Income ETF and YieldX Diversified Income ETF will invest in debt securities rated below investment grade or unrated securities deemed by the Underlying Fund’s adviser to be of comparable quality. Debt securities rated below investment grade are commonly referred to as “high yield” securities or “junk” bonds. These types of bonds are typically issued by companies without long track records of sales and earnings, or by issuers that have questionable credit strength. High yield and comparable unrated debt securities: (a) will likely have some quality and protective characteristics that, in the judgment of the rating agency evaluating the instrument, are outweighed by large uncertainties or major risk exposures to adverse conditions; and (b) are predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal in accordance with the terms of the obligation. 

Preferred securities: The Underlying Funds will invest in all types of preferred securities, including both traditional preferred securities and non-traditional preferred securities. Traditional preferred securities are generally equity securities of the issuer that have priority over the issuer’s common shares as to the payment of dividends (i.e., the issuer cannot pay dividends on its common shares until the dividends on the preferred shares are current) and as to the payout of proceeds of a bankruptcy or other liquidation, but are subordinate to an issuer’s senior debt and junior debt as to both types of payments.

Additionally, in a bankruptcy or other liquidation, traditional preferred securities are generally subordinate to an issuer’s trade creditors and other general obligations. Traditional preferred securities may be perpetual or have a term, and typically have a fixed liquidation (or “par”) value.

The term “preferred securities” also includes certain hybrid securities and other types of preferred securities that do not have the traditional features described above. Preferred securities that are hybrid securities often behave similarly to investments in traditional preferred securities and are regarded by market investors as being part of the preferred securities market. Such hybrid securities possess varying combinations of features of both debt and traditional preferred securities and as such they may constitute senior debt, junior debt or preferred shares in an issuer’s capital structure. Thus, they may not be subordinate to a company’s debt securities (as are traditional preferred securities).

Hybrid securities include trust preferred securities. Trust preferred securities are typically issued by corporations, generally in the form of interest-bearing notes with preferred securities characteristics, or by an affiliated business trust of a corporation or other special purpose entity, generally in the form of beneficial interests in subordinated debentures or similarly structured securities. The trust preferred securities market consists of both fixed and floating coupon rate securities that are either perpetual in nature or have stated maturity dates. Trust preferred securities may defer payment of income without triggering an event of default. These securities may have many characteristics of equity due to their subordinated position in an issuer’s capital structure.

Preferred securities may also include certain forms of debt that have many characteristics of preferred shares, and that are regarded by the investment marketplace to be part of the broader preferred securities market. Among these preferred securities are certain exchange-listed debt issues that historically have several attributes, including trading and investment performance characteristics, in common with exchange-listed traditional preferred securities and hybrid securities. Generally, these types of preferred securities are senior debt or junior debt in the capital structure of an issuer.

As a general matter, dividend or interest payments on preferred securities may be cumulative or non-cumulative and may be deferred (in the case of cumulative payments) or skipped (in the case of non-cumulative payments) at the option of the issuer. Generally, preferred security holders have no voting rights with respect to the issuing company, except in some cases voting rights may arise if the issuer fails to pay the preferred share dividends or if a declaration of default occurs and is continuing.

Preferred securities may either trade over-the-counter (“OTC”) or trade on an exchange. Preferred securities can be structured differently for retail and institutional investors, and the Funds may invest in preferred securities of either structure. The retail segment is typified by $25 par value exchange-traded securities and the institutional segment is typified by $1,000 par value OTC securities. Both $25 and $1,000 par value securities are often callable at par value, typically at least five years after their original issuance date.

Other investment companies: As a principal investment strategy, the Funds will invest in securities of other open-end or closed-end investment companies, including ETFs.

An ETF is an investment company that holds a portfolio of securities generally designed to track the performance of a securities index, including industry, sector, country and region indexes. Some ETFs are actively-managed by an investment adviser and/or sub-advisers. Actively-managed ETFs are subject to the risk of poor investment selection. ETFs trade on a securities exchange and their shares may, at times, trade at a premium or discount to their net asset value.

As a shareholder in an investment company, a Fund will bear its ratable share of that vehicle’s expenses and would remain subject to payment of the Fund’s advisory and administrative fees with respect to assets so invested. Shareholders would therefore be subject to duplicative expenses to the extent a Fund invests in an investment company. In addition, a Fund will incur brokerage costs when purchasing and selling shares of ETFs. Securities of investment companies may be leveraged, in which case the value and/or yield of such securities will tend to be more volatile than securities of unleveraged vehicles. 

Effective maturity: The YieldX Short-Term Income ETF attempts to maintain a specified weighted average effective maturity of its portfolio. Generally, the longer the effective maturity of a Fund’s portfolio, the more sensitive the Fund’s net asset value will be to changes in interest rates.

A bond’s maturity is the length of time until the principal is paid back. The effective maturity of a bond may be substantially shorter than its stated or final maturity. In calculating the effective maturity of bonds in a Fund’s portfolio, the Sub-Adviser estimates the shortening effect of expected principal prepayments and call provisions on the bonds’ maturities. Effective maturity provides a better estimate of interest rate risk under normal market conditions than stated maturity but may underestimate interest rate risk in an environment of rising market interest rates.

Credit quality: Certain Funds have investment strategies requiring them to invest in debt securities that have received a particular rating from a rating service, such as Moody’s or Standard & Poor’s. Any reference in this Prospectus to a specific rating encompasses all gradations of that rating. For example, if the Prospectus says that a Fund may invest in securities rated as low as “B,” the Fund may invest in securities rated “B-.” Debt securities that are rated below investment grade (“BB”/“Ba” or lower) are commonly referred to as “high yield” securities or “junk” bonds. High yield bonds typically offer higher yields than investment grade bonds with similar maturities but involve greater risks, including the possibility of default or bankruptcy, and increased market price volatility.

Non-Principal Investment Strategies:

Municipal obligations: As a non-principal investment strategy, the Funds may invest in taxable and tax-exempt municipal bonds. States, local governments and municipalities and other issuing authorities issue municipal bonds to raise money for various public purposes such as building public facilities, refinancing outstanding obligations and financing general operating expenses. These bonds include general obligation bonds, which are backed by the full faith and credit of the issuer and may be repaid from any revenue source, and revenue bonds, which may be repaid only from the revenue of a specific facility or source.

Municipal bonds issued to finance activities with a broad public purpose are generally exempt from federal income tax. Taxable municipal bonds, however, are issued to finance activities with less significant benefits to the public, such as the construction of sports facilities, and as such the interest paid to holders of such bonds is taxable as ordinary income. Many taxable municipal bonds offer yields comparable to those of other taxable bonds, such as corporate and agency bonds. Taxable municipal bonds may be rated investment-grade or below investment-grade and pay interest based on fixed or floating rate coupons. Maturities may range from long-term to short-term.

The Funds may purchase municipal bonds that represent lease obligations. These carry special risks because the issuer of the bonds may not be obligated to appropriate money annually to make payments under the lease. In order to reduce this risk, the Funds will, in making purchase decisions, take into consideration the issuer’s incentive to continue making appropriations until maturity.

The municipal securities in which the Funds invest may include refunded bonds and zero-coupon bonds. Refunded bonds may have originally been issued as general obligation or revenue bonds but become “refunded” when they are secured by an escrow fund, usually consisting entirely of direct U.S. government obligations and/or U.S. government agency obligations. Zero-coupon bonds are issued at substantial discounts from their value at maturity and pay no cash income to their holders until they mature. When held to maturity, their entire return comes from the difference between their purchase price and their maturity value.

The municipal securities in which the Funds invest may have variable, floating, or fixed interest rates.

Loans: As a non-principal investment strategy, the Funds may invest in loans, including senior secured loans, unsecured and/or subordinated loans, loan participations and unfunded contracts. These loans are typically made by or issued to corporations primarily to finance acquisitions, refinance existing debt, support organic growth, or pay out dividends, and are typically originated by large banks and are then syndicated out to institutional investors as well as to other banks. Loans typically bear interest at a floating rate, although some loans pay a fixed rate. Floating rate loans have interest rates that reset periodically, typically monthly or quarterly. The interest rates on floating rate loans are generally based on a percentage above LIBOR, a U.S. banks prime or base rate, the overnight federal funds rate or another rate. Due to their lower place in the borrower’s capital structure, unsecured and/or subordinated loans involve a higher degree of overall risk than senior bank loans of the same borrower. Loan participations are loans that are shared by a group of lenders. Unfunded contracts are commitments by lenders (such as a Fund) to loan an amount in the future or that is due to be contractually funded in the future. 

Certain loans in which the Funds may invest are “covenant-lite” loans, which are loans made with minimal protections for the lender. Because covenant-lite loans are less restrictive on borrowers and provide less protection for lenders than typical corporate loans, the risk of default may be significantly higher. Covenant-lite loans contain fewer maintenance covenants, or no maintenance covenants at all, than traditional loans and may not include terms that allow the lender to monitor the financial performance of the borrower and declare a default if certain criteria are breached. This may hinder the Funds’ ability to reprice credit risk associated with the borrower and reduce the Funds’ ability to restructure a problematic loan and mitigate potential loss. As a result, the Funds’ exposure to losses on such investments is increased, especially during a downturn in the credit cycle.

Derivatives: As a non-principal investment strategy, the Funds may invest in certain derivatives. The Funds may invest in derivatives only if the expected risks and rewards of the derivatives are consistent with the investment objective, policies, strategies, and risks of the Fund as disclosed in the Prospectus. The types of derivatives the Funds may invest in are described in greater detail in the Statement of Additional Information. Derivatives will be used only when they may assist the Sub-Adviser to accomplish one or more of the following:

Contingent capital securities: As a non-principal investment strategy, the Fund’s may invest in contingent capital securities (sometimes referred to as “CoCos”). CoCos are hybrid securities, issued primarily by non-U.S. financial institutions, which have loss absorption mechanisms benefitting the issuer built into their terms. CoCos generally provide for mandatory conversion into the common stock of the issuer or a write-down of the principal amount or value of the CoCos upon the occurrence of certain triggers linked to regulatory capital thresholds. In addition, they may provide for mandatory conversion or a principal write-down upon the occurrence of certain events such as regulatory actions calling into question the issuing banking institution’s continued viability as a going-concern. Equity conversion or principal write-down features are tailored to the issuer and its regulatory requirements and, unlike traditional convertible securities, conversions are not voluntary.

Non-U.S. investments: As a non-principal investment strategy, the Funds may invest in debt securities of non-U.S. issuers, including issuers in emerging markets. The Funds will classify an issuer of a security as being a U.S. or non-U.S. issuer based on the determination of an unaffiliated, recognized financial data provider. Such determinations are based on a number of criteria, such as the issuer’s country of domicile, the primary exchange on which the security trades, the location from which the majority of the issuer’s revenue comes, and the issuer’s reporting currency.

The Funds may invest in issuers located in emerging markets. Emerging market countries include any country other than Canada, the United States and the countries comprising the MSCI EAFE^® Index (currently, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom).

Cash equivalents and short-term investments: As a non-principal investment strategy, the Funds may invest in cash and in U.S. dollar-denominated high-quality money market instruments and other short-term securities, including money market funds, in such proportions as warranted by prevailing market conditions and the Funds’ principal investment strategies. The Funds may temporarily invest without limit in such holdings for liquidity purposes, or in an attempt to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions. Being invested in these securities may keep a Fund from participating in a market upswing and prevent a Fund from achieving its investment objective. 

Securities lending: As a non-principal investment strategy, each Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of its total assets to broker-dealers, banks, and other institutions to generate additional income. When a Fund loans its portfolio securities, it will receive, at the inception of each loan, cash collateral equal to at least 102% of the value of the loaned securities. Under the Funds’ securities lending agreement, the securities lending agent will generally bear the risk that a borrower may default on its obligation to return loaned securities. The Funds, however, will be responsible for the risks associated with the investment of cash collateral. A Fund may lose money on its investment of cash collateral or may fail to earn sufficient income on its investment to meet its obligations to the borrower.

Additional Principal Risk Information: 

The value of your investment in a Fund will change daily. You could lose money by investing in a Fund, and there can be no assurance that a Fund will achieve its investment objective. An investment in a Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Different risks may be more significant at different times depending on market conditions or other factors. See the “Summary Section” section for a description of the principal risks of investing in a particular Fund. Additional information about these risks is listed alphabetically below. Because of these risks, you should consider an investment in a Fund to be a long-term investment. Unless stated otherwise in the information below, each of the risk factors applies to all of the Funds included in this Prospectus.

Active management risk: The Sub-Adviser actively manages each Fund’s investments. Consequently, the Funds are subject to the risk that the investment techniques and risk analyses employed by the Funds’ Sub-Adviser may not produce the desired results. This could cause a Fund to lose value or its investment results to lag relevant benchmarks or other funds with similar objectives. Additionally, legislative, regulatory or tax developments may affect the investment techniques available to the Funds’ Sub-Adviser in connection with managing a Fund and may also adversely affect the ability of a Fund to achieve its investment goal.

Authorized participants, market makers, and liquidity providers concentration risk: Each Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that may act as APs. In addition, there may be a limited number of market makers and/or liquidity providers in the marketplace. To the extent either of the following events occur, Shares may trade at a material discount to NAV and possibly face delisting: (i) APs exit the business or otherwise become unable to process creation and/or redemption orders and no other APs step forward to perform these services, or (ii) market makers and/or liquidity providers exit the business or significantly reduce their business activities and no other entities step forward to perform their functions.

Bond market liquidity risk: Primary dealer inventories of bonds appear to be low relative to the size of the fixed income market. These inventories are a core indication of dealers’ capacity to “make a market” in fixed income securities. This reduction in market making capacity has the potential to decrease liquidity and increase price volatility in the fixed income markets in which a Fund invests, particularly during periods of economic or market stress. As a result of this decreased liquidity, an Underlying Fund may have to accept a lower price to sell a security, sell other securities to raise cash, or give up an investment opportunity, any of which could have a negative effect on performance. If an Underlying Fund needed to sell large blocks of bonds to meet shareholder redemption requests or to raise cash, those sales could further reduce the bonds’ prices and hurt performance.

Call risk: Debt securities are subject to call risk. Many bonds may be redeemed at the option of the issuer, or “called,” before their stated maturity date. In general, an issuer will call its bonds if they can be refinanced by issuing new bonds which bear a lower interest rate. An Underlying Fund is subject to the possibility that during periods of falling interest rates, a bond issuer will call its high yielding bonds. An Underlying Fund would then be forced to invest the unanticipated proceeds at lower interest rates, resulting in a decline in the Underlying Fund’s income, and therefore the Fund’s. Such redemptions and subsequent reinvestments would also increase an Underlying Fund’s portfolio turnover. If the called bond was purchased at a premium, the value of the premium may be lost in the event of prepayment.

Credit risk: Credit risk is the risk that an issuer of a debt security held by an Underlying Fund, or to which an Underlying Fund otherwise has exposure, may be unable or unwilling to make interest and principal payments and the related risk that the value of a debt security may decline because of concerns about the issuer’s ability or willingness to make such payments. Debt securities are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, which are often reflected in credit ratings. The credit rating of a debt security may be lowered if the issuer suffers adverse changes in its financial condition, which can lead to greater volatility in the price of the security and in shares of an Underlying Fund, and therefore the Fund, and can also affect the security’s liquidity and make it more difficult for the Underlying Fund to sell. When an Underlying Fund purchases unrated securities, it will depend on the Underlying Fund’s analysis of credit risk without the assessment of an independent rating organization, such as Moody’s or Standard & Poor’s. 

To the extent that the Underlying Funds hold debt securities that are secured or guaranteed by financial institutions, changes in the credit quality of such financial institutions could cause the values of these debt securities to decline.

Credit spread risk: Credit spread risk is the risk that credit spreads (i.e., the difference in yield between securities that is due to differences in their credit quality) may increase when the market believes that bonds generally have a greater risk of default. Increasing credit spreads may reduce the market values of an Underlying Fund’s securities, and therefore the market values of the Funds. Credit spreads often increase more for lower rated and unrated securities than for investment grade securities. In addition, when credit spreads increase, reductions in market value will generally be greater for longer-maturity securities.

High yield securities risk: The YieldX Diversified Income ETF and the YieldX High Income ETF are exposed to the risk of investing in “high yield” securities. Securities that are rated below-investment grade are commonly referred to as “high yield” securities or “junk” bonds. High yield securities usually offer higher yields than investment grade securities, but also involve more risk. High yield securities may be more susceptible to real or perceived adverse economic conditions than investment grade securities, and they generally have more volatile prices and carry more risk to principal. In addition, high yield securities generally are less liquid than investment grade securities.

Income risk: An Underlying Fund’s, and therefore the Funds’, income from its debt securities could decline during periods of falling interest rates because the Underlying Fund generally may have to invest the proceeds from sales of Underlying Fund shares, as well as the proceeds from maturing portfolio debt securities (or portfolio securities that have been called, see “Call risk” above, or prepaid, see “Mortgage- and asset-backed securities risk” below), in lower-yielding securities. In addition, an Underlying Fund’s income, and therefore the Funds’, could decline when the Underlying Fund experiences defaults on debt securities it holds.

Interest rate risk: Debt securities held by an Underlying Fund will fluctuate in value with changes in interest rates. In general, debt securities will increase in value when interest rates fall and decrease in value when interest rates rise. An Underlying Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates than would normally be the case due to the possibility that the current period of relatively low rates may be ending. The effect of potential government fiscal policy initiatives and resulting market reaction to those initiatives is unknown. Longer-term debt securities are generally more sensitive to interest rate changes. Duration is a measure of a security’s price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The duration of a debt security is the weighted average term to maturity, expressed in years, of the present value of all future cash flows, including coupon payments and principal repayments. Rising interest rates also may lengthen the duration of debt securities with call features, since exercise of the call becomes less likely as interest rates rise, which in turn will make the securities more sensitive to changes in interest rates and result in even steeper price declines in the event of further interest rate increases.

Mortgage- and asset-backed securities risk: The value of mortgage- and asset-backed securities can fall if the owners of the underlying mortgages or other obligations pay off their mortgages or other obligations sooner than expected, which could happen when interest rates fall or for other reasons.

Mortgage- and asset-backed securities are also subject to extension risk, which is the risk that rising interest rates could cause mortgages or other obligations underlying the securities to be prepaid more slowly than expected, which would, in effect, convert a short- or medium-duration mortgage- or asset-backed security into a longer-duration security, increasing its sensitivity to interest rate changes and causing its price to decline.

A mortgage-backed security may be negatively affected by the quality of the mortgages underlying such security and the structure of its issuer. For example, if a mortgage underlying a certain mortgage-backed security defaults, the value of that security may decrease.

An Underlying Fund may invest in mortgage-backed securities that are not explicitly backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government, and there can be no assurance that the U.S. government would provide financial support in situations in which it was not obligated to do so. Mortgage-backed securities issued by a private issuer, such as commercial mortgage-backed securities, generally entail greater risk than obligations directly or indirectly guaranteed by the U.S. government or a government-sponsored entity. 

New funds risk: Each Fund is a recently organized, diversified management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors have a limited track record on which to base their investment decision. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Funds will grow to, or maintain, an economically viable size, in which case the Board of the Company may determine to liquidate the Funds. Like other new funds, large inflows and outflows may impact a Fund’s market exposure for limited periods of time. This impact may be positive or negative, depending on the direction of market movement during the period affected. If a Fund fails to attract a large amount of assets, shareholders of the Fund may incur higher expenses as the Fund’s fixed costs would be allocated over a smaller number of shareholders.

New investment sub-adviser risk: The Sub-Adviser is a newly formed investment adviser with no operating history. The Sub-Adviser and its employees have limited experience managing investment assets other than their own assets. There is no guarantee that the Sub-Adviser will be able to produce satisfactory returns for the Fund or preserve the Fund’s assets. Furthermore, the technology that the Sub-Adviser uses to manage the Fund’s portfolio has no operating history and has no history of performance.

Other investment companies risk: When a Fund invests in other investment companies, including ETFs, shareholders bear both their proportionate share of fund expenses and, indirectly, the expenses of the other investment companies. Furthermore, the fund is exposed to the risks to which the other investment companies may be subject. For index-based ETFs, while such ETFs seek to achieve the same returns as a particular market index, the performance of an ETF may diverge from the performance of such index (commonly known as tracking error).

Preferred security risk: There are special risks associated with investing in preferred securities:

Prepayment risk: Prepayment risk is the risk that the issuer of a debt security will repay principal (in part or in whole) prior to the scheduled maturity date. Debt securities allowing prepayment may offer less potential for gains during a period of declining interest rates, as an Underlying Fund may be required to reinvest the proceeds of any prepayment at lower interest rates, reducing its income. If an Underlying Fund purchased the debt securities at a premium, prepayments on the securities could cause the Underlying Fund to lose a portion of its principal investment. These factors may cause the value of an investment in an Underlying Fund to change. The impact on prepayments on the price of a debt seriously may be difficult to predict and may increase the security’s volatility.

Rule 144A securities risk: The market for Rule 144A securities typically is less active than the market for publicly-traded securities. Rule 144A securities carry the risk that their liquidity may become impaired and an Underlying Fund may be unable to dispose of the securities promptly or at reasonable prices.

Secondary market trading risk: Although each Fund’s Shares are listed for trading on the Exchange and may be listed or traded on U.S. and non-U.S. stock exchanges other than the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for Shares will develop or be maintained. Trading in a Fund’s Shares may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to Exchange “circuit breaker” rules, which temporarily halt trading on the Exchange. Additional rules applicable to the Exchange may halt trading in Shares when extraordinary volatility causes sudden, significant swings in the market price of Shares. There can be no assurance that Shares will trade with any volume, or at all, on any stock exchange. In stressed market conditions, the liquidity of an Underlying Fund’s Shares may begin to mirror the liquidity of the Underlying Fund’s underlying holdings, which can be significantly less liquid than the Underlying Fund’s Shares.

Shares may trade at prices other than NAV. As with all ETFs, Shares of the Funds may be bought and sold in the secondary market at market prices. There is a risk that market prices for Fund Shares will vary significantly from the Fund’s NAV. This risk is heightened in times of market disruption or volatility or periods of steep market declines. The market price of Shares during the trading day, like the price of any exchange-traded security, includes a “bid/ask” spread charged by the exchange specialist, market makers or other participants that trade Shares. In times of severe market disruption, the bid/ask spread can increase significantly. At those times, Shares are most likely to be traded at a discount to NAV, and the discount is likely to be greatest when the price of Shares is falling fastest, which may be the time that you most want to sell your Shares.

Sovereign debt risk: Sovereign debt instruments are subject to the risk that a governmental entity may delay or refuse to pay interest or repay principal on its sovereign debt. This may be due to, for example, cash flow problems, insufficient foreign currency reserves, political considerations, the relative size of the governmental entity’s debt position in relation to the economy or the failure to put in place economic reforms required by the International Monetary Fund or other multilateral agencies. If a governmental entity defaults, it may ask for more time in which to pay or for further loans. There is no legal process for collecting sovereign debt that a government does not pay nor are there bankruptcy proceedings through which all or part of the sovereign debt that a governmental entity has not repaid may be collected. 

Unrated security risk: Unrated securities determined by an Underlying Fund to be of comparable quality to rated securities which the Underlying Fund may purchase may pay a higher interest rate than such rated securities and be subject to a greater risk of illiquidity or price changes. Less public information is typically available about unrated securities or issuers than rated securities or issuers.

U.S. government securities risk: U.S. government securities are guaranteed only as to the timely payment of interest and the payment of principal when held to maturity. Accordingly, the current market values for these securities will fluctuate with changes in interest rates. Securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government agencies and instrumentalities are supported by varying degrees of credit but generally are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. No assurance can be given that the U.S. government will provide financial support to its agencies and instrumentalities if it is not obligated by law to do so.

Valuation risk: The debt securities in which an Underlying Fund may invest typically are valued by a pricing service utilizing a range of market-based inputs and assumptions, including readily available market quotations obtained from broker-dealers making markets in such instruments, cash flows and transactions for comparable instruments. There is no assurance that an Underlying Fund will be able to sell a portfolio security at the price established by the pricing service, which could result in a loss to the Underlying Fund. Pricing services generally price debt securities assuming orderly transactions of an institutional “round lot” size, but some trades may occur in smaller, “odd lot” sizes, often at lower prices than institutional round lot trades. Different pricing services may incorporate different assumptions and inputs into their valuation methodologies, potentially resulting in different values for the same securities. As a result, if an Underlying Fund were to change pricing services, or if an Underlying Fund’s pricing service were to change its valuation methodology, there could be a material impact, either positive or negative, on the Underlying Fund’s net asset value.

Zero-coupon bonds risk: As interest on zero-coupon bonds is not paid on a current basis, the values of the bonds are subject to greater fluctuations than are the value of bonds that distribute income regularly and may be more speculative than such bonds. Accordingly, the values of zero-coupon bonds may be highly volatile as interest rates rise or fall. In addition, while zero-coupon bonds generate income for purposes of generally accepted accounting standards, they do not generate cash flow and thus could cause an Underlying Fund to be forced to liquidate securities at an inopportune time in order to distribute cash, as required by certain tax laws.

Additional Non-Principal Risk Information: 

Contingent capital securities risk: A loss absorption mechanism trigger event for CoCos would likely be the result of, or related to, the deterioration of the issuer’s financial condition (e.g., a decrease in the issuer’s capital ratio) and status as a going concern. In such a case, with respect to CoCos that provide for conversion into common stock upon the occurrence of the trigger event, the market price of the issuer’s common stock received by a Fund will have likely declined, perhaps substantially, and may continue to decline, which may adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value. Further, the issuer’s common stock would be subordinate to the issuer’s other classes of securities and therefore would worsen the Fund’s standing in a bankruptcy proceeding. In addition, because the common stock of the issuer may not pay a dividend, investors in these instruments could experience a reduced income rate, potentially to zero. In view of the foregoing, CoCos are often rated below investment grade and are subject to the risks of high yield securities.

CoCos may be subject to an automatic write-down (i.e., the automatic write-down of the principal amount or value of the securities, potentially to zero, and the cancellation of the securities) under certain circumstances, which could result in a Fund losing a portion or all of its investment in such securities. In addition, a Fund may not have any rights with respect to repayment of the principal amount of the securities that has not become due or the payment of interest or dividends on such securities for any period from (and including) the interest or dividend payment date falling immediately prior to the occurrence of such automatic write-down. An automatic write-down could also result in a reduced income rate if the dividend or interest payment is based on the security’s par value. Coupon payments on CoCos may be discretionary and may be cancelled by the issuer for any reason or may be subject to approval by the issuer’s regulator and may be suspended in the event there are insufficient distributable reserves. 

In certain scenarios, investors in CoCos may suffer a loss of capital ahead of equity holders or when equity holders do not. There is no guarantee that a Fund will receive a return of principal on CoCos. Any indication that an automatic write-down or conversion event may occur can be expected to have a material adverse effect on the market price of CoCos.

The prices of CoCos may be volatile. Additionally, the trading behavior of a given issuer’s CoCo may be strongly impacted by the trading behavior of other issuers’ CoCos, such that negative information from an unrelated CoCo may cause a decline in value of one or more CoCos held by a Fund. Accordingly, the trading behavior of CoCos may not follow the trading behavior of other similarly structured securities.

CoCos are issued primarily by financial institutions. Therefore, CoCos present substantially increased risks at times of financial turmoil, which could affect financial institutions more than companies in other sectors and industries.

Costs of buying or selling shares: Investors buying or selling Shares in the secondary market will pay brokerage commissions or other charges imposed by brokers, as determined by that broker. Brokerage commissions are often a fixed amount and may be a significant proportional cost for investors seeking to buy or sell relatively small amounts of the Fund’s Shares. In addition, secondary market investors will also incur the cost of the difference between the price at which an investor is willing to buy Shares (the “bid” price) and the price at which an investor is willing to sell Shares (the “ask” price). This difference in bid and ask prices is often referred to as the “spread” or “bid/ask spread.” The bid/ask spread varies over time for Shares based on trading volume and market liquidity, and is generally lower if Shares have more trading volume and market liquidity and higher if Shares have little trading volume and market liquidity. Further, a relatively small investor base in the Fund, asset swings in the Fund, and/or increased market volatility may cause increased bid/ask spreads. Due to the costs of buying or selling Shares, including bid/ask spreads, frequent trading of Shares may significantly reduce investment results and an investment in Shares may not be advisable for investors who anticipate regularly making small investments.

Currency risk: Changes in currency exchange rates will affect the value of non-U.S. securities, interest earned from such securities, gains and losses realized on the sale of such securities, and derivative transactions tied to such securities, and hence will affect the net asset value of a Fund that invests in such securities. A strong U.S. dollar relative to these other currencies will adversely affect the value of a Fund to the extent it invests in such non-U.S. securities.

Cyber security risk: With the increased use of technologies such as the internet to conduct business, each Fund is susceptible to operational, information security and related risks. In general, cyber incidents can result from deliberate attacks or unintentional events. Cyber-attacks include, but are not limited to, gaining unauthorized access to digital systems (e.g., through “hacking” or malicious software coding) for purposes of misappropriating assets or sensitive information, corrupting data, or causing operational disruption. Cyber-attacks may also be carried out in a manner that does not require gaining unauthorized access, such as causing denial-of-service attacks on websites (i.e., efforts to make network services unavailable to intended users). Cyber security failures or breaches by the Fund’s investment adviser or sub-advisers and other service providers (including, but not limited to, Fund accountant, custodian, transfer agent and administrator), and the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, have the ability to cause disruptions and impact business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses, interference with the Fund’s ability to calculate its NAV, impediments to trading, the inability of Fund shareholders to transact business, violations of applicable privacy and other laws, regulatory fines, penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs, or additional compliance costs. In addition, substantial costs may be incurred in order to prevent any cyber incidents in the future. While the investment adviser and sub-advisers have each established business continuity plans in the event of, and risk management systems to prevent, such cyber-attacks, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems including the possibility that certain risks have not been identified. Furthermore, the Funds cannot control the cyber security plans and systems put in place by service providers to the Funds and issuers in which the Funds invests. The Funds and their shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.

Derivatives risk: The use of derivatives presents risks different from, and possibly greater than, the risks associated with investing directly in traditional securities. Derivatives can be highly volatile, illiquid and difficult to value, and there is the risk that changes in the value of a derivative held by a fund will not correlate with the asset, index or rate underlying the derivative contract.

The use of derivatives can lead to losses because of adverse movements in the price or value of the underlying asset, index or rate, which may be magnified by certain features of the contract. A derivative transaction also involves the risk that a loss may be sustained as a result of the failure of the counterparty to the contract to make required payments. These risks are heightened when the management team uses derivatives to enhance a Fund’s return or as a substitute for a position or security, rather than solely to hedge (or offset) the risk of a position or security held by the Fund. 

In addition, when a Fund engages in certain derivative transactions, it is effectively leveraging its investments, which could result in exaggerated changes in the net asset value of the Fund’s Shares and can result in losses that exceed the amount originally invested. The success of a Fund’s derivatives strategies will depend on the sub-adviser’s ability to assess and predict the impact of market or economic developments on the underlying asset, index or rate and the derivative itself, without the benefit of observing the performance of the derivative under all possible market conditions.

A Fund may also enter into OTC transactions in derivatives. Transactions in the OTC markets generally are conducted on a principal-to-principal basis. The terms and conditions of these instruments generally are not standardized and tend to be more specialized or complex, and the instruments may be harder to value. In general, there is less governmental regulation and supervision of transactions in the OTC markets than of transactions entered into on organized exchanges. In addition, certain derivative instruments and markets may not be liquid, which means a Fund may not be able to close out a derivatives transaction in a cost-efficient manner.

Short positions in derivatives may involve greater risks than long positions, as the risk of loss on short positions is theoretically unlimited (unlike a long position, in which the risk of loss may be limited to the notional amount of the instrument).

Swap agreements may involve fees, commissions or other costs that may reduce a Fund’s gains from a swap agreement or may cause the fund to lose money.

Futures contracts are subject to the risk that an exchange may impose price fluctuation limits, which may make it difficult or impossible for a Fund to close out a position when desired.

Loan risk: Loans in which a Fund may invest generally are subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale and may trade infrequently on the secondary market. The lack of an active trading market for certain loans may impair the ability of a Fund to realize full value in the event of the need to sell a loan and may make it difficult to value such loans. Portfolio transactions in loans may settle in as short as seven days but typically can take up to two or three weeks, and in some cases much longer. As a result of these extended settlement periods, a Fund may incur losses if it is required to sell other investments or temporarily borrow to meet its cash needs, including satisfying redemption requests.

The amount of public information available with respect to loans may be less extensive than that available for registered or exchange listed securities. Furthermore, because a Fund’s adviser may wish to invest in the publicly-traded securities of an obligor, the Fund may not have access to material non-public information regarding the obligor to which other investors have access. Loans may not be considered “securities” and, as a result, a Fund may not be entitled to rely on the anti-fraud protections of the securities laws.

Interests in secured loans have the benefit of collateral and, typically, of restrictive covenants limiting the ability of the borrower to further encumber its assets. However, there is a risk that the value of any collateral securing a loan in which a Fund has an interest may decline and that the collateral may not be sufficient to cover the amount owed on the loan. In the event the borrower defaults, a Fund’s access to the collateral may be limited or delayed because of difficulty liquidating the collateral or by bankruptcy or other insolvency laws. The risks associated with unsecured loans, which are not backed by a security interest in any specific collateral, are higher than those for comparable loans that are secured by specific collateral. Interests in loans made to finance highly leveraged companies or transactions such as corporate acquisitions may be especially vulnerable to adverse changes in economic or market conditions.

Defaulted securities risk: The YieldX High Income ETF and YieldX Diversified Income ETF may invest in defaulted securities. Defaulted securities are debt securities on which the issuer is not currently making interest payments. In order to enforce its rights in defaulted securities, a Fund may be required to participate in legal proceedings or take possession of and manage assets securing the issuer’s obligations on the defaulted securities. This could increase a Fund’s operating expenses and adversely affect its net asset value. Risks in defaulted securities may be considerably higher as they are generally unsecured and subordinated to other creditors of the issuer. Any investments by the Fund in defaulted securities will also be considered illiquid securities subject to the limitations described herein, unless the Sub-Adviser determines that such defaulted securities are liquid under guidelines adopted by the Board of Trustees. 

Frequent trading risk: The Funds are expected to engage in active and frequent trading. Accordingly, a Fund’s portfolio turnover rate may exceed 100%. Frequent trading of portfolio securities may produce capital gains, which are taxable to shareholders when distributed. Frequent trading may also increase the amount of commissions or mark-ups to broker-dealers that a Fund pays when it buys and sells securities, which may detract from the Fund’s performance.

Legal and regulatory change risks: The regulatory environment for investment companies is evolving, and changes in regulation may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s investments and its ability to pursue its trading strategy. In addition, the securities markets are subject to comprehensive statutes and regulations. The SEC and other regulators and self-regulatory organizations and exchanges are authorized to take extraordinary actions in the event of market emergencies. The effect of any future regulatory change on the Fund could be substantial and adverse.

LIBOR risk: The terms of many investments, financings or other transactions to which a Fund may be a party have been historically tied to the London Interbank Offered Rate, or “LIBOR.” LIBOR is the offered rate at which major international banks can obtain wholesale, unsecured funding, and LIBOR may be available for different durations (e.g., 1 month or 3 months) and for different currencies. LIBOR may be a significant factor in determining a Fund’s payment obligations under a derivative investment, the cost of financing to a Fund or an investment’s value or return to the Fund, and may be used in other ways that affect a Fund’s investment performance. In July 2017, the Financial Conduct Authority, the United Kingdom’s financial regulatory body, announced that after 2021 it will cease its active encouragement of banks to provide the quotations needed to sustain LIBOR. That announcement suggests that LIBOR may cease to be published after that time. Various financial industry groups have begun planning for that transition, but there are obstacles to converting certain securities and transactions to a new benchmark. Transition planning is at an early stage, and neither the effect of the transition process nor its ultimate success can yet be known. The transition process might lead to increased volatility and illiquidity in markets for instruments whose terms currently include LIBOR. It could also lead to a reduction in the value of some LIBOR-based investments and reduce the effectiveness of new hedges placed against existing LIBOR-based investments. While some LIBOR-based instruments may contemplate a scenario where LIBOR is no longer available by providing for an alternative rate-setting methodology and/or increased costs for certain LIBOR-related instruments or financing transactions, not all may have such provisions and there may be significant uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of any such alternative methodologies, resulting in prolonged adverse market conditions for the Fund. Since the usefulness of LIBOR as a benchmark could deteriorate during the transition period, these effects could occur prior to the end of 2021. There also remains uncertainty and risk regarding the willingness and ability of issuers to include enhanced provisions in new and existing contracts or instruments. All of the aforementioned may adversely affect a Fund’s performance or NAV.

Market risk: The NAV of a Fund will change with changes in the market value of its portfolio positions. Investors may lose money. The prices of securities held by the Fund may decline in response to conditions affecting the general economy, overall market changes, local, regional or global political, social or economic instability, and currency, interest rate and commodity price fluctuations.

