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VanEck Vectors® Mortgage REIT Income ETF
VanEck Vectors® Mortgage REIT Income ETF
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
VanEck Vectors® Mortgage REIT Income ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the MVIS® US Mortgage REITs Index (the “Mortgage REITs Index”).
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe 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 tables and examples below.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
Shareholder Fees
VanEck Vectors® Mortgage REIT Income ETF
VanEck Vectors Mortgage REIT Income ETF
USD ($)
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment) none
Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
VanEck Vectors® Mortgage REIT Income ETF
VanEck Vectors Mortgage REIT Income ETF
Management Fee 0.40%
Other Expenses 0.10%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses 0.50% [1]
Fee Waivers and Expense Reimbursement (0.09%) [1]
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and Expense Reimbursement 0.41% [1]
[1] Van Eck Associates Corporation (the "Adviser") has agreed to waive fees and/or pay Fund expenses to the extent necessary to prevent the operating expenses of the Fund (excluding acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses) from exceeding 0.40% of the Fund's average daily net assets per year until at least September 1, 2021 . During such time, the expense limitation is expected to continue until the Fund's Board of Trustees acts to discontinue all or a portion of such expense limitation.
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. This example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% annual return and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same (except that the example incorporates the fee waivers and/or expense reimbursement arrangement for only the first year).
Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:
Expense Example
VanEck Vectors® Mortgage REIT Income ETF
VanEck Vectors Mortgage REIT Income ETF
USD ($)
1 $ 42
3 151
5 271
10 $ 620
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund will pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 16% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in securities that comprise the Fund’s benchmark index. The Mortgage REIT Index is comprised of publicly traded U.S. real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) that derive at least 50% of their revenues from (or, where applicable, have at least 50% of their assets related to) mortgage-related activity. A mortgage REIT makes loans to developers and owners of properties and invests primarily in mortgages and similar real estate interests, and includes companies or trusts that are primarily engaged in the purchasing or servicing of commercial or residential mortgage loans or mortgage-related securities . The Mortgage REITs Index may include small-, medium- and large-capitalization companies. As of June 30, 20 20 , the Mortgage REITs Index included 25 securities of companies with a market capitalization range of between approximately $ 312 million and $ 9.4 billion and a weighted average market capitalization of $ 3.9 billion. The Fund’s 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders.

The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Mortgage REITs Index by investing in a portfolio of securities that generally replicates the Mortgage REITs Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try to “beat” the Mortgage REITs Index and does not take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the Mortgage REITs Index .

The Fund is classified as a non-diversified fund and, therefore, may invest a greater percentage of its assets in a particular issuer. The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Mortgage REITs Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. As of April 30, 2020 , the Fund was concentrated in the financials sector.
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
Investors in the Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in the Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in the Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in the Fund.

Risk of Investing in Mortgage REITs. Mortgage REITs are exposed to the risks specific to the real estate market as well as the risks that relate specifically to the way in which mortgage REITs are organized and operated. Mortgage REITs receive principal and interest payments from the owners of the mortgaged properties. Accordingly, mortgage REITs are subject to the credit risk of the borrowers. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the borrower will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on the loan to a mortgage REIT when due. To the extent that a mortgage REIT invests in mortgage-backed securities offered by private issuers, such as commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers, the mortgage REIT may be subject to additional risks. Timely payment of interest and principal of non-governmental issuers may be supported by various forms of private insurance or guarantees, including individual loan, title, pool and hazard insurance purchased by the issuer. However, there can be no assurance that the private insurers can or will meet their obligations under such policies. Unexpected high rates of default on the mortgages held by a mortgage pool may adversely affect the value of a mortgage-backed security and could result in losses to a mortgage REIT. The risk of such defaults is generally higher in the case of mortgage pools that include subprime mortgages. To the extent that a mortgage REIT’s portfolio is exposed to lower-rated, unsecured or subordinated instruments, the risk of loss may increase, which may have a negative impact on the Fund. Mortgage REITs also are subject to the risk that the value of mortgaged properties may be less than the amounts owed on the properties. If a mortgage REIT is required to foreclose on a borrower, the amount recovered in connection with the foreclosure may be less than the amount owed to the mortgage REIT.

Mortgage REITs are subject to significant interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a mortgage REIT’s investment in fixed rate obligations resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the value of a mortgage REIT’s investment in fixed rate obligations goes down.

