AS FILED WITH THE U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION ON OCTOBER 9, 2025
1933 Act Registration File No.: 333-272579
1940 Act File No.: 811-23883
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM N-1A
REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933 | ☑ |
Pre-Effective Amendment No. ___ | ☐ |
Post-Effective Amendment No. 13 | ☑ |
and/or | |
REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940 | ☑ |
Amendment No. 15 | ☑ |
THE 2023 ETF SERIES TRUST
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)
234 West Florida Street, Suite 203
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204
(Address of Principal Executive Offices, Zip Code)
(Registrant’s Telephone Number, including Area Code) (855) 843-2534
The Corporation Trust Company
1209 Orange Street
Corporation Trust Center
Wilmington, DE 19801
(Name and Address of Agent for Service)
Copies to:
Eric W. Falkeis Tidal ETF Services LLC 234 West Florida Street, Suite 203 Milwaukee, WI 53204 |
W. John McGuire, Esquire Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP 1111 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20004 |
It is proposed that this filing will become effective (check appropriate box):
☐ | immediately upon filing pursuant to paragraph (b) |
☐ | on [ ] pursuant to paragraph (b) |
☐ | 60 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a)(1) |
☐ | on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a)(1) |
☑ | 75 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a)(2) |
☐ | on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a)(2) of rule 485 |
Explanatory Note: This Post-Effective Amendment No. 13 to the Registration Statement of The 2023 ETF Series Trust (the “Trust”) is being filed to add three new series, TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF, to the Trust.
SUBJECT TO COMPLETION
Dated October 9, 2025
THE INFORMATION HEREIN IS NOT COMPLETE AND MAY BE CHANGED. WE MAY NOT SELL THESE SECURITIES UNTIL THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT FILED WITH THE U.S. 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 IN WHICH THE OFFER OR SALE IS NOT PERMITTED.
[logo]
[TSQM] | TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF |
[TSQS] | TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF |
[TSQI] | TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF |
Listed on [ ]
PROSPECTUS
[ ], 2025
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) has not approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF – FUND SUMMARY
Investment Objective
The TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF (the “Fund”) seeks long-term capital appreciation.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and Example below.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses(1) (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | ||
Management Fees | [ ]% | |
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees | [ ]% | |
Other Expenses(2) | [ ]% | |
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses | [ ]% |
(1) | Under the Fund’s investment advisory agreement, in exchange for a single unitary management fee, the Fund’s investment adviser, TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC (“TimesSquare” or the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses incurred by the Fund (except for advisory fees) excluding interest charges on any borrowings, dividends and other expenses on securities sold short, taxes, brokerage commissions and other expenses incurred in placing orders for the purchase and sale of securities and other investment instruments, acquired fund fees and expenses, accrued deferred tax liability, distribution fees and expenses paid by the Fund under any distribution plan adopted pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”), and litigation expenses, and other non-routine or extraordinary expenses (collectively, the “Excluded Expenses”). |
(2) | Based on estimated amounts for the current fiscal year. |
Expense 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 hold or redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that 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:
1 Year | 3 Years |
[ ] | [ ] |
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 Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in total annual fund operating expenses or in the expense example above, affect the Fund’s performance. Because the Fund is newly organized, portfolio turnover information is not yet available.
Principal Investment Strategies
The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing primarily in a diversified portfolio of equity securities of mid-capitalization companies that exhibit attributes of a quality growth company. The Fund defines “mid-capitalization companies” as companies that, at the time of purchase, are within the range of capitalizations of companies in the Russell Midcap® Growth Index (the “Index”). As of [-], 2025, the date of the latest reconstitution of the Index, the range of market capitalizations for the Russell Midcap® Growth Index was $[-] million to $[-] billion. This capitalization range will change over time. The Fund may continue to hold securities of a portfolio company whose market capitalization subsequently drops below or appreciates above the Fund’s “mid-capitalization companies” range, when the Adviser believes doing so is in the Fund’s interest. The Fund defines “quality growth” as securities that in aggregate have Profitability and Growth factor exposures that are equal or greater than the Index, where growth reflects a company’s ability to expand its sales and earnings over time, based on both historical results and analyst forecasts; and profitability measures how efficiently a company generates earnings, based on factors including profit margins and returns.
1
When making investment decisions, TimesSquare uses a bottom-up, fundamental-investment-research-intensive approach to identify mid-capitalization growth companies that it believes have the potential to achieve significant price appreciation over a 12- to 18-month investment horizon and/or mid-capitalization companies that, in TimesSquare’s view, are currently undervalued by the stock market relative to their earnings growth rates and/or potential for long-term capital appreciation. TimesSquare also continuously monitors and considers relevant market-, company- and industry-specific risks when constructing the Fund’s portfolio and making buy and sell decisions. TimesSquare will consistently evaluate if there is a compelling reason for the Fund to maintain its position in each security that it holds. As each security approaches TimesSquare’s price target for it, the security is a candidate for sale. When deciding whether to sell, maintain, or add to a Fund position, TimesSquare analyzes certain fundamental considerations, including when a company, in TimesSquare’s judgment, is not meeting the expected operating objectives, cannot sustain its competitive advantage, or may be replaced in the Fund’s portfolio with a better investment opportunity. In addition to utilizing fundamental analysis, TimesSquare’s portfolio construction methodology also involves an optimization process where TimesSquare evaluates companies for inclusion in the Fund’s portfolio based on relevant risk factors. As measured by third-party risk models, the Fund’s portfolio is constructed to maintain Profitability and Growth factor exposures that meet or exceed the characteristics of the Index (as further described above). Through this process, the portfolio is constructed to emphasize companies that TimesSquare believes have strong earnings quality and growth characteristics while remaining within TimesSquare’s diversification parameters.
Through this active investment selection and ongoing portfolio monitoring process, the Fund seeks to maintain a portfolio of quality growth companies. The Fund will generally invest in equity securities of companies, including common stocks, preferred stocks, securities convertible into common stocks, and securities that carry the right to buy common stocks (e.g., rights and warrants). The Fund may also opportunistically invest a smaller portion of its portfolio in publicly traded securities of other types of issuers, such as securities issued by real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), when TimesSquare believes doing so is in the Fund’s interest.
Fund Attributes
Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of the value of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of mid-capitalization companies that exhibit attributes of a quality growth company.
Principal Investment Risks
The principal risks of investing in the Fund are summarized below. As with any investment, there is a risk that you could lose all or a portion of your investment in the Fund. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return, and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of investing in the Fund, see the section in the Fund’s Prospectus titled “Additional Information About the Fund—Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund.”
An investment in the Fund entails risk Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. The Fund may not achieve its investment objective and there is a risk that you could lose all of your money invested in the Fund. The Fund is not a complete investment program. It is important that investors closely review all of the risks listed below and understand them before making an investment in the Fund.
Equity Market Risk. The prices of equity securities rise and fall daily. These price movements may result from factors affecting individual issuers, industries or the stock market as a whole. In addition, equity markets tend to move in cycles which may cause stock prices to fall over a short and extended periods of time. In a declining stock market, stock prices for all companies (including those in the Fund’s portfolio) may decline, regardless of their long-term prospects.
● | Common Stocks Risk. Common stocks are generally exposed to greater risk than other types of securities, such as preferred stock and debt obligations, because common stockholders generally have inferior rights to receive payment from specific issuers. The equity securities held in the Fund’s portfolio may experience sudden, unpredictable drops in value or long periods of decline in value. This may occur because of factors that affect securities markets generally or factors affecting specific issuers, industries, or sectors in which the Fund invests. | |
● | Preferred Stock Risk. Preferred stocks normally have preference over common stock in the payment of dividends and the liquidation of the company. However, in all other respects, preferred stocks are subordinated to the liabilities of the issuer. Unlike common stocks, preferred stocks are generally not entitled to vote on corporate matters. |
2
● | REIT Risk. REITs are subject to additional risks, including those related to adverse governmental actions; declines in property value and the real estate market; the potential failure to qualify for tax-free pass through of income; and exemption from registration as an investment company. REITs are dependent upon specialized management skills and may invest in relatively few properties, a small geographic area, or a small number of property types. As a result, investments in REITs may be volatile. To the extent the Fund invests in REITs concentrated in specific geographic areas or property types, the Fund may be subject to a greater loss as a result of adverse developments affecting such area or property types. REITs are pooled investment vehicles with their own fees and expenses and the Fund will indirectly bear a proportionate share of those fees and expenses. |
Growth Investing Risks. The Fund will invest in companies that appear to be growth-oriented. Growth companies are those that the Adviser believes will have revenue and earnings that grow faster than the economy as a whole, offering above-average prospects for capital appreciation and little or no emphasis on dividend income. If the Adviser’s perceptions of a company’s growth potential are wrong, the securities purchased may not perform as expected, reducing the Fund’s return.
Economic and Market Risk. Economies and financial markets throughout the world are becoming increasingly interconnected, which increases the likelihood that events or conditions in one country or region will adversely impact markets or issuers in other countries or regions. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio may underperform in comparison to securities in the general financial markets, a particular financial market, or other asset classes, due to a number of factors, including inflation (or expectations for inflation), deflation (or expectations for deflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, market instability, financial system instability, debt crises and downgrades, embargoes, tariffs, sanctions and other trade barriers, regulatory events, other governmental trade or market control programs and related geopolitical events. In addition, the value of the Fund’s investments may be negatively affected by the occurrence of global events such as war, terrorism, environmental disasters, natural disasters or events, country instability, and infectious disease epidemics or pandemics. The imposition by the U.S. of tariffs on goods imported from foreign countries and reciprocal tariffs levied on U.S. goods by those countries also may lead to volatility and instability in domestic and foreign markets.
ETF Risks.
○ | Authorized Participants, Market Makers, and Liquidity Providers Concentration Risk. The Fund has a limited number of financial institutions that are authorized to purchase and redeem Shares directly from the Fund (known as Authorized Participants or 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. |
○ | 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 Shares. In addition, secondary market investors will also incur the cost of the 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. |
○ | 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) due to supply and demand of Shares or during periods of market volatility. This risk is heightened in times of market volatility, periods of steep market declines, and periods when there is limited trading activity for Shares in the secondary market, in which case such premiums or discounts may be significant. Because securities held by the Fund may trade on foreign exchanges that are closed when the Fund’s primary listing exchange is open, the Fund is likely to experience premiums and discounts greater than those of ETFs holding only domestic securities. |
○ | Trading. Although Shares are listed for trading on a national securities exchange, such as [ ] (the “Exchange”), and may be traded on U.S. exchanges other than the Exchange, 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 Shares may begin to mirror the liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio holdings, which can be significantly less liquid than Shares. |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed portfolio. The Fund’s Adviser will apply investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objective.
3
Market Capitalization Risk.
● | Mid-Capitalization Investing. The securities of mid-capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse issuer, market, political, or economic developments than securities of large-capitalization companies. The securities of mid-capitalization companies generally trade in lower volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes than large-capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole. |
New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors do not have a track record or history on which to base their investment decisions.
Operational Risk. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third-parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. The Fund relies on third parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and Adviser seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.
Performance
Performance information for the Fund is not included because the Fund has not completed a full calendar year of operations as of the date of this Prospectus. When such information is included, this section will provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance history from year to year and showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns compare with those of a broad measure of market performance. Although past performance of the Fund is no guarantee of how it will perform in the future, historical performance may give you some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Updated performance information will be available on the Fund’s website at www.[ ].
Management
Investment Adviser
TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC, serves as investment adviser to the Fund.
Investment Sub-Adviser
Tidal Investments LLC, a Tidal Financial Group company serves as investment sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
Sonu Chawla, CFA®, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Edward F. Salib, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Joshua Bischoff, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Qiao Duan, CFA®, Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Andy Hicks, Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
CFA® is a registered trademark owned by the CFA Institute.
Purchase and Sale of Shares
The Fund issues and redeems Shares at NAV only in large blocks known as “Creation Units,” which only Authorized Participants (APs) (typically, broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund generally issues and redeems Creation Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities (the “Deposit Securities”) and/or a designated amount of U.S. cash.
4
Shares are listed on a national securities exchange, such as the Exchange, and individual Shares may only be bought and sold in the secondary market 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).
An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase Shares (the “bid” price) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for Shares (the “ask” price) when buying or selling Shares in the secondary market. This difference in bid and ask prices is often referred to as the “bid-ask spread.”
When available, information regarding the Fund’s NAV, market price, how often Shares traded on the Exchange at a premium or discount, and bid-ask spreads can be found on the Fund’s website at www.[ ].
Tax Information
Fund distributions are generally taxable to shareholders as ordinary income or capital gains (or some combination thereof), 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 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.
5
TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF – FUND SUMMARY
Investment Objective
The TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF (the “Fund”) seeks long-term capital appreciation.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and Example below.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses(1) (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | ||
Management Fees | [ ]% | |
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees | [ ]% | |
Other Expenses(2) | [ ]% | |
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses | [ ]% |
(1) | Under the Fund’s investment advisory agreement, in exchange for a single unitary management fee, the Fund’s investment adviser, TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC (“TimesSquare” or the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses incurred by the Fund (except for advisory fees) excluding interest charges on any borrowings, dividends and other expenses on securities sold short, taxes, brokerage commissions and other expenses incurred in placing orders for the purchase and sale of securities and other investment instruments, acquired fund fees and expenses, accrued deferred tax liability, distribution fees and expenses paid by the Fund under any distribution plan adopted pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”), and litigation expenses, and other non-routine or extraordinary expenses (collectively, the “Excluded Expenses”). |
(2) | Based on estimated amounts for the current fiscal year. |
Expense 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 hold or redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that 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:
1 Year | 3 Years |
[ ] | [ ] |
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 Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in total annual fund operating expenses or in the expense example above, affect the Fund’s performance. Because the Fund is newly organized, portfolio turnover information is not yet available.
Principal Investment Strategies
The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing primarily in a diversified portfolio of equity securities of small- and mid-capitalization companies that exhibit attributes of a quality growth company. The Fund defines “small- and mid-capitalization companies” as companies that, at the time of purchase, are within the range of capitalizations of companies in the Russell 2500® Growth Index (the “Index”). As of [-], 2025, the date of the latest reconstitution of the Index, the range of market capitalizations for the Russell 2500® Growth Index was $[-] million to $[-] billion. This capitalization range will change over time. The Fund may continue to hold securities of a portfolio company whose market capitalization subsequently drops below or appreciates above the Fund’s “small- and mid-capitalization companies” range, when the Adviser believes doing so is in the Fund’s interest. The Fund defines “quality growth” as securities that in aggregate have Profitability and Growth factor exposures that are equal or greater than the Index, where growth reflects a company’s ability to expand its sales and earnings over time, based on both historical results and analyst forecasts; and profitability measures how efficiently a company generates earnings, based on factors including profit margins and returns.
6
When making investment decisions, TimesSquare uses a bottom-up, fundamental-investment-research-intensive approach to identify small- and mid-capitalization growth companies that it believes have the potential to achieve significant price appreciation over a 12- to 18-month investment horizon, as well as small- and mid-capitalization companies that, in TimesSquare’s view, are currently undervalued by the stock market relative to their earnings growth rates and/or potential for long-term capital appreciation. TimesSquare also continuously monitors and considers relevant market-, company- and industry-specific risks when constructing the Fund’s portfolio and making buy and sell decisions. TimesSquare will consistently evaluate if there is a compelling reason for the Fund to maintain its position in each security that it holds. As each security approaches TimesSquare’s price target for it, the security is a candidate for sale. When deciding whether to sell, maintain, or add to a Fund position, TimesSquare analyzes certain fundamental considerations, including when a company, in TimesSquare’s judgment, is not meeting the expected operating objectives, cannot sustain its competitive advantage, or may be replaced in the Fund’s portfolio with a better investment opportunity. In addition to utilizing fundamental analysis, TimesSquare’s portfolio construction methodology also involves an optimization process where TimesSquare evaluates companies for inclusion in the Fund’s portfolio based on relevant risk factors. As measured by third-party risk models, the Fund’s portfolio is constructed to maintain Profitability and Growth factor exposures that meet or exceed the characteristics of the Index (as further described above). Through this process, the portfolio is constructed to emphasize companies TimesSquare believes have strong earnings quality and growth characteristics while remaining within TimesSquare’s diversification parameters.
Through this active investment selection and ongoing portfolio monitoring process, the Fund seeks to maintain a portfolio of quality growth companies. The Fund will generally invest in equity securities of companies, including common stocks, preferred stocks, securities convertible into common stocks, and securities that carry the right to buy common stocks (e.g., rights and warrants. The Fund may also opportunistically invest a smaller portion of its portfolio in publicly traded securities of other types of issuers, such as securities issued by real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), when TimesSquare believes doing so is in the Fund’s interest.
Fund Attributes
Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of the value of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of small- and mid-capitalization companies that exhibit attributes of a quality growth company.
Principal Investment Risks
The principal risks of investing in the Fund are summarized below. As with any investment, there is a risk that you could lose all or a portion of your investment in the Fund. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return, and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of investing in the Fund, see the section in the Fund’s Prospectus titled “Additional Information About the Fund—Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund.”
An investment in the Fund entails risk Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. The Fund may not achieve its investment objective and there is a risk that you could lose all of your money invested in the Fund. The Fund is not a complete investment program. It is important that investors closely review all of the risks listed below and understand them before making an investment in the Fund.
Equity Market Risk. The prices of equity securities rise and fall daily. These price movements may result from factors affecting individual issuers, industries or the stock market as a whole. In addition, equity markets tend to move in cycles which may cause stock prices to fall over a short and extended periods of time. In a declining stock market, stock prices for all companies (including those in the Fund’s portfolio) may decline, regardless of their long-term prospects.
● | Common Stocks Risk. Common stocks are generally exposed to greater risk than other types of securities, such as preferred stock and debt obligations, because common stockholders generally have inferior rights to receive payment from specific issuers. The equity securities held in the Fund’s portfolio may experience sudden, unpredictable drops in value or long periods of decline in value. This may occur because of factors that affect securities markets generally or factors affecting specific issuers, industries, or sectors in which the Fund invests. | |
● | Preferred Stock Risk. Preferred stocks normally have preference over common stock in the payment of dividends and the liquidation of the company. However, in all other respects, preferred stocks are subordinated to the liabilities of the issuer. Unlike common stocks, preferred stocks are generally not entitled to vote on corporate matters. |
7
● | REIT Risk. REITs are subject to additional risks, including those related to adverse governmental actions; declines in property value and the real estate market; the potential failure to qualify for tax-free pass through of income; and exemption from registration as an investment company. REITs are dependent upon specialized management skills and may invest in relatively few properties, a small geographic area, or a small number of property types. As a result, investments in REITs may be volatile. To the extent the Fund invests in REITs concentrated in specific geographic areas or property types, the Fund may be subject to a greater loss as a result of adverse developments affecting such area or property types. REITs are pooled investment vehicles with their own fees and expenses and the Fund will indirectly bear a proportionate share of those fees and expenses. |
Growth Investing Risks. The Fund will invest in companies that appear to be growth-oriented. Growth companies are those that the Adviser believes will have revenue and earnings that grow faster than the economy as a whole, offering above-average prospects for capital appreciation and little or no emphasis on dividend income. If the Adviser’s perceptions of a company’s growth potential are wrong, the securities purchased may not perform as expected, reducing the Fund’s return.
Economic and Market Risk. Economies and financial markets throughout the world are becoming increasingly interconnected, which increases the likelihood that events or conditions in one country or region will adversely impact markets or issuers in other countries or regions. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio may underperform in comparison to securities in the general financial markets, a particular financial market, or other asset classes, due to a number of factors, including inflation (or expectations for inflation), deflation (or expectations for deflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, market instability, financial system instability, debt crises and downgrades, embargoes, tariffs, sanctions and other trade barriers, regulatory events, other governmental trade or market control programs and related geopolitical events. In addition, the value of the Fund’s investments may be negatively affected by the occurrence of global events such as war, terrorism, environmental disasters, natural disasters or events, country instability, and infectious disease epidemics or pandemics. The imposition by the U.S. of tariffs on goods imported from foreign countries and reciprocal tariffs levied on U.S. goods by those countries also may lead to volatility and instability in domestic and foreign markets.
ETF Risks.
○ | Authorized Participants, Market Makers, and Liquidity Providers Concentration Risk. The Fund has a limited number of financial institutions that are authorized to purchase and redeem Shares directly from the Fund (known as Authorized Participants or 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. |
○ | 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 Shares. In addition, secondary market investors will also incur the cost of the 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. |
○ | 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) due to supply and demand of Shares or during periods of market volatility. This risk is heightened in times of market volatility, periods of steep market declines, and periods when there is limited trading activity for Shares in the secondary market, in which case such premiums or discounts may be significant. Because securities held by the Fund may trade on foreign exchanges that are closed when the Fund’s primary listing exchange is open, the Fund is likely to experience premiums and discounts greater than those of ETFs holding only domestic securities. |
○ | Trading. Although Shares are listed for trading on a national securities exchange, such as [ ] (the “Exchange”), and may be traded on U.S. exchanges other than the Exchange, 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 Shares may begin to mirror the liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio holdings, which can be significantly less liquid than Shares. |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed portfolio. The Fund’s Adviser will apply investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objective.
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Market Capitalization Risk.
● | Mid-Capitalization Investing. The securities of mid-capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse issuer, market, political, or economic developments than securities of large-capitalization companies. The securities of mid-capitalization companies generally trade in lower volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes than large-capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole. | |
● | Small-Capitalization Investing. The securities of small-capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse issuer, market, political, or economic developments than securities of large- or mid-capitalization companies. The securities of small-capitalization companies generally trade in lower volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes than large- or mid-capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole. There is typically less publicly available information concerning smaller-capitalization companies than for larger, more established companies. |
New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors do not have a track record or history on which to base their investment decisions.
Operational Risk. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third-parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. The Fund relies on third parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and Adviser seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.
Performance
Performance information for the Fund is not included because the Fund has not completed a full calendar year of operations as of the date of this Prospectus. When such information is included, this section will provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance history from year to year and showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns compare with those of a broad measure of market performance. Although past performance of the Fund is no guarantee of how it will perform in the future, historical performance may give you some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Updated performance information will be available on the Fund’s website at www.[ ].
Management
Investment Adviser
TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC, serves as investment adviser to the Fund.
Investment Sub-Adviser
Tidal Investments LLC, a Tidal Financial Group company serves as investment sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
David Ferreiro, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Sonu Chawla, CFA®, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Greg J. Vasse, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Edward F. Salib, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Joshua Bischoff, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Qiao Duan, CFA®, Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Andy Hicks, Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
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CFA® is a registered trademark owned by the CFA Institute.
Purchase and Sale of Shares
The Fund issues and redeems Shares at NAV only in large blocks known as “Creation Units,” which only Authorized Participants (APs) (typically, broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund generally issues and redeems Creation Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities (the “Deposit Securities”) and/or a designated amount of U.S. cash.
Shares are listed on a national securities exchange, such as the Exchange, and individual Shares may only be bought and sold in the secondary market 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).
An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase Shares (the “bid” price) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for Shares (the “ask” price) when buying or selling Shares in the secondary market. This difference in bid and ask prices is often referred to as the “bid-ask spread.”
When available, information regarding the Fund’s NAV, market price, how often Shares traded on the Exchange at a premium or discount, and bid-ask spreads can be found on the Fund’s website at www.[ ].
Tax Information
Fund distributions are generally taxable to shareholders as ordinary income or capital gains (or some combination thereof), 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 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.
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TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF– FUND SUMMARY
Investment Objective
The TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF(the “Fund”) seeks long-term capital appreciation.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and Example below.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses(1) (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment) | ||
Management Fees | [ ]% | |
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees | [ ]% | |
Other Expenses(2) | [ ]% | |
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses | [ ]% |
(1) | Under the Fund’s investment advisory agreement, in exchange for a single unitary management fee, the Fund’s investment adviser, TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC (“TimesSquare” or the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses incurred by the Fund (except for advisory fees) excluding interest charges on any borrowings, dividends and other expenses on securities sold short, taxes, brokerage commissions and other expenses incurred in placing orders for the purchase and sale of securities and other investment instruments, acquired fund fees and expenses, accrued deferred tax liability, distribution fees and expenses paid by the Fund under any distribution plan adopted pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”), and litigation expenses, and other non-routine or extraordinary expenses (collectively, the “Excluded Expenses”). |
(2) | Based on estimated amounts for the current fiscal year. |
Expense 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 hold or redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that 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:
1 Year | 3 Years |
[ ] | [ ] |
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 Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in total annual fund operating expenses or in the expense example above, affect the Fund’s performance. Because the Fund is newly organized, portfolio turnover information is not yet available.
Principal Investment Strategies
The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing primarily in a diversified portfolio of equity securities of foreign (i.e., non-U.S.) small-capitalization companies that exhibit attributes of a quality growth company. The Fund defines “small-capitalization companies” as companies that, at the time of purchase, are within the range of capitalizations of companies in the MSCI EAFE Small Cap Index (the “Index”). This capitalization range will change over time, and on [-], 2025 that was $[-] million to $[-] billion. The Fund defines “quality growth” as securities that in aggregate have Profitability and Growth factor exposures that are equal or greater than the Index, where growth reflects a company’s ability to expand its sales and earnings over time, based on both historical results and analyst forecasts; and profitability measures how efficiently a company generates earnings, based on factors including profit margins and returns.
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When making investment decisions, TimesSquare uses a bottom-up, fundamental-investment-research-intensive approach to identify small-capitalization growth companies that it believes have the potential to achieve significant price appreciation over a 12- to 18-month investment horizon and/or small-capitalization companies that, in TimesSquare’s view, are currently undervalued by the stock market relative to their earnings growth rates and/or potential for long-term capital appreciation. TimesSquare also continuously monitors and considers relevant company-, industry-, and country-specific risks when constructing the Fund’s portfolio and making buy and sell decisions. TimesSquare will consistently evaluate if there is a compelling reason for the Fund to maintain its position in each security that it holds. As each security approaches TimesSquare’s price target for it, the security is a candidate for sale. When deciding whether to sell, maintain, or add to a Fund position, TimesSquare analyzes certain fundamental considerations, including when a company, in TimesSquare’s judgment, is not meeting the expected operating objectives, cannot sustain its competitive advantage, or may be replaced in the Fund’s portfolio with a better investment opportunity. In addition to utilizing fundamental analysis, TimesSquare’s portfolio construction methodology also involves an optimization process where TimesSquare evaluates companies for inclusion in the Fund’s portfolio based on relevant risk factors. As measured by third-party risk models, the Fund’s portfolio is constructed to maintain Profitability and Growth factor exposures that meet or exceed the characteristics of the Index (as further described above). Through this process, the portfolio is constructed to emphasize companies TimesSquare believes have strong earnings quality and growth characteristics while remaining within TimesSquare’s diversification parameters.
Through this active investment selection and ongoing portfolio monitoring process, the Fund seeks to maintain a portfolio of quality growth companies. The Fund will generally invest in equity securities of companies, including common stocks, preferred stocks, American Depository Receipts (“ADRs”), Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”), other depositary receipts, securities convertible into common stocks, and securities that carry the right to buy common stocks (e.g., rights and warrants. The Fund may also opportunistically invest a smaller portion of its portfolio in publicly traded securities of other types of issuers, such as securities issued by real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), when TimesSquare believes doing so is in the Fund’s interest.
Fund Attributes
Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of the value of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of small-capitalization companies that exhibit attributes of a quality growth company.
Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 40% (unless the portfolio managers deem market conditions unfavorable, in which case the Fund would invest at least 30%) of its net assets, plus the amount of any borrowing for investment purposes, in investments of issuers located outside the United States, and/or investments that expose the Fund to such issuers. In addition, the Fund will invest in and/or have investments that expose the Fund to a minimum of three countries, excluding the United States. The Fund considers an issuer to be located outside the United States if: it is organized outside the United States; it maintains a principal place of business outside the United States; its securities are traded principally outside the United States; it derives at least 50% of its revenues or profits from goods produced or sold, investments made, or services performed outside the United States; or it has at least 50% of its assets outside the United States.
Principal Investment Risks
The principal risks of investing in the Fund are summarized below. As with any investment, there is a risk that you could lose all or a portion of your investment in the Fund. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value per share (“NAV”), trading price, yield, total return, and/or ability to meet its objective. For more information about the risks of investing in the Fund, see the section in the Fund’s Prospectus titled “Additional Information About the Fund—Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund.”
An investment in the Fund entails risk Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Fund, regardless of the order in which it appears. The Fund may not achieve its investment objective and there is a risk that you could lose all of your money invested in the Fund. The Fund is not a complete investment program. It is important that investors closely review all of the risks listed below and understand them before making an investment in the Fund.
Equity Market Risk. The prices of equity securities rise and fall daily. These price movements may result from factors affecting individual issuers, industries or the stock market as a whole. In addition, equity markets tend to move in cycles which may cause stock prices to fall over a short and extended periods of time. In a declining stock market, stock prices for all companies (including those in the Fund’s portfolio) may decline, regardless of their long-term prospects.
● | Common Stocks Risk. Common stocks are generally exposed to greater risk than other types of securities, such as preferred stock and debt obligations, because common stockholders generally have inferior rights to receive payment from specific issuers. The equity securities held in the Fund’s portfolio may experience sudden, unpredictable drops in value or long periods of decline in value. This may occur because of factors that affect securities markets generally or factors affecting specific issuers, industries, or sectors in which the Fund invests. |
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● | Preferred Stock Risk. Preferred stocks normally have preference over common stock in the payment of dividends and the liquidation of the company. However, in all other respects, preferred stocks are subordinated to the liabilities of the issuer. Unlike common stocks, preferred stocks are generally not entitled to vote on corporate matters. | |
● | REIT Risk. REITs are subject to additional risks, including those related to adverse governmental actions; declines in property value and the real estate market; the potential failure to qualify for tax-free pass through of income; and exemption from registration as an investment company. REITs are dependent upon specialized management skills and may invest in relatively few properties, a small geographic area, or a small number of property types. As a result, investments in REITs may be volatile. To the extent the Fund invests in REITs concentrated in specific geographic areas or property types, the Fund may be subject to a greater loss as a result of adverse developments affecting such area or property types. REITs are pooled investment vehicles with their own fees and expenses and the Fund will indirectly bear a proportionate share of those fees and expenses. |
Growth Investing Risks. The Fund will invest in companies that appear to be growth-oriented. Growth companies are those that the Adviser believes will have revenue and earnings that grow faster than the economy as a whole, offering above-average prospects for capital appreciation and little or no emphasis on dividend income. If the Adviser’s perceptions of a company’s growth potential are wrong, the securities purchased may not perform as expected, reducing the Fund’s return.
Foreign Securities Risk. Investments in securities or other instruments of non-U.S. issuers involve certain risks not involved in domestic investments and may experience more rapid and extreme changes in value than investments in securities of U.S. companies. Financial markets in foreign countries often are not as developed, efficient, or liquid as financial markets in the United States, and therefore, the prices of non-U.S. securities and instruments can be more volatile. In addition, the Fund will be subject to risks associated with adverse political and economic developments in foreign countries, which may include the imposition of economic sanctions. Generally, there is less readily available and reliable information about non-U.S. issuers due to less rigorous disclosure or accounting standards and regulatory practices. Investments in foreign companies’ securities, including investments via depositary receipts, are subject to special risks, including the following:
● | Developed Markets Risk. Many developed market countries have heavy indebtedness, which may lead downward pressure on the economies of these countries. As a result, it is possible that interest rates on debt of certain developed countries may rise to levels that make it difficult for such countries to service high debt levels without significant help from other countries or from a central bank. Developed market countries generally are dependent on the economies of certain key trading partners. Changes in any one economy may cause an adverse impact on several developed countries. | |
● | Currency Risk. Changes in currency exchange rates can negatively affect securities denominated in and/or receiving revenues in foreign currencies. Adverse changes in currency exchange rates (relative to the U.S. dollar) may erode or reverse any potential gains from the Fund’s investments in securities denominated in a foreign currency or may widen existing losses. The liquidity and trading value of foreign currencies could be affected by global economic factors, such as inflation, interest rate levels, and trade balances among countries, as well as the actions of sovereign governments and central banks. | |
● | Depositary Receipt Risk. Depositary receipts involve risks similar to those associated with investments in foreign securities and give rise to certain additional risks. Depositary receipts listed on U.S. or foreign exchanges are issued by banks or trust companies, and entitle the holder to all dividends and capital gains that are paid out on the underlying foreign shares (Underlying Shares). When the Fund invests in depositary receipts as a substitute for an investment directly in the Underlying Shares, the Fund is exposed to the risk that the depositary receipts may not provide a return that corresponds precisely with that of the Underlying Shares. | |
● | Emerging Markets Risk. The Fund may invest in securities issued by companies domiciled or headquartered in emerging market nations. Investments in securities traded in developing or emerging markets, or that provide exposure to such securities or markets, can involve additional risks relating to political, economic, currency, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in U.S. securities and investments in more developed international markets. Such conditions may impact the ability of the Fund to buy, sell or otherwise transfer securities, adversely affect the trading market and price for Fund Shares and cause the Fund to decline in value. It may also be more difficult to enforce contractual or shareholder rights in emerging market countries, which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
Economic and Market Risk. Economies and financial markets throughout the world are becoming increasingly interconnected, which increases the likelihood that events or conditions in one country or region will adversely impact markets or issuers in other countries or regions. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio may underperform in comparison to securities in the general financial markets, a particular financial market, or other asset classes, due to a number of factors, including inflation (or expectations for inflation), deflation (or expectations for deflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, market instability, financial system instability, debt crises and downgrades, embargoes, tariffs, sanctions and other trade barriers, regulatory events, other governmental trade or market control programs and related geopolitical events. In addition, the value of the Fund’s investments may be negatively affected by the occurrence of global events such as war, terrorism, environmental disasters, natural disasters or events, country instability, and infectious disease epidemics or pandemics. The imposition by the U.S. of tariffs on goods imported from foreign countries and reciprocal tariffs levied on U.S. goods by those countries also may lead to volatility and instability in domestic and foreign markets.
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ETF Risks.
○ | Authorized Participants, Market Makers, and Liquidity Providers Concentration Risk. The Fund has a limited number of financial institutions that are authorized to purchase and redeem Shares directly from the Fund (known as Authorized Participants or 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. |
○ | 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 Shares. In addition, secondary market investors will also incur the cost of the 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. |
○ | 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) due to supply and demand of Shares or during periods of market volatility. This risk is heightened in times of market volatility, periods of steep market declines, and periods when there is limited trading activity for Shares in the secondary market, in which case such premiums or discounts may be significant. Because securities held by the Fund may trade on foreign exchanges that are closed when the Fund’s primary listing exchange is open, the Fund is likely to experience premiums and discounts greater than those of ETFs holding only domestic securities. |
○ | Trading. Although Shares are listed for trading on a national securities exchange, such as [ ] (the “Exchange”), and may be traded on U.S. exchanges other than the Exchange, 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 Shares may begin to mirror the liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio holdings, which can be significantly less liquid than Shares. |
Management Risk. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed portfolio. The Fund’s Adviser will apply investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objective.
Market Capitalization Risk.
● | Small-Capitalization Investing. The securities of small-capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse issuer, market, political, or economic developments than securities of large- or mid-capitalization companies. The securities of small-capitalization companies generally trade in lower volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes than large- or mid-capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole. There is typically less publicly available information concerning smaller-capitalization companies than for larger, more established companies. |
New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors do not have a track record or history on which to base their investment decisions.
Operational Risk. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third-parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. The Fund relies on third parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and Adviser seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.
14
Performance
Performance information for the Fund is not included because the Fund has not completed a full calendar year of operations as of the date of this Prospectus. When such information is included, this section will provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance history from year to year and showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns compare with those of a broad measure of market performance. Although past performance of the Fund is no guarantee of how it will perform in the future, historical performance may give you some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Updated performance information will be available on the Fund’s website at www.[ ].
Management
Investment Adviser
TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC, serves as investment adviser to the Fund.
Investment Sub-Adviser
Tidal Investments LLC, a Tidal Financial Group company serves as investment sub-adviser to the Fund.
Portfolio Managers
Magnus Larsson, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
David Hirsh, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Joshua Bischoff, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, has been portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Qiao Duan, CFA®, Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
Andy Hicks, Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser, has been a portfolio manager of the Fund since its inception in 2025.
CFA® is a registered trademark owned by the CFA Institute.
Purchase and Sale of Shares
The Fund issues and redeems Shares at NAV only in large blocks known as “Creation Units,” which only Authorized Participants (APs) (typically, broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem. The Fund generally issues and redeems Creation Units in exchange for a portfolio of securities (the “Deposit Securities”) and/or a designated amount of U.S. cash.