Periods of unusually high financial market volatility and restrictive credit conditions, at times limited to a particular sector or geographic area, have occurred in the past and may be expected to recur in the future. Some countries, including the United States, have adopted or have signaled protectionist trade measures, relaxation of the financial industry regulations that followed the financial crisis, and/or reductions to corporate taxes. The scope of these policy changes is still developing, but the equity and debt markets may react strongly to expectations of change, which could increase volatility, particularly if a resulting policy runs counter to the market’s expectations. The outcome of such changes cannot be foreseen at the present time. In addition, geopolitical and other risks, including environmental and public health risks, may add to instability in the world economy and markets generally. As a result of increasingly interconnected global economies and financial markets, the value and liquidity of the Fund’s investments may be negatively affected by events impacting a country or region, regardless of whether the Fund invests in issuers located in or with significant exposure to such country or region.

A recent outbreak of respiratory disease caused by a novel coronavirus was first detected in China in December 2019 and has spread internationally. The outbreak has resulted in closing borders and quarantines, enhanced health screenings, cancellations, disrupted supply chains and customer activity, and has produced general concern and uncertainty. The impact of this coronavirus, and other epidemics and pandemics that may arise in the future, could affect national and global economies, individual companies and the market in general in a manner that cannot be foreseen at the present time. Health crises caused by the recent outbreak may heighten other pre-existing political, social and economic risks in a country or region. In the event of a pandemic or an outbreak, there can be no assurance that the Fund and its service providers will be able to maintain normal business operations for an extended period of time or will not lose the services of key personnel on a temporary or long-term basis due to illness or other reasons. The full impacts of a pandemic or disease outbreaks are unknown, resulting in a high degree of uncertainty for potentially extended periods of time. 

Municipal securities risk: The values of municipal securities may be adversely affected by local political and economic conditions and developments. Adverse conditions in an industry significant to a local economy could have a correspondingly adverse effect on the financial condition of local issuers. Other factors that could affect municipal securities include a change in the local, state, or national economy, demographic factors, ecological or environmental concerns, statutory limitations on the issuer’s ability to increase taxes, and other developments generally affecting the revenue of issuers (for example, legislation or court decisions reducing state aid to local governments or mandating additional services). This risk would be heightened to the extent that a Fund invests a substantial portion of the below-investment grade quality portion of its portfolio in the bonds of similar projects (such as those relating to the education, health care, housing, transportation, or utilities industries), in industrial development bonds, or in particular types of municipal securities (such as general obligation bonds, municipal lease obligations, private activity bonds or moral obligation bonds) that are particularly exposed to specific types of adverse economic, business or political events. In addition, the amount of public information available about municipal bonds is generally less than for certain corporate equities or bonds, meaning that the investment performance of a Fund may be more dependent on the analytical abilities of the Fund’s adviser than Funds that invest in stock or other corporate investments.

To the extent that a Fund invests a significant portion of its assets in the securities of issuers located in a given state or U.S. territory, it will be disproportionally affected by political and economic conditions and developments in that state or territory and may involve greater risk than funds that invest in a larger universe of securities. In addition, economic, political or regulatory changes in that state or territory could adversely affect municipal securities issuers in that state or territory and therefore the value of a Fund’s investment portfolio.

Non-U.S./emerging markets risk: Non-U.S. issuers or U.S. issuers with significant non-U.S. operations may be subject to risks in addition to or different than those of issuers that are located in or principally operated in the United States due to political, social and economic developments abroad, different regulatory environments and laws, potential seizure by the government of company assets, higher taxation, withholding taxes on dividends and interest and limitations on the use or transfer of portfolio assets.

To the extent a Fund invests in depositary receipts, the Fund will be subject to many of the same risks as when investing directly in non-U.S. securities. The holder of an unsponsored depositary receipt may have limited voting rights and may not receive as much information about the issuer of the underlying securities as would the holder of a sponsored depositary receipt.

Other non-U.S. investment risks include the following:

Registered investment company (“RIC”) compliance risk: Each Fund intends to elect to be, and intends to qualify each year for treatment as, a RIC under Subchapter M of Subtitle A, Chapter 1, of the Code. To maintain the Fund’s qualification for federal income tax treatment as a RIC, the Fund must meet certain source-of-income, asset diversification and annual distribution requirements. If for any taxable year the Fund fails to qualify for the special federal income tax treatment afforded to RICs, all of the Fund’s taxable income will be subject to federal income tax at regular corporate rates (without any deduction for distributions to its shareholders) and its income available for distribution will be reduced. Under certain circumstances, the Fund could cure a failure to qualify as a RIC, but in order to do so, the Fund could incur significant Fund-level taxes and could be forced to dispose of certain assets.

Temporary Defensive Positions: 

In certain situations or market conditions, a Fund may temporarily depart from its normal investment policies and strategies provided that the alternative is consistent with the Fund’s investment objective and is in the best interest of the Fund. For example, a Fund may make larger than normal investments in high yield securities in order to achieve its yield targets. Consequently, under such circumstances, such Fund may invest in a different mix of investments than it would under normal circumstances.

Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings: 

Each Fund’s entire portfolio holdings are publicly disseminated each day the Fund is open for business through the Funds’ website located at www.[ ] and may be made available through financial reporting and news services or any other medium, including publicly available internet web sites. Additional information regarding the Funds’ policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Funds’ portfolio securities is available in the Funds’ Statement of Additional Information ("SAI").

MANAGEMENT OF THE FUNDS

Investment Adviser 

The investment adviser for the Funds is Red Gate Advisers, LLC (the “Adviser”). The Adviser is located at Gateway Corporate Center, Ste 216, 223 Wilmington West Chester Pike, Chadds Ford, PA 19317. The Adviser is owned by Craig Urciuoli and Chadds Ford Investment Management, LLC (“CFIM”), a Pennsylvania limited liability company. CFIM is controlled by Salvatore Faia and Margaret Faia. Mr. Faia is President and Chief Compliance Officer of the Company. Mr. Urciuoli is the Director of Marketing & Business Development for the Company.

Subject to the overall supervision of the Board, the Adviser manages the overall investment operations of the Funds, primarily in the form of oversight of the Funds’ sub-advisers, pursuant to the terms of an investment advisory agreement between the Company and the Adviser (the “Advisory Agreement”). Under the terms of the Advisory Agreement, each Fund pays the Adviser a unitary management fee that is computed and paid monthly at an annual rate of [ ]%, [ ]%, and [ ]% of the average daily net assets during the month of the YieldX Diversified Income ETF, YieldX High Income ETF, and YieldX Short-Term Income ETF, respectively. From the unitary management fee, the Adviser pays most of the expenses of the Funds, including the cost of sub-advisory, transfer agency, custody, fund administration, legal, audit and other services. However, under the Advisory Agreement, the Adviser is not responsible for interest expenses, brokerage commissions and other trading expenses, acquired fund fees and expenses, fees and expenses of the independent directors and their independent legal counsel, taxes and other extraordinary costs such as litigation and other expenses not incurred in the ordinary course of business (“Excluded Expenses”). 

Under the terms of an expense limitation agreement entered into by the Company and the Adviser, the Adviser has contractually agreed to waive a portion of its unitary management fee for the first year of the Fund’s operations to the extent necessary to limit the Fund’s annual operating expenses (excluding brokerage commissions, taxes, interest expense, acquired fund fees and expenses, and any extraordinary expenses) to an amount not exceeding [ ]%, [ ]%, and [ ]% of the average daily net assets of the YieldX Diversified Income ETF, YieldX High Income ETF, and YieldX Short-Term Income ETF, respectively. The Adviser may recover from the Fund fees waived for a period of three years after such fees were incurred, provided that the repayments do not cause the Fund’s operating expenses (excluding brokerage commissions, taxes, interest expense, acquired fund fees and expenses, and any extraordinary expenses) to exceeding [ ]%, [ ]%, and [ ]% of the average daily net assets of the YieldX Diversified Income ETF, YieldX High Income ETF, and YieldX Short-Term Income ETF, respectively, or, if less, the expense limitation that was in place at the time the fees were waived.

A discussion regarding the Board’s approval of the Advisory Agreement and the factors the Board considered with respect to the Funds will be available in the Funds’ first annual or semi-annual report to shareholders.

Investment Sub-Advisers

YieldX Advisers, LLC (the “Sub-Adviser”) is a Delaware limited liability company located at 2980 NE 207^th Street, Suite 504, Aventura, Florida 33180. Pursuant to the terms of a sub-advisory agreement between the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser, other than certain functions delegated to Vident Investment Advisory, LLC, the Sub-Adviser is responsible for the day-to-day management of the Funds, may make investment decisions for the Funds as determined necessary by the Sub-Adviser, and continuously reviews, supervises and administers the investment program of the Funds, subject to the supervision of the Adviser and the Board. Under the sub-advisory agreement, the Sub-Adviser receives a fee from the Adviser, calculated daily and paid monthly, equal to [ ]% of the average daily net assets of each Fund.

Vident Investment Advisory, LLC (“Vident”) is a Delaware limited liability company located at 1125 Sanctuary Parkway, Suite 515, Alpharetta, Georgia 30009. Vident was formed in 2014 and provides investment advisory services to exchange-traded funds, including the Funds. Vident is responsible for selecting broker-dealers to execute purchase and sale transactions, as instructed by the Sub-Adviser, subject to the supervision of the Adviser and the Board. Pursuant to a sub-advisory agreement, the Adviser pays Vident a fee, calculated daily and paid monthly, of [ ]% of average daily net assets of each Fund.

A discussion regarding the Board’s approval of the sub-advisory agreements and the factors the Board considered with respect to each Fund will be available in the Funds’ first annual or semi-annual report to shareholders.

The Sub-Adviser’s Portfolio Management Team

[insert bio of Tom Bradley]

[insert bio of PM #2]

Vident’s Portfolio Management Team

Rafael Zayas, CFA, Senior Vice President (SVP) – Mr. Zayas has over 15 years of trading and portfolio management experience in global equity products and ETFs. He is SVP, Head of Portfolio Management and Trading – Prior focus on international Equities, for Vident Investment Advisory, specializing in managing and trading of developed, emerging, and frontier market portfolios. Prior to joining Vident Investment Advisory, he was a Portfolio Manager at Russell Investments for over 5 billion in quantitative strategies across global markets, including emerging, developed and frontier markets and listed alternatives. Before that, he was an equity Portfolio Manager at BNY Mellon Asset Management, where he was responsible for 150 million in internationally listed global equity ETFs and assisted in managing 3 billion of global ETF assets. Mr. Zayas holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University. He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. 

Ryan Dofflemeyer, Senior Portfolio Manager – Mr. Dofflemeyer has over 16 years of trading and portfolio management experience across various asset classes including both ETFs and mutual funds. He is Senior Portfolio Manager for Vident Investment Advisory, specializing in managing and trading of global equity and multi-asset portfolios. Prior to joining Vident Investment Advisory, he was a Senior Portfolio Manager at ProShares for over $3 billion in ETF assets across global equities, commodities, and volatility strategies. Before that, he was a Research Analyst at the Investment Company Institute in Washington DC. Mr. Dofflemeyer holds a BA from the University of Virginia and an MBA from the University of Maryland.

The SAI provides additional information about the compensation of the Portfolio Managers, other accounts managed by each Portfolio Manager, and each Portfolio Manager’s ownership of Shares of the Funds that they manage.

HOW TO BUY AND SELL SHARES

Each Fund issues and redeems its Shares at NAV only in Creation Units. Only APs may acquire Shares directly from a Fund, and only APs may tender their Shares for redemption directly to a Fund, at NAV. APs must be (i) a broker-dealer or other participant in the clearing process through the Continuous Net Settlement System of the NSCC, a clearing agency that is registered with the SEC; or (ii) a DTC participant (as discussed below). In addition, each AP must execute a Participant Agreement that has been agreed to by the Distributor, and that has been accepted by the Transfer Agent, with respect to purchases and redemptions of Creation Units. Once created, Shares trade in the secondary market in quantities less than a Creation Unit.

Investors can only buy and sell Shares in secondary market transactions through brokers. Shares are listed for trading on the secondary market on the Exchange and can be bought and sold throughout the trading day like other publicly traded securities.

When buying or selling a Fund’s Shares through a broker, you will incur customary brokerage commissions and charges, and you may pay some or all of the spread between the bid and the offer price in the secondary market on each leg of a round trip (purchase and sale) transaction. In addition, because secondary market transactions occur at market prices, you may pay more than NAV when you buy Shares, and receive less than NAV when you sell those Shares.

Book Entry 

Shares are held in book-entry form, which means that no stock certificates are issued. The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) or its nominee is the record owner of all outstanding Shares.

Investors owning a Fund’s Shares are beneficial owners as shown on the records of DTC or its participants. DTC serves as the securities depository for all Shares. DTC’s participants include securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies, clearing corporations and other institutions that directly or indirectly maintain a custodial relationship with DTC. As a beneficial owner of Shares, you are not entitled to receive physical delivery of stock certificates or to have Shares registered in your name, and you are not considered a registered owner of Shares. Therefore, to exercise any right as an owner of Shares, you must rely upon the procedures of DTC and its participants. These procedures are the same as those that apply to any other securities that you hold in book entry or “street name” through your brokerage account.

Share Trading Prices on the Exchange 

Trading prices of a Fund’s Shares on the Exchange may differ from the Fund’s daily NAV. Market forces of supply and demand, economic conditions and other factors may affect the trading prices of Shares. To provide additional information regarding the indicative value of Shares, the Exchange or a market data vendor disseminates information every 15 seconds through the facilities of the Consolidated Tape Association, or other widely disseminated means, an updated “intraday indicative value” (“IIV”) for Shares as calculated by an information provider or market data vendor. The Funds are neither involved in nor responsible for any aspect of the calculation or dissemination of the IIVs and make no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the IIVs. If the calculation of the IIV is based on the basket of Deposit Securities, such IIV may not represent the best possible valuation of a Fund’s portfolio because the basket of Deposit Securities does not necessarily reflect the precise composition of the current Fund portfolios at a particular point in time. The IIV should not be viewed as a “real-time” update of a Fund’s NAV because the IIV may not be calculated in the same manner as the NAV, which is computed only once a day, typically at the end of the business day. The IIV is generally determined by using both current market quotations and/or price quotations obtained from broker-dealers that may trade in the Deposit Securities. 

Frequent Purchases and Redemptions of Shares 

The Funds impose no restrictions on the frequency of purchases and redemptions of Shares. In determining not to approve a written, established policy, the Board evaluated the risks of market timing activities by Fund shareholders. Purchases and redemptions by APs, who are the only parties that may purchase or redeem Shares directly with the Funds, are an essential part of the ETF process and help keep share trading prices in line with NAV. As such, the Funds accommodate frequent purchases and redemptions by APs. However, the Board has also determined that frequent purchases and redemptions for cash may increase tracking error and portfolio transaction costs and may lead to the realization of capital gains. To minimize these potential consequences of frequent purchases and redemptions, the Funds employ fair value pricing and impose transaction fees on purchases and redemptions of Creation Units to cover the custodial and other costs incurred by the Funds in effecting trades. In addition, the Funds reserve the right to reject any purchase order at any time.

Determination of Net Asset Value 

Each Fund’s NAV is calculated as of the scheduled close of regular trading on the NYSE, generally 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time, each day the NYSE is open for business. The NAV for a Fund is calculated by dividing the Fund’s net assets by its Shares outstanding.

In calculating its NAV, a Fund generally values its assets on the basis of market quotations, last sale prices, or estimates of value furnished by a pricing service or brokers who make markets in such instruments. If such information is not available for a security held by the Fund or is determined to be unreliable, the security will be valued at fair value estimates under guidelines established by the Board.

Fair Value Pricing 

If market quotations are unavailable or deemed unreliable by the Funds’ administrator, in consultation with the Sub-Adviser, securities will be fair valued by the Sub-Adviser in accordance with procedures adopted by the Board and under the Board’s ultimate supervision. Relying on prices supplied by pricing services or dealers or using fair valuation involves the risk that the values used by a Fund to price its investments may be higher or lower than the values used by other investment companies and investors to price the same investments.

DIVIDENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS, AND TAXES

Dividends and Distributions 

The Funds declare dividends daily and pay such dividends monthly. Your account will begin to accrue dividends on the business day after the day when the monies used to purchase your shares are collected by the transfer agent. The Funds declare and pay any taxable capital gains at least annually.

Dividend Reinvestment Service 

Brokers may make the DTC book-entry dividend reinvestment service available to their customers who own Shares.  If this service is available and used, dividend distributions of both income and capital gains will automatically be reinvested in additional whole Shares of a Fund purchased on the secondary market.  Without this service, investors would receive their distributions in cash. In order to achieve the maximum total return on their investments, investors are encouraged to use the dividend reinvestment service.  To determine whether the dividend reinvestment service is available and whether there is a commission or other charge for using this service, consult your broker.  Brokers may require a Fund’s shareholders to adhere to specific procedures and timetables.

Taxes 

As with any investment, you should consider how your investment in shares of a Fund will be taxed. The tax information in this Prospectus is provided as general information. Except where otherwise indicated, the discussion relates to investors who are individual United States citizens or residents. You should consult your own tax professional about the tax consequences of an investment in shares of a Fund.

Unless your investment in shares of a Fund is made through a tax-exempt entity or tax-advantaged account, such as an IRA plan, you need to be aware of the possible tax consequences when: (i) the Fund makes distributions; (ii) you sell your shares listed on the Exchange; and (iii) you purchase or redeem Creation Units. 

Taxes on Distributions  

For federal income tax purposes, distributions of investment income are generally taxable as ordinary income or qualified dividend income. Taxes on distributions of capital gains (if any) are determined by how long a Fund owned the investments that generated them, rather than how long a shareholder has owned his or her Shares. Sales of assets held by a Fund for more than one year generally result in long-term capital gains and losses, and sales of assets held by the Fund for one year or less generally result in short-term capital gains and losses. Distributions of a Fund’s net capital gain (the excess of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses) that are reported by the Fund as capital gain dividends (“Capital Gain Dividends”) will be taxable as long-term capital gains, which for non-corporate shareholders are subject to tax at reduced rates. Distributions of short-term capital gain will generally be taxable as ordinary income. Dividends and distributions are generally taxable to you whether you receive them in cash or reinvest them in additional Shares.

Distributions reported by a Fund as “qualified dividend income” are generally taxed to non-corporate shareholders at rates applicable to long-term capital gains, provided holding period and other requirements are met. “Qualified dividend income” generally is income derived from dividends paid by U.S. corporations or certain foreign corporations that are either incorporated in a U.S. possession or eligible for tax benefits under certain U.S. income tax treaties. In addition, dividends that a Fund receives in respect of stock of certain foreign corporations may be qualified dividend income if that stock is readily tradable on an established U.S. securities market. The amount of thae Fund’s distributions that qualify for this favorable treatment may be reduced as a result of the Fund’s securities lending activities, if any, a high portfolio turnover rate or investments in non-qualified foreign corporations. Corporate shareholders may be entitled to a dividends-received deduction for the portion of dividends they receive from a Fund that are attributable to dividends received by the Fund from U.S. corporations, subject to certain limitations. The amount of the dividends qualifying for this deduction may, however, be reduced as a result of a Fund’s securities lending activities, if any, by a high portfolio turnover rate, or by investments in non-U.S. corporations. Shortly after the close of each calendar year, you will be informed of the character of any distributions received from a Fund.

U.S. individuals with income exceeding specified thresholds are subject to a 3.8% Medicare contribution tax on all or a portion of their “net investment income,” which includes interest, dividends, and certain capital gains (including capital gains distributions and capital gains realized on the sale of Shares). This 3.8% tax also applies to all or a portion of the undistributed net investment income of certain shareholders that are estates and trusts.

In general, your distributions are subject to federal income tax for the year in which they are paid. Certain distributions paid in January, however, may be treated as paid on December 31 of the prior year. Distributions are generally taxable even if they are paid from income or gains earned by the Fund before your investment (and thus were included in the Shares’ NAV when you purchased your Shares).

You may wish to avoid investing in a Fund shortly before a dividend or other distribution, because such a distribution will generally be taxable to you even though it may economically represent a return of a portion of your investment. This adverse tax result is known as “buying into a dividend.”

Taxes When Shares are Sold on the Exchange 

For federal income tax purposes, any capital gain or loss realized upon a sale of Shares generally is treated as a long-term capital gain or loss if Shares have been held for more than 12 months and as a short-term capital gain or loss if Shares have been held for 12 months or less. However, any capital loss on a sale of Shares held for six months or less is treated as long-term capital loss to the extent of Capital Gain Dividends paid with respect to such Shares. Any loss realized on a sale will be disallowed to the extent Shares of the Fund are acquired, including through reinvestment of dividends, within a 61-day period beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the sale of Shares. If disallowed, the loss will be reflected in an upward adjustment to the basis of the Shares acquired.

IRAs and Other Tax-Qualified Plans 

The one major exception to the preceding tax principles is that distributions on and sales of shares of a Fund held in an IRA (or other tax-qualified plan) will not be currently taxable unless it borrowed to acquire the shares.

U.S. Tax Treatment of Foreign Shareholders 

If you are neither a resident nor a citizen of the United States or if you are a foreign entity, distributions (other than Capital Gain Dividends) paid to you by a Fund will generally be subject to a U.S. withholding tax at the rate of 30%, unless a lower treaty rate applies. Each Fund may, under certain circumstances, report all or a portion of a dividend as an “interest-related dividend” or a “short-term capital gain dividend,” which would generally be exempt from this 30% U.S. withholding tax, provided certain other requirements are met. 

Foreign shareholders will generally not be subject to U.S. tax on gains realized on the sale of shares in a Fund, except that a nonresident alien individual who is present in the United States for 183 days or more in a calendar year will be taxable on such gains and on capital gain dividends from a Fund.

In contrast, if a foreign investor conducts a trade or business in the United States and the investment in a Fund is effectively connected with that trade or business, then the foreign investor’s income from a Fund will generally be subject to U.S. federal income tax at graduated rates in a manner similar to the income of a U.S. citizen or resident.

Each Fund is generally required to withhold 30% on certain payments to shareholders that are foreign entities and that fail to meet prescribed information reporting or certification requirements.

All foreign investors should consult their own tax advisors regarding the tax consequences in their country of residence of an investment in a Fund.

Backup Withholding 

Each Fund (or a financial intermediary, such as a broker, through which a shareholder owns shares of the Fund) generally is required to withhold and remit to the U.S. Treasury a percentage of the taxable distributions and sale or redemption proceeds paid to any shareholder who fails to properly furnish a correct taxpayer identification number, who has underreported dividend or interest income, or who fails to certify that he, she or it is not subject to such backup withholding. The current backup withholding rate is 24%.

Taxes on Purchases and Redemptions of Creation Units  

An AP having the U.S. dollar as its functional currency for U.S. federal income tax purposes who exchanges securities for Creation Units generally recognizes a gain or a loss. The gain or loss will be equal to the difference between the market value of the Creation Units at the time of the exchange and the sum of the AP’s aggregate basis in the securities surrendered plus the amount of cash paid for such Creation Units. The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), however, may assert that a loss realized upon an exchange of securities for Creation Units cannot be deducted currently under the rules governing “wash sales,” or on the basis that there has been no significant change in economic position. Any gain or loss realized by an AP upon a creation of Creation Units will be treated as capital gain or loss if the AP holds the securities exchanged therefor as capital assets, and otherwise will be ordinary income or loss. Any capital gain or loss realized upon the creation of Creation Units will generally be treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the securities exchanged for such Creation Units have been held by the AP for more than 12 months, and otherwise will be short-term capital gain or loss.

The Company on behalf of each Fund has the right to reject an order for a purchase of Creation Units if the AP (or a group of APs) would, upon obtaining the Creation Units so ordered, own 80% or more of the outstanding shares of a Fund and if, pursuant to Section 351 of the Code, the Fund would have a basis in the securities different from the market value of such securities on the date of deposit. The Company also has the right to require information necessary to determine beneficial share ownership for purposes of the 80% determination. If a Fund does issue Creation Units to an AP (or group of APs) that would, upon obtaining the Creation Units so ordered, own 80% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund, the AP (or group of APs) may not recognize gain or loss upon the exchange of securities for Creation Units.

An AP who redeems Creation Units will generally recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between the sum of the aggregate market value of any securities received plus the amount of any cash received for such Creation Units and the AP’s basis in the Creation Units. Any gain or loss realized by an AP upon a redemption of Creation Units will be treated as capital gain or loss if the AP holds the shares comprising the Creation Units as capital assets, and otherwise will be ordinary income or loss. Any capital gain or loss realized upon the redemption of Creation Units will generally be treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the shares comprising the Creation Units have been held by the AP for more than 12 months, and otherwise will generally be short-term capital gain or loss. Any capital loss realized upon a redemption of Creation Units held for six months or less will be treated as a long-term capital loss to the extent of any amounts treated as distributions to the applicable AP of long-term capital gains with respect to the Creation Units (including any amounts credited to the AP as undistributed capital gains).

Each Fund may include a payment of cash in addition to, or in place of, the delivery of a basket of securities upon the redemption of Creation Units. A Fund may sell portfolio securities to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. This may cause the Fund to recognize investment income and/or capital gains or losses that it might not have recognized if it had completely satisfied the redemption in-kind. As a result, a Fund may be less tax efficient if it includes such a cash payment in the proceeds paid upon the redemption of Creation Units. 

Persons purchasing or redeeming Creation Units should consult their own tax advisers with respect to the tax treatment of any creation or redemption transaction.

The foregoing discussion summarizes some of the possible consequences under current federal tax law of an investment in a Fund. It is not a substitute for personal tax advice. You also may be subject to state and local tax on Fund distributions and sales of shares of a Fund. Consult your personal tax advisor about the potential tax consequences of an investment in Shares of a Fund under all applicable tax laws. For more information, please see the section entitled “DIVIDENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS, AND TAXES” in the SAI.

DISTRIBUTION

The Distributor, Vigilant Distributors, LLC, is a broker-dealer registered with the SEC. The Distributor distributes Creation Units for the Funds on an agency basis and does not maintain a secondary market in Shares. The Distributor has no role in determining the policies of a Fund or the securities that are purchased or sold by a Fund. The Distributor’s principal address is Gateway Corporate Center, Suite 216, 223 Wilmington West Chester Pike, Chadds Ford, PA 19317.

. 

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

Payments to Financial Intermediaries. 

The Adviser and Sub-Adviser, out of their own resources and without additional cost to a Fund or its shareholders, may pay intermediaries, including affiliates of the Adviser or Sub-Adviser, for the sale of Fund Shares and related services, including participation in activities that are designed to make intermediaries more knowledgeable about exchange traded products. Payments are generally made to intermediaries that provide shareholder servicing, marketing and related sales support, educational training or support, or access to sales meetings, sales representatives and management representatives of the intermediary. Payments may also be made to intermediaries for making Shares of a Fund available to their customers generally and in investment programs. The Adviser and Sub-Adviser may also reimburse expenses or make payments from its own resources to intermediaries in consideration of services or other activities the Adviser and/or Sub-Adviser believes may facilitate investment in the Funds.

The possibility of receiving, or the receipt of, the payments described above may provide intermediaries or their salespersons with an incentive to favor sales of Shares of the Funds, and other funds whose affiliates make similar compensation available, over other investments that do not make such payments. Investors may wish to take such payment arrangements into account when considering and evaluating any recommendations relating to the Funds and other ETFs.

Continuous Offering. 

The method by which Creation Units are purchased and traded may raise certain issues under applicable securities laws.  Because new Creation Units are issued and sold by the Funds on an ongoing basis, at any point a “distribution,” as such term is used in the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), may occur.  Broker-dealers and other persons are cautioned that some activities on their part may, depending on the circumstances, result in their being deemed participants in a distribution in a manner which could render them statutory underwriters and subject them to the Prospectus delivery and liability provisions of the Securities Act.

For example, a broker-dealer firm or its client may be deemed a statutory underwriter if it takes Creation Units after placing an order with the Distributor, breaks them down into individual Shares, and sells such Shares directly to customers, or if it chooses to couple the creation of a supply of new Shares with an active selling effort involving solicitation of secondary market demand for Shares.  A determination of whether one is an underwriter for purposes of the Securities Act must take into account all the facts and circumstances pertaining to the activities of the broker-dealer or its client in the particular case, and the examples mentioned above should not be considered a complete description of all the activities that could lead to categorization as an underwriter.

Broker-dealer firms should also note that dealers who are not “underwriters” but are effecting transactions in Shares, whether or not participating in the distribution of Shares, are generally required to deliver a prospectus.  This is because the prospectus delivery exemption in Section 4(a)(3) of the Securities Act is not available with respect to such transactions as a result of Section 24(d) of the 1940 Act.  As a result, broker dealer-firms should note that dealers who are not underwriters but are participating in a distribution (as contrasted with ordinary secondary market transactions) and thus dealing with Shares that are part of an over-allotment within the meaning of Section 4(a)(3)(a) of the Securities Act would be unable to take advantage of the prospectus delivery exemption provided by Section 4(a)(3) of the Securities Act.  Firms that incur a prospectus delivery obligation with respect to Shares of a Fund are reminded that under Rule 153 of the Securities Act, a prospectus delivery obligation under Section 5(b)(2) of the Securities Act owed to an exchange member in connection with a sale on the Exchange is satisfied by the fact that such Fund’s Prospectus is available on the SEC’s electronic filing system.  The prospectus delivery mechanism provided in Rule 153 of the Securities Act is only available with respect to transactions on an exchange. 

Premium/Discount Information. 

Each Fund is new and therefore does not have any information regarding how often Shares are traded on the Exchange at a price above (i.e., at a premium) or below (i.e., at a discount) the NAV of a Fund. Once available, this information will be presented, free of charge, on the Funds’ website at www.[ ].

Additional Information. 

The Funds enter into contractual arrangements with various parties, including, among others, the Funds’ investment adviser and sub-advisers who provide services to the Funds.  Shareholders are not parties to, or intended (or “third party”) beneficiaries of, those contractual arrangements.

The Prospectus and the SAI provide information concerning the Funds that you should consider in determining whether to purchase Shares of a Fund.  The Funds may make changes to this information from time to time.  Neither this Prospectus nor the SAI is intended to give rise to any contract rights or other rights in any shareholder, other than any rights conferred explicitly by federal or state securities laws that may not be waived.

NO PERSON HAS BEEN AUTHORIZED TO GIVE ANY INFORMATION OR MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS NOT CONTAINED IN THIS PROSPECTUS OR IN THE FUNDS' SAI INCORPORATED HEREIN BY REFERENCE, IN CONNECTION WITH THE OFFERING MADE BY THIS PROSPECTUS AND, IF GIVEN OR MADE, SUCH REPRESENTATIONS MUST NOT BE RELIED UPON AS HAVING BEEN AUTHORIZED BY THE COMPANY OR ITS DISTRIBUTOR. THIS PROSPECTUS DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFERING BY THE COMPANY OR BY THE DISTRIBUTOR IN ANY JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH OFFERING MAY NOT LAWFULLY BE MADE. 

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Financial highlights information is not available because the Funds did not commence operations prior to the date of this Prospectus. 

Privacy Notice

[YieldX Privacy Notice to be added] 

INVESTMENT ADVISER 

Red Gate Advisers, LLC
Gateway Corporate Center, Suite 216 

223 Wilmington West Chester Pike 

Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania 19317

INVESTMENT SUB-ADVISERS 

YieldX Advisers, LLC 

2980 NE 20^th Street, Suite 504 

Aventura, Florida 33810

Vident Investment Advisory, LLC 

300 Colonial Center Parkway, Suite 330 

Roswell, Georgia 30076

ADMINISTRATOR AND
TRANSFER AGENT 

U.S. Bank Global Fund Services
P.O. Box 701 

Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53201

CUSTODIAN 

U.S. Bank, N.A.
1555 North Rivercenter Drive, Suite 302 

Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53212

INDEPENDENT REGISTERED
PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM 

[  ]

UNDERWRITER 

Vigilant Distributors, LLC
Gateway Corporate Center, Suite 216 

223 Wilmington West Chester Pike 

Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania 19317

LEGAL COUNSEL 

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP
One Logan Square, Suite 2000
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103-6996 

FOR MORE INFORMATION

For more information about the Funds, the following documents are available free upon request:

Annual/Semiannual Reports 

Once available, additional information about each Fund’s investments is available in the Funds’ annual and semiannual reports to shareholders. The annual report will contain a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected a Fund’s performance during their most recently completed fiscal year. The Funds’ annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders, once available, will be available at www.[ ] or by calling 1-800-617-0004.

Statement of Additional Information 

The Funds’ SAI, dated [ ], 2021, has been filed with the SEC. The SAI, which includes additional information about the Fund may be obtained free of charge at [ ] or by calling 800-617-0004. The SAI, as supplemented from time to time, is incorporated by reference into this Prospectus and is legally considered a part of this Prospectus.

From the SEC 

Information about the Funds (including the SAI) and other information about the Funds is available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s Internet site at www.sec.gov, and copies of this information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by sending an electronic request to publicinfo@sec.gov.

Investment Company Act File Number 811-05518

The information in this Statement of Additional Information is not complete and may be changed.  We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective.  This Statement of Additional Information is not an offer to sell these securities and is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.

Subject to Completion 

Dated March 22, 2021

YieldX Diversified Income ETF 

([Exchange: Ticker])

YieldX High Income ETF 

([Exchange: Ticker])

YieldX Short-Term Income ETF 

([Exchange: Ticker])

Each a series of The RBB Fund, Inc.

2980 NE 207^th Street, Suite 504 

Aventura, Florida 33810

Statement of 

Additional Information 

Dated [  ], 2021

YieldX Diversified Income ETF, YieldX High Income ETF, and YieldX Short-Term ETF (each a “Fund” and together the “Funds”) are diversified series of The RBB Fund, Inc. (the “Company”), an open-end management investment company organized as a Maryland corporation on February 29, 1988.

Red Gate Advisers, LLC serves as the investment adviser to each Fund. Stance Capital, LLC and Vident Investment Advisory, LLC each serve as a sub-adviser to each Fund.

Information about the Funds is set forth in the prospectus dated [ ], 2021 (the “Prospectus”) and provides the basic information you should know before investing. To obtain a copy of the Prospectus and/or the Funds’ Annual and Semi-Annual Reports (when available), please write to the Funds c/o U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, 615 East Michigan Street, Milwaukee, WI 53202 or call 800-617-0004. This Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) is not a prospectus but contains information in addition to and more detailed than that set forth in the Prospectus. It is incorporated by reference in its entirety into the Prospectus. This SAI is intended to provide you with additional information regarding the activities and operations of each Fund and the Company, and it should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus. 

Table of Contents

FUND HISTORY

The Company is an open-end management investment company currently consisting of 39 separate portfolios.  The Company is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), and was organized as a Maryland corporation on February 29, 1988.  This SAI pertains to shares of the YieldX Diversified Income ETF, YieldX High Income ETF, and YieldX Short-Term ETF. Red Gate Advisers, LLC (the “Adviser”) serves as the investment adviser to the Funds. YieldX Advisers, LLC (the “Sub-Adviser”) and Vident Investment Advisory, LLC (“Vident”) each serve as a sub-adviser to the Funds.

The investment objective of each Fund is to provide investors with current income.

Each Fund offers and issues shares at its net asset value per share (“NAV”) only in aggregations of a specified number of shares (each a “Creation Unit”).  Each Fund also generally offers and issues shares in exchange for a basket of securities (“Deposit Securities”) together with the deposit of a specified cash payment (“Cash Component”).  The Company reserves the right to permit or require the substitution of a “cash in lieu” amount (“Deposit Cash”) to be added to the Cash Component to replace any Deposit Security. The shares of each Fund are listed on the [ ]. (the “Exchange”) and trade on the Exchange at market prices. These prices may differ from the shares’ NAVs.  The shares are also redeemable only in Creation Unit aggregations, and generally in exchange for portfolio securities and a specified cash payment.  A Creation Unit of each Fund consists of at least 25,000 Shares.

Shares of each Fund may be issued in advance of receipt of Deposit Securities subject to various conditions including a requirement to maintain on deposit with the Company cash at least equal to a specified percentage of the market value of the missing Deposit Securities as set forth in the Participant Agreement (as defined below).  The Company may impose a transaction fee for each creation or redemption (the “Transaction Fee”).  In all cases, such fees will be limited in accordance with the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") applicable to management investment companies offering redeemable securities.  Each Fund may charge, either in lieu or in addition to the fixed creation or redemption Transaction Fee, a variable fee for creations and redemptions in order to cover certain brokerage, tax, foreign exchange, execution, market impact and other costs and expenses related to the execution of trades resulting from such transaction, up to a maximum of 2.00% of the NAV per Creation Unit, inclusive of any Transaction Fees charged (if applicable).

INVESTMENT POLICIES AND PRACTICES

Each Fund’s investment objective and principal investment strategies is described in the Prospectus. The sections below describe some of the different types of investments that may be made by the each Fund as part of its non-principal investment strategy. The Funds will implement their respective investment strategies by investing in securities of unaffiliated exchange-traded funds (“ETFs” or the “Underlying Funds”). Certain of the descriptions of the investments or techniques set forth below reflect that the investments and techniques are occurring indirectly through investments in Underlying Funds. The following information supplements, and should be read in conjunction with, the Prospectus.

