485APOS 1 d898140d485apos.htm 485APOS 485APOS

AS FILED WITH THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION ON JANUARY 21, 2025.

No. 333-102228

No. 811-21265

 

 

 

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. 302  

and/or

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER

   THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940  
   Amendment No. 304  

 

 

Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

 

 

3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700, Downers Grove, Illinois 60515

(Address of Principal Executive Office)

Registrant’s Telephone Number, including Area Code: (800) 983-0903

Adam Henkel, Esquire

3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700, Downers Grove, Illinois 60515

 

 

With Copies to:

Alan P. Goldberg
Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young LLP
191 North Wacker Drive, Suite 1601
Chicago, Illinois 60606
  Eric S. Purple
Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young LLP
2000 K Street, NW, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20006

 

 

APPROXIMATE DATE OF PROPOSED PUBLIC OFFERING:

It is proposed that this filing will become effective (check appropriate box)

 

immediately upon filing pursuant to paragraph (b)

on (date) pursuant to paragraph (b)

60 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a)

on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a)

75 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a)(2)

on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a)(2) of rule 485

If appropriate, check the following box:

 

This post-effective amendment designates a new effective date for a previously filed post-effective amendment.

 

 

 


LOGO  

 

 

Subject to Completion - dated January 21, 2025

 

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

 

 

 

Prospectus

    [  ], 2025  
 

      

  

 

      

  

  Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust

 

   PRF    Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF (formerly Invesco FTSE RAFI US 1000 ETF)     NYSE Arca, Inc.   

 

 

 

 

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.


 

Table of Contents

 

Summary Information

     1  

Additional Information About the Fund’s Strategies and Risks

     3  

Tax Structure of ETFs

     9  

Portfolio Holdings

     9  

Management of the Fund

     9  

How to Buy and Sell Shares

     10  

Frequent Purchases and Redemptions of Shares

     10  

Dividends, Other Distributions and Taxes

     10  

Distributor

     12  

Net Asset Value

     12  

Fund Service Providers

     13  

Financial Highlights

     14  

Index Provider

     15  

Disclaimers

     15  

Premium/Discount Information

     15  

Other Information

     15  


 

Summary Information

 

Investment Objective

The Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to track the investment results (before fees and expenses) of the RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1000 Index (the “Underlying Index”).

Fund Fees and Expenses

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). 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 (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

 

Management Fees

     0.29

Other Expenses(1)

     0.04

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses

     0.33

 

(1)

“Other Expenses” have been restated to reflect current fees.

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 sell 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. This example does not include brokerage commissions that investors may pay to buy and sell Shares. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, your costs, based on these assumptions, would be:

 

1 Year    3 Years    5 Years    10 Years

$34

   $106    $185    $418

Portfolio Turnover. The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate will cause the Fund to incur additional 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 example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was [  ]% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund generally will invest at least 90% of its total assets in securities that comprise the Underlying Index.

Strictly in accordance with its guidelines and mandated procedures, RAFI™ Indices, LLC (the “Index Provider”) compiles, maintains and calculates the Underlying Index, which is comprised of securities of the largest U.S. companies.

The Underlying Index is designed to track the performance of approximately 1,000 common stocks of the largest U.S. companies from the constituents of the RAFI Global Equity Investable Universe (GEIU), which is the starting point for all index strategies available through the Index Provider. The Underlying Index selects and weights companies based on the following four fundamental measures of company size: book value plus intangibles, adjusted cash flow, adjusted sales, and dividend plus buybacks.

As of [  ], the Underlying Index was comprised of [  ] constituents with market capitalizations ranging from $[  ] to $[  ].

The Fund employs a “full replication” methodology in seeking to track the Underlying Index, meaning that the Fund generally invests in all of the securities comprising the Underlying Index in proportion to their weightings in the Underlying Index.

The Fund intends to be “diversified,” as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), to the extent that the Underlying Index is diversified. The Fund may become “non-diversified” as defined in the 1940 Act solely as a result of a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the Underlying Index. Should the Fund become “non-diversified,” it will no longer

 

be required to meet certain diversification requirements under the 1940 Act and may invest a greater portion of its assets in securities of a small group of issuers or in any one individual issuer than can a diversified fund. Shareholder approval will not be sought when the Fund crosses from diversified to non-diversified status solely due to a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the Underlying Index. In seeking to track the Underlying Index, the Fund was managed as diversified as of [  ].

Concentration Policy. The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., invest 25% or more of the value of its total assets) in securities of issuers in any one industry or group of industries only to the extent that the Underlying Index reflects a concentration in that industry or group of industries. The Fund will not otherwise concentrate its investments in securities of issuers in any one industry or group of industries.

Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund

The following summarizes the principal risks of investing in the Fund.

The Shares will change in value, and you could lose money by investing in the Fund. The Fund may not achieve its investment objective.

Market Risk. Securities in the Underlying Index are subject to market fluctuations. You should anticipate that the value of the Shares will decline, more or less, in correlation with any decline in value of the securities in the Underlying Index. Additionally, natural or environmental disasters, widespread disease or other public health issues, war, military conflicts, acts of terrorism, economic crises or other events could result in increased premiums or discounts to the Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”).

Index Risk. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not utilize an investing strategy that seeks returns in excess of the Underlying Index. Therefore, the Fund would not necessarily buy or sell a security unless that security is added or removed, respectively, from the Underlying Index, even if that security generally is underperforming. Additionally, the Fund rebalances its portfolio in accordance with the Underlying Index, and, therefore, any changes to the Underlying Index’s rebalance schedule will result in corresponding changes to the Fund’s rebalance schedule.

Equity Risk. Equity risk is the risk that the value of equity securities, including common stocks, may fall due to both changes in general economic conditions that impact the market as a whole, as well as factors that directly relate to a specific company or its industry. Such general economic conditions include changes in interest rates, periods of market turbulence or instability, or general and prolonged periods of economic decline and cyclical change. It is possible that a drop in the stock market may depress the price of most or all of the common stocks that the Fund holds. In addition, equity risk includes the risk that investor sentiment toward one or more industries will become negative, resulting in those investors exiting their investments in those industries, which could cause a reduction in the value of companies in those industries more broadly. The value of a company’s common stock may fall solely because of factors, such as an increase in production costs, that negatively impact other companies in the same region, industry or sector of the market. A company’s common stock also may decline significantly in price over a short period of time due to factors specific to that company, including decisions made by its management or lower demand for the company’s products or services. For example, an adverse event, such as an unfavorable earnings report or the failure to make anticipated dividend payments, may depress the value of common stock.

Industry Concentration Risk. In following its methodology, the Underlying Index from time to time may be concentrated to a significant degree in securities of issuers operating in a single industry or industry group. To the extent that the Underlying Index concentrates in the securities of issuers in a particular industry or industry group, the Fund will also concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent. By concentrating its investments in an industry or industry group, the Fund may

 

 

1


face more risks than if it were diversified broadly over numerous industries or industry groups. Such industry-based risks, any of which may adversely affect the companies in which the Fund invests, may include, but are not limited to, the following: general economic conditions or cyclical market patterns that could negatively affect supply and demand in a particular industry; competition for resources; adverse labor relations; political or world events; obsolescence of technologies; and increased competition or new product introductions that may affect the profitability or viability of companies in an industry. In addition, at times, such industry or industry group may be out of favor and underperform other industries or the market as a whole.

Small- and Mid-Capitalization Company Risk. Investing in securities of small- and mid-capitalization companies involves greater risk than customarily is associated with investing in larger, more established companies. These companies’ securities may be more volatile and less liquid than those of more established companies. These securities may have returns that vary, sometimes significantly, from the overall securities market. Often small- and mid-capitalization companies and the industries in which they focus are still evolving and, as a result, they may be more sensitive to changing market conditions.

Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. The value of an individual security or particular type of security may be more volatile than the market as a whole and may perform differently from the value of the market as a whole.

Non-Diversification Risk. To the extent the Fund becomes non-diversified, the Fund may invest a greater portion of its assets in securities of individual issuers than can a diversified fund. As a result, changes in the market value of a single investment could cause greater fluctuations in Share price than would occur in a diversified fund. This may increase the Fund’s volatility and cause the performance of a relatively small number of issuers to have a greater impact on the Fund’s performance.

Non-Correlation Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Underlying Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Underlying Index, and incurs costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Underlying Index. In addition, the performance of the Fund and the Underlying Index may vary due to asset valuation differences and differences between the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Index resulting from legal restrictions, costs or liquidity constraints.

Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only authorized participants (“APs”) may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that may act as APs and such APs have no obligation to submit creation or redemption orders. Consequently, there is no assurance that APs will establish or maintain an active trading market for the Shares. This risk may be heightened to the extent that securities held by the Fund are traded outside a collateralized settlement system. In that case, APs may be required to post collateral on certain trades on an agency basis (i.e., on behalf of other market participants), which only a limited number of APs may be able to do. In addition, to the extent that APs exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other AP is able to step forward to create or redeem Creation Units (as defined below), this may result in a significantly diminished trading market for Shares, and Shares may be more likely to trade at a premium or discount to the Fund’s NAV and to face trading halts and/or delisting. Additionally, investments in non-U.S. securities may have lower trading volumes or could experience extended market closures or trading halts. To the extent that the Fund invests in non-U.S. securities, it may face increased risks that APs may not be able to effectively create or redeem Creation Units, or that the Shares may be halted and/or delisted.

Market Trading Risk. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for the Shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. In stressed market conditions, the market for Shares

may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s portfolio holdings, which may cause a variance in the market price of Shares and their underlying NAV. In addition, an exchange or market may issue trading halts on specific securities or financial instruments. As a result, the ability to trade certain securities or financial instruments may be restricted, which may disrupt the Fund’s creation/redemption process, potentially affect the price at which Shares trade in the secondary market, and/or result in the Fund being unable to trade certain securities or financial instruments at all. In these circumstances, the Fund may be unable to rebalance its portfolio, may be unable to accurately price its investments and/or may incur substantial trading losses. Any of these factors may lead to the Shares trading at a premium or discount to the Fund’s NAV.

Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risks 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 systems failures. The Fund and the Adviser seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures. However, these measures do not address every possible risk and may be inadequate to address these risks.

Shares May Trade at Prices Different than NAV. Shares trade on a stock exchange at prices at, above or below the Fund’s most recent NAV. The Fund’s NAV is calculated at the end of each business day and fluctuates with changes in the market value of the Fund’s holdings. The trading price of the Shares fluctuates continuously throughout trading hours on the exchange, based on both the relative market supply of, and demand for, the Shares and the underlying value of the Fund’s portfolio holdings. As a result, the trading prices of the Shares may deviate from the Fund’s NAV. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.

Performance

The bar chart below shows how the Fund has performed. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing how the Fund’s total returns have varied from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns compared with a broad measure of market performance and additional indexes with characteristics relevant to the Fund. The Fund’s performance reflects fee waivers, if any, absent which performance would have been lower. Although the information shown in the bar chart and the table gives you some idea of the risks involved in investing in the Fund, 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.invesco.com/ETFs.

Annual Total Returns—Calendar Years

 

LOGO

 

   Period Ended    Returns

Year-to-date

   [  ]    [  ]%

Best Quarter

   [  ]    [  ]%

Worst Quarter

   [  ]    [  ]%
 

 

2


 

Average Annual Total Returns (for the periods ended December 31, 2023)

 

      Inception
Date
     1
Year
     5
Years
     10
Years
 

Return Before Taxes

     12/19/2005        [  ]%        [  ]%        [  ]%  

Return After Taxes on Distributions

        [  ]        [  ]        [  ]  

Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares

        [  ]        [  ]        [  ]  

RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1000 Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)1

        [  ]        [  ]        [  ]  

FTSE RAFI™ US 1000 Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or
taxes)1, 2

        [  ]        [  ]        [  ]  

Russell 3000® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)2

        [  ]        [  ]        [  ]  

Russell 1000® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)

        [  ]        [  ]        [  ]  

 

1

Effective after the close of markets on March 21, 2025, the Fund changed its underlying index from FTSE RAFI™ US 1000 Index to RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1000 Index. [Prior to its commencement date of [  ], performance for the Underlying Index is not available.] If the Fund had sought to track the RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1000 Index prior to March 24, 2025, the Fund’s performance would have been different.

2

Effective August 28, 2024, the Fund changed its broad-based securities market benchmark from the FTSE RAFI™ US 1000 Index to the Russell 3000® Index to reflect that the Russell 3000® Index can be considered more broadly representative of the overall applicable securities market.

After-tax returns in the above table are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold Shares through tax-advantaged arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.

Management of the Fund

Investment Adviser. Invesco Capital Management LLC (the “Adviser”).

Portfolio Managers

The following individuals are responsible jointly and primarily for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:

 

Name    Title with Adviser/Trust    Date Began
Managing
the Fund
Peter Hubbard    Head of Equities and Director of Portfolio Management of the Adviser; Vice President of the Trust    June 2007
Michael Jeanette    Head of North America Equities and Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser    August 2008
Pratik Doshi, CFA    Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser    August 2020
Tony Seisser    Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser    February 2015

Purchase and Sale of Shares

The Fund issues and redeems Shares at NAV only with APs and only in large blocks of 10,000 Shares (each block of Shares is called a “Creation Unit”) or multiples thereof (“Creation Unit Aggregations”), generally in exchange for the deposit or delivery of a basket of securities. However, the Fund also reserves the right to permit or require Creation Units to be issued in exchange for cash. Except when aggregated in Creation Units, the Shares are not redeemable securities of the Fund.

Individual Shares may only be bought and sold in the secondary market (i.e., on a national securities exchange) through a broker or dealer at a market price. Because the Shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, Shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (at a premium), at NAV, or less than NAV (at a discount). An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase Shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for Shares (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”).

Recent information, including information on the Fund’s NAV, market price, premiums and discounts, and bid-ask spreads, is available online at www.invesco.com/ETFs.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions generally are taxed as ordinary income, capital gains or some combination of both, unless you are investing through a

tax-advantaged arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account, in which case your distributions may be taxed as ordinary income when withdrawn from such account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase Shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund’s distributor or its related companies may pay the intermediary for certain Fund-related activities, including those that are designed to make the intermediary more knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, such as the Fund, as well as for marketing, education or other initiatives related to the sale or promotion of Shares. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson or financial adviser to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or financial adviser or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

 

 

Additional Information About the Fund’s Strategies and Risks

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund generally will invest at least 90% of its total assets in securities that comprise the Underlying Index. The Fund operates as an index fund and is not actively managed, meaning that it does not seek to outperform the Underlying Index. Rather, the Fund seeks to generally track the performance of the Underlying Index as closely as possible (i.e., it seeks to obtain a high degree of correlation with the Underlying Index and to minimize “tracking error” between the two). Tracking error means the variation between the Fund’s annual return and the return of the Underlying Index. Because the Underlying Index is a financial calculation based on a grouping of financial instruments, while the Fund is an actual investment portfolio, the Fund may experience tracking error for a number of reasons when tracking the performance of the Underlying Index. For example, the Fund incurs operating expenses and transaction costs not applicable to the Underlying Index.

As an index fund, the Fund does not take temporary defensive positions during periods of adverse market, economic or other conditions.

The Fund employs a “full replication” methodology in seeking to track the Underlying Index, meaning that it generally invests in all of the securities comprising the Underlying Index in proportion to the weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index. However, under various circumstances, it may not be possible or practicable to purchase all of those securities in those same weightings. In those circumstances, the Fund may purchase a sample of securities in the Underlying Index.

A “sampling” methodology means that the Adviser uses a quantitative analysis to select securities from the Underlying Index universe to obtain a representative sample of securities that have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics similar to the Underlying Index in terms of key risk factors, performance attributes and other characteristics. These include industry weightings, market capitalization, return variability, earnings valuation, yield and other financial characteristics of securities. When employing a sampling methodology, the Adviser bases the quantity of holdings in the Fund on a number of factors, including asset size of the Fund, and generally expects the Fund to hold less than the total number of securities in the Underlying Index. However, the Adviser reserves the right to invest the Fund in as many securities as it believes necessary to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. To the extent the Fund uses a sampling methodology, it may have a larger tracking error than if it used a full replication methodology.

At times, the Fund may utilize one or more additional investment techniques in seeking to track the Underlying Index. Such techniques may include: (i) overweighting or underweighting a component security in the Fund’s portfolio compared to its weight in the Underlying Index, (ii)

 

 

3


purchasing securities not contained in the Underlying Index that the Adviser believes are appropriate to substitute for certain securities in the Underlying Index, (iii) selling securities included in the Underlying Index in anticipation of their removal from the Underlying Index, or (iv) purchasing securities not included in the Underlying Index in anticipation of their addition to the Underlying Index.

Additional information about the construction of the Underlying Index is set forth below.

RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1000 Index

The Index Provider compiles, maintains and calculates the Underlying Index, which is comprised of approximately 1,000 common stocks and is designed to track the performance of the largest U.S. companies based on the following four fundamental measures of company size: book value plus intangibles, adjusted cash flow, adjusted sales and dividend plus buybacks.

To be eligible for inclusion in the Underlying Index, a stock must be part of the RAFI GEIU, which is the starting point for all index strategies available through the Index Provider. The Underlying Index identifies large-sized U.S. companies by calculating an overall weight (a “fundamental value”) for each company by weighting each of the following four fundamental measures.

 

  1.

Book value plus intangibles is calculated as the most recent company book value plus research capital, with research capital defined as the accumulation of depreciated R&D expenses over the past six years.

 

  2.

Adjusted cash flow is calculated as company operating cash flow averaged over the past five years plus company R&D expenses averaged over the past five years.

 

  3.

Adjusted sales is calculated as company sales multiplied by company equity to assets ratio averaged over the past five years.

 

  4.

Dividend plus buybacks are calculated using the average dividends paid and share buybacks over the past five years.

The Index Provider then calculates a free-float adjustment for each company. The Underlying Index includes the securities with the top 1,000 free-float adjusted fundamental weight. Each security is weighted proportionate to its fundamental value.

The Underlying Index is rebalanced quarterly, after the close of trading on the third Friday of March, June, September and December.

Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund

The following provides additional information regarding certain of the principal risks identified under “Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund” in the Fund’s “Summary Information” section. Any of the following risks may impact the Fund’s NAV which could result in the Fund trading at a premium or discount to NAV.

Market Risk. Securities in the Underlying Index are subject to market fluctuations, and the Fund could lose money due to short-term market

movements and over longer periods during market downturns. You should anticipate that the value of the Shares will decline, more or less, in correlation with any decline in value of the securities in the Underlying Index. The value of a security may decline due to general market conditions, economic trends or events that are not specifically related to the issuer of the security or due to factors that affect a particular industry or group of industries. During a general downturn in the securities markets, multiple asset classes may be negatively affected. Additionally, natural or environmental disasters, widespread disease or other public health issues, war, military conflicts, acts of terrorism, economic crises or other events could result in increased premiums or discounts to the Fund’s NAV.

Market Disruption Risks Related to Armed Conflict. As a result of increasingly interconnected global economies and financial markets, armed conflict between countries or in a geographic region, for example the current conflicts between Russia and Ukraine in Europe and Hamas and Israel in the Middle East, has the potential to adversely impact the Fund’s investments. Such conflicts, and other corresponding events, have had, and could continue to have, severe negative effects on regional and global economic and financial markets, including increased volatility, reduced liquidity, and overall uncertainty. The negative impacts may be particularly acute in certain sectors. The timing and duration of such conflicts, resulting sanctions, related events and other impacts cannot be predicted. The foregoing may result in a negative impact on Fund performance and the value of an investment in the Fund, even beyond any direct investment exposure the Fund may have to issuers located in or with significant exposure to an impacted country or geographic region.

Index Risk. Unlike many investment companies that are “actively managed,” the Fund is a “passive” investor and therefore does not utilize an investing strategy that seeks returns in excess of the Underlying Index. Therefore, the Fund would not necessarily buy or sell a security unless that security is added or removed, respectively, from the Underlying Index, even if that security generally is underperforming. If a specific security is removed from the Underlying Index, the Fund may be forced to sell such security at an inopportune time or for a price lower than the security’s current market value. The Underlying Index may not contain the appropriate mix of securities for any particular economic cycle. Additionally, the Fund rebalances its portfolio in accordance with the Underlying Index, and, therefore, any changes to the Underlying Index’s rebalance schedule will result in corresponding changes to the Fund’s rebalance schedule. Further, unlike with an actively managed fund, the Adviser does not use techniques or defensive strategies designed to lessen the impact of periods of market volatility or market decline. This means that, based on certain market and economic conditions, the Fund’s performance could be lower than other types of funds with investment advisers that actively manage their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or defend against market events.

Equity Risk. Equity risk is the risk that the value of equity securities, including common stocks, will fall. The value of an equity security may fall due to changes in general economic conditions that impact the market as a whole and that are relatively unrelated to an issuer or its industry. These conditions include changes in interest rates, specific periods of overall market turbulence or instability, or general and prolonged periods of economic decline and cyclical change. An issuer’s common stock in particular may be especially sensitive to, and more adversely affected by, these general movements in the stock market; it is possible that a drop in the stock market may depress the price of most or all of the common stocks that the Fund holds.

In addition, equity risk includes the risk that investor sentiment toward, and perceptions regarding, one or more particular industries or economic sectors will become negative, resulting in those investors exiting their investments in those industries, which could cause a reduction in the value of companies in those industries or sectors more broadly. Price changes of equity securities may occur in a particular region, industry, or sector of the

 

 

4


market, and as a result, the value of an issuer’s common stock may fall solely because of factors, such as increases in production costs, that negatively impact other companies in the same industry or in a number of different industries.

Equity risk also includes the financial risks of a specific company, including that the value of the company’s securities may fall as a result of factors directly relating to that company, such as decisions made by its management or lower demand for the company’s products or services. In particular, the common stock of a company may decline significantly in price over short periods of time. For example, an adverse event, such as an unfavorable earnings report, may depress the value of common stock; similarly, the common stock of an issuer may decline in price if the issuer fails to make anticipated dividend payments because, among other reasons, the issuer experiences a decline in its financial condition.

Industry Concentration Risk. In following its methodology, the Underlying Index from time to time may be concentrated to a significant degree in securities of issuers operating in a single industry or industry group. To the extent that the Underlying Index concentrates in the securities of issuers in a particular industry or industry group, the Fund will also concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent. By concentrating its investments in an industry or industry group, the Fund may face more risks than if it were diversified broadly over numerous industries or industry groups. Such industry-based risks, any of which may adversely affect the companies in which the Fund invests, may include, but are not limited to, the following: general economic conditions or cyclical market patterns that could negatively affect supply and demand in a particular industry, competition for resources, adverse labor relations, political or world events, obsolescence of technologies, and increased competition or new product introductions that may affect the profitability or viability of companies in an industry. In addition, at times, such industry or industry group may be out of favor and underperform other industries or the market as a whole. Information about the Fund’s exposure to a particular sector, industry, industry group or sub-industry (as applicable) is available in the Fund’s Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to Shareholders on the Fund’s website, and on required forms filed with the SEC.

Small- and Mid-Capitalization Company Risk. Securities of small- and mid-capitalization companies may be more volatile and thinly traded (that is, less liquid) than those of more established companies. These securities may have returns that vary, sometimes significantly, from the overall securities market. Often small- and mid-capitalization companies and the industries in which they focus are still evolving and, as a result, they may be more sensitive to changing market conditions. In addition, small- and mid-capitalization companies are typically less financially stable than larger, more established companies, and they may depend on a small number of essential personnel, making them more vulnerable to loss of personnel. Small- and mid-capitalization companies also normally have less diverse product lines than large capitalization companies and are more susceptible to adverse developments concerning their products. As such, small- and mid-capitalization companies typically are more likely to be adversely affected than large capitalization companies by changes in earnings results, business prospects, investor expectations or poor economic or market conditions.

Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. The performance of the Fund depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. The value of an individual security or particular type of security may be more volatile than the market as a whole and may perform worse than the market as a whole, causing the value of its securities to decline. Poor performance may be caused by poor management decisions, competitive pressures, changes in technology, expiration of patent protection, disruptions in supply, labor problems or shortages, corporate restructurings, fraudulent disclosures or other factors. Issuers may, in times of distress or at their own discretion, decide to reduce or eliminate dividends, which may also cause their stock prices to decline.

Non-Diversification Risk. To the extent the Fund becomes non-diversified, the Fund may invest a greater portion of its assets in securities of individual issuers than can a diversified fund. As a result, changes in the market value of a single investment could cause greater fluctuations in Share price than would occur in a diversified fund. This may increase the Fund’s volatility and cause the performance of a relatively small number of issuers to have a greater impact on the Fund’s performance.

Non-Correlation Risk. The Fund’s returns may not match the returns of the Underlying Index (that is, it may experience tracking error) for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Underlying Index and incurs costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Underlying Index. To the extent that the Fund has recently commenced operations and/or otherwise has a relatively small amount of assets, such transaction costs could have a proportionally greater impact on the Fund. Additionally, if the Fund uses a sampling methodology, it may result in returns for the Fund that are not as well-correlated with the return of the Underlying Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all of the securities in the Underlying Index in the proportions represented in the Underlying Index.

The performance of the Fund and the Underlying Index may vary due to asset valuation differences and differences between the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Index resulting from legal restrictions, costs or liquidity constraints. Additionally, if the Fund issues or redeems Creation Units principally for cash, it will incur higher costs in buying or selling securities than if it issued and redeemed Creation Units principally in-kind, which may contribute to tracking error. The Fund may fair value certain of the securities it holds. To the extent the Fund calculates its NAV based on fair value prices, the Fund’s ability to track the Underlying Index may be adversely affected. Since the Underlying Index is not subject to the tax diversification requirements to which the Fund must adhere, the Fund may be required to deviate its investments from the securities contained in, and relative weightings of, the Underlying Index. The Fund may not invest in certain securities included in the Underlying Index due to liquidity constraints. Liquidity constraints also may delay the Fund’s purchase or sale of securities included in the Underlying Index. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities to realize losses, causing it to deviate from the Underlying Index.

The Fund generally attempts to remain fully invested in the constituents of the Underlying Index. However, at times, the Adviser may not fully invest the Fund’s assets in constituents of the Underlying Index, such as during times of increased market volatility or other unusual or unexpected circumstances, during periods of Underlying Index rebalances, or due to cash flows into the Fund, the need to retain a reserve of cash to meet redemptions and expenses, or low Fund assets.

The investment activities of one or more of the Adviser’s affiliates, including other subsidiaries of the Adviser’s parent company, Invesco Ltd., for their proprietary accounts and for client accounts also may adversely impact the Fund’s ability to track the Underlying Index. For example, in regulated industries, certain emerging or international markets and under corporate and regulatory ownership definitions, there may be limits on the aggregate amount of investment by affiliated investors that may not be exceeded, or that may not be exceeded without the grant of a license or other regulatory or corporate consent, or, if exceeded, may cause the Adviser, the Fund or other client accounts to suffer disadvantages or business restrictions. As a result, the Fund may be restricted in its ability to acquire particular securities due to positions held by the Fund and the Adviser’s affiliates.

Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only APs may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that may act as APs, and such APs have no obligation to submit creation or redemption orders. Consequently, there is no assurance that APs will establish or maintain an active trading market for the Shares. The risk may be heightened to the extent that securities held by

 

 

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the Fund are traded outside a collateralized settlement system. In that case, APs may be required to post collateral on certain trades on an agency basis (i.e., on behalf of other market participants), which only a limited number of APs may be able to do. In addition, to the extent that APs exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other AP is able to step forward to create or redeem Creation Units, this may result in a significantly diminished trading market for Shares, and Shares may be more likely to trade at a premium or discount to NAV and to face trading halts and/or delisting. Additionally, investments in non-U.S. securities may have lower trading volumes or could experience extended market closures or trading halts. To the extent that the Fund invests in non-U.S. securities, it may face increased risks that APs may not be able to effectively create or redeem Creation Units, or that the Shares may be halted and/or delisted.

Market Trading Risk. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. Although Shares are listed for trading on a securities exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for Shares will develop or be maintained by market makers or APs, that Shares will continue to trade on any such exchange or that Shares will continue to meet the requirements for listing on an exchange. Any of these factors, among others, may lead to the Shares trading at a premium or discount to the Fund’s NAV. As a result, an investor could lose money over short or long periods. Further, the Fund may experience low trading volume and wide bid/ask spreads. Bid/ask spreads vary over time based on trading volume and market liquidity (including for the underlying securities held by the Fund), and are generally lower if Shares have more trading volume and market liquidity and higher if Shares have little trading volume and market liquidity.

In stressed market conditions, the market for Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s portfolio holdings, which may cause a variance in the market price of Shares and their underlying NAV. In addition, an exchange or market may issue trading halts on specific securities or financial instruments. As a result, the ability to trade certain securities or financial instruments may be restricted, which may disrupt the Fund’s creation/redemption process, potentially affect the price at which Shares trade in the secondary market, and/or result in the Fund being unable to trade certain securities or financial instruments at all. In these circumstances, the Fund may be unable to rebalance its portfolio, may be unable to accurately price its investments and/or may incur substantial trading losses.

Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risks 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 systems failures. The Fund and the Adviser seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures. However, these measures do not address every possible risk and may be inadequate to address these risks.

Shares May Trade at Prices Different than NAV. Shares trade on a stock exchange at prices at, above or below the Fund’s most recent NAV. The Fund’s NAV is calculated at the end of each business day and fluctuates with changes in the market value of the Fund’s holdings. The trading price of the Shares fluctuates continuously throughout trading hours on the exchange, based on both the relative market supply of, and demand for, the Shares and the underlying value of the Fund’s portfolio holdings. As a result, the trading prices of the Shares may deviate from the Fund’s NAV. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV. The Adviser cannot predict whether the Shares will trade below, at or above the Fund’s NAV. Exchange prices are not expected to correlate exactly with the Fund’s NAV due to timing reasons, supply and demand imbalances and other factors. In addition, disruptions to creations and redemptions, including disruptions at market makers, APs, or other market participants, or periods of significant market

volatility or stress, may result in trading prices for the Shares that differ significantly from the value of the Fund’s underlying holdings, with the result that investors may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares bought or sold. This can be reflected as a spread between the bid and ask prices for the Fund quoted during the day or a premium or discount in the closing price from the Fund’s NAV. Additionally, APs may be less willing to create or redeem the Shares if there is a lack of an active market for such Shares or the Fund’s underlying investments, which may contribute to the Shares trading at a premium or discount.

Non-Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund, after investing at least 90% of its total assets in securities that comprise the Underlying Index, may invest its remaining assets in securities (including other funds) not included in the Underlying Index, and in money market instruments, including repurchase agreements and other funds, including affiliated funds, that invest exclusively in money market instruments (subject to applicable limitations under the 1940 Act or exemptions therefrom), convertible securities, structured notes (notes on which the amount of principal repayment and interest payments is based on the movement of one or more specified factors, such as the movement of a particular security or securities index) and in futures contracts, options, options on futures contracts or other derivatives. The Fund may use futures contracts, options, options on futures contracts and other derivatives, convertible securities and structured notes to seek performance that corresponds to the Underlying Index, to seek to hedge portfolio risk and to manage cash flows.

The Adviser anticipates that it may take approximately two business days (a business day is any day that the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) is open) for additions to and deletions from the Underlying Index to fully settle in the portfolio composition of the Fund.

The Fund’s investment objective constitutes a non-fundamental policy that the Board of Trustees (the “Board”) of the Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust (the “Trust”) may change without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders.

The fundamental and non-fundamental policies of the Fund are set forth in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) under the section “Investment Restrictions.”

Borrowing Money

The Fund may borrow money up to the limits set forth in the Fund’s SAI under the section “Investment Restrictions.”

Securities Lending

The Fund may lend its portfolio securities to brokers, dealers, and other financial institutions. In connection with such loans, the Fund receives liquid collateral equal to at least 102% (105% for international securities) of the value of the loaned portfolio securities. This collateral is marked-to-market on a daily basis.

Additional Risks of Investing in the Fund

The Fund may also be subject to certain other non-principal risks associated with its investments and investment strategies. The following provides additional non-principal risk information regarding investing in the Fund.

Cash Transaction Risk. The Fund generally expects to make in-kind redemptions to avoid being taxed at the fund level on gains on the distributed portfolio securities. However, from time to time, the Fund reserves the right to effect redemptions for cash, rather than in-kind. In such circumstances, the Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. Therefore, the Fund may recognize a capital gain on these sales that might not have been incurred if the Fund had made a redemption in-kind. This may decrease the tax efficiency of the Fund compared to utilizing an in-kind redemption process.

Convertible Securities Risk. A convertible security generally is a preferred stock that may be converted within a specified period of time into

 

 

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common stock. Convertible securities nevertheless remain subject to the risks of both debt securities and equity securities. As with other equity securities, the value of a convertible security tends to increase as the price of the underlying stock goes up, and to decrease as the price of the underlying stock goes down. Declining common stock values therefore also may cause the value of the Fund’s investments to decline. Like a debt security, a convertible security provides a fixed-income stream and also tends to decrease in value when interest rates rise. Moreover, many convertible securities have credit ratings that are below investment grade and are subject to the same risks as lower-rated debt securities, which are considered to have more speculative characteristics and greater susceptibility to default or decline in market value than investment grade (or higher-rated) securities.

Cybersecurity Risk. With the increased use of technologies such as the Internet to conduct business, the Fund, like all companies, may be susceptible to operational, information security and related risks. Cybersecurity incidents involving the Fund and its service providers (including, without limitation, the Adviser, fund accountant, custodian, transfer agent and financial intermediaries) have the ability to cause disruptions and impact business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses, impediments to trading, the inability of Fund shareholders to transact business, violations of applicable privacy and other laws, regulatory fines, penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs, and/or additional compliance costs. Similar adverse consequences could result from cybersecurity incidents affecting issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, counterparties with which the Fund engages, governmental and other regulatory authorities, exchanges and other financial market operators, banks, brokers, dealers, insurance companies, other financial institutions and other parties. The Fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.

Derivatives Risk. The Fund may invest in derivatives, including futures contracts, options, and options on futures contracts, as applicable. Derivatives are financial instruments that derive their value from an underlying asset, such as a security, index or exchange rate. Their use is a highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. Derivatives may be riskier than other types of investments and may be more volatile, less tax efficient and less liquid than other securities.

Derivatives may be used to create synthetic exposure to an underlying asset or to seek to hedge a portfolio risk. If the Fund uses derivatives to seek to “hedge” a portfolio risk, the change in value of a derivative may not correlate as expected with the underlying asset being hedged, and it is possible that the hedge therefore may not succeed. In addition, given their complexity, derivatives may be difficult to value.

Derivatives are subject to a number of risks including credit risk, interest rate risk, and market risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that a counterparty will be unable and/or unwilling to perform under the agreement. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of an asset resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates.

Over-the-counter derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk (sometimes referred to as “default risk”), which is the risk that the other party to the contract will not fulfill its contractual obligations.

Derivatives may be especially sensitive to changes in economic and market conditions, and their use may give rise to a form of leverage. Leverage may cause the portfolio of the Fund to be more volatile than if the portfolio had not been leveraged because leverage can exaggerate the effect of any increase or decrease in the value of securities and other instruments held by the Fund. For some derivatives, such leverage could result in losses that exceed the original amount invested in the derivative. The Fund’s use of derivatives may be limited by the requirements for taxation of the Fund as a regulated investment company, as well as by regulatory changes.

Index Provider Risk. The Fund seeks to track the investment results, before fees and expenses, of the Underlying Index, as published by the

Index Provider. There is no assurance that the Index Provider will compile the Underlying Index accurately, or that the Underlying Index will be determined, composed or calculated accurately. While the Index Provider gives descriptions of what the Underlying Index is designed to achieve, the Index Provider generally does not provide any warranty or accept any liability in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Underlying Index, and it generally does not guarantee that the Underlying Index will be in line with its methodology. Errors made by the Index Provider with respect to the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data within the Underlying Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time, if at all. Therefore, gains, losses or costs associated with Index Provider errors will generally be borne by the Fund and its shareholders.

Index Rebalancing Risk. Pursuant to the methodology that the Index Provider uses to calculate and maintain the Underlying Index, a security may be removed from the Underlying Index in the event that it does not comply with the eligibility requirements of the Underlying Index. As a result, the Fund may be forced to sell securities at inopportune times or for prices other than at current market values or may elect not to sell such securities on the day that they are removed from the Underlying Index, due to market conditions or otherwise. Due to these factors, the variation between the Fund’s annual return and the return of the Underlying Index may increase significantly.

Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Underlying Index, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Index Provider may increase the Fund’s costs and market exposure.

Large Shareholder Risk. Certain shareholders, including a third party investor, the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser, an AP, a lead market maker, or another entity, may from time to time own a substantial amount of Shares or may invest in the Fund and hold its investment for a limited period of time solely to facilitate the commencement of the Fund or to facilitate the Fund achieving a specified size or scale. There can be no assurance that any large shareholder would not redeem its investment. Dispositions of a large number of Shares by these shareholders may adversely affect the Fund’s liquidity and net assets to the extent such transactions are executed directly with the Fund in the form of redemptions through an AP, rather than executed in the secondary market. These redemptions may also force the Fund to sell portfolio securities when it might not otherwise do so, which may negatively impact the Fund’s NAV and increase the Fund’s brokerage costs. Further, such sales may accelerate the realization of taxable income and/or gains to shareholders, or the Fund may be required to sell its more liquid Fund investments to meet a large redemption, in which case the Fund’s remaining assets may be less liquid, more volatile, and more difficult to price. To the extent the Fund permits cash purchases, large purchases of Shares may adversely affect the Fund’s performance to the extent that the Fund is delayed in investing new cash and is required to maintain a larger cash position than it ordinarily would. To the extent these large shareholders transact in shares on the secondary market, such transactions may account for a large percentage of the trading volume on the Fund’s exchange and may, therefore, have a material upward or downward effect on the market price of the Shares. To the extent the Fund permits redemptions in cash, the Fund may hold a relatively large proportion of its assets in cash in anticipation of large redemptions, diluting its investment returns.

Leverage Risk. To the extent that the Fund borrows money it may be leveraged. Leveraging generally exaggerates the effect on NAV of any increase or decrease in the market value of the Fund’s portfolio securities. Borrowing creates interest expenses and other expenses (e.g., commitment fees) for the Fund that affect the Fund’s performance.

 

 

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Money Market Funds Risk. Money market funds are subject to management fees and other expenses, and the Fund’s investments in money market funds will cause it to bear proportionately the costs incurred by the money market funds’ operations while simultaneously paying its own management fees and expenses. An investment in a money market fund is not a bank account and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency; it is possible to lose money by investing in a money market fund. To the extent that the Fund invests in money market funds, the Fund will be subject to the same risks that investors experience when investing in money market funds. These risks may include the impact of significant fluctuations in assets as a result of the cash sweep program or purchase and redemption activity in those funds.

Money market funds are open-end registered investment companies that historically have traded at a stable $1.00 per share price. However, money market funds that do not meet the definition of a “retail money market fund” or “government money market fund” under the 1940 Act are required to transact at a floating NAV per share (i.e., in a manner similar to how all other non-money market mutual funds transact), instead of at a $1.00 stable share price. Money market funds may also impose liquidity fees in certain circumstances, including times of market stress or heavy redemptions. If the Fund invested in a money market fund with a floating NAV, the impact on the trading and value of the money market instrument may negatively affect the Fund’s return potential.

Natural Disaster/Epidemic Risk. Natural or environmental disasters, such as earthquakes, fires, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis and other severe weather-related phenomena generally, and widespread disease, including pandemics and epidemics, have been and may be highly disruptive to economies and markets, adversely impacting individual companies, sectors, industries, markets, currencies, interest and inflation rates, credit ratings, investor sentiment, and other factors affecting the value of the Fund’s investments. Additionally, if a sector or sectors in which the Underlying Index is concentrated is negatively impacted to a greater extent by such events, the Fund may experience heightened volatility. Given the increasing interdependence among global economies and markets, conditions in one country, market, or region are increasingly likely to adversely affect markets, issuers, and/or foreign exchange rates in other countries, including the U.S. Any such events could have a significant adverse impact on the value of the Fund’s investments.

Repurchase Agreements Risk. Repurchase agreements are agreements pursuant to which the Fund acquires securities from a third party with the understanding that the seller will repurchase them at a fixed price on an agreed date. Repurchase agreements may be characterized as loans secured by the underlying securities. If the seller of securities under a repurchase agreement defaults on its obligation to repurchase the underlying securities, as a result of its bankruptcy or otherwise, the Fund will seek to dispose of such securities, which could involve costs or delays. If the seller becomes insolvent and subject to liquidation or reorganization under applicable bankruptcy or other laws, the Fund’s ability to dispose of the underlying securities may be restricted. If the seller fails to repurchase the securities, the Fund may suffer a loss to the extent proceeds from the sale of the underlying securities are less than the repurchase prices.

Risks of Futures and Options. The Fund may enter into U.S. futures contracts, options and options on futures contracts to simulate full investment in the Underlying Index, or to manage cash flows. The Fund will not use futures or options for speculative purposes. The Fund intends to use futures and options contracts to limit its risk exposure to levels comparable to direct investment in securities.

An option gives a holder the right to buy or sell a specific security or instrument, including a futures contract, at a specified price within a specified period of time. An option on a futures contract gives the purchaser the right, in return for the premium paid, to assume a position in the underlying futures contract at a specified price at any time prior to the expiration date of the option. Exchanges can limit the number of futures or

options positions that can be held or controlled by the Fund or the investment adviser, thus limiting the ability to implement the Fund’s strategies. Options are subject to correlation risk, and the successful use of options depends on the investment adviser’s ability to predict correctly future price fluctuations and the degree of correlation between the markets for options and the underlying instruments. Options are also particularly subject to leverage risk and can be subject to liquidity risk. Because option premiums paid or received by the Fund are small in relation to the market value of the investments underlying the options, the Fund is exposed to the risk that buying and selling options can be more speculative than investing directly in securities.

Futures contracts are typically exchange-traded contracts that provide for the future delivery of a specified amount of a specific instrument at a specified future price and date, or for cash settlement (payment of the gain or loss on the contract). Futures contracts are subject to the risk of imperfect correlation between movements in the price of the instruments and the price of the underlying securities. Because futures contracts project price levels in the future, market circumstances may cause a discrepancy between the price of an index future and the movement in the Underlying Index. In the event of adverse price movements, the Fund would remain required to make daily cash payments to maintain its required margin. There is no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist for any particular futures contract at any particular time. Futures markets are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of the Fund’s NAV. Futures are also subject to leverage risk and liquidity risk. The risk of loss in trading futures contracts potentially is unlimited.

Securities Lending Risk. Securities lending involves a risk of loss because the borrower may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. If the Fund lends its securities and is unable to recover the securities loaned, it may sell the collateral and purchase a replacement security in the market. Lending securities entails a risk of loss to the Fund if and to the extent that the market value of the loaned securities increases and the collateral is not increased accordingly. Any cash received as collateral for loaned securities will be invested in an affiliated money market fund. This investment is subject to market appreciation or depreciation and the Fund will bear any loss on the investment of its cash collateral.

Structured Notes Risk. Investments in structured notes involve risks including interest rate risk, credit risk and market risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a note resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of notes tend to go down. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of a note will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt. Depending on the factors used, changes in interest rates and movement of such factors may cause significant price fluctuations. Structured notes may be less liquid than other types of securities and more volatile than the reference factor underlying the note. This means that the Fund may lose money if the issuer of the note defaults, as the Fund may not be able to readily close out its investment in such notes without incurring losses.

Trading Issues Risk. Investors buying or selling Shares in the secondary market may pay brokerage commissions or other charges, which may be a significant proportional cost for investors seeking to buy or sell relatively small amounts of Shares. Moreover, trading in Shares on the NYSE Arca, Inc. (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. Foreign exchanges may be open on days when Shares are not priced, and therefore, if the Fund holds securities that are primarily listed on such exchanges, the value of such securities in the Fund’s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell Shares.

 

 

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Tax Structure of ETFs

Unlike interests in conventional mutual funds, which typically are bought and sold only at closing NAVs, Shares are traded throughout the day in the secondary market on a national securities exchange, and are created and redeemed principally in-kind in Creation Units at each day’s next calculated NAV. These in-kind arrangements are designed to protect shareholders from the adverse effects on the Fund’s portfolio that could arise from frequent cash creation and redemption transactions. In a conventional mutual fund, redemptions can have an adverse tax impact on taxable shareholders because the mutual fund may need to sell portfolio securities to obtain cash to meet such redemptions. These sales may generate taxable gains that must be distributed to the shareholders of the mutual fund, whereas the Shares’ in-kind redemption mechanism generally will not lead to such taxable events for the Fund or its shareholders.

The Fund may recognize gains as a result of rebalancing its securities holdings to reflect changes in the securities included in the Underlying Index. The Fund also may be required to distribute any such gains to its shareholders to avoid adverse federal income tax consequences. For information concerning the tax consequences of distributions, see the section entitled “Dividends, Other Distributions and Taxes” in this prospectus.

 

 

Portfolio Holdings

A description of the Trust’s policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Fund’s portfolio holdings is available in the Fund’s SAI, which is available at www.invesco.com/ETFs.

 

 

Management of the Fund

Invesco Capital Management LLC is a registered investment adviser with its offices at 3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700, Downers Grove, IL 60515. Invesco Capital Management LLC serves as the investment adviser to the Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust and Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, a family of ETFs, with combined assets under management of $[  ] as of [  ].

As the Fund’s investment adviser, the Adviser has overall responsibility for selecting and continuously monitoring the Fund’s investments, managing the Fund’s business affairs, and providing certain clerical, bookkeeping and other administrative services for the Trust.

Portfolio Managers

The Adviser uses a team of portfolio managers, investment strategists and other investment specialists in managing the Fund. This team approach brings together many disciplines and leverages the Adviser’s extensive resources. In this regard, Peter Hubbard, Michael Jeanette, Pratik Doshi, CFA and Tony Seisser (the “Portfolio Managers”) are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund.

Each Portfolio Manager is responsible for various functions related to portfolio management, including investing cash flows, coordinating with other team members to focus on certain asset classes, implementing investment strategies and researching and reviewing investment strategies.

Each Portfolio Manager has limitations on their authority for risk management and compliance purposes that the Adviser believes to be appropriate.

    Peter Hubbard, Head of Equities and Director of Portfolio Management of the Adviser and Vice President of the Trust, has been responsible for the management of the Fund since June 2007. He
   

has been responsible for the management of certain funds in the Invesco family of ETFs since June 2007 and has been associated with the Adviser since 2005.

    Michael Jeanette, Head of North America Equities and Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser, has been responsible for the management of the Fund since August 2008. He has been responsible for the management of certain funds in the Invesco family of ETFs since August 2008 and has been associated with the Adviser since 2008.
    Pratik Doshi, CFA, Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser, has been responsible for the management of the Fund since August 2020. He has been responsible for the management of certain funds in the Invesco family of ETFs since October 2019 and has been associated with the Adviser since 2018.
    Tony Seisser, Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser, has been responsible for the management of the Fund since February 2015. He has been responsible for the management of certain funds in the Invesco family of ETFs since August 2014 and has been associated with the Adviser since 2013.

The Fund’s SAI provides additional information about the Portfolio Managers’ compensation structure, other accounts that the Portfolio Managers manage and the Portfolio Managers’ ownership of Shares.

Advisory Fees

Pursuant to an investment advisory agreement between the Adviser and the Trust (the “Investment Advisory Agreement”), the Fund pays the Adviser for its services an annual fee equal to 0.29% of its average daily net assets (the “Advisory Fee”).

The Fund is responsible for all of its own expenses, including, but not limited to, the investment advisory fees, costs of transfer agency, custody, fund administration, legal, audit and other services, interest, taxes, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses, if any, brokerage commissions and other expenses connected with executions of portfolio transactions, licensing fees related to the Underlying Index, any distribution fees or expenses, litigation expenses, fees payable to the Trust’s Board members and officers who are not “interested persons” of the Trust or the Adviser, expenses incurred in connection with the Board members’ services, including travel expenses and legal fees of counsel for those members of the Board who are not “interested persons” of the Trust or the Adviser and extraordinary expenses, including proxy expenses (except for such proxies related to: (i) changes to the Investment Advisory Agreement, (ii) the election of any Board member who is an “interested person” of the Trust, or (iii) any other matters that directly benefit the Adviser).