Shares are listed on a national securities exchange, such as the Exchange, and individual Shares may only be bought and sold in the secondary market 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).
An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase Shares (the “bid” price) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for Shares (the “ask” price) when buying or selling Shares in the secondary market. This difference in bid and ask prices is often referred to as the “bid-ask spread.”
When available, information regarding the Fund’s NAV, market price, how often Shares traded on the Exchange at a premium or discount, and bid-ask spreads can be found on the Fund’s website at www.[ ].
Tax Information
Fund distributions are generally taxable to shareholders as ordinary income, qualified dividend income, or capital gains (or some combination thereof), 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.
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Financial Intermediary Compensation
If
you purchase Shares through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank) (an “Intermediary”),
the 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.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDS
Fund Summaries. The preceding sections each summarizes the investment objective, fees and expenses, principal investment strategies, principal risks, performance, management, and other important information for the relevant Fund. The summary is not all-inclusive, and a Fund may make investments, employ strategies, and be exposed to risks that are not described in its summary. More information about each Fund’s investments and strategies is contained in the Statement of Additional Information (the “SAI”). See the back cover of this Prospectus for information about how to receive the SAI.
Investment Objective
Each Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation.
An investment objective is fundamental if it cannot be changed without the consent of the holders of a majority of the outstanding Shares. Each Fund’s investment objective has not been adopted as a fundamental investment policy and therefore may be changed without the consent of the relevant Fund’s shareholders upon approval by the Board of Trustees (the “Board’) of the 2023 ETF Series Trust (the “Trust”) and at least 60 days’ written notice to shareholders.
Principal Investment Strategies
Each Fund’s respective 80% investment policy, described in the Fund Attributes section of each Fund’s prospectus, is non-fundamental and can be changed without shareholder approval upon Board approval and 60 days’ written notice to shareholders prior to any such change.
Manager of Managers Structure
The Trust expects to apply for exemptive relief from the SEC, which, if obtained, will permit the Adviser, subject to certain conditions, to hire new sub-advisers for each Fund, to materially amend the terms of particular agreements with sub-advisers or to continue the employment of a sub-adviser after events that would otherwise cause an automatic termination of a sub-advisory agreement without shareholder approval. Consequently, under the exemptive order, the Adviser will have the right to hire or terminate and replace a sub-adviser to a Fund when the Board and the Adviser feel that a change would benefit the relevant Fund. Within 90 days of retaining a new sub-adviser, shareholders of any affected Fund will receive notification of the change. This structure, known as a “manager of managers” structure, enables each Fund to operate with greater efficiency and without incurring the expense and delays associated with obtaining shareholder approval of sub-advisory agreements. The structure does not permit investment advisory fees paid by any Fund to be increased or change the Adviser’s obligations under the investment advisory agreement, including the Adviser’s responsibility to monitor and oversee sub-advisory services furnished to a Fund, without shareholder approval. Until the Adviser and the Trust obtain this relief, each Fund will continue to submit these matters to shareholders for their approval to the extent required by applicable law.
Investments by Registered Investment Companies
Section 12(d)(1) of the 1940 Act restricts investments by investment companies in the securities of other investment companies. However, registered investment companies are permitted to invest in other investment companies beyond the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1) in recently adopted rules under the 1940 Act, subject to certain conditions. To the extent a Fund may invest in securities of other investment companies, a Fund may rely on Rule 12d1-4 of the 1940 Act, which provides an exemption from Section 12(d)(1) that allows a Fund to invest beyond the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1) if the relevant Fund satisfies certain conditions specified in Rule 12d1-4, including, among other conditions, that the relevant Fund and its advisory group will not control (individually or in the aggregate) an acquired fund (e.g., hold more than 25% of the outstanding voting securities of an acquired fund that is a registered open-end management investment company).
Temporary Defensive Strategies
For temporary defensive purposes during adverse market, economic, political or other conditions, each Fund may invest up to 100% of its assets in cash or cash equivalents or short-term instruments such as commercial paper, money market mutual funds, short-term U.S. government securities (e.g., bills, notes or bonds issued by the U.S. Treasury) and/or short-term bond ETFs. Taking a temporary defensive position may result in a Fund not achieving its investment objective.
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Principal Risks of Investing in the Funds
The principal risks are presented in alphabetical order to facilitate finding particular risks and comparing them with those of other funds. Each risk summarized below is considered a “principal risk” of investing in the Funds, regardless of the order in which it appears. As with any investment, there is a risk that you could lose all or a portion of your investment in a Fund. Some or all of these risks may adversely affect a Fund’s NAV per share, trading price, yield, total return and/or ability to meet its investment objective. The following risks could affect the value of your performance in the Funds: The risks below apply to each Fund as indicated in the following table. Additional information about each such risk and its potential impact on a Fund is set forth below the table.
TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF |
TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF |
TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF | |
Economic and Market Risk | X | X | X |
Equity Market Risk | X | X | X |
— Common Stocks Risk | X | X | X |
— Preferred Stock Risk | X | X | X |
— REIT Risk | X | X | X |
ETF Risks | X | X | X |
—Authorized Participants, Market Makers, and Liquidity Providers Concentration Risk | X | X | X |
— Costs of Buying or Selling Shares | X | X | X |
— Shares May Trade at Prices Other Than NAV | X | X | X |
— Trading | X | X | X |
Growth Investing Risk | X | X | X |
Foreign Securities Risk | -- | -- | X |
— Currency Risk | -- | -- | X |
— Depositary Receipt Risk | -- | -- | X |
— Developed Markets Risk | -- | -- | X |
— Emerging Markets Risk | -- | -- | X |
Management Risk | X | X | X |
Market Capitalization Risk | X | X | X |
—Mid-Capitalization Investing | X | X | -- |
— Small-Capitalization Investing | -- | X | X |
New Fund Risk | X | X | X |
Operational Risk | X | X | X |
Economic and Market Risk. The market price of an investment could decline, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, due to general market conditions that are not specifically related to a particular company, such as real or perceived adverse economic or political conditions throughout the world, changes in the general outlook for corporate earnings, changes in interest or currency rates, or adverse investor sentiment generally. The market value of an investment also may decline because of factors that affect a particular industry or industries such as labor shortages, increased production costs, and competitive conditions. Economies and financial markets throughout the world are becoming increasingly interconnected, which increases the likelihood that events or conditions in one country or region will adversely impact markets or issuers in other countries or regions. Securities in the Fund’s portfolio may underperform in comparison to securities in the general financial markets, a particular financial market, or other asset classes, due to a number of factors, including inflation (or expectations for inflation), deflation (or expectations for deflation), interest rates, global demand for particular products or resources, market instability, financial system instability, debt crises and downgrades, embargoes, tariffs, sanctions and other trade barriers, regulatory events, other governmental trade or market control programs and related geopolitical events. In addition, the value of the Fund’s investments may be negatively affected by the occurrence of global events such as war, terrorism, environmental disasters, natural disasters or events, country instability, and infectious disease epidemics or pandemics. The imposition by the U.S. of tariffs on goods imported from foreign countries and reciprocal tariffs levied on U.S. goods by those countries also may lead to volatility and instability in domestic and foreign markets.
Equity Market Risk. The prices of equity securities rise and fall daily. These price movements may result from factors affecting individual issuers, industries or the stock market as a whole. In addition, equity markets tend to move in cycles which may cause stock prices to fall over a short and extended periods of time. In a declining stock market, stock prices for all companies (including those in the Fund’s portfolio) may decline, regardless of their long-term prospects.
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● | Common Stocks Risk. Common stocks are generally exposed to greater risk than other types of securities, such as preferred stock and debt obligations, because common stockholders generally have inferior rights to receive payment from specific issuers. Further, unlike debt securities, which typically have a stated principal amount payable at maturity (whose value, however, is subject to market fluctuations prior thereto), or preferred stocks, which typically have a liquidation preference and which may have stated optional or mandatory redemption provisions, common stocks have neither a fixed principal amount nor a maturity. The equity securities held in the Fund’s portfolio may experience sudden, unpredictable drops in value or long periods of decline in value. This may occur because of factors that affect securities markets generally or factors affecting specific issuers, industries, or sectors in which the Fund invests. | |
● | Preferred Stock Risk. Preferred stocks normally have preference over common stock in the payment of dividends and the liquidation of the company. However, preferred stock is 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 stock is subject to other risks such as having no or limited voting rights, being subject to special redemption rights, having distributions deferred or skipped, having limited liquidity, changing tax treatments, and possibly being in heavily regulated industries. | |
● | REIT Risk. REITs are pooled investment vehicles that invest primarily in income producing real estate or real estate related loans or interests. REITs are subject to additional risks, including those related to adverse governmental actions; declines in property value and the real estate market; the potential failure to qualify for tax-free pass through of income; and exemption from registration as an investment company. REITs are dependent upon specialized management skills and may invest in relatively few properties, a small geographic area, or a small number of property types. REITs depend generally on their ability to generate cash flow to make distributions to shareholders or unitholders, and may be subject to defaults by borrowers and to self-liquidations. As a result, investments in REITs may be volatile. To the extent the Fund invests in REITs concentrated in specific geographic areas or property types, the Fund may be subject to a greater loss as a result of adverse developments affecting such area or property types. REITs are pooled investment vehicles with their own fees and expenses and the Fund will indirectly bear a proportionate share of those fees and expenses. |
ETF Risks.
○ | Authorized Participants, Market Makers, and Liquidity Providers Concentration Risk. The Fund has a limited number of financial institutions that are authorized to purchase and redeem Shares directly from the Fund (known as Authorized Participants or APs). None of these APs is or will be obligated to engage in creation or redemption transactions, and there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Fund’s shares will develop or be maintained. 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. |
○ | 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 Shares. In addition, secondary market investors will also incur the cost of the 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. |
○ | 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) due to supply and demand of Shares or during periods of market volatility. This risk is heightened in times of market volatility, periods of steep market declines, and periods when there is limited trading activity for Shares in the secondary market, in which case such premiums or discounts may be significant. Because securities held by the Fund may trade on foreign exchanges that are closed when the Fund’s primary listing exchange is open, the Fund is likely to experience premiums and discounts greater than those of ETFs holding only domestic securities. |
○ | Trading. Although Shares are listed for trading on a national securities exchange, such as [ ] (the “Exchange”), and may be traded on U.S. exchanges other than the Exchange, there can be no assurance that Shares will trade with any volume, or at all, on any stock exchange. Shares of the Fund may trade on the Exchange above (premium) or below (discount) their NAV. In stressed market conditions, the liquidity of Shares may begin to mirror the liquidity of the Fund’s portfolio holdings, which can be significantly less liquid than Shares. This can be reflected as a spread between the bid and ask prices for the Fund’s shares quoted during the day or a premium or discount in the closing price from the Fund’s NAV. In addition, trading in Fund shares may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in shares of the Fund inadvisable. |
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Growth Investing Risks. The Fund invests in equity securities of companies that the Adviser believes will increase their earnings at a certain rate that is generally higher than the rate expected for non-growth companies. If a growth company does not meet these expectations, the price of its stock may decline significantly, even if it has increased earnings. Many growth companies do not pay dividends. Companies that pay dividends often have lower stock price declines during market downturns. Over time, a growth investing style may go in and out of favor, causing the Fund to sometimes underperform other equity funds that use differing investing styles.
Foreign Securities Risk. Investments in securities or other instruments of non-U.S. issuers involve certain risks not involved in domestic investments and may experience more rapid and extreme changes in value than investments in securities of U.S. companies. Financial markets in foreign countries often are not as developed, efficient, or liquid as financial markets in the United States, and therefore, the prices of non-U.S. securities and instruments can be more volatile. In addition, the Fund may be subject to risks associated with political events (such as civil unrest, national elections and imposition of exchange controls), social and economic events (such as labor strikes and rising inflation), natural disasters and public health emergencies occurring in a country where the fund invests, which could cause the fund’s investments in that country to experience losses. For these and other reasons, securities of foreign issuers may be less liquid, more volatile and harder to value than U.S. securities. Generally, there is less readily available and reliable information about non-U.S. issuers due to less rigorous disclosure or accounting standards and regulatory practices. Foreign markets are also subject to the risk that a foreign government could restrict foreign exchange transactions or otherwise implement unfavorable currency regulations. In addition, foreign securities may be subject to currency exchange rates or regulations, the imposition of economic sanctions, tariffs or other government restrictions, higher transaction and other costs, reduced liquidity, and delays in settlement. Investments in foreign companies via depositary receipts, are subject to special risks, including the following:
● | Currency Risk. Changes in currency exchange rates can negatively affect securities denominated in and/or receiving revenues in foreign currencies. Adverse changes in currency exchange rates (relative to the U.S. dollar) may erode or reverse any potential gains from the Fund’s investments in securities denominated in a foreign currency or may widen existing losses. The liquidity and trading value of foreign currencies could be affected by global economic factors, such as inflation, interest rate levels, and trade balances among countries, as well as the actions of sovereign governments and central banks. | |
● | Depositary Receipt Risk. Depositary receipts involve risks similar to those associated with investments in foreign securities and give rise to certain additional risks. Depositary receipts listed on U.S. or foreign exchanges are issued by banks or trust companies, and entitle the holder to all dividends and capital gains that are paid out on the underlying foreign shares (Underlying Shares). When the Fund invests in depositary receipts as a substitute for an investment directly in the Underlying Shares, the Fund is exposed to the risk that the depositary receipts may not provide a return that corresponds precisely with that of the Underlying Shares. Investments in depositary receipts may be less liquid and more volatile than the underlying securities in their primary trading market. If a depositary receipt is denominated in a different currency than its underlying securities, the Fund will be subject to the currency risk of both the investment in the depositary receipt and the underlying security. There may be less publicly available information regarding the issuer of the securities underlying a depositary receipt than if those securities were traded directly in U.S. securities markets. Depositary receipts may or may not be sponsored by the issuers of the underlying securities, and information regarding issuers of securities underlying unsponsored depositary receipts may be more limited than for sponsored depositary receipts. The values of depositary receipts may decline for a number of reasons relating to the issuers or sponsors of the depositary receipts, including, but not limited to, insolvency of the issuer or sponsor. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited or no rights to take action with respect to the underlying securities or to compel the issuer of the receipts to take action. The prices of depositary receipts may differ from the prices of securities upon which they are based. To the extent the Fund invests in depositary receipts based on securities included in the Index, such differences in prices may increase index tracking risk | |
● | Developed Markets Risk. Many developed market countries have heavy indebtedness, which may lead downward pressure on the economies of these countries. As a result, it is possible that interest rates on debt of certain developed countries may rise to levels that make it difficult for such countries to service high debt levels without significant help from other countries or from a central bank. Developed market countries generally are dependent on the economies of certain key trading partners. Changes in any one economy may cause an adverse impact on several developed countries. | |
● | Emerging Markets Risk. The Fund may invest in securities issued by companies domiciled or headquartered in emerging market nations. Investments in securities traded in developing or emerging markets, or that provide exposure to such securities or markets, can involve additional risks relating to political, economic, currency, or regulatory conditions not associated with investments in U.S. securities and investments in more developed international markets. Such conditions may impact the ability of the Fund to buy, sell or otherwise transfer securities, adversely affect the trading market and price for Fund Shares and cause the Fund to decline in value. It may also be more difficult to enforce contractual or shareholder rights in emerging market countries, which could negatively impact the Fund’s investments. |
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Management Risk. The Fund is actively-managed and may not meet its investment objective based on the Adviser’s success or failure to implement investment strategies for the Fund. The Fund’s principal investment strategies are dependent upon the Adviser’s security selection process and, as a result, the Adviser’s skill in understanding and utilizing such process. The achievement of the investment objective of the Fund cannot be guaranteed and the Adviser’s management of the Fund may not produce the intended results.
Market Capitalization Risk.
● | Mid-Capitalization Investing. The securities of mid-capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse issuer, market, political, or economic developments than securities of large-capitalization companies. The securities of mid-capitalization companies generally trade in lower volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes than large-capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole. Mid-cap companies may be more likely than large-cap companies to have limited product lines, markets, or financial resources, and to depend on a few key employees. Returns on investments in stocks of mid-cap companies could trail the returns on investments in stocks of large-cap companies or the equity market as a whole. | |
● | Small-Capitalization Investing. The securities of small-capitalization companies may be more vulnerable to adverse issuer, market, political, or economic developments than securities of large- or mid-capitalization companies. The securities of small-capitalization companies generally trade in lower volumes and are subject to greater and more unpredictable price changes than large- or mid-capitalization stocks or the stock market as a whole. There is typically less publicly available information concerning smaller-capitalization companies than for larger, more established companies. In addition, small-cap companies are typically less stable financially than larger, more established companies and may depend on a small number of essential personnel, making them more vulnerable to loss of personnel. Small-cap companies also normally have less diverse product lines than larger companies and are more susceptible to adverse developments concerning their products |
New Fund Risk. The Fund is a recently organized management investment company with no operating history. As a result, prospective investors do not have a track record or history on which to base their investment decisions. A new fund’s performance may not represent how the fund is expected to or may perform in the long term if and when it has fully implemented its investment strategies. Investment positions may have a disproportionate impact (negative or positive) on performance in new funds. New funds may also require a period of time before they are fully invested in securities that meet their investment objectives and policies and achieve a representative portfolio composition. Fund performance may be lower or higher during this “ramp-up” period, and may also be more volatile, than would be the case after the fund is fully invested. Similarly, a new fund’s investment strategy may require a longer period of time to show returns that are representative of the strategy. If a new fund were to fail to successfully implement its investment strategies or achieve its investment objective, performance may be negatively impacted.
Operational Risk. The Fund is subject to risks arising from various operational factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third-parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. The Fund relies on third parties for a range of services, including custody. Any delay or failure relating to engaging or maintaining such service providers may affect the Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective. Although the Fund and Adviser seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures, there is no way to completely protect against such risks.
PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS INFORMATION
Information about the Fund’s daily portfolio holdings will be available on the Fund’s website at [ ]. A complete description of the Fund’s policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Fund’s portfolio holdings is available in the Fund’s SAI.
Investment Adviser
TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC (“TimesSquare” or the “Adviser”), located at 75 Rockefeller Plaza, 30th Floor, New York, NY 10019, is an SEC registered investment adviser and a Delaware limited liability company. The Adviser was founded in 2004. As of [-], 2025, the Adviser had assets under management of approximately $[-] billion and served as the investment adviser or sub-adviser for [-] registered funds.
TimesSquare serves as investment adviser to the Funds pursuant to an investment advisory agreement with the Trust, on behalf of the Funds (the “Advisory Agreement”). The Adviser provides investment advice to the Funds and oversees the day-to-day operations of the Funds, subject to the oversight of the Board. The Adviser is responsible for the management of each Fund’s portfolio, including selecting investments for purchase and sale, providing direction related to the Sub-Adviser’s trading of portfolio securities on behalf of each Fund, and overseeing the Sub-Adviser, including regular review of the Sub-Adviser’s performance.
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For the services it provides to the Funds, each Fund pays the Adviser a unitary management fee, which is calculated daily and paid monthly, at an annual rate of the Fund’s average daily net assets as follows:
Fund | Advisory Fee |
TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF | [-]% |
TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF | [-]% |
TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF | [-]% |
Under the Advisory Agreement, in exchange for a single unitary management fee from the Fund, the Adviser has agreed to pay all expenses incurred by the Fund except for Excluded Expenses and the unitary management fee payable to the Adviser.
After the initial two-year term, the continuance of the Advisory Agreement must be specifically approved at least annually: (i) by the vote of the Trustees or by a vote of the shareholders of the Fund; and (ii) by the vote of a majority of the Trustees who are not parties to the Advisory Agreement or “interested persons” or of any party thereto, in accordance with the 1940 Act. The Advisory Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment, and is terminable at any time without penalty by the Trustees of the Trust or, with respect to the Fund, by a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund, or by the Adviser on not more than sixty (60) days’ nor less than thirty (30) days’ written notice to the Trust. As used in the Advisory Agreement, the terms “majority of the outstanding voting securities,” “interested persons” and “assignment” have the same meaning as such terms in the 1940 Act.
Investment Sub-Adviser
Tidal Investments LLC (“Tidal” or the “Sub-Adviser”), located at 234 West Florida Street, Suite 203, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204, is an SEC registered investment adviser and a Delaware limited liability company. Tidal was founded in March 2012 and serves as investment sub-adviser to the Fund pursuant to a sub-advisory agreement between the Adviser and Sub-Adviser (the “Sub-Advisory Agreement”). As of [ ], Tidal had assets under management of approximately $[ ] billion and served as the investment adviser or sub-adviser for [ ] registered funds.
The Sub-Adviser is responsible for trading portfolio securities and other investment instruments on behalf of the Fund, including selecting broker-dealers to execute purchase and sale transactions, subject to the supervision of the Adviser and oversight of the Board. Under the Sub-Advisory Agreement, the Adviser pays the Sub-Adviser a fee, which is calculated daily and paid monthly, at an annual rate of [ ]% based on the Fund’s average daily net assets out of the fee the Adviser receives from the Fund.
After the initial two-year term, the continuance of the Sub-Advisory Agreement must be specifically approved at least annually: (i) by the vote of the Trustees or by a vote of the shareholders of the Fund; and (ii) by the vote of a majority of the Trustees who are not parties to the Sub-Advisory Agreement or “interested persons” or of any party thereto, in accordance with the 1940 Act. The Sub-Advisory Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment, and is terminable at any time without penalty by the Trustees of the Trust or, with respect to the Fund, by a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund, or by the Adviser on not more than sixty (60) days’ nor less than thirty (30) days’ written notice to the Trust. As used in the Sub-Advisory Agreement, the terms “majority of the outstanding voting securities,” “interested persons” and “assignment” have the same meaning as such terms in the 1940 Act.
Advisory and Sub-Advisory Agreements
A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s approval of each Fund’s Advisory Agreement and Sub-Advisory Agreement will be available in each Fund’s Annual Financial Statements and Other Information that will be filed as part of the Funds’ first certified shareholder report filed on Form N-CSR after the date of this Prospectus.
Portfolio Managers
The following individuals (each, a “Portfolio Manager”) have served as portfolio managers of the Fund or Funds indicated next to their names since each Fund’s inception in [2025]. The Portfolio Managers for the Adviser are primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Funds, and the Portfolio Managers for the Sub-Adviser oversee trading and execution for the Funds.
Sonu Chawla, CFA®, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF
Ms. Chawla is a Partner and Portfolio Manager in TimesSquare’s growth equity group and has 22 years of experience. She is responsible for research coverage of the Software, Technology Services, and Internet & Communications sectors within the technology, media and telecommunications (“TMT”) industry. Ms. Chawla joined TimesSquare in August 2018 from Pine River Capital Management, a multi-strategy hedge fund where she was a Senior Analyst covering TMT sectors across Software, Internet, Services, Hardware and Telecom. Her previous research analyst experiences were as a Senior TMT Analyst at Surveyor Capital platform of Citadel and an Analyst at Fred Alger Management. Ms. Chawla has an M.S. in Mathematics and Computer Science from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi and an M.B.A. from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. She is a member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society New York. Ms. Chawla is conversational in Hindi.
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David Ferreiro, PhD, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF
Dr. Ferreiro is a Partner and Portfolio Manager in TimesSquare’s growth equity group, responsible for research coverage of the biotechnology, pharmaceuticals and medical devices industries. Prior to joining TimesSquare in 2015, Dr. Ferreiro was a Vice President at GMT Capital Corporation covering global health care companies. Before joining GMT Capital he had additional health care and biotechnology research analyst experience as an Executive Director at Oppenheimer, an Associate at JMP Securities, a Strategist at First Brokers Securities/Linkbrokers and an Associate at Banc of America Securities. Dr. Ferreiro has a B.A. in Biology from Middlebury College, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
Magnus Larsson, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF
Mr. Larsson is a Partner and Portfolio Manager on TimesSquare’s International Small Cap team which covers Developed, Emerging, and Frontier markets. Prior to joining TimesSquare in 2012, Mr. Larsson was a Portfolio Manager at Nordea Investment Management where he focused on European small and mid cap equities. Prior to Nordea, he held a similar role at SEB Asset Management as a Portfolio Manager focusing on European small and mid caps. Mr. Larsson’s prior experience also includes a Financial Analyst role specializing in small and mid cap equity research with Borsinsikt and a position as an Institutional Equity Sales Director at Beeson Gregory. He holds a B.S. in Economics and Business Administration from the University of Orebro, Sweden as well as a B.A. in Social Science.
David Hirsh, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF
Mr. Hirsh is a Partner and Portfolio Manager on TimesSquare’s International Small Cap team which covers Developed, Emerging, and Frontier markets. Prior to joining TimesSquare in 2012, Mr. Hirsh was a Senior Principal at HawkStone Capital, focusing on Europe. Prior to HawkStone, he worked at Societe Generale, Kepler Equities, and Julius Baer with a focus on small- to mid-cap European stocks. He holds a B.A. in International Affairs from Lafayette College and is fluent in French.
Edward F. Salib, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF
Mr. Salib is a Partner and Portfolio Manager/Analyst on TimesSquare’s U.S. equity team and is responsible for research coverage of Consumer Discretionary & Staples, Media, and related services. Mr. Salib joined TimesSquare in 2002 as a Research Associate and had provided analytical support to the research analysts through the development of financial models and databases. He graduated with a B.S. in Applied Economics & Management from Cornell University.
Greg J. Vasse, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF
Mr. Vasse is a Partner and Portfolio Manager/Analyst on TimesSquare’s U.S. equity team and is responsible for research coverage of Automotive, Commercial Services, Construction & Engineering, and Transportation. Prior to joining TimesSquare as a Research Associate in 2008, Greg was an Associate at Lehman Brothers working with the firm’s Institutional Investor-ranked Machinery and Bank equity research teams. Prior to Lehman Brothers, Greg was an investment banking analyst at Needham & Company focused on Industrial Growth and Technology M&A and equity capital transactions. Greg graduated Cum Laude with a B.S. in Business Administration from Babson College with concentrations in finance and economics.
Joshua Bischoff, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser for each Fund
Mr. Bischoff is a Partner and Head of U.S. and International Trading at TimesSquare and is responsible for trading, the integration of risk management tools, and the oversight of other analytics into the investment process. Mr. Bischoff joined TimesSquare in 2003 from Loomis Sayles & Co. where he held a similar position. His previous experience includes trading for small capitalization equity products at Scudder Kemper and Dreman Value and working as a block trader for Bear Stearns where he concentrated on trading financial and energy stocks. Mr. Bischoff has a B.S. in Business Administration from Providence College and holds FINRA Series 7, 63 and 57 licenses.
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Qiao Duan, CFA®, Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser for each Fund
Qiao Duan serves as Portfolio Manager at the Sub-Adviser, having joined the firm in October 2020. From February 2017 to October 2020, she was an execution Portfolio Manager at Exponential ETFs, where she managed research and analysis relating to all Exponential ETF strategies. Ms.Duan previously served as a portfolio manager for the Exponential ETFs from their inception in May 2019 until October 2020. Ms.Duan received a Master of Science in Quantitative Finance and Risk Management from the University of Michigan in 2016 and a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Applied Mathematics from Xiamen University in 2014. She holds the CFA designation.
Andy Hicks, Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser for each Fund
Mr. Hicks serves as SVP of Trading for the Sub-Adviser, having joined the Sub-Adviser in 2025. Mr. Hicks previously served as Director of ETF Portfolio Management, Trading, and Research at SS&C ALPS Advisors for over ten years. Prior to SS&C ALPS Advisors, Mr. Hicks held roles as a Senior Equity Trader and Research Analyst with Virtus Investment Partners, specializing in equity and ETF trading, and a head equity trader for SCM Advisors. With over 20 years of experience, Mr. Hicks holds an accounting/ finance degree from Miami University (Ohio) and an MBA in Finance from the University of Colorado – Denver.
CFA® is a registered trademark owned by the CFA Institute
The SAI provides additional information about each Portfolio Manager’s compensation structure, other accounts that each Portfolio Manager manages, and each Portfolio Manager’s ownership of Shares.
Each Fund issues and redeems Shares only in Creation Units at the NAV per share next determined after receipt of an order from an AP. Only APs may acquire Shares directly from a Fund, and only APs may tender their Shares for redemption directly to the relevant Fund, at NAV. APs must be a member or participant of a clearing agency registered with the SEC and must execute a Participant Agreement that has been agreed to by the Distributor (defined below), and that has been accepted by the Fund’s 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.
In order to purchase Creation Units of a Fund, an AP must generally deposit a designated portfolio of equity securities (the “Deposit Securities”) and/or a designated amount of U.S. cash. Most investors buy and sell Shares in secondary market transactions through brokers. Individual 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 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. Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) or its nominee is the record owner of all outstanding Shares.
Investors owning 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.
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Frequent Purchases and Redemptions of Shares
Each Fund does not impose any restrictions on the frequency of purchases and redemptions of Creation Units; however, each Fund reserves the right to reject or limit purchases at any time as described in the SAI. When considering that no restriction or policy was necessary, the Board evaluated the risks posed by arbitrage and market timing activities, such as whether frequent purchases and redemptions would interfere with the efficient implementation of a Fund’s investment strategy, or whether they would cause the relevant Fund to experience increased transaction costs. The Board considered that, unlike traditional mutual funds, shares of the Fund are issued and redeemed only in large quantities of shares known as Creation Units available only from a Fund directly to Authorized Participants, and that most trading in each Fund occurs on the Exchange at prevailing market prices and does not involve a Fund directly. Given this structure, the Board determined that it is unlikely that trading due to arbitrage opportunities or market timing by shareholders would result in negative impact to a Fund or its shareholders. In addition, frequent trading of shares of each Fund by Authorized Participants and arbitrageurs is critical to ensuring that the market price remains at or close to NAV.
Determination of Net Asset Value
NAV per share of each Fund is computed by dividing the value of the net assets of the relevant Fund (i.e., the value of its total assets less total liabilities) by its total number of shares outstanding. Expenses and fees, including management and distribution fees, if any, are accrued daily and taken into account for purposes of determining NAV. NAV is determined each business day, normally as of the close of regular trading of the New York Stock Exchange (ordinarily 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time).
When determining NAV, the value of a Fund’s portfolio investments is determined pursuant to the Trust’s valuation policy and the Adviser’s fair valuation policy and procedures. In general, the value of a Fund’s portfolio investments is based on market prices of securities, which generally means a valuation obtained from an exchange or other market (or based on a price quotation or other equivalent indication of the value supplied by an exchange or other market) or a valuation obtained from an independent pricing service.
Fair Value Pricing
Pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the 1940 Act, the Adviser has been designated by the Board as the valuation designee with responsibility for fair valuation subject to oversight by the Board. If an investment’s market price is not readily available or does not otherwise accurately reflect the fair value of the security, pursuant to the Trust’s valuation policy, the investment will be fair valued in accordance with the Adviser’s fair valuation policy and procedures, which were approved by the Board. An investment may be fair valued in a variety of circumstances, including but not limited to, situations when the value of a security in a Fund’s portfolio has been materially affected by events occurring after the close of the market on which the security is principally traded but prior to the close of the Exchange (such as in the case of a corporate action or other news that may materially affect the price of a security) or trading in a security has been suspended or halted. Accordingly, a Fund’s NAV may reflect certain portfolio securities’ fair values rather than their market prices.
Fair value pricing involves subjective judgments and it is possible that a fair value determination for a security will materially differ from the value that could be realized upon the sale of the security.
Investments by Other Registered Investment Companies in the Fund
For purposes of the 1940 Act, the Fund is considered a registered open-end management investment company. Section 12(d)(1) of the 1940 Act restricts investments by investment companies in the securities of other investment companies, including shares of the Fund. Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act permits registered investment companies to invest in other investment companies, including exchange-traded funds such as the Fund, beyond the limits of Section 12(d)(1), subject to certain terms and conditions, including, among other conditions, that such registered investment companies enter into an agreement to do so and the acquiring investment company and its advisory group will not control (individually or in the aggregate) an acquired investment company (e.g., hold more than 25% of the outstanding voting securities of an acquired registered open-end management investment company)
Delivery of Shareholder Documents – Householding
Householding is an option available to certain Fund investors. Householding is a method of delivery, based on the preference of the individual investor, in which a single copy of certain shareholder documents can be delivered to investors who share the same address, even if their accounts are registered under different names. Please contact your broker-dealer if you are interested in enrolling in householding and receiving a single copy of prospectuses and other shareholder documents, or if you are currently enrolled in householding and wish to change your householding status.
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DIVIDENDS, DISTRIBUTIONS, AND TAXES
Dividends and Distributions
Each Fund intends to pay out dividends and interest income, if any, quarterly, and distribute any net realized capital gains to its shareholders at least annually.
Each Fund will declare and pay income and capital gain distributions, if any, at least annually. Each Fund is permitted to declare and pay dividends of its net investment income and net capital gains, if any, more frequently Distributions in cash may be reinvested automatically in additional whole Shares only if the broker through whom you purchased Shares makes such option available. Your broker is responsible for distributing the income and capital gain distributions to you.
Dividend Reinvestment Service
Brokers may make available to their customers who own shares of a Fund the Depository Trust Company book-entry dividend reinvestment service. 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. 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.
Tax Information
The following discussion is a summary of certain important U.S. federal income tax considerations generally applicable to an investment in a Fund. The summary is based on current tax laws, which may be changed by legislative, judicial or administrative action. You should not consider this summary to be a comprehensive explanation of the tax treatment of a Fund, or the tax consequences of an investment in a Fund. An investment in a Fund may have other tax implications. Please consult a tax advisor about the applicable federal, state, local, foreign or other tax laws. Investors, including non-U.S. investors, may wish to consult the SAI tax section for additional disclosure.
Tax Status of each Fund. Each Fund intends to elect and to qualify for the special tax treatment afforded a RIC under the Code. From a U.S. federal income tax perspective, each Fund is treated as a separate corporation within the Trust. If a Fund meets certain minimum distribution requirements, as a RIC it is not subject to tax at the Fund level on income and gains from investments that are timely distributed to shareholders. However, if a Fund fails to qualify as a RIC or to meet minimum distribution requirements, it would result in Fund-level taxation if certain relief provisions were not available, and consequently a reduction in income available for distribution to shareholders. Unless you are a tax-exempt entity or your investment in a Fund’s shares is made through a tax-advantaged arrangement (such as a 401(k) plan or individual retirement account) retirement account, such as an IRA, you need to be aware of the possible tax consequences when a Fund makes distributions, you sell Fund shares and you purchase or redeem Creation Units (Authorized Participants only).
Taxes on Distributions. In general, distributions are subject to federal income tax when they are paid, whether the distributions are taken in cash or reinvested in a Fund. The income dividends and short-term capital gains distributions received from a Fund will be taxed as either ordinary income or qualified dividend income. Distributions from a Fund’s short-term capital gains are generally taxable as ordinary income. Subject to certain limitations, dividends that are reported by a Fund as qualified dividend income are taxable to non-corporate shareholders at rates applicable to capital gains, provided certain requirements are met. Any distributions of a Fund’s net capital gains (generally the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss) are taxable as long-term capital gain regardless of how long Fund shares have been owned by an investor. Long-term capital gains are generally taxed to non-corporate shareholders at reduced rates relative to ordinary income.
A Fund will carry any net realized capital losses (i.e., realized capital losses in excess of realized capital gains) from any taxable year forward to one or more subsequent taxable years to offset capital gains, if any, realized during such subsequent taxable years. A Fund’s net capital loss carryforwards do not expire. A Fund must apply such carryforwards first against gains of the same character. Generally, a Fund may not carry forward any losses other than net capital losses (i.e., ordinary losses). A Fund’s ability to utilize these and certain other losses to reduce distributable net realized capital gains in subsequent taxable years may be limited by reason of direct or indirect changes in the actual or constructive ownership of a Fund.
Distributions in excess of a Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits are treated as a tax-free return of capital to the extent of the investor basis in a Fund’s shares, and, in general, as capital gain thereafter.
In general, dividends may be reported by a Fund as qualified dividend income if they are attributable to qualified dividend income received by a Fund, which, in general, includes dividend income from taxable U.S. corporations and certain foreign corporations (i.e., certain foreign corporations incorporated in a possession of the United States or in certain countries with a comprehensive tax treaty with the United States, and certain other foreign corporations if the stock with respect to which the dividend is paid is readily tradable on an established securities market in the United States), provided that a Fund satisfies certain holding period requirements in respect of the stock of such corporations and has not hedged its position in the stock in certain ways. A dividend generally will not be treated as qualified dividend income if the dividend is received with respect to any share of stock held by a Fund for fewer than 61 days during the 121-day period beginning at the date which is 60 days before the date on which such share becomes ex-dividend with respect to such dividend. These holding period requirements will also apply to investor ownership of Fund shares. Holding periods may be suspended for these purposes for stock that is hedged. It is expected that any dividends received by a Fund from a REIT and distributed from a Fund to a shareholder generally will not be treated as qualified dividend income. Additionally, income derived in connection with a Fund’s securities lending activities will not be treated as qualified dividend income.