With respect to each Fund’s investments, unless otherwise noted, if a percentage limitation on investment is adhered to at the time of investment or contract, a subsequent increase or decrease as a result of market movement or redemption will not result in a violation of such investment limitation.

During unusual economic or market conditions, or for temporary defensive or liquidity purposes, each Fund may invest up to 100% of its assets in money market instruments that would not ordinarily be consistent with each Fund’s objective.

There can be no guarantee that a Fund will achieve its investment objective.  A Fund may not necessarily invest in all of the instruments or use all of the investment techniques permitted by the Funds’ Prospectus and this SAI, or invest in such instruments or engage in such techniques to the full extent permitted by the Funds’ investment policies and limitations

Asset-Backed Securities 

The Underlying Funds in which the Funds invest may invest in asset-backed securities. Asset-backed securities are securities that are secured or “backed” by pools of various types of assets on which cash payments are due at fixed intervals over set periods of time. Asset-backed securities are created in a process called securitization. In a securitization transaction, an originator of loans or an owner of accounts receivables of a certain type of asset class sells such underlying assets in a “true sale” to a special purpose entity, so that there is no recourse to such originator or owner. Payments of principal and interest on asset-backed securities typically are tied to payments made on the pool of underlying assets in the related securitization. Such payments on the underlying assets are effectively “passed through” to the asset-backed security holders on a monthly or other regular, periodic basis. The level of seniority of a particular asset-backed security will determine the priority in which the holder of such asset-backed security is paid, relative to other security holders and parties in such securitization. Examples of underlying assets include consumer loans or receivables, home equity loans, automobile loans or leases, and time shares, though other types of receivables or assets also may be used. 

While asset-backed securities typically have a fixed, stated maturity date, low prevailing interest rates may lead to an increase in the prepayments made on the underlying assets. This may cause the outstanding balances due on the underlying assets to be paid down more rapidly. As a result, a decrease in the originally anticipated interest from such underlying securities may occur, causing the asset-backed securities to pay-down in whole or in part prior to their original stated maturity date. Prepayment proceeds would then have to be reinvested at the lower prevailing interest rates. Conversely, prepayments on the underlying assets may be less than anticipated, causing an extension in the duration of the asset-backed securities.

Delinquencies or losses that exceed the anticipated amounts for a given securitization could adversely impact the payments made on the related asset-backed securities. This is a reason why, as part of a securitization, asset-backed securities are often accompanied by some form of credit enhancement, such as a guaranty, insurance policy, or subordination. Credit protection in the form of derivative contracts may also be purchased. In certain securitization transactions, insurance, credit protection, or both may be purchased with respect to only the most senior classes of asset-backed securities, on the underlying collateral pool, or both. The extent and type of credit enhancement varies across securitization transactions.

The ratings and creditworthiness of asset-backed securities typically depend on the legal insulation of the issuer and transaction from the consequences of a sponsoring entity’s bankruptcy, as well as on the credit quality of the underlying receivables and the amount and credit quality of any third-party credit enhancement supporting the underlying receivables or the asset-backed securities. Asset-backed securities and their underlying receivables generally are not issued or guaranteed by any governmental entity.

Asset Coverage Requirements 

Consistent with SEC staff guidance, an Underlying Fund in which the Funds invest in will only engage in transactions that expose it to an obligation to another party if it owns either (a) an offsetting position for the same type of financial asset or (b) cash or liquid securities, designated on an Underlying Fund’s books or held in a segregated account, with a value sufficient at all times to cover its potential obligations not covered as provided in (a). Examples of transactions governed by these asset coverage requirements include, for example, options written by the Underlying Funds, futures contracts and options on futures contracts, forward currency contracts, swaps, dollar rolls and when-issued and delayed delivery transactions. Assets used as offsetting positions, designated on an Underlying Fund’s books, or held in a segregated account cannot be sold while the positions requiring cover are open unless replaced with other appropriate assets. As a result, the commitment of a large portion of assets to be used as offsetting positions or to be designated or segregated in such a manner could impede portfolio management or the ability to meet redemption requests or other current obligations.

In the case of futures contracts or forward contracts that are not contractually required to cash settle and to the extent an Underlying Fund writes a credit default swap, such Underlying Fund must set aside liquid assets equal to such contracts’ full notional value (generally, the total numerical value of the asset underlying a futures contract, forward contract or credit default swap at the time of valuation) while it has an open long position, or is equal to the market value of the deliverable in the case of an open short position. With respect to futures contracts or forward contracts that are contractually required to cash settle, however, an Underlying Fund is permitted to set aside liquid assets in an amount equal to an Underlying Fund’s daily mark-to-market net obligation (i.e., an Underlying Fund’s daily net liability) under the contracts, if any, rather than such contracts’ full notional value. By setting aside assets equal to only its net obligations under cash-settled futures contracts and forward contracts, an Underlying Fund may employ leverage to a greater extent than if such Underlying Fund were required to segregate assets equal to the full notional value of such contracts.

Borrowing

Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments 

The Underlying Funds may invest in cash, cash equivalents, and a variety of short-term instruments in such proportions as warranted by prevailing market conditions and an Underlying Fund’s principal investment strategies. The Funds and the Underlying Funds may temporarily invest without limit in such instruments for liquidity purposes, or in an attempt to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions. During such periods, a Fund or Underlying Fund may not be able to achieve its investment objective.

Each Underlying Fund will only invest in short-term instruments that are U.S. dollar-denominated.

Short-term instruments include obligations of the U.S. government or its agencies or instrumentalities (see “U.S. Government Securities” below) and, without limitation, the following: 

(1)          Certificates of Deposit. Each Underlying Fund may invest in certificates of deposit issued against funds deposited in a bank or savings and loan association. Such certificates are for a definite period of time, earn a specified rate of return, and are normally negotiable. If such certificates of deposit are non-negotiable, they will be considered illiquid securities and be subject to an UnderlyingFund’s 15% restriction on investments in illiquid securities. Pursuant to the certificate of deposit, the issuer agrees to pay the amount deposited plus interest to the bearer of the certificate on the date specified thereon. Under current FDIC regulations, the maximum insurance payable as to any one certificate of deposit is $250,000; therefore, certificates of deposit purchased by an Underlying Fund may not be fully insured.

(2)          Bankers’ Acceptances. Each Underlying Fund may invest in bankers’ acceptances, which are short-term credit instruments used to finance commercial transactions. Generally, an acceptance is a time draft drawn on a bank by an exporter or an importer to obtain a stated amount of funds to pay for specific merchandise. The draft is then “accepted” by a bank that, in effect, unconditionally guarantees to pay the face value of the instrument on its maturity date. The acceptance may then be held by the accepting bank as an asset or it may be sold in the secondary market at the going rate of interest for a specific maturity.

(3)          Repurchase Agreements. Each Underlying Fund may invest in repurchase agreements which involve purchases of debt securities. In such an action, at the time a Underlying Fund purchases the security, it simultaneously agrees to resell and redeliver the security to the seller, who also simultaneously agrees to buy back the security at a fixed price and time. This assures a predetermined yield for an Underlying Fund during its holding period since the resale price is always greater than the purchase price and reflects an agreed-upon market rate. Such actions afford an opportunity for an Underlying Fund to invest temporarily available cash. An Underlying Fund may enter into repurchase agreements only with respect to certain obligations. For each Underlying Fund, collateral may consist of any fixed income security which is an eligible investment for an Underlying Fund entering into the repurchase agreement. The Underlying Funds’ custodian will hold the securities underlying any repurchase agreement, or the securities will be part of the Federal Reserve/Treasury Book Entry System. The market value of the collateral underlying the repurchase agreement will be determined on each business day. If at any time the market value of the collateral falls below the repurchase price under the repurchase agreement (including any accrued interest), the appropriate Underlying Fund will promptly receive additional collateral (so the total collateral is an amount at least equal to the repurchase price plus accrued interest). Repurchase agreements may be considered loans to the seller, collateralized by the underlying securities. The risk to an Underlying Fund is limited to the ability of the seller to pay the agreed-upon sum on the repurchase date; in the event of default, the repurchase agreement provides that the affected Underlying Fund is entitled to sell the underlying collateral. If the value of the collateral declines after the agreement is entered into, however, and if the seller defaults under a repurchase agreement when the value of the underlying collateral is less than the repurchase price, an Underlying Fund could incur a loss of both principal and interest. The portfolio managers monitor the value of the collateral at the time the action is entered into and at all times during the term of the repurchase agreement. The portfolio managers do so in an effort to determine that the value of the collateral always equals or exceeds the agreed-upon repurchase price to be paid to an Underlying Fund. If the seller were to be subject to a federal bankruptcy proceeding, the ability of an Underlying Fund to liquidate the collateral could be delayed or impaired because of certain provisions of the bankruptcy laws.

(4)          Bank Time Deposits. Each Underlying Fund may invest in bank time deposits, which are monies kept on deposit with banks or savings and loan associations for a stated period of time at a fixed rate of interest. There may be penalties for the early withdrawal of such time deposits, in which case the yields of these investments will be reduced.

(5)          Eurodollar and Yankee Instruments. Each Underlying Fund may invest in Eurodollar certificates of deposit issued by foreign branches of U.S. or foreign banks; Eurodollar time deposits, which are U.S. dollar-denominated deposits in foreign branches of U.S. or foreign banks; and Yankee certificates of deposit, which are U.S. dollar-denominated certificates of deposit issued by U.S. branches of foreign banks and held in the United States. In each instance, the Underlying Funds may only invest in bank instruments issued by an institution which has capital, surplus and undivided profits of more than $100 million or the deposits of which are insured by the Bank Insurance Fund or the Savings Association Insurance Fund.

(6)          Commercial Paper. Each Underlying Fund may invest in commercial paper, which are short-term unsecured promissory notes issued by corporations to finance their current operations. Issues of commercial paper normally have maturities of less than nine months and fixed rates of return. The Underlying Funds may purchase commercial paper consisting of issues rated at the time of purchase within the two highest rating categories by Standard & Poor’s, Fitch or Moody’s, or which have been assigned an equivalent rating by another nationally recognized statistical rating organization. The Underlying Funds also may invest in commercial paper that is not rated but that is determined by the Sub-Adviser to be of comparable quality to instruments that are so rated. For a description of the rating categories of Standard & Poor’s, Fitch and Moody’s, see Appendix A. 

(7)          Money Market Funds and Short-Term Debt Funds. Each Underlying Fund may invest in money market funds. The Underlying Funds will bear their proportionate share of the money market fund’s fees and expenses (see “Other Investment Companies” below). The Underlying Funds may hold securities of other mutual funds that invest primarily in debt obligations with remaining maturities of 13 months or less.

(8)          Variable Amount Master Demand Notes. Each Underlying Fund may invest in variable amount master demand notes, which are unsecured demand notes that permit the indebtedness thereunder to vary and provide for periodic adjustments in the interest rate according to the terms of the instrument. Because master demand notes are direct lending arrangements between an Underlying Fund and the issuer, they are not normally traded. Although there is no secondary market in the notes, an Underlying Fund may demand payment of principal and accrued interest at any time. While the notes are not typically rated by credit rating agencies, issuers of variable amount master demand notes (which are normally manufacturing, retail, financial, and other business concerns) must satisfy the same criteria as set forth above for commercial paper. The Sub-Adviser will consider the earning power, cash flow and other liquidity ratios of the issuers of such notes and will continuously monitor their financial status and ability to meet payment on demand.

(9)          Variable Rate Demand Obligations. Each Underlying Fund may invest in variable rate demand obligations (“VRDOs”), which are securities in which the interest rate is adjusted at pre-designated periodic intervals. VRDOs may include a demand feature which is a put that entitles the holder to receive the principal amount of the underlying security or securities and which may be exercised either at any time on no more than 30 days’ notice or at specified intervals not exceeding 397 calendar days on no more than 30 days’ notice.

Collateralized Debt Obligations 

The Underlying Funds may invest in Collateralized Debt Obligations (“CDOs”). CDOs are debt obligations typically issued by a private special-purpose entity and collateralized principally by debt securities, including, for example, high yield, high-risk bonds, structured finance securities including asset-backed securities, mortgage-backed securities and real estate investment trusts. The special purpose entity typically issues one or more classes (sometimes referred to as “tranches”) of rated debt securities, one or more unrated classes of debt securities that are generally treated as equity interests, and a residual equity interest. The tranches of CDOs typically have different interest rates, projected weighted average lives and ratings, with the higher rated tranches paying lower interest rates. One or more forms of credit enhancement are almost always necessary in a CDO structure to obtain the desired credit ratings for the most highly rated debt securities issued by the CDO. The types of credit enhancement used include “internal” credit enhancement provided by the underlying assets themselves, such as subordination, excess spread and cash collateral accounts, hedges provided by interest rate swaps, and “external” credit enhancement provided by third parties, principally financial guaranty insurance issued by monoline insurers. Despite this credit enhancement, CDO tranches can experience substantial losses due to actual defaults, increased sensitivity to defaults due to collateral default and the disappearance of lower rated protecting tranches, market anticipation of defaults, as well as aversion to CDO securities as a class. CDOs can be less liquid than other publicly held debt issues, and require additional structural analysis.

Contingent Capital Securities 

The Underlying Funds may invest in contingent capital securities. Contingent capital securities (sometimes referred to as “CoCos”) are hybrid securities, issued primarily by non-U.S. financial institutions, which have loss absorption mechanisms benefitting the issuer built into their terms. CoCos provide for mandatory conversion into the common stock of the issuer or a permanent or temporary full or partial write-down of the principal amount of the security upon the occurrence of certain “triggers” linked to minimum regulatory capital thresholds. In addition, they may explicitly provide for mandatory conversion or a principal write-down upon the occurrence of certain events such as regulatory bodies calling into question the issuing institution’s continued viability as a going-concern. Equity conversion or principal write-down features are tailored to the issuer and its regulatory requirements and, unlike traditional convertible securities, conversions are not voluntary and are not intended to benefit the investor.

A trigger event for CoCos would likely be the result of, or related to, the deterioration of the issuer’s financial condition (e.g., a decrease in the issuer’s capital ratio) and status as a going concern. In such a case, with respect to CoCos that provide for conversion into common stock upon the occurrence of the trigger event, the market price of the issuer’s common stock received by an Underlying Fund will have likely declined, perhaps substantially, and may continue to decline, which may adversely affect an Underlying Fund’s net asset value. Further, the issuer’s common stock would be subordinate to the issuer’s other classes of securities and therefore would worsen an Underlying Fund’s standing in a bankruptcy proceeding. In addition, because the common stock of the issuer may not pay a dividend, investors in these instruments could experience a reduced income rate, potentially to zero. In view of the foregoing, CoCos are often rated below investment grade and are subject to the risks of high yield securities.

CoCos may be subject to an automatic write-down (i.e., the automatic write-down of the principal amount or value of the securities, potentially to zero, and the cancellation of the securities) under certain circumstances, which could result in an Underlying Fund losing a portion or all of its investment in such securities. In addition, an Underlying Fund may not have any rights with respect to repayment of the principal amount of the securities that has not become due or the payment of interest or dividends on such securities for any period from (and including) the interest or dividend payment date falling immediately prior to the occurrence of such automatic write-down. An automatic write-down could also result in a reduced income rate if the dividend or interest payment is based on the security’s par value. Coupon payments on CoCos may be discretionary and may be cancelled by the issuer for any reason or may be subject to approval by the issuer’s regulator and may be suspended in the event there are insufficient distributable reserves. 

In certain scenarios, investors in CoCos may suffer a loss of capital ahead of equity holders or when equity holders do not. The prices of CoCos may be volatile. There is no guarantee that an Underlying Fund will receive a return of principal on CoCos. Any indication that an automatic write-down or conversion event may occur can be expected to have a material adverse effect on the market price of CoCos.

Convertible Securities 

Each Underlying Fund may invest in debt securities which are convertible into or exchangeable for, or which carry warrants or other rights to acquire, common or preferred stocks. Such convertible securities are hybrid securities that combine the investment characteristics of bonds and common stocks. Convertible securities typically consist of debt securities or preferred securities that may be converted within a specified period of time (typically for the entire life of the security) into a certain amount of common stock or other equity security of the same or a different issuer at a predetermined price. They also include debt securities with warrants or common stock attached and derivatives combining the features of debt securities and equity securities. Convertible securities entitle the holder to receive interest paid or accrued on debt, or dividends paid or accrued on preferred securities, until the security matures or is redeemed, converted or exchanged.

The market value of a convertible security generally is a function of its “investment value” and its “conversion value.” A security’s “investment value” represents the value of the security without its conversion feature (i.e., a comparable non-convertible fixed income security). The investment value is determined by, among other things, reference to its credit quality and the current value of its yield to maturity or probable call date. At any given time, investment value is dependent upon such factors as the general level of interest rates, the yield of similar non-convertible securities, the financial strength of the issuer and the seniority of the security in the issuer’s capital structure. A security’s “conversion value” is determined by multiplying the number of shares the holder is entitled to receive upon conversion or exchange by the current price of the underlying security. If the conversion value of a convertible security is significantly below its investment value, the convertible security will trade like non-convertible debt or a preferred security in the sense that its market value will not be influenced greatly by fluctuations in the market price of the underlying security into which it can be converted. Instead, the convertible security’s price will tend to move in the opposite direction from interest rates. Conversely, if the conversion value of a convertible security is significantly above its investment value, the market value of the convertible security will be more heavily influenced by fluctuations in the market price of the underlying stock. In that case, the convertible security’s price may be as volatile as that of the common stock. Because both interest rate and market movements can influence its value, a convertible security is not generally as sensitive to interest rates as a similar fixed income security, nor is it generally as sensitive to changes in share price as its underlying stock.

An Underlying Fund’s investments in convertible securities, particularly securities that are convertible into securities of an issuer other than the issuer of the convertible security, may be illiquid. An Underlying Fund’s investments in convertible securities may at times include securities that have a mandatory conversion feature, pursuant to which the securities convert automatically into common stock or other equity securities (of the same or a different issuer) at a specified date and a specified conversion ratio, or that are convertible at the option of the issuer. For issues where the conversion of the security is not at the option of the holder, an Underlying Fund may be required to convert the security into the underlying common stock even at times when the value of the underlying common stock or other equity security has declined substantially. Equity interests acquired through conversion, exchange or exercise of rights to acquire stock will be disposed of by each of the Underlying Funds as soon as practicable in an orderly manner (except that the Underlying Funds that may invest in common stocks and/or preferred stocks directly are not required to dispose of any stock so acquired).

In addition, some convertible securities are often rated below investment-grade or are not rated, and therefore may be considered speculative investments. The credit rating of a company’s convertible securities is generally lower than that of its conventional debt securities. Convertible securities are normally considered “junior” securities—that is, the company usually must pay interest on its conventional corporate debt before it can make payments on its convertible securities. Some convertible securities are particularly sensitive to interest rate changes when their predetermined conversion price is much higher than the issuing company’s common stock.

Corporate Debt Securities 

The Underlying Funds may invest in corporate debt securities. The broad category of corporate debt securities includes debt issued by companies of all kinds, including those with small-, mid- and large-capitalizations. Corporate debt may be rated investment-grade or below investment-grade and may carry variable or floating rates of interest. Corporate debt securities are fixed income securities issued by businesses to finance their operations, although corporate debt instruments may also include bank loans to companies. Notes, bonds, debentures and commercial paper are the most common types of corporate debt securities, with the primary difference being their maturities and secured or unsecured status. Commercial paper has the shortest term and is usually unsecured. 

Because of the wide range of types and maturities of corporate debt securities, as well as the range of creditworthiness of its issuers, corporate debt securities have widely varying potentials for return and risk profiles. Rates on corporate debt securities are set according to prevailing interest rates at the time of the issue, the credit rating of the issuer, the length of the maturity and other terms of the security. For example, commercial paper issued by a large established domestic corporation that is rated investment-grade may have a modest return on principal, but carries relatively limited risk. On the other hand, a long-term corporate note issued by a small non-U.S. corporation from an emerging market country that has not been rated by a Nationally Recognized Statistical Rating Organization (“NRSRO”) may have the potential for relatively large returns on principal, but carries a relatively high degree of risk.

Corporate debt securities carry both credit risk and interest rate risk. Credit risk is the risk that an Underlying Fund could lose money if the issuer of a corporate debt security is unable to pay interest or repay principal when it’s due. Some corporate debt securities that are rated below investment-grade are generally considered speculative because they present a greater risk of loss, including default, than higher quality debt securities. The credit risk of a particular issuer’s debt security may vary based on its priority for repayment. For example, higher ranking (senior) debt securities have a higher priority than lower ranking (subordinated) securities. This means that the issuer might not make payments on subordinated securities while making payments on senior securities. In addition, in the event of bankruptcy, holders of higher-ranking senior securities may receive amounts otherwise payable to the holders of more junior securities. Interest rate risk is the risk that the value of certain corporate debt securities will tend to fall when interest rates rise. In general, corporate debt securities with longer terms tend to fall more in value when interest rates rise than corporate debt securities with shorter terms. Additionally, corporate debt securities may also be subject to price volatility due to such factors as market interest rates, market perception of the creditworthiness of the issuer and general market liquidity.

In addition, corporate restructurings, such as mergers, leveraged buyouts, takeovers or similar corporate transactions are often financed by an increase in a corporate issuer’s debt securities. As a result of the added debt burden, the credit quality and market value of an issuer’s existing debt securities may decline significantly.

Derivatives 

Subject to the limitations set forth below under “Limitations on the Use of CFTC-Regulated Futures, Options on Futures and Swaps,” each Underlying Fund may use derivative instruments as described below. Generally, a derivative is a financial contract the value of which depends upon, or is derived from, the value of an underlying asset, reference rate or index. Derivatives generally take the form of contracts under which the parties agree to payments between them based upon the performance of a wide variety of underlying references, such as stocks, bonds, loans, commodities, interest rates, currency exchange rates, and various domestic and foreign indices.

The Underlying Funds may use derivatives for a variety of reasons, including as a substitute for investing directly in securities and currencies, as an alternative to selling a security short, as part of a hedging strategy (that is, for the purpose of reducing risk to the Underlying Fund), to manage the effective duration of an Underlying Fund’s portfolio, or for other purposes related to the management of the Underlying Funds. Derivatives permit an Underlying Fund to increase or decrease the level of risk, or change the character of the risk, to which its portfolio is exposed in much the same way as an Underlying Fund can increase or decrease the level of risk, or change the character of the risk, of its portfolio by making investments in specific securities. However, derivatives may entail investment exposures that are greater than their cost would suggest. As a result, a small investment in derivatives could have a large impact on an Underlying Fund’s performance, and consequently on a Fund’s performance.

While transactions in some derivatives may be effected on established exchanges, many other derivatives are privately negotiated and entered into in the over-the-counter (“OTC”) market with a single counterparty. When exchange-traded derivatives are purchased and sold, a clearing agency associated with the exchange stands between each buyer and seller and effectively guarantees performance of each contract, either on a limited basis through a guaranty fund or to the full extent of the clearing agency’s balance sheet. Transactions in OTC derivatives not subject to a clearing requirement have no such protection. Each party to an uncleared OTC derivative bears the risk that its direct counterparty will default. In addition, OTC derivatives are generally less liquid than exchange-traded derivatives because they often can only be closed out with the other party to the transaction.

The use of derivative instruments is subject to applicable regulations of the SEC, the CFTC, various state regulatory authorities and, with respect to exchange-traded derivatives, the several exchanges upon which they are traded. As discussed above under “Asset Coverage Requirements,” in order to engage in certain transactions in derivatives, an Underlying Fund may be required to hold offsetting positions or to hold cash or liquid securities in a segregated account or designated on an Underlying Fund’s books. In addition, an Underlying Fund’s ability to use derivative instruments may be limited by tax considerations. 

The particular derivative instruments the Underlying Funds can use are described below. An Underlying Fund’s portfolio managers may decide not to employ some or all of these instruments, and there is no assurance that any derivatives strategy used by an Underlying Fund will succeed. The Underlying Funds may employ new derivative instruments and strategies when they are developed, if those investment methods are consistent with the particular Underlying Fund’s investment objective and are permissible under applicable regulations governing the Underlying Fund.

Options Transactions

The Underlying Funds may purchase put and call options on specific securities (including groups or “baskets” of specific securities), interest rates, stock indices, bond indices, commodity indices, and/or foreign currencies. In addition, the Underlying Funds may write put and call options on such financial instruments.

Options on Securities. The Underlying Funds may purchase put and call options on securities. A put option on a security gives the purchaser of the option the right (but not the obligation) to sell, and the writer of the option the obligation to buy, the underlying security at a stated price (the “exercise price”) at any time before the option expires. A call option on a security gives the purchaser the right (but not the obligation) to buy, and the writer the obligation to sell, the underlying security at the exercise price at any time before the option expires. The purchase price for a put or call option is the “premium” paid by the purchaser for the right to sell or buy.

An Underlying Fund may purchase put options to hedge against a decline in the value of its portfolio. By using put options in this way, an Underlying Fund would reduce any profit it might otherwise have realized in the underlying security by the amount of the premium paid for the put option and by transaction costs. In similar fashion, an Underlying Fund may purchase call options to protect against an increase in the price of securities that an Underlying Fund anticipates purchasing in the future, a practice sometimes referred to as “anticipatory hedging.” The premium paid for the call option plus any transaction costs will reduce the benefit, if any, realized by an Underlying Fund upon exercise of the option, and, unless the price of the underlying security rises sufficiently, the option may expire unexercised.

Options on Interest Rates and Indices. The Underlying Funds may purchase put and call options on interest rates and on stock and bond indices. An option on interest rates or on an index gives the holder the right to receive, upon exercise of the option, an amount of cash if the closing value of the underlying interest rate or index is greater than, in the case of a call, or less than, in the case of a put, the exercise price of the option. This amount of cash is equal to the difference between the exercise-settlement value of the interest rate option or the closing price of the index and the exercise price of the option expressed in dollars times a specified multiple (the “multiplier”). The writer of the option is obligated, for the premium received, to make delivery of this amount. Settlements for interest rate and index options are always in cash.

Options on Currencies. The Underlying Funds may purchase put and call options on foreign currencies. A foreign currency option provides the option buyer with the right to buy or sell a stated amount of foreign currency at the exercise price at a specified date or during the option period. A call option gives its owner the right, but not the obligation, to buy the currency, while a put option gives its owner the right, but not the obligation, to sell the currency. The option seller (writer) is obligated to fulfill the terms of the option sold if it is exercised. However, either seller or buyer may close its position during the option period in the secondary market for such options at any time prior to expiration.

A foreign currency call option rises in value if the underlying currency appreciates. Conversely, a foreign currency put option rises in value if the underlying currency depreciates. While purchasing a foreign currency option may protect an Underlying Fund against an adverse movement in the value of a foreign currency, it would limit the gain which might result from a favorable movement in the value of the currency. For example, if an Underlying Fund were holding securities denominated in an appreciating foreign currency and had purchased a foreign currency put to hedge against a decline in the value of the currency, it would not have to exercise its put. In such an event, however, the amount of an Underlying Fund’s gain would be offset in part by the premium paid for the option. Similarly, if an Underlying Fund entered into a contract to purchase a security denominated in a foreign currency and purchased a foreign currency call to hedge against a rise in the value of the currency between the date of purchase and the settlement date, an Underlying Fund would not need to exercise its call if the currency instead depreciated in value. In such a case, an Underlying Fund could acquire the amount of foreign currency needed for settlement in the spot market at a lower price than the exercise price of the option. 

Writing Options. The Underlying Funds may write (sell) put and call options. These transactions would be undertaken principally to produce additional income. An Underlying Fund receives a premium from writing options which it retains whether or not the option is exercised. An Underlying Fund may write straddles consisting of a combination of a call and a put written on the same underlying instrument.

An Underlying Fund will write a call option on a security only if (a) such Underlying Fund owns the security underlying the call, (b) the Underlying Fund has an absolute and immediate right to acquire that security without additional cash consideration (or, if additional cash consideration is required, cash or other liquid assets in such amount are segregated), or (c) the Underlying Fund holds a call on the same security where the exercise price of the call is (i) equal to or less than the exercise price of the call written, or (ii) greater than the exercise price of the call written, provided the difference is maintained by the Underlying Fund in segregated liquid assets.

An Underlying Fund will write a call option on a basket of securities, an index or currency only if (a) such Underlying Fund segregates liquid assets in an amount equal to the contract value of the index, basket or currency, or (b) the Underlying Fund holds a call on the same index, basket or currency as the call written where the exercise price of the call held is (i) equal to or less than the exercise price of the call written, or (ii) greater than the exercise price of the call written, provided the difference is maintained by the Underlying Fund in segregated liquid assets.

An Underlying Fund will write a put option on a security, basket of securities, currency or index only if (a) such Underlying Fund segregates liquid assets equal to the exercise price or (b) the Underlying Fund holds a put on the same security, basket of securities, currency or index as the put written where the exercise price of the put held is (i) equal to or greater than the exercise price of the put written, or (ii) less than the exercise price of the put written, provided the difference is maintained by the Underlying Fund in segregated liquid assets.

When an Underlying Fund writes a straddle, sufficient assets will be segregated to meet such Underlying Fund’s immediate obligations. An Underlying Fund may segregate the same liquid assets for both the call and put options in a straddle where the exercise price of the call and put are the same, or the exercise price of the call is higher than that of the put. In such cases, an Underlying Fund will also segregate liquid assets equivalent to the amount, if any, by which the put is “in the money.”

Expiration or Exercise of Options. If an option purchased by an Underlying Fund expires unexercised, such Underlying Fund realizes a capital loss equal to the premium paid. If an option written by an Underlying Fund expires unexercised, such Underlying Fund realizes a capital gain equal to the premium received at the time the option was written. Prior to the earlier of exercise or expiration, an exchange traded option may be closed out by an offsetting purchase or sale of an option of the same series (type, exchange, underlying security, currency or index, exercise price, and expiration). There can be no assurance, however, that a closing purchase or sale transaction can be effected when an Underlying Fund desires.

The Underlying Funds may sell put or call options it has previously purchased, which could result in a net gain or loss depending on whether the amount realized on the sale is more or less than the premium and other transaction costs paid on the put or call option which is sold. Prior to exercise or expiration, an option may be closed out by an offsetting purchase or sale of an option of the same series. An Underlying Fund will realize a capital gain from a closing purchase transaction if the cost of the closing option is less than the premium received from writing the option, or, if it is more, an Underlying Fund will realize a capital loss. If the premium received from a closing sale transaction is more than the premium paid to purchase the option, an Underlying Fund will realize a capital gain or, if it is less, an Underlying Fund will realize a capital loss. The principal factors affecting the market value of a put or a call option include supply and demand, interest rates, the current market price of the underlying security, currency or index in relation to the exercise price of the option, the volatility of the underlying security, currency or index, and the time remaining until the expiration date.

Futures

The Underlying Funds may engage in futures transactions. The Underlying Funds may buy and sell futures contracts that relate to (1) interest rates, (2) debt securities, (3) bond indices, (4) commodities and commodities indices, (5) foreign currencies, (6) stock indices, and (7) individual stocks. The Underlying Funds may only enter into futures contracts which are standardized and traded on a U.S. or foreign exchange, board of trade or similar entity, or quoted on an automated quotation system.

A futures contract is an agreement between two parties to buy and sell a security, index, interest rate, currency or commodity (each a “financial instrument”) for a set price on a future date. Certain futures contracts, such as futures contracts relating to individual securities, call for making or taking delivery of the underlying financial instrument. However, these contracts generally are closed out before delivery by entering into an offsetting purchase or sale of a matching futures contract. Other futures contracts, such as futures contracts on interest rates and indices, do not call for making or taking delivery of the underlying financial instrument, but rather are agreements pursuant to which two parties agree to take or make delivery of an amount of cash equal to the difference between the value of the financial instrument at the close of the last trading day of the contract and the price at which the contract was originally written. These contracts also may be settled by entering into an offsetting futures contract. 

Unlike when an Underlying Fund purchases or sells a security, no price is paid or received by an Underlying Fund upon the purchase or sale of a futures contract. Initially, an Underlying Fund will be required to deposit with its futures broker (also known as a futures commission merchant (“FCM”)) an amount of cash or securities equal to a specified percentage of the contract amount. This amount is known as initial margin. The margin deposit is intended to ensure completion of the contract. Minimum initial margin requirements are established by the futures exchanges and may be revised. In addition, FCMs may establish margin deposit requirements that are higher than the exchange minimums. Cash held as margin is generally invested by the FCM in high-quality instruments permitted under CFTC regulations, with returns retained by the FCM and interest paid to an Underlying Fund on the cash at an agreed-upon rate. An Underlying Fund will also receive any interest paid from coupon-bearing securities, such as Treasury securities, held in margin accounts. Subsequent payments to and from the FCM, called variation margin, will be made on a daily basis as the price of the underlying financial instrument fluctuates, making the futures contract more or less valuable, a process known as marking the contract to market. Changes in variation margin are recorded by an Underlying Fund as unrealized gains or losses. At any time prior to expiration of the futures contract, an Underlying Fund may elect to close the position by taking an opposite position that will operate to terminate its position in the futures contract. A final determination of variation margin is then made, additional cash is required to be paid by or released to the Underlying Fund, and an Underlying Fund realizes a gain or loss. In the event of the bankruptcy or insolvency of an FCM that holds margin on behalf of an Underlying Fund, the Underlying Fund may be entitled to the return of margin owed to it only in proportion to the amount received by the FCM’s other customers, potentially resulting in losses to the Underlying Fund. Futures transactions also involve brokerage costs.

Most U.S. futures exchanges limit the amount of fluctuation permitted in futures contract prices during a single trading day. The daily limit establishes the maximum amount that the price of a futures contract may vary either up or down from the previous day’s settlement price at the end of a trading session. Once the daily limit has been reached in a particular type of futures contract, no trades may be made on that day at a price beyond that limit. The daily limit governs only price movement during a particular trading day and therefore does not limit potential losses, because the limit may prevent the liquidation of unfavorable positions. Futures contract prices have occasionally moved to the daily limit for several consecutive trading days with little or no trading, thereby preventing prompt liquidation of futures positions and subjecting some futures traders to substantial losses.

Options on Futures

The Underlying Funds may also purchase or write put and call options on the futures contracts in which they invest and write straddles, which consist of a call and put option on the same futures contract. A futures option gives the holder the right, in return for the premium paid, to assume a long position (call) or short position (put) in a futures contract at a specified exercise price prior to the expiration of the option. Upon exercise of a call option, the holder acquires a long position in the futures contract and the writer is assigned the opposite short position. In the case of a put option, the opposite is true. Prior to exercise or expiration, a futures option may be closed out by an offsetting purchase or sale of a futures option of the same series.

The Underlying Funds may use options on futures contracts in connection with hedging strategies. The writing of a call option or the purchasing of a put option on a futures contract constitutes a partial hedge against declining prices of the securities which are deliverable upon exercise of the futures contract. If the futures price at expiration of a written call option is below the exercise price, an Underlying Fund will retain the full amount of the option premium which provides a partial hedge against any decline that may have occurred in such Underlying Fund’s holdings of securities. If the futures price when the option is exercised is above the exercise price, however, an Underlying Fund will incur a loss, which may be offset, in whole or in part, by the increase in the value of the securities held by suh Underlying Fund that were being hedged. Writing a put option or purchasing a call option on a futures contract serves as a partial hedge against an increase in the value of the securities an Underlying Fund intends to acquire.

When writing a call option, an Underlying Fund must either segregate liquid assets with a value equal to the fluctuating market value of the optioned futures contract, or an Underlying Fund must own an option to purchase the same futures contract having an exercise price that is (i) equal to or less than the exercise price of the call written, or (ii) greater than the exercise price of the call written, provided the difference is maintained by an Underlying Fund in segregated liquid assets.

When writing a put option, an Underlying Fund must segregate liquid assets in an amount not less than the exercise price, or own a put option on the same futures contract where the exercise price of the put held is (i) equal to or greater than the exercise price of the put written, or (ii) less than the exercise price of the put written, provided the difference is maintained by an Underlying Fund in segregated liquid assets. 

When an Underlying Fund writes a straddle, sufficient assets will be segregated to meet such Underlying Fund’s immediate obligations. A Underlying Fund may segregate the same liquid assets for both the call and put options in a straddle where the exercise price of the call and put are the same, or the exercise price of the call is higher than that of the put. In such cases, an Underlying Fund will also segregate liquid assets equivalent to the amount, if any, by which the put is “in the money.”

As with investments in futures contracts, each Underlying Fund is required to deposit and maintain margin with respect to put and call options on futures contracts written by it.