The Trust and the Adviser have entered into an Amended and Restated Excess Expense Agreement (the “Expense Agreement”) on behalf of the Fund pursuant to which 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 interest expenses, offering costs (as defined below), brokerage commissions and other trading expenses, taxes, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses, if applicable, and extraordinary expenses) from exceeding 0.39% of its average daily net assets per year (the “Expense Cap”), at least until August 31, 2026.

The offering costs excluded from the Expense Cap for the Fund are: (a) initial legal fees pertaining to the Shares offered for sale; (b) initial SEC and state registration fees; and (c) initial fees paid to be listed on an exchange.

The Expense Agreement provides that the fees waived and/or expenses borne by the Adviser are subject to recapture by the Adviser for up to three years from the date the fees were waived or the expenses were incurred, but no recapture payment will be made by the Fund if it would result in the Fund exceeding (i) the Expense Cap or (ii) the expense cap in effect at the time the fees and/or expenses subject to recapture were waived and/or borne by the Adviser.

The Fund may invest in money market funds that are managed by affiliates of the Adviser and other funds (including ETFs) managed by the Adviser or affiliates of the Adviser (collectively, “Underlying Affiliated

 

 

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Investments”). The indirect portion of the advisory fees that the Fund incurs through such Underlying Affiliated Investments is in addition to the Advisory Fee payable to the Adviser by the Fund. Therefore, the Adviser has agreed to waive the Advisory Fee payable by the Fund in an amount equal to the lesser of: (i) 100% of the net advisory fees earned by the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser that are attributable to the Fund’s Underlying Affiliated Investments or (ii) the Advisory Fee available to be waived. This waiver does not apply to the Fund’s investment of cash collateral received for securities lending. This waiver is in place through at least August 31, 2026, and there is no guarantee that the Adviser will extend it past that date. This waiver is not subject to recapture.

A discussion regarding the Board’s basis for approving the Investment Advisory Agreement with respect to the Fund is available on the Fund’s website and in the Trust’s report filed on Form N-CSR for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024.

 

 

How to Buy and Sell Shares

The Fund issues or redeems its Shares at NAV per Share only in Creation Units or Creation Unit Aggregations.

Most investors buy and sell Shares in secondary market transactions through brokers. Shares are listed for trading on the secondary market on the Exchange. Shares can be bought and sold throughout the trading day like other publicly traded shares. There is no minimum investment. Although Shares generally are purchased and sold in “round lots” of 100 Shares, brokerage firms typically permit investors to purchase or sell Shares in smaller “odd lots,” at no per share price differential. 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 offered price in the secondary market on each leg of a round trip (purchase and sale) transaction.

The Shares trade on the Exchange under the symbol “PRF.”

Share prices are reported in dollars and cents per Share.

APs may acquire Shares directly from the Fund, and APs may tender their Shares for redemption directly to the Fund, at NAV per Share, only in Creation Units or Creation Unit Aggregations, and in accordance with the procedures described in the SAI.

Under normal circumstances, the Fund will pay out redemption proceeds to a redeeming AP within one day after the AP’s redemption request is received, in accordance with the process set forth in the Fund’s SAI and/or as set forth in the agreement between the AP and the Fund’s distributor, or as otherwise agreed to by the Fund and the AP. However, the Fund reserves the right, including under stressed market conditions, to take up to seven days after the receipt of a redemption request to pay an AP, all as permitted by the 1940 Act. If the Fund has foreign investments in a country where local market holiday(s) prevent the Fund from delivering such foreign investments to an AP in response to a redemption request, the Fund may take up to 15 days after the receipt of the redemption request to deliver such investments to the AP.

The Fund anticipates meeting redemption requests either by paying redemption proceeds to an AP primarily through in-kind redemptions or in cash. Cash used for redemptions will be raised from the sale of portfolio assets or may come from existing holdings of cash or cash equivalents. If the Fund holds Rule 144A securities, an AP that is not a “qualified institutional buyer,” as such term is defined under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), will not be able to receive those Rule 144A securities.

The Fund may liquidate and terminate at any time without shareholder approval.

Book Entry

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

record owner of all outstanding Shares and is recognized as the record owner of all Shares for all purposes.

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. Participants in DTC 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 stocks that you hold in book entry or “street name” form.

Share Trading Prices

The trading prices of Shares on the Exchange may differ from the Fund’s daily NAV. Market forces of supply and demand, economic conditions and other factors may affect the trading prices of Shares.

 

 

Frequent Purchases and

Redemptions of Shares

Shares may be purchased and redeemed directly from the Fund only in Creation Units by APs. The vast majority of trading in Shares occurs on the secondary market and does not involve the Fund directly. In-kind purchases and redemptions of Creation Units by APs and cash trades on the secondary market are unlikely to cause many of the harmful effects of frequent purchases or redemptions of the Shares. Cash purchases and/or redemptions of Creation Units, however, can result in increased tracking error, disruption of portfolio management, dilution to the Fund and increased transaction costs, which could negatively impact the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective, and may lead to the realization of capital gains. These consequences may increase as the frequency of cash purchases and redemptions of Creation Units by APs increases. However, direct trading by APs is critical to ensuring that Shares trade at or close to NAV.

To minimize these potential consequences of frequent purchases and redemptions of Shares, the Fund imposes transaction fees on purchases and redemptions of Creation Units to cover the custodial and other costs the Fund incurs in effecting trades. In addition, the Adviser monitors trades by APs for patterns of abusive trading and the Fund reserves the right not to accept orders from APs that the Adviser has determined may be disruptive to the management of the Fund, or otherwise are not in the best interests of the Fund. For these reasons, the Board has not adopted policies and procedures with respect to frequent purchases and redemptions of Shares.

 

 

Dividends, Other Distributions and Taxes

Dividends and Other Distributions

Generally, dividends from net investment income, if any, are declared and paid quarterly by the Fund. The Fund also intends to distribute its net realized capital gains, if any, to shareholders annually. Dividends and other distributions may be declared and paid more frequently to comply with the distribution requirements of Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and to avoid a federal excise tax imposed on regulated investment companies.

Distributions in cash may be reinvested automatically in additional whole Shares only if the broker through whom you purchased Shares makes such option available.

 

 

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Taxes

The Fund intends to qualify each year as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) and, as such, is not subject to entity-level tax on the income and gain it distributes. If you are a taxable investor, dividends and distributions you receive generally are taxable to you whether you reinvest distributions in additional Shares or take them in cash. Every year, you will be sent information showing the amount of dividends and distributions you received during the prior calendar year. In addition, investors in taxable accounts should be aware of the basic tax points listed below:

Fund Tax Basics

 

  The Fund earns income generally in the form of dividends or interest on its investments. This income, less expenses incurred in the operation of the Fund, constitutes the Fund’s net investment income from which dividends may be paid to shareholders. If you are a taxable investor, distributions of net investment income generally are taxable to you as ordinary income.

 

  Distributions of net short-term capital gains are taxable to you as ordinary income. A fund with a high portfolio turnover rate (a measure of how frequently assets within the fund are bought and sold) is more likely to generate short-term capital gains than a fund with a low portfolio turnover rate.

 

  Distributions of net long-term capital gains are taxable to you as long-term capital gains no matter how long you have owned your Shares.

 

  A portion of income dividends paid by the Fund may be reported as qualified dividend income eligible for taxation by individual shareholders at long-term capital gain rates, provided certain holding period requirements are met. These reduced rates generally are available for dividends derived from the Fund’s investment in stocks of domestic corporations and qualified foreign corporations. If the Fund invests primarily in debt securities, either none or only a nominal portion of the dividends paid by the Fund will be eligible for taxation at these reduced rates.

 

  The use of derivatives by the Fund may cause the Fund to realize higher amounts of ordinary income or short-term capital gain, distributions from which are taxable to individual shareholders at ordinary income tax rates rather than at the more favorable tax rates for long-term capital gain.

 

  Distributions declared to shareholders with a record date in October, November or December—if paid to you by the end of January—are taxable for federal income tax purposes as if received in December.

 

  Any long-term or short-term capital gains realized on the sale of your Shares will be subject to federal income tax.

 

  If the Fund is terminated, a shareholder will receive a liquidating distribution(s) which should be treated as payment in exchange for the Shares held by the shareholder. As a result, each shareholder should recognize gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the shareholder’s adjusted tax basis in his or her shares and the liquidating distribution(s) he or she receives, except to the extent the Shares are held in a tax-advantaged arrangement. A liquidating distribution may be subject to backup withholding as described below.

 

  A shareholder’s cost basis information will be provided on the sale of any of the shareholder’s Shares, subject to certain exceptions for exempt recipients. Please contact the broker (or other nominee) that holds your Shares with respect to reporting of your cost basis and available elections for your account.

 

  At the time you purchase your Shares, the Fund’s NAV may reflect undistributed income or undistributed capital gains. A subsequent distribution to you of such amounts, although constituting a return of your investment, would be taxable. Buying Shares just before the Fund declares an income dividend or capital gains distribution is sometimes
   

known as “buying a dividend.” In addition, the Fund’s NAV may, at any time, reflect net unrealized appreciation, which may result in future taxable distributions to you.

 

  By law, if you do not provide the Fund with your proper taxpayer identification number and certain required certifications, you may be subject to backup withholding on any distributions of income, capital gains, or proceeds from the sale of your Shares. The Fund also must withhold if the IRS instructs it to do so. When withholding is required, the amount will be 24% of any distributions or proceeds paid.

 

  An additional 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on certain net investment income (including ordinary dividends and capital gain distributions received from the Fund and net gains from taxable dispositions of Shares) of U.S. individuals, estates and trusts to the extent that such person’s “modified adjusted gross income” (in the case of an individual) or “adjusted gross income” (in the case of an estate or trust) exceeds a threshold amount. This Medicare tax, if applicable, is reported by you on, and paid with, your federal income tax return.

 

  You will not be required to include the portion of dividends paid by the Fund derived from interest on U.S. government obligations in your gross income for purposes of personal and, in some cases, corporate income taxes in many state and local tax jurisdictions. The percentage of dividends that constitutes dividends derived from interest on federal obligations will be determined annually. This percentage may differ from the actual percentage of interest received by the Fund on federal obligations for the particular days on which you hold shares.

 

  Fund distributions and gains from the sale of Shares generally are subject to state and local income taxes.

 

  If the Fund qualifies to pass through the tax benefits from foreign taxes it pays on its investments, and elects to do so, then any foreign taxes it pays on these investments may be passed through to you. You will then be required to include your pro rata share of these taxes in gross income, even though not actually received by you, and will be entitled either to deduct your share of these taxes in computing your taxable income, or to claim a foreign tax credit for these taxes against your U.S. federal income tax.

 

  Foreign investors should be aware that U.S. withholding, special certification requirements to avoid U.S. backup withholding and claim any treaty benefits, and estate taxes may apply to an investment in the Fund.

 

  Under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”), a 30% withholding tax is imposed on income dividends made by the Fund to certain foreign entities, referred to as foreign financial institutions or non-financial foreign entities, that fail to comply (or be deemed compliant) with extensive reporting and withholding requirements designed to inform the U.S. Department of the Treasury of U.S.-owned foreign investment accounts. After December 31, 2018, FATCA withholding also would have applied to certain capital gain distributions, return of capital distributions and the proceeds arising from the sale of Shares; however, based on proposed regulations issued by the IRS, which can be relied upon currently, such withholding is no longer required unless final regulations provide otherwise (which is not expected). The Fund may disclose the information that it receives from its shareholders to the IRS, non-U.S. taxing authorities or other parties as necessary to comply with FATCA or similar laws. Withholding also may be required if a foreign entity that is a shareholder of the Fund fails to provide the Fund with appropriate certifications or other documentation concerning its status under FATCA.

 

  To the extent the Fund invests in an underlying fund that is taxed as a RIC, please see the section titled “Taxes – Taxation of the Funds” in the Fund’s SAI for more information regarding the tax consequences of such investment.
 

 

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  The above discussion concerning the taxability of Fund dividends and distributions and of sales of Shares is inapplicable to investors that generally are exempt from federal income tax, such as retirement plans that are qualified under Section 401 and 403 of the Code and individual retirement accounts (“IRAs”) and Roth IRAs.

Taxes on Purchase and Redemption of Creation Units

To the extent that the Fund permits in-kind transactions, an AP that exchanges equity securities for a Creation Unit generally will recognize a capital gain or loss equal to the difference between the market value of the Creation Units at the time of exchange (plus any cash received by the AP as part of the issue) and the sum of the AP’s aggregate basis in the securities surrendered plus any cash component paid. Similarly, an AP that redeems a Creation Unit in exchange for securities generally will recognize a capital gain or loss equal to the difference between the AP’s basis in the Creation Units (plus any cash paid by the AP as part of the redemption) and the aggregate market value of the securities received (plus any cash received by the AP as part of the redemption). The IRS, however, may assert that a loss realized upon an exchange of securities for a Creation Unit, or of a Creation Unit for securities, cannot be deducted currently under the rules governing “wash sales” or on the ground that there has been no significant change in the AP’s economic position. An AP exchanging securities should consult its own tax advisor(s) with respect to whether wash sale rules apply and when a loss otherwise might not be deductible.

Any capital gain or loss realized on a redemption of a Creation Unit generally is treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the Shares have been held for more than one year and as short-term capital gain or loss if the Shares have been held for one year or less, assuming that such Creation Units are held as a capital asset. If you purchase or redeem one or more Creation Units, you will be sent a confirmation statement showing how many Shares you purchased or sold and at what price.

The foregoing discussion summarizes some of the more important possible consequences under current federal, state and local tax law of an investment in the Fund. It is not a substitute for personal tax advice. You also may be subject to state, local and/or foreign tax on the Fund’s distributions and sales and/or redemptions of Shares. Consult your personal tax advisor(s) about the potential tax consequences of an investment in the Shares under all applicable tax laws.

 

 

Distributor

Invesco Distributors, Inc. (the “Distributor”) serves as the distributor of Creation Units for the Fund on an agency basis. The Distributor does not maintain a secondary market in Shares. The Distributor is an affiliate of the Adviser.

 

 

Net Asset Value

The NAV for the Fund will be calculated and disseminated daily on each day that the NYSE is open for trading. The Bank of New York Mellon (“BNYM”) normally calculates the Fund’s NAV as of the regularly scheduled close of business of the NYSE (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern time). The Fund’s NAV is based on prices at the time of closing, and U.S. fixed-income assets may be valued as of the announced closing time for trading in fixed-income instruments in a particular market or exchange. NAV is calculated by deducting all of the Fund’s liabilities from the total value of its assets and then dividing the result by the number of Shares outstanding, rounding to the nearest cent. Generally, the portfolio securities are recorded in the NAV no later than the trade date plus one day. In determining NAV, expenses are accrued and applied daily and securities and other assets for which market quotations are readily available and reliable are valued at market value. The

Trust’s Board has designated the Adviser to fair value the Fund’s portfolio securities and other assets for which market quotations are not readily available and reliable in accordance with Board-approved policies and related Adviser procedures (the “Valuation Procedures”), subject to the Board’s oversight.

Securities listed or traded on an exchange (except convertible securities) generally are valued at the last trade price or official closing price that day as of the close of the exchange where the security primarily trades. Securities of investment companies that are not exchange-traded (e.g., open-end mutual funds) are valued using such company’s end-of-business day NAV per share, whereas securities of investment companies that are exchange-traded are valued at the last trade price or official closing price on the exchange on which they primarily trade. Deposits, other obligations of U.S. and non-U.S. banks and financial institutions, and cash equivalents are valued at their daily account value. Fixed-income securities (including convertible securities) normally are valued on the basis of prices provided by independent pricing services. Pricing services generally value fixed-income securities assuming orderly transactions of institutional round lot size, but the Fund may hold or transact in the same securities in smaller, odd lot sizes. Odd lots often trade at lower prices than institutional round lots, and their value may be adjusted accordingly. Futures contracts are valued at the daily settlement price set by an exchange on which they are principally traded. U.S. exchange-traded options are valued at the mean between the last bid and asked prices from the exchange on which they principally trade. Non-U.S. exchange-traded options are valued at the final settlement price set by the exchange on which they trade. Options not listed on an exchange and swaps generally are valued using pricing provided from independent pricing services. Unlisted securities will be valued using prices provided by independent pricing services or by another method that the Adviser, in its judgment, believes better reflects the security’s fair value in accordance with the Valuation Procedures. Foreign exchange-traded equity securities are valued at their market value if market quotations are available and reliable. The Adviser may use various pricing services to obtain market quotations as well as fair value prices. The Adviser may discontinue the use of any pricing service at any time.

At times, a listed security’s market price may not be readily available. Moreover, even when market quotations are available for a security, they may be stale or unreliable. A security’s last market quotation may become stale because, among other reasons, (i) the security is not traded frequently, (ii) the security ceased trading before its exchange closed; (iii) market or issuer-specific events occurred after the security ceased trading; or (iv) the passage of time between when the security’s trading market closes and when the Fund calculates its NAV caused the quotation to become stale. A security’s last market quotation may become unreliable because of (i) certain issuer- or security-specific events, including a merger or insolvency, (ii) events which affect a geographical area or an industry segment, such as political events or natural disasters, or (iii) market events, such as a significant movement in the U.S. market. When a security’s market price is not readily available, or the Adviser determines, in its judgment, that such price is stale or unreliable, the Adviser will value the security at fair value in good faith using the Valuation Procedures.

Fair value pricing involves subjective judgments, and fair value pricing methods may change from time to time. Consequently, while such determinations may be made in good faith, it may nevertheless be more difficult for the Adviser to accurately assign a daily value, and Fund securities that are fair valued may be subject to greater fluctuation in their value from one day to the next than would be the case if market quotations were used. Because of the inherent uncertainties of valuation, and the degree of subjectivity in such decisions, it is possible that a fair value determination for a security is materially different than the value that could be realized upon the sale of the security. There is no assurance that the Fund could sell a portfolio security for the value established for it at any time, and it is possible that the Fund would incur a loss if a security is sold at a discount to its established value. Because the Fund seeks to track the

 

 

12


Underlying Index, the use of fair value pricing could result in a difference between the prices used to calculate the Fund’s NAV and the prices used by the Underlying Index, which may increase the Fund’s tracking error.

 

 

Fund Service Providers

BNYM, 240 Greenwich Street, New York, New York 10286, is the administrator, custodian, transfer agent and fund accounting and dividend disbursing agent for the Fund.

Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young, LLP, 191 North Wacker Drive, Suite 1601, Chicago, Illinois 60606, and 2000 K Street, NW, Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20006, serves as legal counsel to the Trust.

[  ], One North Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60606, serves as the Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm. [  ] is responsible for auditing the annual financial statements of the Fund and assists in the preparation and/or review of the Fund’s federal and state income tax returns.

 

 

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Financial Highlights

 

The financial highlights table below is intended to help you understand the Fund’s financial performance for the past five fiscal years and the semi-annual period ended October 31, 2024. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Share. The total returns in the table represent the rate that an investor would have earned (or lost) on an investment in the Fund (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and other   

distributions). This information has been derived from the Fund’s financial statements, which have been audited by [  ], whose report, along with the Fund’s financial statements, is available on the Fund’s website and is included in the Fund’s Form N-CSR filed with the SEC, which is available upon request. The information for the semi-annual period ended October 31, 2024 has not been audited. The unaudited interim financial statements reflect all adjustments which are, in the opinion of management, necessary for a fair statement of the results for the interim period presented. In addition, all such adjustments are of a normal recurring nature.

 

 

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Index Provider

No entity that creates, compiles, sponsors or maintains the Underlying Index is or will be an affiliated person, as defined in Section 2(a)(3) of the 1940 Act, or an affiliated person of an affiliated person, of the Trust, the Adviser, the Distributor or a promoter of the Fund.

Neither the Adviser nor any affiliate of the Adviser has any rights to influence the selection of the securities in the Underlying Index.

The Underlying Index is calculated and maintained by the Index Provider or its affiliate, agent or partner. The Index Provider is not affiliated with the Trust, the Adviser or the Distributor. The Adviser has entered into a license agreement with the Index Provider. The Fund is entitled to use the Underlying Index pursuant to a sub-licensing agreement with the Adviser.

 

 

Disclaimers

The Underlying Index is a service mark of RAFI Indices, LLC or its affiliates (collectively, “RAFI”) and has been licensed for use by the Adviser. The intellectual and other property rights to the Underlying Index are owned by or licensed to RAFI. The Fund is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by RAFI, its agents and service providers (including any calculation agent for the Underlying Index and any data providers, collectively, “RAFI and its agents”).

The content contained in the Underlying Index is presented for information purposes only and does not contain or constitute financial or investment advice in any form. The inclusion of a security or other financial instrument in the Underlying Index should not be taken as a recommendation to buy, sell or hold such security or financial instrument. RAFI and its agents make no representations or warranties regarding the advisability of investing in the Fund or the ability of the Underlying Index to provide any particular market performance. RAFI is not acting as an investment adviser to you and has no fiduciary duties to you in connection with the Underlying Index or the Fund. RAFI and its agents are not responsible for and have not participated in the development, marketing, issuance or management of the Fund and will not have any obligation or liability to the owners of the Fund.

RAFI and its agents obtain information from sources they consider reliable but do not guarantee the accuracy, timeliness and/or completeness of the Underlying Index or any data included therein (the “RAFI Data”). The RAFI Data is provided “as is” and on an “as available” basis without representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, that the RAFI Data will be uninterrupted or error-free. RAFI and its agents disclaim all warranties and representations, including any warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose or use, title or noninfringement, with respect to the RAFI Data. In no event will RAFI and its agents be liable for any damages, including direct, indirect, special, punitive and consequential damages (including lost profits), even if notified of the possibility of such damages. Any decision to purchase or invest in the Fund is at your own risk.

The Adviser does not guarantee the accuracy and/or the completeness of the Underlying Index or any data included therein, and the Adviser shall have no liability for any errors, omissions, restatements, re-calculations or interruptions therein. The Adviser makes no warranty, express or implied, as to results to be obtained by the Fund, owners of the Shares or any other person or entity from the use of the Underlying Index or any data included therein. The Adviser makes no express or implied warranties and expressly disclaims all warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use with respect to the Underlying Index or any data included therein. Without limiting any of the foregoing, in no event shall the Adviser have any liability for any special, punitive, direct, indirect or consequential damages (including lost profits) arising out of matters relating to the use of the Underlying Index, even if notified of the possibility of such damages.

 

 

Premium/Discount Information

Information showing the number of days the market price of the Shares was greater (at a premium) and less (at a discount) than the Fund’s NAV for the most recently completed calendar year and the most recently completed calendar quarters since that year (or the life of the Fund, if shorter) is available on the Fund’s website at www.invesco.com/ETFs.

 

 

Other Information

Continuous Offering

The method by which Creation Unit Aggregations of Shares are created and traded may raise certain issues under applicable securities laws. Because new Creation Unit Aggregations of Shares are issued and sold by the Fund on an ongoing basis, a “distribution,” as such term is used in the Securities

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

Broker-dealer firms also should note that dealers who are not “underwriters” but are effecting transactions in Shares, whether or not participating in the distribution of Shares, generally are required to deliver a prospectus. This is because the prospectus delivery exemption in Section 4(a)(3)(C) of the Securities Act is not available in respect of 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 engaging in ordinary secondary market transactions), and thus dealing with the Shares that are part of an overallotment 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. For delivery of prospectuses to exchange members, the prospectus delivery mechanism of Rule 153 under the Securities Act only is available with respect to transactions on a national exchange.

Delivery of Shareholder Documents–Householding

Householding is an option available to certain investors of the Fund. 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. Householding for the Fund is available through certain broker-dealers. If you are interested in enrolling in householding and receiving a single copy of the prospectus and other shareholder documents, please contact your broker-dealer. If you currently are enrolled in householding and wish to change your householding status, please contact your broker-dealer.

For More Information

For more detailed information on the Trust, the Fund and the Shares, you may request a copy of the Fund’s SAI. The SAI provides detailed information about the Fund and is incorporated by reference into this prospectus. This means that the SAI legally is a part of this prospectus. Additional information about the Fund’s investments also is available in the Fund’s Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to Shareholders and on Form N-CSR filed with the SEC. In the Fund’s current Annual Report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance during the last fiscal year. In Form N-CSR you will find the Fund’s annual and semi-annual financial statements. If you have questions about the Fund or Shares or you wish to obtain the SAI, Annual Report and/or Semi-Annual Report, or the Fund’s financial statements, free of charge, or to make shareholder inquiries, please:

 

Call:   

Invesco Distributors, Inc. at 1-800-983-0903

Monday through Friday

8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Central Time

 

 

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Write:   

Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust

c/o Invesco Distributors, Inc.

11 Greenway Plaza

Houston, Texas 77046-1173

Visit:    www.invesco.com/ETFs

Reports and other information about the Fund are available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov, and copies of this information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following e-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov.

No person is authorized to give any information or to make any representations about the Fund and its Shares not contained in this prospectus, and you should not rely on any other information. Read and keep this prospectus for future reference.

Dealers effecting transactions in the Shares, whether or not participating in this distribution, generally are required to deliver a prospectus. This is in addition to any obligation of dealers to deliver a prospectus when acting as underwriters.

The Trust’s registration number under the 1940 Act is 811-21265.

 

 

16


 

 

 

 

 

 

Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust
3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700         www.invesco.com/ETFs
Downers Grove, IL 60515    P-PRF-PRO-1   

  800.983.0903

   LOGO

    @InvescoUS


LOGO   

 

 

Subject to Completion - dated January 21, 2025

 

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

   Prospectus      [___], 2025
  

 

 

Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust

    PRFZ   Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF (formerly Invesco FTSE RAFI US Small-Mid ETF)    The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

 

 

 

 

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.


 

Table of Contents

 

Summary Information

     1  

Additional Information About the Fund’s Strategies and Risks

     3  

Tax Structure of ETFs

     9  

Portfolio Holdings

     9  

Management of the Fund

     9  

How to Buy and Sell Shares

     10  

Frequent Purchases and Redemptions of Shares

     10  

Dividends, Other Distributions and Taxes

     11  

Distributor

     12  

Net Asset Value

     12  

Fund Service Providers

     13  

Financial Highlights

     14  

Index Provider

     15  

Disclaimers

     15  

Premium/Discount Information

     15  

Other Information

     15  


 

Summary Information

Investment Objective

The Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to track the investment results (before fees and expenses) of the RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1500 Index (the “Underlying Index”).

Fund Fees and Expenses

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). 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 (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

 

Management Fees

     0.29

Other Expenses(1)

     0.05

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses

     0.34

 

1 

“Other Expenses” have been restated to reflect current fees.

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 sell 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 are equal to the Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and Expense Assumption for the first two years and the Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses thereafter. This example does not include brokerage commissions that investors may pay to buy and sell Shares. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, your costs, based on these assumptions, would be:

 

1 Year    3 Years    5 Years    10 Years

$35

   $109    $191    $431

Portfolio Turnover. The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate will cause the Fund to incur additional 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 example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was [___]% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund generally will invest at least 90% of its total assets in securities that comprise the Underlying Index.

Strictly in accordance with its guidelines and mandated procedures, RAFI™ Indices, LLC (the “Index Provider”) compiles, maintains and calculates the Underlying Index, which is comprised of securities of small- and mid-sized U.S. companies.

The Underlying Index is designed to track the performance of approximately 1,500 common stocks of small- and mid-sized U.S. companies from the constituents of the RAFI Global Equity Investable Universe (GEIU), which is the starting point for all index strategies available through the Index Provider. The Underlying Index selects and weights companies based on the following four fundamental measures of company size: book value plus intangibles, adjusted cash flow, adjusted sales and dividend

plus buybacks.

As of [___], the Underlying Index was comprised of [___] with market capitalizations ranging from $[___] to $[___].

The Fund employs a “full replication” methodology in seeking to track the Underlying Index, meaning that the Fund generally invests in all of the securities comprising the Underlying Index in proportion to their weightings in the Underlying Index.

The Fund intends to be “diversified,” as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), to the extent that the Underlying Index is diversified. The Fund may become “non-diversified” as defined in the 1940 Act solely as a result of a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the Underlying Index. Should the Fund become “non-diversified,” it will no longer be required to meet certain diversification requirements under the 1940 Act and may invest a greater portion of its assets in securities of a small group of issuers or in any one individual issuer than can a diversified fund. Shareholder approval will not be sought when the Fund crosses from diversified to non-diversified status solely due to a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the Underlying Index. In seeking to track the Underlying Index, the Fund was managed as diversified as of [___].

Concentration Policy. The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., invest 25% or more of the value of its total assets) in securities of issuers in any one industry or group of industries only to the extent that the Underlying Index reflects a concentration in that industry or group of industries. The Fund will not otherwise concentrate its investments in securities of issuers in any one industry or group of industries.

Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund

The following summarizes the principal risks of investing in the Fund.

The Shares will change in value, and you could lose money by investing in the Fund. The Fund may not achieve its investment objective.

Market Risk. Securities in the Underlying Index are subject to market fluctuations. You should anticipate that the value of the Shares will decline, more or less, in correlation with any decline in value of the securities in the Underlying Index. Additionally, natural or environmental disasters, widespread disease or other public health issues, war, military conflicts, acts of terrorism, economic crises or other events could result in increased premiums or discounts to the Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”).

Index Risk. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not utilize an investing strategy that seeks returns in excess of the Underlying Index. Therefore, the Fund would not necessarily buy or sell a security unless that security is added or removed, respectively, from the Underlying Index, even if that security generally is underperforming. Additionally, the Fund rebalances its portfolio in accordance with the Underlying Index, and, therefore, any changes to the Underlying Index’s rebalance schedule will result in corresponding changes to the Fund’s rebalance schedule.

Equity Risk. Equity risk is the risk that the value of equity securities, including common stocks, may fall due to both changes in general economic conditions that impact the market as a whole, as well as factors that directly relate to a specific company or its industry. Such general economic conditions include changes in interest rates, periods of market turbulence or instability, or general and prolonged periods of economic decline and cyclical change. It is possible that a drop in the stock market may depress the price of most or all of the common stocks that the Fund holds. In addition, equity risk includes the risk that investor sentiment toward one or more industries will become negative, resulting in those investors exiting their investments in those industries, which could cause a reduction in the value of companies in those industries more broadly. The value of a company’s common stock may fall solely because of factors,

 

 

1


such as an increase in production costs, that negatively impact other companies in the same region, industry or sector of the market. A company’s common stock also may decline significantly in price over a short period of time due to factors specific to that company, including decisions made by its management or lower demand for the company’s products or services. For example, an adverse event, such as an unfavorable earnings report or the failure to make anticipated dividend payments, may depress the value of common stock.

Small- and Mid-Capitalization Company Risk. Investing in securities of small- and mid-capitalization companies involves greater risk than customarily is associated with investing in larger, more established companies. These companies’ securities may be more volatile and less liquid than those of more established companies. These securities may have returns that vary, sometimes significantly, from the overall securities market. Often small- and mid-capitalization companies and the industries in which they focus are still evolving and, as a result, they may be more sensitive to changing market conditions.

Industry Concentration Risk. In following its methodology, the Underlying Index from time to time may be concentrated to a significant degree in securities of issuers operating in a single industry or industry group. To the extent that the Underlying Index concentrates in the securities of issuers in a particular industry or industry group, the Fund will also concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent. By concentrating its investments in an industry or industry group, the Fund may face more risks than if it were diversified broadly over numerous industries or industry groups. Such industry-based risks, any of which may adversely affect the companies in which the Fund invests, may include, but are not limited to, the following: general economic conditions or cyclical market patterns that could negatively affect supply and demand in a particular industry; competition for resources; adverse labor relations; political or world events; obsolescence of technologies; and increased competition or new product introductions that may affect the profitability or viability of companies in an industry. In addition, at times, such industry or industry group may be out of favor and underperform other industries or the market as a whole.

Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. The value of an individual security or particular type of security may be more volatile than the market as a whole and may perform differently from the value of the market as a whole.

Non-Diversification Risk. To the extent the Fund becomes non-diversified, the Fund may invest a greater portion of its assets in securities of individual issuers than can a diversified fund. As a result, changes in the market value of a single investment could cause greater fluctuations in Share price than would occur in a diversified fund. This may increase the Fund’s volatility and cause the performance of a relatively small number of issuers to have a greater impact on the Fund’s performance.

Non-Correlation Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Underlying Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Underlying Index, and incurs costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Underlying Index. In addition, the performance of the Fund and the Underlying Index may vary due to asset valuation differences and differences between the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Index resulting from legal restrictions, costs or liquidity constraints.

Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only authorized participants (“APs”) may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that may act as APs and such APs have no obligation to submit creation or redemption orders. Consequently, there is no assurance that APs will establish or maintain an active trading market for the Shares. This risk may be heightened to the extent that securities held by the Fund are traded outside a collateralized settlement system. In that case, APs may be required to post collateral on certain trades on an agency basis (i.e., on behalf of other market participants), which only a limited number of APs may

be able to do. In addition, to the extent that APs exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other AP is able to step forward to create or redeem Creation Units (as defined below), this may result in a significantly diminished trading market for Shares, and Shares may be more likely to trade at a premium or discount to the Fund’s NAV and to face trading halts and/or delisting. Additionally, investments in non-U.S. securities may have lower trading volumes or could experience extended market closures or trading halts. To the extent that the Fund invests in non-U.S. securities, it may face increased risks that APs may not be able to effectively create or redeem Creation Units, or that the Shares may be halted and/or delisted.

Market Trading Risk. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for the Shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. In stressed market conditions, the market for Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s portfolio holdings, which may cause a variance in the market price of Shares and their underlying NAV. In addition, an exchange or market may issue trading halts on specific securities or financial instruments. As a result, the ability to trade certain securities or financial instruments may be restricted, which may disrupt the Fund’s creation/redemption process, potentially affect the price at which Shares trade in the secondary market, and/or result in the Fund being unable to trade certain securities or financial instruments at all. In these circumstances, the Fund may be unable to rebalance its portfolio, may be unable to accurately price its investments and/or may incur substantial trading losses. Any of these factors may lead to the Shares trading at a premium or discount to the Fund’s NAV.

Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risks 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 systems failures. The Fund and the Adviser seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures. However, these measures do not address every possible risk and may be inadequate to address these risks.

Shares May Trade at Prices Different than NAV. Shares trade on a stock exchange at prices at, above or below the Fund’s most recent NAV. The Fund’s NAV is calculated at the end of each business day and fluctuates with changes in the market value of the Fund’s holdings. The trading price of the Shares fluctuates continuously throughout trading hours on the exchange, based on both the relative market supply of, and demand for, the Shares and the underlying value of the Fund’s portfolio holdings. As a result, the trading prices of the Shares may deviate from the Fund’s NAV. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV.

Performance

The bar chart below shows how the Fund has performed. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing how the Fund’s total returns have varied from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns compared with a broad measure of market performance and additional indexes with characteristics relevant to the Fund. The Fund’s performance reflects fee waivers, if any, absent which performance would have been lower. Although the information shown in the bar chart and the table gives you some idea of the risks involved in investing in the Fund, 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.invesco.com/ETFs.

 

 

2


Annual Total Returns—Calendar Years

 

LOGO

 

   Period Ended    Returns

Year-to-date

   [  ]    [ ]%

Best Quarter

   [  ]    [ ]%

Worst Quarter

   [  ]    [ ]%

 

 

Average Annual Total Returns (for the periods ended December 31, 2023)

 

     

Inception

Date

     1
Year
  5
Years
  10
Years

Return Before Taxes

     9/20/2006      [  ]%   [  ]%   [  ]%

Return After Taxes on Distributions

      [  ]   [  ]   [  ]

Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares

      [  ]   [  ]   [  ]

RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1500 Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)1

      [  ]   [  ]   [  ]

FTSE RAFI™ US 1500 Mid Small Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)1, 2

      [  ]   [  ]   [  ]

Russell 3000® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)2

      [  ]   [  ]   [  ]

Russell 2000® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)

      [  ]   [  ]   [  ]

 

1

Effective after the close of markets on March 21, 2025, the Fund changed its underlying index from the FTSE RAFI™ US 1500 Mid Small Index to the RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1500 Index. [Prior to its commencement date of [___], performance for the Underlying Index is not available.] If the Fund had sought to track the RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1500 Index prior to March 24, 2025, the Fund’s performance would have been different.

2

Effective August 28, 2024, the Fund changed its broad-based securities market benchmark from the FTSE RAFI™ US 1500 Mid Small Index to the Russell 3000® Index to reflect that the Russell 3000® Index can be considered more broadly representative of the overall applicable securities market.

After-tax returns in the above table are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold Shares through tax-advantaged arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.

Management of the Fund

Investment Adviser. Invesco Capital Management LLC (the “Adviser”).

Portfolio Managers

The following individuals are responsible jointly and primarily for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:

 

Name    Title with Adviser/Trust    Date Began
Managing
the Fund
Peter Hubbard    Head of Equities and Director of Portfolio Management of the Adviser; Vice President of the Trust    June 2007
Michael Jeanette    Head of North America Equities and Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser    August 2008
Pratik Doshi, CFA    Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser    August 2020
Tony Seisser    Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser    February 2015

Purchase and Sale of Shares

The Fund issues and redeems Shares at NAV only with APs and only in large blocks of 10,000 Shares (each block of Shares is called a “Creation Unit”) or multiples thereof (“Creation Unit Aggregations”), generally in exchange for the deposit or delivery of a basket of securities. However, the Fund also reserves the right to permit or require Creation Units to be issued in exchange for cash. Except when aggregated in Creation Units, the Shares are not redeemable securities of the Fund.

Individual Shares may only be bought and sold in the secondary market (i.e., on a national securities exchange) through a broker or dealer at a market price. Because the Shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, Shares may trade at a price greater than NAV (at a premium), at NAV, or less than NAV (at a discount). An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase Shares (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for Shares (ask) when buying or selling shares in the secondary market (the “bid-ask spread”).

Recent information, including information on the Fund’s NAV, market price, premiums and discounts, and bid-ask spreads, is available online at www.invesco.com/ETFs.

Tax Information

The Fund’s distributions generally are taxed as ordinary income, capital gains or some combination of both, unless you are investing through a tax-advantaged arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account, in which case your distributions may be taxed as ordinary income when withdrawn from such account.

Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries

If you purchase Shares of the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund’s distributor or its related companies may pay the intermediary for certain Fund-related activities, including those that are designed to make the intermediary more knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, such as the Fund, as well as for marketing, education or other initiatives related to the sale or promotion of Shares. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson or financial adviser to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or financial adviser or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

 

 

Additional Information About the Fund’s Strategies and Risks

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund generally will invest at least 90% of its total assets in securities that comprise the Underlying Index. The Fund operates as an index fund and is not actively managed, meaning that it does not seek to outperform the Underlying Index. Rather, the Fund seeks to generally track the performance of the Underlying Index as closely as possible (i.e., it seeks to obtain a high degree of correlation with the Underlying Index and to minimize “tracking error” between the two). Tracking error means the variation between the Fund’s annual return and the return of the Underlying Index. Because the Underlying Index is a financial calculation based on a grouping of financial instruments, while the Fund is an actual investment portfolio, the Fund may experience tracking error for a number of reasons when tracking the performance of the Underlying Index. For example, the Fund incurs operating expenses and transaction costs not applicable to the Underlying Index.

As an index fund, the Fund does not take temporary defensive positions during periods of adverse market, economic or other conditions.

The Fund employs a “full replication” methodology in seeking to track the Underlying Index, meaning that it generally invests in all of the securities comprising the Underlying Index in proportion to the weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index. However, under various circumstances, it may not be possible or practicable to purchase all of those securities in those same weightings. In those circumstances, the Fund may purchase a sample of securities in the Underlying Index.

A “sampling” methodology means that the Adviser uses a quantitative analysis to select securities from the Underlying Index universe to obtain a

 

 

3


representative sample of securities that have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics similar to the Underlying Index in terms of key risk factors, performance attributes and other characteristics. These include industry weightings, market capitalization, return variability, earnings valuation, yield and other financial characteristics of securities. When employing a sampling methodology, the Adviser bases the quantity of holdings in the Fund on a number of factors, including asset size of the Fund, and generally expects the Fund to hold less than the total number of securities in the Underlying Index. However, the Adviser reserves the right to invest the Fund in as many securities as it believes necessary to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. To the extent the Fund uses a sampling methodology, it may have a larger tracking error than if it used a full replication methodology.

At times, the Fund may utilize one or more additional investment techniques in seeking to track the Underlying Index. Such techniques may include: (i) overweighting or underweighting a component security in the Fund’s portfolio compared to its weight in the Underlying Index, (ii) purchasing securities not contained in the Underlying Index that the Adviser believes are appropriate to substitute for certain securities in the Underlying Index, (iii) selling securities included in the Underlying Index in anticipation of their removal from the Underlying Index, or (iv) purchasing securities not included in the Underlying Index in anticipation of their addition to the Underlying Index.

Additional information about the construction of the Underlying Index is set forth below.

RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1500 Index

The Index Provider compiles, maintains and calculates the Underlying index, which comprised of approximately 1,500 common stocks and is designed to track the performance of large-sized U.S. companies based on the following four fundamental measures of company size: book value plus intangibles, adjusted cash flow, adjusted sales and dividend plus buybacks.

To be eligible for inclusion in the Underlying Index, a stock must be part of the RAFI GEIU, which is the starting point for all index strategies available through the Index Provider. The Underlying Index identifies small and mid-sized U.S. companies by calculating an overall weight (a “fundamental value”) for each company by weighting each of the following four fundamental measures.

 

  1.

Book value plus intangibles is calculated as the most recent company book value plus research capital, with research capital defined as the accumulation of depreciated R&D expenses over the past six years.

 

  2.

Adjusted cash flow is calculated as company operating cash flow averaged over the past five years plus company R&D expenses averaged over the past five years.

 

  3.

Adjusted sales is calculated as company sales multiplied by company equity to assets ratio averaged over the past five years.

 

  4.

Dividend plus buybacks are calculated using the average dividends paid and share buybacks over the past five years.

The Index Provider then calculates a free-float adjustment for each company. The Underlying Index includes the securities with the top 1,500 free-float adjusted fundamental weight, after excluding the top 1,000. Each security is weighted proportionate to its fundamental value.

The Underlying Index is rebalanced quarterly, after the close of trading on the third Friday of March, June, September and December.

Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund

The following provides additional information regarding certain of the principal risks identified under “Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund” in the Fund’s “Summary Information” section. Any of the following risks may impact the Fund’s NAV which could result in the Fund trading at a premium or discount to NAV.

Market Risk. Securities in the Underlying Index are subject to market fluctuations, and the Fund could lose money due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during market downturns. You should anticipate that the value of the Shares will decline, more or less, in correlation with any decline in value of the securities in the Underlying Index. The value of a security may decline due to general market conditions, economic trends or events that are not specifically related to the issuer of the security or due to factors that affect a particular industry or group of industries. During a general downturn in the securities markets, multiple asset classes may be negatively affected. Additionally, natural or environmental disasters, widespread disease or other public health issues, war, military conflicts, acts of terrorism, economic crises or other events could result in increased premiums or discounts to the Fund’s NAV.

Market Disruption Risks Related to Armed Conflict. As a result of increasingly interconnected global economies and financial markets, armed conflict between countries or in a geographic region, for example the current conflicts between Russia and Ukraine in Europe and Hamas and Israel in the Middle East, has the potential to adversely impact the Fund’s investments. Such conflicts, and other corresponding events, have had, and could continue to have, severe negative effects on regional and global economic and financial markets, including increased volatility, reduced liquidity, and overall uncertainty. The negative impacts may be particularly acute in certain sectors. The timing and duration of such conflicts, resulting sanctions, related events and other impacts cannot be predicted. The foregoing may result in a negative impact on Fund performance and the value of an investment in the Fund, even beyond any direct investment exposure the Fund may have to issuers located in or with significant exposure to an impacted country or geographic region.

Index Risk. Unlike many investment companies that are “actively managed,” the Fund is a “passive” investor and therefore does not utilize an investing strategy that seeks returns in excess of the Underlying Index. Therefore, the Fund would not necessarily buy or sell a security unless that security is added or removed, respectively, from the Underlying Index, even if that security generally is underperforming. If a specific security is removed from the Underlying Index, the Fund may be forced to sell such security at an inopportune time or for a price lower than the security’s current market value. The Underlying Index may not contain the appropriate mix of securities for any particular economic cycle. Additionally, the Fund rebalances its portfolio in accordance with the Underlying Index, and, therefore, any changes to the Underlying Index’s rebalance schedule will result in corresponding changes to the Fund’s rebalance schedule. Further, unlike with an actively managed fund, the Adviser does not use techniques or defensive strategies designed to lessen the impact of periods of market volatility or market decline. This means that, based on certain market and economic conditions, the Fund’s performance could be lower than other

 

 

4


types of funds with investment advisers that actively manage their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or defend against market events.

Equity Risk. Equity risk is the risk that the value of equity securities, including common stocks, will fall. The value of an equity security may fall due to changes in general economic conditions that impact the market as a whole and that are relatively unrelated to an issuer or its industry. These conditions include changes in interest rates, specific periods of overall market turbulence or instability, or general and prolonged periods of economic decline and cyclical change. An issuer’s common stock in particular may be especially sensitive to, and more adversely affected by, these general movements in the stock market; it is possible that a drop in the stock market may depress the price of most or all of the common stocks that the Fund holds.

In addition, equity risk includes the risk that investor sentiment toward, and perceptions regarding, one or more particular industries or economic sectors will become negative, resulting in those investors exiting their investments in those industries, which could cause a reduction in the value of companies in those industries or sectors more broadly. Price changes of equity securities may occur in a particular region, industry, or sector of the market, and as a result, the value of an issuer’s common stock may fall solely because of factors, such as increases in production costs, that negatively impact other companies in the same industry or in a number of different industries.

Equity risk also includes the financial risks of a specific company, including that the value of the company’s securities may fall as a result of factors directly relating to that company, such as decisions made by its management or lower demand for the company’s products or services. In particular, the common stock of a company may decline significantly in price over short periods of time. For example, an adverse event, such as an unfavorable earnings report, may depress the value of common stock; similarly, the common stock of an issuer may decline in price if the issuer fails to make anticipated dividend payments because, among other reasons, the issuer experiences a decline in its financial condition.

Small- and Mid-Capitalization Company Risk. Securities of small- and mid-capitalization companies may be more volatile and thinly traded (that is, less liquid) than those of more established companies. These securities may have returns that vary, sometimes significantly, from the overall securities market. Often small- and mid-capitalization companies and the industries in which they focus are still evolving and, as a result, they may be more sensitive to changing market conditions. In addition, small- and mid-capitalization companies are typically less financially stable than larger, more established companies, and they may depend on a small number of essential personnel, making them more vulnerable to loss of personnel. Small- and mid-capitalization companies also normally have less diverse product lines than large capitalization companies and are more susceptible to adverse developments concerning their products. As such, small- and mid-capitalization companies typically are more likely to be adversely affected than large capitalization companies by changes in earnings results, business prospects, investor expectations or poor economic or market conditions.

Industry Concentration Risk. In following its methodology, the Underlying Index from time to time may be concentrated to a significant degree in securities of issuers operating in a single industry or industry group. To the extent that the Underlying Index concentrates in the securities of issuers in a particular industry or industry group, the Fund will also concentrate its investments to approximately the same extent. By concentrating its investments in an industry or industry group, the Fund may face more risks than if it were diversified broadly over numerous industries or industry groups. Such industry-based risks, any of which may adversely affect the companies in which the Fund invests, may include, but are not limited to, the following: general economic conditions or cyclical market patterns that could negatively affect supply and demand in a particular industry, competition for resources, adverse labor relations, political or world

events, obsolescence of technologies, and increased competition or new product introductions that may affect the profitability or viability of companies in an industry. In addition, at times, such industry or industry group may be out of favor and underperform other industries or the market as a whole. Information about the Fund’s exposure to a particular sector, industry, industry group or sub-industry (as applicable) is available in the Fund’s Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to Shareholders on the Fund’s website, and on required forms filed with the SEC.

Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. The performance of the Fund depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. The value of an individual security or particular type of security may be more volatile than the market as a whole and may perform worse than the market as a whole, causing the value of its securities to decline. Poor performance may be caused by poor management decisions, competitive pressures, changes in technology, expiration of patent protection, disruptions in supply, labor problems or shortages, corporate restructurings, fraudulent disclosures or other factors. Issuers may, in times of distress or at their own discretion, decide to reduce or eliminate dividends, which may also cause their stock prices to decline.

Non-Diversification Risk. To the extent the Fund becomes non-diversified, the Fund may invest a greater portion of its assets in securities of individual issuers than can a diversified fund. As a result, changes in the market value of a single investment could cause greater fluctuations in Share price than would occur in a diversified fund. This may increase the Fund’s volatility and cause the performance of a relatively small number of issuers to have a greater impact on the Fund’s performance.

Non-Correlation Risk. The Fund’s returns may not match the returns of the Underlying Index (that is, it may experience tracking error) for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs operating expenses not applicable to the Underlying Index and incurs costs in buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Underlying Index. To the extent that the Fund has recently commenced operations and/or otherwise has a relatively small amount of assets, such transaction costs could have a proportionally greater impact on the Fund. Additionally, if the Fund uses a sampling methodology, it may result in returns for the Fund that are not as well-correlated with the return of the Underlying Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all of the securities in the Underlying Index in the proportions represented in the Underlying Index.

The performance of the Fund and the Underlying Index may vary due to asset valuation differences and differences between the Fund’s portfolio and the Underlying Index resulting from legal restrictions, costs or liquidity constraints. Additionally, if the Fund issues or redeems Creation Units principally for cash, it will incur higher costs in buying or selling securities than if it issued and redeemed Creation Units principally in-kind, which may contribute to tracking error. The Fund may fair value certain of the securities it holds. To the extent the Fund calculates its NAV based on fair value prices, the Fund’s ability to track the Underlying Index may be adversely affected. Since the Underlying Index is not subject to the tax diversification requirements to which the Fund must adhere, the Fund may be required to deviate its investments from the securities contained in, and relative weightings of, the Underlying Index. The Fund may not invest in certain securities included in the Underlying Index due to liquidity constraints. Liquidity constraints also may delay the Fund’s purchase or sale of securities included in the Underlying Index. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities to realize losses, causing it to deviate from the Underlying Index.

The Fund generally attempts to remain fully invested in the constituents of the Underlying Index. However, at times, the Adviser may not fully invest the Fund’s assets in constituents of the Underlying Index, such as during times of increased market volatility or other unusual or unexpected circumstances, during periods of Underlying Index rebalances, or due to cash flows into the Fund, the need to retain a reserve of cash to meet redemptions and expenses, or low Fund assets.

 

 

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The investment activities of one or more of the Adviser’s affiliates, including other subsidiaries of the Adviser’s parent company, Invesco Ltd., for their proprietary accounts and for client accounts also may adversely impact the Fund’s ability to track the Underlying Index. For example, in regulated industries, certain emerging or international markets and under corporate and regulatory ownership definitions, there may be limits on the aggregate amount of investment by affiliated investors that may not be exceeded, or that may not be exceeded without the grant of a license or other regulatory or corporate consent, or, if exceeded, may cause the Adviser, the Fund or other client accounts to suffer disadvantages or business restrictions. As a result, the Fund may be restricted in its ability to acquire particular securities due to positions held by the Fund and the Adviser’s affiliates.

Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only APs may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that may act as APs, and such APs have no obligation to submit creation or redemption orders. Consequently, there is no assurance that APs will establish or maintain an active trading market for the Shares. The risk may be heightened to the extent that securities held by the Fund are traded outside a collateralized settlement system. In that case, APs may be required to post collateral on certain trades on an agency basis (i.e., on behalf of other market participants), which only a limited number of APs may be able to do. In addition, to the extent that APs exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other AP is able to step forward to create or redeem Creation Units, this may result in a significantly diminished trading market for Shares, and Shares may be more likely to trade at a premium or discount to NAV and to face trading halts and/or delisting. Additionally, investments in non-U.S. securities may have lower trading volumes or could experience extended market closures or trading halts. To the extent that the Fund invests in non-U.S. securities, it may face increased risks that APs may not be able to effectively create or redeem Creation Units, or that the Shares may be halted and/or delisted.

Market Trading Risk. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruption in the creation/redemption process of the Fund. Although Shares are listed for trading on a securities exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for Shares will develop or be maintained by market makers or APs, that Shares will continue to trade on any such exchange or that Shares will continue to meet the requirements for listing on an exchange. Any of these factors, among others, may lead to the Shares trading at a premium or discount to the Fund’s NAV. As a result, an investor could lose money over short or long periods. Further, the Fund may experience low trading volume and wide bid/ask spreads. Bid/ask spreads vary over time based on trading volume and market liquidity (including for the underlying securities held by the Fund), and are generally lower if Shares have more trading volume and market liquidity and higher if Shares have little trading volume and market liquidity.

In stressed market conditions, the market for Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s portfolio holdings, which may cause a variance in the market price of Shares and their underlying NAV. In addition, an exchange or market may issue trading halts on specific securities or financial instruments. As a result, the ability to trade certain securities or financial instruments may be restricted, which may disrupt the Fund’s creation/redemption process, potentially affect the price at which Shares trade in the secondary market, and/or result in the Fund being unable to trade certain securities or financial instruments at all. In these circumstances, the Fund may be unable to rebalance its portfolio, may be unable to accurately price its investments and/or may incur substantial trading losses.

Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risks 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 systems failures. The Fund and the Adviser seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures. However, these measures do not address every possible risk and may be inadequate to address these risks.

Shares May Trade at Prices Different than NAV. Shares trade on a stock exchange at prices at, above or below the Fund’s most recent NAV. The Fund’s NAV is calculated at the end of each business day and fluctuates with changes in the market value of the Fund’s holdings. The trading price of the Shares fluctuates continuously throughout trading hours on the exchange, based on both the relative market supply of, and demand for, the Shares and the underlying value of the Fund’s portfolio holdings. As a result, the trading prices of the Shares may deviate from the Fund’s NAV. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV. The Adviser cannot predict whether the Shares will trade below, at or above the Fund’s NAV. Exchange prices are not expected to correlate exactly with the Fund’s NAV due to timing reasons, supply and demand imbalances and other factors. In addition, disruptions to creations and redemptions, including disruptions at market makers, APs, or other market participants, or periods of significant market volatility or stress, may result in trading prices for the Shares that differ significantly from the value of the Fund’s underlying holdings, with the result that investors may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares bought or sold. This can be reflected as a spread between the bid and ask prices for the Fund quoted during the day or a premium or discount in the closing price from the Fund’s NAV. Additionally, APs may be less willing to create or redeem the Shares if there is a lack of an active market for such Shares or the Fund’s underlying investments, which may contribute to the Shares trading at a premium or discount.

Non-Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund, after investing at least 90% of its total assets in securities that comprise the Underlying Index, may invest its remaining assets in securities (including other funds) not included in the Underlying Index, and in money market instruments, including repurchase agreements and other funds, including affiliated funds, that invest exclusively in money market instruments (subject to applicable limitations under the 1940 Act or exemptions therefrom), convertible securities, structured notes (notes on which the amount of principal repayment and interest payments is based on the movement of one or more specified factors, such as the movement of a particular security or securities index) and in futures contracts, options, options on futures contracts or other derivatives. The Fund may use futures contracts, options, options on futures contracts and other derivatives, convertible securities and structured notes to seek performance that corresponds to the Underlying Index, to seek to hedge portfolio risk and to manage cash flows.

The Adviser anticipates that it may take approximately two business days (a business day is any day that the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) is open) for additions to and deletions from the Underlying Index to fully settle in the portfolio composition of the Fund.

In accordance with 1940 Act rules, the Fund has adopted a policy to invest, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of the value of its total assets in the particular types of securities, and/or in securities of companies operating in the particular industries or economic sectors, that are suggested by the Fund’s name (the “80% investment policy”). The Fund considers the securities suggested by its name to be those securities that comprise the Underlying Index. Therefore, the Fund anticipates meeting its 80% investment policy because it already generally invests at least 90% of its total assets in securities that comprise the Underlying Index, in accordance with its principal investment strategies.

The Fund’s investment objective and the 80% investment policy are non-fundamental policies that the Board of Trustees (the “Board”) of the Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust (the “Trust”) may change without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders.

 

 

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The fundamental and non-fundamental policies of the Fund are set forth in the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) under the section “Investment Restrictions.”

Borrowing Money

The Fund may borrow money up to the limits set forth in the Fund’s SAI under the section “Investment Restrictions.”

Securities Lending

The Fund may lend its portfolio securities to brokers, dealers, and other financial institutions. In connection with such loans, the Fund receives liquid collateral equal to at least 102% (105% for international securities) of the value of the loaned portfolio securities. This collateral is marked-to-market on a daily basis.

Additional Risks of Investing in the Fund

The Fund may also be subject to certain other non-principal risks associated with its investments and investment strategies. The following provides additional non-principal risk information regarding investing in the Fund.

Cash Transaction Risk. The Fund generally expects to make in-kind redemptions to avoid being taxed at the fund level on gains on the distributed portfolio securities. However, from time to time, the Fund reserves the right to effect redemptions for cash, rather than in-kind. In such circumstances, the Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. Therefore, the Fund may recognize a capital gain on these sales that might not have been incurred if the Fund had made a redemption in-kind. This may decrease the tax efficiency of the Fund compared to utilizing an in-kind redemption process.

Convertible Securities Risk. A convertible security generally is a preferred stock that may be converted within a specified period of time into common stock. Convertible securities nevertheless remain subject to the risks of both debt securities and equity securities. As with other equity securities, the value of a convertible security tends to increase as the price of the underlying stock goes up, and to decrease as the price of the underlying stock goes down. Declining common stock values therefore also may cause the value of the Fund’s investments to decline. Like a debt security, a convertible security provides a fixed-income stream and also tends to decrease in value when interest rates rise. Moreover, many convertible securities have credit ratings that are below investment grade and are subject to the same risks as lower-rated debt securities, which are considered to have more speculative characteristics and greater susceptibility to default or decline in market value than investment grade (or higher-rated) securities.

Cybersecurity Risk. With the increased use of technologies such as the Internet to conduct business, the Fund, like all companies, may be susceptible to operational, information security and related risks. Cybersecurity incidents involving the Fund and its service providers (including, without limitation, the Adviser, fund accountant, custodian, transfer agent and financial intermediaries) have the ability to cause disruptions and impact business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses, impediments to trading, the inability of Fund shareholders to transact business, violations of applicable privacy and other laws, regulatory fines, penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs, and/or additional compliance costs. Similar adverse consequences could result from cybersecurity incidents affecting issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, counterparties with which the Fund engages, governmental and other regulatory authorities, exchanges and other financial market operators, banks, brokers, dealers, insurance companies, other financial institutions and other parties. The Fund and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.

Derivatives Risk. The Fund may invest in derivatives, including futures contracts, options, and options on futures contracts, as applicable. Derivatives are financial instruments that derive their value from an underlying asset, such as a security, index or exchange rate. Their use is a

highly specialized activity that involves investment techniques and risks different from those associated with ordinary portfolio securities transactions. Derivatives may be riskier than other types of investments and may be more volatile, less tax efficient and less liquid than other securities.

Derivatives may be used to create synthetic exposure to an underlying asset or to seek to hedge a portfolio risk. If the Fund uses derivatives to seek to “hedge” a portfolio risk, the change in value of a derivative may not correlate as expected with the underlying asset being hedged, and it is possible that the hedge therefore may not succeed. In addition, given their complexity, derivatives may be difficult to value.

Derivatives are subject to a number of risks including credit risk, interest rate risk, and market risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that a counterparty will be unable and/or unwilling to perform under the agreement. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of an asset resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates.

Over-the-counter derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk (sometimes referred to as “default risk”), which is the risk that the other party to the contract will not fulfill its contractual obligations.

Derivatives may be especially sensitive to changes in economic and market conditions, and their use may give rise to a form of leverage. Leverage may cause the portfolio of the Fund to be more volatile than if the portfolio had not been leveraged because leverage can exaggerate the effect of any increase or decrease in the value of securities and other instruments held by the Fund. For some derivatives, such leverage could result in losses that exceed the original amount invested in the derivative. The Fund’s use of derivatives may be limited by the requirements for taxation of the Fund as a regulated investment company, as well as by regulatory changes.

Index Provider Risk. The Fund seeks to track the investment results, before fees and expenses, of the Underlying Index, as published by the Index Provider. There is no assurance that the Index Provider will compile the Underlying Index accurately, or that the Underlying Index will be determined, composed or calculated accurately. While the Index Provider gives descriptions of what the Underlying Index is designed to achieve, the Index Provider generally does not provide any warranty or accept any liability in relation to the quality, accuracy or completeness of data in the Underlying Index, and it generally does not guarantee that the Underlying Index will be in line with its methodology. Errors made by the Index Provider with respect to the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data within the Underlying Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time, if at all. Therefore, gains, losses or costs associated with Index Provider errors will generally be borne by the Fund and its shareholders.

Index Rebalancing Risk. Pursuant to the methodology that the Index Provider uses to calculate and maintain the Underlying Index, a security may be removed from the Underlying Index in the event that it does not comply with the eligibility requirements of the Underlying Index. As a result, the Fund may be forced to sell securities at inopportune times or for prices other than at current market values or may elect not to sell such securities on the day that they are removed from the Underlying Index, due to market conditions or otherwise. Due to these factors, the variation between the Fund’s annual return and the return of the Underlying Index may increase significantly.

Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Underlying Index, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents. When the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Unscheduled rebalances also expose the Fund to additional tracking error risk. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Index Provider may increase the Fund’s costs and market exposure.

Large Shareholder Risk. Certain shareholders, including a third party investor, the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser, an AP, a lead market

 

 

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maker, or another entity, may from time to time own a substantial amount of Shares or may invest in the Fund and hold its investment for a limited period of time solely to facilitate the commencement of the Fund or to facilitate the Fund achieving a specified size or scale. There can be no assurance that any large shareholder would not redeem its investment. Dispositions of a large number of Shares by these shareholders may adversely affect the Fund’s liquidity and net assets to the extent such transactions are executed directly with the Fund in the form of redemptions through an AP, rather than executed in the secondary market. These redemptions may also force the Fund to sell portfolio securities when it might not otherwise do so, which may negatively impact the Fund’s NAV and increase the Fund’s brokerage costs. Further, such sales may accelerate the realization of taxable income and/or gains to shareholders, or the Fund may be required to sell its more liquid Fund investments to meet a large redemption, in which case the Fund’s remaining assets may be less liquid, more volatile, and more difficult to price. To the extent the Fund permits cash purchases, large purchases of Shares may adversely affect the Fund’s performance to the extent that the Fund is delayed in investing new cash and is required to maintain a larger cash position than it ordinarily would. To the extent these large shareholders transact in shares on the secondary market, such transactions may account for a large percentage of the trading volume on the Fund’s exchange and may, therefore, have a material upward or downward effect on the market price of the Shares. To the extent the Fund permits redemptions in cash, the Fund may hold a relatively large proportion of its assets in cash in anticipation of large redemptions, diluting its investment returns.

Leverage Risk. To the extent that the Fund borrows money it may be leveraged. Leveraging generally exaggerates the effect on NAV of any increase or decrease in the market value of the Fund’s portfolio securities. Borrowing creates interest expenses and other expenses (e.g., commitment fees) for the Fund that affect the Fund’s performance.

Money Market Funds Risk. Money market funds are subject to management fees and other expenses, and the Fund’s investments in money market funds will cause it to bear proportionately the costs incurred by the money market funds’ operations while simultaneously paying its own management fees and expenses. An investment in a money market fund is not a bank account and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency; it is possible to lose money by investing in a money market fund. To the extent that the Fund invests in money market funds, the Fund will be subject to the same risks that investors experience when investing in money market funds. These risks may include the impact of significant fluctuations in assets as a result of the cash sweep program or purchase and redemption activity in those funds.

Money market funds are open-end registered investment companies that historically have traded at a stable $1.00 per share price. However, money market funds that do not meet the definition of a “retail money market fund” or “government money market fund” under the 1940 Act are required to transact at a floating NAV per share (i.e., in a manner similar to how all other non-money market mutual funds transact), instead of at a $1.00 stable share price. Money market funds may also impose liquidity fees in certain circumstances, including times of market stress or heavy redemptions. If the Fund invested in a money market fund with a floating NAV, the impact on the trading and value of the money market instrument may negatively affect the Fund’s return potential.

Natural Disaster/Epidemic Risk. Natural or environmental disasters, such as earthquakes, fires, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis and other severe weather-related phenomena generally, and widespread disease, including pandemics and epidemics, have been and may be highly disruptive to economies and markets, adversely impacting individual companies, sectors, industries, markets, currencies, interest and inflation rates, credit ratings, investor sentiment, and other factors affecting the value of the Fund’s investments. Additionally, if a sector or sectors in which the Underlying Index is concentrated is negatively impacted to a greater extent by such events, the Fund may experience heightened volatility. Given the

increasing interdependence among global economies and markets, conditions in one country, market, or region are increasingly likely to adversely affect markets, issuers, and/or foreign exchange rates in other countries, including the U.S. Any such events could have a significant adverse impact on the value of the Fund’s investments.

Repurchase Agreements Risk. Repurchase agreements are agreements pursuant to which the Fund acquires securities from a third party with the understanding that the seller will repurchase them at a fixed price on an agreed date. Repurchase agreements may be characterized as loans secured by the underlying securities. If the seller of securities under a repurchase agreement defaults on its obligation to repurchase the underlying securities, as a result of its bankruptcy or otherwise, the Fund will seek to dispose of such securities, which could involve costs or delays. If the seller becomes insolvent and subject to liquidation or reorganization under applicable bankruptcy or other laws, the Fund’s ability to dispose of the underlying securities may be restricted. If the seller fails to repurchase the securities, the Fund may suffer a loss to the extent proceeds from the sale of the underlying securities are less than the repurchase prices.

Risks of Futures and Options. The Fund may enter into U.S. futures contracts, options and options on futures contracts to simulate full investment in the Underlying Index, or to manage cash flows. The Fund will not use futures or options for speculative purposes. The Fund intends to use futures and options contracts to limit its risk exposure to levels comparable to direct investment in securities.

An option gives a holder the right to buy or sell a specific security or instrument, including a futures contract, at a specified price within a specified period of time. An option on a futures contract gives the purchaser the right, in return for the premium paid, to assume a position in the underlying futures contract at a specified price at any time prior to the expiration date of the option. Exchanges can limit the number of futures or options positions that can be held or controlled by the Fund or the investment adviser, thus limiting the ability to implement the Fund’s strategies. Options are subject to correlation risk, and the successful use of options depends on the investment adviser’s ability to predict correctly future price fluctuations and the degree of correlation between the markets for options and the underlying instruments. Options are also particularly subject to leverage risk and can be subject to liquidity risk. Because option premiums paid or received by the Fund are small in relation to the market value of the investments underlying the options, the Fund is exposed to the risk that buying and selling options can be more speculative than investing directly in securities.

Futures contracts are typically exchange-traded contracts that provide for the future delivery of a specified amount of a specific instrument at a specified future price and date, or for cash settlement (payment of the gain or loss on the contract). Futures contracts are subject to the risk of imperfect correlation between movements in the price of the instruments and the price of the underlying securities. Because futures contracts project price levels in the future, market circumstances may cause a discrepancy between the price of an index future and the movement in the Underlying Index. In the event of adverse price movements, the Fund would remain required to make daily cash payments to maintain its required margin. There is no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist for any particular futures contract at any particular time. Futures markets are highly volatile and the use of futures may increase the volatility of the Fund’s NAV. Futures are also subject to leverage risk and liquidity risk. The risk of loss in trading futures contracts potentially is unlimited.

Securities Lending Risk. Securities lending involves a risk of loss because the borrower may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. If the Fund lends its securities and is unable to recover the securities loaned, it may sell the collateral and purchase a replacement security in the market. Lending securities entails a risk of loss to the Fund if and to the extent that the market value of the loaned securities increases and the collateral is not increased accordingly. Any cash received as collateral for loaned securities will be invested in an affiliated money market fund. This

 

 

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investment is subject to market appreciation or depreciation and the Fund will bear any loss on the investment of its cash collateral.

Structured Notes Risk. Investments in structured notes involve risks including interest rate risk, credit risk and market risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a note resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of notes tend to go down. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of a note will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt. Depending on the factors used, changes in interest rates and movement of such factors may cause significant price fluctuations. Structured notes may be less liquid than other types of securities and more volatile than the reference factor underlying the note. This means that the Fund may lose money if the issuer of the note defaults, as the Fund may not be able to readily close out its investment in such notes without incurring losses.

Trading Issues Risk. Investors buying or selling Shares in the secondary market may pay brokerage commissions or other charges, which may be a significant proportional cost for investors seeking to buy or sell relatively small amounts of Shares. Moreover, trading in Shares on The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (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. Foreign exchanges may be open on days when Shares are not priced, and therefore, if the Fund holds securities that are primarily listed on such exchanges, the value of such securities in the Fund’s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell Shares.

 

 

Tax Structure of ETFs

Unlike interests in conventional mutual funds, which typically are bought and sold only at closing NAVs, Shares are traded throughout the day in the secondary market on a national securities exchange, and are created and redeemed principally in-kind in Creation Units at each day’s next calculated NAV. These in-kind arrangements are designed to protect shareholders from the adverse effects on the Fund’s portfolio that could arise from frequent cash creation and redemption transactions. In a conventional mutual fund, redemptions can have an adverse tax impact on taxable shareholders because the mutual fund may need to sell portfolio securities to obtain cash to meet such redemptions. These sales may generate taxable gains that must be distributed to the shareholders of the mutual fund, whereas the Shares’ in-kind redemption mechanism generally will not lead to such taxable events for the Fund or its shareholders.

The Fund may recognize gains as a result of rebalancing its securities holdings to reflect changes in the securities included in the Underlying Index. The Fund also may be required to distribute any such gains to its shareholders to avoid adverse federal income tax consequences. For information concerning the tax consequences of distributions, see the section entitled “Dividends, Other Distributions and Taxes” in this prospectus.

 

 

Portfolio Holdings

A description of the Trust’s policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Fund’s portfolio holdings is available in the Fund’s SAI, which is available at www.invesco.com/ETFs.

 

Management of the Fund

Invesco Capital Management LLC is a registered investment adviser with its offices at 3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700, Downers Grove, IL 60515. Invesco Capital Management LLC serves as the investment adviser to the Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust and Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, a family of ETFs, with combined assets under management of $[  ] as of [  ].

As the Fund’s investment adviser, the Adviser has overall responsibility for selecting and continuously monitoring the Fund’s investments, managing the Fund’s business affairs, and providing certain clerical, bookkeeping and other administrative services for the Trust.

Portfolio Managers

The Adviser uses a team of portfolio managers, investment strategists and other investment specialists in managing the Fund. This team approach brings together many disciplines and leverages the Adviser’s extensive resources. In this regard, Peter Hubbard, Michael Jeanette, Pratik Doshi, CFA and Tony Seisser (the “Portfolio Managers”) are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund.

Each Portfolio Manager is responsible for various functions related to portfolio management, including investing cash flows, coordinating with other team members to focus on certain asset classes, implementing investment strategies and researching and reviewing investment strategies.

Each Portfolio Manager has limitations on their authority for risk management and compliance purposes that the Adviser believes to be appropriate.

 

    Peter Hubbard, Head of Equities and Director of Portfolio Management of the Adviser and Vice President of the Trust, has been responsible for the management of the Fund since June 2007. He has been responsible for the management of certain funds in the Invesco family of ETFs since June 2007 and has been associated with the Adviser since 2005.
    Michael Jeanette, Head of North America Equities and Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser, has been responsible for the management of the Fund since August 2008. He has been responsible for the management of certain funds in the Invesco family of ETFs since August 2008 and has been associated with the Adviser since 2008.
    Pratik Doshi, CFA, Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser, has been responsible for the management of the Fund since August 2020. He has been responsible for the management of certain funds in the Invesco family of ETFs since October 2019 and has been associated with the Adviser since 2018.
    Tony Seisser, Senior Portfolio Manager of the Adviser, has been responsible for the management of the Fund since February 2015. He has been responsible for the management of certain funds in the Invesco family of ETFs since August 2014 and has been associated with the Adviser since 2013.

The Fund’s SAI provides additional information about the Portfolio Managers’ compensation structure, other accounts that the Portfolio Managers manage and the Portfolio Managers’ ownership of Shares.

Advisory Fees

Pursuant to an investment advisory agreement between the Adviser and the Trust (the “Investment Advisory Agreement”), the Fund pays the Adviser for its services an annual fee equal to 0.29% of its average daily net assets (the “Advisory Fee”).

The Fund is responsible for all of its own expenses, including, but not limited to, the investment advisory fees, costs of transfer agency, custody, fund administration, legal, audit and other services, interest, taxes, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses, if any, brokerage commissions and other expenses connected with executions of portfolio transactions, licensing fees

 

 

9


related to the Underlying Index, any distribution fees or expenses, litigation expenses, fees payable to the Trust’s Board members and officers who are not “interested persons” of the Trust or the Adviser, expenses incurred in connection with the Board members’ services, including travel expenses and legal fees of counsel for those members of the Board who are not “interested persons” of the Trust or the Adviser and extraordinary expenses, including proxy expenses (except for such proxies related to: (i) changes to the Investment Advisory Agreement, (ii) the election of any Board member who is an “interested person” of the Trust, or (iii) any other matters that directly benefit the Adviser).

The Trust and the Adviser have entered into an Amended and Restated Excess Expense Agreement (the “Expense Agreement”) on behalf of the Fund pursuant to which 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 interest expenses, offering costs (as defined below), brokerage commissions and other trading expenses, taxes, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses, if applicable, and extraordinary expenses) from exceeding 0.39% of its average daily net assets per year (the “Expense Cap”), at least until August 31, 2026.

The offering costs excluded from the Expense Cap for the Fund are: (a) initial legal fees pertaining to the Shares offered for sale; (b) initial SEC and state registration fees; and (c) initial fees paid to be listed on an exchange.

The Expense Agreement provides that the fees waived and/or expenses borne by the Adviser are subject to recapture by the Adviser for up to three years from the date the fees were waived or the expenses were incurred, but no recapture payment will be made by the Fund if it would result in the Fund exceeding (i) the Expense Cap or (ii) the expense cap in effect at the time the fees and/or expenses subject to recapture were waived and/or borne by the Adviser.

The Fund may invest in money market funds that are managed by affiliates of the Adviser and other funds (including ETFs) managed by the Adviser or affiliates of the Adviser (collectively, “Underlying Affiliated Investments”). The indirect portion of the advisory fees that the Fund incurs through such Underlying Affiliated Investments is in addition to the Advisory Fee payable to the Adviser by the Fund. Therefore, the Adviser has agreed to waive the Advisory Fee payable by the Fund in an amount equal to the lesser of: (i) 100% of the net advisory fees earned by the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser that are attributable to the Fund’s Underlying Affiliated Investments or (ii) the Advisory Fee available to be waived. This waiver does not apply to the Fund’s investment of cash collateral received for securities lending. This waiver is in place through at least August 31, 2026, and there is no guarantee that the Adviser will extend it past that date. This waiver is not subject to recapture.

A discussion regarding the Board’s basis for approving the Investment Advisory Agreement with respect to the Fund is available on the Fund’s website and in the Trust’s report filed on Form N-CSR for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024.

 

 

How to Buy and Sell Shares

The Fund issues or redeems its Shares at NAV per Share only in Creation Units or Creation Unit Aggregations.

Most investors buy and sell Shares in secondary market transactions through brokers. Shares are listed for trading on the secondary market on the Exchange. Shares can be bought and sold throughout the trading day like other publicly traded shares. There is no minimum investment. Although Shares generally are purchased and sold in “round lots” of 100 Shares, brokerage firms typically permit investors to purchase or sell Shares in smaller “odd lots,” at no per share price differential. 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 offered price in the secondary market on each leg of a round trip (purchase and sale) transaction.

The Shares trade on the Exchange under the symbol “PRFZ.”

Share prices are reported in dollars and cents per Share.

APs may acquire Shares directly from the Fund, and APs may tender their Shares for redemption directly to the Fund, at NAV per Share, only in Creation Units or Creation Unit Aggregations, and in accordance with the procedures described in the SAI.

Under normal circumstances, the Fund will pay out redemption proceeds to a redeeming AP within one day after the AP’s redemption request is received, in accordance with the process set forth in the Fund’s SAI and/or as set forth in the agreement between the AP and the Fund’s distributor, or as otherwise agreed to by the Fund and the AP. However, the Fund reserves the right, including under stressed market conditions, to take up to seven days after the receipt of a redemption request to pay an AP, all as permitted by the 1940 Act. If the Fund has foreign investments in a country where local market holiday(s) prevent the Fund from delivering such foreign investments to an AP in response to a redemption request, the Fund may take up to 15 days after the receipt of the redemption request to deliver such investments to the AP.

The Fund anticipates meeting redemption requests either by paying redemption proceeds to an AP primarily through in-kind redemptions or in cash. Cash used for redemptions will be raised from the sale of portfolio assets or may come from existing holdings of cash or cash equivalents. If the Fund holds Rule 144A securities, an AP that is not a “qualified institutional buyer,” as such term is defined under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), will not be able to receive those Rule 144A securities.

The Fund may liquidate and terminate at any time without shareholder approval.

Book Entry

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

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. Participants in DTC 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 stocks that you hold in book entry or “street name” form.

Share Trading Prices

The trading prices of Shares on the Exchange may differ from the Fund’s daily NAV. Market forces of supply and demand, economic conditions and other factors may affect the trading prices of Shares.

 

 

Frequent Purchases and Redemptions of Shares

Shares may be purchased and redeemed directly from the Fund only in Creation Units by APs. The vast majority of trading in Shares occurs on the secondary market and does not involve the Fund directly. In-kind purchases and redemptions of Creation Units by APs and cash trades on the secondary market are unlikely to cause many of the harmful effects of frequent purchases or redemptions of the Shares. Cash purchases and/or redemptions of Creation Units, however, can result in increased tracking error, disruption of portfolio management, dilution to the Fund and increased transaction costs, which could negatively impact the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective, and may lead to the realization of capital

 

 

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gains. These consequences may increase as the frequency of cash purchases and redemptions of Creation Units by APs increases. However, direct trading by APs is critical to ensuring that Shares trade at or close to NAV.

To minimize these potential consequences of frequent purchases and redemptions of Shares, the Fund imposes transaction fees on purchases and redemptions of Creation Units to cover the custodial and other costs the Fund incurs in effecting trades. In addition, the Adviser monitors trades by APs for patterns of abusive trading and the Fund reserves the right not to accept orders from APs that the Adviser has determined may be disruptive to the management of the Fund, or otherwise are not in the best interests of the Fund. For these reasons, the Board has not adopted policies and procedures with respect to frequent purchases and redemptions of Shares.

 

 

Dividends, Other Distributions and Taxes

Dividends and Other Distributions

Generally, dividends from net investment income, if any, are declared and paid quarterly by the Fund. The Fund also intends to distribute its net realized capital gains, if any, to shareholders annually. Dividends and other distributions may be declared and paid more frequently to comply with the distribution requirements of Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and to avoid a federal excise tax imposed on regulated investment companies.

Distributions in cash may be reinvested automatically in additional whole Shares only if the broker through whom you purchased Shares makes such option available.

Taxes

The Fund intends to qualify each year as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) and, as such, is not subject to entity-level tax on the income and gain it distributes. If you are a taxable investor, dividends and distributions you receive generally are taxable to you whether you reinvest distributions in additional Shares or take them in cash. Every year, you will be sent information showing the amount of dividends and distributions you received during the prior calendar year. In addition, investors in taxable accounts should be aware of the basic tax points listed below:

Fund Tax Basics

 

  The Fund earns income generally in the form of dividends or interest on its investments. This income, less expenses incurred in the operation of the Fund, constitutes the Fund’s net investment income from which dividends may be paid to shareholders. If you are a taxable investor, distributions of net investment income generally are taxable to you as ordinary income.

 

  Distributions of net short-term capital gains are taxable to you as ordinary income. A fund with a high portfolio turnover rate (a measure of how frequently assets within the fund are bought and sold) is more likely to generate short-term capital gains than a fund with a low portfolio turnover rate.

 

  Distributions of net long-term capital gains are taxable to you as long-term capital gains no matter how long you have owned your Shares.

 

  A portion of income dividends paid by the Fund may be reported as qualified dividend income eligible for taxation by individual shareholders at long-term capital gain rates, provided certain holding period requirements are met. These reduced rates generally are available for dividends derived from the Fund’s investment in stocks of domestic corporations and qualified foreign corporations. If the Fund invests primarily in debt securities, either none or only a nominal portion of the dividends paid by the Fund will be eligible for taxation at these reduced rates.
  The use of derivatives by the Fund may cause the Fund to realize higher amounts of ordinary income or short-term capital gain, distributions from which are taxable to individual shareholders at ordinary income tax rates rather than at the more favorable tax rates for long-term capital gain.

 

  Distributions declared to shareholders with a record date in October, November or December—if paid to you by the end of January—are taxable for federal income tax purposes as if received in December.

 

  Any long-term or short-term capital gains realized on the sale of your Shares will be subject to federal income tax.

 

  If the Fund is terminated, a shareholder will receive a liquidating distribution(s) which should be treated as payment in exchange for the Shares held by the shareholder. As a result, each shareholder should recognize gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the shareholder’s adjusted tax basis in his or her shares and the liquidating distribution(s) he or she receives, except to the extent the Shares are held in a tax-advantaged arrangement. A liquidating distribution may be subject to backup withholding as described below.

 

  A shareholder’s cost basis information will be provided on the sale of any of the shareholder’s Shares, subject to certain exceptions for exempt recipients. Please contact the broker (or other nominee) that holds your Shares with respect to reporting of your cost basis and available elections for your account.

 

  At the time you purchase your Shares, the Fund’s NAV may reflect undistributed income or undistributed capital gains. A subsequent distribution to you of such amounts, although constituting a return of your investment, would be taxable. Buying Shares just before the Fund declares an income dividend or capital gains distribution is sometimes known as “buying a dividend.” In addition, the Fund’s NAV may, at any time, reflect net unrealized appreciation, which may result in future taxable distributions to you.

 

  By law, if you do not provide the Fund with your proper taxpayer identification number and certain required certifications, you may be subject to backup withholding on any distributions of income, capital gains, or proceeds from the sale of your Shares. The Fund also must withhold if the IRS instructs it to do so. When withholding is required, the amount will be 24% of any distributions or proceeds paid.

 

  An additional 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on certain net investment income (including ordinary dividends and capital gain distributions received from the Fund and net gains from taxable dispositions of Shares) of U.S. individuals, estates and trusts to the extent that such person’s “modified adjusted gross income” (in the case of an individual) or “adjusted gross income” (in the case of an estate or trust) exceeds a threshold amount. This Medicare tax, if applicable, is reported by you on, and paid with, your federal income tax return.

 

  You will not be required to include the portion of dividends paid by the Fund derived from interest on U.S. government obligations in your gross income for purposes of personal and, in some cases, corporate income taxes in many state and local tax jurisdictions. The percentage of dividends that constitutes dividends derived from interest on federal obligations will be determined annually. This percentage may differ from the actual percentage of interest received by the Fund on federal obligations for the particular days on which you hold shares.

 

  Fund distributions and gains from the sale of Shares generally are subject to state and local income taxes.

 

  If the Fund qualifies to pass through the tax benefits from foreign taxes it pays on its investments, and elects to do so, then any foreign taxes it pays on these investments may be passed through to you. You will then be required to include your pro rata share of these taxes in gross income, even though not actually received by you, and will be entitled either to
 

 

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deduct your share of these taxes in computing your taxable income, or to claim a foreign tax credit for these taxes against your U.S. federal income tax.

 

  Foreign investors should be aware that U.S. withholding, special certification requirements to avoid U.S. backup withholding and claim any treaty benefits, and estate taxes may apply to an investment in the Fund.

 

  Under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”), a 30% withholding tax is imposed on income dividends made by the Fund to certain foreign entities, referred to as foreign financial institutions or non-financial foreign entities, that fail to comply (or be deemed compliant) with extensive reporting and withholding requirements designed to inform the U.S. Department of the Treasury of U.S.-owned foreign investment accounts. After December 31, 2018, FATCA withholding also would have applied to certain capital gain distributions, return of capital distributions and the proceeds arising from the sale of Shares; however, based on proposed regulations issued by the IRS, which can be relied upon currently, such withholding is no longer required unless final regulations provide otherwise (which is not expected). The Fund may disclose the information that it receives from its shareholders to the IRS, non-U.S. taxing authorities or other parties as necessary to comply with FATCA or similar laws. Withholding also may be required if a foreign entity that is a shareholder of the Fund fails to provide the Fund with appropriate certifications or other documentation concerning its status under FATCA.

 

  To the extent the Fund invests in an underlying fund that is taxed as a RIC, please see the section titled “Taxes – Taxation of the Funds” in the Fund’s SAI for more information regarding the tax consequences of such investment.

 

  The above discussion concerning the taxability of Fund dividends and distributions and of sales of Shares is inapplicable to investors that generally are exempt from federal income tax, such as retirement plans that are qualified under Section 401 and 403 of the Code and individual retirement accounts (“IRAs”) and Roth IRAs.

Taxes on Purchase and Redemption of Creation Units

To the extent that the Fund permits in-kind transactions, an AP that exchanges equity securities for a Creation Unit generally will recognize a capital gain or loss equal to the difference between the market value of the Creation Units at the time of exchange (plus any cash received by the AP as part of the issue) and the sum of the AP’s aggregate basis in the securities surrendered plus any cash component paid. Similarly, an AP that redeems a Creation Unit in exchange for securities generally will recognize a capital gain or loss equal to the difference between the AP’s basis in the Creation Units (plus any cash paid by the AP as part of the redemption) and the aggregate market value of the securities received (plus any cash received by the AP as part of the redemption). The IRS, however, may assert that a loss realized upon an exchange of securities for a Creation Unit, or of a Creation Unit for securities, cannot be deducted currently under the rules governing “wash sales” or on the ground that there has been no significant change in the AP’s economic position. An AP exchanging securities should consult its own tax advisor(s) with respect to whether wash sale rules apply and when a loss otherwise might not be deductible.

Any capital gain or loss realized on a redemption of a Creation Unit generally is treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the Shares have been held for more than one year and as short-term capital gain or loss if the Shares have been held for one year or less, assuming that such Creation Units are held as a capital asset. If you purchase or redeem one or more Creation Units, you will be sent a confirmation statement showing how many Shares you purchased or sold and at what price.

The foregoing discussion summarizes some of the more important possible consequences under current federal, state and local tax law of an investment in the Fund. It is not a substitute for personal tax advice. You also may be subject to state, local

and/or foreign tax on the Fund’s distributions and sales and/or redemptions of Shares. Consult your personal tax advisor(s) about the potential tax consequences of an investment in the Shares under all applicable tax laws.

 

 

Distributor

Invesco Distributors, Inc. (the “Distributor”) serves as the distributor of Creation Units for the Fund on an agency basis. The Distributor does not maintain a secondary market in Shares. The Distributor is an affiliate of the Adviser.

 

 

Net Asset Value

The NAV for the Fund will be calculated and disseminated daily on each day that the NYSE is open for trading. The Bank of New York Mellon (“BNYM”) normally calculates the Fund’s NAV as of the regularly scheduled close of business of the NYSE (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern time). The Fund’s NAV is based on prices at the time of closing, and U.S. fixed-income assets may be valued as of the announced closing time for trading in fixed-income instruments in a particular market or exchange. NAV is calculated by deducting all of the Fund’s liabilities from the total value of its assets and then dividing the result by the number of Shares outstanding, rounding to the nearest cent. Generally, the portfolio securities are recorded in the NAV no later than the trade date plus one day. In determining NAV, expenses are accrued and applied daily and securities and other assets for which market quotations are readily available and reliable are valued at market value. The Trust’s Board has designated the Adviser to fair value the Fund’s portfolio securities and other assets for which market quotations are not readily available and reliable in accordance with Board-approved policies and related Adviser procedures (the “Valuation Procedures”), subject to the Board’s oversight.

Securities listed or traded on an exchange (except convertible securities) generally are valued at the last trade price or official closing price that day as of the close of the exchange where the security primarily trades. Securities of investment companies that are not exchange-traded (e.g., open-end mutual funds) are valued using such company’s end-of-business day NAV per share, whereas securities of investment companies that are exchange-traded are valued at the last trade price or official closing price on the exchange on which they primarily trade. Deposits, other obligations of U.S. and non-U.S. banks and financial institutions, and cash equivalents are valued at their daily account value. Fixed-income securities (including convertible securities) normally are valued on the basis of prices provided by independent pricing services. Pricing services generally value fixed-income securities assuming orderly transactions of institutional round lot size, but the Fund may hold or transact in the same securities in smaller, odd lot sizes. Odd lots often trade at lower prices than institutional round lots, and their value may be adjusted accordingly. Futures contracts are valued at the daily settlement price set by an exchange on which they are principally traded. U.S. exchange-traded options are valued at the mean between the last bid and asked prices from the exchange on which they principally trade. Non-U.S. exchange-traded options are valued at the final settlement price set by the exchange on which they trade. Options not listed on an exchange and swaps generally are valued using pricing provided from independent pricing services. Unlisted securities will be valued using prices provided by independent pricing services or by another method that the Adviser, in its judgment, believes better reflects the security’s fair value in accordance with the Valuation Procedures. Foreign exchange-traded equity securities are valued at their market value if market quotations are available and reliable. The Adviser may use various pricing services to obtain market quotations as well as fair value prices. The Adviser may discontinue the use of any pricing service at any time.

 

 

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At times, a listed security’s market price may not be readily available. Moreover, even when market quotations are available for a security, they may be stale or unreliable. A security’s last market quotation may become stale because, among other reasons, (i) the security is not traded frequently, (ii) the security ceased trading before its exchange closed; (iii) market or issuer-specific events occurred after the security ceased trading; or (iv) the passage of time between when the security’s trading market closes and when the Fund calculates its NAV caused the quotation to become stale. A security’s last market quotation may become unreliable because of (i) certain issuer- or security-specific events, including a merger or insolvency, (ii) events which affect a geographical area or an industry segment, such as political events or natural disasters, or (iii) market events, such as a significant movement in the U.S. market. When a security’s market price is not readily available, or the Adviser determines, in its judgment, that such price is stale or unreliable, the Adviser will value the security at fair value in good faith using the Valuation Procedures.

Fair value pricing involves subjective judgments, and fair value pricing methods may change from time to time. Consequently, while such determinations may be made in good faith, it may nevertheless be more difficult for the Adviser to accurately assign a daily value, and Fund securities that are fair valued may be subject to greater fluctuation in their value from one day to the next than would be the case if market quotations were used. Because of the inherent uncertainties of valuation, and the degree of subjectivity in such decisions, it is possible that a fair value determination for a security is materially different than the value that could be realized upon the sale of the security. There is no assurance that the Fund could sell a portfolio security for the value established for it at any time, and it is possible that the Fund would incur a loss if a security is sold at a discount to its established value. Because the Fund seeks to track the Underlying Index, the use of fair value pricing could result in a difference between the prices used to calculate the Fund’s NAV and the prices used by the Underlying Index, which may increase the Fund’s tracking error.

 

 

Fund Service Providers

BNYM, 240 Greenwich Street, New York, New York 10286, is the administrator, custodian, transfer agent and fund accounting and dividend disbursing agent for the Fund.

Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young, LLP, 191 North Wacker Drive, Suite 1601, Chicago, Illinois 60606, and 2000 K Street, NW, Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20006, serves as legal counsel to the Trust.

[  ], One North Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60606, serves as the Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm. [  ] is responsible for auditing the annual financial statements of the Fund and assists in the preparation and/or review of the Fund’s federal and state income tax returns.

 

 

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Financial Highlights

 

The financial highlights table below is intended to help you understand the Fund’s financial performance for the past five fiscal years and the semi-annual period ended October 31, 2024. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Share. The total returns in the table represent the rate that an investor would have earned (or lost) on an investment in the Fund (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and other

distributions). This information has been derived from the Fund’s financial statements, which have been audited by [  ], whose report, along with the Fund’s financial statements, is available on the Fund’s website and is included in the Fund’s Form N-CSR filed with the SEC, which is available upon request. The information for the semi-annual period ended October 31, 2024 has not been audited. The unaudited interim financial statements reflect all adjustments which are, in the opinion of management, necessary for a fair statement of the results for the interim period presented. In addition, all such adjustments are of a normal recurring nature.

 

 

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Index Provider

No entity that creates, compiles, sponsors or maintains the Underlying Index is or will be an affiliated person, as defined in Section 2(a)(3) of the 1940 Act, or an affiliated person of an affiliated person, of the Trust, the Adviser, the Distributor or a promoter of the Fund.

Neither the Adviser nor any affiliate of the Adviser has any rights to influence the selection of the securities in the Underlying Index.

The Underlying Index is calculated and maintained by the Index Provider or its affiliate, agent or partner. The Index Provider is not affiliated with the Trust, the Adviser or the Distributor. The Adviser has entered into a license agreement with the Index Provider. The Fund is entitled to use the Underlying Index pursuant to a sub-licensing agreement with the Adviser.

 

 

Disclaimers

The Underlying Index is a service mark of RAFI Indices, LLC or its affiliates (collectively, “RAFI”) and has been licensed for use by the Adviser. The intellectual and other property rights to the Underlying Index are owned by or licensed to RAFI. The Fund is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by RAFI, its agents and service providers (including any calculation agent for the Underlying Index and any data providers, collectively, “RAFI and its agents”).

The content contained in the Underlying Index is presented for information purposes only and does not contain or constitute financial or investment advice in any form. The inclusion of a security or other financial instrument in the Underlying Index should not be taken as a recommendation to buy, sell or hold such security or financial instrument. RAFI and its agents make no representations or warranties regarding the advisability of investing in the Fund or the ability of the Underlying Index to provide any particular market performance. RAFI is not acting as an investment adviser to you and has no fiduciary duties to you in connection with the Underlying Index or the Fund. RAFI and its agents are not responsible for and have not participated in the development, marketing, issuance or management of the Fund and will not have any obligation or liability to the owners of the Fund.

RAFI and its agents obtain information from sources they consider reliable but do not guarantee the accuracy, timeliness and/or completeness of the Underlying Index or any data included therein (the “RAFI Data”). The RAFI Data is provided “as is” and on an “as available” basis without representation or warranty of any kind, express or implied, that the RAFI Data will be uninterrupted or error-free. RAFI and its agents disclaim all warranties and representations, including any warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose or use, title or noninfringement, with respect to the RAFI Data. In no event will RAFI and its agents be liable for any damages, including direct, indirect, special, punitive and consequential damages (including lost profits), even if notified of the possibility of such damages. Any decision to purchase or invest in the Fund is at your own risk.

The Adviser does not guarantee the accuracy and/or the completeness of the Underlying Index or any data included therein, and the Adviser shall have no liability for any errors, omissions, restatements, re-calculations or interruptions therein. The Adviser makes no warranty, express or implied, as to results to be obtained by the Fund, owners of the Shares or any other person or entity from the use of the Underlying Index or any data included therein. The Adviser makes no express or implied warranties and expressly disclaims all warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use with respect to the Underlying Index or any data included therein. Without limiting any of the foregoing, in no event shall the Adviser have any liability for any special, punitive, direct, indirect or consequential damages (including lost profits) arising out of matters relating to the use of the Underlying Index, even if notified of the possibility of such damages.

 

 

Premium/Discount Information

Information showing the number of days the market price of the Shares was greater (at a premium) and less (at a discount) than the Fund’s NAV for the most recently completed calendar year and the most recently completed calendar quarters since that year (or the life of the Fund, if shorter) is available on the Fund’s website at www.invesco.com/ETFs.