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U.S. individuals with income exceeding specified thresholds are subject to a 3.8% tax on all or a portion of their “net investment income,” which includes taxable interest, dividends and certain capital gains (generally including capital gain distributions and capital gains realized upon the sale of Fund 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.
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 a Fund from U.S. corporations, subject to certain limitations. A Fund’s investment strategies may significantly limit its ability to distribute dividends eligible for the dividends-received deduction for corporations.
If an investor lends Fund shares pursuant to securities lending arrangements, the investor may lose the ability to treat Fund dividends (paid while a Fund shares are held by the borrower) as qualified dividend income or as eligible for a dividends-received deduction. Please consult a financial intermediary or tax advisor to discuss the particular circumstances.
A RIC that receives business interest income may pass through its net business interest income for purposes of the tax rules applicable to the interest expense limitations under Section 163(j) of the Code. A RIC’s total “Section 163(j) Interest Dividend” for a tax year is limited to the excess of the RIC’s business interest income over the sum of its business interest expense and its other deductions properly allocable to its business interest income. A RIC may, in its discretion, designate all or a portion of ordinary dividends as Section 163(j) Interest Dividends, which would allow the recipient shareholder to treat the designated portion of such dividends as interest income for purposes of determining such shareholder’s interest expense deduction limitation under Section 163(j) of the Code. This can potentially increase the amount of a shareholder’s interest expense deductible under Section 163(j) of the Code. In general, to be eligible to treat a Section 163(j) Interest Dividend as interest income, you must have held your shares in a Fund for more than 180 days during the 361-day period beginning on the date that is 180 days before the date on which the share becomes ex-dividend with respect to such dividend. Section 163(j) Interest Dividends, if so designated by a Fund, will be reported to your financial intermediary or otherwise in accordance with the requirements specified by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”).
In general, your distributions are subject to federal income tax for the year in which they are paid. However, distributions paid in January, but declared by a Fund in October, November or December of the previous year, payable to shareholders of record in such a month, may be taxable to an investor in the calendar year in which they were declared.
A distribution will reduce a Fund’s NAV per Fund share and may be taxable to a shareholder as ordinary income or capital gain even though, from an investment standpoint, the distribution may constitute a return of capital.
Your financial intermediary will inform you of the amount of your ordinary income dividends, qualified dividend income, dividends-received deduction, net capital gain distributions and other applicable tax attributes. This annual shareholder tax reporting information will be issued shortly after the close of each calendar year.
Certain of a Fund’s investments may be subject to complex provisions of the Code (including provisions relating to wash sales, hedging transactions, straddles, integrated transactions, foreign currency contracts, forward foreign currency contracts, and notional principal contracts) that, among other things, may affect a Fund’s ability to qualify as a RIC, affect the character of gains and losses realized by a Fund (e.g., may affect whether gains or losses are ordinary or capital), accelerate recognition of income to a Fund and defer losses.
Foreign Currency Transactions. A Fund’s transactions in foreign currencies may give rise to ordinary income or loss to the extent such income or loss results from fluctuations in the value of the foreign currency concerned.
Foreign Income Taxes. Investment income received by a Fund from sources within foreign countries, capital gains and/or other sources of income or proceeds may be subject to foreign income taxes withheld at the source and/or that are self-assessed. The United States has entered into tax treaties with many foreign countries which may entitle a Fund to a reduced rate of such taxes or exemption from taxes on such income. It is impossible to determine the effective rate of foreign tax for a Fund in advance, since the amount of the assets to be invested within various countries is not known. In some cases, a Fund may seek a refund in respect of taxes paid to a non-U.S. country, but a Fund runs the risk that its efforts will not be successful, resulting in additional expenses with no corresponding benefits. In addition, a Fund runs the risk that its pursuit of a tax refund may subject it to administrative and judicial proceedings in the country where it is seeking the refund. It may be determined that a Fund should not seek a refund, even if a Fund is entitled to one. The process of seeking a refund may take years, and the outcome of efforts to obtain a refund for a Fund is inherently uncertain. Accordingly, a refund (less related estimated or actual tax liabilities, if applicable) is not typically reflected in a Fund’s net asset value until the refund is determined to be collectible and free from significant contingencies. In some cases, the amount of such refunds could be material to a Fund’s net asset value. If a shareholder redeems shares of a Fund before a refund (as finally determined) is reflected in a Fund’s net asset value, the shareholder will not realize the benefit of that refund.
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If more than 50% of the total assets of a Fund at the close of its taxable year consist of certain foreign stocks or securities, a Fund may elect to “pass through” to shareholders certain foreign income taxes (including withholding taxes) paid by a Fund. If a Fund makes such an election, the shareholder will be considered to have received as an additional dividend the shareholder’s share of such foreign taxes, but the shareholder may be entitled to either a corresponding tax deduction in calculating the shareholder's taxable income, or, subject to certain limitations, a credit in calculating the shareholder’s federal income tax. No deduction for such taxes will be permitted to individuals in computing their alternative minimum tax liability. If a Fund does not so elect, a Fund will be entitled to claim a deduction for certain foreign taxes incurred by a Fund. Under certain circumstances, if a Fund receives a refund of foreign taxes paid in respect of a prior year, the value of Fund shares could be reduced and/or any foreign tax credits passed through to shareholders in respect of a Fund’s foreign taxes for the current year could be reduced by an amount equal to all or a portion of such refund.
Taxes on Share Sales. Each sale of shares of a Fund will generally be a taxable event. Assuming shares of a Fund are held as a capital asset, any capital gain or loss realized upon a sale of Fund shares is generally treated as long-term capital gain or loss if Fund shares have been held for more than one year and as short-term capital gain or loss if Fund shares have been held for one year or less, except that any capital loss on the sale of Fund shares held for six months or less is treated as long-term capital loss to the extent that capital gain dividends were paid with respect to such Fund shares. Any loss realized on a sale will be disallowed to the extent shares of a 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 such shares. The ability to deduct capital losses may be limited.
Taxes on Creations and Redemptions of Creation Units. An Authorized Participant who exchanges securities for Creation Units generally will recognize a gain or loss. The gain or loss will be equal to the difference between the market value of the Creation Units at the time and the exchanger’s aggregate basis in the securities surrendered plus any cash paid for the Creation Units. An Authorized Participant who exchanges Creation Units for securities will generally recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between the exchanger’s basis in the Creation Units and the aggregate market value of the securities and the amount of cash received. The 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” (for an Authorized Participant who does not mark-to-market its holdings), or on the basis that there has been no significant change in economic position. Authorized Participants exchanging securities should consult their own tax advisor with respect to whether wash sale rules apply and when a loss might be deductible. Authorized Participants who are dealers in securities are subject to different tax treatment on the exchange for or redemption of Creation Units. Authorized Participants exchanging securities for Creation Units or redeeming Creation Units should consult with their own tax advisor.
If the Trust does issue Creation Units to a purchaser (or a group of purchasers) that would, upon obtaining a Fund’s shares so ordered, own 80% or more of the outstanding shares of a Fund, the purchaser (or group of purchasers) will not recognize gain or loss upon the exchange of securities for Creation Units. The Trust, on behalf of a Fund, has the right to reject an order for Creation Units if the purchaser (or a group of purchasers) would, upon obtaining a Fund’s shares so ordered, own 80% or more of the outstanding shares of a Fund and if, pursuant to Section 351 of the Code, a Fund would have a basis in the securities different from the market value of the securities on the date of deposit. The trust also has the right to require information necessary to determine beneficial share ownership for purposes of the 80% determination. In such case, it is solely incumbent upon the purchaser to provide adequate advance notification to the Trust of its intention to not recognize gain or loss upon the exchange of securities for Creation Units.
If a Fund redeems Creation Units in cash in addition to, or in place of, the delivery of a basket of securities, it may bear additional costs and recognize more capital gains than it would if it redeems Creation Units in-kind.
Certain Tax-Exempt Investors. A Fund, if investing in certain limited real estate investments, may be required to pass through certain “excess inclusion income” and other income as “unrelated business taxable income” (“UBTI”). Prior to investing in a Fund, tax-exempt investors sensitive to UBTI should consult their tax advisors regarding this issue and IRS pronouncements addressing the treatment of such income in the hands of such investors. Certain tax-exempt educational institutions will be subject to excise taxes on net investment income. For these purposes, certain dividends and capital gain distributions, and certain gains from the disposition of Fund shares (among other categories of income), are generally taken into account in computing a shareholder's net investment income.
Investments in Certain Foreign Corporations. A Fund may invest in foreign entities classified as passive foreign investment companies or “PFICs” or controlled foreign corporations or “CFCs” under the Code. PFIC and CFC investments are subject to complex rules that may under certain circumstances adversely affect a Fund. Accordingly, investors should consult their own tax advisors and carefully consider the tax consequences of PFIC and CFC investments by a Fund before making an investment in a Fund. Fund dividends attributable to dividends received from PFICs generally will not be treated as qualified dividend income. Additional information pertaining to the potential tax consequences to a Fund, and to the shareholders, from a Fund’s potential investment in PFICs and CFCs can be found in the SAI.
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Non-U.S. Investors. Ordinary income dividends paid by a Fund to shareholders who are non-resident aliens or foreign entities will generally be subject to a 30% U.S. withholding tax (other than distributions reported by a Fund as interest-related dividends and short-term capital gain dividends), unless a lower treaty rate applies or unless such income is effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business. In general, a Fund may report interest-related dividends to the extent of its net income derived from U.S.-source interest, and a Fund may report short-term capital gain dividends to the extent its net short-term capital gain for the taxable year exceeds its net long-term capital loss. Gains on the sale of Fund shares and dividends that are, in each case, effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business within the U.S. will generally be subject to U.S. federal net income taxation at regular income tax rates.
Pursuant to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, unless certain non-U.S. entities that hold Fund shares comply with IRS requirements that will generally require them to report information regarding U.S. persons investing in, or holding accounts with, such entities, a 30% withholding tax may apply to distributions payable to such entities. A non-U.S. shareholder may be exempt from the withholding described in this paragraph under an applicable intergovernmental agreement between the U.S. and a foreign government, provided that the shareholder and the applicable foreign government comply with the terms of such agreement. Please consult with your financial intermediary and tax advisor for more information about the importance of maintaining U.S. tax documentation that is in good order.
Backup Withholding. A Fund will be required in certain cases to withhold (as “backup withholding”) on amounts payable to any shareholder who (1) has provided a Fund either an incorrect tax identification number (including via Form W-9) or no number at all, (2) is subject to backup withholding by the IRS for failure to properly report payments of interest or dividends, (3) has failed to certify to a Fund that such shareholder is not subject to backup withholding, or (4) has not certified that such shareholder is a U.S. person (including a U.S. resident alien). The backup withholding rate is currently 24%. Backup withholding will not be applied to payments that have been subject to the 30% withholding tax on shareholders who are neither citizens nor permanent residents of the United States. Please consult with your financial intermediary and tax advisor for more information about the importance of maintaining U.S. tax documentation that is in good order.
Certain Potential Tax Reporting Requirements. Under U.S. Treasury regulations, if a shareholder recognizes a loss of $2 million or more for an individual shareholder or $10 million or more for a corporate shareholder (or certain greater amounts over a combination of years), the shareholder must file with the IRS a disclosure statement on Form 8886 (note that other types of shareholders are subject to different thresholds). Direct shareholders of portfolio securities are in many cases excepted from this reporting requirement, but under current guidance shareholders of a RIC are not excepted. Significant penalties may be imposed for the failure to comply with the reporting requirements. The fact that a loss is reportable under these regulations does not affect the legal determination of whether the taxpayer’s treatment of the loss is proper. Shareholders should consult their tax advisors to determine the applicability of these regulations in light of their individual circumstances.
Other Tax Issues. A Fund may be subject to tax in certain states where a Fund does business (or is treated as doing business as a result of its investments). Furthermore, in those states which have income tax laws, the tax treatment of a Fund and of Fund shareholders with respect to distributions by a Fund may differ from federal tax treatment.
For example, most states permit investment companies, such as a Fund, to “pass through” to their shareholders the state tax exemption on income earned from investments in some direct U.S. Treasury obligations, as well as some limited types of U.S. government agency securities, so long as a Fund meets all applicable state requirements. The foregoing discussion summarizes some of the consequences under current federal income tax law of an investment in a Fund. It is not a substitute for personal tax advice. Consult a personal tax advisor about the potential tax consequences of an investment in a Fund under all applicable tax laws.
Important Tax Considerations When Purchasing Fund Shares
If you are investing through a taxable account, you should carefully consider the timing of your investment relative to the Fund’s distribution schedule. Purchasing Fund shares shortly before a distribution may increase your tax liability, a situation commonly referred to as “buying a dividend.”
When the Fund makes a distribution, its share price typically drops by an amount roughly equal to the distribution. As a hypothetical example, if you invest $5,000 to purchase 250 shares at $20 per share on December 15, and the Fund pays a $1 per share distribution on December 16, the share price would adjust to $19 (ignoring market fluctuations). Although your total investment value remains $5,000 (250 shares × $19 in share value plus 250 shares × $1 distribution), you would owe taxes on the $250 distribution, even if you reinvest the distribution rather than receiving it in cash.
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Distributions are taxable to shareholders even if they are paid from income or gains realized by the Fund before you invested, and even if they were reflected in the purchase price of the shares. Consequently, you may incur taxes on income or gains that accrued before your investment, without corresponding benefit.
Unless you are investing through a tax-advantaged account, such as an IRA or an employer-sponsored retirement plan, you may wish to avoid purchasing Fund shares shortly before a distribution. You can minimize the potential tax impact by reviewing the Fund’s distribution schedule prior to investing. When available, information about the Fund’s distribution schedule can be found on the Fund’s website at www.[ ].
The foregoing discussion summarizes some of the possible consequences under current federal tax law of an investment in the Fund. It is not a substitute for personal tax advice. You also may be subject to foreign, state, and local tax on Fund distributions and sales of Shares. Consult your personal tax advisor about the potential tax consequences of an investment in Shares under all applicable tax laws. For more information, please see the section titled “Federal Income Taxes” in the SAI.
Foreside Fund Services, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Foreside Financial Group (dba ACA Group), (the “Distributor”), the Fund’s distributor, is a broker-dealer registered with the SEC. The Distributor distributes Creation Units for the Fund on an agency basis and does not maintain a secondary market in Shares. The Distributor has no role in determining the policies of the Fund or the securities that are purchased or sold by the Fund. The Distributor’s principal address is190 Middle Street, Suite 301, Portland, Maine 04101.
The Board has adopted a Distribution (Rule 12b-1) Plan (the “Plan”) pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act. In accordance with the Plan, each fund in the Trust, including the Fund, is authorized to pay an amount up to 0.25% of its average daily net assets each year to pay distribution fees for the sale and distribution of its Shares.
No Rule 12b-1 fees are currently paid by the Fund, and there are no plans to impose these fees. However, in the event Rule 12b-1 fees are charged in the future, because such fees are paid out of Fund assets on an ongoing basis, over time these fees would increase the cost of your investment and may cost you more than certain other types of sales charges.
When available, information regarding how often Shares traded on the Exchange at a price above (i.e., at a premium) or below (i.e., at a discount) the NAV of the Fund can be found on the Fund’s website at www.[ ] after the Fund’s shares have traded on the Exchange for a full calendar quarter.
Shares are not sponsored, endorsed, or promoted by the Exchange. The Exchange is not responsible for, nor has it participated in the determination of, the timing, prices, or quantities of Shares to be issued, nor in the determination or calculation of the equation by which Shares are redeemable. The Exchange has no obligation or liability to owners of Shares in connection with the administration, marketing, or trading of Shares.
Without limiting any of the foregoing, in no event shall the Exchange have any liability for any lost profits or indirect, punitive, special, or consequential damages even if notified of the possibility thereof.
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 each Fund on an ongoing basis, at any point a “distribution,” as such term is used in the Securities Act of 1933 (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 Funds’ distributor, breaks them down into individual shares of a Fund, 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 of a Fund. 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.
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Broker-dealer firms should also note that dealers who are not “underwriters” but are effecting transactions in shares of a Fund, whether or not participating in the distribution of such 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 of a Fund that are part of an “unsold allotment” within the meaning of Section 4(a)(3)(C) 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 under 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 the Funds’ Prospectus is available on the SEC’s electronic filing system. The prospectus delivery mechanism provided in Rule 153 is only available with respect to transactions on an exchange.
This section would ordinarily include Financial Highlights for the Fund. The Financial Highlights table is intended to help you understand the Fund’s performance for the Fund’s periods of operations. Because the Fund has not yet commenced operations as of the date of this Prospectus, no Financial Highlights are shown.
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TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF
TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF
TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF
Adviser | TimesSquare
Capital Management, LLC 75 Rockefeller Plaza, 30th Floor, New York, NY 10019 |
Administrator | [__] |
Sub-Adviser | Tidal
Investments LLC 234 West Florida Street, Suite 203 Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204 |
Sub-Administrator,
Fund Accountant, and Transfer Agent |
[__] |
Distributor | Foreside
Fund Services, LLC 190 Middle Street, Suite 301 Portland, Maine 04101 |
Custodian | [__] |
Legal Counsel | Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP 1111 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20004 |
Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm |
[__] |
Investors may find more information about the Fund in the following documents:
Statement of Additional Information: The Fund’s SAI provides additional details about the investments of the Fund and certain other additional information. A current SAI dated [ ], 2025, as supplemented from time to time, is on file with the SEC and is herein incorporated by reference into this Prospectus. It is legally considered a part of this Prospectus.
Annual/Semi-Annual Reports: Additional information about the Fund’s investments will be available in the Fund’s annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders and in Form N-CSR. In the annual report you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance during the prior fiscal period. In Form N-CSR, you will find the Fund’s annual and semi-annual financial statements.
When available, you can request free copies of these documents, request other information, such as the Fund’s financial statements, or make general inquiries about the Fund by contacting the Fund at www.[ ], c/o [__] or calling [__].
These documents and other information about the Fund will also be available:
● | Free of charge from the SEC’s EDGAR database on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov; or | |
● | Free of charge from the Fund’s Internet website at www.[ ]; or | |
● | For a duplicating fee, by e-mail request to publicinfo@sec.gov. |
The SAI and other information are also available from a financial intermediary (such as a broker-dealer or bank) through which the Fund’s shares may be purchased or sold.
(SEC Investment Company Act File No. 811- 23895)
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SUBJECT TO COMPLETION
Dated October 9, 2025
THE INFORMATION HEREIN IS NOT COMPLETE AND MAY BE CHANGED. WE MAY NOT SELL THESE SECURITIES UNTIL THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT FILED WITH THE U.S. 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 IN WHICH THE OFFER OR SALE IS NOT PERMITTED.
[logo]
TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF [(TSQM)]
TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF [(TSQS)]
TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF [(TSQI)]
Each listed on [ ].
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
[ ], 2025
This Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) is not a prospectus and should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus for the TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF , TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF (each, a “Fund” and together, the “Funds”), each a series of the 2023 Series Trust (the “Trust”), dated [ ], as may be revised from time to time (the “Prospectus”). Capitalized terms used in this SAI that are not defined have the same meaning as in the Prospectus, unless otherwise noted. A copy of the Prospectus may be obtained without charge, by calling the Funds at [ Phone ], visiting [ website ], or writing to the Funds at The 2023 ETF Series Trust, c/o Tidal ETF Services, LLC, 234 West Florida Street, Suite 203, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204.
Each Fund’s audited financial statements for the most recent fiscal year (when available) will be incorporated into this SAI by reference to the Fund’s Annual Financial Statements and Other Information as well as the Fund’s most recent annual Certified Shareholder Report, each of which will be filed on Form N-CSR (File No. 811-23883). When available, a copy of a Fund’s annual Certified Shareholder Report may be obtained at no charge by contacting the Fund at the address or phone number noted above.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE TRUST
The 2023 ETF Series Trust (the “Trust”) is an open-end management investment company consisting of multiple investment series. The Trust is organized as a Delaware statutory trust and was established by a Declaration of Trust dated January 23, 2023, as amended and restated as of September 14, 2023 (the “Declaration of Trust”). This SAI relates solely to the TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF. The Trustees of the Trust have authority under the Declaration of Trust to create and classify shares of the Trust into separate series. Pursuant thereto, the Trustees have created the Funds. Additional series may be added in the future from time to time.
TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC (“TimesSquare” or the “Adviser”), serves as the investment adviser to the Funds. Tidal Investments LLC (“Tidal” or the “Sub-Adviser”)) serves as the investment sub-adviser each Fund.
In addition, Foreside Fund Services, LLC (the “Distributor”) serves as the Fund’s distributor, and [-] serves as the Funds’ transfer agent and custodian, and also provides administrative services to the Funds. References to the “Adviser” in this SAI are solely in relation to the Funds and not any other series of the Trust.
Each Fund offers and issues shares at their net asset value (“NAV”) only in aggregations of a specified number of shares (each, a “Creation Unit”). Each Fund 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 Trust 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. Each Fund’s shares are listed on the [ ] (the “Exchange”) and trade on the Exchange at market prices. These prices may differ from a Fund’s NAV per share. Each Fund’s shares are redeemable only in Creation Unit aggregations, and generally in exchange for portfolio securities and a specified cash payment.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT INVESTMENT OBJECTIVES, POLICIES, AND RELATED RISKS
Each Fund’s investment objective and principal investment strategies are described in the Prospectus, under “Investment Objective” and “Principal Investment Strategies,” respectively. The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus. For a description of certain permitted investments, see “Description of Permitted Investments” in this SAI.
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.
Diversification
Each Fund is “diversified” within the meaning of the 1940 Act. Under applicable federal laws, to qualify as a diversified fund, a Fund, with respect to 75% of its total assets, may not invest greater than 5% of its total assets in any one issuer and may not hold greater than 10% of the securities of one issuer, other than investments in cash and cash items (including receivables), U.S. government securities, and securities of other investment companies. The remaining 25% of such Fund’s total assets does not need to be “diversified” and may be invested in securities of a single issuer, subject to other applicable laws. The diversification of a Fund’s holdings is measured at the time such Fund purchases a security. However, if a Fund purchases a security and holds it for a period of time, the security may become a larger percentage of such Fund’s total assets due to movements in the financial markets. If the market affects several securities held by a Fund, such Fund may have a greater percentage of its assets invested in securities of fewer issuers.
General Risks
The value of a Fund’s portfolio securities may fluctuate with changes in the financial condition of an issuer or counterparty, changes in specific economic or political conditions that affect a particular security or issuer and changes in general economic or political conditions. An investor in a Fund could lose money over short or long periods of time.
There can be no guarantee that a liquid market for the securities held by a Fund will be maintained. The existence of a liquid trading market for certain securities may depend on whether dealers will make a market in such securities. There can be no assurance that a market will be made or maintained or that any such market will be or remain liquid. The price at which securities may be sold and the value of Shares will be adversely affected if trading markets for a Fund’s portfolio securities are limited or absent, or if bid/ask spreads are wide.
Financial markets, both domestic and foreign, have recently experienced an unusually high degree of volatility. Continuing events and possible continuing market turbulence may have an adverse effect on Fund performance.
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Cyber Security Risk. A Fund, and its service providers and distribution platforms, and your ability to transact with a Fund, may be negatively impacted by, among other things, human error, systems and technology disruptions or failures, or cybersecurity incidents. Cybersecurity incidents may allow an unauthorized party to gain access to Fund assets, shareholder data (including private shareholder information), and/or proprietary information, or cause a Fund, the Adviser, a sub-adviser and/or its service providers (including, but not limited to, fund accountants, custodians, sub-custodians, transfer agents and financial intermediaries) to suffer data breaches, data corruption or loss of operational functionality. A cybersecurity incident or operational issue may disrupt the processing of Fund or shareholder transactions, impact a Fund’s ability to calculate its net asset value, prevent shareholders from redeeming their shares, or result in financial losses to a Fund and its shareholders. Cybersecurity and operational incidents may result in financial losses to a Fund and its shareholders, and substantial costs may be incurred to prevent or mitigate such incidents in the future. Cybersecurity and operational incidents may also lead to violations of applicable privacy and other laws, regulatory fines, penalties, and reputational damage. There is a chance that some cybersecurity and operational risks have not been identified, which limits the ability of a Fund and its service providers to plan for or mitigate such risks. Issuers of securities in which a Fund invests are also subject to cybersecurity and operational risks, and the value of those securities could decline if the issuers experience cybersecurity incidents or operational issues. In addition, other significant events (e.g., natural disasters or global health emergencies), and measures taken to respond to them and mitigate their effects, could result in disruptions to the services provided to a Fund by its service providers. A Fund cannot control the cybersecurity and business continuity plans of its service providers, issuers of securities in which it invests or other third parties whose operations may affect the Fund and its shareholders.
DESCRIPTION OF PERMITTED INVESTMENTS
The following are descriptions of the permitted investments and investment practices and the associated risk factors. A Fund will invest in any of the following instruments or engage in any of the following investment practices only if such investment or activity is consistent with the Fund’s investment objective and permitted by the Fund’s stated investment policies. In addition, certain of the techniques and investments discussed in this SAI are not principal strategies of each Fund as disclosed in the Prospectus, and while such techniques and investments are permissible for a Fund to utilize, ae Fund is not required to utilize such non-principal techniques or investments.
Borrowing
Although each Fund does not intend to borrow money, a Fund may do so to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act. Under the 1940 Act, a Fund may borrow up to one-third (1/3) of its total assets. A Fund will borrow money only for short-term or emergency purposes. Such borrowing is not for investment purposes and will be repaid by the relevant Fund promptly. Borrowing will tend to exaggerate the effect on NAV of any increase or decrease in the market value of the relevant Fund’s portfolio. Money borrowed will be subject to interest costs that may or may not be recovered by earnings on the securities purchased. A Fund also may be required to maintain minimum average balances in connection with a borrowing or to pay a commitment or other fee to maintain a line of credit; either of these requirements would increase the cost of borrowing over the stated interest rate.
Equity Securities
Equity securities, such as the common stocks of an issuer, are subject to stock market fluctuations and therefore may experience volatile changes in value as market conditions, consumer sentiment, or the financial condition of the issuers change. A decrease in value of the equity securities in the Fund’s portfolio may also cause the value of the Fund’s Shares to decline.
An investment in the Fund should be made with an understanding of the risks inherent in an investment in equity securities, including the risk that the financial condition of issuers may become impaired or that the general condition of the stock market may deteriorate (either of which may cause a decrease in the value of the Fund’s portfolio securities and therefore a decrease in the value of Shares of the Fund). Common stocks are susceptible to general stock market fluctuations and to volatile increases and decreases in value as market confidence and perceptions change. These investor perceptions are based on various and unpredictable factors, including expectations regarding government, economic, monetary and fiscal policies; inflation and interest rates; economic expansion or contraction; and global or regional political, economic or banking crises.
Types of Equity Securities:
Common Stocks — Common stocks represent units of ownership in a company. Common stocks usually carry voting rights and earn dividends. Unlike preferred stocks, which are described below, dividends on common stocks are not fixed but are declared at the discretion of the company’s board of directors.
Holders of common stocks incur more risk than holders of preferred stocks and debt obligations because common stockholders, as owners of the issuer, generally have inferior rights to receive payments from the issuer in comparison with the rights of creditors or holders of debt obligations or preferred stocks. Further, unlike debt securities, which typically have a stated principal amount payable at maturity (whose value, however, is subject to market fluctuations prior thereto), or preferred stocks, which typically have a liquidation preference and which may have stated optional or mandatory redemption provisions, common stocks have neither a fixed principal amount nor a maturity. Common stock values are subject to market fluctuations as long as the common stock remains outstanding.
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Preferred Stocks — Preferred stocks are also units of ownership in a company. Preferred stocks normally have preference over common stock in the payment of dividends and the liquidation of the company. However, in all other respects, preferred stocks are subordinated to the liabilities of the issuer. Unlike common stocks, preferred stocks are generally not entitled to vote on corporate matters. Types of preferred stocks include adjustable-rate preferred stock, fixed dividend preferred stock, perpetual preferred stock, and sinking fund preferred stock.
Generally, the market values of preferred stock with a fixed dividend rate and no conversion element vary inversely with interest rates and perceived credit risk.
Rights and Warrants — A right is a privilege granted to existing shareholders of a corporation to subscribe to shares of a new issue of common stock before it is issued. Rights normally have a short life of usually two to four weeks, are freely transferable and entitle the holder to buy the new common stock at a lower price than the public offering price. Warrants are securities that are usually issued together with a debt security or preferred stock and that give the holder the right to buy a proportionate amount of common stock at a specified price. Warrants are freely transferable and are traded on major exchanges. Unlike rights, warrants normally have a life that is measured in years and entitles the holder to buy common stock of a company at a price that is usually higher than the market price at the time the warrant is issued. Corporations often issue warrants to make the accompanying debt security more attractive.
An investment in warrants and rights may entail greater risks than certain other types of investments. Generally, rights and warrants do not carry the right to receive dividends or exercise voting rights with respect to the underlying securities, and they do not represent any rights in the assets of the issuer. In addition, their value does not necessarily change with the value of the underlying securities, and they cease to have value if they are not exercised on or before their expiration date. Investing in rights and warrants increases the potential profit or loss to be realized from the investment as compared with investing the same amount in the underlying securities.
When-Issued Securities — A when-issued security is one whose terms are available and for which a market exists, but which has not been issued. When the Fund engages in when-issued transactions, it relies on the other party to complete the sale. If the other party fails to complete the sale, the Fund may miss the opportunity to obtain the security at a favorable price or yield.
When purchasing a security on a when-issued basis, the Fund assumes the rights and risks of ownership of the security, including the risk of price and yield changes. At the time of settlement, the value of the security may be more or less than the purchase price. The yield available in the market when the delivery takes place also may be higher than those obtained in the transaction itself. Because the Fund does not pay for the security until the delivery date, these risks are in addition to the risks associated with its other investments.
SEC Rule 18f-4 under the 1940 Act (“Rule 18f-4” or the “Derivatives Rule”) permits the Fund to invest in securities on a when-issued or forward-settling basis, or with a non-standard settlement cycle, notwithstanding the limitation on the issuance of senior securities in Section 18 of the 1940 Act, provided that the Fund intends to physically settle the transaction and the transaction will settle within 35 days of its trade date (the “Delayed-Settlement Securities Provision”). A when-issued, forward-settling, or non-standard settlement cycle security that does not satisfy the Delayed-Settlement Securities Provision is treated as a derivatives transaction under Rule 18f-4.
Debt Securities
In general, a debt security represents a loan of money to the issuer by the purchaser of the security. A debt security typically has a fixed payment schedule that obligates the issuer to pay interest to the lender and to return the lender’s money over a certain time period. A company typically meets its payment obligations associated with its outstanding debt securities before it declares and pays any dividend to holders of its equity securities. Bonds, notes and commercial paper are examples of debt securities and differ in the length of the issuer’s principal repayment schedule, with bonds carrying the longest repayment schedule and commercial paper the shortest.
Debt securities are all generally subject to interest rate, credit, income and prepayment risks and, like all investments, are subject to liquidity and market risks to varying degrees depending upon the specific terms and type of security. The Sub-Adviser attempts to reduce credit and market risk through diversification of the Fund’s portfolio and ongoing credit analysis of each issuer, as well as by monitoring economic developments, but there can be no assurance that it will be successful at doing so.
A Fund’s investments in debt securities may subject the Fund to the following risks:
Credit risk. Debt securities are subject to the risk of an issuer’s (or other party’s) failure or inability to meet its obligations under the security. Multiple parties may have obligations under a debt security. An issuer or borrower may fail to pay principal and interest when due. A guarantor, insurer or credit support provider may fail to provide the agreed upon protection. A counterparty to a transaction may fail to perform its side of the bargain. An intermediary or agent interposed between the investor and other parties may fail to perform the terms of its service. Also, performance under a debt security may be linked to the obligations of other persons who may fail to meet their obligations. The credit risk associated with investing in a debt security could increase to the extent that a Fund’s ability to benefit fully from its investment in the security depends on the performance by multiple parties of their respective contractual or other obligations. The market value of a debt security is also affected by the market’s perception of the creditworthiness of the issuer.
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A Fund may incur substantial losses on debt securities that are inaccurately perceived to present a different amount of credit risk than they actually do by the market, the Sub-Adviser or the rating agencies. Credit risk is generally greater where less information is publicly available, where fewer covenants safeguard the investors’ interests, where collateral may be impaired or inadequate, where little legal redress or regulatory protection is available, or where a party’s ability to meet obligations is speculative. Additionally, any inaccuracy in the information used by a Fund to evaluate credit risk may affect the value of securities held by the Fund.
Obligations under debt securities held by a Fund may never be satisfied or, if satisfied, only satisfied in part.
Some securities are subject to risks as a result of a credit downgrade or default by a government, or its agencies or, instrumentalities. Credit risk is a greater concern for high-yield debt securities and debt securities of issuers whose ability to pay interest and principal may be considered speculative. Debt securities are typically classified as investment grade-quality (medium to highest credit quality) or below investment grade-quality (commonly referred to as high-yield or junk bonds). Many individual debt securities are rated by a third party source, such as Moody’s or S&P, to help describe the creditworthiness of the issuer.
Credit ratings risk. The Sub-Adviser may perform its own independent investment analysis of securities being considered for a Fund’s portfolio, which includes consideration of, among other things, the issuer’s financial resources, its sensitivity to economic conditions and trends, its operating history, the quality of the issuer’s management and regulatory matters. The Sub-Adviser also may consider the ratings assigned by various investment services and independent rating agencies, such as Moody’s and S&P, that publish ratings based upon their assessment of the relative creditworthiness of the rated debt securities. Generally, a lower rating indicates higher credit risk. Higher yields are ordinarily available from debt securities in the lower rating categories.
Using credit ratings to evaluate debt securities can involve certain risks. For example, ratings assigned by the rating agencies are based upon an analysis completed at the time of the rating of the obligor’s ability to pay interest and repay principal. Rating agencies typically rely to a large extent on historical data which may not accurately represent present or future circumstances. Ratings do not purport to reflect the risk of fluctuations in market value of the debt security and are not absolute standards of quality and only express the rating agency’s current opinion of an obligor’s overall financial capacity to pay its financial obligations. A credit rating is not a statement of fact or a recommendation to purchase, sell or hold a debt obligation. Also, credit quality can change suddenly and unexpectedly, and credit ratings may not reflect the issuer’s current financial condition or events since the security was last rated. Rating agencies may have a financial interest in generating business, including from the arranger or issuer of the security that normally pays for that rating, and providing a low rating might affect the rating agency’s prospects for future business. While rating agencies have policies and procedures to address this potential conflict of interest, there is a risk that these policies will fail to prevent a conflict of interest from impacting the rating.
Uncertain Tax Treatment Risk. Investments in debt securities rated below investment grade instruments may present special tax issues for a Fund. U.S. federal income tax rules are not entirely clear about issues such as when a Fund may cease accruing interest, OID or market discount, when and to what extent deductions may be taken for bad debts or worthless instruments, how payments received on obligations in default should be allocated between principal and income and whether exchanges of debt obligations in a bankruptcy or workout context are taxable. These and other issues will be addressed by a Fund to the extent necessary to seek to ensure that it distributes sufficient income that it does not become subject to U.S. federal income or excise tax.
Extension risk. The market value of some debt securities, particularly mortgage securities and certain asset-backed securities, may be adversely affected when bond calls or prepayments on underlying mortgages or other assets are less or slower than anticipated. Extension risk may result from, for example, rising interest rates or unexpected developments in the markets for the underlying assets or mortgages. As a consequence, the security’s effective maturity will be extended, resulting in an increase in interest rate sensitivity to that of a longer-term instrument. Extension risk generally increases as interest rates rise. This is because, in a rising interest rate environment, the rate of prepayment and exercise of call or buy-back rights generally falls and the rate of default and delayed payment generally rises. When the maturity of an investment is extended in a rising interest rate environment, a below-market interest rate is usually locked-in and the value of the security reduced. This risk is greater for fixed-rate than variable-rate debt securities.