Forward Currency Contracts and Other Foreign Currency Transactions

The Underlying Funds may enter into forward currency contracts. A forward currency contract involves an obligation to purchase or sell a specific currency at a future date, which may be any fixed number of days from the date of the contract agreed upon by the parties, at a price set at the time of the contract. These contracts are traded directly between currency traders (usually large commercial banks) and their customers. Unlike futures contracts, which are standardized contracts, forward contracts can be specifically drawn to meet the needs of the parties that enter into them. The parties to a forward currency contract may agree to offset or terminate the contract before its maturity, or may hold the contract to maturity and complete the contemplated exchange. Because forward contracts are not traded on an exchange, the Underlying Funds are subject to the credit and performance risk of the counterparties to such contracts.

The following, among others, are types of currency management strategies involving forward contracts that may be used by the Underlying Funds. The Underlying Funds also may use currency futures contracts and options thereon, put and call options on foreign currencies and currency swaps for the same purposes.

Transaction Hedges. When an Underlying Fund enters into a contract for the purchase or sale of a security denominated in a foreign currency, or when it anticipates receiving dividend payments in a foreign currency, such Underlying Fund might wish to lock in the U.S. dollar price of the security or the U.S. dollar equivalent of the dividend payments. To do so, an Underlying Fund could enter into a forward contract for the purchase or sale of the amount of foreign currency involved in the underlying transaction at a fixed amount of U.S. dollars per unit of the foreign currency. This is known as a “transaction hedge.” A transaction hedge will protect an Underlying Fund against a loss from an adverse change in the currency exchange rate during the period between the date on which the security is purchased or sold or on which the payment is declared, and the date on which the payment is made or received. Forward contracts to purchase or sell a foreign currency may also be used by an Underlying Fund in anticipation of future purchases or sales of securities denominated in a foreign currency, even if the specific investments have not yet been selected by the Sub-Adviser. This strategy is sometimes referred to as “anticipatory hedging.”

Position Hedges. An Underlying Fund could also use forward contracts to lock in the U.S. dollar value of portfolio positions. This is known as a “position hedge.” When an Underlying Fund believes that a foreign currency might suffer a substantial decline against the U.S. dollar, it could enter into a forward contract to sell an amount of that foreign currency approximating the value of some or all of an Underlying Fund’s portfolio securities denominated in that foreign currency. When an Underlying Fund believes that the U.S. dollar might suffer a substantial decline against a foreign currency, it could enter into a forward contract to buy that foreign currency for a fixed dollar amount. Alternatively, an Underlying Fund could enter into a forward contract to sell a different foreign currency for a fixed U.S. dollar amount if such Underlying Fund’s portfolio managers believe that the U.S. dollar value of that foreign currency will fall whenever there is a decline in the U.S. dollar value of the currency in which portfolio securities of an Underlying Fund are denominated. This is referred to as a “cross hedge.”

Shifting Currency Exposure. An Underlying Fund may also enter into forward contracts to shift its investment exposure from one currency into another. This may include shifting exposure from U.S. dollars to foreign currency or from one foreign currency to another foreign currency. This strategy tends to limit exposure to the currency sold, and increase exposure to the currency that is purchased, much as if an Underlying Fund had sold a security denominated in one currency and purchased an equivalent security denominated in another currency. 

Swap Transactions

The Underlying Funds may enter into interest rate, currency, total return and credit default swap agreements. The Underlying Funds may also enter into options on the foregoing types of swap agreements (“swap options”) and in bonds issued by special purpose entities that are backed by a pool of swaps.

An Underlying Fund may enter into swap transactions for any purpose consistent with its investment objectives and strategies, such as for the purpose of attempting to obtain or preserve a particular return or spread at a lower cost than obtaining a return or spread through purchases and/or sales of instruments in other markets, to protect against currency fluctuations, as a duration management technique, to protect against an increase in the price of securities an Underlying Fund anticipates purchasing at a later date, to reduce risk arising from the ownership of a particular instrument, or to gain exposure to certain securities, reference rates, sectors or markets.

Swap agreements are two party contracts entered into primarily by institutional investors for a specified period of time. In a standard swap transaction, two parties agree to exchange the returns (or differentials in rates of return) earned or realized on a particular predetermined asset, reference rate or index. The gross returns to be exchanged or swapped between the parties are generally calculated with respect to a notional amount, e.g., the return on or increase in value of a particular dollar amount invested at a particular interest rate or in a basket of securities representing a particular index. The notional amount of the swap agreement generally is only used as a basis upon which to calculate the obligations that the parties to the swap agreement have agreed to exchange. An Underlying Fund’s current obligations under a net swap agreement will be accrued daily (offset against any amounts owed to the Underlying Fund) and an Underlying Fund will segregate assets determined to be liquid by the Sub-Adviser for any accrued but unpaid net amounts owed to a swap counterparty. See “Asset Coverage Requirements” above.

Interest Rate Swaps. Interest rate swaps are financial instruments that involve the exchange of one type of interest rate for another type of interest rate cash flow on specified dates in the future. Some of the different types of interest rate swaps are “fixed-for-floating rate swaps,” “termed basis swaps” and “index amortizing swaps.” Fixed-for-floating rate swaps involve the exchange of fixed interest rate cash flows for floating rate cash flows. Termed basis swaps entail cash flows to both parties based on floating interest rates, where the interest rate indices are different. Index amortizing swaps are typically fixed-for-floating swaps where the notional amount changes if certain conditions are met. Like a traditional investment in a debt security, an Underlying Fund could lose money by investing in an interest rate swap if interest rates change adversely.

Currency Swaps. A currency swap is an agreement between two parties in which one party agrees to make interest rate payments in one currency and the other promises to make interest rate payments in another currency. An Underlying Fund may enter into a currency swap when it has one currency and desires a different currency. Typically the interest rates that determine the currency swap payments are fixed, although occasionally one or both parties may pay a floating rate of interest. Unlike an interest rate swap, however, the principal amounts are exchanged at the beginning of the contract and returned at the end of the contract. Changes in non-U.S. exchange rates and changes in interest rates may negatively affect currency swaps.

Total Return Swaps. In a total return swap, one party agrees to pay the other the “total return” of a defined underlying asset during a specified period, in return for periodic payments based on a fixed or variable interest rate or the total return from other underlying assets. A total return swap may be applied to any underlying asset but is most commonly used with equity indices, single stocks, bonds and defined baskets of loans and mortgages. An Underlying Fund might enter into a total return swap involving an underlying index or basket of securities to create exposure to a potentially widely-diversified range of securities in a single trade. An index total return swap can be used by the portfolio managers to assume risk, without the complications of buying the component securities from what may not always be the most liquid of markets.

Credit Default Swaps. A credit default swap is a bilateral contract that enables an investor to buy or sell protection against a defined-issuer credit event. An Underlying Fund may enter into credit default swap agreements either as a buyer or a seller. An Underlying Fund may buy protection to attempt to mitigate the risk of default or credit quality deterioration in one or more of its individual holdings or in a segment of the fixed income securities market to which it has exposure, or to take a “short” position in individual bonds or market segments which it does not own. An Underlying Fund may sell protection in an attempt to gain exposure to the credit quality characteristics of particular bonds or market segments without investing directly in those bonds or market segments.

As the buyer of protection in a credit default swap, an Underlying Fund will pay a premium (by means of an upfront payment or a periodic stream of payments over the term of the agreement) in return for the right to deliver a referenced bond or group of bonds to the protection seller and receive the full notional or par value (or other agreed upon value) upon a default (or similar event) by the issuer(s) of the underlying referenced obligation(s). If no default occurs, the protection seller would keep the stream of payments and would have no further obligation to the Underlying Fund. Thus, the cost to an Underlying Fund would be the premium paid with respect to the agreement. If a credit event occurs, however, an Underlying Fund may elect to receive the full notional value of the swap in exchange for an equal face amount of deliverable obligations of the reference entity that may have little or no value. An Underlying Fund bears the risk that the protection seller may fail to satisfy its payment obligations. 

If an Underlying Fund is a seller of protection in a credit default swap and no credit event occurs, such Underlying Fund would generally receive an up-front payment or a periodic stream of payments over the term of the swap. If a credit event occurs, however, generally an Underlying Fund would have to pay the buyer the full notional value of the swap in exchange for an equal face amount of deliverable obligations of the reference entity that may have little or no value. As the protection seller, an Underlying Fund effectively adds economic leverage to its portfolio because, in addition to being subject to investment exposure on its total net assets, an Underlying Fund is subject to investment exposure on the notional amount of the swap. Thus, an Underlying Fund bears the same risk as it would by buying the reference obligations directly, plus the additional risks related to obtaining investment exposure through a derivative instrument discussed below under “Risks Associated with Swap Transactions.”

Swap Options. A swap option is a contract that gives a counterparty the right (but not the obligation), in return for payment of a premium, to enter into a new swap agreement or to shorten, extend, cancel, or otherwise modify an existing swap agreement at some designated future time on specified terms. A cash-settled option on a swap gives the purchaser the right, in return for the premium paid, to receive an amount of cash equal to the value of the underlying swap as of the exercise date. An Underlying Fund may write (sell) and purchase put and call swap options. Depending on the terms of the particular option agreement, an Underlying Fund generally will incur a greater degree of risk when it writes a swap option than when it purchases a swap option. When an Underlying Fund purchases a swap option, it risks losing only the amount of the premium it has paid should it decide to let the option expire unexercised. However, when an Underlying Fund writes a swap option, upon exercise of the option an Underlying Fund will become obligated according to the terms of the underlying agreement.

Risks Associated with Swap Transactions. The use of swap transactions is a highly specialized activity which involves strategies and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio security transactions. If the Sub-Adviser is incorrect in its forecasts of default risks, market spreads or other applicable factors the investment performance of an Underlying Fund would diminish compared with what it would have been if these techniques were not used. As the protection seller in a credit default swap, an Underlying Fund effectively adds economic leverage to its portfolio because, in addition to being subject to investment exposure on its total net assets, a Underlying Fund is subject to investment exposure on the notional amount of the swap. An Underlying Fund may only close out a swap or other two-party contract with its particular counterparty, and may only transfer a position with the consent of that counterparty. In addition, the price at which an Underlying Fund may close out such a two-party contract may not correlate with the price change in the underlying reference asset. If the counterparty defaults, an Underlying Fund will have contractual remedies, but there can be no assurance that the counterparty will be able to meet its contractual obligations or that an Underlying Fund will succeed in enforcing its rights. It also is possible that developments in the derivatives market, including potential government regulation, could adversely affect an Underlying Fund’s ability to terminate existing swap or other agreements or to realize amounts to be received under such agreements.

Interest Rate Caps, Collars and Floors

The Underlying Funds may enter into interest rate caps, floors and collars. Caps and floors have an effect similar to buying or writing options. In a typical cap or floor agreement, one party agrees to make payments only under specified circumstances, usually in return for payment of a fee by the other party. For example, the buyer of an interest rate cap obtains the right to receive payments to the extent that a specified interest rate exceeds an agreed-upon level. The seller of an interest rate floor is obligated to make payments to the extent that a specified interest rate falls below an agreed-upon level. An interest rate collar involves selling a cap and purchasing a floor or vice versa to protect an Underlying Fund against interest rate movements exceeding given minimum or maximum levels.

Limitations on the Use of CFTC-Regulated Futures, Options on Futures and Swaps

Each Underlying Fund and each Fund will limit its direct investments in CFTC-regulated futures, options on futures and swaps (“CFTC Derivatives”) to the extent necessary for the Sub-Adviser to claim the exclusion from regulation as a commodity pool operator with respect to aFund under CFTC Rule 4.5, as such rule may be amended from time to time. Under Rule 4.5 as currently in effect, each Underlying Fund and each Fund will limit its trading activity in CFTC Derivatives (excluding activity for “bona fide hedging purposes,” as defined by the CFTC) such that it meets one of the following tests:

With respect to each Fund, the Sub-Adviser has filed a notice of eligibility for exclusion from the definition of the term commodity pool operator under the Commodity Exchange Act and therefore is not subject to registration or regulation as a commodity pool operator thereunder.

The requirements for qualification as a regulated investment company may also limit the extent to which each Underlying Fund and each Fund may invest in CFTC Derivatives.

Federal Income Tax Treatment of Futures Contracts and Options

Each Underlying Fund’s transactions in futures contracts and options will be subject to special provisions of the Code, that, among other things, may affect the character of gains and losses realized by an Underlying Fund (i.e., may affect whether gains or losses are ordinary or capital, or short-term or long-term), may accelerate recognition of income to an Underlying Fund and may defer an Underlying Fund’s losses. These rules could, therefore, affect the character, amount and timing of distributions to shareholders. These provisions also (a) will require an Underlying Fund to mark-to-market certain types of the positions in its portfolio (i.e., treat them as if they were closed out) and (b) may cause an Underlying Fund to recognize income without receiving cash with which to make distributions in amounts necessary to satisfy the 90% distribution requirement for qualifying to be taxed as a regulated investment company and the distribution requirement for avoiding excise taxes.

Risks and Special Considerations Concerning Derivatives

The use of derivative instruments involves certain general risks and considerations as described below.

(1)          Market Risk. Market risk is the risk that the value of the underlying assets may go up or down. Adverse movements in the value of an underlying asset can expose an Underlying Fund and each Fund to losses. The successful use of derivative instruments depends upon a variety of factors, particularly the portfolio managers’ ability to predict movements in the relevant markets, which may require different skills than predicting changes in the prices of individual securities. There can be no assurance that any particular strategy adopted will succeed.

(2)          Counterparty Risk. Counterparty risk is the risk that a loss may be sustained as a result of the failure of a counterparty to comply with the terms of a derivative instrument. The counterparty risk for exchange-traded derivatives is generally less than for OTC derivatives, since generally a clearing agency, which is the issuer or counterparty to each exchange-traded instrument, provides a guarantee of performance. For many OTC instruments, there is no similar clearing agency guarantee and there is less regulation or supervision of transactions. In all transactions, an Underlying Fund will bear the risk that the counterparty will default, and this could result in a loss of the expected benefit of the derivative transactions and possibly other losses to the Underlying Fund. An Underlying Fund will enter into derivatives transactions only with counterparties that its portfolio managers reasonably believe are capable of performing under the contract.

(3)          Correlation Risk. Correlation risk is the risk that there might be an imperfect correlation, or even no correlation, between price movements of a derivative instrument and price movements of investments being hedged. When a derivative transaction is used to completely hedge another position, changes in the market value of the combined position (the derivative instrument plus the position being hedged) result from an imperfect correlation between the price movements of the two instruments. With a perfect hedge, the value of the combined position remains unchanged with any change in the price of the underlying asset. With an imperfect hedge, the value of the derivative instrument and its hedge are not perfectly correlated. For example, if the value of a derivative instrument used in a short hedge (such as writing a call option, buying a put option or selling a futures contract) increased by less than the decline in value of the hedged investments, the hedge would not be perfectly correlated. This might occur due to factors unrelated to the value of the investments being hedged, such as speculative or other pressures on the markets in which these instruments are traded. The effectiveness of hedges using instruments on indices will depend, in part, on the degree of correlation between price movements in the index and the price movements in the investments being hedged.

(4)          Liquidity Risk. Liquidity risk is the risk that a derivative instrument cannot be sold, closed out or replaced quickly at or very close to its fundamental value. Generally, exchange contracts are very liquid because the exchange clearinghouse is the counterparty of every contract. OTC transactions are less liquid than exchange-traded derivatives since they often can only be closed out with the other party to the transaction. An Underlying Fund might be required by applicable regulatory requirements to maintain assets as “cover,” maintain segregated accounts, and/or make margin payments when it takes positions in derivative instruments involving obligations to third parties (i.e., instruments other than purchase options). If an Underlying Fund is unable to close out its positions in such instruments, it might be required to continue to maintain such assets or accounts or make such payments until the position expires, matures or is closed out. These requirements might impair an Underlying Fund’s ability to sell a security or make an investment at a time when it would otherwise be favorable to do so, or require that an Underlying Fund sell a portfolio security at a disadvantageous time. An Underlying Fund’s ability to sell or close out a position in an instrument prior to expiration or maturity depends upon the existence of a liquid secondary market or, in the absence of such a market, the ability and willingness of the counterparty to enter into a transaction closing out the position. There is no assurance that any derivatives position can be sold or closed out at a time and price that is favorable to an Underlying Fund. 

(5)          Legal Risk. Legal risk is the risk of loss caused by the unenforceability of a party’s obligations under the derivative. While a party seeking price certainty agrees to surrender the potential upside in exchange for downside protection, the party taking the risk is looking for a positive payoff. Despite this voluntary assumption of risk, a counterparty that has lost money in a derivative transaction may try to avoid payment by exploiting various legal uncertainties about certain derivative products.

(6)          Systemic or “Interconnection” Risk. Systemic or interconnection risk is the risk that a disruption in the financial markets will cause difficulties for all market participants. In other words, a disruption in one market will spill over into other markets, perhaps creating a chain reaction. Much of the OTC derivatives market takes place among the OTC dealers themselves, thus creating a large interconnected web of financial obligations. This interconnectedness raises the possibility that a default by one large dealer could create losses for other dealers and destabilize the entire market for OTC derivative instruments.

(7)          Leverage Risk. Leverage risk is the risk that an Underlying Fund may be more volatile than if it had not been leveraged due to leverage’s tendency to exaggerate the effect of any increase or decrease in the value of an Underlying Fund’s portfolio securities. The use of leverage may also cause an Underlying Fund to liquidate portfolio positions when it may not be advantageous to do so to satisfy its obligations or to meet segregation requirements.

(8)          Regulatory Risk. The Dodd-Frank Act Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) has initiated a dramatic revision of the U.S. financial regulatory framework and covers a broad range of topics, including (among many others) a reorganization of federal financial regulators; a process intended to improve financial systemic stability and the resolution of potentially insolvent financial firms; and new rules for derivatives trading. Instruments in which the Underlying Funds may invest, or the issuers of such instruments, may be affected by the new legislation and regulation in ways that are unforeseeable. Many of the implementing regulations have not yet been finalized. Accordingly, the ultimate impact of the Dodd-Frank Act, including on the derivative instruments in which the Underlying Funds may invest, is not yet certain.

Foreign Securities 

The Underlying Funds may invest in foreign securities. The Underlying Funds may invest in foreign securities payable in either U.S. dollars or foreign currencies. These securities may include securities issued or guaranteed by (i) the Government of Canada, any Canadian Province or any instrumentality and political subdivision thereof; (ii) any other foreign government agency or instrumentality; (iii) foreign subsidiaries of U.S. corporations; and (iv) other foreign issuers (each Underlying Fund will require that such issuers to have total capital and surplus at the time of investment of at least $1 billion).

Investment in foreign securities is subject to special investment risks that differ in some respects from those related to investments in securities of U.S. domestic issuers. These risks include political, social or economic instability in the country of the issuer, the difficulty of predicting international trade patterns, the possibility of the imposition of exchange controls, expropriation, limits on removal of currency or other assets, nationalization of assets, foreign withholding and income taxation, and foreign trading practices (including higher trading commissions, custodial charges and delayed settlements). Foreign securities also may be subject to greater fluctuations in price than securities issued by U.S. corporations. The principal markets on which these securities trade may have less volume and liquidity, and may be more volatile, than securities markets in the United States.

In addition, there may be less publicly available information about a foreign company than about a U.S. domiciled company. Foreign companies generally are not subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards comparable to those applicable to U.S. domestic companies. There is also generally less government regulation of securities exchanges, brokers and listed companies abroad than in the United States. Confiscatory taxation or diplomatic developments could also affect investment in those countries. In addition, foreign branches of U.S. banks, foreign banks and foreign issuers may be subject to less stringent reserve requirements and to different accounting, auditing, reporting, and record keeping standards than those applicable to domestic branches of U.S. banks and U.S. domestic issuers. Securities transactions conducted outside the United States may not involve a clearing mechanism and related guarantees, and are subject to the risk of governmental actions affecting trading in, or the prices of, non-U.S. securities, currencies and other instruments. The value of such positions also could be adversely affected by (i) other complex non-U.S. political, legal and economic factors, (ii) delays in an Underlying Fund’s ability to act upon economic events occurring in non-U.S. markets during non-business hours in the United States, (iv) the imposition of different exercise and settlement terms and procedures and the margin requirements than in the United States, (v) currency exchange rate changes, and (vi) lower trading volume and liquidity. 

In considering whether to invest in the securities of a non-U.S. company, the portfolio managers consider such factors as the characteristics of the particular company, differences between economic trends, and the performance of securities markets in the United States and other countries. The portfolio managers also consider factors relating to the general economic, governmental and social conditions of the country or countries where the company is located.

Emerging Markets. The Underlying Funds’ investments in foreign securities may include securities issued by governmental and corporate issuers that are located in emerging market countries. Investments in securities of issuers in emerging market countries may be subject to potentially higher risks than investments in developed countries. These risks include (i) less social, political and economic stability; (ii) the small current size of the markets for such securities and the currently low or nonexistent volume of trading, which may result in a lack of liquidity and in greater price volatility; (iii) certain national policies which may restrict an Underlying Fund’s investment opportunities, including restrictions on investment in issuers or industries deemed sensitive to national interests; (iv) foreign taxation; (v) the absence of developed structures governing private or foreign investment or allowing for judicial redress for injury to private property; (vi) the limited development and recent emergence, in certain countries, of a capital market structure or market-oriented economy; and (vii) the possibility that recent favorable economic developments in certain countries may be slowed or reversed by unanticipated political or social events in such countries. All of the risks of investing in non-U.S. securities described above are heightened by investing in emerging markets countries.

Certain countries, which do not have market economies, are characterized by an absence of developed legal structures governing private and foreign investments and private property. Certain countries require governmental approval prior to investments by foreign persons, or limit the amount of investment by foreign persons in a particular company, or limit the investment of foreign persons to only a specific class of securities of a company that may have less advantageous terms than securities of the company available for purchase by nationals.

Authoritarian governments in certain countries may require that a governmental or quasi- governmental authority act as custodian of a Underlying Fund’s assets invested in such country. To the extent such governmental or quasi-governmental authorities do not satisfy the requirements of the 1940 Act to act as foreign custodians of an Underlying Fund’s cash and securities, an Underlying Fund’s investment in such countries may be limited or may be required to be effected through intermediaries. The risk of loss through governmental confiscation may be increased in such countries.

Depositary Receipts. The Underlying Funds’ investments in foreign securities may include investment in depositary receipts, including American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), European Depositary Receipts (“EDRs”) and Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”). U.S. dollar-denominated ADRs, which are traded in the United States on exchanges or over-the-counter, are issued by domestic banks. ADRs represent the right to receive securities of foreign issuers deposited in a domestic bank or a correspondent bank. ADRs do not eliminate all the risk inherent in investing in the securities of foreign issuers. However, by investing in ADRs rather than directly in foreign issuers’ stock, an Underlying Fund can avoid currency risks during the settlement period for either purchases or sales.

In general, there is a large, liquid market in the United States for many ADRs. The information available for ADRs is subject to the accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards of the domestic market or exchange on which they are traded, which standards are more uniform and more exacting than those to which many foreign issuers may be subject. The Underlying Funds may also invest in EDRs, GDRs and in other similar instruments representing securities of foreign companies. EDRs and GDRs are securities that are typically issued by foreign banks or foreign trust companies, although U.S. banks or U.S. trust companies may issue them. EDRs and GDRs are structured similarly to the arrangements of ADRs. EDRs, in bearer form, are designed for use in European securities markets and are not necessarily denominated in the currency of the underlying security.

Certain depositary receipts, typically those denominated as unsponsored, require the holders thereof to bear most of the costs of the facilities while issuers of sponsored facilities normally pay more of the costs thereof. The depository of an unsponsored facility frequently is under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the issuer of the deposited securities or to pass through the voting rights to facility holders in respect to the deposited securities, whereas the depository of a sponsored facility typically distributes shareholder communications and passes through voting rights. 

Sovereign Debt. The Underlying Funds’ investments in foreign securities may include investment in sovereign debt. Sovereign debt instruments are subject to the risk that a governmental entity may delay or refuse to pay interest or repay principal on its sovereign debt. This may be due to, for example, cash flow problems, insufficient foreign currency reserves, political considerations, the relative size of the governmental entity’s debt position in relation to the economy or the failure to put in place economic reforms required by the International Monetary Fund or other multilateral agencies. If a governmental entity defaults, it may ask for more time in which to pay or for further loans. There is no legal process for collecting sovereign debt that a government does not pay nor are there bankruptcy proceedings through which all or part of the sovereign debt that a governmental entity has not repaid may be collected.

Brady Bonds. The Underlying Funds may invest in U.S. dollar-denominated “Brady Bonds.” Brady Bonds are created through the exchange of existing commercial bank loans to public and private entities in certain emerging markets for new obligations in connection with debt restructurings. These foreign debt obligations, which may be fixed rate par bonds or floating rate discount bonds, are generally collateralized in full as to repayment of principal at maturity by U.S. Treasury zero-coupon obligations that have the same maturity as the Brady Bonds. Brady Bonds can be viewed as having three or four valuation components: (i) the collateralized repayment of principal at final maturity; (ii) the collateralized interest payments; (iii) the uncollateralized interest payments; and (iv) any uncollateralized repayment of principal at maturity. Those uncollateralized amounts constitute what is called the “residual risk.” If there is a default on collateralized Brady Bonds resulting in acceleration of the payment obligations of the issuer, the zero-coupon U.S. Treasury securities held as collateral for the payment of principal will not be distributed to investors, nor will those obligations be sold to distribute the proceeds. The collateral will be held by the collateral agent to the scheduled maturity of the defaulted Brady Bonds. The defaulted bonds will continue to remain outstanding, and the face amount of the collateral will equal the principal payments which would have then been due on the Brady Bonds in the normal course. Because of the residual risk of Brady Bonds and the history of defaults with respect to commercial bank loans by public and private entities of countries issuing Brady Bonds, Brady Bonds are considered speculative investments and are subject to the same risks as emerging market securities.

Guaranteed Investment Contracts 

The Underlying Funds may purchase investment-type insurance products such as Guaranteed Investment Contracts (“GICs”). A GIC is a deferred annuity under which the purchaser agrees to pay money to an insurer (either in a lump sum or in installments) and the insurer promises to pay interest at a guaranteed rate for the life of the contract. GICs may have fixed or variable interest rates. A GIC is a general obligation of the issuing insurance company. The purchase price paid for a GIC becomes part of the general assets of the insurer, and the contract is paid at maturity from the general assets of the insurer. In general, GICs are not assignable or transferable without the permission of the issuing insurance companies and can be redeemed before maturity only at a substantial discount or penalty. GICs, therefore, are usually considered to be illiquid investments.

The Underlying Funds will purchase only GICs which are obligations of insurance companies with a policyholder’s rating of A or better by A.M. Best Company.

Illiquid Investments 

Pursuant to Rule 22e-4 under the 1940 Act, each of the Funds may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments. An illiquid investment as defined in Rule 22e-4 is an investment that a Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions within 7 calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. These investments may include restricted securities and repurchase agreements maturing in more than 7 days. Restricted securities are securities that may not be sold to the public without an effective registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”), and thus may be sold only in privately negotiated transactions or pursuant to an exemption from registration. Subject to the adoption of guidelines by the Board of Directors of the Company (“Board”), certain restricted securities that may be sold to institutional investors pursuant to Rule 144A under the 1933 Act and non-exempt commercial paper may be determined to be liquid by the Sub-Adviser. Illiquid investments involve the risk that the investments will not be able to be sold at the time the Sub-Adviser desires or at prices approximating the value at which a Fund is carrying the investments. To the extent an investment held by a Fund is deemed to be an illiquid investment or a less liquid investment, the Fund will be exposed to a greater liquidity risk.

The Company has implemented a liquidity risk management program and related procedures to identify illiquid investments pursuant to Rule 22e-4. If the limitation on illiquid securities is exceeded, other than by a change in market values, the condition will be reported to the Board and, when required by the Liquidity Rule, to the SEC.

Inflation Protected Securities 

The Underlying Funds may invest in inflation protected securities. Inflation protected securities are fixed income securities designed to provide protection against the negative effects of inflation. Two structures are common. The U.S. Treasury and some other issuers use a structure that accrues inflation into the principal value of the bond. Most other issuers pay out the inflation accruals as part of a semiannual coupon. 

Inflation protected securities issued by the U.S. Treasury have maturities of five, ten, twenty or thirty years, although it is possible that securities with other maturities will be issued in the future. The U.S. Treasury securities pay interest on a semi-annual basis, equal to a fixed percentage of the inflation-adjusted principal amount. For example, if an Underlying Fund purchased an inflation protected bond with a par value of $1,000 and a 3% real rate of return coupon (payable 1.5% semi-annually), and inflation over the first six months was 1%, the mid-year par value of the bond would be $1,010 and the first semi-annual interest payment would be $15.15 ($1,010 times 1.5%). If inflation during the second half of the year resulted in the whole years’ inflation equaling 3%, the end-of-year par value of the bond would be $1,030 and the second semi-annual interest payment would be $15.45 ($1,030 times 1.5%).

If the periodic adjustment rate measuring inflation falls, the principal value of U.S. Treasury inflation protected securities will be adjusted downward, and consequently the interest payable on these securities (calculated with respect to a smaller principal amount) will be reduced. Repayment of the original bond principal upon maturity (as adjusted for inflation) is guaranteed in the case of U.S. Treasury inflation protected bonds, even during a period of deflation. However, the current market value of the bonds is not guaranteed, and will fluctuate. Other inflation-protected securities that accrue inflation into their principal value may or may not provide a similar guarantee. If a guarantee of principal is not provided, the adjusted principal value of the bond repaid at maturity may be less than the original principal.

The value of inflation-protected securities is expected to change in response to changes in real interest rates. Real interest rates in turn are tied to the relationship between nominal interest rates and the rate of inflation. Therefore, if inflation were to rise at a faster rate than nominal interest rates, real interest rates might decline, leading to an increase in value of inflation protected securities. In contrast, if nominal interest rates increased at a faster rate than inflation, real interest rates might rise, leading to a decrease in value of inflation-protected securities.

The periodic adjustment of U.S. inflation protected bonds is tied to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers (“CPI-U”), which is calculated monthly by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The CPI-U is a measurement of changes in the cost of living, made up of components such as housing, food, transportation and energy. Inflation protected securities issued by a foreign government are generally adjusted to reflect a comparable inflation index, calculated by that government. There can be no assurance that the CPI-U or any foreign inflation index will accurately measure the real rate of inflation in the prices of goods and services. Moreover, there can be no assurance that the rate of inflation in a foreign country will be correlated to the rate of inflation in the United States. If the market perceives that the adjustment mechanism of an inflation-protected security does not accurately adjust for inflation, the value of the security could be adversely affected.

While inflation protected securities are expected to be protected from long-term inflationary trends, short-term increases in inflation may lead to a decline in value. The calculation of the inflation index ratio for inflation protected securities issued by the U.S. Treasury incorporates an approximate three-month lag, which may have an effect on the trading price of the securities, particularly during periods of significant, rapid changes in the inflation index. To the extent that inflation has increased during the three months prior to an interest payment, that interest payment will not be protected from the inflation increase. Further, to the extent that inflation has increased during the final three months of a security’s maturity, the final value of the security will not be protected against that increase, which will negatively impact the value of the security. If interest rates rise due to reasons other than inflation (for example, due to changes in currency exchange rates), investors in inflation-protected securities may not be protected to the extent that the increase is not reflected in the bond’s inflation measure.

Any increase in the principal amount of an inflation-protected security will be considered taxable income to an Underlying Fund, even though an Underlying Fund does not receive its principal until maturity.

Lending Portfolio Securities 

Each Fund may lend its portfolio securities to brokers, dealers, and financial institutions in an amount not exceeding 33 1/3% of the value of the Fund’s total assets. These loans will be secured by collateral (consisting of cash, U.S. Government Securities, or irrevocable letters of credit) maintained in an amount equal to at least 100% of the market value, determined daily, of the loaned securities. Each Fund may, subject to certain notice requirements, at any time call the loan and obtain the return of the securities loaned. The Funds will be entitled to payments equal to the interest and dividends on the loaned securities and may receive a premium for lending the securities. The advantage of such loans is that a Fund continues to receive the income on the loaned securities while earning interest on the cash amounts deposited as collateral, which will be invested in short-term investments. 

A loan may be terminated by the borrower on one business day’s notice, or by the Company on two business days’ notice. If the borrower fails to deliver the loaned securities within four days after receipt of notice, the Company may use the collateral to replace the securities while holding the borrower liable for any excess of replacement cost exceeding the collateral. As with any extensions of credit, there are risks of delay in recovery and, in some cases, even loss of rights in the collateral, should the borrower of the securities fail financially. In addition, securities lending involves a form of leverage, and a Fund may incur a loss if securities purchased with the collateral from securities loans decline in value or if the income earned does not cover the Fund’s transaction costs. However, loans of securities will be made only to companies the Board deems to be creditworthy (such creditworthiness will be monitored on an ongoing basis) and when the income that can be earned from such loans justifies the attendant risks. Upon termination of the loan, the borrower is required to return the securities. Any gain or loss in the market price during the loan period would inure to the Funds.

When voting or consent rights that accompany loaned securities pass to the borrower, the Company will follow the policy of calling the loaned securities, to be delivered within one day after notice, to permit the exercise of such rights if the matters involved would have a material effect on the investment in such loaned securities. The Funds will pay reasonable finder’s, administrative, and custodial fees in connection with loans of securities. The Funds may lend foreign securities consistent with the foregoing requirements.

LIBOR Risk 

Many financial instruments may be tied to the London Interbank Offered Rate, or “LIBOR,” to determine payment obligations, financing terms, hedging strategies, or investment value. LIBOR is the offered rate for short-term Eurodollar deposits between major international banks. On July 27, 2017, the head of the UK Financial Conduct Authority announced a desire to phase out the use of LIBOR by the end of 2021. Regulators and industry working groups have suggested alternative reference rates, but global consensus is lacking and the process for amending existing contracts or instruments to transition away from LIBOR remains unclear. There also remains uncertainty and risk regarding the willingness and ability of issuers to include enhanced provisions in new and existing contracts or instruments. As such, the transition away from LIBOR may lead to increased volatility and illiquidity in markets that are tied to LIBOR, reduced values of LIBOR-related investments, and reduced effectiveness of hedging strategies, adversely affecting a Fund's performance or NAV. In addition, the alternative reference rate may be an ineffective substitute resulting in prolonged adverse market conditions for the Funds.

Loans 

The Underlying Funds may invest in fixed and floating rate loans (“Loans”). Loans may include senior loans (“Senior Loans”) and secured and unsecured junior loans, including subordinated loans, second lien or more junior loans and bridge loans (“Junior Loans”). Loans are typically arranged through private negotiations between borrowers in the United States or in foreign or emerging markets which may be corporate issuers or issuers of sovereign debt obligations (“Obligors”) and one or more financial institutions and other lenders (“Lenders”). The Underlying Funds may invest in Loans by purchasing assignments of all or a portion of Loans (“Assignments”) or Loan participations (“Participations”) from third parties.

An Underlying Fund has direct rights against the Obligor on the Loan when it purchases an Assignment. Because Assignments are arranged through private negotiations between potential assignees and potential assignors, however, the rights and obligations acquired by an Underlying Fund as the purchaser of an Assignment may differ from, and be more limited than, those held by the assigning Lender. With respect to Participations, typically, an Underlying Fund will have a contractual relationship only with the Lender and not with the Obligor. The agreement governing Participations may limit the rights of an Underlying Fund to vote on certain changes which may be made to the Loan agreement, such as waiving a breach of a covenant. However, the holder of a Participation will generally have the right to vote on certain fundamental issues such as changes in principal amount, payment dates and interest rate. Participations may entail certain risks relating to the creditworthiness of the parties from which the participations are obtained.

A Loan is typically originated, negotiated and structured by a U.S. or foreign commercial bank, insurance company, finance company or other financial institution (the “Agent”) for a group of Loan investors. The Agent typically administers and enforces the Loan on behalf of the other Loan investors in the syndicate. The Agent’s duties may include responsibility for the collection of principal and interest payments from the Obligor and the apportionment of these payments to the credit of all Loan investors. The Agent is also typically responsible for monitoring compliance with the covenants contained in the Loan agreement based upon reports prepared by the Obligor. In addition, an institution, typically but not always the Agent, holds any collateral on behalf of the Loan investors. In the event of a default by the Obligor, it is possible, though unlikely, that the Underlying Funds could receive a portion of the borrower’s collateral. If the Underlying Funds receive collateral other than cash, any proceeds received from liquidation of such collateral will be available for investment as part of the Underlying Funds’ portfolios.

In the process of buying, selling and holding Loans, the Underlying Funds may receive and/or pay certain fees. These fees are in addition to interest payments received and may include facility fees, commitment fees, commissions and prepayment penalty fees. When an Underlying Fund buys or sells a Loan it may pay a fee. In certain circumstances, an Underlying Fund may receive a prepayment penalty fee upon prepayment of a Loan. 

Additional Information Concerning Senior Loans

Senior Loans typically hold the most senior position in the capital structure of the Obligor, are typically secured with specific collateral and have a claim on the assets and/or stock of the Obligor that is senior to that held by subordinated debtholders and shareholders of the Obligor. Collateral for Senior Loans may include (i) working capital assets, such as accounts receivable and inventory; (ii) tangible fixed assets, such as real property, buildings and equipment; (iii) intangible assets, such as trademarks and patent rights; and/or (iv) security interests in shares of stock of subsidiaries or affiliates.

