Index-Related Risk. The Index
Provider may rely on various sources of information to assess the criteria of components of the Underlying
Index, including information that may be based on assumptions and estimates. Neither the Fund nor BFA can offer assurances that the Index Provider’s methodology or sources of information will provide an accurate assessment of
included components or will result in the Fund meeting its investment objective. Errors in index data,
index computations or the construction of the Underlying Index in accordance with its methodology may
occur, and the Index Provider may not identify or correct them promptly or at all, which may have an adverse
impact on the Fund and its shareholders. Unusual market conditions or other unforeseen circumstances (such
as natural disasters, political unrest or war) may impact the Index Provider or a third-party data provider
and could cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance. This could cause the Underlying Index
to vary from its normal or expected composition.
Asset Class Risk. The securities and other assets in the Underlying Index or in the Fund’s portfolio may underperform in comparison to financial markets generally, a
particular financial market, another index, or other asset classes.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk.
An “Authorized
Participant” is a member or
participant of a clearing agency registered with the SEC, which has a written agreement with the Fund or
one of its service providers that allows the Authorized Participant to place orders for the purchase and redemption of creation units (“Creation Units”). Only an Authorized Participant may
engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. There are a limited number of institutions that may act as Authorized Participants for the Fund, including on an agency basis on behalf of other market participants. No
Authorized Participant is obligated to engage in creation or redemption transactions. To the extent that
Authorized Participants exit the business or do not place creation or redemption orders for the Fund and no
other Authorized Participant places orders, Fund shares are more likely to trade at a premium or discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts or delisting.
Communications Companies Risk. Companies in the communications industry (“communications
companies”) include
telecommunications and media companies. Communications companies face risks related to cybersecurity
incidents, data breaches, new technologies, substantial capital requirements, government regulation,
cyclicality of revenues and earnings, obsolescence of products and services, and changes in consumer
preferences and expectations, among other things.
Concentration Risk. The Fund may be susceptible to an increased risk of loss, including losses due to adverse events that affect the Fund’s investments more than the
market as a whole, to the extent that the Fund’s investments are concentrated in the securities or
other assets of one or more issuers, countries or other geographic units, markets, industries, project types, or asset classes.
Issuer Risk. The performance of the Fund depends on the performance of individual securities or other assets to which the Fund has exposure. The value of securities or other assets may decline, or perform differently from the market as a
whole, due to changes in the financial condition or credit rating of the issuer or
counterparty.
Large-Capitalization Companies Risk. Large-capitalization companies may be less able than smaller-capitalization companies to adapt to changing market conditions and competitive challenges. Large-capitalization companies may be more mature and subject to more limited growth potential
compared with
smaller-capitalization companies. The performance of large-capitalization companies could trail the overall
performance of the broader securities markets.
Management Risk. The Fund generally does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets. As the Fund will not fully replicate the Underlying Index and may hold securities or other assets not
included in the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that the investment strategy of BFA may not
produce the intended results. There is no guarantee that the Fund’s investment results will have a
high degree of correlation to those of the Underlying Index or that the Fund will achieve its investment objective.
Market Trading Risk. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares (including through a trading halt), losses from
trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility, and disruptions in the process of creating and
redeeming Fund shares. Any of these factors, among others, may lead to the Fund’s shares trading in
the secondary market at a premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s portfolio
holdings. If you buy Fund shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to NAV or sell Fund shares
at a time when the market price is at a discount to NAV, you may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Fund shares.
Non-Diversification Risk. The Fund is classified as
“non-diversified.”
This means that, compared with funds that are classified as “diversified,” the Fund may invest a greater percentage of its assets in securities or other instruments representing a small number of issuers or counterparties and thus may be more susceptible to the risks associated with
these particular issuers or counterparties. As a result, the Fund's performance may depend to a greater
extent on the performance of a small number of issuers or counterparties, which may lead to more volatility
in the Fund’s NAV.
Operational
and Technology Risks. The Fund is directly and indirectly susceptible to operational and technology risks, including those related to human errors, processing errors,
communication errors, systems failures, cybersecurity incidents, and the use of artificial intelligence and
machine learning
(“AI”), which may result in losses for the Fund and its shareholders or may impair the Fund’s operations. While the Fund’s service providers are required to have appropriate
operational, information security and cybersecurity risk management policies and procedures, their methods
of risk management may differ from those of the Fund. Operational and technology risks for the issuers in
which the Fund invests could also result in material adverse consequences for such issuers and may cause the Fund’s investments in such issuers to lose value.
Risk of Investing in the U.S. Investing in U.S. issuers subjects the Fund to legal, regulatory, political, currency, security, and economic risks that are specific to the U.S. Certain changes in the U.S., such as a weakening of the U.S. economy or a
decline in its financial markets, may have an adverse effect on U.S. issuers.
Securities Lending Risk. The Fund may engage in
securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower
of the loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also
lose money in the event of a decline in the value of collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the
Fund.