 

 

Other Information

Continuous Offering

The method by which Creation Unit Aggregations of Shares are created and traded may raise certain issues under applicable securities laws. Because new Creation Unit Aggregations of Shares are issued and sold by the Fund on an ongoing basis, a “distribution,” as such term is used in the Securities

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

Broker-dealer firms also should note that dealers who are not “underwriters” but are effecting transactions in Shares, whether or not participating in the distribution of Shares, generally are required to deliver a prospectus. This is because the prospectus delivery exemption in Section 4(a)(3)(C) of the Securities Act is not available in respect of 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 engaging in ordinary secondary market transactions), and thus dealing with the Shares that are part of an overallotment 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. For delivery of prospectuses to exchange members, the prospectus delivery mechanism of Rule 153 under the Securities Act only is available with respect to transactions on a national exchange.

Delivery of Shareholder Documents–Householding

Householding is an option available to certain investors of the Fund. 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. Householding for the Fund is available through certain broker-dealers. If you are interested in enrolling in householding and receiving a single copy of the prospectus and other shareholder documents, please contact your broker-dealer. If you currently are enrolled in householding and wish to change your householding status, please contact your broker-dealer.

For More Information

For more detailed information on the Trust, the Fund and the Shares, you may request a copy of the Fund’s SAI. The SAI provides detailed information about the Fund and is incorporated by reference into this prospectus. This means that the SAI legally is a part of this prospectus. Additional information about the Fund’s investments also is available in the Fund’s Annual and Semi-Annual Reports to Shareholders and on Form N-CSR filed with the SEC. In the Fund’s current Annual Report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance during the last fiscal year. In Form N-CSR you will find the Fund’s annual and semi-annual financial statements. If you have questions about the Fund or Shares or you wish to obtain the SAI, Annual Report and/or Semi-Annual Report, or the Fund’s financial statements, free of charge, or to make shareholder inquiries, please:

 

Call:    Invesco Distributors, Inc. at 1-800-983-0903
   Monday through Friday
   8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Central Time
 

 

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Write:   

Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust

c/o Invesco Distributors, Inc.

11 Greenway Plaza

Houston, Texas 77046-1173

Visit:    www.invesco.com/ETFs

Reports and other information about the Fund are available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov, and copies of this information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following e-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov.

No person is authorized to give any information or to make any representations about the Fund and its Shares not contained in this prospectus, and you should not rely on any other information. Read and keep this prospectus for future reference.

Dealers effecting transactions in the Shares, whether or not participating in this distribution, generally are required to deliver a prospectus. This is in addition to any obligation of dealers to deliver a prospectus when acting as underwriters.

The Trust’s registration number under the 1940 Act is 811-21265.

 

 

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Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust
3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700         www.invesco.com/ETFs
Downers Grove, IL 60515    P-PRFZ-PRO-1   

  800.983.0903

   LOGO

    @InvescoUS


Subject to Completion - dated January 21, 2025

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

Investment Company Act File No. 811-21265

 

 

Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust

 

 

STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Dated [  ], 2025

This Statement of Additional Information (the “SAI”) for Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust (the “Trust”), relating to the series of the Trust listed below (each, a “Fund” and, collectively, the “Funds”), is not a prospectus. The SAI should be read in conjunction with the prospectus (the “Prospectus”) for each Fund dated [  ], 2025 as the Prospectus may be revised from time to time.

 

Fund

  

Principal U.S. Listing Exchange

  

Ticker

 

Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF (formerly, Invesco FTSE RAFI US 1000 ETF)

   NYSE Arca, Inc.      PRF  

Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF (formerly, Invesco FTSE RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF)

   The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC           PRFZ  

Capitalized terms used herein that are not defined have the same meaning as in a Fund’s Prospectus, unless otherwise noted. The audited financial statements for each Fund and the related reports of [  ], the Funds’ independent registered public accounting firm, are incorporated into this SAI by reference to the Trust’s Form N-CSR for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, which is on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). The unaudited financial statements for the Fund contained in the Trust’s Form N-CSRS for the semi-annual period ended October 31, 2024, which is on file with the SEC, are incorporated herein by reference in the section “Financial Statements.” No other portions of the Trust’s Forms N-CSR are incorporated by reference into this SAI. A copy of a Fund’s Prospectus, shareholder report, and/or financial statements may be obtained without charge by writing to the Trust’s Distributor, Invesco Distributors, Inc. (the “Distributor”), 11 Greenway Plaza, Houston, Texas 77046-1173, by calling toll free 1-800-983-0903, or by visiting the Funds’ website at www.invesco.com/ETFs.


STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

     Page  

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE TRUST AND THE FUNDS

     1  

EXCHANGE LISTING AND TRADING

     2  

INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS

     2  

INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RISKS

     5  

Investment Strategies

     5  

Investment Risks

     6  

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

     21  

DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS

     21  

MANAGEMENT

     22  

BROKERAGE TRANSACTIONS AND COMMISSIONS ON AFFILIATED TRANSACTIONS

     48  

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONCERNING THE TRUST

     50  

CREATION AND REDEMPTION OF CREATION UNIT AGGREGATIONS

     53  

General

     53  

Role of the Authorized Participant

     53  

Creations

     53  

Creation Orders

     54  

Issuance of a Creation Unit

     56  

Creation and Redemption Transaction Fees

     57  

Redemptions

     58  

Redemption Requests

     59  

Issuance of Fund Securities

     60  

Regular Holidays

     61  

TAXES

     62  

Taxation of the Funds

     62  

DETERMINATION OF NAV

     75  

DIVIDENDS AND OTHER DISTRIBUTIONS

     77  

MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION

     77  

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

     78  

APPENDIX A

     A-1  

 

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE TRUST AND THE FUNDS

The Trust was organized as a Massachusetts business trust on June 9, 2000 and is authorized to have multiple series or portfolios. The Trust is an open-end management investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”). The Trust currently consists of [  ] Funds, and this SAI contains information for two of the Funds. Both Funds are classified as diversified, but may become “non-diversified” solely as a result of a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of its Underlying Index (as defined below), and shareholder approval will not be sought if these Funds cross from diversified to non-diversified under such circumstances. The shares of each of the Funds are referred to in this SAI as “Shares.”

The investment objective of each Fund is to seek to track the investment results (before fees and expenses) of its specific underlying index (each, an “Underlying Index”). Invesco Capital Management LLC (the “Adviser”), an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of Invesco Ltd., manages the Funds.

Each Fund issues and redeems Shares at net asset value (“NAV”) only in aggregations of a specified number of Shares set forth in the Fund’s Prospectus (each, a “Creation Unit” or a “Creation Unit Aggregation”). Each Fund generally issues and redeems Creation Units principally in exchange for a basket of securities included in its Underlying Index, as applicable (the “Deposit Securities”), together with the deposit of a specified cash payment (the “Cash Component”), plus certain transaction fees. However, each Fund also reserves the right to permit or require Creation Units to be issued in exchange for cash.

Shares of Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF are listed on NYSE Arca, Inc. (“NYSE Arca”) (an “NYSE Arca-listed Fund.”) Shares of Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF are listed on The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC (“NASDAQ”) (a “NASDAQ-listed Fund.”) NYSE Arca and NASDAQ are each referred to herein as an “Exchange” and collectively as the “Exchanges.”

 

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Shares trade on their respective Exchange at market prices that may be below, at, or above NAV. In the event of the liquidation of a Fund, the Trust may decrease the number of Shares in a Creation Unit.

Each Fund may issue Shares in advance of receipt of Deposit Securities subject to various conditions, including a requirement to maintain on deposit with the Trust cash at least equal to 105% of the market value of the missing Deposit Securities. See the “Creation and Redemption of Creation Unit Aggregations” section. To offset the added brokerage and other transaction costs a Fund incurs with using cash to purchase the requisite Deposit Securities, during each instance of cash creations or redemptions, the Funds may impose transaction fees that generally are higher than the transaction fees associated with in-kind creations or redemptions.

The following table summarizes the Funds’ name changes during the past five years (as applicable):

 

Fund

  

Fund History

Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF

  

Prior to March 24, 2025, the Fund was known as Invesco FTSE RAFI US 1000 ETF.

Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF

  

Prior to March 24, 2025, the Fund was known as Invesco FTSE RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF.

EXCHANGE LISTING AND TRADING

Shares of each Fund are listed for trading, and trade throughout the day, on their respective Exchange.

There can be no assurance that a Fund will continue to meet the requirements of its Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of its Shares. The Exchanges may, but are not required to, remove the Shares from listing if: (i) following the initial 12-month period beginning at the commencement of trading of a Fund, there are fewer than 50 beneficial owners of Shares; (ii) the Fund is no longer eligible to operate in reliance on Rule 6c-11 under the 1940 Act; (iii) the Fund fails to meet certain continued listing standards of an Exchange; or (iv) such other event shall occur or condition shall exist that, in the opinion of the relevant Exchange, makes further dealings on such Exchange inadvisable. The applicable Exchange will remove the Shares from listing and trading upon termination of the Fund.

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

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

INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS

The Funds have adopted as fundamental policies the investment restrictions numbered (1) through (11) below. Except as otherwise noted below, each Fund, as a fundamental policy, may not:

(1) As to 75% of its total assets, invest more than 5% of the value of its total assets in the securities of any one issuer (other than obligations issued, or guaranteed, by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities), except as may be necessary to approximate the composition of its Underlying Index.

(2) As to 75% of its total assets, purchase more than 10% of all outstanding voting securities or any class of securities of any one issuer, except as may be necessary to approximate the composition of its Underlying Index.

 

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(4) Invest 25% or more of the value of its total assets in securities of issuers in any one industry or group of industries, except to the extent that the respective Underlying Index that the Fund replicates, concentrates in an industry or group of industries.

(5) With respect to the Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF, borrow money, except that the Fund may (i) borrow money from banks for temporary or emergency purposes (but not for leverage or the purchase of investments) up to 10% of its assets and (ii) make other investments or engage in other transactions permissible under the 1940 Act that may involve a borrowing, provided that the combination of (i) and (ii) shall not exceed 33 1/3% of the value of the Fund’s total assets (including the amount borrowed), less the Fund’s liabilities (other than borrowings).

(6) With respect to the Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF, borrow money, except that the Fund may (i) borrow money from banks for temporary or emergency purposes (but not for leverage or the purchase of investments) up to 10% of its total assets and (ii) make other investments or engage in other transactions permissible under the 1940 Act that may involve a borrowing, provided that the combination of (i) and (ii) shall not exceed 33 1/3% of the value of the Fund’s total assets (including the amount borrowed), less the Fund’s liabilities (other than borrowings).

(7) Act as an underwriter of another issuer’s securities, except to the extent that the Fund may be deemed to be an underwriter within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) in connection with the purchase and sale of portfolio securities.

(8) Make loans to other persons, except through (i) the purchase of debt securities permissible under the Fund’s investment policies, (ii) repurchase agreements or (iii) the lending of portfolio securities, provided that no such loan of portfolio securities may be made by the Fund if, as a result, the aggregate of such loans would exceed 33 1/3% of the value of the Fund’s total assets.

 

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(9) Purchase or sell physical commodities unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments (but this shall not prevent the Fund (i) from purchasing or selling options, futures contracts or other derivative instruments, or (ii) from investing in securities or other instruments backed by physical commodities).

(10) Purchase or sell real estate unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments (but this shall not prohibit the Fund from purchasing or selling securities or other instruments backed by real estate or of issuers engaged in real estate activities).

(11) Issue senior securities, except as permitted under the 1940 Act.

Except for restrictions (5), (6), (8)(iii) and (11), if a Fund adheres to a percentage restriction at the time of investment, a later increase in percentage resulting from a change in market value of the investment or the total assets, or the sale of a security out of the portfolio, will not constitute a violation of that restriction. With respect to restrictions (5), (6), (8)(iii) and (11), in the event that a Fund’s borrowings, repurchase agreements and loans of portfolio securities at any time exceed 33 1/3% of the value of the Fund’s total assets (including the amount borrowed and the collateral received), less the Fund’s liabilities (other than borrowings or loans) due to subsequent changes in the value of the Fund’s assets or otherwise, within three days (excluding Sundays and holidays), the Fund will take corrective action to reduce the amount of its borrowings, repurchase agreements and loans of portfolio securities to an extent that such borrowings, repurchase agreements and loans of portfolio securities will not exceed 33 1/3% of the value of the Fund’s total assets (including the amount borrowed and the collateral received) less the Fund’s liabilities (other than borrowings or loans).

The foregoing fundamental investment policies cannot be changed as to a Fund without approval by holders of a “majority of the Fund’s outstanding voting securities.” As defined in the 1940 Act, this means the vote of (i) 67% or more of the Shares present at a meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the Shares are present or represented by proxy, or (ii) more than 50% of the Shares, whichever is less.

In addition to the foregoing fundamental investment policies, each Fund also is subject to the following non-fundamental investment restrictions and policies, which may be changed by the Board of Trustees of the Trust (the “Board”) without shareholder approval. Each Fund may not:

(1) Sell securities short, unless the Fund owns or has the right to obtain securities equivalent in kind and amount to the securities sold short at no added cost, and provided that transactions in options, futures contracts, options on futures contracts or other derivative instruments are not deemed to constitute selling securities short.

(2) Purchase securities on margin, except that the Fund may obtain such short-term credits as are necessary for the clearance of transactions; and provided that margin deposits in connection with futures contracts, options on futures contracts or other derivative instruments shall not constitute purchasing securities on margin.

(3) Purchase securities of open-end or closed-end investment companies except in compliance with the 1940 Act, although the Fund may not acquire any securities of registered open-end investment companies or registered unit investment trusts in reliance on Sections 12(d)(1)(F) and 12(d)(1)(G) of the 1940 Act.

(4) Invest in direct interests in oil, gas or other mineral exploration programs or leases; however, the Fund may invest in the securities of issuers that engage in these activities.

(5) Invest in illiquid investments if, as a result of such investment, more than 15% of the Fund’s net assets would be invested in illiquid investments.

The investment objective of each Fund is a non-fundamental policy that the Board may change without approval by shareholders upon 60 days’ written notice to shareholders.

In accordance with the 1940 Act, RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF has adopted a policy to invest at least 80% of the value of its total assets in certain types of securities (e.g., securities of companies of a particular size of capitalization, such as small-, mid-, or large-cap securities) that is suggested by the Fund’s name (the “80% investment policy”). RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF considers the securities suggested by its name to be those securities that comprise its respective Underlying Index. The 80% investment policy for RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF is a non-fundamental policy, and the Fund will provide its shareholders with at least 60 days’ prior written notice of any change to its 80% investment policy. If, subsequent to an investment, RAFI US 1500 Small-

 

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Mid ETF invests less than 80% of its total assets pursuant to its 80% investment policy, RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF will make future investments in securities that satisfy the policy.

INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RISKS

Investment Strategies

Each Fund’s investment objective is to seek to track the investment results, before fees and expenses, of its respective Underlying Index. Each Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing primarily in securities that comprise its Underlying Index. Each Fund operates as an index fund and will not be actively managed. Generally, each Fund attempts to replicate, before fees and expenses, the performance of its Underlying Index by generally investing in all of the securities comprising its Underlying Index in proportion to the weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index, although any Fund may use sampling techniques for the purpose of complying with regulatory or investment restrictions or when sampling is deemed appropriate to track an Underlying Index.

 

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Investment Risks

A discussion of the risks associated with an investment in a Fund is contained in the Fund’s Prospectus in the “Summary Information—Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund”, “Additional Information About the Fund’s Strategies and Risks—Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund” and “—Additional Risks of Investing in the Fund” sections. The discussion below supplements, and should be read in conjunction with, these sections.

An investment in a Fund should be made with an understanding that the value of the Fund’s portfolio holdings may fluctuate in accordance with changes in the financial condition of the issuers of those portfolio holdings and other factors that affect the market, as applicable.

An investment in each Fund also should be made with an understanding of the risks inherent in an investment in securities, including the risk that the financial condition of issuers may become impaired or that the general condition of the securities market may deteriorate (either of which may cause a decrease in the value of the portfolio securities and thus in the value of Shares). The Funds’ portfolio holdings are susceptible to general market fluctuations and to volatile increases and decreases in value as market confidence and investor emotions and perceptions of the companies issuing the securities change. 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.

The Funds are not actively managed, and therefore, the adverse financial condition of any one issuer will not result in the elimination of its securities from the securities a Fund holds unless such securities are removed from such Fund’s Underlying Index.

Correlation and Tracking Error. Correlation measures the degree of association between the returns of a Fund and its Underlying Index. Each Fund seeks a correlation over time of 0.95 or better between the Fund’s performance and the performance of its Underlying Index; a figure of 1.00 would indicate perfect correlation. Correlation is calculated at each Fund’s fiscal year-end by comparing the Fund’s average monthly total returns, before fees and expenses, to its Underlying Index’s average monthly total returns over the prior one-year period (or since inception if the Fund has been in existence for less than one year). Another means of evaluating the degree of correlation between the returns of a Fund and its Underlying Index is to assess the “tracking error” between the two. Tracking error means the variation between each Fund’s annual return and the return of its Underlying Index, expressed in terms of standard deviation. Each Fund seeks to have a tracking error of less than 5%, measured on a monthly basis over a one-year period, by taking the standard deviation of the difference in the Fund’s returns versus the Underlying Index’s returns.

An investment in each Fund also should be made with an understanding that the Fund will not be able to replicate exactly the performance of its Underlying Index because the total return the securities generate will be reduced by transaction costs incurred in adjusting the actual balance of the securities and other Fund expenses, whereas such transaction costs and expenses are not included in the calculation of its Underlying Index. Also, to the extent that a Fund were to issue and redeem Creation Units principally for cash, it generally would incur higher costs in buying and selling securities than if it issued and redeemed Creation Units principally in-kind.

In addition, the use of a representative sampling approach (which may arise for a number of reasons, including a large number of securities within an Underlying Index, or the limited assets of a Fund) may cause a Fund not to be as well correlated with the return of its Underlying Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all of the securities in its Underlying Index in the proportions represented in such Underlying Index. It is also possible that, for short periods of time, a Fund may not fully replicate the performance of its Underlying Index due to the temporary unavailability of certain Underlying Index securities in the secondary market or due to other extraordinary circumstances. Such events are unlikely to continue for an extended period of time, because a Fund is required to correct such imbalances by means of adjusting the composition of its portfolio holdings. It also is possible that the composition of a Fund may not replicate exactly the

 

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composition of its respective Underlying Index if the Fund has to adjust its portfolio holdings to continue to qualify as a “regulated investment company” (a “RIC”) under Subchapter M of Chapter 1 of Subtitle A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”).

Certain regulated industries and certain international markets may impose limits on the amount that a Fund may invest and/or vote in an issuer in such industry or market, or that may be invested or voted on an aggregate basis in such an issuer by the Adviser, affiliates of the Adviser and other funds (including ETFs) managed by the Adviser. These limits generally may not be exceeded without a license or other regulatory or corporate consent.

If a Fund, or other funds (including ETFs) managed by the Adviser or affiliates of the Adviser on an aggregate basis, exceeds certain ownership thresholds through transactions undertaken by the Fund, the Adviser or affiliates of the Adviser, or as a result of third-party transactions or actions by a government agency or securities issuer, the Adviser’s ability to purchase or dispose of investments for the Fund may be restricted or impaired. This could cause the Fund to experience increased tracking error. Such limitations could also have adverse effects on a Fund’s performance and the liquidity of its investments. Efforts by the Adviser to address such ownership limitations could also have adverse tax consequences and may not be successful in reducing the risk of tracking error.

Equity Securities. Equity securities represent ownership interests in a company or partnership and consist of common stocks, preferred stocks, warrants to acquire common stock, securities convertible into common stock, and investments in master limited partnerships. Investments in equity securities in general are subject to market risks that may cause their prices to fluctuate over time. Fluctuations in the value of equity securities in which a Fund invests will cause the NAV of the Fund to fluctuate. The value of equity securities may fall as a result of factors directly relating to the issuer, such as decisions made by its management or lower demand for its products or services. An equity security’s value also may fall because of factors affecting not just the issuer, but also companies in the same industry or in a number of different industries, such as increases in production costs. The value of an issuer’s equity securities also may be affected by changes in financial markets that are relatively unrelated to the issuer or its industry, such as changes in interest rates or currency exchange rates. Global stock markets, including the U.S. stock market, tend to be cyclical, with periods when stock prices generally rise and periods when stock prices generally decline. Equity securities may include:

 

 

Common Stock. Common stock represents an equity or ownership interest in an issuer. In the event an issuer is liquidated or declares bankruptcy, the claims of owners of bonds and preferred stock take precedence over the claims of those who own common stock.

 

 

Preferred Stock. Preferred stock represents an equity or ownership interest in an issuer that pays dividends at a specified rate and that has precedence over common stock in the payment of dividends. Preferred stocks may pay fixed or adjustable rates of return. Preferred stocks usually do not have voting rights. In the event an issuer is liquidated or declares bankruptcy, the claims of owners of preferred stock take precedence over the claims of those who own common stock, but are subordinate to those of bond owners.

 

 

Convertible Securities. Convertible securities are bonds, debentures, notes, preferred stocks or other securities that may be converted or exchanged (by the holder or by the issuer) into shares of the underlying common stock (or cash or securities of equivalent value) at a stated exchange ratio. A convertible security may also be called for redemption or conversion by the issuer after a particular date and under certain circumstances (including a specified price) established upon issue. If a convertible security held by a Fund is called for redemption or conversion, the Fund could be required to tender it for redemption, convert it into the underlying common stock, or sell it to a third party. In the event an issuer is liquidated or declares bankruptcy, the claims of owners of bonds take precedence over the claims of those who own convertible securities.

Convertible securities generally have less potential for gain or loss than common stocks. Convertible securities generally provide yields higher than the underlying common stocks, but generally lower than

 

7


comparable nonconvertible securities. Because of this higher yield, convertible securities generally sell at a price above their “conversion value,” which is the current market value of the stock to be received upon conversion. The difference between this conversion value and the price of convertible securities will vary over time depending on changes in the value of the underlying common stocks and interest rates. When the underlying common stocks decline in value, convertible securities tend not to decline to the same extent because of the interest or dividend payments and the repayment of principal at maturity for certain types of convertible securities. However, securities that are convertible other than at the option of the holder generally do not limit the potential for loss to the same extent as securities convertible at the option of the holder. When the underlying common stocks rise in value, the value of convertible securities may also be expected to increase. At the same time, however, the difference between the market value of convertible securities and their conversion value will narrow, which means that the value of convertible securities will generally not increase to the same extent as the value of the underlying common stocks. Because convertible securities may also be interest-rate sensitive, their value may increase as interest rates fall and decrease as interest rates rise. Convertible securities are also subject to credit risk, and are often lower-quality securities.

 

 

Small and Medium Capitalization Issuers. Investing in equity securities of small and medium capitalization companies often involves greater risk than do investments in larger capitalization companies. This increased risk may be due to greater business risks customarily associated with a smaller size, limited markets and financial resources, narrow product lines and frequent lack of depth of management. The securities of smaller companies are often traded in the over-the-counter (“OTC”) market and even if listed on a national securities exchange may not be traded in volumes typical for that exchange. Consequently, the securities of smaller companies are less likely to be liquid, may have limited market stability, and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than securities of larger, more established growth companies or market averages in general.

 

 

Master Limited Partnerships (“MLPs”). MLPs are limited partnerships in which the ownership units are publicly traded. MLP units are registered with the SEC and are freely traded on a securities exchange or in the OTC market. MLPs often own several properties or businesses (or own interests) that are related to real estate development and oil and gas industries, but they also may finance motion pictures, research and development and other projects. Generally, a MLP is operated under the supervision of one or more managing general partners. Limited partners are not involved in the day-to-day management of the partnership.

The risks of investing in a MLP are generally those involved in investing in a partnership as opposed to a corporation. For example, state law governing partnerships is often less restrictive than state law governing corporations. Accordingly, there may be fewer protections afforded investors in a MLP than investors in a corporation. Additional risks involved with investing in a MLP are risks associated with the specific industry or industries in which the partnership invests, such as the risks of investing in real estate or oil and gas industries.

 

 

Warrants. Warrants are instruments that entitle the holder to buy an equity security at a specific price for a specific period of time. Changes in the value of a warrant do not necessarily correspond to changes in the value of its underlying security. The price of a warrant may be more volatile than the price of its underlying security, and a warrant may offer greater potential for capital appreciation as well as capital loss. Warrants do not entitle a holder to dividends or voting rights with respect to the underlying security and do not represent any rights in the assets of the issuing company. A warrant ceases to have value if it is not exercised prior to its expiration date. These factors can make warrants more speculative than other types of investments.

 

 

Rights. 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 price lower than the public offering price. An investment in rights may entail greater risks than certain other types of investments. Generally, rights do not carry the right to receive dividends or exercise voting rights with

 

8


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 increases the potential profit or loss to be realized from the investment as compared with investing the same amount in the underlying securities.

Lending Portfolio Securities. From time to time, a Fund (as the Adviser shall so determine) may lend its portfolio securities (principally to brokers, dealers or other financial institutions) to generate additional income. Such loans are callable at any time and are secured continuously by segregated collateral equal to at least 102% (105% for international securities) of the market value, determined daily, of the loaned securities. A Fund may lend portfolio securities to the extent of one-third of its total assets. A Fund will loan its securities only to parties that the Adviser has determined are in good standing and when, in the Adviser’s judgment, the potential income earned would justify the risks.

Although voting rights may pass with the lending of portfolio securities, a Fund will be entitled to call loaned securities, or otherwise obtain rights to vote or consent, when deemed necessary by the Adviser with respect to a material event affecting securities on loan. A Fund will receive income in lieu of dividends on loaned securities and may, at the same time, generate income on the loan collateral or on the investment of any cash collateral.

Securities lending involves a risk of loss because the borrower may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. If the borrower defaults on its obligation to return the securities loaned because of insolvency or other reasons, a Fund could experience delays and costs in recovering securities loaned or gaining access to the collateral. If a Fund is not able to recover the securities loaned, the Fund may sell the collateral and purchase a replacement security in the market. Lending securities entails a risk of loss to a Fund if, and to the extent that, the market value of the loaned securities increases and the collateral is not increased accordingly. Securities lending also involves exposure to operational risk (the risk of loss resulting from errors in the settlement and accounting process) and “gap risk” (the risk that the return on cash collateral reinvestments will be less than the fees paid to the borrower).

Any cash received as collateral for loaned securities will be invested, in accordance with a Fund’s investment guidelines, in an affiliated money market fund. Investing this cash subjects that investment to market appreciation or depreciation. For purposes of determining whether a Fund is complying with its investment policies, strategies and restrictions, the Fund or the Adviser will consider the loaned securities as assets of the Fund, but will not consider any collateral received as a Fund asset. A Fund will bear any loss on the investment of cash collateral. A Fund may have to pay the borrower a fee based on the amount of cash collateral.

For a discussion of the federal income tax considerations relating to lending portfolio securities, see “Taxes.”

Repurchase Agreements. Each Fund may enter into repurchase agreements, which are agreements pursuant to which a Fund acquires securities from a third party with the understanding that the seller will repurchase them at a fixed price on an agreed date. These agreements may be made with respect to any of the portfolio securities in which a Fund is authorized to invest. Repurchase agreements may be characterized as loans secured by the underlying securities. Each Fund may enter into repurchase agreements with (i) member banks of the Federal Reserve System having total assets in excess of $500 million and (ii) securities dealers (“Qualified Institutions”). The Adviser will monitor the continued creditworthiness of Qualified Institutions.

The use of repurchase agreements involves certain risks. For example, if the seller of securities under a repurchase agreement defaults on its obligation to repurchase the underlying securities, as a result of its bankruptcy or otherwise, a Fund will seek to dispose of such securities, which could involve costs or delays. If the seller becomes insolvent and subject to liquidation or reorganization under applicable bankruptcy or other laws, a Fund’s ability to dispose of the underlying securities may be restricted. Finally, a Fund may not be able

 

9


to substantiate its interest in the underlying securities. If the seller fails to repurchase the securities, a Fund may suffer a loss to the extent proceeds from the sale of the underlying securities are less than the repurchase price.

The resale price reflects the purchase price plus an agreed upon market rate of interest. The securities underlying a repurchase agreement will be marked-to-market every business day, and if the value of the securities falls below a specified percentage of the repurchase price (typically 102%), the counterparty will be required to deliver additional collateral to a Fund in the form of cash or additional securities. Custody of the securities will be maintained by a Fund’s custodian or sub-custodian for the duration of the agreement.

Reverse Repurchase Agreements. Each Fund may enter into reverse repurchase agreements, which involve the sale of securities by a Fund to financial institutions such as banks and broker-dealers with an agreement by a Fund to repurchase the securities at an agreed-upon price and date (or upon demand). During the reverse repurchase agreement period, a Fund continues to receive interest and principal payments on the securities sold, but pays interest to the other party on the proceeds received. Reverse repurchase agreements are a form of leverage and involve the risk that the market value of securities to be repurchased by a Fund may decline below the price at which the Fund is obligated to repurchase the securities, resulting in a requirement for the Fund to deliver margin to the other party in the amount of the related shortfall, or that the other party may default on its obligation so that the Fund is delayed or prevented from completing the transaction. Leverage may make the Fund’s returns more volatile and increase the risk of loss. In the event the buyer of securities under a reverse repurchase agreement files for bankruptcy or becomes insolvent, a Fund’s use of the proceeds from the sale of the securities may be restricted pending a determination by the other party, or its trustee or receiver, whether to enforce the Fund’s obligation to repurchase the securities. The Funds intend to use the reverse repurchase technique only when the Adviser believes it will be advantageous to a Fund.

LIBOR Transition Risk. A Fund may have investments in financial instruments that recently transitioned from, or continue to be tied to, the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) as the reference or benchmark rate for variable interest rate calculations (including variable or floating rate debt securities or loans and derivatives such as interest rate futures or swaps). LIBOR was a common benchmark interest rate index historically used to make adjustments to variable-rate debt instruments, to determine interest rates for a variety of financial instruments and borrowing arrangements and as a reference rate in derivative contracts.

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”), the regulator that oversees LIBOR, has ceased publishing the majority of LIBOR rates. In April 2023, the FCA announced that some USD LIBOR settings would continue to be published under a synthetic methodology until September 30, 2024 for certain legacy contracts, but any such rates were considered non-representative of the underlying market. Regulators and financial industry working groups have worked to identify alternative reference rates (“ARRs”) to replace LIBOR and to assist with the transition to the new ARRs. Under U.S. regulations that implement a statutory fallback mechanism to replace LIBOR, benchmark rates based on the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) have replaced LIBOR in certain financial contracts. SOFR is a broad measure of the cost of overnight borrowing of cash through repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. Treasury securities.

While the transition process away from LIBOR has become increasingly well-defined, there remains uncertainty and risks relating to converting certain longer-term securities and transactions to a new ARR. For example, there can be no assurance that the composition or characteristics of any ARRs or financial instruments in which a Fund invests that utilize ARRs will be similar to or produce the same value or economic equivalence as LIBOR or that these instruments will have the same volume or liquidity. Additionally, while some legacy USD LIBOR instruments may provide for an alternative or fallback rate-setting methodology, there may be significant uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of such methodologies to replicate USD LIBOR; other legacy USD LIBOR instruments may not include such fallback rate-setting provisions at all or may not be able to rely on the statutory fallback mechanism, the effectiveness of which is also uncertain. There also remains significant uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of the Adjustable Interest Rate Act legislation. While it is expected that the market participants will amend legacy financial instruments referencing LIBOR to include such fallback provisions to ARRs, there remains uncertainty

 

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regarding the willingness and ability of parties to add or amend such fallback provisions in legacy instruments. Moreover, certain aspects of the transition from LIBOR will rely on the actions of third-party market participants, such as clearing houses, trustees, administrative agents, asset servicers and certain service providers. The Adviser cannot guarantee the performance of such market participants and any failure on the part of such market participants to manage their part of the LIBOR transition could impact a Fund. The Funds may have instruments linked to other interbank offered rates that may also cease to be published in the future. All of the foregoing may adversely affect a Fund’s performance or NAV.

Money Market Instruments. Each Fund may invest a portion of its assets in high-quality money market instruments on an ongoing basis to provide liquidity. The instruments in which a Fund may invest include: (i) short-term obligations issued by the U.S. government; (ii) negotiable certificates of deposit (“CDs”), fixed time deposits and bankers’ acceptances of U.S. and foreign banks and similar institutions; (iii) commercial paper rated at the date of purchase “Prime-1” by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. or “A-1+” or “A-1” by S&P Global Ratings or has a similar rating from a comparable rating agency, or if unrated, of comparable quality as the Adviser determines; (iv) repurchase agreements; and (v) money market mutual funds, including affiliated money market funds. CDs are short-term negotiable obligations of commercial banks. Time deposits are non-negotiable deposits maintained in banking institutions for specified periods of time at stated interest rates. Banker’s acceptances are time drafts drawn on commercial banks by borrowers, usually in connection with international transactions.

Portfolio Turnover Risk. A Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of its portfolio securities to reflect the rebalancing of the Underlying Index. A portfolio turnover rate of 200%, for example, is equivalent to a Fund buying and selling all of its securities two times during the course of the year. A high portfolio turnover rate (such as 100% or more) could result in high brokerage costs and may result in higher taxes when Shares are held in a taxable account.

U.S. Government Obligations. Each Fund may invest in short-term U.S. government obligations. U.S. government obligations are a type of bond and include securities issued or guaranteed as to principal and interest by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities. These include bills, notes and bonds issued by the U.S. Treasury, as well as “stripped” or “zero coupon” U.S. Treasury obligations representing future interest or principal payments on U.S. Treasury notes or bonds.

Stripped securities are created when the issuer separates the interest and principal components of an instrument and sells them as separate securities. In general, one security is entitled to receive the interest payments on the underlying assets (the interest only or “IO” security) and the other to receive the principal payments (the principal only or “PO” security). Some stripped securities may receive a combination of interest and principal payments. The yields to maturity on IOs and POs are sensitive to the expected or anticipated rate of principal payments (including prepayments) on the related underlying assets, and principal payments may have a material effect on yield to maturity. If the underlying assets experience greater than anticipated prepayments of principal, the Fund may not fully recoup its initial investment in IOs. Conversely, if the underlying assets experience less than anticipated prepayments of principal, the yield on POs could be adversely affected. Stripped securities may be highly sensitive to changes in interest rates and rates of prepayment.

Short-term obligations of certain agencies and instrumentalities of the U.S. government, such as the Government National Mortgage Association (“GNMA”), are supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury; others, such as those of the Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”), are supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury; others, such as those of the former Student Loan Marketing Association (“SLMA”), are supported by the discretionary authority of the U.S. government to purchase the agency’s obligations; still others, although issued by an instrumentality chartered by the U.S. government, like the Federal Farm Credit Bureau (“FFCB”), are supported only by the credit of the instrumentality.

In 2008, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (“FHFA”) placed Fannie Mae and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”) into conservatorship. Since that time, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have received significant capital support through U.S. Treasury preferred stock purchases as well as U.S.

 

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Treasury and Federal Reserve purchases of their mortgage-backed securities. While the purchase programs for mortgage-backed securities ended in 2010, the U.S. Treasury continued its support for the entities’ capital as necessary to prevent a negative net worth. However, no assurance can be given that the Federal Reserve, U.S. Treasury, or FHFA initiatives discussed above will ensure that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will remain successful in meeting their obligations with respect to the debt and mortgage-backed securities they issue. In addition, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are also the subject of several continuing class action lawsuits and investigations by federal regulators, which (along with any resulting financial restatements) may adversely affect the guaranteeing entities. Importantly, the future of the entities is in serious question as the U.S. government is considering multiple options, ranging from significant reform, nationalization, privatization, consolidation, or abolishment of the entities.

The FHFA and the U.S. Treasury (through its agreements to purchase preferred stock of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) also have imposed strict limits on the size of the mortgage portfolios of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. In August 2012, the U.S. Treasury amended its preferred stock purchase agreements to provide that the portfolios of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be wound down at an annual rate of 15% (up from the previously agreed annual rate of 10%), requiring Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to reach the $250 billion target four years earlier than previously planned. Further, when a ratings agency downgraded long-term U.S. government debt in August 2011, the agency also downgraded the bond ratings of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, from AAA to AA+, based on their direct reliance on the U.S. government (although that rating did not directly relate to their mortgage-backed securities). The U.S. government’s commitment to ensure that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have sufficient capital to meet their obligations was, however, unaffected by the downgrade.

The U.S. Treasury has put in place a set of financing agreements to help ensure that these entities continue to meet their obligations to holders of bonds they have issued or guaranteed. The U.S. government may choose not to provide financial support to U.S. government-sponsored agencies or instrumentalities if it is not legally obligated to do so, in which case, if the issuer were to default, the Fund holding securities of such issuer might not be able to recover its investment from the U.S. government.

From time to time, policy changes by the U.S. government or its regulatory agencies and other governmental actions and political events within the United States, changes to the monetary policy by the Federal Reserve or other regulatory actions, the U.S. government’s inability at times to agree on a long-term budget and deficit reduction plan or other legislation aimed at addressing financial or economic conditions, the threat of a federal government shutdown, and threats not to increase or suspend the federal government’s debt limit, may affect investor and consumer confidence; increase volatility in the financial markets, perhaps suddenly and to a significant degree; reduce prices of U.S. Treasury securities and/or increase the costs of various kinds of debt; result in higher interest rates; and even raise concerns about the U.S. government’s credit rating and ability to service its debt. If a U.S. government-sponsored entity is negatively impacted by legislative or regulatory action, is unable to meet its obligations, or its creditworthiness declines, the performance of a Fund that holds securities of that entity will be adversely impacted.

Other Investment Companies. Unless otherwise indicated in this SAI or in a Fund’s Prospectus, a Fund may purchase shares of other investment companies, including exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”), non-exchange traded U.S. registered open-end investment companies (mutual funds), closed-end investment companies, or non-U.S. investment companies traded on foreign exchanges. When a Fund purchases shares of another investment company, the Fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of the advisory fees and other operating expenses of such investment company and will be subject to the risks associated with the portfolio investments of the underlying investment company.

The investment companies in which a Fund invests may have adopted certain investment restrictions that are more or less restrictive than the Fund’s investment restrictions, which may permit the Fund to engage in investment strategies indirectly that are prohibited under the Fund’s investment restrictions. For example, to the extent a Fund invests in underlying investment companies that concentrate their investments in an industry, a corresponding portion of the Fund’s assets may be indirectly exposed to that particular industry. The investment companies in which a Fund may invest include index-based investment companies. The main

 

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risk of investing in index-based investment companies is the same as investing in a portfolio of securities comprising an index. The market prices of index-based investments will fluctuate in accordance with both changes in the market value of their underlying portfolio securities and due to supply and demand for the instruments on the exchanges on which they are traded. Index-based investments may not replicate exactly the performance of their specified index because of transaction costs and because of the temporary unavailability of certain component securities of the index.

A Fund’s investment in the securities of other investment companies is subject to the applicable provisions of the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder. Specifically, Section 12(d)(1) of the 1940 Act contains various limitations on the ability of a registered investment company (an “acquiring fund”) to acquire shares of another registered investment company (an “acquired fund”). Under these limits, an acquiring fund generally cannot (i) purchase more than 3% of the total outstanding voting stock of an acquired fund; (ii) invest more than 5% of its total assets in securities issued by an acquired company; and (iii) invest more than 10% of its total assets in securities issued by other investment companies. Likewise, an acquired fund, as well as its principal underwriter or any broker or dealer registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, cannot knowingly sell more than 3% of the total outstanding voting stock of the acquired fund to an acquiring fund, or more than 10% of the total outstanding voting stock of the acquired fund to acquiring funds generally.

Rule 12d1-4 under the 1940 Act allows a fund to acquire the securities of another investment company in excess of the limitations imposed by Section 12(d)(1) of the 1940 Act without obtaining an exemptive order from the SEC, subject to certain limitations and conditions. Among those conditions is the requirement that, prior to a fund relying on Rule 12d1-4 to acquire securities of another fund in excess of the limits of Section 12(d)(1), the acquiring fund must enter into a Fund of Funds Agreement with the acquired fund. (This requirement does not apply when the acquiring fund’s investment adviser acts as the acquired fund’s investment adviser and does not act as sub-adviser to either fund.)

Rule 12d1-4 also is designed to limit the use of complex fund structures. Under Rule 12d1-4, an acquired fund is prohibited from purchasing or otherwise acquiring the securities of another investment company or private fund if, immediately after the purchase or acquisition, the securities of investment companies and private funds owned by the acquired fund have an aggregate value in excess of 10% of the value of the acquired fund’s total assets, subject to certain limited exceptions. Accordingly, to the extent a Fund’s shares are sold to other investment companies in reliance on Rule 12d1-4, the Fund will be limited in the amount it could invest in other investment companies and private funds.

In addition to Rule 12d1-4, the 1940 Act and related rules provide other exemptions from these restrictions. For example, these limitations do not apply to investments by a Fund in investment companies that are money market funds, including money market funds that have the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser as an investment adviser.

Business Development Companies. Each Fund may invest in Business Development Companies (“BDCs”). The 1940 Act imposes certain restraints upon the operations of BDCs. For example, BDCs are required to invest at least 70% of their total assets primarily in securities of private companies or thinly traded U.S. public companies, cash, cash equivalents, U.S. government securities and high quality debt investments that mature in one year or less. Generally, little public information exists for private and thinly traded companies and there is a risk that investors may not be able to make a fully informed investment decision. With investments in debt instruments, there is a risk that the issuer may default on its payments or declare bankruptcy. Additionally, a BDC may only incur indebtedness in amounts such that the BDC’s asset coverage equals at least 200% after such incurrence. These limitations on asset mix and leverage may prohibit the way that the BDC raises capital. BDCs generally invest in less mature private companies which involve greater risk than well-established publicly-traded companies.

Real Estate Investment Trusts (“REITs”). Each Fund may invest in the securities of REITs, which pool investors’ funds for investments primarily in real estate properties, to the extent allowed by law. Investment in REITs may be the most practical available means for a Fund to invest in the real estate industry. As a shareholder in a REIT, a Fund would bear its ratable share of the REIT’s expenses, including its advisory and administration fees. At the same time, a Fund would continue to pay its own investment advisory fees and

 

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other expenses, as a result of which the Fund and its shareholders in effect would be absorbing duplicate levels of fees with respect to investments in REITs. A REIT may focus on particular projects, such as apartment complexes, or geographic regions, such as the southeastern United States, or both.

REITs generally can be classified as equity REITs, mortgage REITs and hybrid REITs. Equity REITs generally invest a majority of their assets in income-producing real estate properties to generate cash flow from rental income and gradual asset appreciation. The income-producing real estate properties in which equity REITs invest typically include properties such as office, retail, industrial, hotel and apartment buildings, self-storage, specialty and diversified and healthcare facilities. Equity REITs can realize capital gains by selling properties that have appreciated in value. Mortgage REITs invest the majority of their assets in real estate mortgages and derive their income primarily from interest payments on the mortgages. Hybrid REITs combine the characteristics of both equity REITs and mortgage REITs.

REITs can be listed and traded on national securities exchanges or can be traded privately between individual owners. A Fund may invest in both publicly and privately traded REITs.

A Fund conceivably could own real estate directly as a result of a default on the securities it owns. Therefore, a Fund may be subject to certain risks associated with the direct ownership of real estate, including difficulties in valuing and trading real estate, declines in the values of real estate, risks related to general and local economic conditions, adverse changes in the climate for real estate, environmental liability risks, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, changes in zoning laws, casualty or condemnation losses, limitations on rents, changes in neighborhood values, the appeal of properties to tenants and increases in interest rates.

In addition to the risks described above, equity REITs may be affected by any changes in the value of the underlying property owned by the trusts, while mortgage REITs may be affected by the quality of any credit extended. Equity and mortgage REITs depend upon management skill, are not diversified and therefore are subject to the risk of financing single or a limited number of projects. REITs also are subject to heavy cash flow dependency, defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation and the possibility of failing to qualify for conduit income tax treatment under the Code and/or failing to maintain an exemption from the 1940 Act. Changes in interest rates also may affect the value of debt securities held by the Funds. By investing in REITs indirectly through the Funds, a shareholder will bear not only his/her proportionate share of the expenses of a Fund, but also, indirectly, similar expenses of the REITs.

Structured Notes. A structured note is a derivative security for which the amount of principal repayment and/or interest payments is based on the movement of one or more “factors.” These factors include, but are not limited to, currency exchange rates, interest rates (such as the prime lending rate or SOFR), referenced bonds and stock indices. Some of these factors may or may not correlate to the total rate of return on one or more underlying instruments referenced in such notes. Investments in structured notes involve risks including interest rate risk, credit risk and market risk. Depending on the factor(s) used and the use of multipliers or deflators, changes in interest rates and movement of such factor(s) may cause significant price fluctuations. Structured notes may be less liquid than other types of securities and more volatile than the reference factor underlying the note. This means that the Funds may lose money if the issuer of the note defaults, as the Funds may not be able to readily close out its investment in such notes without incurring losses.

Illiquid Investments. Each Fund may not acquire any illiquid investment if, immediately after the acquisition, the Fund would have invested more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments. For purposes of this 15% limitation, illiquid investment means 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, as determined pursuant to the 1940 Act and applicable rules and regulations thereunder. Each Fund will monitor its portfolio liquidity on an ongoing basis to determine whether, in light of current circumstances, the appropriate level of liquidity is being maintained, and will take steps to ensure it adjusts its liquidity consistent with the policies and procedures adopted by the Trust on behalf of the Funds. 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 dealers will make or maintain a market or that any such market will be or remain liquid. The price at which

 

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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.

Borrowing. Each Fund may borrow money from a bank or another person up to the limits and for the purposes set forth in the section “Investment Restrictions” to meet shareholder redemptions, for temporary or emergency purposes and for other lawful purposes. Borrowed money will cost a Fund interest expense and/or other fees. The costs of borrowing may reduce a Fund’s return. Borrowing also may cause a Fund to liquidate positions when it may not be advantageous to do so to satisfy its obligations to repay borrowed monies. To the extent that a Fund has outstanding borrowings, it will be leveraged. Leveraging generally exaggerates the effect on NAV of any increase or decrease in the market value of a Fund’s portfolio securities.

Under the 1940 Act, a registered investment company can borrow an amount up to 33 1/3% of its assets for temporary or emergency purposes or to allow for an orderly liquidation of securities to meet redemption requests. If there are unusually heavy redemptions, a Fund may have to sell a portion of its investment portfolio at a time when it may not be advantageous to do so. Selling securities under these circumstances may result in a Fund having a lower NAV per Share.

Derivatives Risk. Derivatives are financial instruments that derive their performance from an underlying asset, index, interest rate or currency exchange rate. Derivatives are subject to a number of risks including credit risk, interest rate risk, and market risk. They also involve the risk that changes in the value of the derivative may not correlate perfectly with the underlying asset, rate or index. The counterparty to a derivative contract might default on its obligations. Derivatives can be volatile and may be less liquid than other securities. As a result, the value of an investment in a Fund that invests in derivatives may change quickly and without warning.

For some derivatives, it is possible to lose more than the amount invested in the derivative. Derivatives may be used to create synthetic exposure to an underlying asset or to hedge a portfolio risk. If a Fund uses derivatives to “hedge” a portfolio risk, it is possible that the hedge may not succeed. This may happen for various reasons, including unexpected changes in the value of the rest of the portfolio of a Fund. OTC derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party to the contract will not fulfill its contractual obligation to complete the transaction with a Fund.

The regulation of derivatives is a rapidly changing area of law and is subject to modification by government and judicial action. In addition, the SEC, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) and the exchanges are authorized to take extraordinary actions in the event of a market emergency, including, for example, the implementation or reduction of speculative position limits, the implementation of higher margin requirements, the establishment of daily price limits and the suspension of trading.

It is not possible to predict fully the effects of current or future regulation. However, it is possible that developments in government regulation of various types of derivative instruments, such as speculative position limits on certain types of derivatives, or limits or restrictions on the counterparties with which the Fund engages in derivative transactions, may limit or prevent the Fund from using or limit the Fund’s use of these instruments effectively as a part of its investment strategy, and could adversely affect the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective. The Adviser will continue to monitor developments in the area, particularly to the extent regulatory changes affect the Fund’s ability to enter into desired swap agreements. New requirements, even if not directly applicable to the Fund, may increase the cost of the Fund’s investments and cost of doing business.