Additional Information Concerning Junior Loans

Junior Loans include secured and unsecured loans including subordinated loans, second lien and more junior loans, and bridge loans. Second lien and more junior loans (“Junior Lien Loans”) are generally second or further in line in terms of repayment priority. In addition, Junior Lien Loans may have a claim on the same collateral pool as the first lien or other more senior liens or may be secured by a separate set of assets. Junior Lien Loans generally give investors priority over general unsecured creditors in the event of an asset sale.

Junior Loans that are bridge loans or bridge facilities (“Bridge Loans”) are short-term loan arrangements (e.g., 12 to 18 months) typically made by an Obligor in anticipation of intermediate-term or long-term permanent financing. Most Bridge Loans are structured as floating-rate debt with step-up provisions under which the interest rate on the Bridge Loan rises the longer the Loan remains outstanding. In addition, Bridge Loans commonly contain a conversion feature that allows the Bridge Loan investor to convert its Loan interest to senior exchange notes if the Loan has not been prepaid in full on or prior to its maturity date. Bridge Loans may be subordinate to other debt and may be secured or undersecured.

Additional Information Concerning Unfunded Commitments

Unfunded commitments are contractual obligations pursuant to which an Underlying Fund agrees to invest in a Loan at a future date. Typically, an Underlying Fund receives a commitment fee for entering into the Unfunded Commitment.

Additional Information Concerning Synthetic Letters of Credit

Loans include synthetic letters of credit. In a synthetic letter of credit transaction, the Lender typically creates a special purpose entity or a credit-linked deposit account for the purpose of funding a letter of credit to the borrower. When an Underlying Fund invests in a synthetic letter of credit, an Underlying Fund is typically paid a rate based on the Lender’s borrowing costs and the terms of the synthetic letter of credit. Synthetic letters of credit are typically structured as Assignments with an Underlying Fund acquiring direct rights against the Obligor.

Limitations on Investments in Loan Assignments and Participations

If a government entity is a borrower on a Loan, the Underlying Funds will consider the government to be the issuer of an Assignment or Participation for purposes of each Underlying Fund’s fundamental investment policy that it will not invest 25% or more of its total assets in securities of issuers conducting their principal business activities in the same industry (i.e., foreign government).

Risk Factors of Loan Assignments and Participations

Loans are subject to the risks associated with debt obligations in general including interest rate risk, credit risk and market risk. When a Loan is acquired from a Lender, the risk includes the credit risk associated with the Obligor of the underlying Loan. An Underlying Fund may incur additional credit risk when it acquires a participation in a Loan from another lender because an Underlying Fund must assume the risk of insolvency or bankruptcy of the other lender from which the Loan was acquired. To the extent that Loans involve Obligors in foreign or emerging markets, such Loans are subject to the risks associated with foreign investments or investments in emerging markets in general. The following outlines some of the additional risks associated with Loan Assignments and Participations.

High Yield Securities Risk. The Loans that the Underlying Funds invest in may not be rated by an NRSRO, will not be registered with the SEC or any state securities commission and will not be listed on any national securities exchange. To the extent that such high yield Loans are rated, they typically will be rated below investment grade and are subject to an increased risk of default in the payment of principal and interest as well as the other risks described under “Non-Investment Grade Debt Securities (Junk Bonds).” Loans are vulnerable to market sentiment such that economic conditions or other events may reduce the demand for Loans and cause their value to decline rapidly and unpredictably. 

Liquidity Risk. Although the Funds limit their investments in illiquid securities to no more than 15% of a Fund’s net assets, Loans that are deemed to be liquid at the time of purchase may become illiquid or less liquid. No active trading market may exist for certain Loans and certain Loans may be subject to restrictions on resale or have a limited secondary market. Certain Loans may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods. The inability to dispose of certain Loans in an orderly and timely fashion or at a favorable price could result in losses to a Fund.

Collateral, Subordination and Litigation Risk. With respect to Loans that are secured, the Underlying Funds are subject to the risk that collateral securing the Loan will decline in value or have no value or that an Underlying Fund’s lien is or will become junior in payment to other liens. A decline in value, whether as a result of bankruptcy proceedings or otherwise, could cause the Loan to be undercollateralized or unsecured. There may be no formal requirement for the Obligor to pledge additional collateral. In addition, collateral may consist of assets that may not be readily liquidated, and there is no assurance that the liquidation of such assets would satisfy an Obligor’s obligation on a Loan.

If an Obligor becomes involved in bankruptcy proceedings, a court may invalidate the Loan or an Underlying Fund’s security interest in loan collateral or subordinate an Underlying Fund’s rights under a Senior Loan or Junior Loan to the interest of the Obligor’s other creditors, including unsecured creditors, or cause interest or principal previously paid to be refunded to the Obligor. If a court required interest or principal to be refunded, it could negatively affect an Underlying Fund’s performance. Such action by a court could be based, for example, on a “fraudulent conveyance” claim to the effect that the Obligor did not receive fair consideration for granting the security interest in the Loan collateral to the Underlying Fund. For Senior Loans made in connection with a highly leveraged transaction, consideration for granting a security interest may be deemed inadequate if the proceeds of the Loan were not received or retained by the Obligor, but were instead paid to other persons (such as shareholders of the Obligor) in an amount which left the Obligor insolvent or without sufficient working capital. There are also other events, such as the failure to perfect a security interest due to faulty documentation or faulty official filings, which could lead to the invalidation of an Underlying Fund’s security interest in Loan collateral. If an Underlying Fund’s security interest in Loan collateral is invalidated or the Senior Loan is subordinated to other debt of an Obligor in bankruptcy or other proceedings, an Underlying Fund would have substantially lower recovery, and perhaps no recovery on the full amount of the principal and interest due on the Loan, or an Underlying Fund could have to refund interest.

Lenders and investors in Loans can be sued by other creditors and shareholders of the Obligors. Losses can be greater than the original Loan amount and occur years after the principal and interest on the Loan have been repaid.

Agent Risk. Selling Lenders, Agents and other entities who may be positioned between an Underlying Fund and the Obligor will likely conduct their principal business activities in the banking, finance and financial services industries. Investments in Loans may be more impacted by a single economic, political or regulatory occurrence affecting such industries than other types of investments. Entities engaged in such industries may be more susceptible to, among other things, fluctuations in interest rates, changes in the Federal Open Market Committee’s monetary policy, government regulations concerning such industries and concerning capital raising activities generally and fluctuations in the financial markets generally. An Agent, Lender or other entity positioned between an Underlying Fund and the Obligor may become insolvent or enter FDIC receivership or bankruptcy. An Underlying Fund might incur certain costs and delays in realizing payment on a Loan or suffer a loss of principal and/or interest if assets or interests held by the Agent, Lender or other party positioned between an Underlying Fund and the Obligor are determined to be subject to the claims of the Agent’s, Lender’s or such other party’s creditors.

Regulatory Changes. To the extent that legislation or state or federal regulators that regulate certain financial institutions impose additional requirements or restrictions with respect to the ability of such institutions to make Loans, particularly in connection with highly leveraged transactions, the availability of Loans for investment may be adversely affected. Furthermore, such legislation or regulation could depress the market value of Loans held by an Underlying Fund.

Inventory Risk. Affiliates of the Sub-Adviser may participate in the primary and secondary market for Loans. Because of limitations imposed by applicable law, the presence of the Sub-Adviser’s affiliates in the Loan market may restrict an Underlying Fund’s ability to acquire some Loans, affect the timing of such acquisition or affect the price at which the Loan is acquired.

Information Risk. There is typically less publicly available information concerning Loans than other types of fixed income investments. As a result, an Underlying Fund generally will be dependent on reports and other information provided by the Obligor, either directly or through an Agent, to evaluate the Obligor’s creditworthiness or to determine the Obligor’s compliance with the covenants and other terms of the Loan Agreement. Such reliance may make investments in Loans more susceptible to fraud than other types of investments. In addition, because the Sub-Adviser may wish to invest in the publicly traded securities of an Obligor, it may not have access to material non-public information regarding the Obligor to which other Loan investors have access. 

Junior Loan Risk. Junior Loans are subject to the same general risks inherent to any Loan investment. Due to their lower place in the Obligor’s capital structure and possible unsecured status, Junior Loans involve a higher degree of overall risk than Senior Loans of the same Obligor. Junior Loans that are Bridge Loans generally carry the expectation that the Obligor will be able to obtain permanent financing in the near future. Any delay in obtaining permanent financing subjects the Bridge Loan investor to increased risk. An Obligor’s use of Bridge Loans also involves the risk that the Obligor may be unable to locate permanent financing to replace the Bridge Loan, which may impair the Obligor’s perceived creditworthiness.

Mortgage-Backed Securities 

The Underlying Funds may invest in mortgage-backed securities. These investments include agency pass-through certificates, private mortgage pass-through securities, collateralized mortgage obligations, commercial mortgage-backed securities, stripped mortgage-backed securities and adjustable rate mortgage securities, as defined and described below.

A mortgage-backed security is a type of pass-through security, which is a security representing pooled debt obligations repackaged as interests that pass income through an intermediary to investors. In the case of mortgage-backed securities, the ownership interest is in a pool of mortgage loans. Residential mortgage-backed securities (“RMBS”) are backed by a pool of mortgages on residential property while commercial mortgage-backed securities (“CMBS”) are backed by a pool of mortgages on commercial property.

Mortgage-backed securities are most commonly issued or guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association (“Ginnie Mae” or “GNMA”), Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae” or “FNMA”) or Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac” or “FHLMC”), but may also be issued or guaranteed by other private issuers.

GNMA is a government-owned corporation that is an agency of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. It guarantees, with the full faith and credit of the United States, full and timely payment of all monthly principal and interest on its mortgage-backed securities.

Government-related guarantors (i.e., not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government) include FNMA and FHLMC. FNMA is a government-sponsored corporation. FNMA purchases conventional (i.e., not insured or guaranteed by any government agency) residential mortgages from a list of approved seller/servicers which include state and federally chartered savings and loan associations, mutual savings banks, commercial banks and credit unions and mortgage bankers. Pass-through securities issued by FNMA are guaranteed as to timely payment of principal and interest by FNMA, but are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. FHLMC was created by Congress in 1970 for the purpose of increasing the availability of mortgage credit for residential housing. It is a government-sponsored corporation that issues Participation Certificates (“PCs”), which are pass-through securities, each representing an undivided interest in a pool of residential mortgages. FHLMC guarantees the timely payment of interest and ultimate collection of principal, but PCs are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been operating under conservatorship, with the Federal Housing Finance Administration (“FHFA”) acting as their conservator, since September 2008. The entities are dependent upon the continued support of the U.S. Department of the Treasury and FHFA in order to continue their business operations. These factors, among others, could affect the future status and role of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the values of their securities and the securities which they guarantee.

Privately Issued Mortgage-Backed Securities. Mortgage-backed securities issued by private issuers, whether or not such obligations are subject to guarantees by the private issuer, may entail greater risk than obligations directly or indirectly guaranteed by the U.S. government. Any investments an Underlying Fund makes in mortgage-related securities that are issued by private issuers have some exposure to subprime loans as well as to the mortgage and credit markets generally. Private issuers include commercial banks, savings associations, mortgage companies, investment banking firms, finance companies and special purpose finance entities (called special purpose vehicles or structured investment vehicles) and other entities that acquire and package mortgage loans for resale as mortgage-related securities. Unlike mortgage-related securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or one of its sponsored entities, mortgage-related securities issued by private issuers do not have a government or government-sponsored entity guarantee, but may have credit enhancement provided by external entities such as banks or financial institutions or achieved through the structuring of the transaction itself. Examples of such credit support arising out of the structure of the transaction include: (1) the issuance of senior and subordinated securities (e.g., the issuance of securities by a special purpose vehicle in multiple classes or “tranches,” with one or more classes being senior to other subordinated classes as to the payment of principal and interest, with the result that defaults on the underlying mortgage loans are borne first by the holders of the subordinated class); (2) the creation of “reserve funds” (in which case cash or investments, sometimes funded from a portion of the payments on the underlying mortgage loans, are held in reserve against future losses); and (3) “overcollateralization” (in which case the scheduled payments on, or the principal amount of, the underlying mortgage loans exceeds that required to make payment of the securities and pay any servicing or other fees). However, there can be no guarantee that credit enhancements, if any, will be sufficient to prevent losses in the event of defaults on the underlying mortgage loans. 

In addition, mortgage-related securities that are issued by private issuers are not subject to the underwriting requirements for the underlying mortgages that are applicable to those mortgage-related securities that have a government or government-sponsored entity guarantee. As a result, the mortgage loans underlying private mortgage-related securities may, and frequently do, have less favorable collateral, credit risk or other underwriting characteristics than government or government-sponsored mortgage-related securities and have wider variances in a number of terms including interest rate, term, size, purpose and borrower characteristics. Privately issued pools more frequently include second mortgages, high loan-to-value mortgages and manufactured housing loans. The coupon rates and maturities of the underlying mortgage loans in a private-label mortgage-related securities pool may vary to a greater extent than those included in a government guaranteed pool, and the pool may include subprime mortgage loans. Subprime loans refer to loans made to borrowers with weakened credit histories or with a lower capacity to make timely payments on their loans. For these reasons, the loans underlying these securities have had in many cases higher default rates than those loans that meet government underwriting requirements.

The risk of non-payment is greater for mortgage-related securities that are backed by mortgage pools that contain subprime loans, but a level of risk exists for all loans. Market factors adversely affecting mortgage loan repayments may include a general economic turndown, high unemployment, a general slowdown in the real estate market, a drop in the market prices of real estate, or an increase in interest rates resulting in higher mortgage payments by holders of adjustable rate mortgages.

Privately issued mortgage-related securities are generally less liquid than obligations directly or indirectly guaranteed by the U.S. government or a government-sponsored entity, especially when there is a perceived weakness in the mortgage and real estate market sectors. Without an active trading market, mortgage-related securities held in an Underlying Fund’s portfolio may be particularly difficult to value because of the complexities involved in assessing the value of the underlying mortgage loans. The average life of a mortgage-backed security is likely to be substantially less than the original maturity of the mortgage pools underlying the securities. Prepayments of principal by mortgagors and mortgage foreclosures will usually result in the return of the greater part of principal invested far in advance of the maturity of the mortgages in the pool or can result in credit losses.

Collateralized Mortgage Obligations. Collateralized mortgage obligations (“CMOs”) are debt obligations collateralized by mortgage loans or mortgage pass-through securities (collateral collectively referred to hereinafter as “Mortgage Assets”). Multi-class pass-through securities are interests in a trust composed of Mortgage Assets. All references in this section to CMOs include multi-class pass-through securities. Principal prepayments on the Mortgage Assets may cause the CMOs to be retired substantially earlier than their stated maturities or final distribution dates, resulting in a loss of all or part of the premium if any has been paid. Interest is paid or accrues on all classes of the CMOs on a monthly, quarterly or semi-annual basis. The principal and interest payments on the Mortgage Assets may be allocated among the various classes of CMOs in several ways. Typically, payments of principal, including any prepayments, on the underlying mortgages are applied to the classes in the order of their respective stated maturities or final distribution dates, so that no payment of principal is made on CMOs of a class until all CMOs of other classes having earlier stated maturities or final distribution dates have been paid in full.

Stripped Mortgage-Backed Securities. Stripped mortgage-backed securities (“SMBS”) are derivative multi-class mortgage securities. SMBS are usually structured with two classes that receive different proportions of the interest and principal distributions from a pool of mortgage assets. An Underlying Fund will only invest in SMBS whose mortgage assets are U.S. government obligations. A common type of SMBS will be structured so that one class receives some of the interest and most of the principal from the mortgage assets, while the other class receives most of the interest and the remainder of the principal. If the underlying mortgage assets experience greater than anticipated prepayments of principal, an Underlying Fund may fail to fully recoup its initial investment in these securities. The market value of any class which consists primarily or entirely of principal payments generally is unusually volatile in response to changes in interest rates.

Adjustable Rate Mortgage Securities. The Underlying Funds may invest in Adjustable Rate Mortgage Securities (“ARMS”). ARMS are pass-through mortgage securities collateralized by mortgages with interest rates that are adjusted from time to time. ARMS also include adjustable rate tranches of CMOs. The adjustments usually are determined in accordance with a predetermined interest rate index and may be subject to certain limits. While the values of ARMS, like other debt securities, generally vary inversely with changes in market interest rates (increasing in value during periods of declining interest rates and decreasing in value during periods of increasing interest rates), the values of ARMS should generally be more resistant to price swings than other debt securities because the interest rates of ARMS move with market interest rates. The adjustable rate feature of ARMS will not, however, eliminate fluctuations in the prices of ARMS, particularly during periods of extreme fluctuations in interest rates. Moreover, rising interest rates may lead to borrowers on mortgages underlying ARMS not being able to afford the corresponding higher payments, which could negatively impact the credit and prices of non-agency ARMS. 

ARMS typically have caps which limit the maximum amount by which the interest rate may be increased or decreased at periodic intervals or over the life of the loan. To the extent interest rates increase in excess of the caps, ARMS can be expected to behave more like traditional debt securities and to decline in value to a greater extent than would be the case in the absence of such caps. Also, since many adjustable rate mortgages only reset on an annual basis, it can be expected that the prices of ARMS will fluctuate to the extent changes in prevailing interest rates are not immediately reflected in the interest rates payable on the underlying adjustable rate mortgages. The extent to which the prices of ARMS fluctuate with changes in interest rates will also be affected by the indices underlying the ARMS.

Risks of Investing in Mortgage-Backed Securities. Investment in mortgage-backed securities poses several risks, including, among others, prepayment, market and credit risk. Prepayment risk reflects the risk that borrowers may prepay their mortgages faster than expected, thereby affecting the investment’s average life and perhaps its yield. Whether or not a mortgage loan is prepaid is almost entirely controlled by the borrower. Borrowers are most likely to exercise prepayment options at the time when it is least advantageous to investors, generally prepaying mortgages as interest rates fall, and slowing payments as interest rates rise. Besides the effect of prevailing interest rates, the rate of prepayment and refinancing of mortgages may also be affected by home value appreciation, ease of the refinancing process and local economic conditions. Market risk reflects the risk that the price of a security may fluctuate over time. The price of mortgage-backed securities may be particularly sensitive to prevailing interest rates, the length of time the security is expected to be outstanding and the liquidity of the issue. In a period of unstable interest rates, there may be decreased demand for certain types of mortgage-backed securities, and an Underlying Fund invested in such securities wishing to sell them may find it difficult to find a buyer, which may in turn decrease the price at which they may be sold. Credit risk reflects the risk that an Underlying Fund may not receive all or part of its principal because the issuer or credit enhancer has defaulted on its obligations. Obligations issued by U.S. government-related entities are guaranteed as to the payment of principal and interest, but are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. The performance of private label mortgage-backed securities, issued by private institutions, is based on the financial health of those institutions.

The risks to which CMBS are subject differ somewhat from the risks to which RMBS are subject. CMBS are typically backed by a much smaller number of mortgages than RMBS are, so problems with one or a small number of mortgages backing a CMBS can have a large impact on its value. As CMBS have a less diversified pool of loans backing them, they are much more susceptible to property-specific risk. The values of CMBS are also more sensitive to macroeconomic trends. For example, when the economy slows rents generally decrease and vacancies generally increase for commercial real estate. Similarly, as many CMBS have a large exposure to retail properties, events that negatively impact the retail industry can also negatively impact the value of CMBS.

Municipal Bonds and Other Municipal Obligations 

The Underlying Funds may invest in municipal bonds and other municipal obligations. These bonds and other obligations are issued by the states and by their local and special-purpose political subdivisions. The term “municipal bond” includes short-term municipal notes issued by the states and their political subdivisions, including, but not limited to, tax anticipation notes (“TANs”), bond anticipation notes (“BANs”), revenue anticipation notes (“RANs”), construction loan notes, tax free commercial paper, and tax-free participation certificates. In general, municipal obligations include debt obligations issued by states, cities and local authorities to obtain funds for various public purposes, including construction of a wide range of public facilities such as airports, bridges, highways, hospitals, housing, mass transportation, schools, streets and water and sewer works. Industrial development bonds and pollution control bonds that are issued by or on behalf of public authorities to finance various privately-rated facilities are included within the term municipal obligations if the interest paid thereon is exempt from federal income tax.

Obligations of issuers of municipal obligations are subject to the provisions of bankruptcy, insolvency and other laws affecting the rights and remedies of creditors. In addition, the obligations of such issuers may become subject to the laws enacted in the future by Congress, state legislatures or referenda extending the time for payment of principal and/or interest, or imposing other constraints upon enforcement of such obligations or upon municipalities to levy taxes. There is also the possibility that, as a result of legislation or other conditions, the power or ability of any issuer to pay, when due, the principal of and interest on its municipal obligations may be materially affected. 

Municipal Bonds

The two general classifications of municipal bonds are “general obligation” bonds and “revenue” bonds. General obligation bonds are secured by the governmental issuer’s pledge of its faith, credit and taxing power for the payment of principal and interest upon a default by the issuer of its principal and interest payment obligations. They are usually paid from general revenues of the issuing governmental entity. Revenue bonds, on the other hand, are usually payable only out of a specific revenue source rather than from general revenues. Revenue bonds ordinarily are not backed by the faith, credit or general taxing power of the issuing governmental entity. The principal and interest on revenue bonds for private facilities are typically paid out of rents or other specified payments made to the issuing governmental entity by a private company which uses or operates the facilities. Examples of these types of obligations are industrial revenue bond and pollution control revenue bonds. Industrial revenue bonds are issued by governmental entities to provide financing aid to community facilities such as hospitals, hotels, business or residential complexes, convention halls and sport complexes. Pollution control revenue bonds are issued to finance air, water and solids pollution control systems for privately operated industrial or commercial facilities.

Revenue bonds for private facilities usually do not represent a pledge of the credit, general revenues or taxing powers of issuing governmental entity. Instead, the private company operating the facility is the sole source of payment of the obligation. Sometimes, the funds for payment of revenue bonds come solely from revenue generated by operation of the facility. Federal income tax laws place substantial limitations on industrial revenue bonds, and particularly certain specified private activity bonds issued after August 7, 1986. In the future, legislation could be introduced in Congress which could further restrict or eliminate the income tax exemption for interest on debt obligations in which the Underlying Funds may invest.

Refunded Bonds

The Underlying Funds may invest in refunded bonds. Refunded bonds may have originally been issued as general obligation or revenue bonds, but become refunded when they are secured by an escrow fund, usually consisting entirely of direct U.S. government obligations and/or U.S. government agency obligations sufficient for paying the bondholders. There are two types of refunded bonds: pre-refunded bonds and escrowed-to-maturity (“ETM”) bonds. The escrow fund for a pre-refunded municipal bond may be structured so that the refunded bonds are to be called at the first possible date or a subsequent call date established in the original bond debenture. The call price usually includes a premium from 1% to 3% above par. This type of structure usually is used for those refundings that either reduce the issuer’s interest payment expenses or change the debt maturity schedule. In escrow funds for ETM refunded municipal bonds, the maturity schedules of the securities in the escrow funds match the regular debt-service requirements on the bonds as originally stated in the bond indentures.

Municipal Leases and Certificates of Participation

The Underlying Funds also may purchase municipal lease obligations, primarily through certificates of participation. Certificates of participation in municipal leases are undivided interests in a lease, installment purchase contract or conditional sale contract entered into by a state or local governmental unit to acquire equipment or facilities. Municipal leases frequently have special risks which generally are not associated with general obligation bonds or revenue bonds.

Municipal leases and installment purchase or conditional sales contracts (which usually provide for title to the leased asset to pass to the governmental issuer upon payment of all amounts due under the contract) have evolved as a means for governmental issuers to acquire property and equipment without meeting the constitutional and statutory requirements for the issuance of municipal debt. The debt issuance limitations are deemed to be inapplicable because of the inclusion in many leases and contracts of “non-appropriation” clauses that provide that the governmental issuer has no obligation to make future payments under the lease or contract unless money is appropriated for this purpose by the appropriate legislative body on a yearly or other periodic basis. Although these kinds of obligations are secured by the leased equipment or facilities, the disposition of the pledged property in the event of non-appropriation or foreclosure might, in some cases, prove difficult and time-consuming. In addition, disposition upon non-appropriation or foreclosure might not result in recovery by an Underlying Fund of the full principal amount represented by an obligation.

In light of these concerns, the Underlying Funds have adopted and follow procedures for determining whether any municipal lease obligations purchased by the Underlying Funds are liquid and for monitoring the liquidity of municipal lease securities held in an Underlying Fund’s portfolio. These procedures require that a number of factors be used in evaluating the liquidity of a municipal lease security, including the frequency of trades and quotes for the security, the number of dealers willing to purchase or sell the security and the number of other potential purchasers, the willingness of dealers to undertake to make a market in security, the nature of the marketplace in which the security trades, and other factors which the Sub-Adviser may deem relevant. Each Underlying Fund is subject to limitations on the percentage of illiquid securities it can hold. 

Derivative Municipal Securities

The Underlying Funds may also acquire derivative municipal securities, which are custodial receipts of certificates underwritten by securities dealers or banks that evidence ownership of future interest payments, principal payments or both on certain municipal securities. The underwriter of these certificates or receipts typically purchases municipal securities and deposits them in an irrevocable trust or custodial account with a custodian bank, which then issues receipts or certificates that evidence ownership of the periodic unmatured coupon payments and the final principal payment on the obligation.

The principal and interest payments on the municipal securities underlying custodial receipts may be allocated in a number of ways. For example, payments may be allocated such that certain custodial receipts may have variable or floating interest rates and others may be stripped securities which pay only the principal or interest due on the underlying municipal securities.

Variable Rate Demand Notes (“VRDNs”)

VRDNs are long-term municipal obligations that have variable or floating interest rates and provide an Underlying Fund with the right to tender the security for repurchase at its stated principal amount plus accrued interest. Such securities typically bear interest at a rate that is intended to cause the securities to trade at par. The interest rate may float or be adjusted at regular intervals (ranging from daily to annually), and is normally based on an applicable interest index or another published interest rate or interest rate index. Most VRDNs allow an Underlying Fund to demand the repurchase of the security on not more than seven days prior notice. Other notes only permit an Underlying Fund to tender the security at the time of each interest rate adjustment or at other fixed intervals. Variable interest rates generally reduce changes in the market value of municipal obligations from their original purchase prices. Accordingly, as interest rates decrease, the potential for capital appreciation is less for variable rate municipal obligations than for fixed income obligations.

Inverse Floating Rate Municipal Securities

The Underlying Funds may invest in inverse floating rate municipal securities or “inverse floaters,” whose rates vary inversely to interest rates on a specified short-term municipal bond index or on another instrument. Such securities involve special risks as compared to conventional fixed-rate bonds. Should short-term interest rates rise, an Underlying Fund’s investment in inverse floaters likely would adversely affect an Underlying Fund’s earnings and distributions to shareholders. Also, because changes in the interest rate on the other index or other instrument inversely affect the rate of interest received on an inverse floater, and because inverse floaters essentially represent a leveraged investment in a long-term bond, the value of an inverse floater is generally more volatile than that of a conventional fixed-rate bond having similar credit quality, redemption provisions and maturity. Although volatile in value, inverse floaters typically offer the potential for yields substantially exceeding the yields available on conventional fixed-rate bonds with comparable credit quality, coupon, call provisions and maturity. The markets for inverse floating rate securities may be less developed and have less liquidity than the markets for conventional securities. The Underlying Funds will only invest in inverse floating rate securities whose underlying bonds are rated A or higher.

Non-Investment Grade Debt Securities (Junk Bonds) 

The Underlying Funds may invest in non-investment grade debt securities. Non-investment grade debt securities are medium- to low-quality debt obligations. Debt obligations rated below investment grade (“BB”/“Ba” or lower) are commonly known as “high yield,” “high risk” or “junk” bonds. For all Underlying Funds, to be consistent with the ratings methodology used by Barclays, a debt obligation is considered to be rated “investment grade” if two of Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch rate the security investment-grade (i.e., at least “Baa,” “BBB” and “BBB,” respectively). If ratings are provided by only two of those rating agencies, the more conservative rating is used to determine

Junk bonds, while generally offering higher yields than investment grade securities with similar maturities, involve greater risks, including the possibility of default or bankruptcy. They are regarded as predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal. The special risk considerations in connection with investments in these securities are discussed below. Refer to Appendix A of this Statement of Additional Information for a discussion of securities ratings.

(1)          Effect of Interest Rates and Economic Changes. All interest-bearing securities typically experience appreciation when interest rates decline and depreciation when interest rates rise. In addition, the market values of junk bond securities tend to reflect individual issuer developments to a greater extent than do the market values of higher rated securities, which react primarily to fluctuations in the general level of interest rates. Junk bond securities also tend to be more sensitive to economic conditions than are higher rated securities. As a result, they generally involve more credit risk than securities in the higher rated categories. During an economic downturn or a sustained period of rising interest rates, highly leveraged issuers of junk bond securities may experience financial stress and may not have sufficient revenues to meet their payment obligations. The risk of loss due to default by an issuer of these securities is significantly greater than by an issuer of higher rated securities because such securities are generally unsecured and are often subordinated to other creditors. Further, if the issuer of a junk bond security defaults, an Underlying Fund may incur additional expenses to seek recovery. Periods of economic uncertainty and changes would also generally result in increased volatility in the market prices of these and thus in an Underlying Fund’s net asset value. 

The value of a junk bond security will generally decrease in a rising interest rate market and, accordingly, so will an Underlying Fund’s net asset value. If an Underlying Fund experiences unexpected net redemptions in such a market, it may be forced to liquidate a portion of its portfolio securities without regard to their investment merits. Due to the limited liquidity of certain junk bond securities, an Underlying Fund may be forced to liquidate these securities at a substantial discount. Any such liquidation would reduce an Underlying Fund’s asset base over which expenses could be allocated and could result in a reduced rate of return for the Underlying Fund.

(2)          Payment Expectations. Junk bond securities typically contain redemption, call, or prepayment provisions that permit the issuer of securities containing such provisions to redeem the securities at its discretion. During periods of falling interest rates, issuers of these securities are likely to redeem or prepay the securities and refinance them with debt securities with a lower interest rate. To the extent an issuer is able to refinance the securities, or otherwise redeem them, an Underlying Fund may have to replace the securities with lower yielding securities, which could result in a lower return for the Underlying Fund.

(3)          Credit Ratings. Credit ratings are issued by credit rating agencies and are indicative of the rated securities’ safety of principal and interest payments. They do not, however, evaluate the market value risk of junk bond securities and, therefore, may not fully reflect the true risks of such an investment. In addition, credit rating agencies may not make timely changes in a rating to reflect changes in the economy or in the condition of the issuer that affect the value of the security. Consequently, credit ratings are used only as a preliminary indicator of investment quality. Investments in junk bonds will depend more upon credit analysis by the Sub-Adviser than investments in investment grade debt securities. The Sub-Adviser employs its own credit research and analysis, which includes a study of the issuer’s existing debt, capital structure, ability to service debts and pay dividends, sensitivity to economic conditions, operating history, and current earnings trend. The Sub-Adviser continually monitors the Underlying Funds’ investments and carefully evaluates whether to dispose of or to retain junk bond securities whose credit ratings or credit quality may have changed.

(4)          Liquidity and Valuation. An Underlying Fund may have difficulty disposing of certain junk bond securities because there may be a thin trading market for such securities. Not all dealers maintain markets in all junk bond securities. As a result, there is no established retail secondary market for many of these securities. To the extent a secondary trading market does exist, it is generally not as liquid as the secondary market for higher rated securities. The lack of a liquid secondary market may have an adverse impact on the market price of the security. The lack of a liquid secondary market for certain securities may also make it more difficult for an Underlying Fund to obtain accurate market quotations for purposes of valuing its securities. Market quotations are generally available on many junk bond issues only from a limited number of dealers and may not necessarily represent firm bids of such dealers or prices for actual sales. During periods of thin trading, the spread between bid and asked prices is likely to increase significantly. In addition, adverse publicity and investor perceptions, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may decrease the value and liquidity of junk bond securities, especially in a thinly traded market.

Other Investment Companies 

Each Fund may invest in other investment companies, including open-end funds, closed-end funds, unit investment trusts, and exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) registered under the 1940 Act that invest primarily in Fund eligible investments. Under the 1940 Act, a Fund’s investment in such securities is generally limited to 3% of the total voting stock of any one investment company; 5% of such Fund’s total assets with respect to any one investment company; and 10% of such Fund’s total assets in the aggregate. A Fund’s investments in other investment companies may include money market mutual funds. Investments in money market funds are not subject to the percentage limitations set forth above.

Many ETFs, however, have obtained exemptive relief from the SEC to permit unaffiliated funds to invest in their shares beyond these statutory limits, subject to certain conditions and pursuant to contractual arrangements between the ETFs and the investing funds. The Funds may rely on these exemptive orders that permit the Funds to invest in these ETFs beyond the limits contained in the 1940 Act, subject to certain terms and conditions. Generally, these terms and conditions require the Board to approve policies and procedures relating to certain of the Funds’ investments in ETFs. These policies and procedures require, among other things, that (i) the Adviser conducts the Funds’ investment in ETFs without regard to any consideration received by the Funds or any of their affiliated persons and (ii) the Adviser certifies to the Board quarterly that it has not received any consideration in connection with an investment by the Funds in an ETF, or if it has, the amount and purpose of the consideration will be reported to the Board and an equivalent amount of advisory fees shall be waived by the Adviser. 

The SEC recently adopted certain regulatory changes and took other actions related to the ability of an investment company to invest in the securities of another investment company. These changes include, among other things, the rescission of certain SEC exemptive orders permitting investments in excess of the statutory limits and the withdrawal of certain related SEC staff no-action letters, and the adoption of Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act. Rule 12d1-4, which was effective on January 19, 2021, will permit the Funds to invest in other investment companies beyond the statutory limits, subject to certain conditions. The rescission of the applicable exemptive orders and the withdrawal of the applicable no-action letters is effective on January 19, 2022. After such time, the Funds will no longer be able to rely on the aforementioned exemptive orders and no-action letters, and will be subject instead to Rule 12d1-4 and other applicable rules under Section 12(d)(1) under the 1940 Act.

ETFs in which the Funds may invest are a type of index fund bought and sold on a securities exchange. An ETF trades like common stock and represents a portfolio of securities designed to track a particular market index. ETFs can give exposure to all or a portion of the U.S. market, a foreign market, a region, a commodity, a currency, or to any other index that an ETF tracks. The risks of owning an ETF generally reflect the risks of owning the underlying securities they are designed to track, although lack of liquidity in an ETF could result in it being more volatile and ETFs have management fees that increase their costs. An ETF may fail to accurately track the returns of the market segment or index that it is designed to track, and the price of an ETF’s shares may fluctuate. In addition, because they, unlike traditional mutual funds, are traded on an exchange, ETFs are subject to the following risks: (i) the performance of the ETF may not replicate the performance of the underlying index that it is designed to track; (ii) the market price of the ETF’s shares may trade at a premium or discount to the ETF’s net asset value; (iii) an active trading market for an ETF may not develop or be maintained; and (iv) there is no assurance that the requirements of the exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the ETF will continue to be met or remain unchanged. Trading in an ETF may be halted if the trading in one or more of the ETF’s underlying securities is halted, which could result in the ETF being more volatile. In the event substantial market or other disruptions affecting ETFs should occur in the future, the liquidity and value of a Fund’s shares could also be substantially and adversely affected.

If a Fund invests in other investment companies, Fund shareholders will bear not only their proportionate share of a Fund’s expenses, but also, indirectly, the similar expenses of the underlying investment companies. Shareholders would also be exposed to the risks associated not only with a Fund, but also with the portfolio investments of the underlying investment companies. Shares of certain closed-end funds may at times be acquired at market prices representing premiums to their net asset values. Shares acquired at a premium to their net asset value may be more likely to subsequently decline in price, resulting in a loss to a Fund and its shareholders.

Payment-In-Kind Debentures and Delayed Interest Securities 

The Underlying Funds may invest in debentures the interest on which may be paid in other securities rather than cash (“PIKs”) or may be delayed (“delayed interest securities”). Typically, during a specified term prior to the debenture’s maturity, the issuer of a PIK may provide for the option or the obligation to make interest payments in debentures, common stock or other instruments (i.e., “in-kind” rather than in cash). The type of instrument in which interest may or will be paid would be known by an Underlying Fund at the time of investment. While PIKs generate income for purposes of generally accepted accounting standards, they do not generate cash flow and thus could cause an Underlying Fund to be forced to liquidate securities at an inopportune time in order to distribute cash, as required by the Code.

Unlike PIKs, delayed interest securities do not pay interest for a specified period. Because values of securities of this type are subject to greater fluctuations than are the values of securities that distribute income regularly, they may be more speculative than such securities.