Income risk. A Fund’s income may decline during periods of falling interest rates or when the Fund experiences defaults on debt securities it holds. A Fund’s income declines when interest rates fall because, as the Fund’s higher-yielding debt securities mature or are prepaid, the Fund must re-invest the proceeds in debt securities that have lower, prevailing interest rates. The amount and rate of distributions that a Fund’s shareholders receive are affected by the income that the Fund receives from its portfolio holdings. If the income is reduced, distributions by the Fund to shareholders may be less.
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Fluctuations in income paid to a Fund are generally greater for variable rate debt securities. A Fund will be deemed to receive taxable income on certain securities which pay no cash payments until maturity, such as zero-coupon securities. A Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities that it would otherwise continue to hold in order to obtain sufficient cash to make the distributions to shareholders that are required for U.S. tax purposes.
Inflation risk. The market price of debt securities generally falls as inflation increases because the purchasing power of the future income and repaid principal is expected to be worth less when received by a Fund. Debt securities that pay a fixed rather than variable interest rate are especially vulnerable to inflation risk because variable-rate debt securities may be able to participate, over the long term, in rising interest rates which have historically corresponded with long-term inflationary trends.
Interest rate risk. The market value of debt securities generally varies in response to changes in prevailing interest rates. Interest rate changes can be sudden and unpredictable. In addition, short-term and long-term rates are not necessarily correlated to each other as short-term rates tend to be influenced by government monetary policy while long-term rates are market driven and may be influenced by macroeconomic events (such as economic expansion or contraction), inflation expectations, as well as supply and demand. During periods of declining interest rates, the market value of debt securities generally increases. Conversely, during periods of rising interest rates, the market value of debt securities generally declines. This occurs because new debt securities are likely to be issued with higher interest rates as interest rates increase, making the old or outstanding debt securities less attractive. In general, the market prices of long-term debt securities or securities that make little (or no) interest payments are more sensitive to interest rate fluctuations than shorter-term debt securities. The longer a Fund’s average weighted portfolio duration, the greater the potential impact a change in interest rates will have on its share price. Also, certain segments of the fixed income markets, such as high-quality bonds, tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes than other segments, such as lower-quality bonds.
Prepayment risk. Debt securities, especially bonds that are subject to “calls,” such as asset-backed or mortgage-backed securities, are subject to prepayment risk if their terms allow the payment of principal and other amounts due before their stated maturity. Amounts invested in a debt security that has been “called” or “prepaid” will be returned to an investor holding that security before expected by the investor. In such circumstances, the investor, such as a Fund, may be required to re-invest the proceeds it receives from the called or prepaid security in a new security which, in periods of declining interest rates, will typically have a lower interest rate. Prepayment risk is especially prevalent in periods of declining interest rates and will result for other reasons, including unexpected developments in the markets for the underlying assets or mortgages. For example, a decline in mortgage interest rates typically initiates a period of mortgage refinancings. When homeowners refinance their mortgages, the investor in the underlying pool of mortgage-backed securities (such as a fund) receives its principal back sooner than expected, and must reinvest at lower, prevailing rates.
Securities subject to prepayment risk are often called during a declining interest rate environment and generally offer less potential for gains and greater price volatility than other income-bearing securities of comparable maturity.
Call risk is similar to prepayment risk and results from the ability of an issuer to call, or prepay, a debt security early. If interest rates decline enough, the debt security’s issuer can save money by repaying its callable debt securities and issuing new debt securities at lower interest rates.
Inflation-Indexed Bonds. Inflation-indexed bonds are debt securities whose principal value is periodically adjusted according to the rate 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 Consumer Price Index accruals as part of a semiannual coupon.
Inflation-indexed securities issued by the U.S. Treasury, commonly known as “TIPS,” have maturities of five, ten or thirty years, although it is possible that securities with other maturities will be issued in the future. TIPS pay interest on a semi-annual basis, equal to a fixed percentage of the inflation-adjusted principal amount. For example, if a Fund purchased an inflation-indexed 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 were 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 semiannual interest payment would be $15.45 ($1,030 times 1.5%).
If the periodic adjustment rate measuring inflation falls, the principal value of inflation-indexed bonds 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 TIPS, even during a period of deflation. However, the current market value of the bonds is not guaranteed, and will fluctuate. A Fund may also invest in other inflation-related bonds which 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.
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The value of inflation-indexed bonds 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-indexed bonds. 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-indexed bonds.
While these securities are expected to be protected from long-term inflationary trends, short-term increases in inflation may lead to a decline in value. If interest rates rise due to reasons other than inflation (for example, due to changes in currency exchange rates), investors in these securities may not be protected to the extent that the increase is not reflected in the bond’s inflation measure.
The periodic adjustment of U.S. inflation-indexed 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-indexed bonds 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.
Any increase in the principal amount of an inflation-indexed bond will be considered taxable ordinary income, even though investors do not receive their principal until maturity.
Foreign Securities
Each Fund may invest directly in foreign securities or have indirect exposure to foreign securities. Investing in securities of foreign companies and countries involves certain considerations and risks that are not typically associated with investing in U.S. government securities and securities of domestic companies. There may be less publicly available information about a foreign issuer than a domestic one, and foreign companies are not generally subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial standards, and requirements comparable to those applicable to U.S. companies. There may also be less government supervision and regulation of foreign securities exchanges, brokers, and listed companies than exists in the United States. Interest and dividends paid by foreign issuers as well as gains or proceeds realized from the sale or other disposition of foreign securities may be subject to withholding and other foreign taxes, which may decrease the net return on such investments as compared to dividends and interest paid to a Fund by domestic companies or the U.S. government. There may be the possibility of expropriations, seizure or nationalization of foreign deposits, the imposition of economic sanctions, confiscatory taxation, political, economic or social instability, or diplomatic developments that could affect assets of the Funds held in foreign countries. The establishment of exchange controls or other foreign governmental laws or restrictions could adversely affect the payment of obligations. In addition, investing in foreign securities will generally result in higher commissions than investing in similar domestic securities.
Decreases in the value of currencies of the foreign countries in which a Fund may invest relative to the U.S. dollar will result in a corresponding decrease in the U.S. dollar value of a Fund’s assets denominated in those currencies (and possibly a corresponding increase in the amount of securities required to be liquidated to meet distribution requirements). Conversely, increases in the value of currencies of the foreign countries in which a Fund invests relative to the U.S. dollar will result in a corresponding increase in the U.S. dollar value of a Fund’s assets (and possibly a corresponding decrease in the amount of securities to be liquidated).
Investing in emerging markets can have more risk than investing in developed foreign markets. The risks of investing in these markets may be exacerbated relative to investments in foreign markets. Governments of developing and emerging market countries may be more unstable as compared to more developed countries. Developing and emerging market countries may have less developed securities markets or exchanges, and legal and accounting systems. It may be more difficult to sell securities at acceptable prices and security prices may be more volatile than in countries with more mature markets. Currency values may fluctuate more in developing or emerging markets. Developing or emerging market countries may be more likely to impose government restrictions, including confiscatory taxation, expropriation or nationalization of a company’s assets, and restrictions on foreign ownership of local companies. In addition, emerging markets may impose restrictions on a Fund’s ability to repatriate investment income or capital and, thus, may adversely affect the operations of a Fund. Certain emerging markets may impose constraints on currency exchange and some currencies in emerging markets may have been devalued significantly against the U.S. dollar. For these and other reasons, the prices of securities in emerging markets can fluctuate more significantly than the prices of securities of companies in developed countries. The less developed the country, the greater effect these risks may have on a Fund.
Depositary Receipts
To the extent a Fund invests in stocks of foreign corporations, a Fund’s investment in securities of foreign companies may be in the form of depositary receipts or other securities convertible into securities of foreign issuers. American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”) are dollar-denominated receipts representing interests in the securities of a foreign issuer, which securities may not necessarily be denominated in the same currency as the securities into which they may be converted. ADRs are receipts typically issued by U.S. banks and trust companies which evidence ownership of underlying securities issued by a foreign corporation. Generally, ADRs in registered form are designed for use in domestic securities markets and are traded on exchanges or over-the-counter in the United States.
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Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”), European Depositary Receipts (“EDRs”), and International Depositary Receipts (“IDRs”) are similar to ADRs in that they are certificates evidencing ownership of shares of a foreign issuer; however, GDRs, EDRs, and IDRs may be issued in bearer form and denominated in other currencies and are generally designed for use in specific or multiple securities markets outside the U.S. EDRs, for example, are designed for use in European securities markets, while GDRs are designed for use throughout the world. Depositary receipts will not necessarily be denominated in the same currency as their underlying securities.
The Funds will not invest in any unlisted depositary receipts or any depositary receipt that the Adviser deems to be illiquid or for which pricing information is not readily available. In addition, all depositary receipts generally must be sponsored. However, a Fund may invest in unsponsored depositary receipts under certain limited circumstances. The issuers of unsponsored depositary receipts are not obligated to disclose material information in the United States and, therefore, there may be less information available regarding such issuers and there may not be a correlation between such information and the value of the depositary receipts.
Initial Public Offerings (IPOs)Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs)/de-SPACs.
A Fund may invest in companies that have recently completed an IPO, are derived from a SPAC, or are derived from a de-SPAC business combination. These companies may be unseasoned and lack a trading history, a track record of reporting to investors, and widely available research coverage. IPOs and stocks derived from SPACs or de-SPAC business combination are thus often subject to extreme price volatility and speculative trading. These stocks may have above-average price appreciation in connection with the IPO or relevant transaction prior to a Fund’s purchase. The price of stocks selected may not continue to appreciate and the performance of these stocks may not replicate the performance exhibited in the past. In addition, IPOs and stocks derived from SPACs or de-SPACS business combinations may share similar illiquidity risks of private equity and venture capital. The ownership of many IPOs and stocks derived from SPACS or de-SPACs often includes large holdings by venture capital and private equity investors who seek to sell their shares in the public market in the months following an IPO or relevant transaction when shares restricted by lock-up are released, causing greater volatility and possible downward pressure during the time that locked-up shares are released.
In addition, SPAC risks include potential pricing misalignment. Further, less-publicly available information exists regarding SPACs than that which is available in connection with traditional IPOS. Early investors in a SPAC may invest on the reputation of the sponsor, which may not reflect the value of the target company. SPACs are speculative investments and are subject to conflicts of interest and fraud risks. SPAC trading pricings, including market prices, may fluctuate significantly. A Fund may invest in a SPAC at a higher price which would reduce the return to shareholders. SPACs may invest proceeds in U.S. treasuries. SPACS produce no income. SPACs have little to no liquidity and often trade at a discount to their net asset values.
Derivative Instruments
A Fund’s use of derivative instruments may be limited from time to time by policies adopted by the Board or the Adviser. Under Rule 18f-4 under the 1940 Act, if a Fund’s derivatives exposure exceeds a certain threshold, that Fund must establish and maintain a derivatives risk management program, subject to oversight by the Board, and appoint a derivatives risk manager, among other requirements.
Generally, derivatives are financial instruments whose value depends on or is derived from, the value of one or more underlying assets, reference rates, or indices or other market factors (a “reference instrument”) and may relate to stocks, bonds, interest rates, credit, currencies, commodities or related indices. Derivative instruments can provide an efficient means to gain or reduce exposure to the value of a reference instrument without actually owning or selling the instrument. Some common types of derivatives include options, futures, forwards and swaps.
Derivative instruments may be used to modify the effective duration of a Fund’s portfolio investments. Derivative instruments may also be used for “hedging,” which means that they may be used when the Sub-Adviser seeks to protect a Fund’s investments from a decline in value resulting from changes to interest rates, market prices, currency fluctuations, or other market factors. Derivative instruments may also be used for other purposes, including to seek to increase liquidity, provide efficient portfolio management, broaden investment opportunities (including taking short or negative positions), implement a tax or cash management strategy, gain exposure to a particular security or segment of the market and/or enhance total return. However derivative instruments are used, their successful use is not assured and will depend upon, among other factors, the Sub-Adviser’s ability to gauge relevant market movements.
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Derivative instruments may be used for purposes of direct hedging. Direct hedging means that the transaction must be intended to reduce a specific risk exposure of a portfolio security or its denominated currency and must also be directly related to such security or currency. A Fund’s use of derivative instruments may be limited from time to time by policies adopted by the Board and the Adviser.
Options. An option is a contract that gives the purchaser of the option, in return for the premium paid, the right to buy an underlying reference instrument, such as a specified security, currency, index, or other instrument, from the writer of the option (in the case of a call option), or to sell a specified reference instrument to the writer of the option (in the case of a put option) at a designated price during the term of the option. The premium paid by the buyer of an option will reflect, among other things, the relationship of the exercise price to the market price and the volatility of the underlying reference instrument, the remaining term of the option, supply, demand, interest rates and/or currency exchange rates. An American style put or call option may be exercised at any time during the option period while a European style put or call option may be exercised only upon expiration or during a fixed period prior thereto. Put and call options are traded on national securities exchanges and in the OTC market.
Options traded on national securities exchanges are within the jurisdiction of the SEC or other appropriate national securities regulator, as are securities traded on such exchanges. As a result, many of the protections provided to traders on organized exchanges will be available with respect to such transactions. In particular, all option positions entered into on a national securities exchange in the United States are cleared and guaranteed by the Options Clearing Corporation, thereby reducing the risk of counterparty default. Furthermore, a liquid secondary market in options traded on a national securities exchange may be more readily available than in the OTC market, potentially permitting a Fund to liquidate open positions at a profit prior to exercise or expiration, or to limit losses in the event of adverse market movements. There is no assurance, however, that higher than anticipated trading activity or other unforeseen events might not temporarily render the capabilities of the Options Clearing Corporation inadequate, and thereby result in the exchange instituting special procedures which may interfere with the timely execution of a Fund’s orders to close out open options positions.
Purchasing call and put options. As the buyer of a call option, a Fund has a right to buy the underlying reference instrument (e.g., a currency or security) at the exercise price at any time during the option period (for American style options). A Fund may enter into closing sale transactions with respect to call options, exercise them, or permit them to expire. For example, a Fund may buy call options on underlying reference instruments that it intends to buy with the goal of limiting the risk of a substantial increase in their market price before the purchase is effected. Unless the price of the underlying reference instrument changes sufficiently, a call option purchased by a Fund may expire without any value to the Fund, in which case the Fund would experience a loss to the extent of the premium paid for the option plus related transaction costs.
As the buyer of a put option, a Fund has the right to sell the underlying reference instrument at the exercise price at any time during the option period (for American style options). Like a call option, a Fund may enter into closing sale transactions with respect to put options, exercise them or permit them to expire. A Fund may buy a put option on an underlying reference instrument owned by the Fund (a protective put) as a hedging technique in an attempt to protect against an anticipated decline in the market value of the underlying reference instrument. Such hedge protection is provided only during the life of the put option when a Fund, as the buyer of the put option, is able to sell the underlying reference instrument at the put exercise price, regardless of any decline in the underlying instrument’s market price. A Fund may also seek to offset a decline in the value of the underlying reference instrument through appreciation in the value of the put option. A put option may also be purchased with the intent of protecting unrealized appreciation of an instrument when the Sub-Adviser deems it desirable to continue to hold the instrument because of tax or other considerations. The premium paid for the put option and any transaction costs would reduce any short-term capital gain that may be available for distribution when the instrument is eventually sold. Buying put options at a time when the buyer does not own the underlying reference instrument allows the buyer to benefit from a decline in the market price of the underlying reference instrument, which generally increases the value of the put option.
If a put option was not terminated in a closing sale transaction when it has remaining value, and if the market price of the underlying reference instrument remains equal to or greater than the exercise price during the life of the put option, the buyer would not make any gain upon exercise of the option and would experience a loss to the extent of the premium paid for the option plus related transaction costs. In order for the purchase of a put option to be profitable, the market price of the underlying reference instrument must decline sufficiently below the exercise price to cover the premium and transaction costs.
Writing call and put options. Writing options may permit the writer to generate additional income in the form of the premium received for writing the option. The writer of an option may have no control over when the underlying reference instruments must be sold (in the case of a call option) or purchased (in the case of a put option) because the writer may be notified of exercise at any time prior to the expiration of the option (for American style options). In general, though, options are infrequently exercised prior to expiration. Whether or not an option expires unexercised, the writer retains the amount of the premium. Writing “covered” call options means that the writer owns the underlying reference instrument that is subject to the call option. Call options may also be written on reference instruments that the writer does not own.
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If a Fund writes a covered call option, any underlying reference instruments that are held by the Fund and are subject to the call option will be earmarked on the books of the Fund as segregated to satisfy its obligations under the option. A Fund will be unable to sell the underlying reference instruments that are subject to the written call option until it either effects a closing transaction with respect to the written call, or otherwise satisfies the conditions for release of the underlying reference instruments from segregation. As the writer of a covered call option, a Fund gives up the potential for capital appreciation above the exercise price of the option should the underlying reference instrument rise in value. If the value of the underlying reference instrument rises above the exercise price of the call option, the reference instrument will likely be “called away,” requiring a Fund to sell the underlying instrument at the exercise price. In that case, the Fund will sell the underlying reference instrument to the option buyer for less than its market value, and the Fund will experience a loss (which will be offset by the premium received by the Fund as the writer of such option). If a call option expires unexercised, a Fund will realize a gain in the amount of the premium received. If the market price of the underlying reference instrument decreases, the call option will not be exercised and the Fund will be able to use the amount of the premium received to hedge against the loss in value of the underlying reference instrument. The exercise price of a call option will be chosen based upon the expected price movement of the underlying reference instrument. The exercise price of a call option may be below, equal to (at-the-money), or above the current value of the underlying reference instrument at the time the option is written.
As the writer of a put option, a Fund has a risk of loss should the underlying reference instrument decline in value. If the value of the underlying reference instrument declines below the exercise price of the put option and the put option is exercised, a Fund, as the writer of the put option, will be required to buy the instrument at the exercise price, which will exceed the market value of the underlying reference instrument at that time. A Fund will incur a loss to the extent that the current market value of the underlying reference instrument is less than the exercise price of the put option. However, the loss will be offset in part by the premium received from the buyer of the put. If a put option written by a Fund expires unexercised, the Fund will realize a gain in the amount of the premium received.
Closing out options (exchange-traded options). If the writer of an option wants to terminate its obligation, the writer may effect a “closing purchase transaction” by buying an option of the same series as the option previously written. The effect of the purchase is that the clearing corporation will cancel the option writer’s position. However, a writer may not effect a closing purchase transaction after being notified of the exercise of an option. Likewise, the buyer of an option may recover all or a portion of the premium that it paid by effecting a “closing sale transaction” by selling an option of the same series as the option previously purchased and receiving a premium on the sale. There is no guarantee that either a closing purchase or a closing sale transaction may be made at a time desired by a Fund. Closing transactions allow a Fund to terminate its positions in written and purchased options. A Fund will realize a profit from a closing transaction if the price of the transaction is less than the premium received from writing the original option (in the case of written options) or is more than the premium paid by a Fund to buy the option (in the case of purchased options). For example, increases in the market price of a call option sold by a Fund will generally reflect increases in the market price of the underlying reference instrument. As a result, any loss resulting from a closing transaction on a written call option is likely to be offset in whole or in part by appreciation of the underlying instrument owned by a Fund.
Over-the-counter options. Like exchange-traded options, OTC options give the holder the right to buy from the writer, in the case of OTC call options, or sell to the writer, in the case of OTC put options, an underlying reference instrument at a stated exercise price. OTC options, however, differ from exchange-traded options in certain material respects.
OTC options are arranged directly with dealers and not with a clearing corporation or exchange. Consequently, there is a risk of non-performance by the dealer, including because of the dealer’s bankruptcy or insolvency. While a Fund uses only counterparties, such as dealers, that meet its credit quality standards, in unusual or extreme market conditions, a counterparty’s creditworthiness and ability to perform may deteriorate rapidly, and the availability of suitable replacement counterparties may become limited. Because there is no exchange, pricing is typically done based on information from market makers or other dealers. OTC options are available for a greater variety of underlying reference instruments and in a wider range of expiration dates and exercise prices than exchange-traded options.
There can be no assurance that a continuous liquid secondary market will exist for any particular OTC option at any specific time. A Fund may be able to realize the value of an OTC option it has purchased only by exercising it or entering into a closing sale transaction with the dealer that issued it. When a Fund writes an OTC option, it generally can close out that option prior to its expiration only by entering into a closing purchase transaction with the dealer with which the Fund originally wrote the option. A Fund may suffer a loss if it is not able to exercise (in the case of a purchased option) or enter into a closing sale transaction on a timely basis.
Interest rate caps. An interest rate cap is a type of OTC option. The buyer of an interest rate cap pays a premium to the seller in exchange for payments at set intervals for which a floating interest rate exceeds an agreed upon interest rate. The floating interest rate may be tied to a reference rate (for example, the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”)), a long-term swap rate or other benchmark. The amount of each payment is determined by reference to a specified “notional” amount of money. Interest rate caps do not involve the delivery of securities, other underlying instruments, or principal amounts. Accordingly, barring counterparty risk, the risk of loss to the purchaser of an interest rate cap is limited to the amount of the premium paid.
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An interest rate cap can be used to increase or decrease exposure to various interest rates, including to hedge interest rate risk. By purchasing an interest rate cap, the buyer of the cap can benefit from rising interest rates while limiting its downside risk to the amount of the premium paid. If a Fund buys an interest rate cap and the Sub-Adviser is correct at predicting the direction of interest rates, the interest rate cap will increase in value. But if the Sub-Adviser is incorrect at predicting the direction, the interest rate cap will expire worthless.
By writing (selling) an interest rate cap, the seller of the cap can benefit by receiving a premium in exchange for assuming an obligation to make payments at set intervals for which a floating interest rate exceeds an agreed upon interest rate. If interest rates rise above the agreed upon cap, the seller’s obligation to make payments may result in losses in excess of the premium received.
Correctly predicting the value of an interest rate cap requires an understanding of the referenced interest rate, and a Fund bears the risk that the Sub-Adviser will not correctly forecast future market events, such as interest rate movements. Interest rate caps also involve the risks associated with derivative instruments generally, as described herein, including the risks associated with OTC options.
Risks of options. A Fund’s options investments involve certain risks, including general risks related to derivative instruments. There can be no assurance that a liquid secondary market on an exchange will exist for any particular option, or at any particular time, and a Fund may have difficulty effecting closing transactions in particular options. Therefore, a Fund would have to exercise the options it purchased in order to realize any profit, thus taking or making delivery of the underlying reference instrument when not desired. A Fund could then incur transaction costs upon the sale of the underlying reference instruments. Similarly, when a Fund cannot effect a closing transaction with respect to a put option it wrote, and the buyer exercises, the Fund would be required to take delivery and would incur transaction costs upon the sale of the underlying reference instruments purchased. If a Fund, as a covered call option writer, is unable to effect a closing purchase transaction in a secondary market, it will not be able to sell the underlying reference instrument until the option expires, it delivers the underlying instrument upon exercise, or it segregates enough liquid assets to purchase the underlying reference instrument at the marked-to-market price during the term of the option. When trading options on non-U.S. exchanges or in the OTC market, many of the protections afforded to exchange participants will not be available. For example, there may be no daily price fluctuation limits, and adverse market movements could therefore continue to an unlimited extent over an indefinite period of time.
The effectiveness of an options strategy for hedging depends on the degree to which price movements in the underlying reference instruments correlate with price movements in the relevant portion of a Fund’s portfolio that is being hedged. In addition, a Fund bears the risk that the prices of its portfolio investments will not move in the same amount as the option it has purchased or sold for hedging purposes, or that there may be a negative correlation that would result in a loss on both the investments and the option. If the Sub-Adviser is not successful in using options in managing a Fund’s investments, the Fund’s performance will be worse than if the Sub-Adviser did not employ such strategies.
Illiquid Investments and Restricted Securities
Pursuant to Rule 22e-4 under the 1940 Act, a Fund may not acquire any “illiquid investment” if, immediately after the acquisition, a Fund would have invested more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments that are assets. An “illiquid investment” is any investment that a Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. The Funds have implemented a liquidity risk management program and related procedures to identify illiquid investments pursuant to Rule 22e-4. The 15% limit shall be observed continuously and, if exceeded, such exceedance shall be addressed by the Fund consistent with the requirements of Rule 22e-4.
Each Fund may purchase certain restricted securities that can be resold to institutional investors and which may be determined not to be illiquid investments pursuant to a Fund’s liquidity risk management program. In many cases, those securities are traded in the institutional market under Rule 144A under the 1933 Act and are called Rule 144A securities.
Investments in illiquid investments involve more risks than investments in similar securities that are readily marketable. Illiquid investments may trade at a discount from comparable, more liquid investments. Investment of a Fund’s assets in illiquid investments may restrict the ability of a Fund to dispose of its investments in a timely fashion and for a fair price as well as its ability to take advantage of market opportunities. The risks associated with illiquidity will be particularly acute where a Fund’s operations require cash, such as when a Fund has net redemptions, and could result in the Fund borrowing to meet short-term cash requirements or incurring losses on the sale of illiquid investments.
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Illiquid investments are often restricted securities sold in private placement transactions between issuers and their purchasers and may be neither listed on an exchange nor traded in other established markets. In many cases, the privately placed securities may not be freely transferable under the laws of the applicable jurisdiction or due to contractual restrictions on resale. To the extent privately placed securities may be resold in privately negotiated transactions, the prices realized from the sales could be less than those originally paid by a Fund or less than the fair value of the securities. In addition, issuers whose securities are not publicly traded may not be subject to the disclosure and other investor protection requirements that may be applicable if their securities were publicly traded. If any privately placed securities held by a Fund are required to be registered under the securities laws of one or more jurisdictions before being resold, a Fund may be required to bear the expenses of registration. Private placement investments may involve investments in smaller, less seasoned issuers, which may involve greater risks than investments in more established companies. These issuers may have limited product lines, markets or financial resources, or they may be dependent on a limited management group. In making investments in private placement securities, a Fund may obtain access to material non-public information, which may restrict a Fund’s ability to conduct transactions in those securities.
When-Issued Securities and Forward Commitments
A Fund may purchase securities offered on a “when-issued” and “forward commitment” basis (including a delayed delivery basis). A when-issued security is one whose terms are available and for which a market exists, but which has not been issued. When the Fund engages in when-issued transactions, it relies on the other party to complete the sale. If the other party fails to complete the sale, the Fund may miss the opportunity to obtain the security at a favorable price or yield. Securities purchased on a “when-issued” or “forward commitment basis” are securities not available for immediate delivery despite the fact that a market exists for those securities. A purchase is made on a “delayed delivery” basis when the transaction is structured to occur sometime in the future.
When these transactions are negotiated, the price, which is generally expressed in yield terms, is fixed at the time the commitment is made, but delivery and payment for the securities take place at a later date. Normally, the settlement date occurs within two months after the transaction, but delayed settlements beyond two months may be negotiated. During the period between a commitment and settlement, no payment is made for the securities purchased by the purchaser and, thus, no interest accrues to the purchaser from the transaction. At the time the Fund makes the commitment to purchase securities on a when-issued basis or forward commitment, the Fund will record the transaction as a purchase and thereafter reflect the value each day of such securities in determining its NAV. When purchasing a security on a when-issued basis, the Fund assumes the rights and risks of ownership of the security, including the risk of price and yield changes. At the time of settlement, the value of the security may be more or less than the purchase price. The yield available in the market when the delivery takes place also may be higher than those obtained in the transaction itself. Because the Fund does not pay for the security until the delivery date, these risks are in addition to the risks associated with its other investments.
Decisions to enter into “when-issued” transactions will be considered on a case-by-case basis when necessary to maintain continuity in a company’s index membership. The Fund will enter into such transaction consistent with the applicable requirements of Rule 18f-4.
Investment Company Securities
Each Fund may invest in the securities of other investment companies, including money market funds and ETFs, subject to applicable limitations under Section 12(d)(1) of the 1940 Act. Investing in another pooled vehicle exposes a Fund to all the risks of that pooled vehicle. If a Fund invests in and, thus, is a shareholder of, another investment company, such Fund’s shareholders will indirectly bear the Fund’s proportionate share of the fees and expenses paid by such other investment company, including advisory fees, in addition to both the management fees payable directly by the Fund to the Sub-Adviser and the other expenses that the Fund bears directly in connection with its own operations.
Pursuant to Section 12(d)(1), a Fund may invest in the securities of another investment company (the “acquired company”) provided that the Fund, immediately after such purchase or acquisition, does not own in the aggregate: (1) more than 3% of the total outstanding voting stock of the acquired company; (2) securities issued by the acquired company having an aggregate value in excess of 5% of the value of the total assets of the Fund; or (3) securities issued by the acquired company and all other investment companies (other than treasury stock of the Fund) having an aggregate value in excess of 10% of the value of the total assets of the Fund. To the extent allowed by law or regulation, each Fund may invest its assets in securities of investment companies that are money market funds in excess of the limits discussed above.
However, registered investment companies are permitted to invest in other investment companies beyond the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1), subject to certain conditions. A Fund may rely on Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act, which provides an exemption from Section 12(d)(1) that allows the Fund to invest beyond the stated limits in other registered funds, including ETFs, if the Fund satisfies certain conditions specified in the Rule, including, among other conditions, that the Fund and its advisory group will not control (individually or in the aggregate) an acquired fund (e.g., hold more than 25% of the outstanding voting securities of an acquired fund that is a registered open-end management investment company).
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A Fund may rely on Section 12(d)(1)(F) and Rule 12d1-3 of the 1940 Act, which provide an exemption from Section 12(d)(1) that allows the Fund to invest all of its assets in other registered funds, including ETFs, if, among other conditions: (1) the Fund, together with its affiliates, acquires no more than three percent of the outstanding voting stock of any acquired fund; and (2) the sales load charged on Shares is no greater than the limits set forth in Rule 2830 of the Conduct Rules of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”).
Money Market Funds
Each Fund may invest in underlying money market funds that either seek to maintain a stable $1 NAV (“stable NAV money market funds”) or that have a share price that fluctuates (“variable NAV market funds”). Although an underlying stable NAV money market fund seeks to maintain a stable $1 NAV, it is possible for a Fund to lose money by investing in such a money market fund. Because the share price of an underlying variable NAV market fund will fluctuate, when a Fund sells the shares it owns they may be worth more or less than what the Fund originally paid for them. In addition, neither type of money market fund is designed to offer capital appreciation. Certain underlying money market funds may impose a fee upon the sale of shares or may temporarily suspend the ability to sell shares if such fund’s liquidity falls below required minimums.
Other Short-Term Instruments
Each Fund may invest in short-term instruments, including money market instruments, on an ongoing basis to provide liquidity or for other reasons. Money market instruments are generally short-term investments that may include but are not limited to: (1) shares of money market funds; (2) obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies, or instrumentalities (including government-sponsored enterprises); (3) negotiable certificates of deposit (“CDs”), bankers’ acceptances, fixed time deposits, and other obligations of U.S. and foreign banks (including foreign branches) and similar institutions; (4) commercial paper rated at the date of purchase “Prime-1” by Moody’s Investors Service or “A-1” by S&P Global Ratings or, if unrated, of comparable quality as determined by the Sub-Adviser; (5) non-convertible corporate debt securities (e.g., bonds and debentures) with remaining maturities at the date of purchase of not more than 397 days and that satisfy the rating requirements set forth in Rule 2a-7 under the 1940 Act; and (6) short-term U.S. dollar-denominated obligations of foreign banks (including U.S. branches) that, in the opinion of the Sub-Adviser, are of comparable quality to obligations of U.S. banks which may be purchased by a Fund. Any of these instruments may be purchased on a current or a forward-settled basis. Money market instruments also include shares of money market funds. Time deposits are non-negotiable deposits maintained in banking institutions for specified periods of time at stated interest rates. Bankers’ acceptances are time drafts drawn on commercial banks by borrowers, usually in connection with international transactions.
Securities Lending
If approved by the Board, each Fund may lend portfolio securities to certain creditworthy borrowers. The borrowers provide collateral that is maintained in an amount at least equal to the current value of the securities loaned. A Fund may terminate a loan at any time and obtain the return of the securities loaned. The lending Fund receives the value of any interest or cash or non-cash distributions paid on the loaned securities. Distributions received on loaned securities in lieu of dividend payments (i.e., substitute payments) would not be considered qualified dividend income.
With respect to loans that are collateralized by cash, the borrower will be entitled to receive a fee based on the amount of cash collateral. A Fund is compensated by the difference between the amount earned on the reinvestment of cash collateral and the fee paid to the borrower. In the case of collateral other than cash, a Fund is compensated by a fee paid by the borrower equal to a percentage of the value of the loaned securities. Any cash collateral may be reinvested in certain short-term instruments either directly on behalf of the lending Fund or through one or more joint accounts or money market funds, which may include those managed by the Adviser or Sub-Adviser.
A Fund may pay a portion of the interest or fees earned from securities lending to a borrower as described above, and to one or more securities lending agents approved by the Board who administer the lending program for the Funds in accordance with guidelines approved by the Board. In such capacity, the lending agent causes the delivery of loaned securities from a Fund to borrowers, arranges for the return of loaned securities to the Fund at the termination of a loan, requests deposit of collateral, monitors the daily value of the loaned securities and collateral, requests that borrowers add to the collateral when required by the loan agreements, and provides recordkeeping and accounting services necessary for the operation of the program.
Securities lending involves exposure to certain risks, including operational risk (i.e., the risk of losses resulting from problems in the settlement and accounting process), “gap” risk (i.e., the risk of a mismatch between the return on cash collateral reinvestments and the fees a Fund has agreed to pay a borrower), and credit, legal, counterparty and market risk. In the event a borrower does not return a Fund’s securities as agreed, the Fund may experience losses if the proceeds received from liquidating the collateral do not at least equal the value of the loaned security at the time the collateral is liquidated plus the transaction costs incurred in purchasing replacement securities.
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Tax Risks
As with any investment, you should consider how your investment in Shares will be taxed. The tax information in the Prospectus and this SAI is provided as general information. You should consult your own tax professional about the tax consequences of an investment in Shares.
Unless your investment in Shares is made through a tax-deferred retirement account or other tax-advantaged arrangement, such as an individual retirement account, you need to be aware of the possible tax consequences when a Fund makes distributions or you sell Shares.
Temporary Defensive Strategies
Under normal market conditions, each Fund will invest according to its principal investment strategies. For temporary defensive purposes during adverse market, economic, political, or other conditions, a Fund may invest up to 100% of its assets in cash or cash equivalents, such as U.S. Government obligations, investment grade debt securities and other money market instruments. Taking a temporary defensive position may result in such Fund not achieving its investment objective.
RECENT MARKET CIRCUMSTANCES
The current political climate has intensified concerns about the relationship between China and the United States, as each country has imposed tariffs on the other country’s products. These actions may trigger a significant reduction in international trade, the oversupply of certain manufactured goods, substantial price reductions of goods and possible failure of individual companies and/or large segments of China’s export industry, which could have a negative impact on a Fund’s performance. U.S. companies that source material and goods from China and those that make large amounts of sales in China would be particularly vulnerable to an escalation of trade tensions. Uncertainty regarding the outcome of the trade tensions and the potential for a trade war could cause the U.S. dollar to decline against safe haven currencies, such as the Japanese yen and the euro. Events such as these and their consequences are difficult to predict and it is unclear whether further tariffs may be imposed or other escalating actions may be taken in the future.
In addition, global economies and financial markets are becoming increasingly interconnected, and political, economic and other conditions and events (including, but not limited to, natural disasters, pandemics, epidemics, and social unrest) in one country, region, or financial market may adversely impact issuers in a different country, region or financial market. Furthermore, the occurrence of, among other events, natural or man-made disasters, severe weather or geological events, fires, floods, earthquakes, outbreaks of disease (such as COVID-19, avian influenza or H1N1/09), epidemics, pandemics, malicious acts, cyber-attacks, terrorist acts or the occurrence of climate change, also may adversely impact the performance of a Fund. Such events may result in, among other things, closing borders, exchange closures, health screenings, healthcare service delays, quarantines, cancellations, supply chain disruptions, lower consumer demand, market volatility and general uncertainty. Such events could adversely impact issuers, markets and economies over the short- and long-term, including in ways that cannot necessarily be foreseen. A Fund could be negatively impacted if the value of a portfolio holding were harmed by such political or economic conditions or events. Moreover, such negative political and economic conditions and events could disrupt the processes necessary for a Fund’s operations.
Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 resulted in the United States, other countries and certain international organizations levying broad economic sanctions against Russia. These sanctions froze certain Russian assets and prohibited, among other things, trading in certain Russian securities and doing business with specific Russian corporate entities, large financial institutions, officials and oligarchs. The sanctions also included the removal of some Russian banks from the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT), the electronic network that connects banks globally, and imposed restrictive measures to prevent the Russian Central Bank from undermining the impact of the sanctions. The United States and other countries have also imposed economic sanctions on Belarus and may impose sanctions on other countries that support Russia’s military invasion. A number of large corporations and U.S. states have also announced plans to divest interests or otherwise curtail business dealings with certain Russian businesses. These sanctions and any additional sanctions or other intergovernmental actions that may be undertaken against Russia or other countries that support Russia’s military invasion in the future may result in the devaluation of Russian or other affected currencies, a downgrade in the sanctioned country’s credit rating, and a decline in the value and liquidity of Russian securities and securities of issuers in other countries that support the invasion. The potential for wider conflict may further decrease the value and liquidity of certain Russian securities and securities of issuers in other countries affected by the invasion. In addition, the ability to price, buy, sell, receive, or deliver such securities also is affected due to these measures. For example, a fund may be prohibited from investing in securities issued by companies subject to such sanctions. In addition, the sanctions may require a fund to freeze its existing investments in companies operating in or having dealings with Russia or other sanctioned countries, which would prevent a fund from selling these investments. Any exposure that a fund may have to Russian counterparties or counterparties in other sanctioned countries also could negatively impact the fund’s portfolio.
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The extent and duration of Russia’s military actions and the repercussions of such actions, including any retaliatory actions or countermeasures that may be taken by Russia or others subject to sanctions (such as cyberattacks on other governments, corporations or individuals) are unpredictable, but could result in significant market disruptions, including in the oil and natural gas markets, and may negatively affect global supply chains, inflation and global growth. These and any related events could significantly impact a Fund’s performance and the value of an investment in the Fund, even beyond any direct exposure the Fund may have to Russian issuers or issuers in other countries affected by the invasion.
Rates of inflation have recently risen. Inflation has affected the global economy and global financial markets. Inflation occurs when prices increase and the purchasing power of money decreases. The value of assets or income from an investment may be worth less in the future as inflation decreases the value of money. As inflation increases, the real value of a fund’s assets can decline as can the value of a fund’s distributions. Inflation often is accompanied or followed by a recession, or period of decline in economic activity, which may include job loss and other hardships and may cause the value of securities to go down generally. Governments around the world, including the U.S. government, have taken steps designed to manage inflation, including raising interest rates, and interest rates may remain elevated or may rise further.
The impact of these developments in the near– and long-term is unknown and could have additional adverse effects on economies, financial markets and asset valuations around the world.
The Trust has adopted the following investment restrictions as fundamental policies with respect to the Funds. These restrictions cannot be changed with respect to a Fund without the approval of the holders of a majority of such 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 relevant 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 relevant Fund.
Except with the approval of a majority of the outstanding voting securities, a Fund may not:
1. | Borrow money or issue senior securities (as defined under the 1940 Act), except to the extent permitted under the 1940 Act. |
2. | Make loans, except to the extent permitted under the 1940 Act. |
3. | Purchase or sell real estate unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments, except to the extent permitted under the 1940 Act. This shall not prevent the Fund from investing in securities or other instruments backed by real estate, real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) or securities of companies engaged in the real estate business. |
4. | Purchase or sell commodities unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments, except to the extent permitted under the 1940 Act. This shall not prevent the Fund from purchasing or selling options and futures contracts or from investing in securities or other instruments backed by physical commodities. |
5. | Underwrite securities issued by other persons, except to the extent permitted under the 1940 Act. |
6. | Concentrate its investments (i.e., hold more than 25% of its total assets) in any industry or group of related industries. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities), repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities, investment companies, and tax-exempt securities of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions are not considered to be issued by members of any industry. |
In addition to the investment restrictions adopted as fundamental policies as set forth above, the Funds have the following non-fundamental policies, which may be changed without a shareholder vote:
1. | Without providing 60 days prior notice, the TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF may not change its investment policy to, under normal circumstances, invest at least 80% of the value of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of mid-capitalization companies that exhibit attributes of a quality growth company. |
2. | Without providing 60 days prior notice, the TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF may not change its investment policy to, under normal circumstances, invest at least 80% of the value of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of small- and mid-capitalization companies that exhibit attributes of a quality growth company. |
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3. | Without providing 60 days prior notice, the TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF may not change its investment policy to, under normal circumstances, invest at least 80% of the value of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in equity securities of small-capitalization companies that exhibit attributes of a quality growth company. |
In determining its compliance with the fundamental investment restriction on concentration, each Fund will look through to the underlying holdings of any investment company that publicly publishes its underlying holdings on a daily basis. In addition, if an underlying investment company does not publish its holdings daily but has a policy to concentrate or has otherwise disclosed that it is concentrated in a particular industry or group of related industries, a Fund will consider such investment company as being invested in such industry or group of related industries. Additionally, in determining its compliance with the fundamental investment restriction on concentration, each Fund will look through to the user or use of private activity municipal bonds to determine their industry.
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 will be observed continuously.
The following descriptions of certain provisions of the 1940 Act may assist investors in understanding the above policies and restrictions:
Concentration. The SEC has defined concentration as investing more than 25% of an investment company’s total assets in a particular industry or group of industries, with certain exceptions.
Borrowing. The 1940 Act presently allows a fund to borrow from any bank (including pledging, mortgaging or hypothecating assets) in an amount up to 33 1/3% of its total assets (not including temporary borrowings not in excess of 5% of its total assets).
Senior Securities. Senior securities may include any obligation or instrument issued by a fund evidencing indebtedness. The 1940 Act generally prohibits funds from issuing senior securities, although it does not treat certain transactions as senior securities, such as certain borrowings, short sales, reverse repurchase agreements, firm commitment agreements and standby commitments, if entered into and maintained in compliance with Rule 18f-4.
Lending. The 1940 Act does not permit a fund to make loans if, as a result, more than 33 1/3% of its total assets would be lent to other parties, except that a fund may: (i) purchase or hold debt instruments in accordance with its investment objective and policies; (ii) enter into repurchase agreements; and (iii) engage in securities lending.
Underwriting. Under the 1940 Act, underwriting securities involves a fund purchasing securities directly from an issuer for the purpose of selling (distributing) them or participating in any such activity either directly or indirectly.
Real Estate. The 1940 Act does not directly restrict an investment company’s ability to invest in real estate, but does require that every investment company have a fundamental investment policy governing such investments. The Fund will not purchase or sell real estate, except that, to the extent permitted by applicable law, the Fund may purchase securities issued by companies that own or invest in real estate (including real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), securities that are secured by interests in real estate, and securities that represent interests in real estate. The Fund also may acquire and dispose of real estate or interests in real estate acquired through the exercise of its rights as a holder of debt obligations secured by real estate or interests therein.
Commodities. The Funds will not purchase or sell physical commodities or commodities contracts, except that a Fund may purchase: (i) securities issued by companies which own or invest in commodities or commodities contracts; and (ii) commodities contracts relating to financial instruments, such as financial futures contracts and options on such contracts.
A discussion of exchange listing and trading matters associated with an investment in each Fund is contained in the Prospectus. The discussion below supplements, and should be read in conjunction with, the Prospectus.
Shares of each Fund are approved for listing and trading on the Exchange. Shares trade on the Exchange at prices that may differ from their NAV. There can be no assurance that a Fund will continue to meet the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund’s shares.
The Exchange will consider the suspension of trading in, and will initiate delisting procedures of, the shares of a Fund under any of the following circumstances: (1) if the Exchange becomes aware that the Fund is no longer eligible to operate in reliance on Rule 6c-11 under the 1940 Act; (2) if any of the continued listing requirements set forth in the Exchange’s rules are not continuously maintained; (3) following the initial twelve-month period beginning upon the commencement of trading of the Fund, there are fewer than 50 record and/or beneficial holders of the Fund’s shares; or (4) such other event occurs or condition exists that, in the opinion of the Exchange, makes further dealings on the Exchange inadvisable. In addition, the Exchange will remove the shares from listing and trading upon termination of the Trust or a Fund.
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As in the case of other publicly traded securities, when you buy or sell shares through a broker, you will incur a brokerage commission determined by that broker.
The Trust reserves the right to adjust the share price of each Fund in the future to 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 relevant Fund.
The base and trading currencies of each Fund is the U.S. dollar. The base currency is the currency in which a Fund’s NAV per share is calculated and the trading currency is the currency in which shares of the Fund are listed and traded on the Exchange.
Board Responsibilities. The management and affairs of the Trust and its series, including the Funds described in this SAI, are overseen by the Board. The Board elects the officers of the Trust who are responsible for administering the day-to-day operations of the Trust and the Funds. The Board has approved contracts, as described below, under which certain companies provide essential services to the Trust.
The Trustees’ role in risk oversight begins before the inception of the Funds, at which time certain of the Funds’ service providers present the Board with information concerning the investment objectives, strategies, and risks of each Fund, as well as proposed investment limitations for each Fund. Additionally, the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser(s), provide the Board with an overview of, among other things, its investment philosophy, brokerage practices, and compliance infrastructure. Thereafter, the Board continues its oversight function as various personnel, including the Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer, as well as personnel of the Adviser and other service providers, such as the Fund’s independent accountants, make periodic reports to the Audit Committee or to the Board with respect to various aspects of risk management. The Board and the Audit Committee oversee efforts by management and service providers to manage risks to which the Funds may be exposed.
The Board is responsible for overseeing the nature, extent, and quality of the services provided to the Funds by the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser and receives information about those services at its regular meetings. In addition, in connection with its consideration of whether to renew the advisory agreement with the Adviser and the sub-advisory agreement with the Sub-Adviser, the Board meets with the and Sub-Adviser to review its services. Among other things, the Board regularly considers their adherence to Fund investment restrictions and compliance with various Fund policies and procedures and with applicable securities regulations. The Board also reviews information about each Fund’s performance and each Fund’s investments, including, for example, portfolio holdings schedules.
The Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer reports regularly to the Board to review and discuss compliance issues and Fund, Adviser, and Sub-Adviser risk assessments. At least annually, the Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer provides the Board with a report reviewing the adequacy and effectiveness of the Trust’s policies and procedures and those of its service providers, including the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser. The report addresses the operation of the policies and procedures of the Trust and each service provider since the date of the last report; any material changes to the policies and procedures since the date of the last report; any recommendations for material changes to the policies and procedures; and any material compliance matters since the date of the last report.
The Board has designated the Adviser as each Fund’s valuation designee that, subject to the oversight of the Board, is responsible for implementing the Trust’s valuation policy with respect to the Funds and providing reports to the Board concerning Fund investments for which market quotations are not readily available and, thus, are fair valued by the Adviser as valuation designee. Annually, the independent registered public accounting firm reviews with the Audit Committee its audit of each Fund’s financial statements, focusing on major areas of risk encountered by each Fund and noting any significant deficiencies or material weaknesses in a Fund’s internal controls. Additionally, in connection with its oversight function, the Board oversees Fund management’s implementation of disclosure controls and procedures, which are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Trust in its periodic reports with the SEC are recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the required time periods. The Board also oversees the Trust’s internal controls over financial reporting, which comprise policies and procedures designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of the Trust’s financial reporting and the preparation of the Trust’s financial statements.
From their review of these reports and discussions with the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser, the Chief Compliance Officer, the independent registered public accounting firm, and other service providers, the Board and the Audit Committee learn in detail about the material risks of the Funds, thereby facilitating a dialogue about how management and service providers identify and mitigate those risks.
The Board recognizes that not all risks that may affect the Funds can be identified and/or quantified, that it may not be practical or cost-effective to eliminate or mitigate certain risks, that it may be necessary to bear certain risks (such as investment-related risks) to achieve a Fund’s goals, and that the processes, procedures and controls employed to address certain risks may be limited in their effectiveness. Moreover, reports received by the Trustees as to risk management matters are typically summaries of the relevant information. Most of each Fund’s investment management and business affairs are carried out by or through the Adviser, the Sub-Adviser, and other service providers each of which has an independent interest in risk management but whose policies and the methods by which one or more risk management functions are carried out may differ from each Fund’s and each other’s in the setting of priorities, the resources available or the effectiveness of relevant controls. As a result of the foregoing and other factors, the Board’s ability to monitor and manage risk, as a practical matter, is subject to limitations.
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Members of the Board. There are four members of the Board, all of whom are not interested persons of the Trust, as that term is defined in the 1940 Act (the “Independent Trustees”). Robert Howard serves as Chairman of the Board and serves as a liaison for the Board with the Trust’s service providers, officers, and legal counsel to discuss ideas informally, and sets the agenda for meetings of the Board. Independent Trustees comprise 100% of the Board. The Trust has determined its leadership structure, in which the Chairman of the Board is an Independent Trustee, is appropriate given the specific characteristics and circumstances of the Trust.
Set forth below is information about each of the persons currently serving as a Trustee of the Trust. The address of each Trustee of the Trust is The 2023 ETF Series Trust c/o Tidal ETF Services, LLC, 234 West Florida Street, Suite 203, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204.
Name and Year of Birth |
Position(s) Held with the Trust |
Term of Office and Length of Time Served1 |
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years |
Number of Portfolios in Fund Complex Overseen By Trustee |
Other Directorships Held by Trustee During the Past 5 Years |
Robert Howard (1971)
|
Trustee | Since 2023 | Founder and Chief Investment Officer, Sierra Brook Capital, LLC (since 2016); Founder and President, Sierra Investments PR LLC (since 2022) | [] | Trustee and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The 2023 ETF Series Trust II ([-] Portfolios) (2023-present) |
Joan Binstock (1954)
|
Trustee | Since 2023 | Partner, Chief Financial and Operations Officer, Lord Abbett & Co. LLC (1999-2018); Lovell Minnick Partners, Advisers Counsel (since 2018) | [] | Trustee of The 2023 ETF Series Trust II ([-] Portfolios) (2023-present); Independent Director, Confluence Technologies (since 2023); Independent Director, KKR Real Estate Select Trust Inc. (since 2020); Independent Director, Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (since 2019); Independent Director, BBH Trust ([-] portfolios) (since 2019); Independent Director, Simcorp A/S (2018-2023) |
Ellen Needham (1967)
|
Trustee | Since 2023 | Senior Managing Director, State Street Global Advisors (1992-2023); Chairman, SSGA Funds Management, Inc. (2020-2023); President and Director, SSGA Funds Management, Inc. (2001-2023); Director, State Street Global Advisors, Funds Distributors, LLC (2017-2023) | [] | Independent Director, Goldentree Opportunistic Credit Fund (June 2025-present); Independent Trustee, Russell Investment Company and Russell Investment Funds ([-] portfolios) (2024-present); Trustee of The 2023 ETF Series Trust II ([-] Portfolios) (2023-present); Interested Director, SSGA SPDR ETFs Europe I plc (2020-2023); Interested Director, SSGA SPDR ETFs Europe II plc (2020-2023); Interested Trustee, State Street Navigator Securities Lending Trust, State Street Institutional Investment Trust, State Street Institutional Funds, State Street Master Funds, SSGA Funds, and Elfun Funds (2019-2023); Director, State Street Variable Insurance Series Funds, Inc. (2019-2023) |
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Name and Year of Birth |
Position(s) Held with the Trust |
Term of Office and Length of Time Served1 |
Principal Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years |
Number of Portfolios in Fund Complex Overseen By Trustee |
Other Directorships Held by Trustee During the Past 5 Years |
Thomas Lydon, Jr. (1960)
|
Trustee | Since 2023 | President, Lydon Asset Management (dba Global Trends Investments) (since 1996); Vice Chairman, VetaFi LLC (2021-2024); Co-Chief Executive Officer, ETF Flows LLC (2019-2022). | [] | Trustee of The 2023 ETF Series Trust II ([-] Portfolios) (2023-present); Independent Trustee, Guggenheim Managed Funds (since 2005); Director, US Global Investors, Inc. (since 1995) |
1 | Each Trustee shall serve during the continued life of the Trust until he or she dies, resigns, is declared incompetent by a court of competent jurisdiction, or is removed. |
Individual Trustee Qualifications. The Trust has concluded that each of the Trustees should serve on the Board because of their ability to review and understand information about the Fund provided to them by management, to identify and request other information they may deem relevant to the performance of their duties, to question management and other service providers regarding material factors bearing on the management and administration of the Fund, and to exercise their business judgment in a manner that serves the best interests of the Fund’s shareholders. The Trust has concluded that each of the Trustees should serve as a Trustee based on their own experience, qualifications, attributes and skills as described below.
The Trust has concluded that Mr. Howard should serve as a Trustee because of his substantial experience in the financial services industry. He is currently the Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Sierra Brook Capital, LLC and Founder and President of Sierra Investments PR LLC. Mr. Howard is a former partner at both Goldman, Sachs & Co. (“GS”) and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (“KKR”) as well as a former Managing Director at Harvard Management Company (“HMC”). He spent over 15 years at GS where he was eventually the head of Goldman Sachs Principal Strategies’ Americas equities/credit investment businesses. Subsequently, he was the head of KKR Equity Strategies, KKR’s first-ever hedge fund, and then head of the US long/short equity business within HMC. In addition, Mr. Howard holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation from the CFA Institute and is currently the Treasurer of the Harvard Club of New Jersey.
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The Trust has concluded that Ms. Needham should serve as a Trustee because she has more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry, including serving in executive management roles with financial services institutions. Her previous roles include Senior Managing Director of State Street Global Advisors, Head of Global Funds Management, and President of SSGA Funds Management, Inc., director of SSGA Funds Management, Inc., and director of State Street Global Advisors Funds Distributors, LLC. In these roles, Ms. Needham was responsible for managing firm-wide processes that focus on governance, fund structure, sub-adviser oversight, tax, product viability, distribution, ongoing monitoring and regulatory coordination across all products globally. Ms. Needham also served as an interested director for the State Street Institutional Investment Trust, State Street Master Funds, Navigator Trust, SSGA Funds, Elfun Funds, State Street Institutional Funds State Street Variable Insurance Funds, Inc., SPDR Europe I plc, and SPDR Europe II plc.
The Trust has concluded that Ms. Binstock should serve as a Trustee because of the experience she has gained as Chief Financial and Operating Officer of a registered investment adviser for 20 years. Ms. Binstock also is a licensed Certified Public Accountant. She holds a M.B.A. from New York University and a B.A. from the University of Binghamton.
The Trust has concluded that Mr. Lydon should serve as a Trustee because of his extensive experience in the financial services industry. Mr. Lydon currently serves as President of Global Trends Investments, a registered investment adviser. He also serves as a member of the board of U.S. Global Investors, Inc., a registered investment adviser and transfer agent, and Guggenheim Managed Funds, a complex of investment companies. Mr. Lydon previously served as the Vice Chairman of VettaFi, an index provider and digital fund distribution platform.
Board Committees. The Board has established the following committees:
Audit Committee. The Board has an Audit Committee that is composed of each of the Independent Trustees of the Trust. The Audit Committee operates under a written charter approved by the Board. The principal responsibilities of the Audit Committee include: recommending which firm to engage as the Funds’ independent registered public accounting firm and whether to terminate this relationship; reviewing the independent registered public accounting firm’s compensation, the proposed scope and terms of its engagement, and the firm’s independence; pre-approving audit and non-audit services provided by the Funds’ independent registered public accounting firm to the Trust and certain other affiliated entities; serving as a channel of communication between the independent registered public accounting firm and the Trustees; reviewing the results of each external audit, including any qualifications in the independent registered public accounting firm’s opinion, any related management letter, management’s responses to recommendations made by the independent registered public accounting firm in connection with the audit, reports submitted to the Committee by the internal auditing department of the Trust’s administrator that are material to the Trust as a whole, if any, and management’s responses to any such reports; reviewing the Funds’ audited financial statements and considering any significant disputes between the Trust’s management and the independent registered public accounting firm that arose in connection with the preparation of those financial statements; considering, in consultation with the independent registered public accounting firm and the Trust’s senior internal accounting executive, if any, the independent registered public accounting firm’s report on the adequacy of the Trust’s internal financial controls; reviewing, in consultation with the Funds’ independent registered public accounting firm, major changes regarding auditing and accounting principles and practices to be followed when preparing each Fund’s financial statements; and other audit related matters. The Audit Committee also serves as the Trust’s Qualified Legal Compliance Committee, which provides a mechanism for reporting legal violations. The Audit Committee meets periodically, as necessary, and met [-] times during the most recently completed fiscal year.
Nominating Committee. The Board has a Nominating Committee that is composed of each of the Independent Trustees of the Trust. The Nominating Committee operates under a written charter approved by the Board. The principal responsibility of the Nominating Committee is to consider, recommend and nominate candidates to fill vacancies on the Board, if any. The Nominating Committee generally will not consider nominees recommended by shareholders. The Nominating Committee meets periodically, as necessary, and met [-] times during the most recently completed fiscal year.
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Principal Officers of the Trust.
Set forth below is information about each of the persons currently serving as officers of the Trust. The address of each officer of the Trust is the 2023 ETF Series Trust c/o Tidal ETF Services, LLC, 234 West Florida Street, Suite 203, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204.
Name
and Year of Birth |
Position(s)
Held with the Trust |
Term
of Office and Length of Time Served1 |
Principal
Occupation(s) During Past 5 Years |
Eric
W. Falkeis Born: 1973 |
President | Indefinite
term; since 2025 |
Chief Executive Officer, Tidal ETF Services LLC (since 2018); Chief Operating Officer (and other positions), Rafferty Asset Management, LLC (2013 to 2018) and Direxion Advisors, LLC (2017 to 2018). |
Aaron
J. Perkovich Born: 1973 |
Treasurer | Indefinite
term; Since 2025 |
Senior Vice President of Fund Administration (since 2024), Head of Fund Administration (2023 to 2024) Tidal Investments LLC; Fund Administration Manager (2022 to 2023), Tidal ETF Services LLC; Assistant Director – Investments, Mason Street Advisors, LLC (2021 to 2022); Vice President, U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC (2006 to 2021). |
Ally
L. Mueller Born: 1979 |
Senior Vice President | Indefinite
term; since 2025 |
SVP of Launches & Client Success Management (since 2025), Head of ETF Launches and Client Success (since 2023 to 2024), Head of ETF Launches and Finance Director (2019 to 2023), Tidal ETF Services LLC; Vice President, Tidal Trust I (2022 to 2024). |
Lissa
M. Richter Born: 1979 |
Vice President and Secretary | Indefinite
term; since 2025 |
VP of Fund Governance and Compliance (since 2024), ETF Regulatory Manager, Tidal ETF Services LLC (2021 to 2024); Senior Paralegal, Rafferty Asset Management, LLC (2013 to 2020); Senior Paralegal, Officer, U.S Bancorp Fund Services LLC, (2005 to 2013). |
William
H. Woolverton, Esq. Born: 1951 |
Chief Compliance Officer and Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer | Indefinite
term; since 2025 |
Chief Compliance Officer (since 2023), Compliance Advisor (2022 to 2023), Tidal Investments LLC; Chief Compliance Officer, Tidal ETF Services LLC (since 2022); Senior Compliance Advisor, ACA Global (2020 to 2022); Operating Partner, Altamont Capital Partners (private equity firm) (2021 to present); Director, Hadron Specialty Insurance Company; Managing Director and Head of Legal - US, Waystone (global governance solutions) (2016 to 2019). |
1 | Each officer serves at the pleasure of the Board. |
Trustee Ownership of Shares. The following table shows the dollar amount ranges of each Trustee’s “beneficial ownership” of shares of each Fund, including any registered investment company within the same family of funds and each other series of the Trust as of the end of the most recently completed calendar year. Dollar amount ranges disclosed are established by the SEC. “Beneficial ownership” is determined in accordance with Rule 16a-1(a)(2) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”).
As of the date of this SAI, the Funds have not yet commenced operations and no Shares were outstanding. As a result, none of the Trustees owned share of the Funds.
Name | Dollar Range of Fund Shares Owned |
Aggregate Dollar Range of Shares Owned In Series of the Trust |
Robert Howard | None | Over $100,000 |
Joan Binstock | None | Over $100,000 |
Ellen Needham | None | None |
Thomas Lydon, Jr. | None | None |
As of [Date], neither the Independent Trustees nor members of their immediate family, owned securities beneficially or of record in the Adviser, the Distributor (as defined below), or an affiliate of the Adviser or Distributor. Accordingly, neither the Independent Trustees nor members of their immediate family, have direct or indirect interest, the value of which exceeds $120,000, in the Adviser, the Distributor or any of their affiliates. In addition, during the two most recently completed calendar years, neither the Independent Trustees nor members of their immediate families have conducted any transactions (or series of transactions) in which the amount involved exceeds $120,000 and to which the Adviser, the Distributor or any affiliate thereof was a party.
Board Compensation. Effective July 21, 2025, each Independent Trustee is paid a retainer of $120,000 per year for their service on the Board, provided that, for calendar year 2025, this amount shall be pro-rated based on the number of regularly-scheduled meetings of the Board remaining in such year as of July 21, 2025. The Independent Trustees also receive a fee of $5,000 for each special meeting they attend. The chair of the Board receives a $25,000 annual retainer and the chair of the Audit Committee receives a $15,000 annual retainer, provided that, for calendar year 2025, these amounts shall be pro-rated based on the number of calendar days remaining in 2025 beginning July 21, 2025. From February 15, 2025 to July 20, 2025, each Independent Trustee is paid a retainer of $50,000 per year for their service on the Board. Prior to February 15, 2025, each Independent Trustee was entitled to receive a $12,500 annual fee. The Trust has no pension or retirement plan.
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The following table shows the compensation earned by each Trustee for the Funds’ fiscal period ended []. Independent Trustee fees are paid by the adviser to each series of the Trust and not by the Funds. Trustee compensation shown below does not include reimbursed out-of-pocket expenses in connection with attendance at meetings.
Name | Aggregate Compensation From the Fund |
Total Compensation From Funds Complex Paid to Trustees(1) |
Robert Howard | $[0] | $[] |
Joan Binstock | $[0] | $[] |
Ellen Needham | $[0] | $[] |
Thomas Lydon, Jr. | $[0] | $[] |
(1) | Compensation is based on estimated amounts for the fiscal year ending []. |
PRINCIPAL SHAREHOLDERS, CONTROL PERSONS AND MANAGEMENT OWNERSHIP
A principal shareholder is any person who owns of record or beneficially 5% or more of the outstanding Shares of a Fund. A control person is a shareholder that owns beneficially or through controlled companies more than 25% of the voting securities of a Fund or acknowledges the existence of control. Shareholders owning voting securities in excess of 25% may determine the outcome of any matter affecting and voted on by shareholders of such Fund.
As of the date of this SAI, the Funds had not yet commenced operations and no person owned of record or beneficially 5% or more of a Fund’s Shares.
Each of the Trust, the Adviser, and the Sub-Adviser have adopted a code of ethics pursuant to Rule 17j-1 under the 1940 Act. These codes of ethics are designed to prevent affiliated persons of the Trust, the Adviser, and the Sub-Adviser from engaging in deceptive, manipulative or fraudulent activities in connection with securities held or to be acquired by the Funds. These codes of ethics permit, subject to certain conditions, personnel of each of those entities to invest in securities, including those that may be purchased or held by the Funds. The Distributor relies on the principal underwriter’s exception under Rule 17j-1(c)(3), of the 1940 Act, specifically where the Distributor is not affiliated with the Trust, the Adviser, or the Sub-Adviser, and no officer, director or general partner of the Distributor serves as an officer, director or general partner of the Trust, the Adviser, or the Sub-Adviser.
The Fund has delegated proxy voting responsibilities to the Adviser, subject to the Board’s oversight. In delegating proxy responsibilities, the Board has directed that proxies be voted consistent with the Fund’s and its shareholders’ best interests and in compliance with all applicable proxy voting rules and regulations. The Adviser has adopted proxy voting policies and guidelines for this purpose (“Proxy Voting Policies”), which have been adopted by the Trust as the policies and procedures that will be used when voting proxies on behalf of the Funds.
A copy of the Adviser’s proxy voting policies and procedures are attached as Appendix A to this SAI.
The Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer is responsible for monitoring the effectiveness of the Proxy Voting Policies.
When available, information on how each Fund voted proxies relating to portfolio securities during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 will be available (1) without charge, upon request, by calling [ Phone ], (2) on the Funds’ website at [ website ], or (3) on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.
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The Adviser
TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC, located at 75 Rockefeller Plaza, 30th Floor, New York, NY 10019, is an SEC registered investment adviser and a Delaware limited liability company. The Adviser was founded in 2004. As of [-], 2025, the Adviser had assets under management of approximately $[-] billion and served as the investment adviser or sub-adviser for [-] registered funds. The Adviser is controlled by Affiliated Managers Group, Inc. (“AMG”), a publicly-traded asset management company (NYSE: AMG) with equity investments in boutique investment management firms, indirectly holds a majority equity interest in TimesSquare. TimesSquare’s principals hold the remaining equity interests in TimesSquare.
TimesSquare serves as investment adviser to the Funds pursuant to an Investment Advisory Agreement with the Trust, on behalf of the Funds (the “Advisory Agreement”). The Adviser provides investment advice to the Funds and oversees the day-to-day operations of the Funds, including arranging sub-advisory, transfer agency, custody, fund administration and accounting, and other related services necessary for the Funds to operate, all subject to the oversight of the Board. The Adviser is also responsible for the management of each Fund’s portfolio, including selecting investments for purchase and sale, providing direction related to the Sub-Adviser’s trading of portfolio securities on behalf of each Fund, and overseeing the Sub-Adviser, including regular review of the Sub-Adviser’s performance.
The Adviser receives compensation calculated daily and paid monthly from the funds, at the annual rates indicated below. The Adviser pays the Sub-Adviser’s sub-advisory fees out of its management fees.
Fund | Advisory Fee |
TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF | |
TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF | |
TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF |
After the initial two-year term, the continuance of the Advisory Agreement must be specifically approved at least annually: (i) by the vote of the Trustees or by a vote of the shareholders of the Fund; and (ii) by the vote of a majority of the Trustees who are not parties to the Advisory Agreement or “interested persons” or of any party thereto, in accordance with the 1940 Act. The Advisory Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment, and is terminable at any time without penalty by the Trustees of the Trust or, with respect to the Fund, by a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund, or by the Adviser on not more than sixty (60) days’ nor less than thirty (30) days’ written notice to the Trust. As used in the Advisory Agreement, the terms “majority of the outstanding voting securities,” “interested persons” and “assignment” have the same meaning as such terms in the 1940 Act.
Tidal Investments LLC (“Tidal”), a Tidal Financial Group company, located at 234 West Florida St, Suite 203, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204, serves as an investment sub-adviser to the Funds pursuant to a sub-advisory agreement between the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser (the “Tidal Sub-Advisory Agreement”). Tidal is responsible for trading portfolio securities and other financial instruments for the Funds, including selecting broker-dealers to execute purchase and sale transactions, subject to the supervision of the Adviser and the oversight of the Board. For its services, Tidal is paid a fee by the Adviser, which fee is calculated daily and paid monthly, at an annual rate based on each Fund’s average daily net assets as set forth in the following table:
Fund | Tidal Sub-Advisory Fee (in basis points) |
TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF | |
TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF | |
TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF |
After the initial two-year term, the continuance of the Sub-Advisory Agreement must be specifically approved at least annually: (i) by the vote of the Trustees or by a vote of the shareholders of the Fund; and (ii) by the vote of a majority of the Trustees who are not parties to the Sub-Advisory Agreement or “interested persons” or of any party thereto, in accordance with the 1940 Act. The Sub-Advisory Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment, and is terminable at any time without penalty by the Trustees of the Trust or, with respect to the Fund, by a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund, or by the Adviser on not more than sixty (60) days’ nor less than thirty (30) days’ written notice to the Trust. As used in the Sub-Advisory Agreement, the terms “majority of the outstanding voting securities,” “interested persons” and “assignment” have the same meaning as such terms in the 1940 Act.
Manager of Managers Structure
The Trust expects to apply for exemptive relief from the SEC, which, if obtained, will permit the Adviser, subject to certain conditions, to hire new sub-advisers for each Fund, to materially amend the terms of particular agreements with sub-advisers or to continue the employment of a sub-adviser after events that would otherwise cause an automatic termination of a sub-advisory agreement without shareholder approval. Consequently, under the exemptive order, the Adviser will have the right to hire or terminate and replace each sub-adviser to the Funds when the Board and the Adviser feel that a change would benefit that Fund. Within 90 days of retaining a new sub-adviser, shareholders of any affected Fund will receive notification of the change. This structure, known as a “manager of managers” structure, enables the Funds to operate with greater efficiency and without incurring the expense and delays associated with obtaining shareholder approval of sub-advisory agreements. The structure does not permit investment advisory fees paid by a Fund to be increased or change the Adviser’s obligations under the investment advisory agreement, including the Adviser’s responsibility to monitor and oversee sub-advisory services furnished to a Fund, without shareholder approval. Until the Adviser and the Trust obtain this relief, each Fund will continue to submit these matters to shareholders for their approval to the extent required by applicable law.
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TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF is managed by Sonu Chawla CFA®, Edward F. Salib, and Joshua Bischoff, each a Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, and Andy Hicks and Qiao Duan, each a Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser.
TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF is managed by Sonu Chawla®, David Ferreiro, PhD, Edward F. Salib, Joshua Bischoff, and Greg J. Vasse, each a Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, and Andy Hicks and Qiao Duan, each a Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser.
TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF is managed by Magnus Larsson, Joshua Bischoff, and David Hirsh, each a Portfolio Manager for the Adviser, and Andy Hicks and Qiao Duan, each a Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser.
Other Accounts Managed by the Portfolio Managers.
In addition to the Funds, the portfolio managers managed the following other accounts as of [ ].
Sonu Chawla, CFA ®, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF
Type of Accounts | Total Number of |
Total
Assets of Accounts (in millions) |
Total
Number of Accounts Subject to a Performance- Based Fee |
Total
Assets of (in millions) |
Registered Investment Companies | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Accounts | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
David Ferreiro, PhD , Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF
Type of Accounts | Total Number of |
Total
Assets of Accounts (in millions) |
Total
Number of Accounts Subject to a Performance- Based Fee |
Total
Assets of (in millions) |
Registered Investment Companies | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Accounts | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Magnus Larsson, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF
Type of Accounts | Total Number of |
Total
Assets of Accounts (in millions) |
Total
Number of Accounts Subject to a Performance- Based Fee |
Total
Assets of (in millions) |
Registered Investment Companies | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Accounts | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
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David Hirsh, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF
Type of Accounts | Total Number of |
Total
Assets of Accounts (in millions) |
Total
Number of Accounts Subject to a Performance- Based Fee |
Total
Assets of (in millions) |
Registered Investment Companies | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Accounts | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Edward F. Salib, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF
Type of Accounts | Total Number of |
Total
Assets of Accounts (in millions) |
Total
Number of Accounts Subject to a Performance- Based Fee |
Total
Assets of (in millions) |
Registered Investment Companies | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Accounts | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Greg J. Vasse, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF
Type of Accounts | Total Number of |
Total
Assets of Accounts (in millions) |
Total
Number of Accounts Subject to a Performance- Based Fee |
Total
Assets of (in millions) |
Registered Investment Companies | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Accounts | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Joshua Bischoff, Portfolio Manager for the Adviser and for each Fund
Type of Accounts | Total Number of |
Total
Assets of Accounts (in millions) |
Total
Number of Accounts Subject to a Performance- Based Fee |
Total
Assets of (in millions) |
Registered Investment Companies | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Accounts | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Qiao Duan, Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser and for each Fund
Type of Accounts | Total Number of |
Total
Assets of Accounts (in millions) |
Total
Number of Accounts Subject to a Performance- Based Fee |
Total
Assets of (in millions) |
Registered Investment Companies | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Accounts | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
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Andy Hicks, Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Adviser and for each Fund
Type of Accounts | Total Number of |
Total
Assets of Accounts (in millions) |
Total
Number of Accounts Subject to a Performance- Based Fee |
Total
Assets of (in millions) |
Registered Investment Companies | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
Other Accounts | [ ] | $[ ] | [ ] | $[ ] |
CFA® is a registered trademark owned by the CFA Institute.
Portfolio Manager Fund Ownership. Each Fund is required to show the dollar range of each portfolio manager’s “beneficial ownership” of Shares as of the end of the most recently completed fiscal year. Dollar amount ranges disclosed are established by the SEC. “Beneficial ownership” is determined in accordance with Rule 16a-1(a)(2) under the Exchange Act. As of the date of this SAI, the Funds had not yet commenced operations and no Shares were owned by the portfolio managers.