Leverage Risk. Leverage exists when a Fund can lose more than it originally invests because it purchases or sells an instrument or enters into a transaction without investing an amount equal to the full economic exposure of the instrument or transaction. Leverage may cause the portfolios of the Funds to be more volatile than if a portfolio had not been leveraged because leverage can exaggerate the effect of any increase or decrease in the value of securities held by a Fund. The use of some derivatives may result in economic leverage, which does not result in the possibility of a Fund incurring obligations beyond its initial investment, but that nonetheless permits the Fund to gain exposure that is greater than would be the case in an unleveraged instrument.

 

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Futures and Options. The Funds may enter into futures contracts, options and options on futures contracts. These futures contracts and options will be used to simulate full investment in the Underlying Index, to facilitate trading or to reduce transaction costs. Each Fund will only enter into futures contracts and options on futures contracts that are traded on an exchange. The Funds will not use futures or options for speculative purposes.

A call option gives a holder the right to purchase a specific security or an index at a specified price (“exercise price”) within a specified period of time. A put option gives a holder the right to sell a specific security or an index at a specified price within a specified period of time. The initial purchaser of a call option pays the “writer,” i.e., the party selling the option, a premium which is paid at the time of purchase and is retained by the writer whether or not such option is exercised. Each Fund may purchase put options to hedge its portfolio against the risk of a decline in the market value of securities held and may purchase call options to hedge against an increase in the price of securities it is committed to purchase.

Futures contracts provide for the future sale by one party and purchase by another party of a specified amount of a specific instrument or index at a specified future time and at a specified price. Stock index contracts are based on indices that reflect the market value of common stock of the firms included in the indices. Each Fund may enter into futures contracts to purchase security indices when the Adviser anticipates purchasing the underlying securities and believes prices will rise before the purchase will be made.

An option on a futures contract, as contrasted with the direct investment in such a contract, gives the purchaser the right, in return for the premium paid, to assume a position in the underlying futures contract at a specified exercise price at any time prior to the expiration date of the option. Upon exercise of an option, the delivery of the futures position by the writer of the option to the holder of the option will be accompanied by delivery of the accumulated balance in the writer’s futures margin account that represents the amount by which the market price of the futures contract exceeds (in the case of a call) or is less than (in the case of a put) the exercise price of the option on the futures contract. The potential for loss related to the purchase of an option on a futures contract is limited to the premium paid for the option plus transaction costs. Because the value of the option is fixed at the point of purchase, there are no daily cash payments by the purchaser to reflect changes in the value of the underlying contract; however, the value of the option changes daily and that change would be reflected in the NAV of a Fund. The potential for loss related to writing call options on equity securities or indices is unlimited. The potential for loss related to writing put options is limited only by the aggregate strike price of the put option less the premium received.

The Funds may purchase and write put and call options on futures contracts that are traded on an exchange as a hedge against changes in value of its portfolio securities, or in anticipation of the purchase of securities, and may enter into closing transactions with respect to such options to terminate existing positions. There is no guarantee that such closing transactions can be effected.

Upon entering into a futures contract, a Fund will be required to deposit with the broker an amount of cash or cash equivalents in the range of approximately 5% to 7% of the contract amount (this amount is subject to change by the exchange on which the contract is traded). This amount, known as “initial margin,” is in the nature of a performance bond or good faith deposit on the contract and is returned to a Fund upon termination of the futures contract, assuming all contractual obligations have been satisfied. Subsequent payments, known as “variation margin,” to and from the broker will be made daily as the price of the index underlying the futures contract fluctuates, making the long and short positions in the futures contract more or less valuable, a process known as “marking-to-market.” At any time prior to expiration of a futures contract, a Fund may elect to close the position by taking an opposite position, which will operate to terminate the existing position in the contract.

Risks of Futures and Options Transactions. There are several risks accompanying the utilization of futures contracts and options on futures contracts. First, there is no guarantee that a liquid market will exist for a futures contract at a specified time. The Funds may utilize futures contracts only if an active market exists for such contracts.

 

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Furthermore, because, by definition, futures contracts project price levels in the future and not current levels of valuation, market circumstances may result in a discrepancy between the price of the future and the movement in the Underlying Indexes. In the event of adverse price movements, a Fund would continue to be required to make daily cash payments to maintain its required margin. In such situations, if a Fund has insufficient cash, it may have to sell portfolio securities to meet daily margin requirements at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so. In addition, a Fund may be required to deliver the instruments underlying futures contracts it has sold.

The risk of loss in trading futures contracts or uncovered call options in some strategies (e.g., selling uncovered stock index futures contracts) potentially is unlimited. No Fund plans to use futures and options contracts in this way. The risk of a futures position may still be large as traditionally measured due to the low margin deposits required. In many cases, a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in immediate and substantial loss or gain to the investor relative to the size of a required margin deposit. The Funds, however, intend to utilize futures and options in a manner designed to limit their risk exposure to levels comparable to direct investment in stocks.

Utilization of futures and options on futures by the Funds involves the risk of imperfect or even negative correlation to an Underlying Index if the index underlying the futures contract differs from the Underlying Indexes of the Funds.

There also is the risk of loss by a Fund of margin deposits in the event of bankruptcy of a broker with whom the Fund has an open position in the futures contract or option; however, this risk substantially is minimized because (a) of the regulatory requirement that the broker has to “segregate” customer funds from its corporate funds, and (b) in the case of regulated exchanges in the United States, the clearing corporation stands behind the broker to make good losses in such a situation. The purchase of put or call options could be based upon predictions by the Adviser as to anticipated trends, which could prove to be incorrect and a part or all of the premium paid therefore could be lost.

Because the futures market imposes less burdensome margin requirements than the securities market, an increased amount of participation by speculators in the futures market could result in price fluctuations. Certain financial futures exchanges limit the amount of fluctuation permitted in futures contract prices during a single trading day. The daily limit establishes the maximum amount by which the price of a futures contract may vary either up or down from the previous day’s settlement price at the end of a trading session. Once the daily limit has been reached in a particular type of contract, no trades may be made on that day at a price beyond that limit. It is possible that futures contract prices could move to the daily limit for several consecutive trading days with little or no trading, thereby preventing prompt liquidation of futures positions and subjecting the Funds to substantial losses. In the event of adverse price movements, the Funds would be required to make daily cash payments of variation margin.

Swap Agreements. Each Fund may enter into swap agreements. Invesco Global Listed Private Equity ETF is the only Fund currently using swap agreements, including total return swap agreements. Swap agreements are contracts between parties in which one party agrees to make periodic payments to the other party (the “Counterparty”) based on the change in market value or level of a specified rate, index or asset. In return, the Counterparty agrees to make periodic payments to the first party based on the return of a different specified rate, index or asset. Swap agreements usually will be done on a net basis, a Fund receiving or paying only the net amount of the two payments. The net amount of the excess, if any, of a Fund’s obligations over its entitlements with respect to each swap is accrued on a daily basis and an amount of cash or highly liquid securities having an aggregate value at least equal to the accrued excess is maintained in an account at the Trust’s custodian bank.

Risks of Swap Agreements. The risk of loss with respect to swaps generally is limited to the net amount of payments that a Fund is contractually obligated to make. Swap agreements are subject to the risk that the Counterparty will default on its obligations. If such a default were to occur, a Fund will have contractual remedies pursuant to the agreements related to the transaction. However, such remedies may be subject to bankruptcy and insolvency laws that could affect a Fund’s rights as a creditor (e.g., the Fund may not receive the net amount of payments that it contractually is entitled to receive).

 

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In a total return swap transaction, one party agrees to pay the other party an amount equal to the total return on a defined underlying asset or a non-asset reference during a specified period of time. The underlying asset might be a security or basket of securities, and the non-asset reference could be a securities index. In return, the other party would make periodic payments based on a fixed or variable interest rate or on the total return from a different underlying asset or non-asset reference. The payments of the two parties could be made on a net basis.

Total return swaps could result in losses for a Fund if the underlying asset or reference does not perform as anticipated. Total return swaps can have the potential for unlimited losses. A Fund may lose money in a total return swap if the Counterparty fails to meet its obligations.

Restrictions on the Use of Futures Contracts, Options on Futures Contracts and Swaps. The Adviser has claimed an exclusion from the definition of “commodity pool operator” (“CPO”) under the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA”) and the rules of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) with respect to the Funds. The Adviser therefore is not subject to registration or regulation as a CPO with respect to the Funds. In addition, the Adviser is relying upon a related exclusion from the definition of “commodity trading advisor” under the CEA and the rules of the CFTC. The terms of the CPO exclusion require the Funds, among other things, to adhere to certain limits on its investments in “commodity interests.” Commodity interests include commodity futures, commodity options and swaps, which in turn include non-deliverable forwards. Because the Adviser and each Fund intend to comply with the terms of the CPO exclusion, a Fund may, in the future, need to adjust its investment strategies, consistent with its investment objective, to limit its investments in these types of instruments. The Funds are not intended as a vehicle for trading in the commodity futures, commodity options or swaps markets. The CFTC has neither reviewed nor approved the Adviser’s reliance on these exclusions, or the Funds, their investment strategies or Prospectus, or this SAI. Generally, the exclusion from CPO regulation requires each Fund to meet one of the following tests for its commodity interest positions, other than positions entered into for bona fide hedging purposes (as defined in the rules of the CFTC): either (1) the aggregate initial margin and premiums required to establish the Fund’s positions in commodity interests may not exceed 5% of the liquidation value of the Fund’s portfolio (after taking into account unrealized profits and unrealized losses on any such positions); or (2) the aggregate net notional value of the Fund’s commodity interest positions, determined at the time the most recent such position was established, may not exceed 100% of the liquidation value of the Fund’s portfolio (after taking into account unrealized profits and unrealized losses on any such positions). In addition to meeting one of these trading limitations, a Fund may not be marketed as a commodity pool or otherwise as a vehicle for trading in the commodity futures, commodity options or swaps markets. If, in the future, a Fund can no longer satisfy these requirements, the Adviser would withdraw its notice claiming an exclusion from the definition of a CPO and would be subject to registration and regulation as a CPO with respect to that Fund, in accordance with CFTC rules that apply to CPOs of registered investment companies. Generally, these rules allow for substituted compliance with CFTC disclosure and shareholder reporting requirements, based on Adviser’s compliance with comparable SEC requirements. However, as a result of CFTC regulation with respect to the Funds, the Funds may incur additional compliance and other expenses.

Risks Related to Armed Conflict. As a result of increasingly interconnected global economies and financial markets, armed conflict between countries or in a geographic region, for example the current conflicts between Russia and Ukraine in Europe and Hamas and Israel in the Middle East, has the potential to adversely impact Fund investments. Such conflicts, and other corresponding events, have had, and could continue to have, severe negative effects on regional and global economic and financial markets, including increased volatility, reduced liquidity, and overall uncertainty. The negative impacts may be particularly acute in certain sectors. The timing and duration of such conflicts, resulting sanctions, related events and other impacts cannot be predicted. The foregoing may result in a negative impact on Fund performance and the value of an investment in the Fund, even beyond any direct investment exposure the Fund may have to issuers located in or with significant exposure to an impacted country or geographic region.

Cybersecurity Risk. With the increased use of technologies such as the Internet to conduct business, the Funds, like all companies, may be susceptible to operational, information security and related risks. Cybersecurity incidents involving the Funds or their service providers (including, without limitation, a Fund’s investment adviser, fund accountant, custodian, transfer agent and financial intermediaries) have the ability to cause disruptions and impact business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses, impediments to

 

18


trading, the inability of Fund shareholders to transact business, violations of applicable privacy and other laws, regulatory fines, penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs, and/or additional compliance costs.

Cybersecurity incidents can result from deliberate cyberattacks or unintentional events and may arise from external or internal sources. Cyberattacks may include infection by malicious software or gaining unauthorized access to digital systems, networks or devices that are used to service the Funds’ operations (e.g., by “hacking” or “phishing”). Cyberattacks may also be carried out in a manner that does not require gaining unauthorized access, such as causing denial-of-service attacks on websites (i.e., efforts to make network services unavailable to intended users). These cyberattacks could cause the misappropriation of assets or personal information, corruption of data or operational disruptions. Geopolitical tensions may, from time to time, increase the scale and sophistication of deliberate cyberattacks.

Similar adverse consequences could result from cybersecurity incidents affecting issuers of securities in which the Funds invest, counterparties with which the Funds engage, governmental and other regulatory authorities, exchanges and other financial market operators, banks, brokers, dealers, insurance companies, other financial institutions and other parties. In addition, substantial costs may be incurred in order to prevent any cybersecurity incidents in the future. Although the Funds’ service providers may have established business continuity plans and risk management systems to mitigate cybersecurity risks, there can be no guarantee or assurance that such plans or systems will be effective, or that all risks that exist, or may develop in the future, have been completely anticipated and identified or can be protected against. The Funds and their shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.

The rapid development and increasingly widespread use of AI Technologies (as discussed under “Artificial Intelligence Risk” herein) could increase the effectiveness of cyberattacks and exacerbate the risks.

Natural Disaster/Epidemic Risk. Natural or environmental disasters, such as earthquakes, fires, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis and other severe weather-related phenomena generally, and widespread disease, including pandemics and epidemics, have been and can be highly disruptive to economies and markets, adversely impacting individual companies, sectors, industries, markets, currencies, interest and inflation rates, credit ratings, investor sentiment, and other factors affecting the value of the Funds’ investments. Additionally, if a sector or sectors in which an Underlying Index is concentrated is negatively impacted to a greater extent by such events, the corresponding Fund may experience heightened volatility. Given the increasing interdependence among global economies and markets, conditions in one country, market, or region are increasingly likely to adversely affect markets, issuers, and/or foreign exchange rates in other countries, including the U.S. These disruptions could prevent the Funds from executing advantageous investment decisions in a timely manner and negatively impact the Funds’ ability to achieve their investment objectives. Any such event(s) could have a significant adverse impact on the value and risk profile of the Funds.

The spread of the human coronavirus disease beginning in 2019 (“COVID-19”) is an example. In the first quarter of 2020, the World Health Organization (the “WHO”) recognized COVID-19 as a global pandemic and both the WHO and the United States declared the outbreak a public health emergency. The subsequent

 

19


spread of COVID-19 resulted in, among other significant adverse economic impacts, instances of market closures and dislocations, extreme volatility, liquidity constraints and increased trading costs. Efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19 resulted in travel restrictions, closed international borders, disruptions of healthcare systems, business operations (including business closures) and supply chains, employee layoffs and general lack of employee availability, lower consumer demand, and defaults and credit downgrades, all of which contributed to disruption of global economic activity across many industries and exacerbated other pre-existing political, social and economic risks domestically and globally. Although the WHO and the United States ended their declarations of COVID-19 as a global health emergency in May 2023, the full economic impact at the macro-level and on individual businesses, as well as the potential for a future reoccurrence of COVID-19 or the occurrence of a similar epidemic or pandemic, is unpredictable and could result in significant and prolonged adverse impact on economies and financial markets in specific countries and worldwide and thereby could negatively affect a Fund’s performance.

Custody and Banking Risks. A Fund’s assets may be maintained with one or more banks or other depository institutions (“banking institutions”), including both U.S. and non-U.S. banking institutions. In addition, a Fund’s assets may be maintained at regional (or mid-size) banking institutions or large banking institutions. Regional banking institutions are generally subject to fewer regulatory safeguards than large banking institutions, causing regional banking institutions to be perceived as having greater credit risk than large banking institutions. A Fund may enter into credit facilities or have other financial relationships with banking institutions. The distress, impairment or failure of one or more banking institutions, whether or not holding a Fund’s assets, may inhibit the ability of a Fund to access depository accounts or lines of credit at all or in a timely manner. Such events can be caused by various factors including negative market sentiment, significant withdrawals, fraud, or poor management. In such cases, a Fund may need to delay or forgo making new investments, or a Fund may need to sell another investment to raise cash when it is not desirable to do so, which could result in lower performance. In the event of such a failure of a banking institution, access to such accounts could be restricted and U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) protection may not be available for balances in excess of the amounts insured by the FDIC (and similar considerations may apply to banking institutions in other jurisdictions not subject to FDIC protection). In such instances, a Fund may not recover such excess uninsured amounts and instead would only have an unsecured claim against the banking institution and may be able to recover only the residual value of the banking institution’s assets, if any value is recovered at all. The loss of any assets maintained with a banking institution or the inability to access such assets for a period of time, even if ultimately recovered, could be materially adverse to a Fund. In addition, the Adviser may not be able to identify all potential solvency or stress concerns with respect to a banking institution or transfer assets from one bank to another in a timely manner in the event a banking institution comes under stress or fails. It is also possible that a Fund will incur additional expenses or delays in putting in place alternative arrangements or that such alternative arrangements will be less favorable than those formerly in place (with respect to access to capital, economic terms, or otherwise).

 

20


PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

Each Fund calculates its portfolio turnover rate by dividing the value of the lesser of purchases or sales of portfolio securities for the fiscal period by the monthly average of the value of portfolio securities owned by the Fund during the fiscal period. A 100% portfolio turnover rate would occur, for example, if all of the portfolio securities (other than short-term securities) were replaced once during the fiscal period. Portfolio turnover rates will vary from year to year, depending on market conditions and the nature of a Fund’s holdings. No Funds experienced significant variation in portfolio turnover during the two most recently completed fiscal years ended April 30:

DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS

Quarterly Portfolio Schedule. The Trust is required to disclose, after its first and third fiscal quarters, the complete schedule of each Fund’s portfolio holdings with the SEC on Form N-PORT. The Trust also discloses a complete schedule of each Fund’s portfolio holdings with the SEC on Form N-CSR after its second and fourth fiscal quarters.

 

21


The Trust’s Forms N-PORT and Forms N-CSR are available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. The Trust’s Forms N-PORT and Forms N-CSR are available without charge, upon request, by calling 630.933.9600 or 800.983.0903 or by writing to Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust at 3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700, Downers Grove, Illinois 60515.

Portfolio Holdings Policy. The Trust has adopted a policy regarding the disclosure of information about the Funds’ portfolio holdings. The Board must approve all material amendments to this policy.

Each business day before the opening of regular trading on the Exchange where Shares are traded, the Fund discloses on its website (www.invesco.com/ETFs) the portfolio holdings that will form the basis for the Fund’s next calculation of NAV per Share. The Trust, the Adviser and The Bank of New York Mellon (“BNYM” or the “Administrator”) will not disseminate non-public information concerning the Trust.

Access to information concerning the Funds’ portfolio holdings may be permitted at other times: (i) to personnel of third-party service providers, including the Funds’ custodian, transfer agent, auditors and counsel, as may be necessary to conduct business in the ordinary course in a manner consistent with such service providers’ agreements with the Trust on behalf of the Funds; or (ii) in instances when the Funds’ President and/or Chief Compliance Officer determines that (x) such disclosure serves a reasonable business purpose and is in the best interests of the Fund’s shareholders; and (y) in making such disclosure, no conflict exists between the interests of the Fund’s shareholders and those of the Adviser or the Distributor.

MANAGEMENT

The primary responsibility of the Board is to represent the interests of the Funds and to provide oversight of the management of the Funds. The Trust currently has nine Trustees. Eight Trustees are not “interested,” as that term is defined under the 1940 Act, and have no affiliation or business connection with the Adviser or any of its affiliated persons and do not own any stock or other securities issued by the Adviser (the “Independent Trustees”). The remaining Trustee (the “Interested Trustee”) is affiliated with the Adviser.

The Independent Trustees of the Trust, their term of office and length of time served, their principal business occupations during at least the past five years, the number of portfolios in the Fund Complex (defined below) that they oversee and other directorships, if any, that they hold are shown below. The “Fund Complex” includes all open- and closed-end funds (including all of their portfolios) advised by the Adviser and any affiliated person of the Adviser. As of the date of this SAI, the “Fund Family” consists of the Trust and five other ETF trusts advised by the Adviser.

 

Name, Address and

Year of Birth

of Independent Trustees

  

Position(s) Held

with Trust

  

Term of

Office and

Length of

Time Served*

  

Principal Occupation(s)

During the Past 5 Years

   Number of
Portfolios in
Fund
Complex
Overseen by
Independent
Trustees
  

Other Directorships

Held by

Independent Trustees

During the Past 5 Years

Ronn R. Bagge—1958

c/o Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road,

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Vice Chair of the Board; Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee and Trustee    Vice Chair since 2018; Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee; Trustee since 2003    Founder and Principal, YQA Capital Management LLC (1998-Present); formerly, Owner/CEO of Electronic Dynamic Balancing Co., Inc. (high-speed rotating equipment service provider) (1988-2001).    [___]    Chair (since 2021) and member (since 2017) of the Joint Investment Committee, Mission Aviation Fellowship and MAF Foundation; Trustee, Mission Aviation Fellowship (2017-Present).

 

22


Todd J. Barre—1957

c/o Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road,

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Trustee    Since 2010    Formerly, Assistant Professor of Business, Trinity Christian College (2010-2016); Vice President and Senior Investment Strategist (2001-2008), Director of Open Architecture and Trading (2007-2008), Head of Fundamental    [___]    None.

 

23


Name, Address and

Year of Birth

of Independent Trustees

  

Position(s) Held

with Trust

  

Term of

Office and

Length of

Time Served*

  

Principal Occupation(s)

During the Past 5 Years

   Number of
Portfolios in
Fund
Complex
Overseen by
Independent
Trustees
  

Other Directorships

Held by

Independent Trustees

During the Past 5 Years

        

Research (2004-2007) and Vice President and Senior Fixed Income Strategist (1994-2001), BMO Financial Group/Harris Private Bank.

     

Victoria J. Herget—1951

c/o Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road,

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Trustee    Since 2019   

Formerly, Managing Director (1993-2001),

Principal (1985-1993), Vice President (1978-1985) and Assistant Vice President (1973-1978), Zurich Scudder Investments (investment adviser) (and its predecessor firms).

   [___]    Trustee Emerita (2017-present), Trustee (2000-2017) and Chair (2010-2017), Newberry Library; Member (2002-present), Rockefeller Trust Committee; formerly, Trustee, Chikaming Open Lands (2014-2023); Trustee, Mather LifeWays (2001-2021); Trustee, certain funds in the Oppenheimer Funds complex (2012-2019); Board Chair (2008-2015) and Director (2004-2018), United Educators Insurance Company; Independent Director, First American Funds (2003-2011); Trustee (1992-2007), Chair of the Board of Trustees (1999-2007), Investment Committee Chair (1994-1999) and Investment Committee member (2007-2010), Wellesley College; Trustee, BoardSource (2006-2009); Trustee, Chicago City Day School (1994-2005).

Marc M. Kole—1960

c/o Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road,

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Chair of the Audit Committee and Trustee    Chair of the Audit Committee since 2008; Trustee since 2006    Formerly, Managing Director of Finance (2020-2021) and Senior Director of Finance (2015-2020), By The Hand Club for Kids (not-for-profit); Chief Financial Officer, Hope Network (social services) (2008-2012); Assistant Vice President and Controller, Priority Health (health insurance) (2005-2008); Regional Chief    [___]    Formerly, Treasurer (2018-2021), Finance Committee Member (2015-2021) and Audit Committee Member (2015), Thornapple Evangelical Covenant Church; Board and Finance Committee Member (2009-2017) and Treasurer (2010-2015, 2017), NorthPointe Christian

 

24


Name, Address and

Year of Birth

of Independent Trustees

  

Position(s) Held

with Trust

  

Term of

Office and

Length of

Time Served*

  

Principal Occupation(s)

During the Past 5 Years

   Number of
Portfolios in
Fund
Complex
Overseen by
Independent
Trustees
  

Other Directorships

Held by

Independent Trustees

During the Past 5 Years

         Financial Officer, United Healthcare (2005); Chief Accounting Officer, Senior Vice President of Finance, Oxford Health Plans (2000-2004); Audit Partner, Arthur Andersen LLP (1996-2000).      

Schools.

Yung Bong Lim—1964

c/o Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road,

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Chair of the Investment Oversight Committee and Trustee    Chair of the Investment Oversight Committee since 2014; Trustee since 2013    Managing Partner, RDG Funds LLC (real estate) (2008-Present); formerly, Managing Director, Citadel LLC (1999-2007).    [___]    Board Director, Beacon Power Services, Corp. (2019-Present); formerly, Advisory Board Member, Performance Trust Capital Partners, LLC (2008-2020).

Joanne Pace—1958

c/o Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road,

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Trustee    Since 2019    Formerly, Senior Advisor, SECOR Asset Management, LP (2010-2011); Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer, Morgan Stanley Investment Management (2006-2010); Partner and Chief Operating Officer, FrontPoint Partners, LLC (alternative investments) (2005-2006); Managing Director (2003-2005), Global Head of Human Resources and member of Executive Board and Operating Committee (2004-2005), Global Head of Operations and Product Control (2003-2004), Credit Suisse (investment banking); Managing Director (1997-2003), Controller and Principal Accounting Officer (1999-2003), Chief Financial Officer (temporary assignment) for the Oversight Committee, Long Term Capital Management (1998-1999), Morgan Stanley.    [___]    Board Director, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey (2012-Present); Council Member, New York-Presbyterian Hospital’s Leadership Council on Children’s and Women’s Health (2012-Present); formerly, Governing Council Member (2016-2023) and Chair of Education Committee (2017- 2021), Independent Directors Council (IDC); Advisory Board Director, The Alberleen Group LLC (2012- 2021); Board Member, 100 Women in Finance (2015-2020); Trustee, certain funds in the Oppenheimer Funds complex (2012-2019); Lead Independent Director and Chair of the Audit and Nominating Committee of The Global Chartist Fund, LLC, Oppenheimer Asset Management (2011-2012); Board Director, Managed Funds Association (2008- 2010); Board Director (2007-2010) and

 

25


Name, Address and

Year of Birth

of Independent Trustees

  

Position(s) Held

with Trust

  

Term of

Office and

Length of

Time Served*

  

Principal Occupation(s)

During the Past 5 Years

   Number of
Portfolios in
Fund
Complex
Overseen by
Independent
Trustees
  

Other Directorships

Held by

Independent Trustees

During the Past 5 Years

              

Investment Committee Chair (2008-2010), Morgan Stanley Foundation.

Gary R. Wicker—1961

c/o Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road,

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Trustee    Since 2013    Formerly, Senior Vice President of Global Finance and Chief Financial Officer, RBC Ministries (publishing company) (2013-2024); Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Zondervan Publishing (a division of Harper Collins/NewsCorp) (2007-2012); Senior Vice President and Group Controller (2005- 2006), Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (2003-2004), Chief Financial Officer (2001-2003), Vice President, Finance and Controller (1999-2001) and Assistant Controller (1997-1999), divisions of The Thomson Corporation (information services provider); Senior Audit Manager (1994-1997), PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.    [___]    Board and Finance Committee Member, West Michigan Youth For Christ (2010-Present); Board Member and Treasurer, Our Daily Bread Ministries Canada (2015-2024).

Donald H. Wilson—1959

c/o Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road,

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Chair of the Board and Trustee    Chair since 2012; Trustee since 2006   

Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer, McHenry Bancorp Inc. and McHenry Savings Bank (subsidiary) (2018-Present); formerly, Chair and Chief Executive

Officer, Stone Pillar

Advisors, Ltd. (2010-2017); President and Chief Executive Officer, Stone Pillar Investments, Ltd. (advisory services to the financial sector) (2016- 2018); Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer, Community

Financial Shares, Inc. and Community Bank— Wheaton/Glen Ellyn (subsidiary) (2013-2015); Chief Operating Officer,

   [___]    Director, Penfield Children’s Center (2004-Present); Board Chair, Gracebridge Alliance, Inc. (2015-Present).

 

26


Name, Address and

Year of Birth

of Independent Trustees

  

Position(s) Held

with Trust

  

Term of

Office and

Length of

Time Served*

  

Principal Occupation(s)

During the Past 5 Years

   Number of
Portfolios in
Fund
Complex
Overseen by
Independent
Trustees
  

Other Directorships

Held by

Independent Trustees

During the Past 5 Years

        

AMCORE Financial, Inc. (bank holding company) (2007-2009); Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, AMCORE Financial, Inc. (2006-2007); Senior Vice President and Treasurer, Marshall & Ilsley Corp. (bank holding company) (1995-2006).

     

 

*

This is the date the Independent Trustee began serving the Trust. Each Independent Trustee serves an indefinite term, until his or her successor is elected.

The Interested Trustee, President and Principal Executive Officer of the Trust, his term of office and length of time served, his principal business occupations during at least the past five years, the number of portfolios in the Fund Complex overseen by the Interested Trustee and the other directorships, if any, held by the Interested Trustee, are shown below.

 

Name, Address and

Year of Birth

of Interested Trustee*

  

Position(s) Held

with Trust

  

Term of

Office and

Length of

Time Served**

  

Principal Occupation(s)

During the Past 5 Years

  

Number of

Portfolios in

Fund

Complex

Overseen by

Interested
Trustee

  

Other Directorships

Held by

Interested Trustee

During the Past 5 Years

Brian Hartigan—1978

Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road

Suite700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Trustee, President and Principal Executive Officer    Trustee since 2024; President and Principal Executive Officer since 2023    President and Principal Executive Officer, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange- Traded Commodity Fund Trust and Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust (2023 – Present); Managing Director and Global Head of ETFs, Indexed Strategies, SMAs and Model Portfolios, Chief Executive Officer and Principal Executive Officer, Invesco Capital Management LLC (2023 - Present); Chief Executive Officer, Manager and Principal Executive Officer, Invesco Specialized Products, LLC (2023 – Present); Director, Co-Chief Executive Officer    [___]    None.

 

27


Name, Address and

Year of Birth

of Interested Trustee*

  

Position(s) Held

with Trust

  

Term of

Office and

Length of

Time Served**

  

Principal Occupation(s)

During the Past 5 Years

  

Number of

Portfolios in

Fund

Complex

Overseen by

Interested
Trustee

  

Other Directorships

Held by

Interested Trustee

During the Past 5 Years

        

and Co-President, Invesco Capital Markets, Inc. (2020 – Present); Manager and President, Invesco Investment Advisers LLC (2020 – Present) and Manager, Invesco Indexing LLC (2023 – Present); formerly, Global Head of ETF Investments and Indexed Strategy (2020 - 2023); Global Head of ETF Investments (2017 - 2020); Head of Investments-PowerShares (2015 - 2017) and Executive Director, Product Development, Invesco Capital Markets, Inc. (2010 - 2015).

     

 

*

Mr. Hartigan is considered an “interested person” (within the meaning of Section 2(a)(19) of the 1940 Act) of the Trust because he is an officer of the Adviser to the Trust.

 

**

The Interested Trustee serves an indefinite term, until his successor is elected.

The other executive officers of the Trust, their term of office and length of time served, and their principal business occupations during at least the past five years are shown below.

 

Name, Address and

Year of Birth

of Executive Officer

  

Position(s) Held

with Trust

  

Term of

Office and

Length of

Time Served*

  

Principal Occupation(s) During at Least the Past 5 Years

Adrien Deberghes — 1967

Invesco Capital

Management LLC,

11 Greenway Plaza

Houston, TX 77046

   Vice President    Since 2020    Vice President, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust and Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust (2020-Present); Head of the Fund Office of the CFO, Fund Administration and Vice President, Invesco Advisers, Inc. (2020-Present); Principal Financial Officer (2020-Present), Treasurer (2020-Present) and Senior Vice President (2023-Present), The Invesco Funds; Director, Invesco Trust Company (2023-Present); formerly, Vice President, The Invesco Funds (2020-2023); Senior Vice President and Treasurer, Fidelity Investments (2008-2020).

Kelli Gallegos — 1970

Invesco Capital

Management LLC,

11 Greenway Plaza

Houston, TX 77046

   Vice President and Treasurer    Since 2018    Vice President, Invesco Advisers, Inc. (2020-Present); Principal Financial and Accounting Officer- Pooled Investments, Invesco Specialized Products, LLC (2018-Present); Vice President and Treasurer, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust and Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust (2018-Present); Principal Financial and Accounting Officer-Pooled Investments, Invesco Capital Management LLC (2018-Present); Vice President and Assistant Treasurer (2008-Present),

 

28


Name, Address and

Year of Birth

of Executive Officer

  

Position(s) Held

with Trust

  

Term of

Office and

Length of

Time Served*

  

Principal Occupation(s) During at Least the Past 5 Years

         The Invesco Funds; formerly, Principal Financial Officer (2016-2020) and Assistant Vice President (2008-2016), The Invesco Funds; Assistant Treasurer, Invesco Specialized Products, LLC (2018); Assistant Treasurer, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust and Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust (2012-2018), Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust (2014-2018) and Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust (2016-2018); and Assistant Treasurer, Invesco Capital Management LLC (2013-2018).

Adam Henkel — 1980

Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Secretary    Since 2020    Assistant General Counsel (2024-Present) and Secretary (2020-Present), Invesco Capital Management LLC; Secretary, Invesco Specialized Products LLC (2020-Present); Secretary, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust and Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust (2020-Present); Assistant Secretary, Invesco Capital Markets, Inc. (2020-Present); Assistant Secretary, The Invesco Funds (2014-Present); Manager (2020-Present) and Secretary (2022-Present), Invesco Indexing LLC; Manager, Invesco Investment Advisers LLC (2024-Present); formerly, Assistant Secretary, Invesco Investment Advisers LLC (2020-2024); Assistant Secretary of Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust and Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust (2014-2020); Chief Compliance Officer of Invesco Capital Management LLC (2017); Chief Compliance Officer of Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust and Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust (2017); Senior Counsel, Invesco, Ltd. (2013-2020); Assistant Secretary, Invesco Specialized Products, LLC (2018-2020); Head of Legal - ETFs, Invesco Capital Management LLC and Invesco Specialized Products, LLC (2020-2024).

Peter Hubbard — 1981

Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Vice President    Since 2009    Vice President, Invesco Specialized Products, LLC (2018-Present); Vice President, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust (2009-Present), Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust (2014-Present) and Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust (2016-Present); Vice President and Director of Portfolio Management, Invesco Capital Management LLC (2010-Present); Vice President, Invesco Advisers, Inc. (2020-Present); formerly, Vice President of Portfolio Management, Invesco Capital Management LLC (2008-2010); Portfolio Manager, Invesco Capital Management LLC (2007-2008); Research Analyst, Invesco Capital Management LLC (2005-2007); Research Analyst and Trader, Ritchie Capital, a hedge fund operator (2003-2005).

Rudolf E. Reitmann — 1971

Invesco Capital

Management LLC

   Vice President    Since 2013    Head of Global Exchange Traded Funds Services, Invesco Specialized Products, LLC (2018-Present); Vice President, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded

 

29


Name, Address and

Year of Birth

of Executive Officer

  

Position(s) Held

with Trust

  

Term of

Office and

Length of

Time Served*

  

Principal Occupation(s) During at Least the Past 5 Years

3500 Lacey Road

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

         Fund Trust II, Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust (2013-Present), Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust (2014-Present) and Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust (2016-Present); Head of Global Exchange Traded Funds Services, Invesco Capital Management LLC (2013-Present); Vice President, Invesco Capital Markets, Inc. (2018-Present).

Melanie Zimdars — 1976

Invesco Capital

Management LLC

3500 Lacey Road

Suite 700

Downers Grove, IL 60515

   Chief Compliance Officer    Since 2017    Chief Compliance Officer, Invesco Specialized Products, LLC (2018-Present); Chief Compliance Officer, Invesco Capital Management LLC (2017-Present); Chief Compliance Officer, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II, Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust, Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust and Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust (2017-Present); formerly, Vice President and Deputy Chief Compliance Officer, ALPS Holding, Inc. (2009-2017); Mutual Fund Treasurer/ Chief Financial Officer, Wasatch Advisors, Inc. (2005-2008); Compliance Officer, U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC (2001-2005).

 

*

This is the date the Officer began serving the Trust in his or her current position. Each Officer serves an indefinite term, until his or her successor is elected.

For each Trustee, the dollar range of equity securities beneficially owned by the Trustee in the Funds and in all registered investment companies in the Fund Family overseen by the Trustee as of December 31, 2024, is shown below.

 

Name of Trustee

  

Dollar Range of

Equity Securities Per Fund

  

Aggregate Dollar

Range of Equity

Securities in All

Registered Investment

Companies Overseen

by Trustee in Fund Family

Independent Trustees      
Todd J. Barre   

Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF

Over $100,000

   Over $100,000
  

Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF

Over $100,000

  
Gary R. Wicker   

Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF

$50,001 - $100,000

   Over $100,000

As of December 31, 2024, as to each Independent Trustee and his or her immediate family members, no person owned, beneficially or of record, securities in an investment adviser or principal underwriter of the Funds, or a person (other than a registered investment company) directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by or under common control with an investment adviser or principal underwriter of the Funds.

Board and Committee Structure. As noted above, the Board is responsible for oversight of the Funds, including oversight of the duties performed by the Adviser for each Fund under the investment advisory

 

30


agreement, as amended and restated, between the Adviser and the Trust, on behalf of each Fund (the “Investment Advisory Agreement”). The Board generally meets in regularly scheduled meetings five times a year and may meet more often as required. During the Trust’s fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Board held six meetings.

The Board has three standing committees, the Audit Committee, the Investment Oversight Committee and the Nominating and Governance Committee, and has delegated certain responsibilities to those Committees.

Mr. Kole (Chair), Ms. Pace, and Messrs. Wicker and Wilson currently serve as members of the Audit Committee. The Audit Committee has the responsibility, among other things, to: (i) approve and recommend to the Board the selection of the Trust’s independent registered public accounting firm, (ii) review the scope of the independent registered public accounting firm’s audit activity, (iii) review the audited financial statements, and (iv) review with such independent registered public accounting firm the adequacy and the effectiveness of the Trust’s internal controls over financial reporting During the Trust’s fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Audit Committee held six meetings.

Mr. Bagge, Dr. Barre, Ms. Herget and Mr. Lim (Chair) currently serve as members of the Investment Oversight Committee. The Investment Oversight Committee has the responsibility, among other things, (i) to review fund investment performance, including tracking error and correlation to a Fund’s underlying index, (ii) to review any proposed changes to a Fund’s investment policies, comparative benchmark indices or underlying index, and (iii) to review a Fund’s market trading activities and portfolio transactions. The Investment Oversight Committee also oversees the Adviser’s process for fair valuing the Funds’ portfolio investments and receives reports from the Adviser regarding the fair valuation of the Funds’ portfolio investments in accordance with the Adviser’s Valuation Procedures, which have been approved by the Board (the “Valuation Procedures”). During the Trust’s fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Investment Oversight Committee held four meetings.

Mr. Bagge (Chair), Dr. Barre, Ms. Herget, Messrs. Kole and Lim, Ms. Pace, and Messrs. Wicker and Wilson currently serve as members of the Nominating and Governance Committee. The Nominating and Governance Committee has the responsibility, among other things, to identify and recommend individuals for Board membership and evaluate candidates for Board membership. The Board will consider recommendations for trustees from shareholders. Nominations from shareholders should be in writing and sent to the Secretary of the Trust to the attention of the Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee, as described below under the caption “Shareholder Communications.” During the Trust’s fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the Nominating and Governance Committee held four meetings.

Mr. Wilson, one of the Independent Trustees, serves as the chair of the Board (the “Independent Chair”). The Independent Chair, among other things, chairs the Board meetings, participates in the preparation of the Board agendas and serves as a liaison between, and facilitates communication among, the other Independent Trustees, the full Board, the Adviser and other service providers with respect to Board matters. Mr. Bagge, as Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee, serves as Vice Chair of the Board (“Vice Chair”). In the absence of the Independent Chair, the Vice Chair is responsible for all of the Independent Chair’s duties and may exercise any of the Independent Chair’s powers. The Chairs of each Committee also serve as liaisons between the Adviser and other service providers and the other Independent Trustees for matters pertaining to the respective Committee. The Board believes that its current leadership structure is appropriate taking into account the assets and number of funds in the Fund Family overseen by the Trustees, the size of the Board and the nature of the funds’ business, as the Interested Trustee and the officers of the Trust provide the Board with insight as to the daily management of the funds while the Independent Chair promotes independent oversight of the funds by the Board.

Risk Oversight. Each Fund is subject to a number of risks, including operational, investment and compliance risks. The Board, directly and through its Committees, as part of its oversight responsibilities, oversees the services provided by the Adviser and the Trust’s other service providers in connection with the management and operations of the Funds, as well as their associated risks. Under the oversight of the Board, the Trust, the Adviser and other service providers have adopted policies, procedures and controls to address

 

31


these risks. The Board, directly and through its Committees, receives and reviews information from the Adviser, other service providers, the Trust’s independent registered public accounting firm, Trust counsel and counsel to the Independent Trustees to assist it in its oversight responsibilities. This information includes, but is not limited to, reports regarding the Funds’ investments, including Fund performance and investment practices, valuation of Fund portfolio securities, and compliance. The Board also reviews, and must approve any proposed changes to, the Funds’ investment objective, policies and restrictions, and reviews any areas of non-compliance with the Funds’ investment policies and restrictions. The Audit Committee monitors the Trust’s accounting policies, financial reporting and internal control system and reviews any internal audit reports impacting the Trust. As part of its compliance oversight, the Board reviews the annual compliance report issued by the Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer on the policies and procedures of the Trust and its service providers, proposed changes to those policies and procedures and quarterly reports on any material compliance issues that arose during the period.

Experience, Qualifications and Attributes. As noted above, the Nominating and Governance Committee is responsible for identifying, evaluating and recommending trustee candidates. The Nominating and Governance Committee reviews the background and the educational, business and professional experience of trustee candidates and the candidates’ expected contributions to the Board. Trustees selected to serve on the Board are expected to possess relevant skills and experience, time availability and the ability to work well with the other Trustees. In addition to these qualities and based on each Trustee’s experience, qualifications and attributes and the Trustees’ combined contributions to the Board, the following is a brief summary of the information that led to the conclusion that each Board member should serve as a Trustee.

Mr. Bagge has served as a trustee and Chair of the Nominating and Governance Committee with the Fund Family since 2003 and as Vice Chair with the Fund Family since 2018. He founded YQA Capital Management, LLC in 1998 and has since served as a principal. Mr. Bagge has served as Chair (since 2021) and a member (since 2017) of the Joint Investment Committee of Mission Aviation Fellowship and MAF Foundation, and has served as a member of the Board of Trustees of Mission Aviation Fellowship since 2017. Previously, Mr. Bagge was the owner and CEO of Electronic Dynamic Balancing Company from 1988 to 2001. He began his career as a securities analyst for institutional investors, including CT&T Asset Management and J.C. Bradford & Co. The Board considered that Mr. Bagge has served as a board member or advisor for several privately held businesses and charitable organizations and the executive, investment and operations experience that Mr. Bagge has gained over the course of his career and through his financial industry experience.

Dr. Barre has served as a trustee with the Fund Family since 2010. He served as Assistant Professor of Business at Trinity Christian College from 2010 to 2016. Additionally, he earned his Doctor of Business Administration degree from Anderson University in 2019 with final dissertation research focused on exchange-traded funds. Previously, he served in various positions with BMO Financial Group/Harris Private Bank, including Vice President and Senior Investment Strategist (2001-2008), Director of Open Architecture and Trading (2007-2008), Head of Fundamental Research (2004-2007) and Vice President and Senior Fixed Income Strategist (1994-2001). From 1983 to 1994, Dr. Barre was with the Office of the Manager of Investments at Commonwealth Edison Co. He also was a staff accountant at Peat Marwick Mitchell & Co. from 1981 to 1983. The Board considered the executive, financial and investment experience that Dr. Barre has gained over the course of his career and through his financial industry experience.

Mr. Hartigan has served as a trustee with the Fund Family since 2024. He has served as Managing Director, Global Head of ETFs, Indexed Strategies, SMAs and Model Portfolios, and Chief Executive Officer and Principal Executive Officer of the Adviser since 2023. Before that, Mr. Hartigan served as Global Head of ETF Investments of the Adviser since 2015 and held various other senior level positions with the Adviser and its affiliates since 2010. In addition, Mr. Hartigan has served as President and Principal Executive Officer of the Fund Family since 2023. The Board considered Mr. Hartigan’s senior executive positions with the Adviser.

Ms. Herget has served as a trustee with the Fund Family since 2019. She has served as Trustee (2000-2017), Chair (2010-2017) and Trustee Emerita (since 2017) of Newberry Library, and as a member of the

 

32


Rockefeller Trust Committee since 2002. Previously, she served as Trustee of Chikaming Open Lands (2014-2023), Trustee of Mather LifeWays (2001-2021), as Board Chair (2008-2015) and Director (2004-2018) of United Educators Insurance Company, as Trustee of certain funds in the Oppenheimer Funds complex (2012- 2019) and as Independent Director of the First American Funds (2003-2011). Ms. Herget served as Managing Director (1993-2001), Principal (1985-1993), Vice President (1978-1985) and Assistant Vice President (1973- 1978) of Zurich Scudder Investments (and its predecessor firms), as Trustee (1992-2007), Chair of the Board of Trustees (1999-2007), Investment Committee Chair (1994-1999) and Investment Committee member (2007-2010) of Wellesley College and as Trustee of BoardSource (2006-2009) and Chicago City Day School (1994-2005). The Board considered the executive, financial and investment experience that Ms. Herget has gained over the course of her career and through her financial industry experience.

Mr. Kole has served as a trustee with the Fund Family since 2006 and Chair of the Audit Committee with the Fund Family since 2008. He was the Managing Director of Finance from 2020 to 2021 and was Senior Director of Finance from 2015 to 2020, of By The Hand Club for Kids. Mr. Kole also was the Chief Financial Officer of Hope Network from 2008 to 2012 and he was the Assistant Vice President and Controller at Priority Health from 2005 to 2008, Regional Chief Financial Officer of United Healthcare from 2004 to 2005, Chief Accounting Officer and Senior Vice President of Finance of Oxford Health Plans from 2000 to 2004 and Audit Partner at Arthur Andersen LLP from 1996 to 2000. Mr. Kole served as Treasurer (2018-2021), Finance Committee Member (2015-2021) and Audit Committee Member (2015) of Thornapple Evangelical Covenant Church and he served as Board and Finance Committee Member (2009-2017) and Treasurer (2010-2015, 2017) of NorthPointe Christian Schools. The Board has determined that Mr. Kole qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined by the SEC. The Board considered the executive, financial and operations experience that Mr. Kole has gained over the course of his career and through his financial industry experience.

Mr. Lim has served as a trustee with the Fund Family since 2013 and Chair of the Investment Oversight Committee with the Fund Family since 2014. He has been a Managing Partner of RDG Funds LLC since 2008. Previously, he was a Managing Director and the Head of the Securitized Products Group of Citadel LLC (1999-2007). Prior to his employment with Citadel LLC, he was a Managing Director with Salomon Brothers Inc. Mr. Lim has served as a Board Director of Beacon Power Services, Corp. since 2019 and served as an Advisory Board Member of Performance Trust Capital Partners, LLC (2008-2020). The Board considered the executive, financial, operations and investment experience that Mr. Lim has gained over the course of his career and through his financial industry experience.

Ms. Pace has served as a trustee with the Fund Family since 2019. She has served as Board Director of Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey since 2012, and as a Council Member of New York-Presbyterian Hospital’s Leadership Council on Children’s and Women’s Health since 2012. Previously, she has served as Governing Council Member (2016-2023) and Chair of Education Committee (2017-2021) of Independent Directors Council (IDC), an Advisory Board Director of The Alberleen Group LLC (2012-2021), a Board Member of 100 Women in Finance (2015-2020), a Trustee of certain funds in the Oppenheimer Funds complex (2012-2019), as Senior Advisor of SECOR Asset Management, LP (2010-2011), as Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of Morgan Stanley Investment Management (2006-2010) and as Partner and Chief Operating Officer of FrontPoint Partners, LLC (2005-2006). Ms. Pace also held the following positions at Credit Suisse: Managing Director (2003-2005); Global Head of Human Resources and member of Executive Board and Operating Committee (2004-2005), and Global Head of Operations and Product Control (2003-2004). She also held the following positions at Morgan Stanley: Managing Director (1997-2003), Controller and Principal Accounting Officer (1999-2003); and Chief Financial Officer (temporary assignment) for the Oversight Committee, Long Term Capital Management (1998-1999). She also served as Lead Independent Director and Chair of the Audit and Nominating Committee of The Global Chartist Fund, LLC of Oppenheimer Asset Management (2011-2012), as Board Director of Managed Funds Association (2008-2010) and as Board Director of Morgan Stanley Foundation (2007-2010) and Investment Committee Chair (2008-2010). The Board has determined that Ms. Pace qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined by the SEC. The Board considered the executive, financial, operations and investment experience that Ms. Pace has gained over the course of her career and through her financial industry experience.