Preferred Securities

The Underlying Funds may invest in preferred securities with different distribution structures. The various coupon structures may be broadly characterized as follows:

As a general matter, dividend or interest payments on preferred securities may be cumulative or non-cumulative. Although issuers of cumulative preferred securities generally can defer distributions for a specified period of time, no redemption can typically take place unless all cumulative payment obligations have been met. Issuers may, however, be able to engage in open-market repurchases without regard to any cumulative dividends payable. For non-cumulative preferred securities, the issuer does not have any obligation with respect to skipped payments.

Preferred securities may be issued with either a final maturity date, or as a perpetual structure. In certain instances, a final maturity date may be extended and/or the final payment of principal may be deferred at the issuer’s option for a specified time without any adverse consequence to the issuer.

U.S. Government Securities 

Each Underlying Fund may invest in U.S. government securities, including bills, notes and bonds differing as to maturity and rates of interest, which are either issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury or by U.S. government agencies or instrumentalities. U.S. government agency securities include securities issued by (a) the Federal Housing Administration, Farmers Home Administration, Export-Import Bank of the United States, Small Business Administration, and the Government National Mortgage Association, whose securities are supported by the full faith and credit of the United States; (b) the Federal Home Loan Banks, Federal Intermediate Credit Banks, and the Tennessee Valley Authority, whose securities are supported by the right of the agency to borrow from the U.S. Treasury; (c) the Federal National Mortgage Association, whose securities are supported by the discretionary authority of the U.S. government to purchase certain obligations of the agency or instrumentality; and (d) the Student Loan Marketing Association, whose securities are supported only by its credit. While the U.S. government provides financial support to such U.S. government-sponsored agencies or instrumentalities, no assurance can be given that it always will do so since it is not so obligated by law. The U.S. government, its agencies and instrumentalities do not guarantee the market value of their securities, and consequently, the value of such securities may fluctuate.

U.S. Treasury obligations include separately traded interest and principal component parts of such obligations, known as Separately Traded Registered Interest and Principal Securities (“STRIPS”), which are transferable through the Federal book-entry system. STRIPS are sold as zero-coupon securities, which means that they are sold at a substantial discount and redeemed at face value at their maturity date without interim cash payments of interest or principal. This discount is accreted over the life of the security, and such accretion will constitute the income earned on the security for both accounting and tax purposes. Because of these features, such securities may be subject to greater interest rate volatility than interest paying U.S. Treasury obligations.

Variable, Floating, and Fixed Rate Debt Obligations 

The debt obligations in which the Underlying Funds invest may have variable, floating, or fixed interest rates. Variable rate securities provide for periodic adjustments in the interest rate. Floating rate securities are generally offered at an initial interest rate which is at or above prevailing market rates. The interest rate paid on floating rate securities is then reset periodically (commonly every 90 days) to an increment over some predetermined interest rate index. Commonly utilized indices include the three-month Treasury bill rate, the 180-day Treasury bill rate, the one-month or three-month London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), the prime rate of a bank, the commercial paper rates, or the longer-term rates on U.S. Treasury securities. Variable and floating rate securities are relatively long-term instruments that often carry demand features permitting the holder to demand payment of principal at any time or at specified intervals prior to maturity plus accrued interest. In order to most effectively use these securities, the Sub-Adviser must correctly assess probable movements in interest rates. If the Sub-Adviser incorrectly forecasts such movements, an Underlying Fund could be adversely affected by use of variable and floating rate securities. 

Fixed rate securities pay a fixed rate of interest and tend to exhibit more price volatility during times of rising or falling interest rates than securities with variable or floating rates of interest. The value of fixed rate securities will tend to fall when interest rates rise and rise when interest rates fall. The value of variable or floating rate securities, on the other hand, fluctuates much less in response to market interest rate movements than the value of fixed rate securities. This is because variable and floating rate securities behave like short-term instruments in that the rate of interest they pay is subject to periodic adjustments according to a specified formula, usually with reference to some interest rate index or market interest rate. Fixed rate securities with short-term characteristics are not subject to the same price volatility as fixed rate securities without such characteristics. Therefore, they behave more like variable or floating rate securities with respect to price volatility.

When-Issued and Delayed Delivery Transactions 

Each Underlying Fund may purchase securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis. When such a transaction is negotiated, the purchase price is fixed at the time the purchase commitment is entered, but delivery of and payment for the securities take place at a later date. An Underlying Fund will not accrue income with respect to securities purchased on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis prior to their stated delivery date.

The purchase of securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis exposes an Underlying Fund to risk because the securities may decrease in value prior to delivery. In addition, an Underlying Fund’s purchase of securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis while remaining substantially fully invested could increase the amount of an Underlying Fund’s total assets that are subject to market risk, resulting in increased sensitivity of net asset value to changes in market prices. A seller’s failure to deliver securities to an Underlying Fund could prevent such Underlying Fund from realizing a price or yield considered to be advantageous.

When an Underlying Fund agrees to purchase securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis, such Underlying Fund will segregate cash or liquid securities in an amount sufficient to meet the Underlying Fund’s purchase commitments. It may be expected that a Underlying Fund’s net assets will fluctuate to a greater degree when it sets aside securities to cover such purchase commitments than when it sets aside cash. In addition, because an Underlying Fund will set aside cash or liquid securities to satisfy its purchase commitments, its liquidity and the ability of the Sub-Adviser to manage it might be affected in the event its commitments to purchase when-issued or delayed delivery securities ever became significant. Under normal market conditions, however, an Underlying Fund’s commitments to purchase when-issued or delayed delivery securities will not exceed 25% of the value of its total assets.

Zero-Coupon and Step Coupon Securities 

The Underlying Funds may invest in zero-coupon and step coupon securities. Zero-coupon securities pay no cash income to their holders until they mature. When held to maturity, their entire return comes from the difference between their purchase price and their maturity value. Step coupon securities are debt securities that may not pay interest for a specified period of time and then, after the initial period, may pay interest at a series of different rates. Both zero-coupon and step coupon securities are issued at substantial discounts from their value at maturity. Because interest on these securities is not paid on a current basis, the values of securities of this type are subject to greater fluctuations than are the value of securities that distribute income regularly and may be more speculative than such securities. Accordingly, the values of these securities may be highly volatile as interest rates rise or fall. In addition, while such securities generate income for purposes of generally accepted accounting standards, they do not generate cash flow and thus could cause an Underlying Fund to be forced to liquidate securities at an inopportune time in order to distribute cash, as required by the Code.

Temporary Investments 

During periods of adverse market or economic conditions, each Fund may temporarily invest all or a substantial portion of its assets in high-quality, fixed-income securities, money market instruments, and shares of money market mutual funds, or it may hold cash. At such times, a Fund would not be pursuing its stated investment objective with its usual investment strategies. Each Fund may also hold these investments for liquidity purposes. Fixed-income securities will be deemed to be of high quality if they are rated “A” or better by S&P or Moody’s or, if unrated, are determined to be of comparable quality by the Sub-Adviser. Money market instruments are high-quality, short-term fixed-income obligations (which generally have remaining maturities of one year or less) and may include U.S. Government Securities, commercial paper, certificates of deposit and banker’s acceptances issued by domestic branches of U.S. banks that are members of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and repurchase agreements for U.S. Government Securities. In lieu of purchasing money market instruments, each Fund may purchase shares of money market mutual funds that invest primarily in U.S. Government Securities and repurchase agreements involving those securities, subject to certain limitations imposed by the 1940 Act. Each Fund, as an investor in a money market fund, will indirectly bear that fund’s fees and expenses, which will be in addition to the fees and expenses of the Fund. Repurchase agreements involve certain risks not associated with direct investments in debt securities. 

Portfolio Turnover 

Portfolio securities may be sold without regard to the time they have been held when investment considerations warrant such action. A higher portfolio turnover rate would result in higher brokerage costs to a Fund and could also result in the realization of larger amounts of capital gains, including short-term capital gains. Capital gains are generally taxable when distributed to shareholders, and distributions of short-term capital gains are generally taxable at ordinary income tax rates.

Pandemic Risk 

Disease outbreaks that affect local economies or the global economy may materially and adversely impact the Funds, the Underlying Funds, and/or the Adviser’s or the Sub-Advisers’s business. For example, uncertainties regarding the novel Coronavirus (“COVID-19”) outbreak have resulted in serious economic disruptions across the globe. These types of outbreaks can be expected to cause severe decreases in core business activities such as manufacturing, purchasing, tourism, business conferences and workplace participation, among others. These disruptions lead to instability in the market place, including stock market losses and overall volatility, as has occurred in connection with COVID-19. In the face of such instability, governments may take extreme and unpredictable measures to combat the spread of disease and mitigate the resulting market disruptions and losses. The Adviser and Sub-Advisers have in place business continuity plans reasonably designed to ensure that it maintains normal business operations, and it periodically tests those plans. However, in the event of a pandemic or an outbreak, there can be no assurance that the Adviser, the Sub-Advisers, the Funds’ or the Underlying Funds’ service providers will be able to maintain normal business operations for an extended period of time or will not lose the services of key personnel on a temporary or long-term basis due to illness or other reasons. The full impacts of a pandemic or disease outbreaks are unknown, resulting in a high degree of uncertainty for potentially extended periods of time.

Cyber Security Risk 

Each Fund and its service providers may be prone to operational and information security risks resulting from breaches in cyber security. A breach in cyber security refers to both intentional and unintentional events that may cause a Fund to lose proprietary information, suffer data corruption, or lose operational capacity. Breaches in cyber security include, among other behaviors, stealing or corrupting data maintained online or digitally, denial of service attacks on websites, the unauthorized release of confidential information or various other forms of cyber-attacks. Cyber security breaches affecting a Fund, the Adviser, the Sub-Advisers, custodian, transfer agent, intermediaries and other third-party service providers may adversely impact the Funds. For instance, cyber security breaches may interfere with the processing of shareholder transactions, impact a Fund’s ability to calculate its NAVs, cause the release of private shareholder information or confidential business information, impede trading, subject a Fund to regulatory fines or financial losses and/or cause reputational damage. Each Fund may also incur additional costs for cyber security risk management purposes. Similar types of cyber security risks are also present for issuers of securities in which each Fund may invest, which could result in material adverse consequences for such issuers and may cause a Fund’s investment in such companies to lose value. While each Fund and its service providers have established IT and data security programs and have in place business continuity plans and other systems designed to prevent losses and mitigate cyber security risk, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems, including the possibility that certain risks have not been identified or that cyber-attacks may be highly sophisticated. Furthermore, the Funds have limited ability to prevent or mitigate cyber security incidents affecting third-party service providers, and such third-party service providers may have limited indemnification obligations to the Funds, the Adviser and the Sub-Advisers.

INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS

The Company has adopted the following investment restrictions as fundamental policies with respect to each Fund. These restrictions cannot be changed with respect to each Fund without the approval of the holders of a majority of the Fund’s outstanding voting securities. For the purposes of the 1940 Act, a “majority of outstanding shares” means the vote of the lesser of: (1) 67% or more of the voting securities of the Fund present at the meeting if the holders of more than 50% of the Fund’s outstanding voting securities are present or represented by proxy; or (2) more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.

Except with the approval of a majority of the outstanding voting securities, each Fund may not:

Group of related industries is defined as three or more industries based on the Sub-Adviser’s classification for the purpose of this section.

In addition to the foregoing fundamental investment policies, a Fund is also subject to the following non-fundamental restrictions and policies, which may be changed by the Board of Trustees. A Fund may not:

If a percentage limitation is adhered to at the time of investment or contract, a later increase or decrease in percentage resulting from any change in value or total or net assets will not result in a violation of such restriction, except that the percentage limitations with respect to the borrowing of money and illiquid securities will be observed continuously. If the percentage of a Fund’s net assets invested in illiquid securities exceeds 15% due to market activity or changes in a Fund’s portfolio, the Fund will take appropriate measures to reduce its holdings of illiquid securities as soon as reasonably practicable, in a manner consistent with prudent management and the interests of the Fund.

EXCHANGE LISTING AND TRADING

Shares are listed for trading and trade throughout the day on the Exchange.

There can be no assurance that a Fund will continue to meet the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of shares. The Exchange will consider the suspension of trading in, and will initiate delisting proceedings of, the shares of a Fund under any of the following circumstances: (i) if any of the requirements set forth in the Exchange rules are not continuously maintained; (ii) if the Exchange files separate proposals under Section 19(b) of the 1940 Act and any of the statements regarding (a) the description of the Fund; (b) limitations on the Fund’s portfolio holdings or reference assets; (c) dissemination and availability of the intraday indicative values; or (d) the applicability of the Exchange listing rules specified in such proposals are not continuously maintained; (iii) if, following the initial 12-month period beginning at the commencement of trading of the Fund, there are fewer than 50 beneficial owners of shares of the Fund; (iv) if the intraday indicative value is no longer disseminated at least every 15 seconds during the Exchange’s regular market session and the interruption to the dissemination persists past the trading day in which it occurred; or (v) such other event shall occur or condition shall exist that, in the opinion of the Exchange, makes further dealings on the Exchange inadvisable. The Exchange will remove the shares from listing and trading upon termination of a Fund.

The Company reserves the right to adjust the price levels of its shares in the future to help maintain convenient trading ranges for investors. Any adjustments would be accomplished through stock splits or reverse stock splits, which would have no effect on the net assets of the Funds. 

As in the case of other stocks traded on the Exchange, broker’s commissions on transactions will be based on negotiated commission rates at customary levels.

To provide additional information regarding the indicative value of shares, the Exchange or a market data vendor disseminates information every 15 seconds through the facilities of the Consolidated Tape Association, or other widely disseminated means, an updated “intraday indicative value” (“IIV”) for a Fund as calculated by an information provider or market data vendor. The Company is not involved in or responsible for any aspect of the calculation or dissemination of the IIVs and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the IIVs.

MANAGEMENT OF THE COMPANY

The business and affairs of the Company are managed under the oversight of the Board, subject to the laws of the State of Maryland and the Company’s Charter. The Directors are responsible for deciding matters of overall policy and overseeing the actions of the Company’s service providers. The officers of the Company conduct and supervise the Company’s daily business operations.

Directors who are not deemed to be “interested persons” of the Company (as defined in the 1940 Act) are referred to as “Independent Directors.” Directors who are deemed to be “interested persons” of the Company are referred to as “Interested Directors.” The Board is currently composed of seven Independent Directors and one Interested Director. The Board has selected Arnold M. Reichman, an Independent Director, to act as Chairman. Mr. Reichman’s duties include presiding at meetings of the Board and interfacing with management to address significant issues that may arise between regularly scheduled Board and Committee meetings. In the performance of his duties, Mr. Reichman will consult with the other Independent Directors and the Company’s officers and legal counsel, as appropriate. The Chairman may perform other functions as requested by the Board from time to time.

The Board meets as often as necessary to discharge its responsibilities. Currently, the Board conducts regular, in-person meetings at least four times a year, and holds special in-person or telephonic meetings as necessary to address specific issues that require attention prior to the next regularly scheduled meeting. The Board also relies on professionals, such as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firms and legal counsel, to assist the Directors in performing their oversight responsibilities.

The Board has established nine standing committees — Audit, Contract, Executive, Investment and Liquidity Risk, Nominating and Governance, Product Development, Regulatory Oversight, Strategic Oversight, and Valuation Committees. The Board may establish other committees, or nominate one or more Directors to examine particular issues related to the Board’s oversight responsibilities, from time to time. Each Committee meets periodically to perform its delegated oversight functions and reports its findings and recommendations to the Board. For more information on the Committees, see the section entitled “Standing Committees.”

The Board has determined that the Company’s leadership structure is appropriate because it allows the Board to effectively perform its oversight responsibilities.

Directors and Executive Officers

The Directors and executive officers of the Company, their ages, business addresses and principal occupations during the past five years are set forth in this section. 

Director Experience, Qualifications, Attributes and/or Skills

The information above includes each Director’s principal occupations during the last five years. Each Director possesses extensive additional experience, skills and attributes relevant to his qualifications to serve as a Director. The cumulative background of each Director led to the conclusion that each Director should serve as a Director of the Company. Mr. Giordano has years of experience as a consultant to financial services organizations and also serves on the boards of other registered investment companies. Mr. Reichman brings decades of investment management experience to the Board, in addition to senior executive-level management experience. Mr. Straniere has been a practicing attorney for over 30 years and also serves on the boards of an asset management company and another registered investment company. Mr. Brodsky has over 40 years of senior executive level management experience in the cable television and communications industry. Mr. Sablowsky has demonstrated leadership and management abilities as evidenced by his senior executive-level positions in the financial services industry. Mr. Carnall has decades of senior executive-level management experience in the banking and financial services industry and also serves on the boards of various corporations and a bank. Mr. Chandler has demonstrated leadership and management abilities as evidenced by his senior executive level positions in the investment technology consulting/services and investment banking/brokerage industries, and also serves on various boards. Mr. Shea has demonstrated leadership and management abilities as evidenced by his senior executive-level positions in the brokerage, clearing and investment services industry, including service on the boards of industry regulatory organizations and a university.

Standing Committees

The responsibilities of each Committee of the Board and its members are described below.

Audit Committee. The Board has an Audit Committee comprised of three Independent Directors. The current members of the Audit Committee are Messrs. Brodsky, Chandler and Giordano. The Audit Committee, among other things, reviews results of the annual audit and approves the firm(s) to serve as independent auditors. The Audit Committee convened three times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020.

Contract Committee. The Board has a Contract Committee comprised of the Interested Director and three Independent Directors. The current members of the Contract Committee are Messrs. Brodsky, Chandler, Sablowsky and Straniere. The Contract Committee reviews and makes recommendations to the Board regarding the approval and continuation of agreements and plans of the Company. The Contract Committee convened four times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020.

Executive Committee. The Board has an Executive Committee comprised of the Interested Director and three Independent Directors. The current members of the Executive Committee are Messrs. Chandler, Giordano, Reichman and Sablowsky. The Executive Committee may generally carry on and manage the business of the Company when the Board is not in session. The Executive Committee did not meet during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020.

Investment and Liquidity Risk Committee. The Board has an Investment and Liquidity Risk Committee comprised of the Interested Director and two Independent Directors. The current members of the Investment and Liquidity Risk Committee are Messrs. Reichman, Sablowsky and Shea. The Investment and Liquidity Risk Committee ensures that the Company’s investment advisers have adopted investment risk and liquidity risk management policies and procedures. The Investment and Liquidity Risk Committee met seven times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020.

Nominating and Governance Committee. The Board has a Nominating and Governance Committee comprised of three Independent Directors. The current members of the Nominating and Governance Committee are Messrs. Carnall, Giordano and Reichman. The Nominating and Governance Committee recommends to the Board all persons to be nominated as Directors of the Company. The Nominating and Governance Committee will consider nominees recommended by shareholders. Recommendations should be submitted to the Committee care of the Company’s Secretary. The Nominating and Governance Committee convened two times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020.

Product Development Committee. The Board has a Product Development Committee comprised of the Interested Director and one Independent Director. The current members of the Product Development Committee are Messrs. Reichman and Sablowsky. The Product Development Committee oversees the process regarding the addition of new investment advisers and investment products to the Company. The Product Development Committee convened three times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020.

Regulatory Oversight Committee. The Board has a Regulatory Oversight Committee comprised of the Interested Director and four Independent Directors. The current members of the Regulatory Oversight Committee are Messrs. Carnall, Reichman, Sablowsky, Shea and Straniere. The Regulatory Oversight Committee monitors regulatory developments in the mutual fund industry and focuses on various regulatory aspects of the operation of the Company. The Regulatory Oversight Committee convened four times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020. 

Strategic Oversight Committee. The Board has a Strategic Oversight Committee comprised of the Interested Director and three Independent Directors. The current members of the Strategic Oversight Committee are Messrs. Carnall, Chandler, Reichman and Sablowsky. The Strategic Oversight Committee assists the Board in its oversight and review of the Company’s strategic plan and operations. The Strategic Oversight Committee did not meet during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020.

Valuation Committee. The Board has a Valuation Committee comprised of the Interested Director and two officers of the Company. The members of the Valuation Committee are Messrs. Faia, Sablowsky and Shaw. The Valuation Committee is responsible for reviewing fair value determinations. The Valuation Committee convened four times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020.

Risk Oversight

The Board performs its risk oversight function for the Company through a combination of (1) direct oversight by the Board as a whole and Board committees and (2) indirect oversight through the Company’s investment advisers and other service providers, Company officers and the Company’s Chief Compliance Officer. The Company is subject to a number of risks, including but not limited to investment risk, compliance risk, operational risk, reputational risk, credit risk and counterparty risk. Day-to-day risk management with respect to the Company is the responsibility of the Company’s investment advisers or other service providers (depending on the nature of the risk) that carry out the Company’s investment management and business affairs. Each of the investment advisers and the other service providers have their own independent interest in risk management and their policies and methods of risk management will depend on their functions and business models and may differ from the Company’s and each other’s in the setting of priorities, the resources available or the effectiveness of relevant controls.

The Board provides risk oversight by receiving and reviewing on a regular basis reports from the Company’s investment advisers or other service providers, receiving and approving compliance policies and procedures, periodic meetings with the Company’s portfolio managers to review investment policies, strategies and risks, and meeting regularly with the Company’s Chief Compliance Officer to discuss compliance reports, findings and issues. The Board also relies on the Company’s investment advisers and other service providers, with respect to the day-to-day activities of the Company, to create and maintain procedures and controls to minimize risk and the likelihood of adverse effects on the Company’s business and reputation.

Board oversight of risk management is also provided by various Board Committees. For example, the Audit Committee meets with the Company’s independent registered public accounting firms to ensure that the Company’s respective audit scopes include risk-based considerations as to the Company’s financial position and operations. The Board may, at any time and in its discretion, change the manner in which it conducts risk oversight. The Board’s oversight role does not make the Board a guarantor of the Company’s investments or activities.

Director Ownership of Shares of the Company

The following table sets forth the dollar range of equity securities beneficially owned by each Director in the Funds and in all of the portfolios of the Company (which for each Director comprise all registered investment companies within the Company’s family of investment companies overseen by him), as of December 31, 2020.

Directors’ and Officers’ Compensation 

Effective April 1, 2019, the Company pays each Director a retainer at the rate of $125,000 annually, $10,000 for each regular meeting of the Board, $3,500 for each committee meeting attended in-person, and $2,000 for each committee meeting attended telephonically or special meeting of the Board attended in-person or telephonically. The Chairman of the Audit Committee and Chairman of the Regulatory Oversight Committee each receives an additional fee of $20,000 for his services. The Chairman of the Contract Committee and the Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee each receives an additional fee of $10,000 per year for his services. The Chairman of the Investment and Liquidity Risk Committee receives an additional fee of $7,500 per year for his services. The Vice Chairman of the Board receives an additional fee of $35,000 per year for his services in this capacity and the Chairman of the Board receives an additional fee of $75,000 per year for his services in this capacity.

Directors are reimbursed for any reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred in attending meetings of the Board or any committee thereof. An employee of Vigilant Compliance, LLC serves as President and Chief Compliance Officer of the Company. Vigilant Compliance, LLC is compensated for the services provided to the Company, and such compensation is determined by the Board. For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, Vigilant Compliance LLC received $557,500 in the aggregate from all series of the Company for its services. Employees of the Company serve as Treasurer, Secretary and Director of Marketing & Business Development, and are compensated for services provided. For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2020, each of the following members of the Board and the Treasurer, Secretary and Director of Marketing & Business Development received compensation from the Company in the following amounts:

Each compensated Director is entitled to participate in the Company’s deferred compensation plan (the “DC Plan”). Under the DC Plan, a compensated Director may elect to defer all or a portion of his compensation and have the deferred compensation treated as if it had been invested by the Company in shares of one or more of the portfolios of the Company. The amount paid to the Directors under the DC Plan will be determined based upon the performance of such investments.

As of December 31, 2019, the Independent Directors and their respective family members (spouse or dependent children) did not own beneficially or of record any securities of the Company’s investment advisers or distributor, or of any person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the investment advisers or distributor.

CODE OF ETHICS

The Company, the Adviser, the Sub-Adviser, Vident and Vigilant Distributors, LLC (the “Distributor”), have each adopted a code of ethics (“Code of Ethics”) pursuant to Rule 17j-1 under the 1940 Act, which governs personal securities trading by their respective personnel. Each Code of Ethics permits such individuals to purchase and sell securities, including securities that are purchased, sold, or held by the Fund, but only subject to certain conditions designed to ensure that purchases and sales by such individuals do not adversely affect the Fund’s investment activities.

PRINCIPAL HOLDERS

As of the date of this SAI, no shares of the Fund were outstanding.

INVESTMENT ADVISORY AGREEMENTS

Investment Advisory Agreement

The Adviser is a Pennsylvania limited liability company with offices at Gateway Corporate Center, Ste 216, 223 Wilmington West Chester Pike, Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania 19317. The Adviser is owned by Craig Urciuoli and Chadds Ford Investment Management, LLC (“CFIM”), a Pennsylvania limited liability company. CFIM is controlled by Salvatore Faia and Margaret Faia. Mr. Faia is President and Chief Compliance Officer of the Company. Mr. Urciuoli is the Director of Marketing & Business Development for the Company.

The Adviser provides investment advisory services to the Funds pursuant to the terms of an Investment Advisory Agreement (the “Advisory Agreement”) between the Company and the Adviser. After the initial two year-term, the Advisory Agreement may be continued in effect from year to year with the approval of (1) the Board or (2) vote of a majority (as defined by the 1940 Act) of the outstanding voting securities of each Fund, provided that in either event the continuance must also be approved by a majority of the Independent Directors by vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval. The Advisory Agreement terminates automatically in the event of its assignment, as defined in the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder. 

The Adviser manages each Fund’s investments in accordance with the stated policies of the Fund, subject to the supervision of the Board. The Adviser provides such additional administrative services as the Company may require beyond those furnished by the Administrator and furnishes, at its own expense, such office space, facilities, equipment, clerical help, and other personnel and services as may reasonably be necessary in connection with the operations of the Company.

Pursuant to the terms of the Advisory Agreement, in consideration of the services provided by the Adviser, each Fund pays the Adviser a unitary management fee that is computed and paid monthly at an annual rate of [ ]%, [ ]%, and [ ]% of the average daily net assets during the month of the YieldX Diversified Income ETF, YieldX High Income ETF, and YieldX Short-Term Income ETF, respectively. From the unitary management fee, the Adviser pays most of the expenses of each Fund, including the cost of transfer agency, custody, fund administration, legal, audit and other services. However, under the Advisory Agreement, the Adviser is not responsible for interest expenses, brokerage commissions and other trading expenses, acquired fund fees and expenses, fees and expenses of the Independent Directors and their independent legal counsel, taxes and other extraordinary costs such as litigation and other expenses not incurred in the ordinary course of business. The Adviser will not be liable for any error of judgment, mistake of law, or for any loss suffered by a Fund in connection with the performance of the Advisory Agreement, except a loss resulting from a breach of fiduciary duty with respect to the receipt of compensation for services or a loss resulting from willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence on the part of the Adviser in the performance of its duties, or from reckless disregard of its obligations and duties under the Advisory Agreement.

Under the terms of an expense limitation agreement entered into by the Company and the Adviser, the Adviser has contractually agreed to waive a portion of its unitary management fee for the first year of the Fund’s operations to the extent necessary to limit the annual operating expenses (excluding brokerage commissions, taxes, interest expense, acquired fund fees and expenses, and any extraordinary expenses) to an amount not exceeding [ ]%, [ ]%, and [ ]% of the average daily net assets of the YieldX Diversified Income ETF, YieldX High Income ETF, and YieldX Short-Term Income ETF, respectively. The Adviser may recover from a Fund fees waived for a period of three years after such fees were incurred, provided that the repayments do not cause the Fund’s operating expenses (excluding brokerage commissions, taxes, interest expense, acquired fund fees and expenses, and any extraordinary expenses) to exceed exceeding [ ]%, [ ]%, and [ ]% of the average daily net assets of the YieldX Diversified Income ETF, YieldX High Income ETF, and YieldX Short-Term Income ETF, respectively, or, if less, the expense limitation that was in place at the time the fees were waived.

Sub-Advisory Agreement with the Sub-Adviser

The Sub-Adviser is a Delaware limited liability company located at 2980 NE 207^th Street, Suite 504, Aventura, Florida 33810 with one member, YieldX, Inc.  The Sub-Adviser is controlled by Adam Green, Eli Gross, and Shlomo Gross.

The Sub-Adviser provides investment advisory services to the Funds pursuant to the terms of a Sub-Advisory Agreement (the “Sub-Advisory Agreement”) among the Company, the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser. After the initial two year-term, the Sub-Advisory Agreement may be continued in effect from year to year with the approval of (1) the Board or (2) vote of a majority (as defined by the 1940 Act) of the outstanding voting securities of each Fund, provided that in either event the continuance must also be approved by a majority of the Independent Directors by vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval. The Sub-Advisory Agreement terminates automatically in the event of its assignment, as defined in the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder.  

For its services, the Sub-Adviser receives a fee from the Adviser that is computed and paid monthly at an annual rate of [ ]% of the Fund’s average daily net assets.

The Sub-Adviser makes the investment decisions for the Funds and continuously reviews, supervises and administers a separate investment program. The Sub-Advisory Agreement provides that the Sub-Adviser shall not be protected against any liability to the Company or its shareholders by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence on its part in the performance of its duties, or from reckless disregard of its obligations or duties thereunder.

Sub-Advisory Agreement with Vident

Vident is a Delaware limited liability company located at 1125 Sanctuary Parkway, Suite 515, Alpharetta, Georgia 30009. Vident was formed in 2014 and provides investment advisory services to ETFs, including the Funds. Vident is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Vident Financial, LLC. Vident Financial, LLC was formed in 2013 to develop and license investment market solutions (indices and funds) based on strategies that combine sophisticated risk-balancing methodologies, economic freedom metrics, valuation, and investor behavior. Vident Financial, LLC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Vident Investors’ Oversight Trust. Vince L. Birley, Brian Shepler, and Mohammad Baki serve as the trustees of the Vident Investors’ Oversight Trust. 

Vident provides investment advisory services to the Funds pursuant to the terms of a Sub-Advisory Agreement (the “Vident Sub-Advisory Agreement”) among the Company, the Adviser and Vident. After the initial two year-term, the Vident Sub-Advisory Agreement may be continued in effect from year to year with the approval of (1) the Board or (2) vote of a majority (as defined by the 1940 Act) of the outstanding voting securities of each Fund, provided that in either event the continuance must also be approved by a majority of the Independent Directors by vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval. The Vident Sub-Advisory Agreement terminates automatically in the event of its assignment, as defined in the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder.

For its services, Vident receives a fee from the Adviser that is computed and paid monthly at an annual rate of [ ]% of average daily net assets.

Vident is responsible for selecting broker-dealers to execute purchase and sale transactions, as instructed by the Adviser or Sub-Adviser, subject to the supervision of the Adviser and the Board. The Vident Sub-Advisory Agreement provides that Vident shall not be protected against any liability to the Company or its shareholders by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence on its part in the performance of its duties, or from reckless disregard of its obligations or duties thereunder.

PORTFOLIO MANAGERS

Tom Bradley and [ ] are portfolio managers responsible for investment-related services provided to the Funds by the Sub-Adviser. Ryan Dofflemeyer and Rafael Zayas are portfolio managers responsible for investment-related services provided to the Funds by Vident. The following table provides information regarding accounts managed by each portfolio manager as of [ ], 2021.

Portfolio Manager Compensation

The compensation structure for the Sub-Adviser’s portfolio managers is based upon a fixed salary as well as a discretionary bonus determined by the management of the Sub-Adviser.  Salaries are determined by management and are based upon an individual’s position and overall value to the firm.  Bonuses are also determined by management and are based upon an individual’s overall contribution to the success of the firm and the profitability of the firm.  Salaries and bonuses are not based upon criteria such as performance of the Funds or the value of assets included in the Funds’ portfolio. 

Vident’s portfolio managers receive a base salary and are eligible to earn discretionary bonuses from time to time. The availability and amount of any bonus will be based on factors such as Vident’s profitability, individual performance and team contribution. Vident’s profitability is, in part, dependent on the performance of the Fund, and therefore in part based on the value of the Fund’s net assets and other client accounts it is managing.

Material Conflicts of Interest

The portfolio managers’ management of other accounts may give rise to potential conflicts of interest in connection with their management of a Fund’s investments, on the one hand, and the investments of the other accounts, on the other. The other accounts may have the same investment objective as a Fund. Therefore, a potential conflict of interest may arise as a result of the identical investment objectives, whereby a portfolio manager could favor one account over another. Another potential conflict could include the portfolio managers’ knowledge about the size, timing and possible market impact of Fund trades, whereby a portfolio manager could use this information to the advantage of other accounts and to the disadvantage of a Fund. However, each of the Sub-Adviser and Vident has established policies and procedures to ensure that the purchase and sale of securities and other investments among all accounts it manages are fairly and equitably allocated. In accordance with the Sub-Adviser’s trade rotation policy, there will be cases where a Fund will trade after other accounts.

Ownership of Fund Shares by the Portfolio Managers

The portfolio managers did not own any shares of the Funds as no shares of the Funds were outstanding prior to the date of this SAI.

UNDERWRITER

The Company has entered into a distribution agreement (the “Distribution Agreement”) with Vigilant Distributors, LLC (the “Distributor”), Gateway Corporate Center, Suite 216, 223 Wilmington West Chester Pike, Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania 19317, pursuant to which the Distributor acts as the Funds’ principal underwriter and distributes shares. Shares are continuously offered for sale by the Distributor only in Creation Units. Each Creation Unit is made up of at least 5,000 shares. The Distributor will not distribute shares in amounts less than a Creation Unit.

Under the Distribution Agreement, the Distributor, as agent for the Company, will receive orders for the purchase and redemption of Creation Units, provided that any subscriptions and orders will not be binding on the Company until accepted by the Company. The Distributor will deliver prospectuses and, upon request, Statements of Additional Information to persons purchasing Creation Units and will maintain records of orders placed with it. The Distributor is a broker-dealer registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) and a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”).

The Distributor may also enter into agreements with securities dealers (“Soliciting Dealers”) who will solicit purchases of Creation Units of shares. Such Soliciting Dealers may also be Authorized Participants (as discussed in “Procedures for Creation of Creation Units” below) or DTC participants (as defined below).

The Distribution Agreement has an initial term of up to two years and will continue in effect only if such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by the Board of Directors or by vote of a majority of a Fund’s outstanding voting securities and, in either case, by a majority of the Independent Directors. The Distribution Agreement is terminable without penalty by the Company, on behalf of a Fund, on 60 days’ written notice when authorized either by a majority vote of the Fund’s shareholders or by vote of a majority of the Board of Directors, including a majority of the Directors who are not “interested persons” (as defined under the 1940 Act) of the Company, or by the Distributor on 60 days’ written notice, and will automatically terminate in the event of its “assignment,” as defined in the 1940 Act. 

PURCHASE AND REDEMPTION OF CREATION UNITS

Purchase and Issuance of Creation Units

The Company issues and sells shares of the Funds only: (i) in Creation Units on a continuous basis through the Distributor, without a sales load (but subject to transaction fees), at their NAV next determined after receipt of an order, on any Business Day, in proper form pursuant to the terms of the Authorized Participant Agreement (“Participant Agreement”); or (ii) pursuant to the Dividend Reinvestment Service (defined below).  The NAV of each Fund’s shares is calculated each business day as of the close of regular trading on the Exchange, generally 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time.  The Funds will not issue fractional Creation Units.  A Business Day is any day on which the Exchange is open for business.

FUND DEPOSIT.  The consideration for purchase of a Creation Unit of each Fund generally consists of the in-kind deposit of a designated portfolio of securities (the “Deposit Securities”) per each Creation Unit, constituting a substantial replication of a Fund and a Cash Component (defined below), computed as described below. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company reserves the right to permit or require the substitution of a “cash in lieu” amount (“Deposit Cash”) to be added to the Cash Component to replace any Deposit Security.  When accepting purchases of Creation Units for all or a portion of Deposit Cash, each Fund may incur additional costs associated with the acquisition of Deposit Securities that would otherwise be provided by an in-kind purchaser.  These additional costs associated with the acquisition of Deposit Securities (“Non-Standard Charges”) may be recoverable from the purchaser of creation units.

Together, the Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable, and the Cash Component constitute the “Fund Deposit,” which represents the minimum initial and subsequent investment amount for a Creation Unit of each Fund.  The “Cash Component” is an amount equal to the difference between the NAV of the shares (per Creation Unit) and the market value of the Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable.  If the Cash Component is a positive number (i.e., the NAV per Creation Unit exceeds the market value of the Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable), the Cash Component will be such positive amount.  If the Cash Component is a negative number (i.e., the NAV per Creation Unit is less than the market value of the Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable), the Cash Component shall be such negative amount and the creator will be entitled to receive cash in an amount equal to the Cash Component.  The Cash Component serves the function of compensating for any differences between the NAV per Creation Unit and the market value of the Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable.  Computation of the Cash Component excludes any stamp duty or other similar fees and expenses payable upon transfer of beneficial ownership of the Deposit Securities, if applicable, which will be the sole responsibility of the Authorized Participant (as defined below).