Portfolio Manager Compensation. [TBD]
Description of 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 the relevant Fund’s investments, on the one hand, and the investments of the other accounts, on the other. The other accounts may have similar investment objectives or strategies as a Fund. A potential conflict of interest may arise as a result, whereby a portfolio manager could favor one account over another. Another potential conflict could include a portfolio manager’s 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. For instance, the portfolio managers may receive fees from certain accounts that are higher than the fees received from a Fund, or receive a performance-based fee on certain accounts. In those instances, a portfolio manager has an incentive to favor the higher and/or performance-based fee accounts over a Fund. To mitigate these conflicts, the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser have established policies and procedures to ensure that the purchase and sale of securities among all accounts the firm manages are fairly and equitably allocated.
The Trust and Foreside Fund Services, LLC (the “Distributor”) are parties to a distribution agreement (the “Distribution Agreement”) whereby the Distributor acts as principal underwriter for the Trust’s shares and distributes the shares of the Fund. Shares of the Fund are continuously offered for sale by the Distributor only in Creation Units. The Distributor will not distribute shares of a Fund in amounts less than a Creation Unit. The principal business address of the Distributor is 190 Middle Street, Suite 301, Portland, Maine 04101.
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 Exchange Act and a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”).
The Distributor may enter into agreements with securities dealers wishing to purchase Creation Units if such securities dealers qualify as Authorized Participants (as discussed in “Procedures for Creation of Creation Units” below).
The Distribution Agreement will continue for two years from its effective date and is renewable thereafter. The continuance of the Distribution Agreement with respect to a Fund must be specifically approved at least annually (i) by the vote of the Trustees or by a vote of the shareholders of the relevant Fund and (ii) by the vote of a majority of the Trustees who are not “interested persons” of the Trust and have no direct or indirect financial interest in the operations of the Distribution Agreement or any related agreement, in accordance with the 1940 Act. The Distribution Agreement is terminable without penalty by the Trust on 60 days’ written notice when authorized either by majority vote of the relevant Fund’s outstanding voting shares or by a vote of a majority of its Board (including a majority of the Independent Trustees), or by the Distributor on 60 days’ written notice, and will automatically terminate in the event of its assignment.
The Distributor also may provide trade order processing services pursuant to a services agreement with the Trust.
Distribution (Rule 12b-1) Plan. The Trust has adopted a Plan of Distribution with respect to the Fund (the “Plan”) in accordance with the provisions of Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act, which regulates circumstances under which an investment company may directly or indirectly bear expenses relating to the distribution of its shares. No payments pursuant to the Plan will be made during the twelve (12) month period from the date of this SAI. Thereafter, 12b-1 fees may be imposed only after approval by the Board.
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Continuance of the Plan must be approved annually by a majority of the Trustees of the Trust and by a majority of the Trustees who are not interested persons (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Trust and have no direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the Plan or in any agreements related to the Plan (“Qualified Trustees”). The Plan requires that quarterly written reports of amounts spent under the Plan and the purposes of such expenditures be furnished to and reviewed by the Trustees. The Plan may not be amended to increase materially the amount that may be spent thereunder without approval by a majority of the outstanding shares of any class of a Fund that is affected by such increase. All material amendments of the Plan will require approval by a majority of the Trustees of the Trust and of the Qualified Trustees.
The Plan provides that each Fund pay the Distributor an annual fee of up to a maximum of 0.25% of the average daily net assets of the shares of the Fund. Under the Plan, the Distributor may make payments pursuant to written agreements to financial institutions and intermediaries such as banks, savings and loan associations and insurance companies including, without limit, investment counselors, broker-dealers and the Distributor’s affiliates and subsidiaries (collectively, “Agents”) as compensation for services and reimbursement of expenses incurred in connection with distribution assistance. The Plan is characterized as a compensation plan since the distribution fee will be paid to the Distributor without regard to the distribution expenses incurred by the Distributor or the amount of payments made to other financial institutions and intermediaries. The Trust intends to operate the Plan in accordance with its terms and with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) rules concerning sales charges.
Under the Plan, subject to the limitations of applicable law and regulations, each Fund is authorized to compensate the Distributor up to the maximum amount to finance any activity primarily intended to result in the sale of Creation Units of the Fund or for providing or arranging for others to provide shareholder services and for the maintenance of shareholder accounts. Such activities may include, but are not limited to: (i) costs of printing and distributing a Fund’s prospectuses, statements of additional information and reports to prospective investors in the Fund; (ii) advertising and marketing expenses and costs involved in preparing, printing and distributing sales literature pertaining to the Fund and reports for persons other than existing shareholders; and (iii) payments to financial institutions and intermediaries such as banks, savings and loan associations, insurance companies and investment counselors, broker-dealers, mutual fund supermarkets and the affiliates and subsidiaries of the Trust’s service providers as compensation for services or reimbursement of expenses incurred in connection with distribution assistance.
[-], located at [-], serves as the administrator to the Funds.
The Funds are new, and [-] has not received any fees for administrative services to the Funds as of the date of this SAI.
[-], located at [-], serves as the custodian of the Funds (the “Custodian”). The Custodian holds cash, securities and other assets of each Fund as required by the 1940 Act.
[-], located at [-], serves as transfer agent and dividend disbursing agent of the Funds (the “Transfer Agent”).
PRINCIPAL TRUST ADMINISTRATOR SERVICES
Under a Principal Trust Administrator Services Agreement (the “PTA Agreement”) with the Trust, Tidal ETF Services LLC provides a President, Secretary, Chief Compliance Officer, and Anti-Money Laundering Officer to the Trust. The PTA Agreement with respect to the Trust continues in effect for an initial five (5) year period. The PTA Agreement is terminable after the initial five (5) year period by either party upon 90 days’ prior written notice to the other party. Thereafter, the PTA Agreement continues until terminated, which may be accomplished by either party providing the other party 90 days’ prior written notice. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Board will have the right to remove the Officers at any time, with or without cause and without the payment of any penalty.
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP, located at 1111 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004, serves as legal counsel for the Trust.
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
[ ], serves as independent registered public accounting firm for the Funds.
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DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS
Policy on Disclosure of Portfolio Holdings
The Board has adopted a policy regarding the disclosure of information about each Fund’s security holdings.
Each Fund’s entire portfolio holdings are publicly disseminated each day such Fund is open for business through financial reporting and news services including publicly available internet websites. In addition, the composition of the in-kind creation basket and the in-kind redemption basket is publicly disseminated daily prior to the opening of the Exchange via the NSCC.
Greater than daily access to information concerning a Fund’s portfolio holdings will be permitted (i) to certain personnel of service providers to the Fund involved in portfolio management and providing administrative, operational, risk management, or other support to portfolio management, and (ii) to other personnel of the Fund’s service providers who deal directly with, or assist in, functions related to investment management, distribution, administration, custody and fund accounting, as may be necessary to conduct business in the ordinary course in a manner consistent with the Trust’s exemptive relief, agreements with the Fund, and the terms of the Trust’s current registration statement. From time to time, and in the ordinary course of business, such information also may be disclosed (i) to other entities that provide services to a Fund, including pricing information vendors, and third parties that deliver analytical, statistical or consulting services to the Fund and (ii) generally after it has been disseminated to the NSCC. The Adviser may also provide certain information concerning a Fund’s portfolio holdings, in a format not available to other current or prospective Fund shareholders, to Authorized Participants in connection with the dissemination of information necessary for transactions in Creation Units, as contemplated by Rule 6c-11 under the 1940 Act. This information may or may not reflect the pro rata composition of a Fund’s portfolio holdings.
Each Fund will disclose its complete portfolio holdings in public filings with the SEC on a quarterly basis, based on such Fund’s fiscal year-end, within 60 days of the end of the quarter, and will provide that information to shareholders, as required by federal securities laws and regulations thereunder.
No person is authorized to disclose any of a Fund’s portfolio holdings or other investment positions (whether in writing, by fax, by e-mail, orally, or by other means) except in accordance with this policy. The Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer may authorize disclosure of portfolio holdings. The Board reviews the implementation of this policy on a periodic basis.
The Declaration of Trust authorizes the issuance of an unlimited number of funds (or series) and shares of each fund. Each share of a fund represents an equal proportionate interest in that fund with each other share. Shares of each fund are entitled upon liquidation to a pro rata share in the net assets of that fund. Shareholders have no preemptive rights. The Declaration of Trust provides that the Trustees of the Trust may create additional series or classes of shares. All consideration received by the Trust for shares of any additional funds and all assets in which such consideration is invested would belong to that fund and would be subject to the liabilities related thereto. No certificates representing the ownership of shares will be issued except as the Trustees may otherwise determine from time to time. Each fund’s shares, when issued, are fully paid and non-assessable.
Each share of a fund has one vote with respect to matters upon which a shareholder vote is required consistent with the requirements of the 1940 Act and the rules promulgated thereunder. Shares of all funds vote together as a single class, except that if the matter being voted on affects only a particular fund it will be voted on only by that fund and if a matter affects a particular fund differently from other funds, that fund will vote separately on such matter. As a Delaware statutory trust, the Trust is not required, and does not intend, to hold annual meetings of shareholders. Approval of shareholders will be sought, however, for certain changes in the operation of the Trust and for the election of Trustees under certain circumstances.
Under the Declaration of Trust, the Trustees have the power to liquidate a fund without shareholder approval. While the Trustees have no present intention of exercising this power, they may do so if a fund fails to reach a viable size within a reasonable amount of time or for such other reasons as may be determined by the Board.
LIMITATION OF TRUSTEES’ LIABILITY
The Declaration of Trust provides that a Trustee shall be liable only for his or her own willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of the office of Trustee, and shall not be liable for errors of judgment or mistakes of fact or law. The Trustees shall not be responsible or liable in any event for any neglect or wrong-doing of any officer, employee, investment adviser, principal underwriter, custodian or other agent of the Trust, nor shall any Trustee be responsible for the act or omission of any other Trustee. The Declaration of Trust also provides that each person who is, or has been, a Trustee, officer, or employee of the Trust, or any person who is serving or has served at the Trust’s request as a director, officer, trustee, employee or agent of another organization in which the Trust has any interest as a shareholder, creditor or otherwise shall be indemnified by the Trust to the fullest extent permitted by law against liability and against all expenses reasonably incurred or paid by him or her in connection with any claim, action, suit or proceeding in which he or she becomes involved as a party or otherwise by virtue of his or her being or having been such a Trustee, director, officer, employee or agent and against amounts paid or incurred by him or her in settlement thereof. However, nothing in the Declaration of Trust shall protect or indemnify a Trustee against any liability for his or her willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of the office of Trustee. Nothing contained in this section attempts to disclaim a Trustee’s individual liability in any manner inconsistent with the federal securities laws.
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Derivative Claims of Shareholders. The Declaration of Trust provides a detailed process for the bringing of derivative actions by shareholders in the name of the Trust or a Fund in order to permit legitimate inquiries and claims while avoiding the time, expense, distraction and other harm that can be caused to the Fund or its shareholders as a result of spurious shareholder demands and derivative actions. In addition, the Declaration of Trust provides that actions that are derivative in nature may not be brought directly. Prior to bringing a derivative action, a written demand must first be made on the Trustees by no less than three shareholders who are unaffiliated and unrelated to each other. Further, shareholders who collectively own shares representing 5% or more of all outstanding shares to which the action relates must join in initiating the derivative action. The Declaration of Trust details various information, certifications, undertakings and acknowledgements that must be included in the demand. Following receipt of the demand, the Trustees have a period of 90 days, which may be extended by an additional 60 days, to consider the demand. If upon such consideration a majority of the Trustees who are considered independent for the purposes of considering the demand determine that such a suit should be maintained, then the appropriate officers of the Trust shall either cause the Trust to commence that suit and such suit shall proceed directly rather than derivatively or permit the complaining shareholders to proceed derivatively. If, however, a majority of the Trustees who are considered independent for the purposes of considering the demand determine that maintaining the suit would not be in the best interests of a Fund, the Trustees are required to reject the demand and the complaining shareholder may not proceed with the derivative action unless the shareholder is able to sustain the burden of proof to a court that the decision of the Trustees not to pursue the requested action was not a good faith exercise of their business judgment on behalf of the Fund.
Only if required by law shall the Trust be responsible for payment of attorneys’ fees and legal expenses incurred by a shareholder bringing a derivative or direct action. If a demand is rejected, and a court determines that the derivative action was made without reasonable cause or for an improper purpose, or if a derivative or direct action is dismissed on the basis of a failure to comply with the procedural provisions relating to shareholder actions as set forth in the Declaration of Trust, the shareholder(s) bringing the action will be responsible for such Fund’s costs, including attorneys’ fees.
No shareholder may bring a direct action unless the shareholder has suffered an injury distinct from that suffered by shareholders of the Trust generally.
Waiver of Right to Jury Trial. Shareholders waive their right to a jury trial for actions commenced by a shareholder (i) directly, against (a) the Trust or a Fund, (b) its Trustees or officers related to, arising out of or concerning the Trust, its business or operations, and/or (c) otherwise related to, arising out of or concerning the Trust, its business or operations or (ii) derivatively in the right or name of, or on behalf of the Trust or a Fund (“Covered Actions”).
Each of the foregoing provisions do not apply to claims under the federal securities laws.
Forum for Adjudication of Disputes. The Declaration of Trust provides that Covered Actions must be brought exclusively in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, or if such action may not be brought in that court, then such action shall be brought in the New York Supreme Court sitting in New York County with assignment to the Commercial Division to the extent such assignment is permitted under the Uniform Civil Rules for the Supreme Court, including § 202.70 thereof (each, a “Designated Court”). The Trust, its Trustees, officers, employees and Shareholders (a) waive any objection to venue in either Designated Court, and (b) waive any objection that either Designated Court is an inconvenient forum. This forum selection provision may limit a shareholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that such shareholder finds favorable or convenient with respect to disputes with the Trust, the Funds, Trustees, officers or other agents of the Trust and its service providers, which may discourage such lawsuits with respect to such claims.
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The policy of the Trust regarding purchases and sales of securities for each Fund 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, the Trust’s policy is to pay commissions which are considered fair and reasonable without necessarily determining that the lowest possible commissions are paid in all circumstances. The Trust believes that a requirement always to seek the lowest possible commission cost could impede effective portfolio management and preclude a Fund and the Sub-Adviser from obtaining a high quality of brokerage and research services. In seeking to determine the reasonableness of brokerage commissions paid in any transaction, the Sub-Adviser will rely upon its experience and knowledge regarding commissions generally charged by various brokers and on its judgment in evaluating the brokerage services received from the broker effecting the transaction. Such determinations are necessarily subjective and imprecise, as in most cases, an exact dollar value for those services is not ascertainable. The Trust has adopted policies and procedures that prohibit the consideration of sales of a Fund’s shares as a factor in the selection of a broker or dealer to execute its portfolio transactions.
The Sub-Adviser owes a fiduciary duty to its clients to seek to provide best execution on trades effected. In selecting a broker/dealer for each specific transaction, the Sub-Adviser chooses the broker/dealer deemed most capable of providing the services necessary to obtain best execution. Best execution is generally understood to mean the most favorable cost or net proceeds reasonably obtainable under the circumstances. The full range of brokerage services applicable to a particular transaction may be considered when making this judgment, which may include, but is not limited to: liquidity, price, commission, timing, aggregated trades, capable floor brokers or traders, competent block trading coverage, ability to position, capital strength and stability, reliable and accurate communications and settlement processing, use of automation, knowledge of other buyers or sellers, arbitrage skills, administrative ability, underwriting and provision of information on a particular security or market in which the transaction is to occur. The specific criteria will vary depending upon the nature of the transaction, the market in which it is executed, and the extent to which it is possible to select from among multiple broker/dealers. The Sub-Adviser will also use electronic crossing networks (“ECNs”) when appropriate.
The Sub-Adviser may use a Fund’s assets for, or participate in, third-party soft dollar arrangements, in addition to receiving proprietary research from various full-service brokers, the cost of which is bundled with the cost of the broker’s execution services. Any brokerage and research services that the Sub-Adviser obtains from broker-dealers using client brokerage commissions are obtained in arrangements that are consistent with Section 28(e) of the Exchange Act. Section 28(e) of the Exchange Act permits the Sub-Adviser, under certain circumstances, to cause a Fund to pay a broker or dealer a commission for effecting a transaction in excess of the amount of commission another broker or dealer would have charged for effecting the transaction in recognition of the value of brokerage and research services provided by the broker or dealer. The Sub-Adviser may receive a variety of research services and information on many topics, which it can use in connection with its management responsibilities with respect to the various accounts over which it exercises investment discretion or otherwise provides investment advice. The research services may include qualifying order management systems, portfolio attribution and monitoring services and computer software and access charges which are directly related to investment research. Accordingly, a Fund may pay a broker commission higher than the lowest available in recognition of the broker’s provision of such services to the Sub-Adviser, but only if the Sub-Adviser expects the total commission (including the soft dollar benefit) to be comparable to the best commission rate that could be expected to be received from other brokers. The amount of soft dollar benefits received depends on the amount of brokerage transactions effected with the brokers. A conflict of interest exists because there is an incentive to: (1) cause clients to pay a higher commission than the firm might otherwise be able to negotiate; (2) cause clients to engage in more securities transactions than would otherwise be optimal; and (3) only recommend brokers that provide soft dollar benefits.
The Sub-Adviser faces a potential conflict of interest when it uses client trades to obtain brokerage or research services. This conflict exists because the Sub-Adviser is able to use the brokerage or research services to manage client accounts without paying cash for such services, which reduces the Sub-Adviser’s expenses to the extent that the Sub-Adviser would have purchased such products had they not been provided by brokers. Section 28(e) permits the Sub-Adviser to use brokerage or research services for the benefit of any account it manages. Certain accounts managed by the Sub-Adviser may generate soft dollars used to purchase brokerage or research services that ultimately benefit other accounts managed by the Sub-Adviser, effectively cross subsidizing the other accounts managed by the Sub-Adviser that benefit directly from the product. The Sub-Adviser may not necessarily use all of the brokerage or research services in connection with managing the particular Fund whose trades generated the soft dollars used to purchase such products.
The Sub-Adviser is responsible, subject to oversight by the Board, for placing orders on behalf of each Fund for the purchase or sale of portfolio securities. The Sub-Adviser may advise or sub-advise other funds or accounts with similar investment strategies and/or that invest in the same securities or other investment instruments as the Fund When the Sub-Adviser implements a portfolio decision for an account or fund ahead of, or contemporaneously with, a portfolio decision for the Fund, market impact, liquidity constraints, or other factors could result in a Fund receiving less favorable pricing or trading results, paying higher transaction costs, or otherwise being disadvantaged.
Each Fund may deal with affiliates in principal transactions to the extent permitted by exemptive order or applicable rule or regulation.
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The Funds are new, and did not pay any brokerage comments on portfolio transitions as of the date of this SAI.
Directed Brokerage. The Funds are new and therefore none of the Funds, the Adviser, or Sub-Adviser paid commissions on brokerage transactions directed to brokers pursuant to an agreement or understanding whereby the broker provides research or other brokerage services to the Adviser or such Sub-Adviser.
Brokerage with Fund Affiliates. Each Fund may execute brokerage or other agency transactions through registered broker-dealer affiliates of the Funds, the Adviser, the Sub-Adviser, or the Distributor for a commission in conformity with the 1940 Act, the Exchange Act and rules promulgated by the SEC. These rules require that commissions paid to the affiliate by a Fund for exchange transactions not exceed “usual and customary” brokerage commissions. The rules define “usual and customary” commissions to include amounts which are “reasonable and fair compared to the commission, fee or other remuneration received or to be received by other brokers in connection with comparable transactions involving similar securities being purchased or sold on a securities exchange during a comparable period of time.” The Trustees, including those who are not “interested persons” of the Funds, have adopted procedures for evaluating the reasonableness of commissions paid to affiliates and review these procedures periodically.
The Funds are new and did not pay brokerage commissions to affiliated brokers.
Securities of “Regular Broker-Dealers.” Each Fund is required to identify any securities of its “regular brokers and dealers” (as such term is defined in the 1940 Act) which it may hold at the close of its most recent fiscal year or period. “Regular brokers or dealers” of the Trust are the ten brokers or dealers that, during the most recent fiscal year or period: (i) received the greatest dollar amounts of brokerage commissions from the Trust’s portfolio transactions; (ii) engaged as principal in the largest dollar amounts of portfolio transactions of the Trust; or (iii) sold the largest dollar amounts of the Trust’s shares.
The Funds are new and did not own equity securities of its regular broker-dealers or their parent companies as of the date of this SAI.
Portfolio turnover may vary from year to year, as well as within a year. High turnover rates are likely to result in comparatively greater brokerage expenses. The overall reasonableness of brokerage commissions is evaluated by the Adviser based upon its knowledge of available information as to the general level of commissions paid by other institutional investors for comparable services.
The Funds are new and do not have a portfolio turnover rate to report as of the date of this SAI.
Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) acts as securities depositary for each Fund’s shares. Shares of each Fund are represented by securities registered in the name of DTC or its nominee, Cede & Co., and deposited with, or on behalf of, DTC. Except in limited circumstances set forth below, certificates will not be issued for shares of the Funds.
DTC is a limited-purpose trust company that was created to hold securities of its participants (the “DTC Participants”) and to facilitate the clearance and settlement of securities transactions among the DTC Participants in such securities through electronic book-entry changes in accounts of the DTC Participants, thereby eliminating the need for physical movement of securities certificates. DTC Participants include securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies, clearing corporations and certain other organizations, some of whom (and/or their representatives) own DTC. More specifically, DTC is owned by a number of its DTC Participants and by the NYSE and FINRA. Access to the DTC system also is available to others such as banks, brokers, dealers, and trust companies that clear through or maintain a custodial relationship with a DTC Participant, either directly or indirectly (the “Indirect Participants”).
Beneficial ownership of shares of a Fund is limited to DTC Participants, Indirect Participants, and persons holding interests through DTC Participants and Indirect Participants. Ownership of beneficial interests in shares of a Fund (owners of such beneficial interests are referred to herein as “Beneficial Owners”) is shown on, and the transfer of ownership is effected only through, records maintained by DTC (with respect to DTC Participants) and on the records of DTC Participants (with respect to Indirect Participants and Beneficial Owners that are not DTC Participants). Beneficial Owners will receive from or through the DTC Participant a written confirmation relating to their purchase of shares of a Fund. The Trust recognizes DTC or its nominee as the record owner of all shares of each Fund for all purposes. Beneficial Owners of shares of the Funds are not entitled to have such shares registered in their names, and will not receive or be entitled to physical delivery of share certificates. Each Beneficial Owner must rely on the procedures of DTC and any DTC Participant and/or Indirect Participant through which such Beneficial Owner holds its interests, to exercise any rights of a holder of shares of a Fund.
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Conveyance of all notices, statements, and other communications to Beneficial Owners is effected as follows. DTC will make available to the Trust upon request and for a fee a listing of shares of each Fund held by each DTC Participant. The Trust shall obtain from each such DTC Participant the number of Beneficial Owners holding shares of each Fund, directly or indirectly, through such DTC Participant. The Trust shall provide each such DTC Participant with copies of such notice, statement, or other communication, in such form, number and at such place as such DTC Participant may reasonably request, in order that such notice, statement or communication may be transmitted by such DTC Participant, directly or indirectly, to such Beneficial Owners. In addition, the Trust shall pay to each such DTC Participant a fair and reasonable amount as reimbursement for the expenses attendant to such transmittal, all subject to applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.
Share distributions shall be made to DTC or its nominee, Cede & Co., as the registered holder of all shares of the Funds. DTC or its nominee, upon receipt of any such distributions, shall credit immediately DTC Participants’ accounts with payments in amounts proportionate to their respective beneficial interests in a Fund as shown on the records of DTC or its nominee. Payments by DTC Participants to Indirect Participants and Beneficial Owners of shares of a Fund held through such DTC Participants will be governed by standing instructions and customary practices, as is now the case with securities held for the accounts of customers in bearer form or registered in a “street name,” and will be the responsibility of such DTC Participants.
The Trust has no responsibility or liability for any aspect of the records relating to or notices to Beneficial Owners, or payments made on account of beneficial ownership interests in a Fund’s shares, or for maintaining, supervising, or reviewing any records relating to such beneficial ownership interests, or for any other aspect of the relationship between DTC and the DTC Participants or the relationship between such DTC Participants and the Indirect Participants and Beneficial Owners owning through such DTC Participants.
DTC may determine to discontinue providing its service with respect to the Funds at any time by giving reasonable notice to the Funds and discharging its responsibilities with respect thereto under applicable law. Under such circumstances, the Funds shall take action either to find a replacement for DTC to perform its functions at a comparable cost or, if such replacement is unavailable, to issue and deliver printed certificates representing ownership of shares of the Funds, unless the Trust makes other arrangements with respect thereto satisfactory to the Exchange.
PURCHASE AND REDEMPTION OF SHARES IN CREATION UNITS
Each Fund issues and redeems its shares on a continuous basis, at NAV, only in a large specified number of shares called a “Creation Unit,” generally in-kind for securities and a “Cash Component,” as described below, or, under certain circumstances, in cash for the value of such securities (see “Cash Purchase Method” described below). Each Fund reserves the right to utilize “custom baskets” as permitted by Rule 6c-11 under the 1940 Act, provided the conditions of the rule are met. Rule 6c-11 defines “custom baskets” to include two categories of baskets. First, a basket containing a non-representative selection of the ETF’s portfolio holdings would constitute a custom basket. These types of custom baskets include, but are not limited to, baskets that do not reflect: (i) a pro rata representation of a Fund’s portfolio holdings; (ii) a representative sampling of the Fund’s portfolio holdings; or (iii) changes due to a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Fund’s securities market index, if applicable. Second, if different baskets are used in transactions on the same business day (as defined below), each basket after the initial basket would constitute a custom basket. For example, if a Fund exchanges a basket with either the same or another Authorized Participant that reflects a representative sampling that differs from the initial basket, that basket (and any such subsequent baskets) would be a custom basket. Similarly, if a Fund substitutes cash in lieu of a portion of basket assets for a single Authorized Participant, that basket would be a custom basket. The NAV of each Fund’s shares is determined once each business day, as described below under “Determination of Net Asset Value.” The Creation Unit size may change. Authorized Participants will be notified of such change.
Purchase (Creation). The Trust issues and sells shares of each Fund only in Creation Units on a continuous basis through the Distributor, without a sales load (but subject to transaction fees), at their NAV per share 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”). The Funds will not issue fractional shares. A business day is, generally, any day on which the Exchange is open for business.
Fund Deposit. The consideration for purchase of a Creation Unit of a Fund generally consists of either (i) the in-kind deposit of a designated portfolio of securities (the “Deposit Securities”) per each Creation Unit, and the Cash Component (defined below), computed as described below, or (ii) the cash value of the Deposit Securities (“Deposit Cash”) and the Cash Component. When accepting purchases of Creation Units for cash, a 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 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 such Fund. The “Cash Component” is an amount equal to the difference between the NAV of the shares of the relevant Fund (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 shall 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 shall be the sole responsibility of the Authorized Participant (as defined below).
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Each Fund, through NSCC, makes available on each business day, 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 such Fund. Such Fund Deposit is subject to any applicable adjustments as described below, in order to effect purchases of Creation Units of the relevant 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 the Fund Deposit for each Fund changes as portfolio adjustments and corporate action events are reflected from time to time by the Adviser with a view to the investment objective of such Fund.
The Trust reserves the right to permit or require the substitution of Deposit Cash to replace any Deposit Security, which shall be added to 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 or the Federal Reserve System for U.S. Treasury 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”). The Trust also reserves the right to permit or require the substitution of Deposit Securities in lieu of Deposit Cash.
Cash Purchase Method. The Trust may at its discretion permit full or partial cash purchases of Creation Units of a Fund. When full or partial cash purchases of Creation Units are available or specified for a Fund, 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 (see “BOOK ENTRY ONLY SYSTEM”). In addition, each Participating Party or DTC Participant (each, an “Authorized Participant”) must execute a Participant Agreement that has been agreed to by the Distributor, and that has been accepted by the Transfer Agent and the Trust, with respect to purchases and redemptions of Creation Units. Each Authorized Participant 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 Trust, an amount of cash sufficient to pay the Cash Component together with the creation transaction fee and any other applicable fees, taxes, and additional variable charges. The Adviser may retain all or a portion of the creation transaction fee to the extent the Adviser bears the expenses that otherwise would be borne by the Trust in connection with the purchase of a Creation Unit, which the creation transaction fee is designed to cover.
All orders to purchase shares directly from a Fund, including custom orders, must be placed for one or more Creation Units in the manner and by the time set forth in the Participant Agreement and/or applicable order form. 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 Authorized Participant 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 Authorized Participant 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 Authorized Participants may have international capabilities.
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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 the Fund’s investments are primarily traded is closed, the Fund will also generally not accept orders on such day(s). Orders must be transmitted by an Authorized Participant 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 or applicable order form. The Custodian will notify the Distributor of such order. The Custodian will then provide such information to the appropriate local sub-custodian(s). Those placing orders through an Authorized Participant should allow sufficient time to permit proper submission of the purchase order to the Distributor by the applicable cut-off time on such business day. Economic or market disruptions or changes, or telephone or other communication failure may impede the ability to reach the Distributor or an Authorized Participant.
Fund Deposits must be delivered by an Authorized Participant through the Federal Reserve System (for cash and U.S. government securities) or through DTC (for corporate securities), through a sub-custody agent (for foreign securities) and/or through such other arrangements allowed by the Trust or its agents. With respect to foreign Deposit Securities, the Custodian shall cause the sub-custodian of a Fund to maintain an account into which the Authorized Participant shall 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 Trust. Foreign Deposit Securities must be delivered to an account maintained at the applicable local sub-custodian. The Fund Deposit transfer must be ordered by the Authorized Participant 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 the relevant Fund or its agents by no later than the contractual settlement date (the “Settlement Date”) for such Fund, which is generally the business day after the Order Placement Date. However, each Fund reserves the right to settle transactions on a basis other than the 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 Trust, whose determination shall 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 by the Custodian in a timely manner by the Settlement Date, the creation order may be cancelled and the Authorized Participant shall be liable to the relevant Fund for losses, if any, resulting therefrom. 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 relevant Fund.
The order shall 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 applicable cut-off time and the federal funds in the appropriate amount are deposited by [ ] 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 [ ] p.m. Eastern time on the Settlement Date, then the order may be deemed to be rejected and the Authorized Participant shall be liable to the relevant 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, order form, 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 Trust of the Deposit Securities or payment of Deposit Cash, as applicable, and the payment of the Cash Component have been completed. When the sub-custodian has confirmed to the Custodian that the required Deposit Securities (or the cash value thereof) have been delivered to the account of the relevant sub-custodian or sub-custodians, the Distributor and the Adviser shall be notified of such delivery, and the Trust will issue and cause the delivery of the Creation Units. The delivery of Creation Units so created generally will occur no later than the 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 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 Authorized Participant shall be liable to the relevant Fund for losses, if any, resulting from unsettled orders.
Creation Units may be purchased in advance of receipt by the Trust 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 of the relevant Fund 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 shall be maintained in a separate non-interest bearing collateral account. The Authorized Participant must deposit with the Custodian the Additional Cash Deposit, as applicable, by the time set forth in the Participant Agreement on the Settlement Date. If a Fund or its agents do not receive the Additional Cash Deposit in the appropriate amount, by such time, then the order may be deemed rejected and the Authorized Participant shall be liable to the relevant Fund for losses, if any, resulting therefrom. An additional amount of cash shall be required to be deposited with the Trust, pending delivery of the missing Deposit Securities to the extent necessary to maintain the Additional Cash Deposit with the Trust 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 Trust may use such Additional Cash Deposit to buy the missing Deposit Securities at any time. Authorized Participants will be liable to the Trust for all costs, expenses, dividends, income, and taxes associated with missing Deposit Securities, including the costs incurred by the Trust 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 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 Trust 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 Trust and deposited into the Trust. In addition, a creation transaction fee as set forth below under “Creation Transaction Fee” may be charged and an additional variable charge also may apply. The delivery of Creation Units so created generally will occur no later than the Settlement Date.
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Acceptance of Orders of Creation Units. The Trust reserves the right to reject or revoke an order for Creation Units in respect of a Fund for any reason (provided that such action does not result in a suspension of sales of Creation Units in contravention of Rule 6c-11 and the SEC’s positions thereunder) 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 a Fund; (d) the acceptance of the Fund Deposit would, in the opinion of counsel, be unlawful; (e) the acceptance or receipt of the order for a Creation Unit would, in the opinion of counsel to the Trust, be unlawful; or (f) circumstances outside the control of the Trust, 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, 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 Trust, 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 Authorized Participant acting on behalf of the creator of a Creation Unit of its rejection of the order of such person. The Trust, 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 shall either of them incur any liability for the failure to give any such notification. The Trust, the Transfer Agent, the Custodian and the Distributor shall not be liable for the rejection of any purchase order for Creation Units. Given the importance of the ongoing issuance of Creation Units to maintaining a market price that is at or close to the underlying net asset value of the relevant Fund, the Trust does not intend to suspend acceptance of orders 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 shall be determined by the Trust, and the Trust’s determination shall be final and binding.
Creation Transaction Fee. A fixed purchase (i.e., creation) transaction fee may be imposed for the transfer and other transaction costs associated with the purchase of Creation Units (“Creation Order Costs”). The standard creation transaction fee for each Fund, regardless of the number of Creation Units created in the transaction, is set forth in the table below.
[In addition, a variable fee, payable to the Funds, of up to the maximum percentage listed in the table below of the value of the Creation Units subject to the transaction may be imposed for cash purchases, non-standard orders, or partial cash purchases of Creation Units. The variable charge is primarily designed to cover additional costs (e.g., brokerage, taxes) involved with buying the securities with cash. A Fund may determine to not charge a variable fee on certain orders when the Adviser has determined that doing so is in the best interests of Fund shareholders.]
Name of Fund | Fixed Creation Transaction Fee |
Maximum Variable Transaction Fee |
TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF | $[] | []% |
TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF | $[] | []% |
TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF | $[] | []% |
Each Fund may adjust the creation transaction fee from time to time. The creation transaction fee may be waived on certain orders if the Custodian has determined to waive some or all of the Creation Order Costs associated with the order or another party, such as the Adviser, has agreed to pay such fee.
In addition, a variable fee may be imposed for cash purchases, non-standard orders, or partial cash purchases of Creation Units. The variable fee is primarily designed to cover non-standard charges, e.g., brokerage, taxes, foreign exchange, execution, market impact, and other costs and expenses, related to the execution of trades resulting from such transaction. In all cases, such fees will be limited in accordance with the requirements of the SEC applicable to management investment companies offering redeemable securities. A Fund may determine not to charge a variable fee on certain orders when the Adviser has determined that doing so is in the best interests of Fund shareholders, e.g., for creation orders that facilitate adjustments of the Fund’s portfolio in a more efficient manner than could have been achieved without such order.
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Investors who use the services of an Authorized Participant, a 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 Trust. 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 Trust in connection with the issuance of a Creation Unit, which the transaction fee is designed to cover.
Risks of Purchasing Creation Units. There are certain legal risks unique to investors purchasing Creation Units directly from a Fund. Because a 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 such shareholder 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 you 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 a 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) of the Securities Act.
Redemption. Shares of a Fund may be redeemed only in Creation Units at their NAV next determined after receipt of a redemption request in proper form by the Fund through the Transfer Agent and only on a business day. EXCEPT UPON LIQUIDATION OF A FUND, THE FUND WILL NOT REDEEM SHARES IN AMOUNTS LESS THAN CREATION UNITS. Investors must accumulate enough shares of a Fund in the secondary market to constitute a Creation Unit in order to have such shares redeemed by the Trust. 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 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 Trust. 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 of the Fund 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 applicable additional variable charge as set forth below. In the event that the Fund Securities have a value greater than the NAV of the relevant Fund’s shares, a compensating cash payment equal to the differential is required to be made by or through an Authorized Participant by the redeeming shareholder. Notwithstanding the foregoing, at the Trust’s discretion, an Authorized Participant 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 Trust does not ordinarily permit full or partial cash redemptions of Creation Units of a Fund, when full or partial cash redemptions of Creation Units are available or specified for the 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 Authorized Participant receives the cash equivalent of the Fund Securities it would otherwise receive through an in-kind redemption, plus the same Cash Redemption Amount to be paid to an in-kind redeemer.
Redemption Transaction Fee. A fixed redemption transaction fee may be imposed for the transfer and other transaction costs associated with the redemption of Creation Units (“Redemption Order Costs”). The standard redemption transaction fee for the Funds, regardless of the number of Creation Units redeemed in the transaction, is set forth in the table below.