 

33


Mr. Wicker has served as a trustee with the Fund Family since 2013. He served as Senior Vice President of Global Finance and Chief Financial Officer at RBC Ministries from 2013 to 2024. Previously, he was the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Zondervan Publishing from 2007 to 2012. Prior to his employment with Zondervan Publishing, he held various positions with divisions of The Thomson Corporation, including Senior Vice President and Group Controller (2005-2006), Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (2003-2004), Chief Financial Officer (2001-2003), Vice President, Finance and Controller (1999-2001) and Assistant Controller (1997-1999). Prior to that, Mr. Wicker was Senior Manager in the Audit and Business Advisory Services Group of Price Waterhouse (1994-1996). Mr. Wicker served as a Board and Finance Committee Member of West Michigan Youth For Christ (2010-Present) and as a Board Member and Treasurer of Our Daily Bread Ministries Canada (2015-2024). The Board has determined that Mr. Wicker qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined by the SEC. The Board considered the executive, financial and operations experience that Mr. Wicker has gained over the course of his career and through his financial industry experience.

Mr. Wilson has served as a trustee with the Fund Family since 2006 and as the Independent Chair with the Fund Family since 2012. He also served as lead Independent Trustee in 2011. He has served as the Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer of McHenry Bancorp Inc. and McHenry Savings Bank since 2018. Previously, he was Chair and Chief Executive Officer of Stone Pillar Advisors, Ltd. (2010-2017). He was also President and Chief Executive Officer of Stone Pillar Investments, Ltd. (2016-2018). Mr. Wilson was also the Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer of Community Financial Shares, Inc. and its subsidiary, Community Bank—Wheaton/Glen Ellyn (2013-2015). He also was the Chief Operating Officer (2007-2009) and Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (2006-2007) of AMCORE Financial, Inc. Mr. Wilson also served as Senior Vice President and Treasurer of Marshall & Ilsley Corp. from 1995 to 2006. He started his career with the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, serving in several roles in the bank examination division and the economic research division. Mr. Wilson has served as a Director of Penfield Children’s Center (2004-Present) and as Board Chair of Gracebridge Alliance, Inc. (2015-Present). The Board has determined that Mr. Wilson qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined by the SEC. The Board considered the executive, financial and operations experience that Mr. Wilson has gained over the course of his career and through his financial industry experience.

This disclosure is not intended to hold out any Trustee as having any special expertise and shall not impose greater duties, obligations or liabilities on the Trustees. The Trustees’ principal occupations during at least the past five years are shown in the above tables.

For his or her services as a Trustee of the Trust and other trusts in the Fund Family, each Independent Trustee receives an annual retainer of $370,000 (the “Retainer”). The Retainer for the Independent Trustees is allocated half pro rata among all the funds in the Fund Family and the other half is allocated among all of the funds in the Fund Family based on average net assets. The Independent Chair receives an additional $120,000 per year for his service as the Independent Chair, allocated in the same manner as the Retainer. The chairs of the Audit Committee and the Nominating and Governance Committee each receive an additional fee of $35,000 per year and the chair of the Investment Oversight Committee receives an additional fee of $30,000 per year, each allocated in the same manner as the Retainer. Prior to January 1, 2024, the Retainer for each Independent Trustee was $350,000, and the chairs of the Investment Oversight Committee and Nominating and Governance Committee each received an additional fee of $20,000. Each Trustee also is reimbursed for travel and other out-of-pocket expenses incurred in attending Board and committee meetings.

The DC Plan allows each Independent Trustee to defer payment of all, or a portion, of the fees that the Trustee receives for serving on the Board throughout the year. Each eligible Trustee generally may elect to have deferred amounts credited with a return equal to the total return of one or more registered investment companies within the Fund Family that are offered as investment options under the DC Plan. At the Trustee’s election, distributions are either in one lump sum payment, or in the form of equal annual installments over a period of years designated by the Trustee. The rights of an eligible Trustee and the beneficiaries to the amounts held under the DC Plan are unsecured, and such amounts are subject to the claims of the creditors of a fund. The Independent Trustees are not eligible for any pension or profit sharing plan in their capacity as Trustees.

 

34


The following sets forth the fees paid to each Trustee for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024.

 

Name of Trustee

   Aggregate
 Compensation From 
Funds
   Pension or Retirement
 Benefits accrued as part of 
Fund Expenses
    Total Compensation Paid 
From Fund Complex (1)

Independent Trustees

              

Ronn R. Bagge

     $ 159,923        N/A      $ 381,667

Todd J. Barre

     $ 149,426        N/A      $ 356,667

Edmund P. Giambastiani, Jr.2

     $ 149,426        N/A      $ 356,667

Victoria J. Herget

     $ 149,426        N/A      $ 356,667

Marc M. Kole

     $ 164,084        N/A      $ 391,667

Yung Bong Lim

     $ 159,217        N/A      $ 380,000

Joanne Pace

     $ 149,426        N/A      $ 356,667

Gary R. Wicker

     $ 149,426        N/A      $ 356,667

Donald H. Wilson

     $ 199,687        N/A      $ 476,667

Interested Trustee

              

Anna Paglia3

       N/A        N/A        N/A

Brian Hartigan4

       N/A        N/A        N/A

 

(1)

The amounts shown in this column represent the aggregate compensation paid by all funds of the trusts in the Fund Family for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, before deferral by the Trustee under the DC Plan. During the fiscal period ended August 31, 2024, Mr. Lim deferred 100% of his compensation, Mr. Wilson deferred $130,664 of his compensation and Ms. Herget deferred $246,664 of her compensation.

 

(2)

Mr. Giambastiani retired from the Board effective May 2, 2024.

 

(3)

Ms. Paglia resigned from the Board effective November 28, 2023.

(4)

Mr. Hartigan was appointed to the Board effective December 12, 2024.

Management Ownership. As of [  ], the Trustees and Officers, as a group, owned less than 1% of each Fund’s outstanding Shares.

Principal Holders and Control Persons. The following table sets forth the name, address and percentage of ownership of each person who is known by the Trust to own, of record or beneficially, 5% or more of each Fund’s outstanding equity securities as of [  ].

INVESCO RAFI US 1000 ETF

 

Name & Address

    % Owned 

Charles Schwab & Co, Inc

211 Main Street

San Francisco, CA 94105

   [____]%

National Financial Services LLC

200 Liberty Street

New York, NY 10281

   [____]%

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated

4 Corporate Place

Piscataway, NJ 08854

   [____]%

American Enterprise Investment Services Inc

707 2nd Avenue S

Minneapolis, MN 55402

   [____]%

INVESCO RAFI US 1500 SMALL-MID ETF

 

Name & Address

    % Owned 

Charles Schwab & Co, Inc

211 Main Street

San Francisco, CA 94105

   [____]%

National Financial Services LLC

200 Liberty Street

New York, NY 10281

   [____]%

Shareholder Communications. Shareholders may send communications to the Trust’s Board by addressing the communications directly to the Board (or individual Board members) and/or otherwise clearly indicating in the

 

35


salutation that the communication is for the Board (or individual Board members). Shareholders may send the communication to either the Trust’s office or directly to such Board members at the address specified for each Trustee. Management will review and generally respond to other shareholder communications the Trust receives that are not directly addressed and sent to the Board. Such communications will be forwarded to the Board at management’s discretion based on the matters contained therein.

Investment Adviser. The Adviser provides investment tools and portfolios for advisers and investors. The Adviser is committed to theoretically sound portfolio construction and empirically verifiable investment management approaches. Its asset management philosophy and investment discipline are rooted deeply in the application of intuitive factor analysis and model implementation to enhance investment decisions.

The Adviser acts as investment adviser for, and manages the investment and reinvestment of, the assets of the Funds. The Adviser also administers the Trust’s business affairs, provides office facilities and equipment and certain clerical, bookkeeping and administrative services, and permits any of its officers or employees to serve without compensation as Trustees or officers of the Trust if elected to such positions.

Invesco Capital Management LLC, organized February 7, 2003, is located at 3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700, Downers Grove, Illinois 60515. Invesco Ltd. is the parent company of Invesco Capital Management LLC and is located at 1331 Spring Street N.W., Suite 2500, Atlanta, Georgia 30309. Invesco Ltd. and its subsidiaries are an independent global investment management group.

Portfolio Managers. The Adviser uses a team of portfolio managers (the “Portfolio Managers”), investment strategists and other investment specialists. This team approach brings together many disciplines and leverages the Adviser’s extensive resources. Peter Hubbard, Pratik Doshi, Michael Jeanette and Tony Seisser (as the applicable “Portfolio Managers” are identified in each Fund’s Prospectus) are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Funds.

As of [  ], Mr. Hubbard managed [  ] registered investment companies with approximately $[  ] in assets, [  ] other pooled investment vehicles with approximately $[  ] in assets and [  ] other accounts with approximately $[  ] billion in assets.

As of [  ], Mr. Doshi managed [  ] registered investment companies with approximately $[  ] in assets, [  ] other pooled investment vehicles with approximately $[  ] in assets and [  ] other accounts with approximately $[  ] in assets.

 

36


As of [  ], Mr. Jeanette managed [  ] registered investment companies with approximately $[  ] in assets, [  ] other pooled investment vehicles with approximately $[  ] in assets and [  ] other accounts with approximately $[  ] in assets.

As of [  ], Mr. Seisser managed [  ] registered investment companies with approximately $[  ] in assets, [  ] other pooled investment vehicles with approximately $[  ] in assets and [  ] other accounts with approximately $[  ] in assets.

To the extent that any of these registered investment companies, other pooled investment vehicles or other accounts pay advisory fees that are based on performance (“performance-based fees”), information on those accounts is specifically broken out.  

Because the Portfolio Managers may manage assets for other investment companies, pooled investment vehicles and/or other accounts (including institutional clients, pension plans and certain high net worth individuals), there may be an incentive to favor one client over another, resulting in conflicts of interest. For instance, the Adviser may receive fees from certain accounts that are higher than the fee it receives from the Funds, or it may receive a performance-based fee on certain accounts. In those instances, the Portfolio Managers may have an incentive to favor the higher and/or performance-based fee accounts over the Funds. In addition, a conflict of interest could exist to the extent that the Adviser has proprietary investments in certain accounts, where Portfolio Managers have personal investments in certain accounts or when certain accounts are investment options in the Adviser’s employee benefits and/or deferred compensation plans. The Portfolio Managers may have an incentive to favor these accounts over others. If the Adviser manages accounts that engage in short sales of assets of the type in which a Fund invests, the Adviser could be seen as harming the performance of the Fund for the benefit of the accounts engaging in short sales if the short sales cause the market value of the assets to fall. The Adviser has adopted trade allocation and other policies and procedures that it believes are reasonably designed to address these and other conflicts of interest.

Although the other funds that the Portfolio Managers manage may have different investment strategies, the Adviser does not believe that management of the different funds presents a material conflict of interest for the Portfolio Manager or the Adviser.

Description of Compensation Structure. The Portfolio Managers are compensated with a fixed salary amount by the Adviser. The Portfolio Managers are eligible, along with other senior employees of the Adviser, to participate in a year-end discretionary bonus pool. The Compensation Committee of the Adviser will review management bonuses and, depending upon the size, the Compensation Committee may approve the bonus in advance. There is no policy regarding, or agreement with, the Portfolio Managers or any other senior executive of the Adviser to receive bonuses or any other compensation in connection with the performance of any of the accounts managed by the Portfolio Managers.

Portfolio Holdings. As of [  ], [  ] did not own any securities of the Funds.

 

37


Fund

   $1 to
$10,000
     $10,001 to
$50,000
     $50,001 to
$100,000
     $100,001 to
$500,000
     $500,001 to
$1,000,000
     over
$1,000,000
 

[  ]

                 

Investment Advisory Agreement. Pursuant to an Investment Advisory Agreement between the Adviser and the Trust, each Fund has agreed to pay to the Adviser for its services an annual fee equal to a percentage of its average daily net assets as set forth in the chart below (the “Advisory Fee”).

 

Fund

    Advisory Fee 

Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF

       0.29 %

Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF

       0.29 %

 

38


Each Fund is responsible for all its own expenses, including, but not limited to, the Advisory Fee, costs of transfer agency, custody, fund administration, legal, audit and other services, interest, taxes, brokerage commissions and other expenses connected with executions of portfolio transactions, licensing fees related to its respective Underlying Index, any distribution fees or expenses, litigation expenses, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses, if any, fees payable to the Trust’s Board members and officers who are not “interested persons” of the Trust or the Adviser, expenses incurred in connection with the Board members’ services, including travel expenses and legal fees of counsel for those members of the Board who are not “interested persons” of the Trust or the Adviser and extraordinary expenses, including proxy expenses (except for such proxies related to: (i) changes to the Investment Advisory Agreement, (ii) the

 

39


election of any Board member who is an “interested person” of the Trust, or (iii) any other matters that directly benefit the Adviser).

The Trust and the Adviser have entered into an Amended and Restated Excess Expense Agreement (the “Expense Agreement”) on behalf of each Fund listed in the following table pursuant to which the Adviser has agreed to waive fees and/or pay Fund expenses to the extent necessary to prevent the operating expenses of each such Fund (excluding interest expenses, licensing fees, offering costs (as defined below), brokerage commissions and other trading expenses, taxes, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses, if applicable, and extraordinary expenses) from exceeding the percentage of its average daily net assets per year, as set forth in the chart below (each, an “Expense Cap”), through at least August 31, 2026.

 

Fund

    Expense Cap 

Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF(1)

       0.39 %

Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF(1)

       0.39 %

 

40


(1)

Licensing fees are covered by the Expense Cap for the Fund.

The offering costs excluded from the Expense Cap for each Fund, as applicable, are: (a) initial legal fees pertaining to Shares offered for sale; (b) initial SEC and state registration fees; and (c) initial fees paid to be listed on an exchange.

The Expense Agreement provides that for each Fund, the fees waived and/or expenses borne by the Adviser are subject to recapture by the Adviser for up to three years from the date the fees were waived or the expenses were incurred, but no recapture payment will be made by the Fund if it would result in the Fund exceeding (i) the Expense Cap or (ii) the expense cap in effect at the time the fees and/or expenses subject to recapture were waived and/or borne by the Adviser.

The Funds may invest in money market funds that are managed by affiliates of the Adviser and other funds (including ETFs) managed by the Adviser or affiliates of the Adviser (collectively, “Underlying Affiliated Investments”). The indirect portion of the advisory fees that the Funds incur through such Underlying Affiliated Investments is in addition to the Advisory Fee payable to the Adviser by the Funds. Therefore, the Adviser has agreed to waive the Advisory Fee payable by each Fund in an amount equal to the lesser of: (i) 100% of the net advisory fees earned by the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser that are attributable to each Fund’s Underlying Affiliated Investments or (ii) the Advisory Fee available to be waived. This waiver does not apply to the Fund’s investment of cash collateral received for securities lending. This waiver is in place through at least August 31, 2026, and there is no guarantee that the Adviser will extend it past that date. This waiver in not subject to recapture.

A Fund’s operating expenses used in determining whether the Fund meets or exceeds its Expense Cap do not include any “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses” borne directly by the Fund. Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses reflect the pro rata share of the fees and expenses, including management fees, of the investment company or companies in which a Fund invests. While such expenses are not direct operating expenses of a Fund, the Fund is required to include any Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses in the “Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses” line item shown in the fee table in the Fund’s summary section of the Prospectus. As a result, the “Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and Expense Assumption” line item displayed in the fee table in the Fund’s summary section of the Prospectus may exceed the Fund’s Expense Cap.

The aggregate amount of the Advisory Fees paid by each Fund to the Adviser and the aggregate amount of Advisory Fees waived by the Adviser (net of expenses reimbursed to the Adviser under the Expense

 

41


Agreement) for each Fund during the fiscal years ended April 30, 2024, 2023 and 2022, or as otherwise indicated, are set forth in the chart below.

 

     2024    2023    2022
      Management 
Fee Payable
   Amounts
Waived
and/or
 Reimbursed 
that Reduced
the
Management
Fee
  Net
 Management 
Fee Paid
    Management 
Fee Payable
   Amounts
Waived
and/or
 Reimbursed 
that Reduced
the
Management
Fee
  Net
 Management 
Fee Paid
    Management 
Fee Payable
   Amounts
Waived
and/or
 Reimbursed 
that Reduced
the
Management
Fee
  Net
 Management 
Fee Paid
Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF        18,210,944        (199,560 )       18,011,384        16,882,712        (294,108 )       16,588,604        16,114,025        (65,584 )       16,048,441
Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF        6,149,539        (157,098 )       5,992,441        5,719,474        (234,038 )       5,502,026        5,620,657        (120,544 )       5,500,113

Under the Investment Advisory Agreement, the Adviser will not be liable for any error of judgment or mistake of law or for any loss suffered by a Fund in connection with the performance of the Investment Advisory Agreement, except a loss resulting from willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence on the part of the Adviser in the performance of its duties or from reckless disregard of its duties and obligations thereunder. The Investment Advisory Agreement continues in effect only if approved annually by the Board, including a majority of the Independent Trustees. The Investment Advisory Agreement terminates automatically upon assignment and is terminable at any time without penalty as to a Fund by the Board, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, or by vote of the holders of a majority of that Fund’s outstanding voting securities on 60 days’ written notice to the Adviser, or by the Adviser on 60 days’ written notice to the Fund.

Payments to Financial Intermediaries. The Adviser, the Distributor and/or their affiliates may enter into contractual arrangements with certain broker-dealers, banks and other financial intermediaries (each, an “Intermediary” and together, the “Intermediaries”) that the Adviser, the Distributor and/or their affiliates believe may benefit the Funds or other Invesco ETFs generally. Pursuant to such arrangements, the Adviser, the Distributor and/or their affiliates may provide cash payments or non-cash compensation, from their own assets and not from the assets of the Funds, to Intermediaries for certain activities that are designed to make registered representatives and other professionals more knowledgeable about exchange-traded products, including each Fund; or for other activities, such as marketing, presentations, educational training programs, conferences, data collection and provision, technology support, the development of technology platforms and reporting systems, and providing their customers with access to the Funds via online platforms. The Adviser, the Distributor, or their affiliates may, from their own assets, provide payments to intermediaries for reimbursement of costs or otherwise support services or other activities that the Adviser, the Distributor and/or their affiliates believe may facilitate investment in the Funds or other Invesco ETFs.

Any payments made pursuant to such arrangements may vary in any year and may be different for different Intermediaries. In certain cases, the payments described here may be subject to certain minimum payment levels. Although a portion of the Adviser’s revenue comes directly or indirectly in part from fees paid by the Funds, payments to Intermediaries are not financed by the Funds and therefore do not increase the price paid by investors for the purchase of shares of, or the costs of owning, a Fund or reduce the amount received by a shareholder as proceeds from the redemption of Shares. As a result, such payments are not reflected in the fees and expenses listed in the fees and expenses sections of the Funds’ Prospectuses.

The Adviser periodically assesses the advisability of continuing to make these payments. Payments to an Intermediary may be significant to that Intermediary, and amounts that Intermediaries pay to your adviser,

 

42


broker or other investment professional, if any, may also be significant to such adviser, broker or investment professional. Because an Intermediary may make decisions about what investment options it will make available or recommend, and what services to provide in connection with various products, based on payments it receives or is eligible to receive, such payments create conflicts of interest between the Intermediary and its clients. For example, these financial incentives may cause the Intermediary to recommend the Funds over other investments. The same conflict of interest exists with respect to your financial adviser, broker or investment professionals if he or she receives similar payments from his or her intermediary firm.

As of July 31, 2024, the Intermediaries receiving such payments include Charles Schwab, Equitable Advisors, Jane Street Financial Limited, LPL Financial, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC, Nitrogen Wealth Inc., Pershing LLC, Raymond James and Wells Fargo.

Please contact your salesperson, adviser, broker or other investment professional for more information regarding any such payments or financial incentives his or her intermediary firm may receive. Any payments made, or financial incentives offered, by the Adviser, Distributor and/or their affiliates to an Intermediary may create the incentive for the Intermediary to encourage customers to buy Shares.

Administrator. BNYM serves as administrator for the Funds. Its principal address is 240 Greenwich Street, New York, NY 10286.

BNYM serves as Administrator for the Funds pursuant to a fund administration and accounting agreement (the “Administrative Services Agreement”) with the Trust. Under the Administrative Services Agreement, BNYM is obligated, on a continuous basis, to provide such administrative services as the Board reasonably deems necessary for the proper administration of the Trust and the Funds. BNYM will generally assist in many aspects of the Trust’s and the Funds’ operations, including accounting, bookkeeping and record keeping services (including, without limitation, the maintenance of such books and records as are required under the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder, except as maintained by other service providers); assist in preparing reports to shareholders or investors; prepare and file tax returns; supply financial information and supporting data for reports to and filings with the SEC and various state Blue Sky authorities; and supply supporting documentation for meetings of the Board.

Pursuant to the Administrative Services Agreement, the Trust has agreed to indemnify the Administrator for certain liabilities, including certain liabilities arising under the federal securities laws, unless such loss or liability results from negligence or willful misconduct in the performance of its duties.

As compensation for the foregoing services, BNYM receives certain out-of-pocket costs and asset-based fees which are accrued daily and paid monthly by the Adviser from the Advisory Fee for the Unitary Fee Funds.

The aggregate amount of the administrative fees paid by each Fund to BNYM pursuant to the Administrative Services Agreement during each Fund’s fiscal years ended April 30, 2024, 2023 and 2022 are set forth in the chart below.

 

Fund Name

    2024      2023      2022 

Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF

       453,824        391,695        307,393

Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF

       181,151        148,814        138,894

Custodian, Transfer Agent and Fund Accounting Agent. BNYM (the “Custodian” or “Transfer Agent”), located at 240 Greenwich Street, New York, NY 10286, also serves as custodian for the Funds pursuant to a custodian agreement. As Custodian, BNYM holds the Funds’ assets, calculates the NAV of the Shares and calculates net income and realized capital gains or losses. BNYM also serves as Transfer Agent and dividend disbursing agent for the Funds pursuant to a transfer agency agreement. Further, BNYM serves as Fund accounting agent pursuant to the Administrative Services Agreement. As compensation for the foregoing services, BNYM may be reimbursed for its out-of-pocket costs, and receive transaction fees and asset-based fees which are accrued daily and paid monthly by the Adviser from the Advisory Fee.

Distributor. Invesco Distributors, Inc. (previously defined as the “Distributor”) is the distributor of the Shares. The Distributor’s principal address is 11 Greenway Plaza, Houston, TX 77046-1173. The Distributor

 

43


has entered into a distribution agreement (the “Distribution Agreement”) with the Trust pursuant to which it distributes the Shares. Each Fund continuously offers Shares for sale through the Distributor only in Creation Unit Aggregations, as described in each Fund’s Prospectus and below under the heading “Creation and Redemption of Creation Unit Aggregations.”

The Distribution Agreement for the Funds provides that it may be terminated as to a Fund at any time, without the payment of any penalty, on at least 60 days’ written notice by the Trust to the Distributor (i) by vote of a majority of the Independent Trustees or (ii) by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund. The Distribution Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act).

Securities Lending Arrangements. The Funds may participate in a securities lending program (the “Program”) pursuant to a securities lending agreement that establishes the terms of the loan, including collateral requirements. Collateral may consist of cash, U.S. government securities, letters of credit, or such other collateral as may be permitted under such Funds’ investment policies. Funds participating in the Program may lend securities to securities brokers and other borrowers.

Under the Program, each of BNYM and Invesco Advisers, Inc. (“Invesco Advisers”) serves as a securities lending agent for the Funds. To the extent a Fund utilizes Invesco Advisers as an affiliated securities lending agent, the Fund conducts its securities lending in accordance with, and in reliance upon, no-action letters issued by the SEC staff that provide guidance on how an affiliate may act as a direct agent lender and receive compensation for those services without obtaining exemptive relief. The Board has approved policies and procedures that govern a Fund’s securities lending activities when utilizing an affiliated securities lending agent, such as Invesco Advisers, consistent with the guidance set forth in the no-action letters.

Invesco Advisers serves as a securities lending agent to other clients in addition to the Funds. There are potential conflicts of interest involved in the Funds’ use of Invesco Advisers as an affiliated securities lending agent, including but not limited to: (i) Invesco Advisers as securities lending agent may have an incentive to increase or decrease the amount of securities on loan, lend particular securities, delay or forgo calling securities on loan, or lend securities to less creditworthy borrowers, in order to generate additional fees for Invesco Advisers; and (ii) Invesco Advisers as securities lending agent may have an incentive to allocate loans to clients that would provide more fees to Invesco Advisers. Invesco Advisers seeks to mitigate these potential conflicts of interest by utilizing a lending methodology designed to provide its securities lending clients with equal lending opportunities over time.

In addition, the Adviser renders certain administrative services to the Funds that engage in securities lending activities, which include, where applicable: (a) overseeing participation in the Program to ensure compliance with all applicable regulatory and investment guidelines; (b) assisting the securities lending agent or principal in determining which specific securities are available for loan; (c) monitoring the securities lending agent to ensure that securities loans are effected in accordance with the Adviser’s instructions and with procedures adopted by the Board; (d) monitoring the creditworthiness of the securities lending agent and borrowers to ensure that securities loans are effected in accordance with the Adviser’s risk policies; (e) preparing appropriate periodic Board reports with respect to securities lending activities; (f) responding to securities lending agent inquiries; and (g) performing such other duties as may be necessary.

 

44


For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the income earned by the Funds, as well as the fees and/or compensation paid (in dollars) to BNYM pursuant to the securities lending agreement were as follows:

 

     Gross
income
from
 securities 
lending
activities
    Fees paid 
to
Securities
Lending
Agent
from a
revenue
split
   Fees paid for
any cash
collateral
 management 
service
(including
fees
deducted
from a
pooled cash
collateral
reinvestment
vehicle) not
included in
the revenue
split
    Administrative 
fees not
included in
the
revenue split
    Indemnification 
fees not
included in
the
revenue split
     Rebate  
(paid to
borrower)
   Other
fees not
 included 
in the
revenue
split
   Aggregate
fees/
 compensation 
for securities
lending
activities
    Net income 
from
securities
lending
activities
Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF        $4,988,069.47        $141,685.54        $132,996.00        $0.00        $0.00        $3,437,833.34        $0.00        $3,712,514.88        $1,275,554.59
Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF        $10,067,261.16        $126,205.96        $274,551.00        $0.00        $0.00        $8,529,405.41        $0.00        $8,930,162.37        $1,137,098.79

For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, BNYM provided the following services for the Funds in connection with securities lending activities: (i) entering into loans with approved entities subject to guidelines or restrictions provided by the Funds; (ii) negotiating loan terms; (iii) receiving collateral from borrowers; (iv) collecting distributions from borrowers and crediting such distributions to the custodial account; (v) collecting securities loan fees and crediting them to the collateral account; (vi) terminating loans in its reasonable discretion or as directed by the Funds; (vii) effecting currency conversion transactions; (viii) investing and reinvesting cash collateral; (ix) maintaining books and records; and (x) acting as the Funds’ agent in connection with all aspects of (including establishment, maintenance, perfection, administration, performance of and realization upon) the security interest in, and lien and charge upon, the collateral.

 

45


For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, the income earned by the Funds, as well as the fees and/or compensation paid (in dollars) to Invesco Advisers pursuant to the affiliated securities lending agreement were as follows:

 

     Gross
income
from
 securities 
lending
activities
   Fees paid
to
 Securities 
Lending
Agent
from a
revenue
split*
   Fees paid for
any cash
collateral
 management 
service
(including
fees
deducted
from a
pooled cash
collateral
reinvestment
vehicle) not
included in
the revenue
split
    Administrative 
fees not
included in
the
revenue split
    Indemnification 
fees not
included in
the
revenue split
     Rebate  
(paid to
borrower)
   Other
fees not
 included 
in the
revenue
split
   Aggregate
fees/
 compensation 
for securities
lending
activities
    Net income 
from
securities
lending
activities
Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF        $9,547,860.87        $10,178.16        $0.00        $41,037.61        $0.00        $8,819,696.36        $0.00        $8,870,912.13        $676,948.74
Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF        $19,940,851.50        $57,642.85        $0.00        $232,002.13        $0.00        $15,840,525.50        $0.00        $16,130,170.48        $3,810,681.02

*Paid to BNYM.

Further, for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, Invesco Advisers provided the following services for the Funds in connection with affiliated securities lending activities: (i) identify available loan opportunities, (ii) negotiate loan terms; (iii) enter into loans with prime brokers subject to guidelines or restrictions provided by the Funds; (iv) input loan details into the securities lending platform; (v) monitor daily reports and data files of loan details to ensure compliance with applicable policies and requirements or restrictions of the securities lending program; (vi) monitor re-rate surveillance reports; (vii) re-negotiate loan rates and re-allocate or recall securities where necessary; and (viii) provide quarterly reports to the Securities Lending Governance Committee and to the Board on information required by Invesco’s policies and procedures for affiliated securities lending.

Aggregations. The Distributor does not distribute Shares in less than Creation Unit Aggregations. The Distributor will deliver a Prospectus (or a Summary Prospectus) and, upon request, this SAI to persons purchasing Creation Unit Aggregations and will maintain records of both orders placed with it and

 

46


confirmations of acceptance furnished by it. The Distributor is a broker-dealer registered under the Exchange Act, and a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”).

The Distributor also may enter into agreements with securities dealers (“Soliciting Dealers”) who will solicit purchases of Creation Unit Aggregations of the Shares. Such Soliciting Dealers also may be Participating Parties (as defined in “Creation and Redemption of Creation Unit Aggregations” below) and DTC Participants (as defined in “DTC Acts as Securities Depository for Shares” below).

Index Providers. No entity that creates, compiles, sponsors or maintains the Underlying Indexes is or will be an affiliated person, as defined in Section 2(a)(3) of the 1940 Act, or an affiliated person of an affiliated person, of the Trust, the Adviser, the Distributor or a promoter of the Funds.

Neither the Adviser nor any affiliate of the Adviser has any rights to influence the selection of the securities in the Underlying Indexes.

Set forth below is a list identifying each Fund and its respective Underlying Index.

 

Fund

  

Underlying Index

Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF

  

 RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1000 Index

Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF

  

 RAFI™ Fundamental Select US 1500 Index

 

47


BROKERAGE TRANSACTIONS AND COMMISSIONS ON AFFILIATED TRANSACTIONS

The policy of the Adviser regarding purchases and sales of securities is to give primary consideration to obtaining the most favorable prices and efficient executions of transactions under the circumstances. Consistent with this policy, when securities transactions are effected on a stock exchange, the Adviser’s policy is to pay commissions that are considered fair and reasonable without necessarily determining that the lowest possible commissions are paid in all circumstances. In seeking to determine the reasonableness of brokerage commissions paid in any transaction, the Adviser relies upon its experience and knowledge regarding commissions various brokers generally charge. The sale of Shares by a broker-dealer is not a factor in the selection of broker-dealers.

In seeking to implement its policies, the Adviser effects transactions with those brokers and dealers that the Adviser believes provide the most favorable prices and are capable of providing efficient executions. The Adviser currently does not participate in soft dollar transactions.

The Adviser assumes general supervision over placing orders on behalf of the Funds for the purchase or sale of portfolio securities. If purchases or sales of portfolio securities by a Fund and one or more other investment companies or clients supervised by the Adviser are considered at or about the same time, the Adviser allocates transactions in such securities among the Fund, the several investment companies and clients in a manner deemed equitable to all. In some cases, this procedure could have a detrimental effect on the price or volume of the security as far as the Funds are concerned. However, in other cases, it is possible that the ability to participate in volume transactions and to negotiate lower brokerage commissions will be beneficial to the Funds. The primary consideration is prompt execution of orders at the most favorable net price under the circumstances. Purchases and sales of fixed-income securities for a Fund usually are principal transactions and ordinarily are purchased directly from the issuer or from an underwriter or broker-dealer. The Fund does not usually pay brokerage commissions in connection with such purchases and sales, although purchases of new issues from underwriters of securities typically include a commission or concession paid by the issuer to the underwriter, and purchases from dealers serving as market-makers typically include a dealer’s mark-up (i.e., a spread between the bid and the ask prices).

 

48


When a Fund purchases a newly issued security at a fixed price, the Adviser may designate certain members of the underwriting syndicate to receive compensation associated with that transaction. Certain dealers have agreed to rebate a portion of such compensation directly to the Fund to offset the Fund’s management expenses.

The aggregate brokerage commissions paid by each Fund during the Fund’s fiscal years ended April 30, 2024, 2023 and 2022, or as otherwise indicated, are set forth in the chart below following each Fund’s name.

Affiliated Transactions. The Adviser may place trades with Invesco Capital Markets, Inc. (“ICMI”) a broker-dealer with whom it is affiliated, provided the Adviser determines that ICMI’s trade execution abilities and costs are at least comparable to those of non-affiliated brokerage firms with which the Adviser could otherwise place similar trades. ICMI receives brokerage commissions in connection with effecting trades for the Funds and, therefore, use of ICMI presents a conflict of interest for the Adviser. Trades placed through ICMI, including the brokerage commissions paid to ICMI, are subject to procedures adopted by the Board.

Brokerage commissions on affiliated transactions paid by the Funds during the fiscal years ended April 30, 2024, 2023 and 2022, or as otherwise indicated, are set forth in the chart below. The percentage of each Fund’s aggregate brokerage commissions paid to the affiliated broker and the percentage of each Fund’s aggregate dollar amount of transactions involving the payment of commissions through the affiliated broker for the last fiscal year are also set forth in the chart below.

Unless otherwise indicated, the amount of brokerage commissions paid by a Fund may change from year to year because of, among other things, changing asset levels, shareholder activity and/or portfolio turnover, including due to application of the Fund’s Underlying Index methodology.

 

Fund

   Total $ Amount
of Brokerage
Commissions Paid
  Total $ Amount
of Brokerage
Commissions
Paid to
Affiliated
Brokers
  % of Total
Brokerage
Commissions
Paid to the
Affiliated
Brokers
  % of Total
Transaction
Dollars
Effected
Through
Affiliated
Brokers
   2024   2023   2022   2024   2023   2022   2024   2024

Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF

    $ 195,540       $ 192,559       $ 148,584       $ 160,556       $ 125,962       $ 61,511        82.11 %       59.14 %  

Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF

    $  729,484      $  764,161      $  501,185      $  323,829      $  156,035      $  96,812       44.39     37.56

 

49


ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONCERNING THE TRUST

The Trust is an open-end management investment company registered under the 1940 Act. The Trust was organized as a Massachusetts business trust on June 9, 2000 pursuant to a Declaration of Trust (the “Declaration”).

The Trust is authorized to issue an unlimited number of Shares in one or more series or “Funds.” The Board has the right to establish additional series in the future, to determine the preferences, voting powers, rights and privileges thereof and to modify such preferences, voting powers, rights and privileges without shareholder approval.

Each Share issued by a Fund has a pro rata interest in the assets of the Fund. Shares have no preemptive, exchange, subscription or conversion rights and are freely transferable. Each Share is entitled to participate equally in dividends and other distributions declared by the Board with respect to the Fund and in the net distributable assets of the Fund on liquidation.

Each Share 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 the Funds of the Trust vote together as a single class except as otherwise required by the 1940 Act, or if the matter being voted on affects only a particular Fund, and, if a matter affects a particular Fund differently from other Funds, the Shares of that Fund will vote separately on such matter.

The Declaration provides that by becoming a shareholder of a Fund, each shareholder shall be held expressly to have agreed to be bound by the provisions of the Declaration. The Declaration may, except in limited circumstances, be amended or supplemented by the Trustees without shareholder vote. The holders of Shares are required to disclose information on direct or indirect ownership of Shares as may be required to comply with various laws applicable to the Fund, and ownership of Shares may be disclosed by the Fund if so required by law or regulation. The Trust’s Declaration also provides that shareholders may not bring suit on behalf of a Fund without first requesting that the Trustees bring such suit unless there would be irreparable injury to the Fund, or if a majority of the Trustees have a personal financial interest in the action. Trustees are not considered to have a personal financial interest by virtue of being compensated for their services as Trustees. Following receipt of the demand, the Trustees have a period of 45 days to consider the demand. In their sole discretion, the Trustees may submit the matter to a vote of shareholders of the Trust, as appropriate. Any decision by the Trustees to bring, maintain or settle (or not to bring, maintain or settle) such court action, proceeding or claim, or to submit the matter to a vote of shareholders, shall be made by the Trustees in their business judgment and shall be binding upon the shareholders. Insofar as the Federal securities laws supersede state law, these provisions do not apply to shareholder derivative claims that arise under the Federal securities laws.

The Trust is not required, and does not intend to hold annual meetings of shareholders, but will call a special meeting of shareholders whenever required by the 1940 Act or by the terms of the Declaration. Shareholders owning more than 10% of the outstanding Shares of the Trust have the right to call a special meeting to remove one or more Trustees or for any other purpose.

Under Massachusetts law applicable to Massachusetts business trusts, shareholders of such a trust may, under certain circumstances, be held personally liable as partners for its obligations. However, the Declaration contains an express disclaimer of shareholder liability for acts or obligations of the Trust and requires that notice of this disclaimer be given in each agreement, obligation or instrument entered into or executed by the

 

50


Trust or the Trustees. The Trust’s Declaration further provides for indemnification out of the assets and property of the Trust for all losses and expenses of any shareholder held personally liable for the obligations of the Trust. Thus, the risk of a shareholder incurring financial loss on account of shareholder liability is limited to circumstances in which both inadequate insurance existed and the Trust or Fund itself was unable to meet its obligations. The Trust believes the likelihood of the occurrence of these circumstances is remote.

The Trust’s Declaration also provides that a Trustee acting in his or her capacity of trustee is not liable personally to any person other than the Trust or its shareholders for any act, omission, or obligation of the Trust. The Declaration further provides that a Trustee or officer is liable to the Trust or its shareholders only for his or her bad faith, willful misfeasance, gross negligence or reckless disregard of his or her duties, and shall not be liable for errors of judgment or mistakes of fact or law. The Declaration requires the Trust to indemnify any persons who are or who have been Trustees, officers or employees of the Trust for any liability for actions or failure to act except to the extent prohibited by applicable federal law.

The Trust’s bylaws require that any action commenced by a Shareholder, directly or derivatively, against the Trust or a series thereof, its Trustees or officers, shall be brought only in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, or if such action may not be brought in that court, then such action shall be brought in Illinois state court (the “Chosen Courts”). The Trust, its Trustees and officers, and its Shareholders (a) waive any objection to venue in either Chosen Court and (b) waive any objection that either Chosen Court is an inconvenient forum. Insofar as the Federal securities laws supersede state law, the provisions in the Trust’s bylaws related to exclusive forum described herein do not apply to claims brought under the Federal securities laws to the extent that any such federal securities laws, rules or regulations, do not permit such application. The designation of exclusive forum may make it more expensive for a shareholder to bring a suit and may limit a shareholder’s ability to litigate a claim in a jurisdiction or forum that may be more convenient or favorable to the shareholder.

The Trust does not have information concerning the beneficial ownership of Shares held by DTC Participants (as defined below).

Shareholders may make inquiries by writing to the Trust, c/o the Distributor, Invesco Distributors, Inc., 11 Greenway Plaza, Houston, Texas 77046-1173.

Book Entry Only System. The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the section in the Funds’ Prospectus entitled “Book Entry.”

DTC Acts as Securities Depository for Shares. Shares are represented by securities registered in the name of DTC or its nominee and deposited with, or on behalf of, DTC.

DTC, a limited-purpose trust company, 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, a number of DTC Participants and the New York Stock Exchange, Inc. (“NYSE”) and FINRA own DTC. 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 is limited to DTC Participants, Indirect Participants and persons holding interests through DTC Participants and Indirect Participants. Ownership of beneficial interests in Shares (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 DTC maintains (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 and sale of Shares.

 

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Conveyance of all notices, statements and other communications to Beneficial Owners is effected as follows. Pursuant to the Depositary Agreement between the Trust and DTC, DTC is required to make available to the Trust upon request and for a fee to be charged to the Trust a listing of the Shares held by each DTC Participant. The Trust shall inquire of each such DTC Participant as to the number of Beneficial Owners holding Shares, 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 DTC Participant may transmit such notice, statement or communication, 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.

Fund distributions shall be made to DTC or its nominee, Cede & Co., as the registered holder of all Shares. DTC or its nominee, upon receipt of any such distributions, shall immediately credit DTC Participants’ accounts with payments in amounts proportionate to their respective beneficial interests in Shares of a Fund as shown on the records of DTC or its nominee. Payments by DTC Participants to Indirect Participants and Beneficial Owners of Shares 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 such 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 decide to discontinue providing its service with respect to Shares at any time by giving reasonable notice to the Trust and discharging its responsibilities with respect thereto under applicable law. Under such circumstances, the Trust shall take action to find a replacement for DTC to perform its functions at a comparable cost.

Proxy Voting. The Board has delegated responsibility for decisions regarding proxy voting for securities each Fund holds to the Adviser. The Adviser will vote such proxies in accordance with its proxy policies and procedures, which are included in Appendix A to this SAI. The Board periodically reviews each Fund’s proxy voting record.

The Trust is required to disclose annually information regarding how the Funds voted proxies related to their portfolio securities on Form N-PX covering the period July 1 through June 30 and to file it with the SEC no later than August 31. Information regarding how the Funds voted proxies related to their portfolio securities during the year ended June 30, 2024 is available at no charge upon request by calling 1-800-983-0903, by writing to the Trust at 3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700, Downers Grove, Illinois 60515, or by visiting www.invesco.com/proxy-voting. The Form N-PX will be available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov no later than August 31, 2024.

Code of Ethics. Pursuant to Rule 17j-1 under the 1940 Act, the Board has approved a Code of Ethics of the Trust, the Adviser and the Distributor (the “Ethics Code”). The Ethics Code is intended to ensure that the interests of shareholders and other clients are placed ahead of any personal interest, that no undue personal benefit is obtained from the person’s employment activities and that actual and potential conflicts of interest are avoided.

The Ethics Code applies to the personal investing activities of Trustees and officers of the Trust, the Adviser and the Distributor (“Access Persons”). Rule 17j-1 and the Ethics Code are designed to prevent unlawful practices in connection with the purchase or sale of securities by Access Persons. Under the Ethics Code, Access Persons may engage in personal securities transactions, but must report their personal securities transactions for monitoring purposes. The Ethics Code permits personnel subject to the Ethics Code to invest in securities subject to certain limitations, including securities that a Fund may purchase or sell. In addition, certain Access Persons must obtain approval before investing in initial public offerings or private

 

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placements. The Ethics Code is on file with the SEC and is available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s Internet site at www.sec.gov. The Ethics Code may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by e-mail at publicinfo@sec.gov.

CREATION AND REDEMPTION OF CREATION UNIT AGGREGATIONS

General

The Trust issues and sells Shares only in Creation Unit Aggregations on a continuous basis through the Distributor, without a sales load, at the Fund’s NAV next determined after receipt of an order in “proper form” (as defined below) on any Business Day. A “Business Day” is any day on which an Exchange is open for business. As of the date of this SAI, each Exchange is closed in observance of the following holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. On days when an Exchange closes earlier than normal, a Fund may require orders to be placed earlier in the day.

The number of Shares that constitute a Creation Unit Aggregation for a Fund is set forth in the Fund’s Prospectus. In its discretion, the Trust reserves the right to increase or decrease the number of Shares that constitutes a Creation Unit Aggregation for a Fund.

Role of the Authorized Participant

A Fund only may issue Creation Units to, or redeem Creation Units from, an authorized participant, referred to herein as an “AP.” To be eligible to place orders for the purchase or redemption of a Creation Unit of a Fund, an AP must have executed a written agreement with the Fund or one of its service providers that allows the AP to place such orders (“Participant Agreement”). In addition, an AP must be a member or participant of a clearing agency that is registered with the SEC. An AP may place orders for the creation or redemption of Creation Units through the clearing process of the Continuous Net Settlement System (the “Clearing Process”) of the National Securities Clearing Corporation (“NSCC”), Euroclear, the Fed Book-Entry System and/or DTC, subject to the procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement. (APs that participate in the Clearing Process are sometimes referred to as a “Participating Party,” and APs that are eligible to utilize the Fed Book Entry System and/or DTC are sometimes referred to as a “DTC Participant.”) Transfers of securities settling through Euroclear or other foreign depositories may require AP access to such facilities.

Pursuant to the terms of its Participant Agreement, an AP will agree, and on behalf of itself or any investor on whose behalf it will act, to certain conditions, including that the AP will make available in advance of each purchase of Shares an amount of cash sufficient to pay the Cash Component, together with the transaction fees described below. An AP acting on behalf of an investor may require the investor to enter into an agreement with such AP with respect to certain matters, including payment of the Cash Component. Investors who are not APs make appropriate arrangements with an AP to submit orders to purchase or redeem Creation Units of a Fund. Investors should be aware that their particular broker may not be a DTC Participant or may not have executed a Participant Agreement and that, therefore, orders to purchase Creation Units may have to be placed by the investor’s broker through an AP. In such cases, there may be additional charges to such investor. At any given time, there may be only a limited number of APs. A list of current APs may be obtained from the Distributor. In addition, the Distributor may be appointed as the proxy of the AP and may be granted a power of attorney under the Participant Agreement.

Creations

Portfolio Deposit. The consideration for purchase of a Creation Unit of a Fund generally consists of the in-kind deposit of a portfolio of securities, assets or other positions constituting a substantial replication of a Fund’s portfolio holdings (the “Deposit Securities”) and an amount of cash denominated in U.S. dollars (the “Cash Component”) computed as described below, plus any applicable administrative or other transaction fees, also as discussed below. Together, the Deposit Securities and the Cash Component constitute the “Portfolio Deposit,” which represents the minimum initial and subsequent investment amount for a Creation Unit Aggregation of any Fund.

 

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The “Cash Component” is an amount equal to the difference between the aggregate NAV of the Shares per Creation Unit and the “Deposit Amount,” which is an amount equal to the total aggregate market value (per Creation Unit) of the Deposit Securities. The Cash Component, which is sometimes called the “Balancing Amount,” serves to compensate for any differences between the NAV per Creation Unit and the Deposit Amount. Payment of any stamp duty or other similar fees and expenses payable upon transfer of beneficial ownership of the Deposit Securities are the sole responsibility of the AP purchasing the Creation Unit.

Each business day before the opening of regular trading on the Exchange (usually 9:30 a.m., Eastern Time), a Fund discloses on its website (www.invesco.com/ETFs) the Deposit Securities and/or the amount of the applicable Cash Component to be included in the current Portfolio Deposit (based on information at the end of the previous Business Day) for each Fund. Such Portfolio Deposit is applicable, subject to any adjustments as described below, to effect purchases of Creation Units of a Fund until such time as the next-announced Portfolio Deposit is made available.

The identity and number of shares of the Deposit Securities required for a Portfolio Deposit will change as rebalancing adjustments and corporate action events are reflected within the affected Fund from time to time by the Adviser with a view to the investment objective of the Fund. The composition of the Deposit Securities also may change in response to adjustments to the weighting or composition of the securities of the relevant Underlying Index. Such adjustments will reflect changes known to the Adviser by the time of determination of the Deposit Securities in the composition of the relevant Underlying Index or resulting from stock splits and other corporate actions.

The Adviser expects that the Deposit Securities should correspond pro rata, to the extent practicable, to the securities held by the Fund. However, the Trust reserves the right to permit or require an order containing the substitution of an amount of cash—i.e., a “cash in lieu” amount—to be added, at its discretion, to the Cash Component to replace one or more Deposit Securities. For example, a cash substitution may be permitted or required for any Deposit Securities that (i) may not be available in sufficient quantity for delivery, (ii) may not be eligible for transfer through the systems of DTC or the Clearing Process (discussed below), (iii) might not be eligible for trading by an AP or the investor on whose behalf the AP is acting, or (iv) in certain other situations at the sole discretion of the Trust. Additionally, the Trust may permit or require the submission of a portfolio of securities or cash that differs from the composition of the published portfolio(s) (a “Custom Order”). A Fund also may permit or require the consideration for Creation Unit Aggregations to consist solely of cash (see “—Cash Creations” below).