Each Fund, through NSCC, makes available on each Business Day, immediately prior to the opening of business on the Exchange (currently 9:30 a.m., Eastern time), the list of the names and the required number of shares of each Deposit Security or the required amount of Deposit Cash, as applicable, to be included in the current Fund Deposit (based on information at the end of the previous Business Day) for a Fund.  Such Fund Deposit is subject to any applicable adjustments as described below, in order to effect purchases of Creation Units of a Fund until such time as the next-announced composition of the Deposit Securities or the required amount of Deposit Cash, as applicable, is made available.

The identity and number of shares of the Deposit Securities or the amount of Deposit Cash, as applicable, required for a Fund Deposit for a Fund changes as rebalancing adjustments and corporate action events are reflected from time to time by the Sub-Adviser/Vident with a view to the investment objectives of a Fund. 

The Company reserves the right to permit or require the substitution of an amount of cash (i.e., a “cash in lieu” amount) to replace any Deposit Security, which will be added to the Deposit Cash, if applicable, and the Cash Component, including, without limitation, in situations where the Deposit Security: (i) may not be available in sufficient quantity for delivery; (ii) may not be eligible for transfer through the systems of DTC for corporate securities and municipal securities; (iii) may not be eligible for trading by an Authorized Participant (as defined below) or the investor for which it is acting; (iv) would be restricted under the securities laws or where the delivery of the Deposit Security to the Authorized Participant would result in the disposition of the Deposit Security by the Authorized Participant becoming restricted under the securities laws; or (v) in certain other situations (collectively, “custom orders”). 

CASH PURCHASE METHOD.  The Company may at its discretion permit full or partial cash purchases of Creation Units of the Funds in instances permitted by the exemptive relief the Adviser is relying on in offering each Fund.  When full or partial cash purchases of Creation Units are available or specified for the Funds, they will be effected in essentially the same manner as in-kind purchases thereof.  In the case of a full or partial cash purchase, the Authorized Participant must pay the cash equivalent of the Deposit Securities it would otherwise be required to provide through an in-kind purchase, plus the same Cash Component required to be paid by an in-kind purchaser together with a Creation Transaction Fee and Non-Standard Charges, as may be applicable. 

PROCEDURES FOR PURCHASE OF CREATION UNITS.  To be eligible to place orders with the Distributor to purchase a Creation Unit of a Fund, an entity must be (i) a “Participating Party”, i.e., a broker-dealer or other participant in the clearing process through the Continuous Net Settlement System of the NSCC (the “Clearing Process”), a clearing agency that is registered with the SEC; or (ii) a DTC Participant.  In addition, each Participating Party or DTC Participant (each, an “Authorized Participant” or “AP”) must execute a Participant Agreement that has been agreed to by the Distributor, and that has been accepted by U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services (“Transfer Agent” or “Fund Services”) and the Company, with respect to purchases and redemptions of Creation Units.  Each AP will agree, pursuant to the terms of a Participant Agreement, on behalf of itself or any investor on whose behalf it will act, to certain conditions, including that it will pay to the Company an amount of cash sufficient to pay the Cash Component together with the Creation Transaction Fee (defined below) and any other applicable fees and taxes.  The Adviser may retain all or a portion of the Transaction Fee to the extent the Adviser bears the expenses that otherwise would be borne by the Company in connection with the purchase of a Creation Unit, which the Transaction Fee is designed to cover.

All orders to purchase shares directly from a Fund must be placed for one or more Creation Units in the manner set forth in the Participant Agreement (the “Cut-Off Time”).  The date on which an order to purchase Creation Units (or an order to redeem Creation Units, as set forth below) is received and accepted is referred to as the “Order Placement Date.”

An AP may require an investor to make certain representations or enter into agreements with respect to the order (e.g., to provide for payments of cash, when required).  Investors should be aware that their particular broker may not have executed a Participant Agreement and that, therefore, orders to purchase shares directly from a Fund in Creation Units have to be placed by the investor’s broker through an AP that has executed a Participant Agreement.  In such cases there may be additional charges to such investor.  At any given time, there may be only a limited number of broker-dealers that have executed a Participant Agreement and only a small number of such APs may have international capabilities.

On days when the Exchange closes earlier than normal, a Fund may require orders to create Creation Units to be placed earlier in the day.  In addition, if a market or markets on which a Fund’s investments are primarily traded is closed on any day, a Fund will also generally not accept orders on such day.  Orders must be transmitted by an AP by telephone or other transmission method acceptable to the Distributor pursuant to procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement and in accordance with the AP Handbook.  With respect to a Fund, the Distributor will notify the Custodian of such order.  The Custodian will then provide such information to the appropriate local sub-custodian(s).  Those placing orders through an AP should allow sufficient time to permit proper submission of the purchase order to the Distributor by the Cut-Off Time on the Business Day on which the order is placed.  Economic or market disruptions or changes, or telephone or other communication failure may impede the ability to reach the Distributor or an AP.

Fund Deposits must be delivered by an AP through the Federal Reserve System (for cash) or through DTC (for corporate securities), through a subcustody agent (for foreign securities) and/or through such other arrangements allowed by the Company or its agents.  With respect to foreign Deposit Securities, the Custodian will cause the subcustodian of such Fund to maintain an account into which the AP will deliver, on behalf of itself or the party on whose behalf it is acting, such Deposit Securities (or Deposit Cash for all or a part of such securities, as permitted or required), with any appropriate adjustments as advised by the Company.  Foreign Deposit Securities must be delivered to an account maintained at the applicable local subcustodian.  The Fund Deposit transfer must be ordered by the AP in a timely fashion so as to ensure the delivery of the requisite number of Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable, to the account of a Fund or its agents by no later than the Settlement Date.  The “Settlement Date” for a Fund is generally the third Business Day after the Order Placement Date.  All questions as to the number of Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash to be delivered, as applicable, and the validity, form and eligibility (including time of receipt) for the deposit of any tendered securities or cash, as applicable, will be determined by the Company, whose determination will be final and binding.  The amount of cash represented by the Cash Component must be transferred directly to the Custodian through the Federal Reserve Bank wire transfer system in a timely manner so as to be received by the Custodian no later than the Settlement Date.  If the Cash Component and the Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable, are not received in a timely manner by the Settlement Date, the creation order may be cancelled.  Upon written notice to the Distributor, such canceled order may be resubmitted the following Business Day using the Fund Deposit as newly constituted to reflect the then current NAV of the Fund.

The order will be deemed to be received on the Business Day on which the order is placed provided that the order is placed in proper form prior to the Cut-Off Time and the federal funds in the appropriate amount are deposited by 2:00 p.m., Eastern time, with the Custodian on the Settlement Date.  If the order is not placed in proper form as required, or federal funds in the appropriate amount are not received by 2:00 p.m., Eastern time on the Settlement Date, then the order may be deemed to be rejected and the AP will be liable to the Fund for losses, if any, resulting therefrom.  A creation request is considered to be in “proper form” if all procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement, AP Handbook and this SAI are properly followed. 

ISSUANCE OF A CREATION UNIT.  Except as provided herein, Creation Units will not be issued until the transfer of good title to the Company of the Deposit Securities or payment of Deposit Cash, as applicable, and the payment of the Cash Component have been completed.  When the subcustodian has confirmed to the Custodian that the required Deposit Securities (or the cash value thereof) have been delivered to the account of the relevant subcustodian or subcustodians, the Distributor and the Adviser will be notified of such delivery, and the Company will issue and cause the delivery of the Creation Units.  The delivery of Creation Units so created generally will occur no later than the third Business Day following the day on which the purchase order is deemed received by the Distributor.  However, each Fund reserves the right to settle Creation Unit transactions on a basis other than the third Business Day following the day on which the purchase order is deemed received by the Distributor in order to accommodate foreign market holiday schedules, to account for different treatment among foreign and U.S.  markets of dividend record dates and ex-dividend dates (that is the last day the holder of a security can sell the security and still receive dividends payable on the security), and in certain other circumstances.  The AP will be liable to a Fund for losses, if any, resulting from unsettled orders.

Creation Units may be purchased in advance of receipt by the Company of all or a portion of the applicable Deposit Securities as described below.  In these circumstances, the initial deposit will have a value greater than the NAV of the shares on the date the order is placed in proper form since in addition to available Deposit Securities, cash must be deposited in an amount equal to the sum of (i) the Cash Component, plus (ii) an additional amount of cash equal to a percentage of the market value as set forth in the Participant Agreement, of the undelivered Deposit Securities (the “Additional Cash Deposit”), which will be maintained in a separate non-interest bearing collateral account.  An additional amount of cash will be required to be deposited with the Company, pending delivery of the missing Deposit Securities to the extent necessary to maintain the Additional Cash Deposit with the Company in an amount at least equal to the applicable percentage, as set forth in the Participant Agreement, of the daily marked to market value of the missing Deposit Securities.  The Participant Agreement will permit the Company to buy the missing Deposit Securities at any time.  APs will be liable to the Company for the costs incurred by the Company in connection with any such purchases.  These costs will be deemed to include the amount by which the actual purchase price of the Deposit Securities exceeds the market value of such Deposit Securities on the day the purchase order was deemed received by the Distributor plus the brokerage and related transaction costs associated with such purchases.  The Company will return any unused portion of the Additional Cash Deposit once all of the missing Deposit Securities have been properly received by the Custodian or purchased by the Company and deposited into the Company.  In addition, a Transaction Fee as set forth below under “Creation Transaction Fee” will be charged in all cases, unless otherwise advised by the Funds, and Non- Standard Charges may also apply.  The delivery of Creation Units so created generally will occur no later than the Settlement Date.

ACCEPTANCE OF ORDERS OF CREATION UNITS.  The Company reserves the absolute right to reject an order for Creation Units transmitted to it by the Distributor in respect of a Fund including, without limitation, if (a) the order is not in proper form; (b) the Deposit Securities or Deposit Cash, as applicable, delivered by the Participant are not as disseminated through the facilities of the NSCC for that date by the Custodian; (c) the investor(s), upon obtaining the shares ordered, would own 80% or more of the currently outstanding shares of the Fund; (d) acceptance of the Deposit Securities would have certain adverse tax consequences to the Fund; (e) the acceptance of the Fund Deposit would, in the opinion of counsel, be unlawful; (f) the acceptance of the Fund Deposit would otherwise, in the discretion of the Company or the Adviser, have an adverse effect on the Company or the rights of beneficial owners; (g) the acceptance or receipt of the order for a Creation Unit would, in the opinion of counsel to the Company, be unlawful; or (h) circumstances outside the control of the Company, the Custodian, the Transfer Agent and/or the Adviser make it for all practical purposes not feasible to process orders for Creation Units.

Examples of such circumstances include acts of God or public service or utility problems such as fires, floods, pandemics, extreme weather conditions and power outages resulting in telephone, telecopy and computer failures; market conditions or activities causing trading halts; systems failures involving computer or other information systems affecting the Company, the Distributor, the Custodian, a sub-custodian, the Transfer Agent, DTC, NSCC, Federal Reserve System, or any other participant in the creation process, and other extraordinary events.  The Distributor shall notify a prospective creator of a Creation Unit and/or the AP acting on behalf of the creator of a Creation Unit of its rejection of the order of such person.  The Company, the Transfer Agent, the Custodian, any sub-custodian and the Distributor are under no duty, however, to give notification of any defects or irregularities in the delivery of Fund Deposits nor will either of them incur any liability for the failure to give any such notification.  The Company, the Transfer Agent, the Custodian and the Distributor will not be liable for the rejection of any purchase order for Creation Units.

All questions as to the number of shares of each security in the Deposit Securities and the validity, form, eligibility and acceptance for deposit of any securities to be delivered will be determined by the Company, and the Company’s determination will be final and binding.

CREATION TRANSACTION FEE.  A purchase (i.e., creation) transaction fee is imposed for the transfer and other transaction costs associated with the purchase of Creation Units, and investors will be required to pay a Creation Transaction Fee regardless of the number of Creation Units created in the transaction.  A Fund may adjust the creation transaction fee from time to time based upon actual experience.  In addition, a Fund may impose a Non-Standard Charge of up to 2% of the value of the creation transactions for cash creations, non- standard orders, or partial cash purchases for the Fund.  A Fund may adjust the Non-Standard Charge from time to time based upon actual experience.  Investors who use the services of an AP, broker or other such intermediary may be charged a fee for such services, which may include an amount for the Creation Transaction Fee and Non-Standard Charges.  Investors are responsible for the costs of transferring the securities constituting the Deposit Securities to the account of the Company.  The Adviser may retain all or a portion of the Transaction Fee to the extent the Adviser bears the expenses that otherwise would be borne by the Company in connection with the purchase of a Creation Unit, which the Transaction Fee is designed to cover.  The standard Creation Transaction Fee for the Fund is $500.

RISKS OF PURCHASING CREATION UNITS.  There are certain legal risks unique to investors purchasing Creation Units directly from a Fund.  Because each Fund’s shares may be issued on an ongoing basis, a “distribution” of shares could be occurring at any time.  Certain activities that a shareholder performs as a dealer could, depending on the circumstances, result in the shareholder being deemed a participant in the distribution in a manner that could render the shareholder a statutory underwriter and subject to the prospectus delivery and liability provisions of the Securities Act.  For example, a shareholder could be deemed a statutory underwriter if it purchases Creation Units from a Fund, breaks them down into the constituent shares, and sells those shares directly to customers, or if a shareholder chooses to couple the creation of a supply of new shares with an active selling effort involving solicitation of secondary-market demand for shares.  Whether a person is an underwriter depends upon all of the facts and circumstances pertaining to that person’s activities, and the examples mentioned here should not be considered a complete description of all the activities that could cause a shareholder to be deemed an underwriter.

Dealers who are not “underwriters” but are participating in a distribution (as opposed to engaging in ordinary secondary-market transactions), and thus dealing with each Fund’s shares as part of an “unsold allotment” within the meaning of Section 4(a)(3)(C) of the Securities Act, will be unable to take advantage of the prospectus delivery exemption provided by Section 4(a)(3)(C) of the Securities Act.

Redemption of Creation Units

Shares may be redeemed only in Creation Units at their NAV next determined after receipt of a redemption request in proper form by a Fund through the Transfer Agent and only on a Business Day.  EXCEPT UPON LIQUIDATION OF A FUND, THE COMPANY WILL NOT REDEEM SHARES IN AMOUNTS LESS THAN CREATION UNITS.  Investors must accumulate enough shares in the secondary market to constitute a Creation Unit in order to have such shares redeemed by the Company.  There can be no assurance, however, that there will be sufficient liquidity in the public trading market at any time to permit assembly of a Creation Unit.  Investors should expect to incur brokerage and other costs in connection with assembling a sufficient number of shares to constitute a redeemable Creation Unit.

With respect to each Fund, the Custodian, through the NSCC, makes available immediately prior to the opening of business on the Exchange (currently 9:30 a.m., Eastern time) on each Business Day, the list of the names and share quantities of the Fund’s portfolio securities that will be applicable (subject to possible amendment or correction) to redemption requests received in proper form (as defined below) on that day (“Fund Securities”).  Fund Securities received on redemption may not be identical to Deposit Securities.

Redemption proceeds for a Creation Unit are paid either in-kind or in cash, or combination thereof, as determined by the Company.  With respect to in-kind redemptions of a Fund, redemption proceeds for a Creation Unit will consist of Fund Securities -- as announced by the Custodian on the Business Day of the request for redemption received in proper form -- plus cash in an amount equal to the difference between the NAV of the shares being redeemed, as next determined after a receipt of a request in proper form, and the value of the Fund Securities (the “Cash Redemption Amount”), less any fixed redemption transaction fee as set forth below and any Non-Standard Charges.  If the Fund Securities have a value greater than the NAV of the shares, a compensating cash payment equal to the differential is required to be made by or through an AP by the redeeming shareholder.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, at the Company’s discretion, an AP may receive the corresponding cash value of the securities in lieu of the in-kind securities value representing one or more Fund Securities.

CASH REDEMPTION METHOD.  Although the Company does not ordinarily permit full or partial cash redemptions of Creation Units of the Funds, when full or partial cash redemptions of Creation Units are available or specified for a Fund, they will be effected in essentially the same manner as in-kind redemptions thereof.  In the case of full or partial cash redemptions, the AP will receive the cash equivalent of the Fund Securities it would otherwise receive through an in-kind redemption, plus the same Cash Amount to be paid to an in-kind redeemer. 

REDEMPTION TRANSACTION FEES.  A redemption transaction fee may be imposed for the transfer and other transaction costs associated with the redemption of Creation Units, and APs will be required to pay a Redemption Transaction Fee regardless of the number of Creation Units created in the transaction.  The redemption transaction fee is the same no matter how many Creation Units are being redeemed pursuant to any one redemption request.  The Fund may adjust the redemption transaction fee from time to time based upon actual experience.  In addition, the Fund may impose a Non-Standard Charge of up to 2% of the value of a redemption transaction for cash redemptions, non-standard orders, or partial cash redemptions for the Funds.  Investors who use the services of an AP, broker or other such intermediary may be charged a fee for such services which may include an amount for the Redemption Transaction Fees and Non-Standard Charges.  Investors are responsible for the costs of transferring the securities constituting the Fund Securities to the account of the Company.  The Non-Standard Charges are payable to the Funds as it incurs costs in connection with the redemption of Creation Units, the receipt of Fund Securities and the Cash Redemption Amount and other transactions costs.  The standard Redemption Transaction Fee for each Fund is $500.

PROCEDURES FOR REDEMPTION OF CREATION UNITS.  Orders to redeem Creation Units must be submitted in proper form to the Transfer Agent prior to the time as set forth in the Participant Agreement.  A redemption request is considered to be in “proper form” if (i) an AP has transferred or caused to be transferred to the Company’s Transfer Agent the Creation Unit(s) being redeemed through the book- entry system of DTC so as to be effective by the time as set forth in the Participant Agreement and (ii) a request in form satisfactory to the Company is received by the Transfer Agent from the AP on behalf of itself or another redeeming investor within the time periods specified in the Participant Agreement.  If the Transfer Agent does not receive the investor’s shares through DTC’s facilities by the times and pursuant to the other terms and conditions set forth in the Participant Agreement, the redemption request will be rejected.

The AP must transmit the request for redemption, in the form required by the Company, to the Transfer Agent in accordance with procedures set forth in the Authorized Participant Agreement.  Investors should be aware that their particular broker may not have executed an Authorized Participant Agreement, and that, therefore, requests to redeem Creation Units may have to be placed by the investor’s broker through an AP which has executed an Authorized Participant Agreement.  Investors making a redemption request should be aware that such request must be in the form specified by such AP.  Investors making a request to redeem Creation Units should allow sufficient time to permit proper submission of the request by an AP and transfer of the shares to the Company’s Transfer Agent; such investors should allow for the additional time that may be required to effect redemptions through their banks, brokers or other financial intermediaries if such intermediaries are not APs.

In connection with taking delivery of shares of Fund Securities upon redemption of Creation Units, a redeeming shareholder or AP acting on behalf of such Shareholder must maintain appropriate custody arrangements with a qualified broker-dealer, bank or other custody providers in each jurisdiction in which any of the Fund Securities are customarily traded, to which account such Fund Securities will be delivered.  Deliveries of redemption proceeds generally will be made within three business days of the trade date.

ADDITIONAL REDEMPTION PROCEDURES.  In connection with taking delivery of shares of Fund Securities upon redemption of Creation Units, the AP must maintain appropriate custody arrangements with a qualified broker-dealer, bank or other custody providers in each jurisdiction in which any of the Fund Securities are customarily traded, to which account such Fund Securities will be delivered.  Deliveries of redemption proceeds generally will be made within three Business Days of the trade date.  However, due to the schedule of holidays in certain countries, the different treatment among foreign and U.S.  markets of dividend record dates and dividend ex-dates (that is the last date the holder of a security can sell the security and still receive dividends payable on the security sold), and in certain other circumstances, the delivery of in-kind redemption proceeds may take longer than three Business Days after the day on which the redemption request is received in proper form.  If neither the redeeming Shareholder nor the AP acting on behalf of such redeeming Shareholder has appropriate arrangements to take delivery of the Fund Securities in the applicable foreign jurisdiction and it is not possible to make other such arrangements, or if it is not possible to effect deliveries of the Fund Securities in such jurisdiction, the Company may, in its discretion, exercise its option to redeem such shares in cash, and the redeeming shareholder will be required to receive its redemption proceeds in cash.

If it is not possible to make other such arrangements, or it is not possible to effect deliveries of the Fund Securities, the Company may in its discretion exercise its option to redeem such shares in cash, and the redeeming investor will be required to receive its redemption proceeds in cash.  In addition, an investor may request a redemption in cash that each Fund may, in its sole discretion, permit.  In either case, the investor will receive a cash payment equal to the NAV of its shares based on the NAV of shares of the relevant Fund next determined after the redemption request is received in proper form (minus a redemption transaction fee and additional charge for requested cash redemptions specified above, to offset the Company’s brokerage and other transaction costs associated with the disposition of Fund Securities).  The Funds may also, in their sole discretion, upon request of a shareholder, provide such redeemer a portfolio of securities that differs from the exact composition of the Fund Securities but does not differ in NAV. 

Redemptions of shares for Fund Securities will be subject to compliance with applicable federal and state securities laws and the Fund (whether or not it otherwise permits cash redemptions) reserves the right to redeem Creation Units for cash to the extent that the Company could not lawfully deliver specific Fund Securities upon redemptions or could not do so without first registering the Fund Securities under such laws.  An AP or an investor for which it is acting subject to a legal restriction with respect to a particular security included in the Fund Securities applicable to the redemption of Creation Units may be paid an equivalent amount of cash.  The AP may request the redeeming investor of the shares to complete an order form or to enter into agreements with respect to such matters as compensating cash payment.  Further, an AP that is not a “qualified institutional buyer,” (“QIB”) as such term is defined under Rule 144A of the Securities Act, will not be able to receive Fund Securities that are restricted securities eligible for resale under Rule 144A.  An AP may be required by the Company to provide a written confirmation with respect to QIB status in order to receive Fund Securities.

Because the portfolio securities of the Funds may trade on the relevant exchange(s) on days that the Exchange is closed or are otherwise not Business Days for such Fund, shareholders may not be able to redeem their shares of a Fund, or to purchase or sell shares of such Fund on the Exchange, on days when the NAV of such Fund could be significantly affecting by events in the relevant foreign markets.

The right of redemption may be suspended or the date of payment postponed with respect to each Fund (1) for any period during which the Exchange is closed (other than customary weekend and holiday closings); (2) for any period during which trading on the Exchange is suspended or restricted; (3) for any period during which an emergency exists as a result of which disposal of the shares of the Fund or determination of the NAV of the shares is not reasonably practicable; or (4) in such other circumstance as is permitted by the SEC.

PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS INFORMATION

The Company has adopted, on behalf of each Fund, a policy relating to the selective disclosure of the Fund’s portfolio holdings by the Adviser, Board, officers, or third party service providers, in accordance with regulations that seek to ensure that disclosure of information about portfolio holdings is in the best interest of the Fund’s shareholders. The policies relating to the disclosure of a Fund’s portfolio holdings are designed to allow disclosure of portfolio holdings information where necessary to each Fund’s operation without compromising the integrity or performance of the Fund. It is the policy of the Company that disclosure of a Fund’s portfolio holdings to a select person or persons prior to the release of such holdings to the public (“selective disclosure”) is prohibited, unless there are legitimate business purposes for selective disclosure.

The Company discloses portfolio holdings information as required in regulatory filings and shareholder reports, discloses portfolio holdings information as required by federal and state securities laws and may disclose portfolio holdings information in response to requests by governmental authorities. As required by the federal securities laws, including the 1940 Act, the Company will disclose each Fund’s portfolio holdings in applicable regulatory filings, including shareholder reports, reports on Form N-CSR, Form N-CEN, and Form N-PORT, or such other filings, reports or disclosure documents as the applicable regulatory authorities may require.

Each Fund’s entire portfolio holdings are publicly disseminated each business day and may be available through financial reporting and news services including publicly available internet websites.

The Company may distribute or authorize the distribution of information about a Fund’s portfolio holdings that is not publicly available to its third-party service providers, which include U.S. Bank, N.A., the custodian; Fund Services, the administrator, accounting agent and transfer agent; [ ], the Funds’ independent registered public accounting firm; Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, legal counsel; FilePoint, the financial printer; the Funds’ proxy voting service(s); and the Company’s liquidity classification agent. These service providers are required to keep such information confidential, and are prohibited from trading based on the information or otherwise using the information except as necessary in providing services to a Fund. Such holdings are released on conditions of confidentiality, which include appropriate trading prohibitions. “Conditions of confidentiality” include confidentiality terms included in written agreements, implied by the nature of the relationship (e.g. attorney-client relationship), or required by fiduciary or regulatory principles (e.g., custody services provided by financial institutions). Portfolio holdings may also be provided earlier to shareholders and their agents who receive redemptions in kind that reflect a pro rata allocation of all securities held in a Fund’s portfolio.

Portfolio holdings may also be disclosed, upon authorization by a designated officer of the Adviser, to (i) certain independent reporting agencies recognized by the SEC as acceptable agencies for the reporting of industry statistical information and, (ii) financial consultants to assist them in determining the suitability of the Fund as an investment for their clients, in each case in accordance with the anti-fraud provisions of the federal securities laws and the Company’s and Adviser’s fiduciary duties to Fund shareholders. Disclosures to financial consultants are also subject to a confidentiality agreement and/or trading restrictions. The foregoing disclosures are made pursuant to the Company’s policy on selective disclosure of portfolio holdings. The Board or a committee thereof may, in limited circumstances, permit other selective disclosure of portfolio holdings subject to a confidentiality agreement and/or trading restrictions. 

The Adviser reserves the right to refuse to fulfill any request for portfolio holdings information from a shareholder or non-shareholder if it believes that providing such information will be contrary to the best interests of a Fund.

The Board provides ongoing oversight of the Company’s policies and procedures and compliance with such policies and procedures. As part of this oversight function, the Board receives from the Company’s Chief Compliance Officer (“CCO”) as necessary, reports on compliance with these policies and procedures. In addition, the Board receives an annual assessment of the adequacy and effectiveness of the policies and procedures with respect to a Fund, and any changes thereto, and an annual review of the operation of the policies and procedures. Any violation of the policy set forth above as well as any corrective action undertaken to address such violation must be reported by the Adviser, director, officer or third party service provider to the Company’s CCO, who will determine whether the violation should be reported immediately to the Board or at its next quarterly Board meeting.

DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE

The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the sections in the Funds’ Prospectus titled “HOW TO BUY AND SELL SHARES.”

NAV is determined as of the close of regular trading on the NYSE (generally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) each day the NYSE is open, except that no computation need be made on a day on which no orders to purchase or redeem shares have been received. The NYSE currently observes the following holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day (third Monday in January), Presidents Day (third Monday in February), Good Friday (Friday before Easter), Memorial Day (last Monday in May), Independence Day, Labor Day (first Monday in September), Thanksgiving Day (fourth Thursday in November), and Christmas Day.

NAV per share is computed by dividing the value of each Fund’s net assets (i.e., the value of its assets less its liabilities) by the total number of the Fund’s shares outstanding. In computing NAV, securities are valued at market value as of the close of trading on each business day when the NYSE is open. Securities, other than stock options, listed on the NYSE or other exchanges are valued on the basis of the last reported sale price on the exchange on which they are primarily traded. However, if the last sale price on the NYSE is different from the last sale price on any other exchange, the NYSE price will be used. If there are no sales on that day, then the securities are valued at the bid price on the NYSE or other primary exchange for that day. Securities traded in the over-the-counter (“OTC”) market are valued on the basis of the last sales price as reported by the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (“NASDAQ”). If there are no sales on that day, then the securities are valued at the mean between the closing bid and asked prices as reported by NASDAQ. Stock options and stock index options traded on national securities exchanges or on NASDAQ are valued at the mean between the latest bid and asked prices for such options. Securities for which market quotations are not readily available and other assets are valued at fair value as determined pursuant to procedures adopted in good faith by the Board. Debt securities that mature in less than 60 days are valued at amortized cost (unless the Board determines that this method does not represent fair value), if their original maturity was 60 days or less or by amortizing the value as of the 61st day before maturity, if their original term to maturity exceeded 60 days. A pricing service may be used to determine the fair value of securities held by the Funds. Any such service might value the investments based on methods that include consideration of yields or prices of securities of comparable quality, coupon, maturity, and type; indications as to values from dealers; and general market conditions. The service may also employ electronic data-processing techniques, a matrix system, or both to determine valuation. The Board will review and monitor the methods such services use to assure itself that securities are valued at their fair values.

The values of securities held by each Fund and other assets used in computing NAV are determined as of the time at which trading in such securities is completed each day. That time, in the case of foreign securities, generally occurs at various times before the close of the NYSE. Trading in securities listed on foreign securities exchanges will be valued at the last sale or, if no sales are reported, at the bid price as of the close of the exchange, subject to possible adjustment as described in the Prospectus. Foreign currency exchange rates are also generally determined before the close of the NYSE. On occasion, the values of such securities and exchange rates may be affected by events occurring between the time as of which determinations of such values or exchange rates are made and the close of the NYSE. When such events materially affect the value of securities held by a Fund or its liabilities, such securities and liabilities will be valued at fair value in accordance with procedures adopted in good faith by the Board. The values of any assets and liabilities initially expressed in foreign currencies will be converted to U.S. dollars based on exchange rates supplied by a quotation service.

DIVIDENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS, AND TAXES

The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the section in the Funds’ Prospectus titled “DIVIDENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS, AND TAXES.” In addition, the following is only a summary of certain U.S. federal income tax considerations that generally affect the Funds and their shareholders. No attempt is made to present a comprehensive explanation of the tax treatment of a Fund or its shareholders, and the discussion here and in the Prospectus is not intended as a substitute for careful tax planning. Shareholders are urged to consult their tax advisors with specific reference to their own tax situations, including their state, local, and foreign tax liabilities. 

It is the policy of the Company each fiscal year to distribute substantially all of each Fund’s net investment income (i.e., generally, the income that it earns from dividends and interest on its investments, and any short-term capital gains, net of Fund expenses) and net capital gains (i.e., the excess of the Fund’s net long-term capital gains over its net short-term capital losses), if any, to its shareholders.

Dividend Reinvestment Service

The Funds will not make the DTC book-entry dividend reinvestment service available for use by beneficial owners for reinvestment of their cash proceeds, but certain individual broker-dealers may make available the DTC book-entry Dividend Reinvestment Service for use by beneficial owners of the Funds through DTC Participants for reinvestment of their dividend distributions. Investors should contact their brokers to ascertain the availability and description of these services. Beneficial owners should be aware that each broker may require investors to adhere to specific procedures and timetables in order to participate in the dividend reinvestment service and investors should ascertain from their brokers such necessary details. If this service is available and used, dividend distributions of both income and realized gains will be automatically reinvested in additional whole shares issued by a Fund at NAV. Distributions reinvested in additional shares of each Fund will nevertheless be taxable to beneficial owners acquiring such additional shares to the same extent as if such distributions had been received in cash.

Taxes – General

The discussions of the federal tax consequences in the Prospectus and this SAI are based on the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) and the regulations issued under it, and court decisions and administrative interpretations, as in effect on the date of this SAI. Future legislative or administrative changes or court decisions may significantly alter the statements included herein, and any such changes or decisions may be retroactive. Each Fund intends to qualify as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of Subtitle A, Chapter 1, of the Code. As such, each Fund generally will be exempt from federal income tax on its net investment income and realized capital gains that it distributes to shareholders. To qualify for treatment as a regulated investment company, each Fund must meet three important tests each year.

First, each Fund must derive with respect to each taxable year at least 90% of its gross income from dividends, interest, certain payments with respect to securities loans, gains from the sale or other disposition of stock or securities or foreign currencies, other income derived with respect to its business of investing in such stock, securities, or currencies, or net income derived from interests in qualified publicly traded partnerships.

Second, generally, at the close of each quarter of its taxable year, at least 50% of the value of each Fund’s assets must consist of cash and cash items, U.S. government securities, securities of other regulated investment companies, and securities of other issuers (as to which a Fund has not invested more than 5% of the value of its total assets in securities of such issuer and as to which the Fund does not hold more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer), and no more than 25% of the value of each Fund’s total assets may be invested in the securities of (1) any one issuer (other than U.S. government securities and securities of other regulated investment companies), (2) two or more issuers that a Fund controls and that are engaged in the same or similar trades or businesses, or (3) one or more qualified publicly traded partnerships.

Third, each Fund must distribute an amount equal to at least the sum of 90% of its investment company taxable income (net investment income and the excess of net short-term capital gain over net long-term capital loss) before taking into account any deduction for dividends paid, and 90% of its tax-exempt income, if any, for the year.

Each Fund intends to comply with these requirements. If a Fund were to fail to make sufficient distributions, it could be liable for corporate income tax and for excise tax in respect of the shortfall or, if the shortfall is large enough, the Fund could be disqualified as a regulated investment company. If for any taxable year a Fund were not to qualify as a regulated investment company, all its taxable income would be subject to tax at regular corporate rates without any deduction for distributions to shareholders. In that event, taxable shareholders would recognize dividend income on distributions to the extent of a Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits, and corporate shareholders could be eligible for the dividends-received deduction. 

The Code imposes a nondeductible 4% excise tax on regulated investment companies that fail to distribute each year an amount equal to specified percentages of their ordinary taxable income and capital gain net income (excess of capital gains over capital losses). Each Fund intends to make sufficient distributions or deemed distributions each year to avoid liability for this excise tax.

Loss Carryforwards

For federal income tax purposes, each Fund is generally permitted to carry forward a net capital loss in any year to offset its own capital gains, if any, during subsequent years.

State and Local Taxes

Although each Fund expects to qualify as a regulated investment company and to be relieved of all or substantially all federal income taxes, depending upon the extent of its activities in states and localities in which its offices are maintained, in which its agents or independent contractors are located or in which it is otherwise deemed to be conducting business, a Fund may be subject to the tax laws of such states or localities.

PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE

Subject to the general supervision of the Board, the Adviser is responsible for decisions to buy and sell securities for each Fund, the selection of brokers and dealers to effect the transactions, and the negotiation of brokerage commissions, if any. Purchases and sales of securities on a stock exchange are effected through brokers who charge a commission for their services. In the OTC market, securities are generally traded on a “net” basis, with dealers acting as principal for their own accounts without a stated commission, although the price of the security usually includes a profit to the dealer. In underwritten offerings, securities are purchased at a fixed price, which includes an amount of compensation to the underwriter, generally referred to as the underwriter’s concession or discount. Certain money market instruments may be purchased directly from an issuer, in which case no commission or discounts are paid.

The Adviser may serve as an investment adviser to other clients, including private investment companies, and the Adviser may in the future act as an investment adviser to other registered investment companies. It is the practice of the Adviser to cause purchase and sale transactions to be allocated among each Fund and others whose assets are managed by the Adviser in such manner as it deems equitable. In making such allocations, the main factors considered are the respective investment objectives, the relative size of portfolio holdings of the same or comparable securities, the availability of cash for investment, the size of investment commitments generally held, and the opinions of the persons responsible for managing each Fund and the other client accounts. This procedure may, under certain circumstances, have an adverse effect on a Fund.

The policy of each Fund regarding purchases and sales of securities is that primary consideration will be given to obtaining the most favorable prices and efficient executions of transactions. Consistent with this policy, when securities transactions are effected on a stock exchange, each Fund’s policy is to pay commissions that are considered fair and reasonable without necessarily determining that the lowest possible commissions are paid in all circumstances. The Adviser believes that a requirement always to seek the lowest commission cost could impede effective management and preclude the Adviser from obtaining high-quality brokerage and research services. In seeking to determine the reasonableness of brokerage commissions paid in any transaction, the Adviser relies on its experience and knowledge regarding commissions generally charged by various brokers and on its judgment in evaluating the brokerage and research services received from the broker effecting the transaction.

In seeking to implement a Fund’s policies, the Adviser, through a brokerage or an outsourced trading desk, conducts trades on behalf of such Fund and effects transactions with brokers and dealers that it believes provide the most favorable prices and are capable of providing efficient executions. The Adviser may place portfolio transactions with a broker or dealer that furnishes research and other services to the Adviser and may pay higher commissions to brokers in recognition of research provided (or direct the payment of commissions to such brokers). Such services may include, but are not limited to, any one or more of the following: (1) information as to the availability of securities for purchase or sale, (2) statistical or factual information or opinions pertaining to investments, (3) wire services, (4) and appraisals or evaluations of portfolio securities. The information and services received by the Adviser from brokers and dealers may be of benefit in the management of accounts of other clients and may not in all cases benefit the Company directly. While such services are useful and important in supplementing its own research and facilities, the Adviser believes the value of such services is not determinable and does not significantly reduce its expenses.

No brokerage transaction information is provided because the Funds had not commenced operations prior to the date of this SAI. 

SECURITIES LENDING

[U.S. Bank, N.A. serves as securities lending agent for the Funds and in that role administers the Funds’ securities lending program pursuant to the terms of a Master Securities Lending Agreement entered into between the Funds and U.S. Bank, N.A.