Name of Fund | Fixed Redemption Transaction Fee |
Maximum Variable Transaction Fee |
TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF | $[] | []% |
TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF | $[] | []% |
TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF | $[] | []% |
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In addition, a variable fee, payable to a Fund, may be imposed for cash redemptions, non-standard orders, or partial cash redemptions for the Fund. The variable fee is primarily designed to cover non-standard charges, e.g., brokerage, taxes, foreign exchange, execution, market impact, and other costs and expenses, related to the execution of trades resulting from such transaction. In all cases, such fees will be limited in accordance with the requirements of the SEC applicable to management investment companies offering redeemable securities. A Fund may determine not to charge a variable fee on certain orders when the Adviser has determined that doing so is in the best interests of Fund shareholders, e.g., for redemption orders that facilitate the rebalance of the Fund’s portfolio in a more tax efficient manner than could be achieved without such order.
Each Fund may adjust the redemption transaction fee from time to time. The redemption transaction fee may be waived on certain orders if the Custodian has determined to waive some or all of the Redemption Order Costs associated with the order or another party, such as the Adviser, has agreed to pay such fee.
Investors who use the services of an Authorized Participant, a broker or other such intermediary may be charged a fee for such services, which may include an amount for the redemption transaction fee and non-standard charges. Investors are responsible for the costs of transferring the securities constituting the Fund Securities to the account of the Trust. The non-standard charges are payable to a Fund 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 Adviser may retain all or a portion of the redemption transaction fee to the extent the Adviser bears the expenses that otherwise would be borne by the Trust in connection with the redemption of a Creation Unit, which the redemption transaction fee is designed to cover.
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 Authorized Participant has transferred or caused to be transferred to the Trust’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 Trust is received by the Transfer Agent from the Authorized Participant 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 of the relevant Fund through DTC’s facilities by the times and pursuant to the other terms and conditions set forth in the Participant Agreement, the redemption request shall be rejected, unless, to the extent contemplated by the Participant Agreement, collateral is posted in an amount equal to a percentage of the value of the missing shares of the relevant Fund as specified in the Participant Agreement (and marked to market daily).
The Authorized Participant must transmit the request for redemption, in the form required by the Trust, to the Transfer Agent in accordance with procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement. Investors should be aware that their particular broker may not have executed a Participant Agreement, and that, therefore, requests to redeem Creation Units may have to be placed by the investor’s broker through an Authorized Participant who has executed a Participant Agreement. Investors making a redemption request should be aware that such request must be in the form specified by such Authorized Participant. Investors making a request to redeem Creation Units should allow sufficient time to permit proper submission of the request by an Authorized Participant and transfer of the shares of the relevant Fund to the Trust’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 Authorized Participants.
Additional Redemption Procedures. In connection with taking delivery of shares of Fund Securities upon redemption of Creation Units, a redeeming shareholder or Authorized Participant 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 one business day 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 one business day after the day on which the redemption request is received in proper form. If neither the redeeming shareholder nor the Authorized Participant 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 Trust may, in its discretion, exercise its option to redeem such shares in cash, and the redeeming shareholders will be required to receive 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 Trust 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 the relevant 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 Trust’s brokerage and other transaction costs associated with the disposition of Fund Securities). A Fund also may, in its 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.
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Pursuant to the Participant Agreement, an Authorized Participant submitting a redemption request is deemed to make certain representations to the Trust regarding the Authorized Participant’s ability to tender for redemption the requisite number of shares of a Fund. The Trust reserves the right to verify these representations at its discretion, but will typically require verification with respect to a redemption request from a Fund in connection with higher levels of redemption activity and/or short interest in the Fund. If the Authorized Participant, upon receipt of a verification request, does not provide sufficient verification of its representations as determined by the Trust, the redemption request will not be considered to have been received in proper form and may be rejected by the Trust.
Redemptions of shares for Fund Securities will be subject to compliance with applicable federal and state securities laws and a Fund (whether or not it otherwise permits cash redemptions) reserves the right to redeem Creation Units for cash to the extent that the Trust could not lawfully deliver specific Fund Securities upon redemptions or could not do so without first registering the Fund Securities under such laws. An Authorized Participant 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 Authorized Participant may request the redeeming investor of the shares of a Fund to complete an order form or to enter into agreements with respect to such matters as compensating cash payment. Further, an Authorized Participant 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 Authorized Participant may be required by the Trust 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 a Fund, shareholders may not be able to redeem their shares, or to purchase or sell shares on the Exchange, on days when the NAV of the relevant Fund could be significantly affected by events in the relevant foreign markets.
The right of redemption may be suspended or the date of payment postponed with respect to a Fund (1) for any period during which the New York Stock Exchange is closed (other than customary weekend and holiday closings); (2) for any period during which trading on the New York Stock Exchange is suspended or restricted; (3) for any period during which an emergency exists as a result of which disposal of the securities owned by the Fund or determination of the NAV of the shares of the Fund is not reasonably practicable; or (4) in such other circumstance as is permitted by the SEC.
DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE
NAV per share for each Fund is computed by dividing the value of the net assets of the Fund (i.e., the value of its total assets less total liabilities) by the total number of shares outstanding, rounded to the nearest cent. Expenses and fees, including the management fees, are accrued daily and taken into account for purposes of determining NAV. The NAV of each Fund is calculated by [ ] and determined at the close of the regular trading session on the Exchange (ordinarily 4:00 p.m., Eastern time) on each day that such exchange is open, provided that fixed-income assets may be valued as of the announced closing time for trading in fixed-income instruments on any day that the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (“SIFMA”) announces an early closing time.
In calculating a Fund’s NAV per share, the Fund’s investments are generally valued using readily available market quotations. A market quotation is readily available only when that quotation is a quoted price (unadjusted) in active markets for identical investments that the Fund can access at the measurement date. A market quotation is not “readily available” if it is deemed not to be reliable. Valuations for a Fund’s investments may be obtained from an exchange, a pricing service, or a major market maker (or dealer), and based on a readily available price quotation or other equivalent indication of value supplied by an exchange, a pricing service, or a major market maker (or dealer). In the case of shares of other funds that are not traded on an exchange, a market valuation means such fund’s published NAV per share. The Adviser may use various pricing services, or discontinue the use of any pricing service. Any assets or liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar are converted into U.S. dollars at the current market rates on the date of valuation as quoted by one or more sources.
In the event that current market quotations are not readily available or such valuations do not reflect current market value, the Trust’s valuation policy requires the Adviser, as the Fund’s Board-approved valuation designee, to determine an investment’s fair value in accordance with the Trust’s valuation policy. In determining such fair value, the Adviser may consider, among other things, (i) price comparisons among multiple sources, (ii) a review of corporate actions and news events, and (iii) a review of relevant financial indicators (e.g., movement in interest rates, market indices, and prices). In these cases, a Fund’s NAV may reflect certain portfolio securities’ fair values rather than their market prices.
The use of fair valuation in pricing a security involves the consideration of a number of subjective factors and, therefore, is susceptible to the unavoidable risk that the valuation may be higher or lower than the price at which the security might actually trade if a reliable market quotation were readily available. In addition, particularly for a Fund’s foreign securities holdings or assets, the value of the securities or other assets in the Fund’s portfolio may change on days or during time periods when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund’s shares. As a result, the price received upon the sale of an investment may be less than the value ascribed by a Fund, and the Fund could realize a greater than expected loss or lesser than expected gain upon the sale of the investment. A Fund’s ability to value its investments also may be impacted by technological issues, pricing methodology issues and/or errors by pricing services or other third-party service providers.
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The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the section in the Prospectus entitled “Dividends, Distributions and Taxes.”
General Policies. Dividends from net investment income, if any, generally are declared and paid at least [quarterly] by each Fund. Distributions of remaining net realized securities gains, if any, generally are declared and paid once a year, but a Fund may make distributions on a more frequent basis for the Fund to comply with the distribution requirements of the Code in all events in a manner consistent with the provisions of the 1940 Act.
Dividends and other distributions on shares of a Fund are distributed, as described below, on a pro rata basis to Beneficial Owners of such shares. Dividend payments are made through DTC Participants and Indirect Participants to Beneficial Owners then of record with proceeds received from the Fund.
Each Fund intends to make additional distributions to the extent necessary (i) to distribute the entire annual taxable income of the Fund, plus any net capital gains and (ii) to avoid imposition of the excise tax imposed by Section 4982 of the Code. Management of the Trust reserves the right to declare special dividends if, in its reasonable discretion, such action is necessary or advisable to preserve the Fund’s eligibility for treatment as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) or to avoid imposition of income or excise taxes on undistributed income.
Dividend Reinvestment Service. The Trust 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 a Fund 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 the Trust of the relevant Fund at NAV per share. Distributions reinvested in additional shares of a 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.
The following is a summary of certain U.S. federal income tax considerations generally affecting each Fund and its shareholders that supplements the discussions in the prospectus. No attempt is made to present a comprehensive explanation of the federal, state, local or foreign tax treatment of each Fund or its shareholders, and the discussion here and in the prospectus is not intended to be a substitute for careful tax planning. The summary is very general, and does not address investors subject to special rules, such as investors who hold shares through an individual retirement account (“IRA”), 401(k) or other tax-advantaged account.
The following general discussion of certain U.S. federal income tax consequences is based on the Code and the regulations issued thereunder as in effect on the date of this SAI. New legislation, as well as administrative changes or court decisions, may significantly change the conclusions expressed herein, and may have a retroactive effect with respect to the transactions contemplated herein.
The following information should be read in conjunction with the section in the prospectus entitled “Dividends, Distributions and Taxes--Tax Information.”
Shareholders are urged to consult their own tax advisers regarding the application of the provisions of tax law described in this SAI in light of the particular tax situations of the shareholders and regarding specific questions as to federal, state, or local taxes.
Taxation of the Funds. Each Fund intends to elect and intends to qualify each year to be treated as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code. As such, each Fund should not be subject to federal income tax on its net investment income and capital gains, if any, to the extent that it timely distributes such income and capital gains to its shareholders. In order to qualify for treatment as a RIC, a Fund must distribute annually to its shareholders at least the sum of 90% of its taxable net investment income (including for this purpose, dividends, taxable interest, the excess of net short-term capital gains over net long-term capital losses, less operating expenses), computed without regard to the dividends-paid deduction, and 90% of its net tax-exempt interest income, if any (the “Distribution Requirement”) and also must meet several additional requirements. Among these requirements are the following: (i) at least 90% of a Fund’s gross income each taxable year must be derived from dividends, interest, payments with respect to certain securities loans, gains from the sale or other disposition of stock, securities or foreign currencies, or other income (including but not limited to gains from options, futures or forward contracts) derived with respect to its business of investing in such stock, securities or currencies, and net income derived from interests in qualified publicly traded partnerships (the “Qualifying Income Requirement”); and (ii) at the end of each quarter of the Fund’s taxable year, its assets must be diversified so that (a) at least 50% of the market value of its total assets must be represented by cash and cash items, U.S. government securities, securities of other RICs and other securities, with such other securities limited, in respect to any one issuer, to an amount not greater in value than 5% of the value of the Fund’s total assets and to not more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer, and (b) not more than 25% of the value of its total assets is invested, including through corporations in which the Fund owns a 20% or more voting stock interest, in the securities (other than U.S. government securities or securities of other RICs) of any one issuer, the securities (other than securities of other RICs) of two or more issuers that it controls and that are engaged in the same, similar, or related trades or businesses, or the securities of one or more qualified publicly traded partnerships (the “Diversification Requirement”).
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If a Fund fails to satisfy the Qualifying Income Requirement or the Diversification Requirement in any taxable year, the Fund may be eligible for relief provisions if the failures are due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect and if a penalty tax is paid with respect to each failure to satisfy the applicable requirements. Additionally, relief is provided for certain de minimis failures of the Diversification Requirement where a Fund corrects the failure within a specified period of time. In order to be eligible for the relief provisions with respect to a failure to meet the Diversification Requirement, the Fund may be required to dispose of certain assets. If these relief provisions were not available to a Fund and it were to fail to qualify for treatment as a RIC for a taxable year, all of its taxable income would be subject to tax at the regular corporate rate (currently 21%) without any deduction for distributions to shareholders, and its distributions (including capital gains distributions) generally would be taxable as ordinary income dividends to its shareholders to the extent of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits, subject to the dividends received deduction for corporate shareholders and the lower tax rates on qualified dividend income received by non-corporate shareholders. In addition, a Fund could be required to recognize unrealized gains, pay substantial taxes and interest, and make substantial distributions before requalifying as a RIC. If a Fund determines that it will not qualify for treatment as a RIC, the Fund will establish procedures to reflect the anticipated tax liability in the Fund’s NAV. To requalify for treatment as a RIC in a subsequent taxable year, a Fund would be required to satisfy the RIC qualification requirements for that year and to distribute any earnings and profits from any year in which the Fund failed to qualify for tax treatment as a RIC. If a Fund failed to qualify as a RIC for a period greater than two taxable years, it would generally be required to pay a Fund-level tax on certain net built-in gains recognized with respect to certain of its assets upon a disposition of such assets within five years of qualifying as a RIC in a subsequent year. The Board reserves the right not to maintain the qualification of the Funds for treatment as a RIC if it determines such course of action to be beneficial to shareholders.
As discussed more fully below, each Fund intends to distribute substantially all of its net investment income and its capital gains for each taxable year.
Although each Fund intends to distribute substantially all of its net investment income and its capital gains for any taxable year, if a Fund meets the Distribution Requirement but retains some or all of its income or gains, it will be subject to federal income tax to the extent any such income or gains are not distributed. A Fund may designate certain amounts retained as undistributed net capital gain in a notice to its shareholders, who (i) will be required to include in income for U.S. federal income tax purposes, as long-term capital gain, their proportionate shares of the undistributed amount so designated, (ii) will be entitled to credit their proportionate shares of the income tax paid by the Fund on that undistributed amount against their federal income tax liabilities and to claim refunds to the extent such credits exceed their liabilities and (iii) will be entitled to increase their tax basis, for federal income tax purposes, in their shares by an amount equal to the excess of the amount of undistributed net capital gain included in their respective income over their respective income tax credits. If a Fund failed to satisfy the Distribution Requirement for any taxable year, it would be taxed as a regular corporation, with consequences generally similar to those described in the second paragraph of this section “Taxation of the Funds.”
Each Fund will be subject to a 4% excise tax on certain undistributed income if it does not distribute to its shareholders in each calendar year an amount at least equal to 98% of its ordinary income for the calendar year plus 98.2% of its capital gain net income for the twelve months ended October 31 of such year, subject to an increase for any shortfall in the prior year’s distribution. For this purpose, any ordinary income or capital gain net income retained by a Fund and subject to corporate income tax will be considered to have been distributed. Each Fund intends to declare and distribute dividends and distributions in the amounts and at the times necessary to avoid the application of this 4% excise tax, but can make no assurances that such tax liability will be entirely eliminated. For example, a Fund may receive delayed or corrected tax reporting statements from its investments that cause the Fund to accrue additional income and gains after the Fund has already made its excise tax distributions for the year. In such a situation, a Fund may incur an excise tax liability resulting from such delayed receipt of such tax information statements. In addition, a Fund may in certain circumstances be required to liquidate Fund investments in order to make sufficient distributions to avoid federal excise tax liability at a time when the investment adviser might not otherwise have chosen to do so, and liquidation of investments in such circumstances may affect the ability of the Fund to satisfy the requirement for qualification as a RIC.
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A Fund may elect to treat part or all of any “qualified late year loss” as if it had been incurred in the succeeding taxable year in determining the Fund’s taxable income, net capital gain, net short-term capital gain, and earnings and profits. The effect of this election is to treat any such “qualified late year loss” as if it had been incurred in the succeeding taxable year in characterizing Fund distributions for any calendar year. A “qualified late year loss” generally includes net capital loss, net long-term capital loss, or net short-term capital loss incurred after October 31 of the current taxable year (commonly referred to as “post-October losses”) and certain other late-year losses.
Capital losses in excess of capital gains (“net capital losses”) are not permitted to be deducted against a RIC’s net investment income. Instead, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, potentially subject to certain limitations, a Fund may carry a net capital loss from any taxable year forward to offset its capital gains in future years. A Fund is permitted to carry forward a net capital loss to offset its capital gains, if any, in years following the year of the loss. A Fund is permitted to carryforward indefinitely a net capital loss. To the extent subsequent capital gains are offset by such losses, they will not result in U.S. federal income tax liability to the relevant Fund and may not be distributed as capital gains to its shareholders. Generally, a Fund may not carry forward any losses other than net capital losses. Moreover, the carryover of capital losses may be limited under the general loss limitation rules if a Fund experiences an ownership change as defined in the Code.
Taxation of Shareholders – Distributions. Each Fund receives income generally in the form of dividends and interest on investments. This income, plus net short-term capital gains, if any, less expenses incurred in the operation of a Fund, constitutes the Fund’s net investment income. Each Fund intends to distribute annually to its shareholders substantially all of its investment company taxable income (computed without regard to the deduction for dividends paid), its net tax-exempt income, if any, and any net capital gain (net recognized long-term capital gains in excess of net recognized short-term capital losses, taking into account any capital loss carryforwards). Each Fund will report to shareholders annually the amounts of dividends paid from ordinary income, the amount of distributions of net capital gain, the portion of dividends which may qualify for the dividends-received deduction, the portion of dividends which may qualify for treatment as qualified dividend income, and the amount of exempt-interest dividends, if any.
Subject to certain limitations, dividends reported by a Fund as qualified dividend income will be taxable to non-corporate shareholders at rates of up to 20%. Dividends may be reported by a Fund as qualified dividend income if they are attributable to qualified dividend income received by the Fund. Qualified dividend income includes, in general, subject to certain holding period requirements and other requirements, dividend income from certain U.S. and foreign corporations. Subject to certain limitations, eligible foreign corporations include those incorporated in possessions of the United States, those incorporated in certain countries with comprehensive tax treaties with the United States and other foreign corporations if the stock with respect to which the dividends are paid is tradable on an established securities market in the United States. A dividend generally will not be treated as qualified dividend income to the extent that (i) the shareholder has not held the stock on which the dividend was paid for more than 60 days during the 121-day period that begins on the date that is 60 days before the date on which the stock becomes ex-dividend (which is the day on which declared distributions (dividends or capital gains) are deducted from a Fund’s assets before it calculates the NAV) with respect to such dividend or, in the case of certain preferred stock, for more than 90 days during the 181-day period beginning 90 days before such date, (ii) the shareholder is under an obligation (whether pursuant to a short sale or otherwise) to make related payments with respect to substantially similar or related property, (iii) the Fund has not satisfied similar holding period requirements with respect to the securities it holds that paid the dividends distributed to the shareholder, or (iv) the shareholder elects to treat such dividend as investment income under section 163(d)(4)(B) of the Code. The holding period requirements described in this paragraph apply to shareholders’ investments in a Fund and to the Fund’s investments in underlying dividend-paying stocks. Dividends treated as received by a Fund from an underlying Fund taxable as a RIC or from a REIT may be treated as qualified dividend income generally only to the extent so reported by such underlying RIC or REIT. A Fund’s participation in the lending of securities may affect the amount, timing, and character of distributions to its shareholders. If a Fund participates in a securities lending transaction and receives a payment in lieu of dividends (a “substitute payment”) with respect to securities on loan in a securities lending transaction, such income generally will not constitute qualified dividend income and thus dividends attributable to such income will not be eligible for taxation at the rates applicable to qualified dividend income for individual shareholders and will not be eligible for the dividends-received deduction for corporate shareholders. If 95% or more of a Fund’s gross income (calculated without taking into account net capital gain derived from sales or other dispositions of stock or securities) consists of qualified dividend income, the Fund may report all distributions of such income as qualified dividend income.
Certain dividends received by a Fund from U.S. corporations (generally, dividends received by the Fund in respect of any share of stock (1) with a tax holding period of at least 46 days during the 91-day period beginning on the date that is 45 days before the date on which the stock becomes ex-dividend as to that dividend and (2) that is held in an unleveraged position) when distributed and appropriately so reported by the Fund may be eligible for the 50% dividends received deduction generally available to corporations under the Code. Dividends received by a Fund from REITs will not be eligible for that deduction. In order to qualify for the deduction, corporate shareholders must meet the minimum holding period requirement stated above with respect to their shares, taking into account any holding period reductions from certain hedging or other transactions or positions that diminish their risk of loss with respect to their shares, and, if they borrow to acquire or otherwise incur debt attributable to shares, they may be denied a portion of the dividends-received deduction with respect to those shares. Any corporate shareholder should consult its tax advisor regarding the possibility that its tax basis in its shares may be reduced, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, by reason of “extraordinary dividends” received with respect to the shares and, to the extent such basis would be reduced below zero, current recognition of income may be required.
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Distributions from a Fund’s net short-term capital gains will generally be taxable to shareholders as ordinary income. Distributions from a Fund’s net capital gain will be taxable to shareholders at long-term capital gains rates, regardless of how long shareholders have held their shares. Long-term capital gains are generally taxed to non-corporate shareholders at rates of up to 20%.
Although dividends generally will be treated as distributed when paid, any dividend declared by a Fund in October, November or December and payable to shareholders of record in such a month that is paid during the following January will be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as received by shareholders on December 31 of the calendar year in which it was declared. A taxable shareholder may wish to avoid investing in the Funds shortly before a dividend or other distribution, because the distribution will generally be taxable even though it may economically represent a return of a portion of the shareholder’s investment.
If a Fund’s distributions exceed its current and accumulated earnings and profits, all or a portion of the distributions made in the taxable year may be treated as a return of capital to shareholders. A return of capital distribution generally will not be taxable but will reduce the shareholder’s cost basis and result in a higher capital gain or lower capital loss when the shares on which the distribution was received are sold. After a shareholder’s basis in the shares has been reduced to zero, distributions in excess of earnings and profits will be treated as gain from the sale of the shareholder’s shares.
Distributions that are reinvested in additional shares of a Fund through the means of a dividend reinvestment service, if offered by your broker-dealer, will nevertheless be taxable dividends to the same extent as if such dividends had been received in cash.
A 3.8% tax generally applies to all or a portion of the net investment income of a shareholder who is an individual and not a nonresident alien for federal income tax purposes and who has adjusted gross income (subject to certain adjustments) that exceeds a threshold amount ($250,000 if married filing jointly or if considered a “surviving spouse” for federal income tax purposes, $125,000 if married filing separately, and $200,000 in other cases). 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. For these purposes, interest, dividends and certain capital gains (generally including capital gain distributions and capital gains realized on the sale of shares) are generally taken into account in computing a shareholder’s net investment income.
Each Fund’s shareholders will be notified annually by financial intermediaries, such as brokers, through which a shareholder holds Fund shares as to the federal tax status of all distributions made by such Fund. Shareholders who have not held a Fund’s shares for a full year should be aware that the Fund may report and distribute to a shareholder, as ordinary dividends or capital gain dividends, a percentage of income that is not equal to the percentage of the Fund’s ordinary income or net capital gain, respectively, actually earned during the shareholder’s period of investment in the Fund. Distributions of ordinary income and capital gains also may be subject to foreign, state and local taxes depending on a shareholder’s circumstances.
Taxation of Shareholders – Sale of Shares. In general, a sale of shares that a shareholder holds as a capital asset results in capital gain or loss, and for individual shareholders, is taxable at a federal rate dependent upon the length of time the shares were held. A sale of shares held for a period of one year or less at the time of such sale will, for tax purposes, generally result in short-term capital gains or losses, and a sale of those held for more than one year will generally result in long-term capital gains or losses. Long-term capital gains are generally taxed to non-corporate shareholders at rates of up to 20%.
Gain or loss on the sale of shares is measured by the difference between the amount received and the adjusted tax basis of the shares. Shareholders should keep records of investments made (including shares acquired through reinvestment of dividends and distributions) so they can compute the tax basis of their shares.
A loss realized on a sale of shares may be disallowed if substantially identical shares are acquired (whether through the reinvestment of dividends or otherwise) within a 61-day period beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the date that the shares are disposed of. In such a case, the basis of the shares acquired must be adjusted to reflect the disallowed loss. Any loss upon the sale of shares held for six months or less will be treated as long-term capital loss to the extent of any amounts treated as distributions to the shareholder of long-term capital gain (including any amounts credited to the shareholder as undistributed capital gains).
Cost Basis Reporting. The cost basis of shares acquired by purchase will generally be based on the amount paid for the shares and then may be subsequently adjusted for other applicable transactions as required by the Code. The difference between the selling price and the cost basis of shares generally determines the amount of the capital gain or loss realized on the sale or exchange of shares. Contact the broker through whom you purchased your shares to obtain information with respect to the available cost basis reporting methods and elections for your account.
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Taxation of Fund Investments. Certain of a Fund’s investments may be subject to complex provisions of the Code (including provisions relating to hedging transactions, straddles, integrated transactions, foreign currency contracts, forward foreign currency contracts, and notional principal contracts) that, among other things, may affect the Fund’s ability to qualify as a RIC, affect the character of gains and losses realized by the Fund (e.g., may affect whether gains or losses are ordinary or capital), accelerate recognition of income to the Fund and defer losses. These rules could therefore affect the character, amount and timing of distributions to shareholders. These provisions also may require a Fund to annually mark-to-market certain types of positions in its portfolio (i.e., treat them as if they were closed out) which may cause the Fund to recognize income without receiving cash with which to make distributions to its shareholders in amounts necessary to satisfy the RIC distribution requirements for avoiding income and excise taxes. Each Fund intends to monitor its transactions, make appropriate tax elections, and make appropriate entries in its books and records in order to mitigate the effect of these rules and preserve the Fund’s qualification for treatment as a RIC.
Certain investments made by a Fund may be treated as equity in passive foreign investment companies (“PFICs”) for federal income tax purposes. In general, a PFIC is a foreign corporation (i) that receives at least 75% of its annual gross income from passive sources (such as interest, dividends, certain rents and royalties, or capital gains) or (ii) where at least 50% of its assets (computed based on average fair market value) either produce or are held for the production of passive income. If a Fund acquires any equity interest in a PFIC, the Fund could be subject to U.S. federal income tax and nondeductible interest charges on “excess distributions” received from such companies or on gain from the sale of stock in such companies, even if all income or gain actually received by the Fund is timely distributed to its shareholders. A Fund would not be able to pass through to its shareholders any credit or deduction for such a tax. A “qualified electing Fund” election or a “mark to market” election may be available that would ameliorate these adverse tax consequences, but such elections could require a Fund to recognize taxable income or gain (subject to the Distribution Requirement applicable to RICs, as described above) without the concurrent receipt of cash. In order to satisfy the distribution requirements and avoid a tax at the Fund level, the Fund may be required to liquidate portfolio securities that it might otherwise have continued to hold, potentially resulting in additional taxable gain or loss to the Fund. Gains from the sale of stock of PFICs also may be treated as ordinary income. Amounts included in income each year by a Fund arising from a qualified electing Fund election, will be “qualifying income” under the Qualifying Income Requirement even if not distributed to the Fund, if the Fund derives such income from its business of investing in stock, securities or currencies. Each Fund intends to make the appropriate tax elections, if possible, and take any additional steps that are necessary to mitigate the effect of these rules. In order for a Fund to make a qualified electing Fund election with respect to a PFIC, the PFIC would have to agree to provide certain tax information to the Fund on an annual basis, which it might not agree to do. A Fund may limit and/or manage its holdings in PFICs to limit its tax liability or maximize its returns from these investments.
Each Fund is required for federal income tax purposes to mark-to-market and recognize as income for each taxable year its net unrealized gains and losses on certain futures and options contracts subject to section 1256 of the Code (“Section 1256 Contracts”) as of the end of the year as well as those actually realized during the year. Gain or loss from Section 1256 Contracts on broad-based indexes required to be marked to market will be 60% long-term and 40% short-term capital gain or loss. Application of this rule may alter the timing and character of distributions to shareholders. A Fund may be required to defer the recognition of losses on Section 1256 Contracts to the extent of any unrecognized gains on offsetting positions held by the Fund.
A Fund’s transactions in foreign currencies and forward foreign currency contracts will generally be subject to special provisions of the Code that, among other things, may affect the character of gains and losses realized by the Fund (i.e., may affect whether gains or losses are ordinary or capital), accelerate recognition of income to the Fund and defer losses. These rules could therefore affect the character, amount and timing of distributions to shareholders. These provisions also may require a Fund to mark-to-market certain types of positions in its portfolio (i.e., treat them as if they were closed out) which may cause the Fund to recognize income without receiving cash with which to make distributions in amounts necessary to satisfy the Distribution Requirement and for avoiding the excise tax described above. Each Fund intends to monitor its transactions, intends to make the appropriate tax elections, and intends to make the appropriate entries in its books and records when it acquires any foreign currency or forward foreign currency contract in order to mitigate the effect of these rules so as to prevent disqualification of the Fund as a RIC and minimize the imposition of income and excise taxes.
Foreign Taxes. Dividends and interest received by a Fund on foreign securities may give rise to withholding and other taxes imposed by foreign countries. Any such taxes would, if imposed, reduce the yield on or return from those investments. Tax conventions between certain countries and the United States may reduce or eliminate such taxes.
If a Fund meets certain requirements, which include a requirement that more than 50% of the value of the Fund’s total assets at the close of its respective taxable year consist of certain foreign securities (generally including foreign government securities), then the Fund should be eligible to file an election with the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) that may enable its shareholders, in effect, to receive either the benefit of a foreign tax credit, or a tax deduction, with respect to certain foreign and U.S. possessions income taxes paid by the Fund, subject to certain limitations.
Pursuant to this election, a Fund would treat the applicable foreign taxes as dividends paid to its shareholders. Each such shareholder would be required to include a proportionate share of those taxes in gross income as income received from a foreign source and must treat the amount so included as if the shareholder had paid the foreign tax directly. The shareholder may then either deduct the taxes deemed paid by him or her in computing his or her taxable income or, alternatively, use the foregoing information in calculating any foreign tax credit the shareholder may be entitled to use against such shareholder’s federal income tax. If a Fund makes this election, the Fund will report annually the respective amounts per share of the Fund’s income from sources within, and taxes paid to, foreign countries and U.S. possessions. If a Fund does not hold sufficient foreign securities to meet the above threshold, then shareholders will not be entitled to claim a credit or further deduction with respect to foreign taxes paid by the Fund.
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Tax-Exempt Shareholders. Certain tax-exempt shareholders, including qualified pension plans, IRAs, salary deferral arrangements, 401(k) plans, and other tax-exempt entities, generally are exempt from federal income taxation except with respect to their unrelated business taxable income (“UBTI”). Under current law, a Fund generally serves to block UBTI from being realized by its tax-exempt shareholders. However, notwithstanding the foregoing, tax-exempt shareholders could realize UBTI by virtue of their investment in a Fund where, for example, (i) the Fund invests in REITs that hold residual interests in REMICs, (ii) the Fund invests in a REIT that is a taxable mortgage pool (“TMP”) or has a subsidiary that is a TMP or that invests in the residual interest of a REMIC, or (iii) shares constitute debt-financed property in the hands of the tax-exempt shareholders within the meaning of section 514(b) of the Code. Charitable remainder trusts are subject to special rules and should consult their tax advisors. There are no restrictions preventing a Fund from holding investments in REITs that hold residual interests in REMICs, and each Fund may do so. The IRS has issued guidance with respect to these issues and prospective shareholders, especially charitable remainder trusts, are strongly encouraged to consult with their tax advisors regarding these issues.
Certain tax-exempt educational institutions will be subject to a 1.4% tax on net investment income. For these purposes, certain dividends and capital gain distributions, and certain gains from the disposition of shares (among other categories of income), are generally taken into account in computing a shareholder’s net investment income.
A Fund’s shares held in a tax-qualified retirement account will generally not be subject to federal taxation on income and capital gains distributions from the Fund until a shareholder begins receiving payments from their retirement account.
Foreign Shareholders. Distributions derived from taxable ordinary income and paid by a Fund to shareholders who are nonresident aliens or foreign entities will generally be subject to a 30% United States withholding tax unless a reduced rate of withholding or a withholding exemption is provided under applicable treaty law or unless such income is effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business carried on through a permanent establishment in the United States. Any foreign shareholders in a Fund may be subject to U.S. withholding and estate tax and such shareholders are urged to consult their own tax advisors concerning the applicability of such taxes and the proper withholding form(s) to be submitted to the Fund. A foreign shareholder who fails to provide an appropriate series of IRS Form W-8 may be subject to backup withholding (discussed below) at the appropriate rate.
Dividends reported by a Fund as (i) interest-related dividends, to the extent such dividends are derived from the Fund’s “qualified net interest income,” or (ii) short-term capital gain dividends, to the extent such dividends are derived from the Fund’s “qualified short-term gain,” are generally exempt from this 30% withholding tax. “Qualified net interest income” is a Fund’s net income derived from U.S.-source interest and original issue discount, subject to certain exceptions and limitations. “Qualified short-term gain” generally means the excess of a Fund’s net short-term capital gain for the taxable year over its net long-term capital loss, if any. In the case of shares held through an intermediary, the intermediary may withhold even if a Fund reports the payment as an interest-related dividend or as a short-term capital gain dividend. Short-term capital gain dividends received by a nonresident alien individual who is present in the United States for a period of periods aggregating 183 days or more during the taxable year are not exempt from the 30% withholding tax. Gains realized by foreign shareholders from the sale or other disposition of shares of a Fund generally are not subject to U.S. taxation, unless the recipient is an individual who is physically present in the U.S. for 183 days or more per year. Foreign shareholders should contact their intermediaries with respect to the application of these rules to their accounts.
Under legislation known as “FATCA” (the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act), a U.S. withholding tax of 30% will apply to payments to certain foreign entities of U.S.-source interest and dividends unless various U.S. information reporting and due diligence requirements that are different from, and in addition to, the beneficial owner certification requirements described above have been satisfied. A non-U.S. shareholder may be exempt from the withholding described in this paragraph under an applicable intergovernmental agreement between the U.S. and a foreign government, provided that the shareholder and the applicable foreign government comply with the terms of the agreement. The Fund will not pay additional amounts in respect to any amounts withheld. Non-U.S. shareholders should consult their tax advisers regarding the effect, if any, of this legislation on their ownership and sale or disposition of the Fund’s common shares.
A beneficial holder of shares of a Fund who is a foreign person may be subject to foreign, state and local tax and to the U.S. federal estate tax in addition to the federal income tax consequences referred to above. If a shareholder is eligible for the benefits of a tax treaty, any effectively connected income or gain will generally be subject to U.S. federal income tax on a net basis only if it also is attributable to a permanent establishment or fixed base maintained by the shareholder in the United States.
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Backup Withholding. Each Fund will be required in certain cases to withhold (as “backup withholding”) on amounts payable to any shareholder who (1) has provided the Fund either an incorrect tax identification number or no number at all, (2) is subject to backup withholding by the IRS for failure to properly report payments of interest or dividends, (3) has failed to certify to the Fund that such shareholder is not subject to backup withholding, or (4) has not certified that such shareholder is a U.S. person (including a U.S. resident alien). The backup withholding rate is currently 24%. Backup withholding will not be applied to payments that have been subject to the 30% withholding tax on shareholders who are neither citizens nor permanent residents of the U.S.
Creation Units. An Authorized Participant who exchanges securities for Creation Units generally will recognize 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 and the sum of the exchanger’s aggregate basis in the securities surrendered plus the amount of cash paid for such Creation Units. A person who redeems Creation Units will generally recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between the exchanger’s basis in the Creation Units and the sum of the aggregate market value of any securities received plus the amount of any cash received for such Creation Units. The 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” (for an Authorized Participant that does not mark-to-market its holdings) or on the basis that there has been no significant change in economic position.
Any gain or loss realized upon a creation or redemption of Creation Units will be treated as capital or ordinary gain or loss, depending on the holder’s circumstances. Any capital gain or loss realized upon a creation of Creation Units will be treated as capital gain or loss if the Authorized Participant holds the securities exchanged therefor as capital assets, and otherwise will be ordinary income or loss. Similarly, any gain or loss realized upon a redemption of Creation Units will be treated as capital gain or loss if the Authorized Participant 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 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 for more than one year, and otherwise will be short-term capital gain 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 for more than one year, 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 Authorized Participant of long-term capital gains with respect to the Creation Units (including any amounts credited to the Authorized Participant as undistributed capital gains).
Each Fund has the right to reject an order for Creation Units if the purchaser (or a group of purchasers) would, upon obtaining the shares so ordered, own 80% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund and if, pursuant to section 351 of the Code, the Fund would have a basis in any deposit securities different from the market value of such securities on the date of deposit. Each Fund also has the right to require information necessary to determine beneficial share ownership for purposes of the 80% determination. If the Fund does issue Creation Units to a purchaser (or a group of purchasers) that would, upon obtaining the shares so ordered, own 80% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund, the purchaser (or a group of purchasers) may not recognize gain or loss upon the exchange of securities for Creation Units.