Cash Creations. If a Fund permits or requires partial or full cash creations, such purchases shall be effected in essentially the same manner as in-kind purchases. In the case of a cash creation, the AP must pay the same Cash Component required to be paid by an in-kind purchaser, plus the Deposit Amount (i.e., the cash equivalent of the Deposit Securities it would otherwise be required to provide through an in-kind purchase, as described in the subsection “—Portfolio Deposit” above).

Trading costs, operational processing costs and brokerage commissions associated with using cash to purchase requisite Deposit Securities will be incurred by a Fund and will affect the value of the Shares; therefore, such Funds may require APs to pay transaction fees to offset brokerage and other costs associated with using cash to purchase the requisite Deposit Securities (see “Creation and Redemption Transaction Fees” below).

Creation Orders

Procedures for Creation of Creation Unit Aggregations. Orders must be transmitted by an AP, in such form and by such transmission method acceptable to the Transfer Agent or Distributor, pursuant to procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement, and such procedures may change from time to time. APs purchasing Creation Units of Funds that invest in domestic equity securities (“Domestic Equity Funds”) may transfer Deposit Securities in one of two ways: (i) through the Clearing Process (see “Placing Creation Orders Using the Clearing Process”), or (ii) with a Fund “outside” the Clearing Process through the facilities of DTC (see “Placing Creation Orders Outside the Clearing Process”). The Clearing Process is not currently available for purchases or redemptions of Creation Units of Funds that invest in foreign securities (“International

 

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Equity Funds”) or Funds that invest in fixed-income securities (“Fixed Income Funds”). Accordingly, APs submitting creation orders for such Funds must effect those transactions outside the Clearing Process, as described further below.

All orders to purchase Creation Units, whether through or outside the Clearing Process, must be received by the Transfer Agent and/or Distributor no later than the order cut-off time designated in the Participant Agreement (“Order Cut-Off Time”) on the relevant Business Day in order for the creation of Creation Units to be effected based on the NAV of Shares as determined on such date. With certain exceptions, the Order Cut-Off Time for a Fund, as set forth in the Participant Agreement, usually is the closing time of the regular trading session on the New York Stock Exchange—i.e., ordinarily 4:00 p.m., Eastern time. In the case of Custom Orders, the Order Cut-Off Time is no later than 3:00 p.m., Eastern time. Additionally, on days when the NYSE, the relevant Exchange or the bond markets close earlier than normal, the Trust may require creation orders to be placed earlier in the day. The Business Day on which an order is placed and deemed received is referred to as the “Transmittal Date.”

Orders must be transmitted by an AP by telephone, online portal or other transmission method acceptable to the Transfer Agent and the Distributor. Economic or market disruptions or changes, or telephone or other communication failure, may impede the ability to reach the Transfer Agent, the Distributor or an AP. APs placing creation orders should afford sufficient time to permit proper submission of the order. Orders effected outside the Clearing Process likely will require transmittal by the DTC Participant earlier on the Transmittal Date than orders effected through the Clearing Process. APs placing orders outside the Clearing Process should ascertain all deadlines applicable to DTC and the Federal Reserve Bank wire system. Additional transaction fees may be imposed with respect to transactions effected outside the Clearing Process (see “Creation and Redemption Transaction Fees” below).

A creation order is considered to be in “proper form” if: (i) a properly completed irrevocable purchase order has been submitted by the AP (either on its own or another investor’s behalf) not later than the Fund’s specified Order Cut-Off Time on the Transmittal Date, and (ii) arrangements satisfactory to the applicable Fund are in place for payment of the Cash Component and any other cash amounts which may be due, and (iii) all other procedures regarding placement of a creation order set forth in the Participant Agreement are properly followed. Special procedures are specific to Custom Orders, as set forth in the Participant Agreement.

All questions as to the number of shares of each security in the Deposit Securities to be delivered, and the validity, form, eligibility (including time of receipt) and acceptance for deposit of any securities to be delivered shall be determined by each Fund, and such Fund’s determination shall be final and binding.

Placing Creation Orders Using the Clearing Process. The Clearing Process is the process of creating or redeeming Creation Unit Aggregations through the Continuous Net Settlement System of the NSCC. Portfolio Deposits made through the Clearing Process must be delivered through a Participating Party that has executed a Participant Agreement. The Participant Agreement authorizes the Transfer Agent to transmit, on behalf of the Participating Party, such trade instructions to the NSCC as are necessary to effect the Participating Party’s creation order. Pursuant to such trade instructions, the Participating Party agrees to deliver the Portfolio Deposit to the Transfer Agent, together with such additional information as may be required by the Distributor.

Placing Creation Orders Outside the Clearing Process. Portfolio Deposits made outside the Clearing Process must be delivered through a DTC Participant that has executed a Participant Agreement. A DTC Participant who wishes to place a creation order outside the Clearing Process need not be a Participating Party, but such orders must state that the DTC Participant is not using the Clearing Process and that the creation instead will be effected through a transfer of securities and cash directly through DTC.

APs purchasing Creation Units of Shares of International Equity Funds must have international trading capabilities. Once the Custodian has been notified of an order to purchase Creation Units of an International Equity Fund, it will provide such information to the relevant sub-custodian(s) of each such Fund. The Custodian shall then cause the sub-custodian(s) of each such Fund to maintain an account into which the AP

 

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shall deliver, on behalf of itself or the party on whose behalf it is acting, the Portfolio Deposit. Deposit Securities must be maintained by the applicable local sub-custodian(s).

Acceptance of Creation Orders. The Transfer Agent will deliver to the AP a confirmation of acceptance of a creation order within 15 minutes of the receipt of a submission received in proper form. A creation order is deemed to be irrevocable upon the delivery of the confirmation of acceptance, subject to the conditions below.

The SEC has expressed the view that a suspension of creations that impairs the arbitrage mechanism applicable to the trading of ETF shares in the secondary market is inconsistent with Rule 6c-11 under the 1940 Act. The SEC’s position does not prohibit the suspension or rejection of creations in all instances. The Trust reserves the right, to the extent consistent with the provisions of Rule 6c-11 under the 1940 Act, to reject or revoke a creation order transmitted to it by the Distributor in respect of a Fund, including, for example, if: (i) the order is not in proper form; (ii) the investor(s), upon obtaining the Shares ordered, would own 80% or more of the currently outstanding Shares of that Fund; (iii) the Deposit Securities delivered are not as designated for that date by the Custodian; (iv) acceptance of the Portfolio Deposit would, in the opinion of counsel, be unlawful; or (v) there exist circumstances outside the control of the Trust that make it impossible to process creation orders for all practical purposes. Examples of such circumstances include acts of God; 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 Adviser, the Distributor, DTC, NSCC, the Federal Reserve, the Transfer Agent, a sub-custodian or any other participant in the creation process, and similar extraordinary events. The Transfer Agent shall notify a prospective purchaser of a Creation Unit (and/or the AP acting on its behalf) of the rejection of such creation order. The Trust, 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 Portfolio Deposits, nor shall any of them incur any liability for the failure to give any such notification.

Issuance of a Creation Unit

Except as provided herein, a Creation Unit will not be issued until the transfer of good title to the applicable Fund of the Deposit Securities and the payment of the Cash Component have been completed.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, a Fund may issue Creation Units to an AP, notwithstanding the fact that the corresponding Portfolio Deposit has not been delivered in part or in whole, in reliance on the undertaking of the AP to deliver the missing Deposit Securities as soon as possible. To secure such undertaking, the AP must deposit and maintain cash collateral in an amount equal to the sum of (i) the Cash Component, plus (ii) at least 105% of the market value of the undelivered Deposit Securities. In such circumstances, the creation order shall be deemed to be received on the Transmittal Date, provided that (i) such order is placed in proper form prior to the Order Cut-Off Time, and (ii) requisite federal funds in an appropriate amount are delivered by certain deadlines on the contractual settlement date, as set forth in such Participant Agreement (typically, 11:00 a.m., Eastern time on such date for equity Funds). If such order is not placed in proper form prior to the Order Cut-Off Time, and/or all other deadlines and conditions set forth in the Participant Agreement relating to such additional deposits are not met, then the order may be deemed to be canceled, and the AP shall be liable to a Fund for losses, if any, resulting therefrom. The Trust may use such collateral at any time to buy Deposit Securities for the Funds, and the AP agrees to accept liability for any shortfall between the cost to the Trust of purchasing such Deposit Securities and the value of the collateral, which may be sold by the Trust at such time, and in such manner, as the Trust may determine in its sole discretion.

Using the Clearing Process. An AP that is a Participating Party is required to transfer to the Transfer Agent: (i) the requisite Deposit Securities expected to be delivered through NSCC, and (ii) the Cash Component, if any, to the Transfer Agent by means of the Trust’s Clearing Process. In each case, the delivery must occur by the “regular way” settlement date – i.e., generally, the second Business Day following the Transmittal Date (“T+1”). At that time, the Transfer Agent shall initiate procedures to transfer the requisite Shares and the Cash Component, if any, through the Clearing Process so as to be received no later than on

 

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the “regular way” settlement date (i.e., T+1, except as otherwise set forth in the Participant Agreement or as agreed to by a Fund and an AP).

Outside the Clearing Process—Domestic Equity Funds. An AP that is a DTC Participant that orders a creation outside the Clearing Process is required to transfer to the Transfer Agent: (i) the requisite Deposit Securities through DTC, and (ii) the Cash Component, if any, through the Federal Reserve Bank wire system. Such Deposit Securities must be received by the Transfer Agent by 11:00 a.m., Eastern time on the “regular way” settlement date (i.e., T+1, except as otherwise set forth in the Participant Agreement or as agreed to by a Fund and an AP), while the Cash Component must be received by 2:00 p.m., Eastern time on that same date. Otherwise, the creation order shall be canceled. For creation units issued principally for cash (see “—Cash Creations” above), the DTC Participant shall be required to transfer the Cash Component through the Federal Reserve Bank wire system to be received by 2:00 p.m., Eastern time on the Contractual Settlement Date (as defined below). At that time, the Transfer Agent shall initiate procedures to transfer the requisite Shares through DTC and the Cash Component, if any, through the Federal Reserve Bank wire system so as to be received by the purchaser generally no later than T+1 (except as otherwise set forth in the Participant Agreement or as agreed to by a Fund and an AP).

Outside the Clearing Process—International Equity Funds. Deposit Securities must be delivered to an account maintained at the applicable local sub-custodian on or before 11:00 a.m., Eastern time, on the Contractual Settlement Date. The “Contractual Settlement Date” is the earlier of (i) the date upon which all of the required Deposit Securities, the Cash Component and any other cash amounts which may be due are delivered to the Trust and (ii) the latest day for settlement on the customary settlement cycle in the jurisdiction where any of the securities of the relevant Fund are customarily traded. The AP also must make available by the Contractual Settlement Date funds estimated by the Trust to be sufficient to pay the Cash Component, if any. For Creation Units issued principally for cash, the DTC Participant shall be required to transfer the Cash Component through the Federal Reserve Bank wire system to be received by 2:00 p.m., Eastern time on the Contractual Settlement Date. When the sub-custodian confirms to the Custodian that the required securities included in the Portfolio Deposit (or, when permitted in the sole discretion of the Trust, the cash value thereof) have been delivered to the account of the relevant sub-custodian, the Custodian shall notify the Distributor and Transfer Agent, and the Trust will issue and cause the delivery of the Creation Unit of Shares via DTC so as to be received by the purchaser by such time as set forth in the Participant Agreement.

Creation and Redemption Transaction Fees

Creation and redemption transactions for each Fund are subject to an administrative fee, payable to BNYM, in the amount listed in the table below, irrespective of the size of the order. As shown in the table below, the administrative fee has a base amount for each Fund; however, BNYM may increase the administrative fee to a maximum of four times the base amount for administration and settlement of non-standard orders requiring additional administrative processing by BNYM. These fees may be changed by the Trust.

 

Fund

   Base
Administrative Fee
 (Payable to BNYM) 
  Maximum
Administrative Fee
 (Payable to BNYM) 

Invesco RAFI US 1000 ETF

   $500   $2,000

Invesco RAFI US 1500 Small-Mid ETF

   $500   $2,000

 

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Additionally, the Adviser may charge an additional, variable fee (sometimes referred to as a “cash-in-lieu” fee) to the extent a Fund permits or requires APs to create or redeem Creation Units for cash, or otherwise substitute cash for any Deposit Security. Such cash-in-lieu fees are payable to a Fund and are charged to defray the transaction cost to a Fund of buying (or selling) Deposit Securities, to cover spreads and slippage costs and to protect existing shareholders. The cash-in-lieu fees will be negotiated between the Adviser and the AP and may be different for any given transaction, Business Day or AP; however in no instance will such cash-in-lieu fees exceed 2% of the value of a Creation Unit. From time to time, the Adviser, in its sole discretion, may adjust a Fund’s cash-in-lieu fees or reimburse APs for all or a portion of the creation or redemption transaction fees.

Redemptions

Shares may be redeemed only by APs at their NAV per Share next determined after receipt by the Distributor of a redemption request in proper form. A Fund will not redeem Shares in amounts less than a Creation Unit. Beneficial Owners of Shares may sell their Shares in the secondary market, but they must accumulate enough Shares to constitute a Creation Unit to redeem those Shares with a Fund. There can be no assurance 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.

Fund Securities. The redemption proceeds for a Creation Unit generally consist of a portfolio of securities (the “Fund Securities”), plus or minus an amount of cash denominated in U.S. dollars (the “Cash Redemption Amount”), representing an amount equal to the difference between the NAV of the Shares being redeemed, as next determined after receipt of a request in proper form, and the total aggregate market value of the Fund Securities, less any applicable administrative or other transaction fees, as discussed above. The Cash

 

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Redemption Amount is calculated in the same manner as the Balancing Amount. To the extent that the Fund Securities have a value greater than the NAV of the Shares being redeemed, a Cash Redemption Amount payment equal to the differential is required to be paid by the redeeming shareholder.

Each business day before the opening of regular trading on the Exchange where Shares are traded (usually 9:30 a.m., Eastern Time), the Fund discloses the Fund Securities that will be applicable (subject to possible amendment or correction) to redemption requests received in proper form (as defined below) on that day, as well as the Cash Redemption Amount. Such Fund Securities and the corresponding Cash Redemption Amount are applicable to effect redemptions of Creation Units of a Fund until such time as the next-announced composition of the Fund Securities and Cash Redemption Amount is made available.

The Adviser expects that the Fund Securities should correspond pro rata, to the extent practicable, to the securities held by the Fund. However, Fund Securities received on redemption may not be identical to Deposit Securities that are applicable to creations of Creation Units. The Trust also may provide such redeemer a Custom Order, which, as described above, is a portfolio of securities that differs from the exact composition of the published list of Fund Securities, but in no event will the total value of the securities delivered and the cash transmitted differ from the NAV. In addition, the Trust reserves the right to permit or require an amount of cash to be added, at its discretion, to the Cash Redemption Amount to replace one or more Fund Securities (see “— Cash Redemptions” below).

Cash Redemptions. Certain Funds (as set forth in the Prospectus) may elect to pay out the proceeds of redemptions of Creation Units partially or principally for cash (or through any combination of cash and Fund Securities), as described in each Fund’s Prospectus. In addition, an investor may request a redemption in cash that a Fund may, in its sole discretion, permit. In either case, the investor will receive a cash payment in an amount equal to the NAV of its Shares next determined after a redemption request is received (less any redemption transaction fees imposed, as specified above).

Redemptions of Shares will be subject to compliance with applicable federal and state securities laws and each Fund (whether or not it otherwise permits cash redemptions) reserves the right to redeem Creation Unit Aggregations 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 AP that is not a “qualified institutional buyer,” 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 144. The AP may request the redeeming beneficial owner of the Shares to complete an order form or to enter into agreements with respect to such matters as compensating cash payment.

Redemption Requests

Procedures for Redemption of Creation Unit Aggregations. Orders must be transmitted by an AP, in such form and by such transmission method acceptable to the Transfer Agent or Distributor, pursuant to procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement, and such procedures may change from time to time. APs seeking to redeem Shares of Domestic Equity Funds may transfer Creation Units through the Clearing Process (see “Placing Redemption Requests Using the Clearing Process”) or outside the Clearing Process through the facilities of DTC (see “Placing Redemption Requests Outside the Clearing Process”). As noted above, the Clearing Process is not currently available for redemptions of Creation Units of International Equity Funds or Fixed Income Funds; accordingly, APs seeking to redeem Shares of such Funds must effect such transactions outside the Clearing Process.

All requests to redeem Creation Units, whether through the Clearing Process, or outside the Clearing Process through DTC or otherwise, must be received by the Distributor no later than the Order Cut-Off Time on the relevant Business Day. As with creation orders, requests for redemption of Custom Orders must be received by 3:00 p.m., Eastern time, and some Funds, as set forth in the Participant Agreement, may have different Order Cut-Off Times for redemptions.

A redemption request will be considered to be in “proper form” if (i) a duly completed request form is received by the Distributor from the AP on behalf of itself or another redeeming investor at the specified Order

 

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Cut-Off Time, and (ii) arrangements satisfactory to the Fund are in place for the AP to transfer or cause to be transferred to the Fund the Creation Unit of such Fund being redeemed on or before contractual settlement of the redemption request. Special procedures are specific to Custom Orders, as set forth in the Participant Agreement.

As discussed herein, a redeeming investor will pay a transaction fee to offset the Fund’s trading costs, operational processing costs, brokerage commissions and other similar costs incurred in transferring the Fund Securities from its account to the account of the redeeming investor. An entity redeeming Shares in Creation Units outside the Clearing Process may be required to pay a higher transaction fee than would have been charged had the redemption been effected through the Clearing Process. A redeeming investor receiving cash in lieu of one or more Fund Securities may also be assessed a higher transaction fee on the cash in lieu portion. This higher transaction fee will be assessed in the same manner as the transaction fee incurred in purchasing Creation Units.

Placing Redemption Requests Using the Clearing Process. Requests to redeem Creation Units through the Clearing Process must be delivered through a Participating Party that has executed a Participant Agreement, in such form and by such transmission method acceptable to the Transfer Agent or Distributor, pursuant to procedures set forth in the Participant Agreement.

Placing Redemption Requests Outside the Clearing Process. Orders to redeem Creation Units outside the Clearing Process must be delivered through a DTC Participant that has executed a Participant Agreement. A DTC Participant who wishes to place a redemption order outside the Clearing Process need not be a Participating Party, but such orders must state that the DTC Participant is not using the Clearing Process and that redemption instead will be effected through a transfer of Shares directly through DTC.

In the case of Shares of International Equity Funds, upon redemption of Creation Units and taking delivery of the Fund Securities into the account of the redeeming shareholder or an AP acting on behalf of such investor, such person must maintain appropriate custody arrangements with a broker-dealer, bank or other custody provider in each jurisdiction in which any of such Fund Securities are customarily traded.

Acceptance of Redemption Requests. The Transfer Agent will deliver to the AP a confirmation of acceptance of a request to redeem Shares in Creation Units within 15 minutes of the receipt of a submission received in proper form. A redemption order is deemed to be irrevocable upon the delivery of the confirmation of acceptance.

The right of redemption may be suspended or the date of payment postponed (i) for any period during which the NYSE is closed (other than customary weekend and holiday closings); (ii) for any period during which trading on the NYSE is suspended or restricted; (iii) for any period during which an emergency exists as a result of which disposal of the Shares or determination of a Fund’s NAV is not reasonably practicable; or (iv) in such other circumstances as is permitted by the SEC.

Issuance of Fund Securities

To the extent contemplated by a Participant Agreement, in the event an AP has submitted a redemption request in proper form but is unable to transfer all or part of the Creation Unit to be redeemed to the Distributor, on behalf of a Fund, by the closing time of the regular trading session on the Exchange on the date such redemption request is submitted, the Distributor will nonetheless accept the redemption request in reliance on the undertaking by the AP to deliver the missing Shares as soon as possible, which undertaking shall be secured by the AP’s delivery and maintenance of collateral consisting of cash having a value at least equal to 105% of the value of the missing Shares. The Trust may use such collateral at any time to purchase the missing Shares and will subject the AP to liability for any shortfall between the cost of a Fund acquiring such Shares and the value of the collateral, which may be sold by the Trust at such time, and in such manner, as the Trust may determine in its sole discretion.

Using the Clearing Process. An AP that is a Participating Party is required to transfer to the Transfer Agent: (i) the requisite Shares, and (ii) the Cash Redemption Amount, if any, to the Transfer Agent by means of the Trust’s Clearing Process. In each case, the delivery must occur by the “regular way” settlement date

 

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(i.e., T+1, except as otherwise set forth in the Participant Agreement or as agreed to by a Fund and an AP). At that time, the Transfer Agent shall initiate procedures to transfer the requisite Fund Securities and the Cash Redemption Amount, if any, through the Clearing Process so as to be received no later than on the “regular way” settlement date (i.e., T+1, except as otherwise set forth in the Participant Agreement or as agreed to by a Fund and an AP).

Outside the Clearing Process—Domestic Equity Funds. An AP that is a DTC Participant making a redemption request outside the Clearing Process is required to transfer to the Transfer Agent: (i) the requisite Shares through DTC, and (ii) the Cash Redemption Amount, if any, through the Federal Reserve Bank wire system. Such Shares and Cash Redemption Amount must be received by the Transfer Agent by 11:00 a.m., Eastern time on the Contractual Settlement Date. At that time, the Transfer Agent shall initiate procedures to transfer the requisite Fund Securities through DTC and the Cash Redemption Amount, if any, through the Federal Reserve Bank wire system so as to be received generally no later than T+1 (except as otherwise set forth in the Participant Agreement or as agreed to by a Fund and an AP).

Outside the Clearing Process—International Equity Funds. A redeeming AP must maintain appropriate securities broker-dealer, bank or other custody arrangements to which account such in-kind redemption proceeds will be delivered. If neither the redeeming beneficial owner nor the AP acting on its behalf has appropriate arrangements to take delivery of the Fund Securities in the applicable 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 beneficial owner will be required to receive its redemption proceeds in cash.

Arrangements satisfactory to the Trust must be in place for the AP to transfer Creation Units through DTC on or before the settlement date. At that time, the Transfer Agent shall initiate procedures to transfer the requisite Fund Securities through DTC and the global sub-custodian network and the Cash Redemption Amount, if any, through the Federal Reserve Bank wire system so as to be received generally no later than T+1 (except as otherwise set forth in the Participant Agreement or as agreed to by a Fund and an AP).

Outside the Clearing Process—Fixed Income Funds. An AP that is a DTC Participant (or Euroclear participant) making a redemption request outside the Clearing Process is required to transfer to the Transfer Agent: (i) the requisite Shares through DTC or Euroclear, and (ii) the Cash Redemption Amount, if any, through the Federal Reserve Bank wire system. Such Shares and Cash Redemption Amount must be received by the Transfer Agent by 2:00 p.m., Eastern time on the Contractual Settlement Date. At that time, the Transfer Agent shall initiate procedures to transfer the requisite Fund Securities through DTC and the Cash Redemption Amount, if any, through the Federal Reserve Bank wire system so as to be received generally no later than T+1 (except as otherwise set forth in the Participant Agreement or as agreed to by a Fund and an AP).

Regular Holidays

Notwithstanding the foregoing, a Fund may effect deliveries of Creation Units and Fund Securities on a basis other than T+1 (or as otherwise set forth in the Participant Agreement or as agreed to by a Fund and an AP) in order to accommodate local holiday schedules, to account for different treatment among foreign and U.S. markets of dividend record dates and ex-dividend dates or under certain other circumstances. The ability of the Trust to effect in-kind creations and redemptions on a T+1 basis (or as otherwise set forth in the Participant Agreement or as agreed to by a Fund and an AP) is subject, among other things, to the condition that, in the time between the order date and the delivery date, there are no days that are holidays in an applicable foreign market. For every occurrence of one or more such intervening holidays that are not holidays observed in the U.S., the redemption settlement cycle will be extended by the number of such intervening holidays. In addition, the proclamation of new holidays, the treatment by market participants of certain days as “informal holidays” (e.g., days on which no or limited securities transactions occur, as a result of substantially shortened trading hours), the elimination of existing holidays or changes in local securities delivery practices, and/or other unforeseeable closings in a foreign market due to emergencies also may prevent a Fund from delivering securities within the normal settlement period. However, in no case will a Fund take more than 15 days after the receipt of the redemption request to deliver such securities to an AP.

 

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TAXES

The following is a summary of certain additional tax considerations generally affecting a Fund (sometimes referred to as the “Fund”) and its shareholders that are not described in the Prospectus. No attempt is made to present a detailed explanation of the tax treatment of a Fund or its shareholders, and the discussion here and in the Prospectus is not intended as a substitute for careful tax planning.

This section is based on the Code and applicable regulations in effect on the date of this SAI. Future legislative, regulatory or administrative changes including provisions of current law that sunset and thereafter no longer apply, or court decisions may significantly change the tax rules applicable to a Fund and its shareholders. Any of these changes or court decisions may have a retroactive effect.

The following is provided as general information only and is not tax advice. All investors should consult their own tax advisors as to the federal, state, local and foreign tax provisions applicable to them.

Taxation of the Funds

Each Fund has elected and intends to qualify each year as a “regulated investment company” (sometimes referred to as a “RIC”) under Subchapter M of the Code. If a Fund qualifies, the Fund will not be subject to federal income tax on the portion of its investment company taxable income (i.e., generally, taxable interest, dividends, net short-term capital gains and other taxable ordinary income net of expenses without regard to the deduction for dividends paid) and net capital gain (i.e., the excess of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses) that it distributes.

Qualification as a RIC. In order to qualify for treatment as a RIC, a Fund must satisfy the following requirements:

 

   

Distribution Requirement—the Fund must distribute an amount equal to the sum of at least 90% of its investment company taxable income and 90% of its net tax-exempt income, if any, for the tax year (certain distributions made by the Fund after the close of its tax year are considered distributions attributable to the previous tax year for purposes of satisfying this requirement).

 

   

Income Requirement—the Fund must derive at least 90% of its gross income from dividends, interest, certain payments with respect to securities loans, and 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 from its business of investing in such stock, securities or currencies and net income derived from qualified publicly traded partnerships (“QPTPs”).

 

   

Asset Diversification Test—the Fund must satisfy the following asset diversification test at the close of each quarter of the Fund’s tax year: (1) at least 50% of the value of the Fund’s assets must consist of cash and cash items, U.S. government securities, securities of other regulated investment companies, and securities of other issuers (as to which the Fund has not invested more than 5% of the value of the Fund’s total assets in securities of an issuer and as to which the Fund does not hold more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of the issuer); and (2) no more than 25% of the value of the Fund’s total assets may be invested in the securities of any one issuer (other than U.S. government securities or securities of other regulated investment companies) or of two or more issuers which the Fund controls and which are engaged in the same or similar trades or businesses, or, collectively, in the securities of QPTPs.

In some circumstances, the character and timing of income realized by a Fund for purposes of the Income Requirement or the identification of the issuer for purposes of the Asset Diversification Test is uncertain under current law with respect to a particular investment, and an adverse determination or future guidance by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) with respect to such type of investment may adversely affect a Fund’s ability to satisfy these requirements. See “Tax Treatment of Portfolio Transactions” below with respect to the application of these requirements to certain types of investments. In other circumstances, a Fund may be

 

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required to sell portfolio holdings in order to meet the Income Requirement, Distribution Requirement, or Asset Diversification Test, which may have a negative impact on the Fund’s income and performance. In lieu of potential disqualification, a Fund is permitted to pay a tax for certain failures to satisfy the Asset Diversification Test or Income Requirement, which, in general, are limited to those due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect.

Each Fund may use “equalization accounting” (in lieu of making some cash distributions) in determining the portion of its income and gains that has been distributed. If a Fund uses equalization accounting, it will allocate a portion of its undistributed investment company taxable income and net capital gain to redemptions of Shares and will correspondingly reduce the amount of such income and gains that it distributes in cash. However, each Fund intends to make cash distributions for each taxable year in an aggregate amount that is sufficient to satisfy the Distribution Requirement without taking into account its use of equalization accounting. If the IRS determines that a Fund’s allocation is improper and/or that such Fund has under-distributed its income and gain for any taxable year, the Fund may be liable for federal income and/or excise tax.

If for any taxable year a Fund does not qualify as a RIC, all of its taxable income (including its net capital gain) would be subject to tax at the corporate income tax rate without any deduction for dividends paid to shareholders, and the dividends would be taxable to the shareholders as ordinary income (or possibly as qualified dividend income) to the extent of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits. Failure to qualify as a RIC thus would have a negative impact on a Fund’s income and performance. Subject to savings provisions for certain inadvertent failures to satisfy the Income Requirement or Asset Diversification Test which, in general, are limited to those due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect, it is possible that a Fund will not qualify as a RIC in any given tax year. Even if such savings provisions apply, a Fund may be subject to a monetary sanction of $50,000 or more. Moreover, the Board reserves the right not to maintain the qualification of a Fund as a RIC if it determines such a course of action to be beneficial to shareholders.

Portfolio turnover. For investors that hold Shares in a taxable account, a high portfolio turnover rate may result in higher taxes. This is because a fund with a high turnover rate may accelerate the recognition of capital gains and more of such gains are likely to be taxable as short-term rather than long-term capital gains in contrast to a comparable fund with a low turnover rate. Any such higher taxes would reduce a Fund’s after-tax performance. See “Taxation of Fund Distributions—Capital gain dividends” below. For non-U.S. investors, any such acceleration of the recognition of capital gains that results in more short-term and less long-term capital gains being recognized by a Fund may cause such investors to be subject to increased U.S. withholding taxes. See “Foreign Shareholders—U.S. withholding tax at the source” below. For ETFs, in-kind redemptions are the primary redemption mechanism and, therefore, a Fund may be less likely to sell securities in order to generate cash for redeeming shareholders, which a mutual fund might do. This provides a greater opportunity for ETFs to defer the recognition of gain on appreciated securities which it may hold thereby reducing the distribution of capital gains to its shareholders.

Capital loss carryovers. The capital losses of a Fund, if any, do not flow through to shareholders. Rather, a Fund may use its capital losses, subject to applicable limitations, to offset its capital gains without being required to pay taxes on or distribute to shareholders such gains that are offset by the losses. If a Fund has a “net capital loss” (that is, capital losses in excess of capital gains), the excess (if any) of the Fund’s net short-term capital losses over its net long-term capital gains is treated as a short-term capital loss arising on the first day of the Fund’s next taxable year, and the excess (if any) of the Fund’s net long-term capital losses over its net short-term capital gains is treated as a long-term capital loss arising on the first day of the Fund’s next taxable year. Any net capital losses of the Fund that are not used to offset capital gains may be carried forward indefinitely to reduce any future capital gains realized by the Fund in succeeding taxable years. The amount of capital losses that can be carried forward and used in any single year is subject to an annual limitation if there is a more than 50% “change in ownership” of the Fund. An ownership change generally results when shareholders owning 5% or more of the Fund increase their aggregate holdings by more than 50% over a three-year look-back period. An ownership change could result in capital loss carryovers being used at a slower rate, thereby reducing the Fund’s ability to offset capital gains with those losses. An increase in the amount of taxable gains distributed to a Fund’s shareholders could result from an ownership change. Each Fund undertakes no obligation to avoid or prevent an ownership change, which can occur in the normal

 

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course of shareholder purchases and redemptions or as a result of engaging in a tax-free reorganization with another fund. Moreover, because of circumstances beyond the Funds’ control, there can be no assurance that a Fund will not experience, or has not already experienced, an ownership change.

Deferral of late year losses. Each 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, which may change the timing, amount, or characterization of Fund distributions (see “Taxation of Fund Distributions—Capital gain dividends” below). A “qualified late year loss” includes:

(i) any net capital loss incurred after October 31 of the current taxable year, or, if there is no such loss, any net long-term capital loss or any net short-term capital loss incurred after October 31 of the current taxable year (post-October capital losses), and

(ii) the sum of (1) the excess, if any, of (a) specified losses incurred after October 31 of the current taxable year, over (b) specified gains incurred after October 31 of the current taxable year and (2) the excess, if any, of (a) ordinary losses incurred after December 31 of the current taxable year, over (b) the ordinary income incurred after December 31 of the current taxable year.

The terms “specified losses” and “specified gains” mean ordinary losses and gains from the sale, exchange, or other disposition of property (including the termination of a position with respect to such property), foreign currency losses and gains, and losses and gains resulting from holding stock in a passive foreign investment company (“PFIC”) for which a mark-to-market election is in effect. The terms “ordinary losses” and “ordinary income” mean other ordinary losses and income that are not described in the preceding sentence.

Undistributed capital gains. A Fund may retain or distribute to shareholders its net capital gain for each taxable year. Each Fund currently intends to distribute net capital gains. If a Fund elects to retain its net capital gain, the Fund will be taxed thereon (except to the extent of any available capital loss carryovers) at the corporate income tax rate. If a Fund elects to retain its net capital gain, it is expected that the Fund also will elect to have shareholders treated as if each received a distribution of its pro rata share of such gain, with the result that each shareholder will be required to report its pro rata share of such gain on its tax return as long-term capital gain, will receive a refundable tax credit for its pro rata share of tax paid by the Fund on the gain and will increase the tax basis for its Shares by an amount equal to the deemed distribution less the tax credit.

Funds of Funds. If a Fund is a fund of funds (which invests in one or more underlying funds taxable as regulated investment companies), distributions by the underlying funds, redemptions of shares in the underlying funds and changes in asset allocations may result in taxable distributions to shareholders of ordinary income or capital gains. A fund of funds generally will not be able currently to offset gains realized by one underlying fund in which the fund of funds invests against losses realized by another underlying fund. If shares of an underlying fund are purchased within 30 days before or after redeeming at a loss other shares of that underlying fund (whether pursuant to a rebalancing of the Fund’s portfolio or otherwise), all or a part of the loss will not be deductible by the Fund and instead will increase its basis for the newly purchased shares. Also, except with respect to a qualified fund of funds, a fund of funds (a) is not eligible to pass-through foreign tax credits from an underlying fund that pays foreign income taxes and (b) is not eligible to pass-through exempt-interest dividends from an underlying fund. A qualified fund of funds, i.e., a fund at least 50% of the value of the total assets of which (at the close of each quarter of the taxable year) is represented by interests in other RICs, is eligible to pass-through to shareholders (a) foreign tax credits and (b) exempt-interest dividends. Also, a fund of funds, whether or not it is a qualified fund of funds, is eligible to pass-through qualified dividends earned by an underlying fund (see “Taxation of Fund Distributions—Qualified dividend income for individuals” and—“Corporate dividends-received deduction” below). However, dividends paid by a fund of funds from interest earned by an underlying fund on U.S. government obligations are unlikely to be exempt from state and local income tax.

 

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Federal excise tax. To avoid a 4% non-deductible excise tax, a Fund must distribute by December 31 of each year an amount equal to at least: (1) 98% of its ordinary income for the calendar year, (2) 98.2% of capital gain net income (the excess of the gains from sales or exchanges of capital assets over the losses from such sales or exchanges) for the one-year period ended on October 31 of such calendar year, and (3) any prior year undistributed ordinary income and capital gain net income. A Fund may elect to defer to the following year any net ordinary loss incurred for the portion of the calendar year which is after the beginning of the Fund’s taxable year. Also, a Fund will defer any “specified gain” or “specified loss” which would be properly taken into account for the portion of the calendar after October 31. Any net ordinary loss, specified gain, or specified loss deferred shall be treated as arising on January 1 of the following calendar year. Generally, a Fund may make sufficient distributions to avoid liability for federal income and excise tax, but can give no assurances that all or a portion of such liability will be avoided. In addition, under certain circumstances temporary timing or permanent differences in the realization of income and expense for book and tax purposes can result in a Fund having to pay an excise tax.

Purchase of Shares. As a result of tax requirements, the Trust, on behalf of a Fund, has the right to reject an order to purchase Shares if the purchaser (or group of purchasers acting in concert with each other) would, upon obtaining the Shares so ordered, own 80% or more of the outstanding Shares and if, pursuant to Sections 351 and 362 of the Code, the Fund would have a basis in the Deposit Securities different from the market value of such 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.

Foreign income tax. Investment income received by a Fund from sources within foreign countries may be subject to foreign income tax withheld at the source, and the amount of tax withheld generally will be treated as an expense of the Fund. The United States has entered into tax treaties with many foreign countries that entitle the Funds to a reduced rate of, or exemption from, tax on such income. Some countries require the filing of a tax reclaim or other forms to receive the benefit of the reduced tax rate; whether or when a Fund will receive the tax reclaim is within the control of the individual country. Information required on these forms may not be available such as shareholder information; therefore, a Fund may not receive the reduced treaty rates or potential reclaims. Other countries have conflicting and changing instructions and restrictive timing requirements which may cause the Fund not to receive the reduced treaty rates or potential reclaims. Other countries may subject capital gains realized by a Fund on sale or disposition of securities of that country to taxation. These and other factors may make it difficult for the Fund to determine in advance the effective rate of tax on its investments in certain countries. Under certain circumstances, a Fund may elect to pass-through certain eligible foreign income taxes paid by the Fund to shareholders, although it reserves the right not to do so. If a Fund makes such an election and obtains a refund of foreign taxes paid by the Fund in a prior year, the Fund may be eligible to reduce the amount of foreign taxes reported to its shareholders, generally by the amount of the foreign taxes refunded, for the year in which the refund is received. Certain foreign taxes imposed on the Fund’s investments, such as a foreign financial transaction tax, may not be creditable against U.S. income tax liability or eligible for pass through by the Fund to its shareholders.

Taxation of Fund Distributions. Each Fund anticipates distributing substantially all of its investment company taxable income and net capital gain for each taxable year. Distributions by a Fund will be treated in the manner described below regardless of whether such distributions are paid in cash or reinvested in additional Shares of the Fund (or of another Fund). You will receive information annually as to the federal income tax consequences of distributions made (or deemed made) during the year.

Distributions of ordinary income. Each Fund receives income generally in the form of dividends and/or interest on its investments. Each Fund may also recognize ordinary income from other sources, including, but not limited to, certain gains on foreign currency-related transactions. This income, less expenses incurred in the operation of a Fund, constitutes the Fund’s net investment income from which dividends may be paid to you. If you are a taxable investor, distributions of net investment income generally are taxable as ordinary income to the extent of the Fund’s earnings and profits. In the case of a Fund whose strategy includes investing in stocks of corporations, a portion of the income dividends paid to you may be qualified dividends eligible to be taxed at reduced rates.

 

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Capital gain dividends. Taxes on distributions of capital gains are determined by how long a Fund owned the investments that generated them, rather than how long a shareholder has owned his or her Shares. In general, a Fund will recognize long-term capital gain or loss on the sale or other disposition of assets it has owned for more than one year, and short-term capital gain or loss on investments it has owned for one year or less. Distributions of net capital gain (the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss) that are properly reported by the Fund to shareholders as capital gain dividends generally will be taxable to a shareholder receiving such distributions as long-term capital gain. Long-term capital gain rates applicable to individuals are 0%, 15% or 20% depending on the nature of the capital gain and the individual’s taxable income. Distributions of net short-term capital gains for a taxable year in excess of net long-term capital losses for such taxable year generally will be taxable to a shareholder receiving such distributions as ordinary income.

Qualified dividend income for individuals. Ordinary income dividends reported as derived from qualified dividend income is taxed in the hands of individuals and other noncorporate shareholders at the rates applicable to long-term capital gain. Qualified dividend income means dividends paid to a Fund (a) by domestic corporations, (b) by foreign corporations that are either (i) incorporated in a possession of the United States, or (ii) are eligible for benefits under certain income tax treaties with the United States that include an exchange of information program, or (c) with respect to stock of a foreign corporation that is readily tradable on an established securities market in the United States. Both the Fund and the investor must meet certain holding period requirements to qualify Fund dividends for this treatment. Income derived from investments in derivatives, fixed-income securities, U.S. REITs, PFICs, and income received “in lieu of” dividends in a securities lending transaction generally is not eligible for treatment as qualified dividend income. If the qualifying dividend income received by a Fund is equal to 95% (or a greater percentage) of the Fund’s gross income (exclusive of net capital gain) in any taxable year, all of the ordinary income dividends paid by the Fund will be qualifying dividend income.

Qualified REIT dividends. Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act “qualified REIT dividends” (i.e., ordinary REIT dividends other than capital gain dividends and portions of REIT dividends designated as qualified dividend income) are treated as eligible for a 20% deduction by noncorporate taxpayers. This deduction, if allowed in full, equates to a maximum effective tax rate of 29.6% (37% top rate applied to income after 20% deduction). Proposed regulations issued by the IRS, which can be relied upon currently, enable the Fund to pass through the special character of “qualified REIT dividends”. The amount of a RIC’s dividends eligible for the 20% deduction for a taxable year is limited to the excess of the RIC’s qualified REIT dividends for the taxable year over allocable expenses. A noncorporate shareholder receiving such dividends would treat them as eligible for the 20% deduction, provided the shareholder meets certain holding period requirements for its shares in the RIC (i.e., generally, RIC shares must be held by the shareholder for more than 45 days during the 91-day period beginning on the date that is 45 days before the date on which the shares become ex-dividend with respect to such dividend).

Corporate dividends-received deduction. Ordinary income dividends reported to Fund shareholders as derived from qualified dividends from domestic corporations will qualify for the 50% dividends-received deduction generally available to corporations. The availability of the dividends-received deduction is subject to certain holding period and debt financing restrictions imposed under the Code on the corporation claiming the deduction. Income derived by the Fund from investments in derivatives, fixed-income and foreign securities generally is not eligible for this treatment.

Return of capital distributions. Distributions by a Fund that are not paid from earnings and profits will be treated as a return of capital to the extent of (and in reduction of) the shareholder’s tax basis in his or her Shares; any excess will be treated as gain from the sale of his or her Shares. Thus, the portion of a distribution that constitutes a return of capital will decrease the shareholder’s tax basis in his or her Shares (but not below zero), and will result in an increase in the amount of gain (or decrease in the amount of loss) that will be recognized by the shareholder for tax purposes on the later sale of such Shares. Return of capital distributions can occur for a number of reasons including, among others, a Fund overestimates the income to be received from certain investments such as those classified as partnerships or equity REITs. See “Tax Treatment of Portfolio Transactions—Investments in U.S. REITs.”

 

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Impact of realized but undistributed income and gains, and net unrealized appreciation of portfolio securities. At the time of your purchase of Shares, the price of the Shares may reflect undistributed income, undistributed capital gains, or net unrealized appreciation of portfolio securities held by a Fund. A subsequent distribution to you of such amounts, although constituting a return of your investment, would be taxable and would be taxed as either ordinary income (some portion of which may be taxed as qualified dividend income) or capital gain unless you are investing through a tax-advantaged arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account. A Fund may be able to reduce the amount of such distributions by utilizing its capital loss carryovers, if any.

Pass-through of foreign tax credits. If more than 50% of the value of a Fund’s total assets at the end of a fiscal year is invested in foreign securities, or if a Fund is a qualified fund of funds (i.e., a fund at least 50% of the value of the total assets of which, at the close of each quarter of the taxable year, is represented by interests in other RICs), the Fund may elect to “pass-through” the amount of foreign income tax paid by the Fund (the Foreign Tax Election) in lieu of deducting such amount in determining its investment company taxable income.

Pursuant to the Foreign Tax Election, shareholders will be required: (i) to include in gross income, even though not actually received, their respective pro rata shares of the foreign income tax paid by the Fund that are attributable to any distributions they receive; and (ii) either to deduct their pro rata share of foreign tax in computing their taxable income or to use it (subject to various Code limitations) as a foreign tax credit against federal income tax (but not both). No deduction for foreign tax may be claimed by a noncorporate shareholder who does not itemize deductions or who is subject to the alternative minimum tax. Shareholders may be unable to claim a credit for the full amount of their proportionate shares of the foreign income tax paid by a Fund due to certain limitations that may apply. Each Fund reserves the right not to pass-through the amount of foreign income taxes paid by the Fund. Additionally, any foreign tax withheld on payments made “in lieu of” dividends or interest will not qualify for the pass-through of foreign tax credits. See “Tax Treatment of Portfolio Transactions—Securities lending” below.

Tax credit bonds. If a Fund holds, directly or indirectly, one or more “tax credit bonds” (including build America bonds, clean renewable energy bonds and qualified tax credit bonds) on one or more applicable dates during a taxable year, the Fund may elect to permit its shareholders to claim a tax credit on their income tax returns equal to each shareholder’s proportionate share of tax credits from the applicable bonds that otherwise would be allowed to the Fund. In such a case, shareholders must include in gross income (as interest) their proportionate share of the income attributable to their proportionate share of those offsetting tax credits. A shareholder’s ability to claim a tax credit associated with one or more tax credit bonds may be subject to certain limitations imposed by the Code. (Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the build America bonds, clean renewable energy bonds and certain other qualified bonds may no longer be issued after December 31, 2017.) Even if the Fund is eligible to pass-through tax credits, the Fund may choose not to do so.

U.S. government interest. Income earned on certain U.S. government obligations is exempt from state and local personal income taxes if earned directly by you. States also grant tax-free status to dividends paid to you from interest earned on direct obligations of the U.S. government, subject in some states to minimum investment or reporting requirements that must be met by the Fund. Income on investments by a Fund in certain other obligations, such as repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government obligations, commercial paper and federal agency-backed obligations (e.g., GNMA or FNMA obligations), generally does not qualify for tax-free treatment. The rules on exclusion of this income are different for corporations. If a Fund is a fund of funds, see “Taxation of the Fund—Fund of Funds.”

Dividends declared in October, November or December and paid in January. Ordinarily, shareholders are required to take distributions by a Fund into account in the year in which the distributions are made. However, dividends declared in October, November or December of any year and payable to shareholders of record on a specified date in such a month will be deemed to have been received by the shareholders (and made by a Fund) on December 31 of such calendar year if such dividends are actually paid in January of the following

 

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year. Shareholders will be advised annually as to the U.S. federal income tax consequences of distributions made (or deemed made) during the year in accordance with the guidance that has been provided by the IRS.

Medicare tax. A 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on net investment income earned by certain individuals, estates and trusts. “Net investment income,” for these purposes, means investment income, including ordinary dividends and capital gain distributions received from a Fund and net gains from taxable dispositions of Shares, reduced by the deductions properly allocable to such income. In the case of an individual, the tax will be imposed on the lesser of (1) the shareholder’s net investment income or (2) the amount by which the shareholder’s modified adjusted gross income exceeds $250,000 (if the shareholder is married and filing jointly or a surviving spouse), $125,000 (if the shareholder is married and filing separately) or $200,000 (in any other case). This Medicare tax, if applicable, is reported by you on, and paid with, your federal income tax return. Net investment income does not include exempt-interest dividends.

Sale of Shares. A shareholder will recognize gain or loss on the sale of Shares in an amount equal to the difference between the proceeds of the sale and the shareholder’s adjusted tax basis in the shares. If you held your Shares as a capital asset, the gain or loss that you realize will be considered capital gain or loss and will be long-term capital gain or loss if the shares were held for longer than one year. Capital losses in any year are deductible only to the extent of capital gains plus, in the case of a noncorporate taxpayer, $3,000 of ordinary income.

Taxes on Purchase and Redemption of Creation Units. An AP that exchanges equity 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 of purchase (plus any cash received by the AP as part of the issue) and the AP’s aggregate basis in the securities surrendered (plus any cash paid by the AP as part of the issue). An AP that exchanges Creation Units for equity securities generally will recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between the AP’s basis in the Creation Units (plus any cash paid by the AP as part of the redemption) and the aggregate market value of the securities received (plus any cash received by the AP as part of the redemption). 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,” or on the basis that there has been no significant change in economic position. Persons exchanging securities should consult their own tax advisor with respect to whether wash sale rules apply and when a loss might be deductible.

Under current federal tax laws, any capital gain or loss realized upon redemption of Creation Units is generally treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the Shares have been held for more than one year and as a short-term capital gain or loss if the Shares have been held for one year or less, assuming that such Creation Units are held as a capital asset.