As securities lending agent, U.S. Bank, N.A. is responsible for marketing to approved borrowers available securities from the Funds’ portfolio. U.S. Bank, N.A. is responsible for the administration and management of the Funds’ securities lending program, including the preparation and execution of a participant agreement with each borrower governing the terms and conditions of any securities loan, ensuring that securities loans are properly coordinated and documented with the Funds’ custodian, ensuring that loaned securities are daily valued and that the corresponding required cash collateral of at least 102% of the current market value of the loaned securities is delivered by the borrower(s), using best efforts to obtain additional collateral on the next business day if the value of the collateral falls below the required amount, and arranging for the investment of cash collateral received from borrowers in accordance with the Funds’ investment guidelines.

U.S. Bank, N.A. receives as compensation for its services a portion of the amount earned by the Funds for lending securities.]

PROXY VOTING PROCEDURES

The Board has delegated the responsibility of voting proxies with respect to the portfolio securities purchased and/or held by the Funds (“portfolio proxies”) to the Sub-Adviser, subject to the Board’s continuing oversight.

Policies of the Sub-Adviser

The Sub-Adviser’s proxy voting policy establishes minimum standards for the exercise of proxy voting authority by the Sub-Adviser. The Sub-Adviser’s proxy voting policies and procedures are set forth in Appendix B.

The Funds invest their assets primarily in debt securities, which generally do not issue proxies. However, the Funds may also invest in other types of securities that may issue proxies.

More Information

Each year, the Funds will make available the actual voting records relating to portfolio securities held by each Fund during the 12-month period ending June 30 without charge, upon request by calling 1-800-617-0004, or by accessing the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

PAYMENTS TO FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES

The Adviser, the Sub-Adviser and/or their affiliates, at their discretion, may make payments from their own resources and not from Fund assets to affiliated or unaffiliated brokers, dealers, banks (including bank trust departments), trust companies, registered investment advisers, financial planners, retirement plan administrators, insurance companies, and any other institution having a service, administration, or any similar arrangement with a Fund, its service providers or their respective affiliates, as incentives to help market and promote the Funds and/or in recognition of their distribution, marketing, administrative services, and/or processing support.

These additional payments may be made to financial intermediaries that sell Fund shares or provide services to each Fund, the Distributor or shareholders of a Fund through the financial intermediary’s retail distribution channel and/or fund supermarkets. Payments may also be made through the financial intermediary’s retirement, qualified tuition, fee-based advisory, wrap fee bank trust, or insurance (e.g., individual or group annuity) programs. These payments may include, but are not limited to, placing a Fund in a financial intermediary’s retail distribution channel or on a preferred or recommended fund list; providing business or shareholder financial planning assistance; educating financial intermediary personnel about a Fund; providing access to sales and management representatives of the financial intermediary; promoting sales of Fund shares; providing marketing and educational support; maintaining share balances and/or for sub-accounting, administrative or shareholder transaction processing services. A financial intermediary may perform the services itself or may arrange with a third party to perform the services.

The Adviser, the Sub-Adviser and/or their affiliates may also make payments from their own resources to financial intermediaries for costs associated with the purchase of products or services used in connection with sales and marketing, participation in and/or presentation at conferences or seminars, sales or training programs, client and investor entertainment and other sponsored events. The costs and expenses associated with these efforts may include travel, lodging, sponsorship at educational seminars and conferences, entertainment and meals to the extent permitted by law. 

Revenue sharing payments may be negotiated based on a variety of factors, including the level of sales, the amount of Fund assets attributable to investments in a Fund by financial intermediaries’ customers, a flat fee or other measures as determined from time to time by the Adviser, the Sub-Adviser and/or their affiliates. A significant purpose of these payments is to increase the sales of Fund shares, which in turn may benefit the Adviser through increased fees as Fund assets grow.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONCERNING COMPANY SHARES

The Company has authorized capital of 100 billion shares of common stock at a par value of $0.001 per share. Currently, approximately [ ] billion shares have been classified into [ ] classes. However, the Company only has approximately [ ] active share classes that have begun investment operations. Under the Company’s charter, the Board has the power to classify and reclassify any unissued shares of common stock from time to time.

Each share that represents an interest in a Fund has an equal proportionate interest in the assets belonging to that Fund with each other share that represents an interest in that Fund, even where a share has a different class designation than another share representing an interest in that Fund. Shares of the Company do not have preemptive or conversion rights. When issued for payment as described in the Prospectus, shares of the Company will be fully paid and non-assessable.

The Company does not currently intend to hold annual meetings of shareholders except as required by the 1940 Act or other applicable law. The Company’s amended By-Laws provide that shareholders owning at least ten percent of the outstanding shares of all classes of Common Stock of the Company have the right to call for a meeting of shareholders to consider the removal of one or more directors. To the extent required by law, the Company will assist in shareholder communication in such matters.

Holders of shares of each class of the Company will vote in the aggregate on all matters, except where otherwise required by law. Further, shareholders of the Company will vote in the aggregate and not by portfolio except as otherwise required by law or when the Board determines that the matter to be voted upon affects only the interests of the shareholders of a particular portfolio or class of shares. Rule 18f-2 under the 1940 Act provides that any matter required to be submitted by the provisions of such Act or applicable state law, or otherwise, to the holders of the outstanding voting securities of an investment company such as the Company shall not be deemed to have been effectively acted upon unless approved by the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of each portfolio affected by the matter. Rule 18f-2 further provides that a portfolio shall be deemed to be affected by a matter unless it is clear that the interests of each portfolio in the matter are identical or that the matter does not affect any interest of the portfolio. Under Rule 18f-2 the approval of an investment advisory agreement or distribution agreement or any change in a fundamental investment objective or fundamental investment policy would be effectively acted upon with respect to a portfolio only if approved by the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of such portfolio. However, the Rule 18f-2 also provides that the ratification of the selection of independent public accountants and the election of directors are not subject to the separate voting requirements and may be effectively acted upon by shareholders of an investment company voting without regard to a portfolio. Shareholders of the Company are entitled to one vote for each full share held (irrespective of class or portfolio) and fractional votes for fractional shares held. Voting rights are not cumulative and, accordingly, the holders of more than 50% of the aggregate shares of common stock of the Company may elect all of the Directors.

Notwithstanding any provision of Maryland law requiring a greater vote of shares of the Company’s common stock (or of any class voting as a class) in connection with any corporate action, unless otherwise provided by law (for example by Rule 18f-2 discussed above), or by the Company’s Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws, the Company may take or authorize such action upon the favorable vote of the holders of more than 50% of all of the outstanding shares of Common Stock voting without regard to class (or portfolio).

GENERAL INFORMATION

Anti-Money Laundering Program

The Funds have established an Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Program (the “Program”) as required by the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (“USA PATRIOT Act”). To ensure compliance with this law, the Funds’ Program provides for the development of internal practices, procedures, and controls, designation of anti-money laundering compliance officers, an ongoing training program, and an independent audit function to determine the effectiveness of the Program.

Procedures to implement the Program include, but are not limited to, determining that certain of its service providers have established proper anti-money laundering procedures, reporting suspicious and/or fraudulent activity, and conducting a complete and thorough review of all new account applications. The Funds will not transact business with any person or legal entity and beneficial owner, if applicable, whose identity cannot be adequately verified under the provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act. 

Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

[ ], located at [ ], is the independent registered public accounting firm of the Funds. The independent registered public accounting firm is responsible for conducting the annual audit of the Funds’ financial statements. The selection of the independent registered public accounting firm is approved annually by the Board.

Transfer Agent

Fund Services, 615 East Michigan Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53202, serves as the Funds’ transfer agent and dividend disbursing agent.

Custodian

U.S. Bank, N.A, 1555 North Rivercenter Drive, Suite 302, Milwaukee, WI 53212, serves as custodian (the “Custodian”) of the Funds’ assets and is responsible for maintaining custody of the Funds’ cash and investments and retaining sub-custodians, including in connection with the custody of foreign securities. Cash held by the Custodian, the amount of which may at times be substantial, is insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation up to the amount of available insurance coverage limits. The Custodian and Fund Services are affiliates.

Administrator

Fund Services, 615 East Michigan Street, Milwaukee, WI 53202, serves as the administrator (the “Administrator”) and provides various administrative and accounting services necessary for the operations of the Funds. Services provided by the Administrator include facilitating general Fund management; monitoring Fund compliance with federal and state regulations; supervising the maintenance of the Funds’ general ledger, the preparation of the Funds’ financial statements, the determination of NAV, and the payment of dividends and other distributions to shareholders; and preparing specified financial, tax, and other reports. The Custodian, the Distributor and the Administrator are affiliates.

No administration fee information is provided because the Funds had not commenced operations prior to the date of this SAI.

Legal Counsel

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, One Logan Square, Suite 2000, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103-6996, serves as counsel to the Company.

Registration Statement

This SAI and the Prospectus do not contain all of the information set forth in the Registration Statement the Company has filed with the SEC. The complete Registration Statement may be obtained from the SEC upon payment of the fee prescribed by SEC rules and regulations. A text-only version of the Registration Statement is available on the SEC’s website, www.sec.gov.

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

As the Funds had not commenced operations prior to the date of this SAI, there are no annual financial statements available at this time. Shareholders of the Funds will be informed of the Fund’s progress through periodic reports when those reports become available. Financial statements certified by the independent registered public accounting firm will be submitted to shareholders at least annually. 

APPENDIX A

DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES RATINGS

Short-Term Credit Ratings

An S&P Global Ratings short-term issue credit rating is generally assigned to those obligations considered short-term in the relevant market. The following summarizes the rating categories used by S&P Global Ratings for short-term issues:

“A-1” - A short-term obligation rated “A-1” is rated in the highest category by S&P Global Ratings. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is strong. Within this category, certain obligations are designated with a plus sign (+). This indicates that the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on these obligations is extremely strong.

“A-2” - A short-term obligation rated “A-2” is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher rating categories. However, the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is satisfactory.

“A-3” - A short-term obligation rated “A-3” exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to weaken an obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

“B” - A short-term obligation rated “B” is regarded as vulnerable and has significant speculative characteristics. The obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitments; however, it faces major ongoing uncertainties that could lead to the obligor’s inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitments.

“C” - A short-term obligation rated “C” is currently vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

“D” - A short-term obligation rated “D” is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non-hybrid capital instruments, the “D” rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P Global Ratings believes that such payments will be made within any stated grace period. However, any stated grace period longer than five business days will be treated as five business days. The “D” rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of a similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. A rating on an obligation is lowered to “D” if it is subject to a distressed exchange offer.

Local Currency and Foreign Currency Ratings - S&P Global Ratings’ issuer credit ratings make a distinction between foreign currency ratings and local currency ratings. A foreign currency rating on an issuer will differ from the local currency rating on it when the obligor has a different capacity to meet its obligations denominated in its local currency, versus obligations denominated in a foreign currency.

“NR” – This indicates that a rating has not been assigned or is no longer assigned.

Moody’s Investors Service (“Moody’s”) short-term ratings are forward-looking opinions of the relative credit risks of financial obligations with an original maturity of thirteen months or less and reflect both on the likelihood of a default or impairment on contractual financial obligations and the expected financial loss suffered in the event of default or impairment.

Moody’s employs the following designations to indicate the relative repayment ability of rated issuers:

“P-1” - Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-1 have a superior ability to repay short-term debt obligations.

“P-2” - Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-2 have a strong ability to repay short-term debt obligations.

“P-3” - Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-3 have an acceptable ability to repay short-term obligations.

“NP” - Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Not Prime do not fall within any of the Prime rating categories.

“NR” - Is assigned to an unrated issuer. 

Fitch, Inc. / Fitch Ratings Ltd. (“Fitch”) short-term issuer or obligation rating is based in all cases on the short-term vulnerability to default of the rated entity and relates to the capacity to meet financial obligations in accordance with the documentation governing the relevant obligation. Short-term deposit ratings may be adjusted for loss severity. Short-term ratings are assigned to obligations whose initial maturity is viewed as “short-term” based on market convention.¹ Typically, this means up to 13 months for corporate, sovereign, and structured obligations and up to 36 months for obligations in U.S. public finance markets. The following summarizes the rating categories used by Fitch for short-term obligations:

¹ A long-term rating can also be used to rate an issue with short maturity.

“F1” - Securities possess the highest short-term credit quality. This designation indicates the strongest intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments; may have an added “+” to denote any exceptionally strong credit feature.

“F2” - Securities possess good short-term credit quality. This designation indicates good intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments.

“F3” - Securities possess fair short-term credit quality. This designation indicates that the intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments is adequate.

“B” - Securities possess speculative short-term credit quality. This designation indicates minimal capacity for timely payment of financial commitments, plus heightened vulnerability to near term adverse changes in financial and economic conditions.

“C” - Securities possess high short-term default risk. Default is a real possibility.

“RD” - Restricted default. Indicates an entity that has defaulted on one or more of its financial commitments, although it continues to meet other financial obligations. Typically applicable to entity ratings only.

“D” - Default. Indicates a broad-based default event for an entity, or the default of a short-term obligation.

Plus (+) or minus (-) - The “F1” rating may be modified by the addition of a plus (+) or minus (-) sign to show the relative status within that major rating category.

“NR” - Is assigned to an unrated issue of a rated issuer.

The DBRS^® Morningstar Ratings Limited (“DBRS Morningstar”) short-term debt rating scale provides an opinion on the risk that an issuer will not meet its short-term financial obligations in a timely manner. Ratings are based on quantitative and qualitative considerations relevant to the issuer and the relative ranking of claims. The R-1 and R-2 rating categories are further denoted by the sub-categories “(high)”, “(middle)”, and “(low)”.

The following summarizes the ratings used by DBRS Morningstar for commercial paper and short-term debt:

“R-1 (high)” - Short-term debt rated “R-1 (high)” is of the highest credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is exceptionally high. Unlikely to be adversely affected by future events.

“R-1 (middle)” - Short-term debt rated “R-1 (middle)” is of superior credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is very high. Differs from “R-1 (high)” by a relatively modest degree. Unlikely to be significantly vulnerable to future events.

“R-1 (low)” - Short-term debt rated “R-1 (low)” is of good credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is substantial. Overall strength is not as favorable as higher rating categories. May be vulnerable to future events, but qualifying negative factors are considered manageable.

“R-2 (high)” - Short-term debt rated “R-2 (high)” is considered to be at the upper end of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events.

“R-2 (middle)” - Short-term debt rated “R-2 (middle)” is considered to be of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events or may be exposed to other factors that could reduce credit quality. 

“R-2 (low)” - Short-term debt rated “R-2 (low)” is considered to be at the lower end of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events. A number of challenges are present that could affect the issuer’s ability to meet such obligations.

“R-3” - Short-term debt rated “R-3” is considered to be at the lowest end of adequate credit quality. There is a capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due. May be vulnerable to future events and the certainty of meeting such obligations could be impacted by a variety of developments.

“R-4” - Short-term debt rated “R-4” is considered to be of speculative credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is uncertain.

“R-5” - Short-term debt rated “R-5” is considered to be of highly speculative credit quality. There is a high level of uncertainty as to the capacity to meet short-term financial obligations as they fall due.

“D” - Short-term debt rated “D” is assigned when the issuer has filed under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or winding up statute or there is a failure to satisfy an obligation after the exhaustion of grace periods, a downgrade to “D” may occur. DBRS Morningstar may also use “SD” (Selective Default) in cases where only some securities are impacted, such as the case of a “distressed exchange”.

Long-Term Credit Ratings

The following summarizes the ratings used by S&P Global Ratings for long-term issues:

“AAA” - An obligation rated “AAA” has the highest rating assigned by S&P Global Ratings. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is extremely strong.

“AA” - An obligation rated “AA” differs from the highest-rated obligations only to a small degree. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is very strong.

“A” - An obligation rated “A” is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher-rated categories. However, the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is still strong.

“BBB” - An obligation rated “BBB” exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to weaken the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

“BB,” “B,” “CCC,” “CC” and “C” - Obligations rated “BB,” “B,” “CCC,” “CC” and “C” are regarded as having significant speculative characteristics. “BB” indicates the least degree of speculation and “C” the highest. While such obligations will likely have some quality and protective characteristics, these may be outweighed by large uncertainties or major exposure to adverse conditions.

“BB” - An obligation rated “BB” is less vulnerable to nonpayment than other speculative issues. However, it faces major ongoing uncertainties or exposure to adverse business, financial, or economic conditions that could lead to the obligor’s inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

“B” - An obligation rated “B” is more vulnerable to nonpayment than obligations rated “BB”, but the obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. Adverse business, financial, or economic conditions will likely impair the obligor’s capacity or willingness to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

“CCC” - An obligation rated “CCC” is currently vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. In the event of adverse business, financial, or economic conditions, the obligor is not likely to have the capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.

“CC” - An obligation rated “CC” is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment. The “CC” rating is used when a default has not yet occurred but S&P Global Ratings expects default to be a virtual certainty, regardless of the anticipated time to default.

“C” - An obligation rated “C” is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment, and the obligation is expected to have lower relative seniority or lower ultimate recovery compared with obligations that are rated higher. 

“D” - An obligation rated “D” is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non-hybrid capital instruments, the “D” rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P Global Ratings believes that such payments will be made within five business days in the absence of a stated grace period or within the earlier of the stated grace period or 30 calendar days. The “D” rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. An obligation’s rating is lowered to “D” if it is subject to a distressed exchange offer.

Plus (+) or minus (-) - The ratings from “AA” to “CCC” may be modified by the addition of a plus (+) or minus (-) sign to show relative standing within the rating categories.

“NR” - This indicates that a rating has not been assigned, or is no longer assigned.

Local Currency and Foreign Currency Risks - S&P Global Ratings’ issuer credit ratings make a distinction between foreign currency ratings and local currency ratings. An issuer’s foreign currency rating will differ from its local currency rating on it when the obligor has a different capacity to meet its obligations denominated in its local currency, versus obligations denominated in a foreign currency.

Moody’s long-term ratings are forward-looking opinions of the relative credit risks of financial obligations with an original maturity of one year or more. Such ratings reflect both on the likelihood of default or impairment on contractual financial obligations and the expected financial loss suffered in the event of default or impairment. The following summarizes the ratings used by Moody’s for long-term debt:

“Aaa” - Obligations rated “Aaa” are judged to be of the highest quality, subject to the lowest level of credit risk.

“Aa” - Obligations rated “Aa” are judged to be of high quality and are subject to very low credit risk.

“A” - Obligations rated “A” are judged to be upper-medium grade and are subject to low credit risk.

“Baa” - Obligations rated “Baa” are judged to be medium-grade and subject to moderate credit risk and as such may possess certain speculative characteristics.

“Ba” - Obligations rated “Ba” are judged to be speculative and are subject to substantial credit risk.

“B” - Obligations rated “B” are considered speculative and are subject to high credit risk.

“Caa” - Obligations rated “Caa” are judged to be speculative of poor standing and are subject to very high credit risk.

“Ca” - Obligations rated “Ca” are highly speculative and are likely in, or very near, default, with some prospect of recovery of principal and interest.

“C” - Obligations rated “C” are the lowest rated and are typically in default, with little prospect for recovery of principal or interest.

Note: Moody’s appends numerical modifiers 1, 2, and 3 to each generic rating classification from “Aa” through “Caa.” The modifier 1 indicates that the obligation ranks in the higher end of its generic rating category; the modifier 2 indicates a mid-range ranking; and the modifier 3 indicates a ranking in the lower end of that generic rating category.

“NR” - Is assigned to unrated obligations.

The following summarizes long-term ratings used by Fitch:

“AAA” - Securities considered to be of the highest credit quality. “AAA” ratings denote the lowest expectation of credit risk. They are assigned only in cases of exceptionally strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is highly unlikely to be adversely affected by foreseeable events.

“AA” - Securities considered to be of very high credit quality. “AA” ratings denote expectations of very low credit risk. They indicate very strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is not significantly vulnerable to foreseeable events.

“A” - Securities considered to be of high credit quality. “A” ratings denote expectations of low credit risk. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered strong. This capacity may, nevertheless, be more vulnerable to adverse business or economic conditions than is the case for higher ratings. 

“BBB” - Securities considered to be of good credit quality. “BBB” ratings indicate that expectations of credit risk are currently low. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered adequate, but adverse business or economic conditions are more likely to impair this capacity.

“BB” - Securities considered to be speculative. “BB” ratings indicate that there is an elevated vulnerability to credit risk, particularly in the event of adverse changes in business or economic conditions over time; however, business or financial alternatives may be available to allow financial commitments to be met.

“B” - Securities considered to be highly speculative. “B” ratings indicate that material credit risk is present.

“CCC” - A “CCC” rating indicates that substantial credit risk is present.

“CC” - A “CC” rating indicates very high levels of credit risk.

“C” - A “C” rating indicates exceptionally high levels of credit risk.

Defaulted obligations typically are not assigned “RD” or “D” ratings but are instead rated in the “CCC” to “C” rating categories, depending on their recovery prospects and other relevant characteristics. Fitch believes that this approach better aligns obligations that have comparable overall expected loss but varying vulnerability to default and loss.

Plus (+) or minus (-) may be appended to a rating to denote relative status within major rating categories. Such suffixes are not added to the “AAA” obligation rating category, or to corporate finance obligation ratings in the categories below “CCC”.

“NR” - Is assigned to an unrated issue of a rated issuer.

The DBRS Morningstar long-term rating scale provides an opinion on the risk of default. That is, the risk that an issuer will fail to satisfy its financial obligations in accordance with the terms under which an obligation has been issued. Ratings are based on quantitative and qualitative considerations relevant to the issuer, and the relative ranking of claims. All rating categories other than AAA and D also contain subcategories “(high)” and “(low)”. The absence of either a “(high)” or “(low)” designation indicates the rating is in the middle of the category. The following summarizes the ratings used by DBRS Morningstar for long-term debt:

“AAA” - Long-term debt rated “AAA” is of the highest credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is exceptionally high and unlikely to be adversely affected by future events.

“AA” - Long-term debt rated “AA” is of superior credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is considered high. Credit quality differs from “AAA” only to a small degree. Unlikely to be significantly vulnerable to future events.

“A” - Long-term debt rated “A” is of good credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is substantial, but of lesser credit quality than “AA.” May be vulnerable to future events, but qualifying negative factors are considered manageable.

“BBB” - Long-term debt rated “BBB” is of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is considered acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events.

“BB” - Long-term debt rated “BB” is of speculative, non-investment grade credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is uncertain. Vulnerable to future events.

“B” - Long-term debt rated “B” is of highly speculative credit quality. There is a high level of uncertainty as to the capacity to meet financial obligations.

“CCC”, “CC” and “C” - Long-term debt rated in any of these categories is of very highly speculative credit quality. In danger of defaulting on financial obligations. There is little difference between these three categories, although “CC” and “C” ratings are normally applied to obligations that are seen as highly likely to default, or subordinated to obligations rated in the “CCC” to “B” range. Obligations in respect of which default has not technically taken place but is considered inevitable may be rated in the “C” category.

“D” - A security rated “D” is assigned when the issuer has filed under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or winding up statute or there is a failure to satisfy an obligation after the exhaustion of grace periods, a downgrade to “D” may occur. DBRS Morningstar may also use “SD” (Selective Default) in cases where only some securities are impacted, such as the case of a “distressed exchange”. 

Municipal Note Ratings

An S&P Global Ratings U.S. municipal note rating reflects S&P Global Ratings’ opinion about the liquidity factors and market access risks unique to the notes. Notes due in three years or less will likely receive a note rating. Notes with an original maturity of more than three years will most likely receive a long-term debt rating. In determining which type of rating, if any, to assign, S&P Global Ratings’ analysis will review the following considerations:

Municipal Short-Term Note rating symbols are as follows:

“SP-1” - A municipal note rated “SP-1” exhibits a strong capacity to pay principal and interest. An issue determined to possess a very strong capacity to pay debt service is given a plus (+) designation.

“SP-2” - A municipal note rated “SP-2” exhibits a satisfactory capacity to pay principal and interest, with some vulnerability to adverse financial and economic changes over the term of the notes.

“SP-3” - A municipal note rated “SP-3” exhibits a speculative capacity to pay principal and interest.

“D” - This rating is assigned upon failure to pay the note when due, completion of a distressed exchange offer, or the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions.

Moody’s uses the global short-term Prime rating scale (listed above under Short-Term Credit Ratings) for commercial paper issued by U.S. municipalities and nonprofits. These commercial paper programs may be backed by external letters of credit or liquidity facilities, or by an issuer’s self-liquidity.

For other short-term municipal obligations, Moody’s uses one of two other short-term rating scales, the Municipal Investment Grade (“MIG”) and Variable Municipal Investment Grade (“VMIG”) scales provided below.

Moody’s uses the global short-term Prime rating scale (listed above under Short-Term Credit Ratings) for commercial paper issued by U.S. municipalities and nonprofits. These commercial paper programs may be backed by external letters of credit or liquidity facilities, or by an issuer’s self-liquidity.

For other short-term municipal obligations, Moody’s uses one of two other short-term rating scales, the Municipal Investment Grade (“MIG”) and Variable Municipal Investment Grade (“VMIG”) scales provided below.

Moody’s uses the MIG scale for U.S. municipal cash flow notes, bond anticipation notes and certain other short-term obligations, which typically mature in three years or less. Under certain circumstances, Moody’s uses the MIG scale for bond anticipation notes with maturities of up to five years.

MIG Scale 

“MIG-1” - This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by established cash flows, highly reliable liquidity support, or demonstrated broad-based access to the market for refinancing.

“MIG-2” - This designation denotes strong credit quality. Margins of protection are ample, although not as large as in the preceding group.

“MIG-3” - This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Liquidity and cash-flow protection may be narrow, and market access for refinancing is likely to be less well-established.

“SG” - This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Debt instruments in this category may lack sufficient margins of protection.

“NR” - Is assigned to an unrated obligation.

In the case of variable rate demand obligations (“VRDOs”), a two-component rating is assigned: a long or short-term debt rating and a demand obligation rating. The long-term rating addresses the issuer’s ability to meet scheduled principal and interests payments. The short-term demand obligation rating addresses the ability of the issuer or the liquidity provider to make payments associated with the purchase-price-upon demand feature (“demand feature”) of the VRDO. The short-term demand obligation rating uses the VMIG scale VMIG ratings with liquidity support use as an input the short-term Counterparty Risk Assessment of the support provider, or the long-term rating of the underlying obligor in the absence of third party liquidity support. Transitions of VMIG Ratings of demand obligations with conditional liquidity support differ from transitions on the Prime scale to reflect the risk that external liquidity support will terminate if the issuer’s long-term rating drops below investment grade. 

Moody’s typically assigns the VMIG short-term demand obligation rating if the frequency of the demand feature is less than every three years. If the frequency of the demand feature is less than three years but the purchase price is payable only with remarketing proceeds, the short-term demand obligation rating is “NR”.

“VMIG-1” - This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by the superior short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

“VMIG-2” - This designation denotes strong credit quality. Good protection is afforded by the strong short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

“VMIG-3” - This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Adequate protection is afforded by the satisfactory short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

“SG” – This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Demand features rated in this category may be supported by a liquidity provider that does not have a sufficiently strong short-term rating or may lack the structural and/or legal protections necessary to ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.

“NR” - Is assigned to an unrated obligation.

About Credit Ratings 

An S&P Global Ratings issue credit rating is a forward-looking opinion about the creditworthiness of an obligor with respect to a specific financial obligation, a specific class of financial obligations, or a specific financial program (including ratings on medium-term note programs and commercial paper programs). It takes into consideration the creditworthiness of guarantors, insurers, or other forms of credit enhancement on the obligation and takes into account the currency in which the obligation is denominated. The opinion reflects S&P Global Ratings’ view of the obligor’s capacity and willingness to meet its financial commitments as they come due, and this opinion may assess terms, such as collateral security and subordination, which could affect ultimate payment in the event of default.

Ratings assigned on Moody’s global long-term and short-term rating scales are forward-looking opinions of the relative credit risks of financial obligations issued by non-financial corporates, financial institutions, structured finance vehicles, project finance vehicles, and public sector entities.

Fitch’s credit ratings relating to issuers are an opinion on the relative ability of an entity to meet financial commitments, such as interest, preferred dividends, repayment of principal, insurance claims or counterparty obligations. Fitch credit ratings are used by investors as indications of the likelihood of receiving the money owed to them in accordance with the terms on which they invested. Fitch’s credit ratings cover the global spectrum of corporate, sovereign financial, bank, insurance, and public finance entities (including supranational and sub-national entities) and the securities or other obligations they issue, as well as structured finance securities backed by receivables or other financial assets.

DBRS Morningstar provides independent credit ratings services for financial institutions, corporate and sovereign entities and structured finance products and instruments. Credit ratings are forward-looking opinions about credit risk that reflect the creditworthiness of an entity or security. The Rating Committee process facilitates rating decisions, which are a collective assessment of DBRS Morningstar’s opinion rather than the view of an individual analyst. Ratings are based on sufficient information that incorporates both global and local considerations, and the use of approved methodologies. They are independent of any actual or perceived conflicts of interest. DBRS Morningstar credit ratings are formed and disseminated based on established methodologies, models and criteria (Methodologies) that apply to entities and securities that we rate, including corporate finance issuers, financial institutions, insurance companies, public finance and sovereign entities as well as Structured Finance transactions. DBRS Morningstar methodologies are periodically reviewed and updated by the team. 

APPENDIX B

YieldX Advisers, LLC Proxy Voting/Class Action Litigation Policies and Procedures

Background

An investment adviser has a duty of care and loyalty to its clients and investors with respect to monitoring corporate events and exercising proxy authority in the best interests of such clients and investors. The YieldX Advisers, LLC (the “Company”) will adhere to Rule 206(4)-6 of the Advisers Act and all other applicable laws and regulations in regard to the voting of proxies. As a result, Investment advisers must conduct a reasonable investigation into matters on which the adviser votes and to vote in the best interest of the client.

Policies and Procedures

The Company has the authority to vote proxies with respect of securities in client accounts (“Client Securities”) over which the Company has voting discretion. In such cases, the Company will cast proxy votes in a manner that is consistent with the best interests of the Company’s clients. Where the Company undertakes proxy voting responsibilities on behalf of multiple clients, it shall consider whether it should have different voting policies for some or all of these different clients, depending on the investment strategy and objectives of each client. These policies and procedures are designed to deal with the complexities which may arise in cases where the Company’s interests conflict or appear to conflict with the interests of its clients and to communicate to clients the methods and rationale whereby the Company exercises proxy authority. This document is available to any client upon request. The Company will also make available the record of the Company’s votes promptly upon request.

Unless contractually obligated to vote in a certain manner, the Company will reach its voting decisions independently, after appropriate investigation. It does not generally intend to delegate its decision-making or to rely on the recommendations of any third-party, although it may take such recommendations into consideration. Where the Company deviates from the guidelines listed below, or depends upon a third-party to make the decision, the reasons shall be documented. The Company may consult with such other experts, such as CPA’s, investment bankers, attorneys, etc., as it deems necessary to help reach informed decisions.

The Chief Compliance Officer (“CCO”) is responsible for monitoring the effectiveness of this policy.

The Company generally will monitor proposed corporate actions and proxy issues regarding client securities and may take any of the following actions based on the best interests of its clients: (i) determine how to vote the proxies; (ii) abstain; or (iii) follow the recommendations of an independent proxy voting service in voting the proxies.

In general, the Company will determine how to vote proxies based on reasonable judgment of the vote most likely to produce favorable financial results for its clients. Proxy votes generally will be cast in favor of proposals that maintain or strengthen the shared interests of shareholders. Proxy votes generally will be cast against proposals having the opposite effect. The Company will always consider each side of each proxy issue.

Non-Voting of Proxies

The Company will generally not vote proxies in the following situations:

Management Proposals

Absent good reason to the contrary, the Company will generally give substantial weight to management recommendations regarding voting. This is based on the view that management is usually in the best position to know which corporate actions are in the best interests of common shareholders as a whole.

The Company will generally vote for routine matters proposed by issuer management, such as setting a time or place for an annual meeting, changing the name or fiscal year of the company, or voting for directors in favor of the management proposed slate. Other routine matters in which the Company will generally vote along with company management include: appointment of auditors; fees paid to board members; and change in the board structure. The Company will generally vote along with management as long as the proposal does not:  (i) measurably change the structure, management, control or operations of the company; (ii) measurably change the terms of, or fees or expenses associated with, an investment in the company; and (iii) the proposal is consistent with customary industry standards and practices, as well as the laws of the state of incorporation applicable to the company. Routine matters may not necessitate the same level of analysis than non-routine matters.

Non-Routine Matters

Non-routine matters include such things as:

In non-routine matters, the Company will attempt to be generally familiar with the questions at issue. Non-routine matters will be voted on a case-by-case basis given the complexity of many of these issues. When determining how to vote non-routine matters the Company shall conduct an issue-specific analysis, giving consideration to the potential effect on the value of a client’s investments, documentation of the analysis shall be maintained in the Company’s proxy voting files. 

Processing Proxy Votes

The CCO will be responsible for determining whether each proxy is for a “routine” matter, as described above, and whether the policy and procedures set forth herein actually address the specific issue. For proxies that are not clearly “routine,” the Company, in conjunction with the CCO, will determine how to vote each such proxy by applying these policies and procedures. Upon making a decision, the proxy will be executed and returned for submission to the issuer. The Company’s proxy voting record will be updated at the time the proxy is submitted.

An independent proxy voting advisory and research firm may be appointed as a “Proxy Service” for voting the Company’s proxies after approval by the CCO.  

Periodic Testing

The Company shall evaluate compliance by periodically sampling the proxy votes it casts on behalf of its clients by sampling proxy votes that relate to proposals that are non-routine matters and require more issue-specific analysis (e.g., mergers and acquisition transactions, dissolutions, conversions, or consolidations).

Conflicts of Interest

Conflicts of interest between the Company or a principal of the Company and the Company’s clients with respect to a proxy issue conceivably may arise, for example, from personal or professional relationships with an issuer or with the directors, candidates for director, or senior executives of an issuer.

Potential conflicts of interest between the Company and its clients may arise when the Company’s relationships with an issuer or with a related third-party actually conflict, or appear to conflict, with the best interests of the Company’s clients.

If the issue is specifically addressed in these policies and procedures, the Company will vote in accordance with these policies. In a situation where the issue is not specifically addressed in these policies and procedures and an apparent or actual conflict exists, the Company shall either: (i) delegate the voting decision to an independent third-party; (ii) inform clients of the conflict of interest and obtain advance consent of a majority of such clients for a particular voting decision; or (iii) obtain approval of a voting decision from the Company’s CCO, who will be responsible for documenting the rationale for the decision made and voted. 

In all such cases, the Company will make disclosures to clients of all material conflicts and will keep documentation supporting its voting decisions.

If the CCO determines that a material conflict of interest exists, the following procedures shall be followed:

Disclosure to Clients

A summary of the Company’s proxy voting policy will be included in the Company’s Disclosure Brochure. The full text of the Company’s proxy voting policy will be provided to clients upon request.   

Class Action Lawsuits

From time to time, securities held in the accounts of clients will be the subject of class action lawsuits. The Company has no obligation to determine if securities held by the client are subject to a pending or resolved class action lawsuit. It also has no duty to evaluate a client’s eligibility or to submit a claim to participate in the proceeds of a securities class action settlement or verdict. Furthermore, the Company has no obligation or responsibility to initiate litigation to recover damages on behalf of clients who may have been injured because of actions, misconduct, or negligence by corporate management of issuers whose securities are held by clients.

Where the Company receives written or electronic notice of a class action lawsuit, settlement, or verdict directly relating to a client account, it will forward all notices, proof of claim forms, and other materials, to the client. Electronic mail is acceptable where appropriate if the client has authorized contact in this manner.

Proxy Advisory Firm  

When the Company retains or continues retaining a proxy advisory firm to provide research, voting recommendations or voting execution services the Company, as applicable shall:

The steps the Company should take when considering whether to retain or continue retaining a proxy advisory firm depend on, among other things (1) the scope of the investment adviser’s voting authority, and (2) the type of functions and services that the investment adviser has retained the proxy advisory firm to perform.

Such a review should include an assessment of the extent to which potential factual errors, potential incompleteness, or potential methodological weaknesses in the proxy advisory firm’s analysis (that the Company becomes aware of and deems credible and relevant to its voting determinations) materially affected the proxy advisory firm’s research or recommendations that the Company adviser utilized.

The Company shall consider the effectiveness of the proxy advisory firm’s policies and procedures for obtaining current and accurate information relevant to matters included in its research and on which it makes voting recommendations. As part of this assessment, the Company shall consider the following:

The Company shall consider the proxy advisory firm’s policies to update the Company regarding business changes the Company considers relevant (i.e., with respect to the proxy advisory firm’s capacity and competency to provide independent proxy voting advice or carry out voting instructions).

The Company shall also consider whether the proxy advisory firm appropriately updates its methodologies, guidelines, and voting recommendations on an ongoing basis, including in response to feedback from issuers and their shareholders.

B-3

THE RBB FUND, INC.

PEA 274/279

PART C: OTHER INFORMATION