A person subject to U.S. federal income tax with the U.S. dollar as its functional currency for U.S. federal income tax purposes who receives non-U.S. currency upon a redemption of Creation Units and does not immediately convert the non-U.S. currency into U.S. dollars may, upon a later conversion of the non-U.S. currency into U.S. dollars, or upon the use of the non-U.S. currency to pay expenses or acquire assets, recognize as ordinary gains or losses any gains or losses resulting from fluctuations in the value of the non-U.S. currency relative to the U.S. dollar since the date of the redemption. Authorized Participants purchasing or redeeming Creation Units should consult their own tax advisors with respect to the tax treatment of any creation or redemption transaction.
Authorized Participants purchasing or redeeming Creation Units should consult their own tax advisors with respect to the tax treatment of any creation or redemption transaction and whether the wash sales rule applies and when a loss might be deductible.
Certain Potential Tax Reporting Requirements. Under promulgated Treasury regulations, if a shareholder recognizes a loss on disposition of a Fund’s shares of $2 million or more for an individual shareholder or $10 million or more for a corporate shareholder (or certain greater amounts over a combination of years), the shareholder must file with the IRS a disclosure statement on IRS Form 8886. Direct shareholders of portfolio securities are in many cases excepted from this reporting requirement, but under current guidance, shareholders of a RIC are not excepted. A shareholder who fails to make the required disclosure to the IRS may be subject to adverse tax consequences, including significant penalties. The fact that a loss is reportable under these regulations does not affect the legal determination of whether the taxpayer’s treatment of the loss is proper. Shareholders should consult their tax advisors to determine the applicability of these regulations in light of their individual circumstances.
State Tax Matters. Depending upon state and local law, distributions by a Fund to its shareholders and the ownership of such shares may be subject to state and local taxes. Rules of state and local taxation of dividend and capital gains distributions from RICs often differ from the rules for federal income taxation described above. It is expected that each Fund will not be liable for any corporate excise, income or franchise tax in Delaware if the Fund qualifies as a RIC for federal income tax purposes.
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The foregoing discussion is a summary only and is not intended as a substitute for careful tax planning. Purchasers of shares should consult their own tax advisors as to the tax consequences of investing in such shares, including under state, local and other tax laws. Finally, the foregoing discussion is based on applicable provisions of the Code, regulations, judicial authority and administrative interpretations in effect on the date hereof. Changes in applicable authority could materially affect the conclusions discussed above, and such changes often occur.
Financial statements and annual reports for a Fund will be available after the Fund has completed a fiscal year of operations. When available, you may request a copy of a Fund’s annual Certified Shareholder Report at no charge by calling [ phone ] or through the Funds’ website at [ website ].
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PART C: OTHER INFORMATION
Item 28. |
Exhibits | ||
(a) | (i) | Certificate of Trust of The 2023 ETF Series Trust (the “Registrant” or the “Trust”), dated January 23, 2023, was previously filed with the Registrant’s initial registration statement on Form N-1A on June 9, 2023 and is hereby incorporated by reference. | |
(ii) | Declaration of Trust of the Registrant, dated as of January 23, 2023, was previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on August 21, 2023 and is hereby incorporated by reference. | ||
(iii) | Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of the Registrant, dated as of September 14, 2023, was previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 2 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 22, 2023 and is hereby incorporated by reference. | ||
(b) | (i) | Registrant’s Bylaws, dated January 23, 2023, were previously filed with the Registrant’s initial registration statement on Form N-1A on June 9, 2023 and are hereby incorporated by reference. | |
(ii) | Registrant’s Amended and Restated Bylaws, dated August 15, 2023, were previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on August 21, 2023 and are hereby incorporated by reference. | ||
(c) | Not applicable. | ||
(d) | (i) | Investment Advisory Agreement, dated August 14, 2023, between the Trust (on behalf of Eagle Capital Select Equity ETF) and Eagle Capital Management LLC was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on July 30, 2024 and is hereby incorporated by reference. | |
(ii) | Investment Advisory Agreement, dated August 4, 2023, between the Trust (on behalf of Brandes International ETF, Brandes U.S. Value ETF and Brandes U.S. Small-Mid Cap Value ETF), and Brandes Investment Partners, L.P. was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on August 21, 2023 and is hereby incorporated by reference. | ||
(iii) | Investment Advisory Agreement, dated October 29, 2024, between the Trust (on behalf of Atlas America Fund), and Atlas Capital Team Inc., was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 6 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 4, 2024 and is hereby incorporated by reference. | ||
(iv) | Investment Advisory Agreement, dated December 17, 2024, between the Trust (on behalf of Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF), and Pacific Capital Partners Limited was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 9 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on June 24, 2025 and is hereby incorporated by reference. | ||
(v) | Investment Advisory Agreement between the Trust (on behalf of Transamerica Bond Active ETF and Transamerica Large Value Active ETF), and Transamerica Asset Management, Inc. to be filed by amendment. | ||
(iv) | Investment Advisory Agreement between the Trust (on behalf TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF), and TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC – to be filed by amendment. | ||
(vii) | Investment Sub-Advisory Agreement, dated December 17, 2024, between Pacific Capital Partners Limited (on behalf of Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF), and North of South Capital LLP was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 9 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on June 24, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(viii) | Form of Investment Advisory Agreement between the Trust (on behalf of Pictet Cleaner Planet ETF, Pictet AI Enhanced International Equity ETF, and Pictet AI & Automation ETF) and Pictet Asset Management SA, was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
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(ix) | Form of Investment Advisory Agreement between the Trust (on behalf of Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF and Pictet Emerging Markets Rising Economies ETF) and Pictet Asset Management Ltd., was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(x) | Investment Sub-Advisory Agreement, dated September 16, 2025, between Pictet Asset Management Ltd. (on behalf of Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF), and Pictet Asset Management (USA) Corp., was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(xi) | Investment Sub-Advisory Agreement, dated September 16, 2025, between Pictet Asset Management Ltd. (on behalf of Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF) and Pictet Asset Management (Singapore) PTE Ltd., was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(xii) | Form of Delegated Services Sub-Advisory Agreement between Pictet Asset Management Ltd. and Tidal Investments LLC was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(xiii) | Form of Delegated Services Sub-Advisory Agreement Pictet Asset Management SA and Tidal Investments LLC was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(xiv) | Investment Sub-Advisory Agreement between Transamerica Asset Management, Inc., (on behalf of Transamerica Bond Active ETF) and Aegon USA Investment Management, LLC to be filed by amendment. | ||
(xv) | Investment Sub-Advisory Agreement between Transamerica Asset Management, Inc. (on behalf of Transamerica Large Value Active ETF) and Great Lakes Advisors LLC to be filed by amendment. | ||
(xvi) | Investment Sub-Advisory Agreement between Transamerica Asset Management, Inc. (on behalf of Transamerica Bond Active ETF and Transamerica Large Value Active ETF) and Tidal Investments LLC to be filed by amendment. | ||
(xvii) | Investment Sub-Advisory Agreement between TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC (on behalf of TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF) and Tidal Investments LLC to be filed by amendment. | ||
(e) | (i) | ETF Distribution Agreement, dated August 1, 2023, between the Trust and Foreside Fund Services, LLC (the “Distribution Agreement”) was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on July 30, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | |
(i) | First Amendment, dated October 11, 2024, to the Distribution Agreement between the Trust and Foreside Fund Services, LLC (adding Atlas America Fund and Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF) was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 6 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 4, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(ii) | Second Amendment, dated August 1, 2023, to the Distribution Agreement between the Trust and Foreside Fund Services, LLC (adding Pictet AI & Automation ETF, Pictet Cleaner Planet ETF, Pictet AI Enhanced International Equity ETF, Pictet Emerging Markets Rising Economies ETF, Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF) was previously filed with Post-Effective No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(iii) | Third Amendment to the Distribution Agreement between the Trust and Foreside Fund Services, LLC (reflecting the addition of the Transamerica Bond Active ETF and Transamerica Large Value Active ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(iv) | Fourth Amendment to the Distribution Agreement between the Trust and Foreside Fund Services, LLC (reflecting the addition of the TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
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(ii) | Form of Authorized Participant Agreement between the Registrant and Foreside Fund Services, LLC was previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on August 21, 2023 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(f) | Not applicable. | ||
(g) | (i) | Custody Agreement, dated July 27, 2023, between the Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon (the “BNY Custody Agreement”) (covering Eagle Capital Select Equity ETF, Brandes U.S. Small-Mid Cap Value ETF, Brandes International ETF and Brandes U.S. Value ETF) was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. No. 4 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on October 25, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | |
(i) | Amendment, dated October 1, 2024, to the BNY Custody Agreement (adding Atlas America Fund) was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 6 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 4, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(ii) | Global Custodial Services Agreement, dated October 9, 2024, between the Registrant and Citibank, N.A. (covering Pacific Nos Global Em Equity Active ETF), was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 8 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 8, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(iii) | Custodian Agreement, dated July 23, 2025, between the Trust and Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. (covering Pictet AI & Automation ETF, Pictet Emerging Markets Rising Economies ETF, Pictet AI Enhanced International Equity ETF, Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF and Pictet Cleaner Planet ETF), and Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. was previously filed with Post-Effective No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(iv) | Custody Agreement between the Trust and [Custodian] (relating to the Transamerica Bond Active ETF and Transamerica Large Value Active ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(v) | Custody Agreement between the Trust and [Custodian] (relating to the TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(vii) | Foreign Custody Manager Agreement, dated July 28, 2023, between the Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon (covering Eagle Capital Select Equity ETF, Brandes U.S. Small-Mid Cap Value ETF, Brandes International ETF and Brandes U.S. Value ETF) was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on July 30, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(viii) | Foreign Custody Agreement between the Trust and [Custodian] (relating to the Transamerica Bond Active ETF and Transamerica Large Value Active ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(viii) | Foreign Custody Agreement between the Trust and [Custodian] (relating to TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(h) | (i) | Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement, dated July 27, 2023, between the Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon (the “BNY Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement”)covering Eagle Capital Select Equity ETF, Brandes U.S. Small-Mid Cap Value ETF, Brandes International ETF and Brandes U.S. Value ETF) was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on July 30, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | |
(i) | Amendment, dated October 1, 2024, to the BNY Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement was (adding Atlas America Fund), was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 6 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 4, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(ii) | Administrative Agency Agreement, dated July 23, 2025, between the Trust and Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. was (covering Pictet AI & Automation ETF, Pictet Emerging Markets Rising Economies ETF, Pictet AI Enhanced International Equity ETF, Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF and Pictet Cleaner Planet ETF), previously filed with Post-Effective No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
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(iii) | Principal Trust Administrator Services Agreement, dated July 21, 2025, between the Trust and Tidal ETF Services LLC was previously filed with Post-Effective No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(iv) | Administration Agreement between the Trust and [Administrator] (relating to the Transamerica Bond Active ETF and Transamerica Large Value Active ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(v) | Administration Agreement between the Trust and [Administrator] (relating to the TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(vi) | Transfer Agency and Service Agreement, dated July 27, 2023, between the Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon (the “BNY Transfer Agency and Service Agreement” (covering Eagle Capital Select Equity ETF, Brandes U.S. Small-Mid Cap Value ETF, Brandes International ETF and Brandes U.S. Value ETF) was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on July 30, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(i) | Amendment, dated October 1, 2024, to the BNY Transfer Agency and Service Agreement (adding Atlas America Fund) was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 6 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 4, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(vii) | Transfer Agency Agreement between the Trust and [Transfer Agent] (relating to the Transamerica Bond Active ETF and Transamerica Large Value Active ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(viii) | Transfer Agency Agreement between the Trust and [Transfer Agent] (relating to the TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(ix) | Services Agreement, dated November 5, 2024, between the Trust, Citi Fund Services Ohio, Inc. and Citibank, N.A. was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 8 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 8, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(x) | Advisory Agreement between the Atlas America CFC and Atlas Capital Team Inc. to be filed by amendment. | ||
(i) | (i) | Opinion and Consent of Counsel, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP (relating to the Eagle Capital Select Equity ETF, Brandes U.S. Small-Mid Cap Value ETF, Brandes U.S. Value ETF, and Brandes International ETF) was previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on August 21, 2023 and is incorporated herein by reference. | |
(ii) | Consent to Use of Name of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP was previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 2 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 22, 2023 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(iii) | Opinion and consent of counsel, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP (relating to the Atlas America Fund) was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 6 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 4, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(iv) | Opinion and consent of counsel, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP (relating to the Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF) was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 8 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 8, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(v) | Opinion and consent of counsel, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP (relating to the Pictet AI & Automation ETF, Pictet Cleaner Planet ETF, Pictet AI-Enhanced International Equity ETF, Pictet Emerging Markets Rising Economies ETF, and Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF) was previously filed with Post-Effective No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(vi) | Opinion and consent of counsel, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP (relating to the Transamerica Bond Active ETF and Transamerica Large Value Active ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
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(vii) | Opinion and consent of counsel, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP (relating to the TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(j) | Not applicable. | ||
(k) | Not applicable. | ||
(l) | Subscription Agreement, dated August 1, 2023, between the Trust and RHBP Family, LLC (for the Eagle Capital Select Equity ETF), was previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on August 21, 2023 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(m) | (i) | Plan of Distribution Pursuant to Rule 12b-1 (the “12b-1 Plan”) was previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on August 21, 2023 and is incorporated herein by reference. | |
(ii) | Schedule A to the 12b-1 Plan was previously filed with Post-Effective No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(iii) | Revised Schedule A to the 12b-1 Plan, (reflecting the addition of the Transamerica Bond Active ETF and Transamerica Large Value Active ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(iv) | Revised Schedule A to the 12b-1 Plan (reflecting the addition of the TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF) to be filed by amendment. | ||
(n) | Not applicable. | ||
(o) | Reserved. | ||
(p) | (i) | Code of Ethics for the Trust was previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on August 21, 2023 and is incorporated herein by reference. | |
(ii) | Code of Ethics for Eagle Capital Management LLC was previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on August 21, 2023 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(iii) | Code of Ethics for Brandes Investment Partners, L.P. was previously filed with Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on August 21, 2023 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(iv) | Code of Ethics for Atlas Capital Team Inc. was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 6 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 4, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(v) | Code of Ethics for Pacific Capital Partners Limited was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 8 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 8, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(vi) | Code of Ethics for North of South Capital LLP was previously filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 8 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on November 8, 2024 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(vii) | Code of Ethics for Pictet Asset Management was previously filed with Post-Effective No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(viii) | Code of Ethics for Tidal Investments LLC was previously filed with Post-Effective No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and is incorporated herein by reference. | ||
(ix) | Code of Ethics for Transamerica Asset Management, Inc. to be filed by amendment. | ||
(x) | Code of Ethics for Aegon USA Investment Management, LLC to be filed by amendment. | ||
(xi) | Code of Ethics for Great Lakes Advisors LLC to be filed by amendment. | ||
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(xii) | Code of Ethics for TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC to be filed by amendment. | ||
(q) | Powers of Attorney were previously filed with Post-Effective No. 13 to the Registrant’s registration statement on Form N-1A on September 17, 2025 and are incorporated herein by reference. |
Item 29. | Persons Controlled by or under Common Control with the Fund |
As of the date of this registration statement, the Atlas America Fund (the “Parent Fund”) owned 100% of its subsidiary, an exempted company organized under Cayman Islands law (the “Subsidiary”). The Subsidiary’s financial information is reported on a consolidated basis with that of the Parent Fund.
Item 30. | Indemnification |
Article IX of the Registrant’s Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust states:
Section 9.2. Limitation of Liability of Trustees and Others. (a) Extent of Duties. No Trustee, officer, or employee of the Trust shall owe any duty, or have any related liability, to any Person whatsoever (including without limitation any Shareholder) other than to the Trust or any Series, and this Declaration of Trust eliminates any such duty arising at law (common or statutory) or in equity and any related liability, to the extent that such duty or liability may be so eliminated.
(b) No Liability to Third Parties. No person who is or has been a Trustee, officer, or employee of the Trust shall be subject to any personal liability whatsoever to any Person, other than the Trust or any Series, in connection with the affairs of the Trust; and all Persons shall look solely to the Trust Property or Property of a Series for satisfaction of claims of any nature arising in connection with the affairs of the Trust or such Series.
Every note, bond, contract, instrument, certificate, Share or undertaking and every other act or thing whatsoever executed or done by or on behalf of the Trust or the Trustees or any of them in connection with the Trust shall be conclusively deemed to have been executed or done only in or with respect to their or his capacity as Trustees or Trustee and neither such Trustees or Trustee nor the Shareholders shall be personally liable thereon.
All Persons extending credit to, contracting with or having any claim against the Trust or a Series shall look only to the assets of the Trust Property or the Trust Property of such Series for payment under such credit, contract or claim; and neither the Trustees, nor any of the Trust’s officers, employees or agents, whether past, present or future, shall be personally liable therefor.
(c) Limitation of Liability to Trust and Series. No person who is or has been a Trustee, officer or employee of the Trust shall be liable to the Trust or to any Series for any action or failure to act except for his or her own bad faith, willful misfeasance, gross negligence or reckless disregard of his or her duties involved in the conduct of the individual’s office, and for nothing else, and shall not be liable for errors of judgment or mistakes of fact or law.
(d) No Liability for Acts of Others. Without limiting the foregoing limitations of liability contained in this Section 9.2, a Trustee shall not be responsible for or liable in any event for any neglect or wrongdoing of any officer, employee, investment adviser, sub-adviser, principal underwriter, custodian or other agent of the Trust, nor shall any Trustee be responsible or liable for the act or omission of any other Trustee (or for the failure to compel in any way any former or acting Trustee to redress any breach of trust), except in the case of such Trustee’s own willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of his or her office.
Insofar as indemnification for liability arising under the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Securities Act”) may be permitted to Trustees, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such Trustee, officer, or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.
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Item 31. | Business and other Connections of the Investment Advisers |
Each of the investment advisers and sub-advisers listed below is duly registered under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, unless otherwise noted, and serves in the capacity indicated with respect to the applicable Funds. Information concerning the business, profession, vocation or employment of a substantial nature of each firm and its officers is set forth in the applicable Statement of Additional Information and/or in the firm’s Form ADV filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Adviser / Sub-Adviser | Location | Role | Funds Advised / Sub-Advised | Form ADV File No. |
Atlas Capital Team Inc. | 6
East 1st St, Suite 5A, New York, NY 10003 |
Investment Adviser | Atlas America Fund | 801-130378 |
Brandes Investment Partners, L.P. | 4275
Executive Sq, 5th Floor, La Jolla, CA 92037 |
Investment Adviser | Brandes
U.S. Small-Mid Cap Value ETF Brandes International ETF Brandes U.S. Value ETF |
801-24896 |
Eagle Capital Management LLC | 499
Park Ave, New York, NY 10022 |
Investment Adviser | Eagle Capital Select Equity ETF | 801-48883 |
North of South Capital LLP | 16 Kinnerton Place South, London SW1X 8EH, UK | Sub-Adviser | Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF | 801-116992 |
Pacific Capital Partners Ltd. | 74
Wigmore St, London W1U 2SQ, UK |
Investment Adviser | Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF | 801-121528 |
Pictet Asset Management SA | 60
Route Des Acacias, Geneva, Switzerland |
Investment Adviser | Pictet
Cleaner Planet ETF Pictet AI Enhanced International Equity ETF Pictet AI & Automation ETF |
801-66760 |
Pictet Asset Management Ltd. | Moor
House, 120 London Wall, London, UK |
Investment Adviser | Pictet
Emerging Markets Rising Economies ETF Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF |
801-15143 |
Pictet Asset Management (USA) Corp. | 712
5th Ave, 25th Floor, New York, NY 10018 |
Sub-Adviser | Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF | 801-120136 |
Pictet Asset Management (Singapore) PTE Ltd. | 10
Marina Blvd #22-01, Tower 2, Marina Bay Financial Centre, Singapore 018983 |
Sub-Adviser | Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF | 801-77703 |
Tidal Investments LLC | 234
W Florida St, Suite 203 Milwaukee, WI 53204 |
Sub-Adviser | Pictet
AI & Automation ETF Pictet Cleaner Planet ETF Pictet AI Enhanced International Equity ETF Pictet Emerging Markets Rising Economies ETF Pictet Emerging Markets Debt ETF Transamerica Bond Active ETF Transamerica Large Value Active ETF |
801-76857 |
Transamerica Asset Management, Inc. | 1801
California St, Suite 5200 Denver, CO 80202 |
Investment Adviser | Transamerica
Bond Active ETF Transamerica Large Value Active ETF |
801-53319 |
Aegon USA Investment Management, LLC | 6300
C Street, SW Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52499 |
Sub-Adviser | Transamerica Bond Active ETF | 801-60667 |
Great Lakes Advisors LLC | 231
South LaSalle Street, 4th Floor Chicago, Illinois 60604 |
Sub-Adviser | Transamerica Large Value Active ETF | 801-16937 |
Timessquare Capital Management, LLC | 75
Rockefeller Plaza 30th Floor New York, New York, 10019 |
Investment Adviser | TimesSquare Quality Mid Cap Growth ETF, TimesSquare Quality Small-Mid Cap Growth ETF and TimesSquare Quality International Small Cap Growth ETF | 801-63492 |
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Item 32. | Principal Underwriters |
Item 32(a) | Foreside Fund Services, LLC (the “Distributor”) serves as principal underwriter for the following investment companies registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended: |
1. | AB Active ETFs, Inc. |
2. | ABS Long/Short Strategies Fund |
3. | ActivePassive Core Bond ETF, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
4. | ActivePassive Intermediate Municipal Bond ETF, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
5. | Active Passive International Equity ETF, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
6. | ActivePassive U.S. Equity ETF, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
7. | AdvisorShares Trust |
8. | AFA Private Credit Fund |
9. | AGF Investments Trust |
10. | AIM ETF Products Trust |
11. | Alexis Practical Tactical ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
12. | AlphaCentric Prime Meridian Income Fund |
13. | American Century ETF Trust |
14. | Amplify ETF Trust |
15. | Applied Finance Dividend Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
16. | Applied Finance Explorer Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
17. | Applied Finance Select Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
18. | Ardian Access LLC |
19. | ARK ETF Trust |
20. | ARK Venture Fund |
21. | Bitwise Funds Trust |
22. | BondBloxx ETF Trust |
23. | Bramshill Multi-Strategy Income Fund, Series of Investment Managers Series Trust |
24. | Bridgeway Funds, Inc. |
25. | Brinker Capital Destinations Trust |
26. | Brookfield Real Assets Income Fund Inc. |
27. | Build Funds Trust |
28. | Calamos Convertible and High Income Fund |
29. | Calamos Convertible Opportunities and Income Fund |
30. | Calamos Dynamic Convertible and Income Fund |
31. | Calamos Global Dynamic Income Fund |
32. | Calamos Global Total Return Fund |
33. | Calamos Strategic Total Return Fund |
34. | Carlyle Tactical Private Credit Fund |
35. | Cascade Private Capital Fund |
36. | Catalyst Strategic Income Opportunities Fund |
37. | CBRE Global Real Estate Income Fund |
38. | Center Coast Brookfield MLP & Energy Infrastructure Fund |
39. | Clifford Capital Partners Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
40. | Cliffwater Corporate Lending Fund |
41. | Cliffwater Enhanced Lending Fund |
42. | Coatue Innovation Fund |
43. | Cohen & Steers ETF Trust |
44. | Convergence Long/Short Equity ETF, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
45. | CornerCap Small-Cap Value Fund, Series of Managed Portfolio Series |
46. | CrossingBridge Pre-Merger SPAC ETF, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
47. | Curasset Capital Management Core Bond Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
48. | Curasset Capital Management Limited Term Income Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
49. | CYBER HORNET S&P 500® and Bitcoin 75/25 Strategy ETF, Series of ONEFUND Trust |
50. | Davis Fundamental ETF Trust |
51. | Defiance Connective Technologies ETF, Series of ETF Series Solutions |
52. | Defiance Quantum ETF, Series of ETF Series Solutions |
53. | Denali Structured Return Strategy Fund |
54. | Dividend Performers ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
55. | Dodge & Cox Funds |
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56. | DoubleLine ETF Trust |
57. | DoubleLine Income Solutions Fund |
58. | DoubleLine Opportunistic Credit Fund |
59. | DoubleLine Yield Opportunities Fund |
60. | DriveWealth ETF Trust |
61. | EIP Investment Trust |
62. | Ellington Income Opportunities Fund |
63. | ETF Opportunities Trust |
64. | Exchange Listed Funds Trust |
65. | Exchange Place Advisors Trust |
66. | FlexShares Trust |
67. | Fortuna Hedged Bitcoin Fund, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
68. | Forum Funds |
69. | Forum Funds II |
70. | Forum Real Estate Income Fund |
71. | Fundrise Growth Tech Fund, LLC |
72. | Gramercy Emerging Markets Debt Fund, Series of Investment Managers Series Trust |
73. | Grayscale Funds Trust |
74. | Guinness Atkinson Funds |
75. | Harbor ETF Trust |
76. | Harris Oakmark ETF Trust |
77. | Hawaiian Tax-Free Trust |
78. | Horizon Kinetics Blockchain Development ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
79. | Horizon Kinetics Energy and Remediation ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
80. | Horizon Kinetics Inflation Beneficiaries ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
81. | Horizon Kinetics Japan Owner Operator ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
82. | Horizon Kinetics Medical ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
83. | Horizon Kinetics SPAC Active ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
84. | IDX Funds |
85. | Innovator ETFs Trust |
86. | Ironwood Institutional Multi-Strategy Fund LLC |
87. | Ironwood Multi-Strategy Fund LLC |
88. | Jensen Quality Growth ETF, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
89. | John Hancock Exchange-Traded Fund Trust |
90. | Kurv ETF Trust |
91. | Lazard Active ETF Trust |
92. | LDR Real Estate Value-Opportunity Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
93. | Mairs & Power Balanced Fund, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
94. | Mairs & Power Growth Fund, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
95. | Mairs & Power Minnesota Municipal Bond ETF, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
96. | Mairs & Power Small Cap Fund, Series of Trust for Professional Managers |
97. | Manor Investment Funds |
98. | Milliman Variable Insurance Trust |
99. | MoA Funds Corporation |
100. | Moerus Worldwide Value Fund, Series of Northern Lights Fund Trust IV |
101. | Morgan Stanley ETF Trust |
102. | Morgan Stanley Pathway Large Cap Equity ETF, Series of Morgan Stanley Pathway Funds |
103. | Morgan Stanley Pathway Small-Mid Cap Equity ETF, Series of Morgan Stanley Pathway Funds |
104. | Morningstar Funds Trust |
105. | NEOS ETF Trust |
106. | Niagara Income Opportunities Fund |
107. | North Square Evanston Multi-Alpha Fund |
108. | NXG Cushing® Midstream Energy Fund |
109. | NXG NextGen Infrastructure Income Fund |
110. | OTG Latin American Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
111. | Overlay Shares Core Bond ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
112. | Overlay Shares Foreign Equity ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
113. | Overlay Shares Hedged Large Cap Equity ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
114. | Overlay Shares Large Cap Equity ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
115. | Overlay Shares Municipal Bond ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
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116. | Overlay Shares Short Term Bond ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
117. | Overlay Shares Small Cap Equity ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
118. | Palmer Square Funds Trust |
119. | Palmer Square Opportunistic Income Fund |
120. | Partners Group Private Income Opportunities, LLC |
121. | Perkins Discovery Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
122. | Philotimo Focused Growth and Income Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
123. | Plan Investment Fund, Inc. |
124. | Point Bridge America First ETF, Series of ETF Series Solutions |
125. | Precidian ETFs Trust |
126. | Preferred-Plus ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
127. | Rareview 2x Bull Cryptocurrency & Precious Metals ETF, Series of Collaborative Investment Series Trust |
128. | Rareview Dynamic Fixed Income ETF, Series of Collaborative Investment Series Trust |
129. | Rareview Systematic Equity ETF, Series of Collaborative Investment Series Trust |
130. | Rareview Tax Advantaged Income ETF, Series of Collaborative Investment Series Trust |
131. | Rareview Total Return Bond ETF, Series of Collaborative Investment Series Trust |
132. | REX ETF Trust |
133. | Renaissance Capital Greenwich Funds |
134. | Reynolds Funds, Inc. |
135. | RMB Investors Trust |
136. | Robinson Opportunistic Income Fund, Series of Investment Managers Series Trust |
137. | Robinson Tax Advantaged Income Fund, Series of Investment Managers Series Trust |
138. | Roundhill Ball Metaverse ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
139. | Roundhill Cannabis ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
140. | Roundhill ETF Trust |
141. | Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
142. | Roundhill Sports Betting & iGaming ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
143. | Roundhill Video Games ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
144. | Rule One Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
145. | Russell Investments Exchange Traded Funds |
146. | Securian AM Real Asset Income Fund, Series of Investment Managers Series Trust |
147. | Six Circles Trust |
148. | Sound Shore Fund, Inc. |
149. | SP Funds Trust |
150. | Sparrow Funds |
151. | Spear Alpha ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
152. | STF Tactical Growth & Income ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
153. | STF Tactical Growth ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
154. | Strategic Trust |
155. | Strategy Shares |
156. | Swan Hedged Equity US Large Cap ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
157. | Tekla World Healthcare Fund |
158. | Tema ETF Trust |
159. | The 2023 ETF Series Trust |
160. | The 2023 ETF Series Trust II |
161. | The Community Development Fund |
162. | The Cook & Bynum Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
163. | The Finite Solar Finance Fund |
164. | The Private Shares Fund |
165. | The SPAC and New Issue ETF, Series of Collaborative Investment Series Trust |
166. | Third Avenue Trust |
167. | Third Avenue Variable Series Trust |
168. | Tidal Trust I |
169. | Tidal Trust II |
170. | Tidal Trust III |
171. | TIFF Investment Program |
172. | Timothy Plan High Dividend Stock Enhanced ETF, Series of The Timothy Plan |
173. | Timothy Plan High Dividend Stock ETF, Series of The Timothy Plan |
174. | Timothy Plan International ETF, Series of The Timothy Plan |
175. | Timothy Plan Market Neutral ETF, Series of The Timothy Plan |
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176. | Timothy Plan US Large/Mid Cap Core ETF, Series of The Timothy Plan |
177. | Timothy Plan US Large/Mid Core Enhanced ETF, Series of The Timothy Plan |
178. | Timothy Plan US Small Cap Core ETF, Series of The Timothy Plan |
179. | Total Fund Solution |
180. | Touchstone ETF Trust |
181. | T-Rex 2X Inverse Bitcoin Daily Target ETF, Series of World Funds Trust |
182. | T-Rex 2x Inverse Ether Daily Target ETF, Series of World Funds Trust |
183. | T-Rex 2X Long Bitcoin Daily Target ETF, Series of World Funds Trust |
184. | T-Rex 2x Long Ether Daily Target ETF |
185. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (April) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
186. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (August) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
187. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (December) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
188. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (February) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
189. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (January) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
190. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (July) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
191. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (June) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
192. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (March) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
193. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (May) ETF, Listed Funds Trust |
194. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (November) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
195. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (October) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
196. | TrueShares Structured Outcome (September) ETF, Series of Listed Funds Trust |
197. | U.S. Global Investors Funds |
198. | Union Street Partners Value Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
199. | Vest Bitcoin Strategy Managed Volatility Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
200. | Vest S&P 500® Dividend Aristocrats Target Income Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
201. | Vest US Large Cap 10% Buffer Strategies Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
202. | Vest US Large Cap 10% Buffer Strategies VI Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
203. | Vest US Large Cap 20% Buffer Strategies Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
204. | Vest US Large Cap 20% Buffer Strategies VI Fund, Series of World Funds Trust |
205. | Virtus Stone Harbor Emerging Markets Income Fund |
206. | Volatility Shares Trust |
207. | WEBs ETF Trust |
208. | Wedbush Series Trust |
209. | Wellington Global Multi-Strategy Fund |
210. | Wilshire Mutual Funds, Inc. |
211. | Wilshire Variable Insurance Trust |
212. | WisdomTree Digital Trust |
213. | WisdomTree Trust |
214. | XAI Octagon Floating Rate & Alternative Income Term Trust |
Item 32(b) | The following are the Officers and Manager of the Distributor, the Registrant’s underwriter. The Distributor’s main business address is 190 Middle Street, Suite 301, Portland, Maine 04101. |
Name | Address | Position with Underwriter | Position with Registrant |
Teresa Cowan | 111 E. Kilbourn Avenue Suite 2200 Milwaukee, WI 53202 |
President/Manager | None |
Chris Lanza | 190 Middle Street Suite 301 Portland, ME 04101 |
Vice President | None |
Kate Macchia | 190 Middle Street Suite 301 Portland, ME 04101 |
Vice President | None |
Nanette K. Chern | 190 Middle Street Suite 301 Portland, ME 04101 |
Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer | None |
Kelly B. Whetstone | 190 Middle Street Suite 301 Portland, ME 04101 |
Secretary | None |
Susan L. LaFond | 111 E. Kilbourn Avenue Suite 2200 Milwaukee, WI 53202 |
Treasurer | None |
Weston Sommers | 190 Middle Street Suite 301 Portland, ME 04101 |
Financial and Operations Principal and Chief Financial Officer | None |
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Item 32(c) | Not applicable. |
Item 33. | Location of Accounts and Records: |
Books or other documents required to be maintained by Section 31(a) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, and the rules promulgated thereunder, are maintained as follows:
Atlas Capital Team Inc.
6 East 1st Street, Suite 5A
New York, New York 10003
Brandes Investment Partners, L.P.
4275 Executive Square, 5th Floor
La Jolla, California 92037
Eagle Capital Management LLC
65 East 55th Street, 26th Floor
New York, New York 10022
North of South Capital LLP
16 Kinnerton Place South
London SW1X 8EH
United Kingdom
Pacific Capital Partners Limited
74 Wigmore Street
London, W1U 2SQ
United Kingdom
Pictet Asset Management SA
60 Route des Acacias
Geneva, Switzerland
Pictet Asset Management Ltd.
Moor House, 120 London Wall
London, United Kingdom EC2Y
Pictet Asset Management (USA) Corp.
712 5th Avenue, 25th Floor
New York, New York 10019
Pictet Asset Management (Singapore) PTE Ltd.
10 Marina Boulevard #22-01 Tower 2, Marina Bay Financial Centre
Singapore 018983
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The Bank of New York Mellon
240 Greenwich Street
New York, New York 10286
Citibank, N.A.
388 Greenwich Street
New York, NY 10013
Foreside Fund Services, LLC
190 Middle Street, Suite 301
Portland, Maine 04101
Tidal Investments LLC
234 W. Florida St., Suite 203
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204
Tidal ETF Services LLC
234 W. Florida St., Suite 203
Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204
Transamerica Asset Management, Inc.
1801 California Street
Denver, Colorado 80202
Aegon USA Investment Management, LLC
6300 C Street, SW
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52499
Great Lakes Advisors LLC
231 South LaSalle Street, 4th Floor
Chicago, Illinois 60604
TimesSquare Capital Management, LLC
75 Rockefeller Plaza, 30th Floor
New York, New York, 10019
Item 34. | Management Services |
Not Applicable.
Item 35. | Undertakings |
Not Applicable.
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, the Registrant has duly caused this Post-Effective Amendment No. 13 to its Registration Statement on Form N-1A to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, duly authorized, in the City of Milwaukee, State of Wisconsin, on October 9, 2025.
The 2023 ETF Series Trust | |||
By: | /s/ Eric Falkeis | ||
Eric Falkeis President (Principal Executive Officer) |
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, this registration statement has been signed below by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
Signature | Title | Date | ||
/s/ Robert Howard* | Chair and Member of the Board of Trustees | October 9, 2025 | ||
Robert Howard | ||||
/s/ Joan Binstock* | Member of the Board of Trustees | October 9, 2025 | ||
Joan Binstock | ||||
/s/ Thomas F. Lydon, Jr.* | Member of the Board of Trustees | October 9, 2025 | ||
Thomas F. Lydon, Jr. | ||||
/s/ Ellen Needham* | Member of the Board of Trustees | October 9, 2025 | ||
Ellen Needham | ||||
/s/ Eric Falkeis | President (Principal Executive Officer) | October 9, 2025 | ||
Eric Falkeis | ||||
/s/ Aaron Perkovich | Treasurer (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) | October 9, 2025 | ||
Aaron Perkovich | ||||
/s/ Eric Falkeis |
* | Eric Falkeis, Attorney-in-Fact, pursuant to the powers of attorney incorporated herein by reference to Exhibit (q). |
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