Mortgage REITs typically use leverage and many are highly leveraged, which exposes them to leverage risk and the risks generally associated with debt financing. Leverage risk refers to the risk that leverage created from borrowing may impair a mortgage REIT’s liquidity, cause it to liquidate positions at an unfavorable time and increase the volatility of the values of securities issued by the mortgage REIT. The use of leverage may not be advantageous to a mortgage REIT. The success of using leverage is dependent on whether the return earned on the investments made using the proceeds of leverage exceed the cost of using leverage. To the extent that a mortgage REIT incurs significant leverage, it may incur substantial losses if its borrowing costs increase. Borrowing costs may increase for any of the following reasons: short-term interest rates increase; the market value of a mortgage REIT’s assets decrease; interest rate volatility increases; or the availability of financing in the market decreases. During periods of adverse market conditions, downturns in the economy or deterioration in the conditions of the REIT’s mortgage-related assets, the use of leverage may cause a mortgage REIT to lose more money that would have been the case if leverage was not used.

Mortgage REITs are subject to prepayment risk, which is the risk that borrowers may prepay their mortgage loans at faster than expected rates. Prepayment rates generally increase when interest rates fall and decrease when interest rates rise. These faster than expected payments may adversely affect a mortgage REIT’s profitability because the mortgage REIT may be forced to replace investments that have been redeemed or repaid early with other investments having a lower yield. Additionally, rising interest rates rise may cause the duration of a mortgage REIT’s investments to be longer than anticipated and increase such investments’ interest rate sensitivity.

REITs are subject to special U.S. federal tax requirements. A REIT’s failure to comply with these requirements may negatively affect its performance.

Mortgage REITs may be dependent upon the management skills and may have limited financial resources. Mortgage REITs are generally not diversified and may be subject to heavy cash flow dependency, default by borrowers and self-liquidation. In addition, transactions between mortgage REITs and their affiliates may be subject to conflicts of interest which may adversely affect a mortgage REIT’s shareholders.

Equity Securities Risk. The value of the equity securities held by the Fund may fall due to general market and economic conditions, perceptions regarding the markets in which the issuers of securities held by the Fund participate, or factors relating to specific issuers in which the Fund invests. Equity securities are subordinated to preferred securities and debt in a company’s capital structure with respect to priority in right to a share of corporate income, and therefore will be subject to greater dividend risk than preferred securities or debt instruments. In addition, while broad market measures of equity securities have historically generated higher average returns than fixed income securities, equity securities have generally also experienced significantly more volatility in those returns, although under certain market conditions fixed income securities may have comparable or greater price volatility.

Risk of Investing in the Financials Sector. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the financials sector. Companies in the financials sector may be subject to extensive government regulation that affects the scope of their activities, the prices they can charge and the amount of capital they must maintain. The profitability of companies in the financials sector may be adversely affected by increases in interest rates, by loan losses, which usually increase in economic downturns, and by credit rating downgrades. In addition, the financials sector is undergoing numerous changes, including continuing consolidations, development of new products and structures and changes to its regulatory framework. Furthermore, some companies in the financials sector perceived as benefitting from government intervention in the past may be subject to future government-imposed restrictions on their businesses or face increased government involvement in their operations. Increased government involvement in the financials sector, including measures such as taking ownership positions in financial institutions, could result in a dilution of the Fund’s investments in financial institutions.

Risk of Investing in Small- and Medium-Capitalization Companies. Small- and medium-capitalization companies may be more volatile and more likely than large-capitalization companies to have narrower product lines, fewer financial resources, less management depth and experience and less competitive strength. In addition, these companies often have greater price volatility, lower trading volume and less liquidity than larger more established companies. Returns on investments in securities of small- and medium-capitalization companies could trail the returns on investments in securities of large-capitalization companies.

Market Risk. The prices of the securities in the Fund are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. An investment in the Fund may lose money.

Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of 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 system failures.

Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Mortgage REITs Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the Mortgage REITs Index and incurs costs associated with buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Mortgage REITs Index, which are not factored into the return of the Mortgage REITs Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s NAV to the extent not offset by the transaction fee payable by an Authorized Participant (“AP”). Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Mortgage REITs Index. Errors in the Mortgage REITs Index data, the Mortgage REITs Index computations and/or the construction of the Mortgage REITs Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Mortgage REITs Index p rovider for a period of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its shareholders. Shareholders should understand that any gains from the Mortgage REITs Index provider's errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the Mortgage REITs Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. When the Mortgage REITs Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Mortgage REITs Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Mortgage REITs Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Mortgage REITs Index.

Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Mortgage REITs Index provider or its agents to the Mortgage REITs Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. In addition, the Fund may not be able to invest in certain securities included in the Mortgage REITs Index, or invest in them in the exact proportions they represent of the Mortgage REITs Index, due to certain listing standards of the Fund's listing exchange (the "Exchange") or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments and/or other assets based on fair value prices. To the extent the Fund calculates its NAV based on fair value prices and the value of the Mortgage REITs Index is based on securities’ closing prices ( i.e. , the value of the Mortgage REITs Index is not based on fair value prices), the Fund’s ability to track the Mortgage REITs Index may be adversely affected. When markets are volatile, the ability to sell securities at fair value prices may be adversely impacted and may result in additional trading costs and/or increase the index tracking risk. The Fund may also need to rely on borrowings to meet redemptions, which may lead to increased expenses. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of the Mortgage REITs Index. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Mortgage REITs Index. Changes to the composition of the Mortgage REITs Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Mortgage REITs Index may cause the Fund to experience increased volatility, during which time the Fund’s index tracking risk may be heightened.

Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. The Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as APs, none of which are obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for Shares or Shares may trade like closed-end funds at a discount (or premium) to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. The AP concentration risk may be heightened in scenarios where APs have limited or diminished access to the capital required to post collateral.

No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods in times of market stress because market makers and APs may step away from making a market in the Shares and in executing creation and redemption orders, which could cause a material deviation in the Fund’s market price from its NAV.

Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.

Passive Management Risk. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund invested in equity securities traded on an exchange, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. However, because the Fund is not “actively” managed, unless a specific security is removed from the Mortgage REITs Index, the Fund generally would not sell a security because the security’s issuer was in financial trouble. Additionally, unusual market conditions may cause the Mortgage REITs Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the Mortgage REITs Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. Therefore, the Fund’s performance could be lower than funds that may actively shift their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.

Fund Shares Trading, Premium/Discount Risk and Liquidity of Fund Shares. The market price of the Shares may fluctuate in response to the Fund’s NAV, the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The Adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade above, below, or at their most recent NAV. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares that were bought or sold or the shareholder may be unable to sell his or her Shares. The securities held by the Fund may be traded in markets that close at a different time than the Exchange. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when the Exchange is open but after the applicable market closing, fixing or settlement times, bid-ask spreads on the Exchange and the resulting premium or discount to the Shares’ NAV may widen. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell Shares. Investors should consult their financial intermediaries before purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.

Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. The value of individual securities or particular types of securities can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole, which may have a greater impact if the Fund’s portfolio is concentrated in a country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. The value of securities of smaller issuers can be more volatile than that of larger issuers.

Non-Diversified Risk. The Fund is classified as a “non-diversified” fund under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). Therefore, the Fund may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a smaller number of issuers or may invest a larger proportion of its assets in a single issuer. Moreover, the gains and losses on a single investment may have a greater impact on the Fund’s NAV and may make the Fund more volatile than more diversified funds. The Fund may be particularly vulnerable to this risk because the Mortgage REITs Index it seeks to replicate is comprised of securities of a very limited number of companies.

Concentration Risk. The Fund’s assets may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries to the extent the Mortgage REITs Index concentrates in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. To the extent that the Fund is concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries, the Fund will be subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on those sectors and/or industries may negatively impact the Fund to a greater extent than if the Fund’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
PERFORMANCE
The bar chart that follows shows how the Fund performed for the calendar years shown. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by comparing the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual returns for the one year, five year, ten year and/or since inception periods, as applicable, compared with the Fund’s benchmark index and a broad measure of market performance. All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily indicative of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.vaneck.com.
Annual Total Returns (%)—Calendar Years
Bar Chart
The year-to-date total return as of June 30, 2020 was -40.13 % .

Best Quarter: 22.07  % 1Q '13
Worst Quarter: -14.23  % 2Q '13
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 201 9
The after-tax returns presented in the table below are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Your actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from those shown below. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Shares of the Fund through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
Average Annual Returns - VanEck Vectors® Mortgage REIT Income ETF
Label
1 Year
5 Years
Since Inception
Inception Date
VanEck Vectors Mortgage REIT Income ETF VanEck Vectors Mortgage REIT Income ETF (return before taxes) 20.90% 8.93% 9.25% Aug. 16, 2011
After Taxes on Distributions | VanEck Vectors Mortgage REIT Income ETF VanEck Vectors Mortgage REIT Income ETF (return after taxes on distributions) 18.24% 5.45% 5.58%  
After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares | VanEck Vectors Mortgage REIT Income ETF VanEck Vectors Mortgage REIT Income ETF (return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares) 12.64% 5.26% 5.51%  
MVIS US Mortgage REITs Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) MVIS US Mortgage REITs Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) 22.02% 9.12% 10.12% Aug. 16, 2011
S&P 500® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) S&P 500® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) 31.49% 11.70% 15.02% Aug. 16, 2011
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information about the Fund’s benchmark index.