If a Fund redeems Creation Units in cash, it may recognize more capital gains than it will if it redeems Creation Units in-kind.

Tax basis information. A shareholder’s cost basis information will be provided on the sale of any of the shareholder’s Shares, subject to certain exceptions for exempt recipients. Please contact the broker (or other nominee) that holds your Shares with respect to reporting of cost basis and available elections for your account.

Wash sale rule. All or a portion of any loss so recognized may be deferred under the wash sale rules if the shareholder purchases other shares of the Fund within 30 days before or after the sale. Any loss disallowed under these rules will be added to your tax basis in the new Shares.

Sales at a loss within six months of purchase. Any loss incurred on a sale of Shares held for six months or less will be treated as long-term capital loss to the extent of any long-term capital gain distributed to you by the Fund on those Shares.

Reportable transactions. Under Treasury regulations, if a shareholder recognizes a loss with respect to the 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

 

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disclosure statement on Form 8886. 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.

Tax Treatment of Portfolio Transactions. Set forth below is a general description of the tax treatment of certain types of securities, investment techniques and transactions that may apply to a Fund. This section should be read in conjunction with the discussion above under “Investment Restrictions” and “Investment Strategies and Risks” for a detailed description of the various types of securities and investment techniques that apply to the Funds.

In general. In general, gain or loss recognized by a Fund on the sale or other disposition of portfolio investments will be a capital gain or loss. Such capital gain and loss may be long-term or short-term depending, in general, upon the length of time a particular investment position is maintained and, in some cases, upon the nature of the transaction. Property held for more than one year generally will be eligible for long-term capital gain or loss treatment. The application of certain rules described below may serve to alter the manner in which the holding period for a security is determined or may otherwise affect the characterization as long-term or short-term, and also the timing of the realization and/or character, of certain gains or losses.

Certain fixed-income investments. Gain recognized on the disposition of a debt obligation purchased by a Fund at a market discount (generally, at a price less than its principal amount) will be treated as ordinary income to the extent of the portion of the market discount that accrued during the period of time the Fund held the debt obligation unless the Fund made a current inclusion election to accrue market discount into income as it accrues. If a Fund purchases a debt obligation (such as a zero coupon security or pay-in-kind security) that was originally issued at a discount, the Fund generally is required to include in gross income each year the portion of the original issue discount that accrues during such year. Therefore, a Fund’s investment in such securities may cause the Fund to recognize income and make distributions to shareholders before it receives any cash payments on the securities. To generate cash to satisfy those distribution requirements, a Fund may have to sell portfolio securities that it otherwise might have continued to hold or to use cash flows from other sources such as the sale of Shares.

Investments in debt obligations that are at risk of or in default present tax issues for a Fund. Tax rules are not entirely clear about issues such as whether and to what extent a Fund should recognize market discount on a debt obligation, when a Fund may cease to accrue interest, original issue discount or market discount, when and to what extent a Fund may take deductions for bad debts or worthless securities and how a Fund should allocate payments received on obligations in default between principal and income. These and other related issues will be addressed by a Fund in order to ensure that it distributes sufficient income to preserve its status as a RIC.

Options, futures, forward contracts, swap agreements and hedging transactions. In general, option premiums received by a Fund are not immediately included in the income of the Fund. Instead, the premiums are recognized when the option contract expires, the option is exercised by the holder, or the Fund transfers or otherwise terminates the option (e.g., through a closing transaction). If an option written by a Fund is exercised and the Fund sells or delivers the underlying stock, the Fund generally will recognize capital gain or loss equal to (a) the sum of the strike price and the option premium received by the Fund minus (b) the Fund’s basis in the stock. Such gain or loss generally will be short-term or long-term depending upon the holding period of the underlying stock. If securities are purchased by a Fund pursuant to the exercise of a put option written by it, the Fund generally will subtract the premium received from its cost basis in the securities purchased. The gain or loss with respect to any termination of a Fund’s obligation under an option other than through the exercise of the option and related sale or delivery of the underlying stock generally will be short-term gain or loss depending on whether the premium income received by the Fund is greater or less than the amount paid by the Fund (if any) in terminating the transaction. Thus, for example, if an option written by a Fund expires unexercised, the Fund generally will recognize short-term gain equal to the premium received.

The tax treatment of certain futures contracts entered into by a Fund, as well as listed non-equity options written or purchased by the Fund on U.S. exchanges (including options on futures contracts, broad-based

 

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equity indices and debt securities), may be governed by section 1256 of the Code (section 1256 contracts). Gains or losses on section 1256 contracts generally are considered 60% long-term and 40% short-term capital gains or losses (60/40), although certain foreign currency gains and losses from such contracts may be treated as ordinary in character. Also, any section 1256 contracts held by a Fund at the end of each taxable year (and, for purposes of the 4% excise tax, on certain other dates as prescribed under the Code) are “marked-to-market” with the result that unrealized gains or losses are treated as though they were realized and the resulting gain or loss is treated as ordinary or 60/40 gain or loss, as applicable. Section 1256 contracts do not include any interest rate swap, currency swap, basis swap, interest rate cap, interest rate floor, commodity swap, equity swap, equity index swap, credit default swap, or similar agreement.

In addition to the special rules described above in respect of options and futures transactions, a Fund’s transactions in other derivative instruments (including options, forward contracts and swap agreements) as well as its other hedging, short sale, or similar transactions, may be subject to one or more special tax rules (including the constructive sale, notional principal contract, straddle, wash sale and short sale rules). These rules may affect whether gains and losses recognized by a Fund are treated as ordinary or capital or as short-term or long-term, accelerate the recognition of income or gains to the Fund, defer losses to the Fund, and cause adjustments in the holding periods of the Fund’s securities. These rules, therefore, could affect the amount, timing and/or character of distributions to shareholders. Moreover, because the tax rules applicable to derivative financial instruments are in some cases uncertain under current law, an adverse determination or future guidance by the IRS with respect to these rules (which determination or guidance could be retroactive) may affect whether a Fund has made sufficient distributions and otherwise satisfied the relevant requirements to maintain its qualification as a RIC and avoid a fund-level tax.

Certain of a Fund’s investments in derivatives and foreign currency-denominated instruments, and the Fund’s transactions in foreign currencies and hedging activities, may produce a difference between its book income and its taxable income. If a Fund’s book income is less than the sum of its taxable income and net tax-exempt income (if any), the Fund could be required to make distributions exceeding book income to qualify as a RIC. If a Fund’s book income exceeds the sum of its taxable income and net tax-exempt income (if any), the distribution of any such excess will be treated as (i) a dividend to the extent of the Fund’s remaining earnings and profits (including current earnings and profits arising from tax-exempt income, reduced by related deductions), (ii) thereafter, as a return of capital to the extent of the recipient’s basis in the shares, and (iii) thereafter, as gain from the sale or exchange of a capital asset.

Foreign currency transactions. A Fund’s transactions in foreign currencies, foreign currency-denominated debt obligations and certain foreign currency options, futures contracts and forward contracts (and similar instruments) 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. This treatment could increase or decrease a Fund’s ordinary income distributions to you, and may cause some or all of the Fund’s previously distributed income to be classified as a return of capital. In certain cases, a fund may make an election to treat such gain or loss as capital.

PFIC investments. A Fund may invest in securities of foreign companies that may be classified under the Code as PFICs. In general, a foreign company is classified as a PFIC if at least one-half of its assets constitute investment-type assets or 75% or more of its gross income is investment-type income. When investing in PFIC securities, a Fund intends to mark-to-market these securities under certain provisions of the Code and recognize any unrealized gains as ordinary income at the end of the Fund’s fiscal and excise tax years. Deductions for losses are allowable only to the extent of any current or previously recognized gains. These gains (reduced by allowable losses) are treated as ordinary income that a Fund is required to distribute, even though it has not sold or received dividends from these securities. You should also be aware that the designation of a foreign security as a PFIC security will cause its income dividends to fall outside of the definition of qualified foreign corporation dividends. These dividends generally will not qualify for the reduced rate of taxation on qualified dividends when distributed to you by a Fund. Foreign companies are not required to identify themselves as PFICs. Due to various complexities in identifying PFICs, a Fund can give no assurances that it will be able to identify portfolio securities in foreign corporations that are PFICs in time for the Fund to make a mark-to-market election. If a Fund is unable to identify an investment as a PFIC and

 

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thus does not make a mark-to-market election, the Fund may be subject to U.S. federal income tax on a portion of any “excess distribution” or gain from the disposition of such shares even if such income is distributed as a taxable dividend by the Fund to its shareholders. Additional charges in the nature of interest may be imposed on a Fund in respect of deferred taxes arising from such distributions or gains.

Investments in non-U.S. REITs. While non-U.S. REITs often use complex acquisition structures that seek to minimize taxation in the source country, an investment by a Fund in a non-U.S. REIT may subject the Fund, directly or indirectly, to corporate taxes, withholding taxes, transfer taxes and other indirect taxes in the country in which the real estate acquired by the non-U.S. REIT is located. The Fund’s pro rata share of any such taxes will reduce the Fund’s return on its investment. A fund’s investment in a non-U.S. REIT may be considered an investment in a PFIC, as discussed above in “Tax Treatment of Portfolio Transactions—PFIC investments.”

Additionally, foreign withholding taxes on distributions from the non-U.S. REIT may be reduced or eliminated under certain tax treaties, as discussed above in “Taxation of the Funds—Foreign income tax.” Also, a Fund in certain limited circumstances may be required to file an income tax return in the source country and pay tax on any gain realized from its investment in the non-U.S. REIT under rules similar to those in the United States which tax foreign persons on gain realized from dispositions of interests in U.S. real estate.

Investments in U.S. REITs. A U.S. REIT is not subject to federal income tax on the income and gains it distributes to shareholders. Dividends paid by a U.S. REIT, other than capital gain distributions, will be taxable as ordinary income up to the amount of the U.S. REIT’s current and accumulated earnings and profits. Capital gain dividends paid by a U.S. REIT to a Fund will be treated as long-term capital gains by the Fund and, in turn, may be distributed by the Fund to its shareholders as a capital gain distribution. Because of certain noncash expenses, such as property depreciation, an equity U.S. REIT’s cash flow may exceed its taxable income. The equity U.S. REIT, and in turn a Fund, may distribute this excess cash to shareholders in the form of a return of capital distribution. However, if a U.S. REIT is operated in a manner that fails to qualify as a REIT, an investment in the U.S. REIT would become subject to double taxation, meaning the taxable income of the U.S. REIT would be subject to federal income tax at the corporate income tax rate without any deduction for dividends paid to shareholders and the dividends would be taxable to shareholders as ordinary income (or possibly as qualified dividend income) to the extent of the U.S. REIT’s current and accumulated earnings and profits. Also, see “Tax Treatment of Portfolio Transactions—Investment in taxable mortgage pools (excess inclusion income)” and “Foreign Shareholders—U.S. withholding tax at the source” with respect to certain other tax aspects of investing in U.S. REITs.

Investment in taxable mortgage pools (excess inclusion income). Under a Notice issued by the IRS, the Code and Treasury regulations to be issued, a portion of a Fund’s income from a U.S. REIT that is attributable to the REIT’s residual interest in a real estate mortgage investment conduit (“REMIC”) or equity interests in a “taxable mortgage pool” (referred to in the Code as an excess inclusion) will be subject to federal income tax in all events. The excess inclusion income of a RIC will be allocated to shareholders of the RIC in proportion to the dividends received by such shareholders, with the same consequences as if the shareholders held the related REMIC residual interest or, if applicable, taxable mortgage pool directly. In general, excess inclusion income allocated to shareholders (i) cannot be offset by net operating losses (subject to a limited exception for certain thrift institutions), (ii) will constitute unrelated business taxable income (“UBTI”) to entities (including qualified pension plans, individual retirement accounts, 401(k) plans, Keogh plans or other tax-exempt entities) subject to tax on UBTI, thereby potentially requiring such an entity that is allocated excess inclusion income, and otherwise might not be required to file a tax return, to file a tax return and pay tax on such income, and (iii) in the case of a foreign stockholder, will not qualify for any reduction in U.S. federal withholding tax. In addition, if at any time during any taxable year a “disqualified organization” (which generally includes certain cooperatives, governmental entities, and tax-exempt organizations not subject to tax on UBTI) is a record holder of a share in a RIC, then the RIC will be subject to a tax equal to that portion of its excess inclusion income for the taxable year that is allocable to the disqualified organization, multiplied by the corporate income tax rate. The Notice imposes certain reporting requirements upon regulated

 

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investment companies that have excess inclusion income. There can be no assurance that a Fund will not allocate to shareholders excess inclusion income.

These rules are potentially applicable to each Fund with respect to any income it receives from the equity interests of certain mortgage pooling vehicles, either directly or, as is more likely, through an investment in a U.S. REIT. It is unlikely that these rules will apply to a Fund that has a non-REIT strategy.

Investments in partnerships and QPTPs. For purposes of the Income Requirement, income derived by a Fund from a partnership that is not a QPTP will be treated as qualifying income only to the extent such income is attributable to items of income of the partnership that would be qualifying income if realized directly by the Fund. While the rules are not entirely clear with respect to a fund investing in a partnership outside a master-feeder structure, for purposes of testing whether a Fund satisfies the Asset Diversification Test, the Fund generally is treated as owning a pro rata share of the underlying assets of a partnership. See “Taxation of the Fund—Qualification as a RIC.” In contrast, different rules apply to a partnership that is a QPTP. A QPTP is a partnership (a) the interests in which are traded on an established securities market, (b) that is treated as a partnership for federal income tax purposes, and (c) that derives less than 90% of its income from sources that satisfy the Income Requirement (e.g., because it invests in commodities). All of the net income derived by a Fund from an interest in a QPTP will be treated as qualifying income, but the Fund may not invest more than 25% of its total assets in one or more QPTPs. However, there can be no assurance that a partnership classified as a QPTP in one year will qualify as a QPTP in the next year. Any such failure to annually qualify as a QPTP might, in turn, cause a Fund to fail to qualify as a RIC. Although, in general, the passive loss rules of the Code do not apply to RICs, such rules do apply to a Fund with respect to items attributable to an interest in a QPTP. Fund investments in partnerships, including in QPTPs, may result in the Fund being subject to state, local or foreign income, franchise or withholding tax liabilities.

Investments in convertible securities. Convertible debt is ordinarily treated as a “single property” consisting of a pure debt interest until conversion, after which the investment becomes an equity interest. If the security is issued at a premium (i.e., for cash in excess of the face amount payable on retirement), the creditor-holder may amortize the premium over the life of the bond. If the security is issued for cash at a price below its face amount, the creditor-holder must accrue original issue discount in income over the life of the debt. The creditor-holder’s exercise of the conversion privilege is treated as a nontaxable event. Mandatorily convertible debt (e.g., an exchange-traded note or ETN issued in the form of an unsecured obligation that pays a return based on the performance of a specified market index, exchange currency, or commodity) is often, but not always, treated as a contract to buy or sell the reference property rather than debt. Similarly, convertible preferred stock with a mandatory conversion feature is ordinarily, but not always, treated as equity rather than debt. Dividends received may be qualified dividend income and eligible for the corporate dividends-received deduction. In general, conversion of preferred stock for common stock of the same corporation is tax-free. Conversion of preferred stock for cash is a taxable redemption. Any redemption premium for preferred stock that is redeemable by the issuing company might be required to be amortized under original issue discount principles. A change in the conversion ratio or conversion price of a convertible security on account of a dividend paid to the issuer’s other shareholders may result in a deemed distribution of stock to the holders of the convertible security equal to the value of their increased interest in the equity of the issuer.

Thus, an increase in the conversion ratio of a convertible security can be treated as a taxable distribution of stock to a holder of the convertible security (without a corresponding receipt of cash by the holder) before the holder has converted the security.

Securities Lending. While securities are loaned out by a Fund, the Fund generally will receive from the borrower amounts equal to any dividends or interest paid on the borrowed securities. For federal income tax purposes, payments made “in lieu of” dividends are not considered dividend income. These distributions will neither qualify for the reduced rate of federal income taxation for individuals on qualified dividends income, if otherwise available, nor the 50% dividends received deduction for corporations. Also, any foreign tax withheld on payments made “in lieu of” dividends or interest may not qualify for the pass-through of foreign tax credits to shareholders. Additionally, in the case of a Fund with a strategy of investing in tax-exempt securities, any

 

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payments made “in lieu of” tax-exempt interest will be considered taxable income to the Fund, and thus, to the investors, even though such interest may be tax-exempt when paid to the borrower.

Tax Certification and Backup Withholding. Tax certification and backup withholding tax laws may require that you certify your tax information when you become an investor in a Fund. For U.S. citizens and resident aliens, this certification is made on IRS Form W-9. Under these laws, a Fund must withhold a portion of your taxable distributions and sales proceeds unless you:

 

   

provide your correct Social Security or taxpayer identification number;

 

   

certify that this number is correct;

 

   

certify that you are not subject to backup withholding; and

 

   

certify that you are a U.S. person (including a U.S. resident alien).

The Fund also must withhold if the IRS instructs it to do so. When withholding is required, the amount will be 24% of any distributions or proceeds paid. Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld may be credited against the shareholder’s U.S. federal income tax liability, provided the appropriate information is furnished to the IRS. Certain payees and payments are exempt from backup withholding and information reporting.

Non-U.S. investors have special U.S. tax certification requirements. See “Foreign Shareholders—Tax certification and backup withholding.”

Foreign Shareholders. Shareholders who, as to the United States, are nonresident alien individuals, foreign trusts or estates, foreign corporations, or foreign partnerships (foreign shareholder), may be subject to U.S. withholding and estate tax and are subject to special U.S. tax certification requirements.

Taxation of a foreign shareholder depends on whether the income from a Fund is “effectively connected” with a U.S. trade or business carried on by such shareholder.

U.S. withholding tax at the source. If the income from a Fund is not effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business carried on by a foreign shareholder, distributions to such shareholder will be subject to U.S. withholding tax at the rate of 30% (or lower treaty rate) upon the gross amount of the distribution, subject to certain exemptions including those for dividends reported as:

 

   

exempt-interest dividends paid by the Fund from its net interest income earned on municipal securities;

 

   

capital gain dividends paid by the Fund from its net long-term capital gains (other than those from disposition of a U.S. real property interest), unless you are a nonresident alien present in the United States for a period or periods aggregating 183 days or more during the calendar year; and

 

   

interest-related dividends paid by the Fund from its qualified net interest income from U.S. sources and short-term capital gain dividends.

A Fund may report interest-related dividends or short-term capital gain dividends, but reserves the right not to do so. Additionally, a Fund’s reporting of interest-related dividends or short-term capital gain dividends may not be passed through to shareholders by intermediaries who have assumed tax reporting responsibilities for this income in managed or omnibus accounts due to systems limitations or operational constraints. Moreover, notwithstanding such exemptions from U.S. withholding at the source, any dividends and distributions of income and capital gains, including the proceeds from the sale of your Shares, will be subject to backup withholding at a rate of 24% if you fail to properly certify that you are not a U.S. person.

Foreign shareholders may be subject to U.S. withholding tax at a rate of 30% on the income resulting from an election to pass-through foreign tax credits to shareholders, but may not be able to claim a credit or deduction with respect to the withholding tax for the foreign tax treated as having been paid by them.

Amounts reported as capital gain dividends (a) that are attributable to certain capital gain dividends received from a qualified investment entity (“QIE”) (generally defined as either (i) a U.S. REIT or (ii) a RIC

 

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classified as a “U.S. real property holding corporation” or which would be if the exceptions for holding 5% or less of a class of publicly traded shares or an interest in a domestically controlled QIE did not apply), or (b) that are realized by a Fund on the sale of a “U.S. real property interest” (including gain realized on the sale of shares in a QIE other than one that is domestically controlled), will not be exempt from U.S. federal income tax and may be subject to U.S. withholding tax at the rate of 30% (or lower treaty rate) if the Fund by reason of having a REIT strategy is classified as a QIE. If a Fund is so classified, foreign shareholders owning more than 5% of the Fund’s shares may be treated as realizing gain from the disposition of a U.S. real property interest, causing Fund distributions to be subject to U.S. withholding tax at the corporate income tax rate, and requiring the filing of a nonresident U.S. income tax return. In addition, if a Fund is classified as a QIE, anti-avoidance rules apply to certain wash sale transactions. Namely, if a Fund is a domestically-controlled QIE and a foreign shareholder disposes of the Fund’s shares prior to the Fund paying a distribution attributable to the disposition of a U.S. real property interest and the foreign shareholder later acquires an identical stock interest in a wash sale transaction, the foreign shareholder may still be required to pay U.S. tax on the Fund’s distribution. Also, the sale of Shares, if classified as a “U.S. real property holding corporation,” could also be considered a sale of a U.S. real property interest with any resulting gain from such sale being subject to U.S. tax as income “effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business.”

Income effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business. If the income from a Fund is effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business carried on by a foreign shareholder, then ordinary income dividends, capital gain dividends and any gains realized upon the sale of Shares will be subject to U.S. federal income tax at the rates applicable to U.S. citizens or domestic corporations and require the filing of a nonresident U.S. income tax return.

Tax certification and backup withholding. Foreign shareholders may have special U.S. tax certification requirements to avoid backup withholding (at a rate of 24%) and, if applicable, to obtain the benefit of any income tax treaty between the foreign shareholder’s country of residence and the United States. To claim these tax benefits, the foreign shareholder must provide a properly completed Form W-8BEN (or other Form W-8, where applicable, or their substitute forms) to establish his or her status as a non-U.S. investor, to claim beneficial ownership over the assets in the account, and to claim, if applicable, a reduced rate of or exemption from withholding tax under the applicable treaty. A Form W-8BEN provided without a U.S. taxpayer identification number remains in effect for a period of three years beginning on the date that it is signed and ending on the last day of the third succeeding calendar year unless an earlier change of circumstances makes the information given on the form incorrect, and the shareholder must then provide a new W-8BEN to avoid the prospective application of backup withholding. Forms W-8BEN with U.S. taxpayer identification numbers remain valid indefinitely, or until the investor has a change of circumstances that renders the form incorrect and necessitates a new form and tax certification. Certain payees and payments are exempt from backup withholding.

Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”). Under FATCA, a Fund will be required to withhold a 30% tax on income dividends made by the Fund to certain foreign entities, referred to as foreign financial institutions (“FFI”) or non-financial foreign entities (“NFFE”). After December 31, 2018, FATCA withholding also would have applied to certain capital gain distributions, return of capital distributions and the proceeds arising from the sale of Shares; however, based on proposed regulations issued by the IRS, which can be relied upon currently, such withholding is no longer required unless final regulations provide otherwise (which is not expected). The FATCA withholding tax generally can be avoided: (a) by an FFI, if it reports certain direct and indirect ownership of foreign financial accounts held by U.S. persons with the FFI and (b) by an NFFE, if it: (i) certifies that it has no substantial U.S. persons as owners or (ii) if it does have such owners, reporting information relating to them. The U.S. Treasury has negotiated intergovernmental agreements (“IGAs”) with certain countries and is in various stages of negotiations with a number of other foreign countries with respect to one or more alternative approaches to implement FATCA.

An FFI can avoid FATCA withholding if it is deemed compliant or by becoming a “participating FFI,” which requires the FFI to enter into a U.S. tax compliance agreement with the IRS under section 1471(b) of the Code (FFI agreement) under which it agrees to verify, report and disclose certain of its U.S. accountholders and meet certain other specified requirements. The FFI will either report the specified information about the

 

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U.S. accounts to the IRS, or, to the government of the FFI’s country of residence (pursuant to the terms and conditions of applicable law and an applicable IGA entered into between the U.S. and the FFI’s country of residence), which will, in turn, report the specified information to the IRS. An FFI that is resident in a country that has entered into an IGA with the U.S. to implement FATCA will be exempt from FATCA withholding provided that the FFI shareholder and the applicable foreign government comply with the terms of such agreement.

An NFFE that is the beneficial owner of a payment from a Fund can avoid the FATCA withholding tax generally by certifying that it does not have any substantial U.S. owners or by providing the name, address and taxpayer identification number of each substantial U.S. owner. The NFFE will report the information to the Fund or other applicable withholding agent, which will, in turn, report the information to the IRS.

Such foreign shareholders also may fall into certain exempt, excepted or deemed compliant categories as established by U.S. Treasury regulations, IGAs, and other guidance regarding FATCA. An FFI or NFFE that invests in a Fund will need to provide the Fund with documentation properly certifying the entity’s status under FATCA in order to avoid FATCA withholding. Non-U.S. investors should consult their own tax advisors regarding the impact of these requirements on their investment in a Fund. The requirements imposed by FATCA are different from, and in addition to, the U.S. tax certification rules to avoid backup withholding described above. Shareholders are urged to consult their tax advisors regarding the application of these requirements to their own situation.

U.S. estate tax. Transfers by gift of Shares by a foreign shareholder who is a nonresident alien individual will not be subject to U.S. federal gift tax. An individual who, at the time of death, is a foreign shareholder will nevertheless be subject to U.S. federal estate tax with respect to Shares at the graduated rates applicable to U.S. citizens and residents, unless a treaty exemption applies. If a treaty exemption is available, a decedent’s estate may nonetheless need to file a U.S. estate tax return to claim the exemption in order to obtain a U.S. federal transfer certificate. The transfer certificate will identify the property (i.e., Shares) as to which the U.S. federal estate tax lien has been released. In the absence of a treaty, there is a $13,000 statutory estate tax credit (equivalent to an estate with assets of $60,000).

Local Tax Considerations. Rules of state and local taxation of ordinary income, qualified dividend income and capital gain dividends may differ from the rules for U.S. federal income taxation described above. Distributions may also be subject to additional state, local and foreign taxes depending on each shareholder’s particular situation.

* * * * *

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 Shares, including under federal, 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, all of which are subject to change, which change may be retroactive. Changes in any applicable authority could materially affect the conclusions discussed above, possibly retroactively, and such changes often occur.

DETERMINATION OF NAV

The NAV for each Fund will be calculated and disseminated daily on each day that the NYSE is open for trading. The Custodian normally calculates a Fund’s NAV as of the regularly scheduled close of business of the NYSE (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern time). A Fund’s NAV is based on prices at the time of closing. U.S. fixed-income assets may be valued as of the announced closing time for trading in fixed-income instruments in a particular market or exchange. NAV is calculated by deducting all of a Fund’s liabilities from the total value of its assets and then dividing the result by the number of Shares outstanding, rounding to the nearest cent. Generally, the portfolio securities are recorded in the NAV no later than the trade date plus one day. In determining NAV, expenses are accrued and applied daily and securities and other assets for which market quotations are readily available and reliable are valued at market value. The Trust’s Board has designated the

 

75


Adviser to fair value the Funds’ portfolio securities and other assets for which market quotations are not readily available and reliable in accordance with the Valuation Procedures, subject to the Board’s oversight.

Securities listed or traded on an exchange (except convertible securities) generally are valued at the last trade price or official closing price that day as of the close of the exchange where the security primarily trades. Securities of investment companies that are not exchange-traded (e.g., open-end mutual funds) are valued using such company’s end-of-business day NAV per share, whereas securities of investment companies that are exchange-traded are valued at the last trade price or official closing price on the exchange on which they primarily trade. Deposits, other obligations of U.S. and non-U.S. banks and financial institutions, and cash equivalents are valued at their daily account value. Fixed income securities (including convertible securities) normally are valued on the basis of prices provided by independent pricing services. Pricing services generally value fixed income securities assuming orderly transactions of institutional round lot size, but a Fund may hold or transact in the same securities in smaller, odd lot sizes. Odd lots often trade at lower prices than institutional round lots, and their value may be adjusted accordingly. Futures contracts are valued at the daily settlement price set by an exchange on which they are principally traded. U.S. exchange-traded options are valued at the mean between the last bid and asked prices from the exchange on which they principally trade. Non-U.S. exchange-traded options are valued at the final settlement price set by the exchange on which they trade. Options not listed on an exchange and swaps generally are valued using pricing provided from independent pricing services. Unlisted securities will be valued using prices provided by independent pricing services or by another method that the Adviser, in its judgment, believes better reflects the security’s fair value in accordance with the Valuation Procedures. Foreign exchange-traded equity securities are valued at their market value if market quotations are available and reliable. The Adviser may use various pricing services to obtain market quotations as well as fair value prices. The Adviser may discontinue the use of any pricing service at any time.

At times, a listed security’s market price may not be readily available. Moreover, even when market quotations are available for a security, they may be stale or unreliable. A security’s last market quotation may become stale because, among other reasons, (i) the security is not traded frequently, (ii) the security ceased trading before its exchange closed; (iii) market or issuer-specific events occurred after the security ceased trading; or (iv) the passage of time between when the security’s trading market closes and when a Fund calculates its NAV caused the quotation to become stale. A security’s last market quotation may become unreliable because of (i) certain issuer- or security-specific events, including a merger or insolvency, (ii) events which affect a geographical area or an industry segment, such as political events or natural disasters, or (iii) market events, such as a significant movement in the U.S. market. When a security’s market price is not readily available, or the Adviser determines, in its judgment, that such price is stale or unreliable, the Adviser will value the security at fair value in good faith using the Valuation Procedures. Fund securities that are fair valued may be subject to greater fluctuation in their value from one day to the next than would be the case if market quotations were used.

If a Fund holds securities that are primarily traded on foreign markets, the value of such securities may change on days that are not business days of the Fund. Because the NAV of the Shares is only determined on business days of the Funds, the value of such foreign securities may change on days when you are not able to purchase or sell Shares. If, between the time trading ends on one or more securities and the close of the customary trading session on the NYSE, a significant event occurs that makes the closing price of one or more securities unreliable in the Adviser’s judgment, the Adviser may fair value the security. The Adviser also relies on a screening process from a pricing vendor to indicate the degree of certainty, based on historical data, that the closing price in the principal market where a foreign security trades is not the current market value as of the close of the NYSE. Foreign securities’ prices meeting the degree of certainty that the price is not reflective of current market value will be priced at the indication of fair value from the independent pricing service. Multiple factors may be considered by the independent pricing service in determining adjustments to reflect fair value and may include information relating to sector indices, American Depositary Receipts and domestic and foreign index futures.

If a fair value price provided by a pricing service is unreliable in the Adviser’s judgment, the Adviser will fair value the security using the Valuation Procedures. Fair value pricing involves subjective judgments, and

 

76


fair value pricing methods may change from time to time. Consequently, while such determinations may be made in good faith, it may nevertheless be more difficult for a Fund to accurately assign a daily value.

Because of the inherent uncertainties of valuation, and the degree of subjectivity in such decisions, it is possible that a fair value determination for a security is materially different than the value that could be realized upon the sale of the security. There is no assurance that a Fund could sell a portfolio security for the value established for it at any time, and it is possible that a Fund would incur a loss if a security is sold at a discount to its established value. Because the Funds seek to track an Underlying Index, the use of fair value pricing could result in a difference between the prices used to calculate a Fund’s NAV and the prices used by the Fund’s Underlying Index, which may increase the Fund’s tracking error.

Additional information regarding the current NAV per share of each Fund can be found at www.invesco.com/ETFs.

DIVIDENDS AND OTHER DISTRIBUTIONS

The following information supplements and should be read in conjunction with the section in the Prospectus entitled “Dividends, Other Distributions and Taxes.”

Generally, dividends from net investment income, if any, are declared and paid quarterly by each Fund.

Distributions of net realized securities gains, if any, generally are declared and paid at least annually, but any Fund may make distributions on a more frequent basis. The Trust reserves the right to declare special distributions if, in its reasonable discretion, such action is necessary or advisable to preserve the status of each Fund as a RIC or to avoid imposition of income tax or the excise tax on undistributed income.

Dividends and other distributions on Shares are distributed, as described below, on a pro rata basis to Beneficial Owners of the Shares. Dividend payments are made through DTC Participants and Indirect Participants to Beneficial Owners then of record with proceeds received from each Fund.

Dividend Reinvestment Service. No reinvestment service is provided by the Trust. Broker-dealers may make available the DTC book-entry Dividend Reinvestment Service for use by Beneficial Owners for reinvestment of their distributions. Beneficial Owners should contact their broker to determine the availability and costs of the service and the details of participation therein. Brokers may require Beneficial Owners to adhere to specific procedures and timetables.

MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION

Counsel. Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young, LLP, located at 191 North Wacker Drive, Suite 1601, Chicago, Illinois 60606, and 2000 K Street, NW, Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20006, serves as legal counsel to the Trust.

Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm. [  ] serves as the Funds’ independent registered public accounting firm. [ ] audits the Funds’ annual financial statements and assists in the preparation and/or review of each Fund’s federal and state income tax returns. In connection with the audit of the 2024 financial statements, the Funds entered into an engagement letter with [ ]. The terms of the engagement letter required by [ ], and agreed to by the Audit Committee of the Board of the Trust, include a provision mandating the use of mediation and arbitration to resolve any controversy or claim between the parties arising out of or relating to the engagement letter or the services provided thereunder.

 

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FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The Funds’ audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, including the notes thereto and the report of the Funds’ independent registered public accounting firm thereon, are incorporated by reference to the Form N-CSR for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024, which is on file with the SEC, and made part of this SAI. The Funds’ unaudited financial statements appearing in the Trust’s Semi-Annual Report to shareholders for the period ended October 31, 2024, are incorporated by reference to the Form N-CSRS for the fiscal period ended October 31, 2024, which also is on file with the SEC, and made part of this SAI. The unaudited interim financial statements reflect all adjustments which are, in the opinion of management, necessary for a fair statement of the results for the interim period presented. In addition, all such adjustments are of a normal recurring nature. The Funds’ current Annual Report and Semi-Annual Report and financial statements are available at no charge on the Funds’ website or by calling 800.983.0903 during normal business hours.

 

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APPENDIX A

 

LOGO

INVESCO’S POLICY STATEMENT ON GLOBAL CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND PROXY VOTING  

Effective January 2024

Contents

 

I.    Introduction   A-1   
A.    Our Approach to Proxy Voting   A-1   
B.    Applicability of Policy   A-2   
II.    Global Proxy Voting Operational Procedures   A-2   
A.    Oversight and Governance   A-2   
B.    The Proxy Voting Process   A-3   
C.    Retention and Oversight of Proxy Service Providers   A-3   
D.    Disclosures and Recordkeeping   A-4   
E.    Market and Operational Limitations   A-5   
F.    Securities Lending   A-6   
G.    Conflicts of Interest   A-6   
H.    Review of Policy   A-7   
III.    Our Good Governance Principles   A-7   
A.    Transparency   A-8   
B.    Accountability   A-8   
C.    Board Composition and Effectiveness   A-10   
D.    Long-Term Stewardship of Capital   A-12   
E.    Environmental, Social and Governance Risk Oversight   A-13   
F.    Executive Compensation and Alignment   A-14   
   Exhibit A   A-16   

 

I.

Introduction

Invesco Ltd. and its wholly owned investment adviser subsidiaries (collectively, “Invesco”, the “Company”, “our” or “we”) have adopted and implemented this Policy Statement on Global Corporate Governance and Proxy Voting (“Global Proxy Voting Policy” or “Policy”), which we believe describe policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure proxy voting matters are conducted in the best interests of our clients.

 

  A.

Our Approach to Proxy Voting

Invesco understands proxy voting is an integral aspect of the investment management services it provides to clients. As an investment adviser, Invesco has a fiduciary duty to act in the best interests of our clients. Where Invesco has been delegated the authority to vote proxies with respect to securities held in client portfolios, we exercise such authority in the manner we believe best serves the interests of our clients and their investment objectives. We recognize that proxy voting is an important tool that enables us to drive shareholder value.

A summary of our global operational procedures and governance structure is included in Part II of this Policy. Invesco’s good governance principles, which are included in Part III of this Policy, and our internal proxy voting guidelines are both principles and rules-based and cover topics that typically

 

A-1


appear on voting ballots. Invesco’s portfolio management teams retain ultimate authority to vote proxies. Given the complexity of proxy issues across our clients’ holdings globally, our investment teams consider many factors when determining how to cast votes. We seek to evaluate and make voting decisions that favor proxy proposals and governance practices that, in our view, promote long-term shareholder value.

 

  B.

Applicability of Policy

Invesco’s portfolio management teams vote proxies on behalf of Invesco-sponsored funds and both fund and non-fund advisory clients that have explicitly granted Invesco authority in writing to vote proxies on their behalf. In the case of institutional or sub-advised clients, Invesco will vote the proxies in accordance with this Policy unless the client agreement specifies that the client retains the right to vote or has designated a named fiduciary to direct voting.

This Policy is implemented by all entities listed in Exhibit A, except as noted below. Due to regional or asset class-specific considerations, certain entities may have local proxy voting guidelines or policies and procedures that differ from this Policy. In the event local policies and this Policy differ, the local policy will apply. These entities subject to local policies are listed in Exhibit A and include: Invesco Asset Management (Japan) Limited, Invesco Asset Management (India) Pvt. Ltd, Invesco Taiwan Ltd, Invesco Real Estate Management S.a.r.l and Invesco Capital Markets, Inc. for Invesco Unit Investment Trusts.

Where our passively managed strategies and certain other client accounts managed in accordance with fixed income, money market and index strategies (including exchange-traded funds) (referred to as “passively managed accounts”) hold the same investments as our actively managed equity funds, voting decisions with respect to those accounts generally follow the voting decisions made by the largest active holder of the equity shares. Invesco refers to this approach as “Majority Voting.” This process of Majority Voting seeks to ensure that our passively managed accounts benefit from the engagement and deep dialogue of our active investment teams, which Invesco believes benefits shareholders in passively managed accounts. Invesco will generally apply the majority holder’s vote instruction to these passively managed accounts. Where securities are held only in passively managed accounts and not owned in our actively managed accounts, the proxy will be generally voted in line with this Policy and internal proxy voting guidelines. Notwithstanding the above, portfolio management teams of our passively managed accounts retain full discretion over proxy voting decisions and may determine it appropriate to individually evaluate a specific proxy proposal or override Majority Voting and vote the shares as they determine to be in the best interest of those accounts, absent certain types of conflicts of interest, which are discussed elsewhere in the Policy. To the extent our portfolio management teams believe a specific proxy proposal requires enhanced analysis or if it is not covered by the Policy or internal guidelines, our portfolio management teams will evaluate such proposal and execute the voting decision.

 

II.

Global Proxy Voting Operational Procedures

Invesco’s global proxy voting operational procedures (the “Procedures”) are in place to implement the provisions of this Policy. Invesco aims to vote all proxies where we have been granted voting authority in accordance with this Policy, as implemented by the Procedures outlined in this Section II. It is the responsibility of Invesco’s Proxy Voting and Governance team to maintain and facilitate the review of the Procedures annually.

 

  A.

Oversight and Governance

Oversight of the proxy voting process is provided by the Proxy Voting and Governance team and the Global Invesco Proxy Advisory Committee (“Global IPAC”). For some clients, third parties (e.g., U.S. fund boards) and internal sub-committees also provide oversight of the proxy voting process.

Guided by its philosophy that investment teams should manage proxy voting, Invesco has created the Global IPAC. The Global IPAC is an investments-driven committee comprised of representatives from various investment management teams globally and Invesco’s Global Head of ESG and is chaired by its Director of Proxy Voting and Governance. Representatives from Invesco’s Legal and Compliance, Risk

 

A-2


and Government Affairs departments may also participate in Global IPAC meetings. The Global IPAC provides a forum for investment teams, in accordance with this Policy, to:

 

   

monitor, understand and discuss key proxy issues and voting trends within the Invesco complex;

 

   

assist Invesco in meeting regulatory obligations;

 

   

review votes not aligned with our good governance principles; and

 

   

consider conflicts of interest in the proxy voting process.

In fulfilling its responsibilities, the Global IPAC meets as necessary, but no less than semi-annually, and has the following responsibilities and functions: (i) acts as a key liaison between the Proxy Voting and Governance team and portfolio management teams to ensure compliance with this Policy; (ii) provides insight on market trends as it relates to stewardship practices; (iii) monitors proxy votes that present potential conflicts of interest; and (iv) reviews and provides input, at least annually, on this Policy and related internal procedures and recommends any changes to the Policy based on, but not limited to, Invesco’s experience, evolving industry practices, or developments in applicable laws or regulations. In addition, when necessary, the Global IPAC Conflict of Interest Sub-committee makes voting decisions on proxies that require an override of the Policy due to an actual or perceived conflict of interest; the Global IPAC reviews any such voting decisions.

 

  B.

The Proxy Voting Process

At Invesco, investment teams execute voting decisions through our proprietary voting platform and are supported by the Proxy Voting and Governance team and a dedicated technology team. Invesco’s proprietary voting platform streamlines the proxy voting process by providing our global investment teams with direct access to proxy meeting materials including ballots, Invesco’s internal proxy voting guidelines and recommendations, as well as proxy research and vote recommendations issued by Proxy Service Providers (as such term is defined below). Votes executed on Invesco’s proprietary voting platform are transmitted to our proxy voting agent electronically and are then delivered to the respective designee for tabulation.

Invesco’s Proxy Voting and Governance team monitors whether we have received proxy ballots for shareholder meetings in which we are entitled to vote. This involves coordination among various parties in the proxy voting ecosystem, such as our proxy voting agent, custodians and ballot distributors. If necessary, we may choose to escalate a matter to facilitate our ability to exercise our right to vote.

Our proprietary systems facilitate internal control and oversight of the voting process. To facilitate the casting of votes in an efficient manner, Invesco may choose to pre-populate and leverage the capabilities of these proprietary systems to automatically submit votes based on its internal proxy voting guidelines and in circumstances where Majority Voting, share blocking (as defined below) or proportional voting applies. If necessary, votes may be cast by Invesco or via the Proxy Service Providers Web platform at our direction.

 

  C.

Retention and Oversight of Proxy Service Providers

Invesco has retained two independent third party proxy voting service providers to provide proxy support globally: Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (“ISS”) and Glass Lewis (“GL”). In addition to ISS and GL, Invesco may retain certain local proxy service providers to access regionally specific research (collectively with ISS and GL, “Proxy Service Providers”). The services may include one or more of the following: providing a comprehensive analysis of each voting item and interpretations of each based on Invesco’s internally developed proxy voting guidelines; and providing assistance with the administration of the proxy process and certain proxy voting-related functions, including, but not limited to, operational, reporting and recordkeeping services.

While Invesco may take into consideration the information and recommendations provided by the Proxy Service Providers, including based upon Invesco’s internal proxy voting guidelines and

 

A-3


recommendations provided to such Proxy Service Providers, Invesco’s portfolio management teams retain full and independent discretion with respect to proxy voting decisions.

Updates to previously issued proxy research reports and recommendations may be provided to incorporate newly available information or additional disclosure provided by the issuer regarding a matter to be voted on, or to correct factual errors that may result in the issuance of revised proxy vote recommendations. Invesco’s Proxy Voting and Governance team periodically monitors for these research alerts issued by Proxy Service Providers that are shared with our portfolio management teams.

Invesco performs extensive initial and ongoing due diligence on the Proxy Service Providers it engages globally. Invesco conducts annual due diligence meetings as part of its ongoing oversight of Proxy Service Providers. The topics included in these annual due diligence reviews include material changes in service levels, leadership and control, conflicts of interest, methodologies for formulating vote recommendations, operations, and research personnel, among other things. In addition, Invesco monitors and communicates with these firms throughout the year and monitors their compliance with Invesco’s performance and policy standards.

As part of our annual policy development process, Invesco may engage with other external proxy and governance experts to understand market trends and developments. These meetings provide Invesco with an opportunity to assess the Proxy Service Providers’ capabilities, conflicts of interest and service levels, as well as provide investment professionals with direct insight into the Proxy Service Providers’ stances on key corporate governance and proxy topics and their policy framework/methodologies.

Invesco completes a review of the System and Organizational Controls (“SOC”) Reports for Proxy Service Providers to confirm the related controls operated effectively to provide reasonable assurance.

 

  D.

Disclosures and Recordkeeping

Unless otherwise required by local or regional requirements, Invesco maintains voting records for at least seven (7) years. Invesco makes its proxy voting records publicly available in compliance with regulatory requirements and industry best practices in the regions below:

 

   

In accordance with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission regulations, Invesco will file a record of all proxy voting activity for the prior 12 months ending June 30th for each U.S. registered fund. In addition, Invesco, as an institutional manager that is required to file Form 13F, will file a record of its votes on certain executive compensation (“say on pay”) matters. These fund proxy voting filings and institutional manager say on pay voting filings will generally be made on or before August 31st of each year. Each year, the proxy voting records for each U.S. registered fund are made available on Invesco’s website here. Moreover, and to the extent applicable, the U.S. Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), including Department of Labor regulations and guidance thereunder, provide that the named fiduciary generally should be able to review not only the investment adviser’s voting procedure with respect to plan-owned stock, but also to review the actions taken in individual proxy voting situations. In the case of institutional and sub-advised clients, clients may contact their client service representative to request information about how Invesco voted proxies on their behalf. Absent specific contractual guidelines, such requests may be made on a semi-annual basis.

 

   

In the UK and Europe, Invesco publicly discloses our proxy votes monthly in compliance with the UK Stewardship Code and for the European Shareholder Rights Directive annually here.

 

   

In Canada, Invesco publicly discloses our annual proxy votes each year here by August 31st, covering the 12-month period ending June 30th in compliance with the National Instrument 81-106 Investment Fund Continuous Disclosure.

 

   

In Japan, Invesco publicly discloses our proxy votes annually in compliance with the Japan Stewardship Code here.

 

   

In India, Invesco publicly discloses our proxy votes quarterly here in compliance with The Securities

 

A-4


 

and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI”) Circular on stewardship code for all Mutual Funds and all categories of Alternative Investment Funds in relation to their investment in listed equities. SEBI has implemented principles on voting for Mutual Funds through circulars dated March 15, 2010, March 24, 2014 and March 5, 2021, which prescribed detailed mandatory requirements for Mutual Funds in India to disclose their voting policies and actual voting by Mutual Funds on different resolutions of investee companies.

 

   

In Hong Kong, Invesco Hong Kong Limited will provide proxy voting records upon request in compliance with the Securities and Futures Commission (“SFC”) Principles of Responsible Ownership.

 

   

In Taiwan, Invesco publicly discloses our proxy voting policy and proxy votes annually in compliance with Taiwan’s Stewardship Principles for Institutional Investors here.

 

   

In Australia, Invesco publicly discloses a summary of its proxy voting record annually here.

 

   

In Singapore, Invesco Asset Management Singapore Ltd. will provide proxy voting records upon request in compliance with the Singapore Stewardship Principles for Responsible Investors.

Invesco may engage Proxy Service Providers to make available or maintain certain required proxy voting records in accordance with the above stated applicable regulations. Separately managed account clients that have authorized Invesco to vote proxies on their behalf will receive proxy voting information with respect to those accounts upon request. Certain other clients may obtain information about how we voted proxies on their behalf by contacting their client service representative or advisor. Invesco does not publicly pre-disclose voting intentions in advance of shareholder meetings.

 

  E.

Market and Operational Limitations

In the great majority of instances, Invesco will vote proxies. However, in certain circumstances, Invesco may refrain from voting where the economic or other opportunity costs of voting exceed any benefit to clients. Moreover, ERISA fiduciaries, in voting proxies or exercising other shareholder rights, must not subordinate the economic interests of plan participants and beneficiaries to unrelated objectives. These matters are left to the discretion of the relevant portfolio manager. Such circumstances could include, for example:

 

   

Certain countries impose temporary trading restrictions, a practice known as “share blocking.” This means that once the shares have been voted, the shareholder does not have the ability to sell the shares for a certain period of time, usually until the day after the conclusion of the shareholder meeting. Invesco generally refrains from voting proxies at companies where share blocking applies. In some instances, Invesco may determine that the benefit to the client(s) of voting a specific proxy outweighs the client’s temporary inability to sell the shares.

 

   

Some companies require a representative to attend meetings in person to vote a proxy, or submit additional documentation or the disclosure of beneficial owner details to vote. Invesco may determine that the costs of sending a representative or submitting additional documentation or disclosures outweigh the benefit of voting a particular proxy.

 

   

Invesco may not receive proxy materials from the relevant fund or client custodian with sufficient time and information to make an informed independent voting decision.

 

   

Invesco held shares on the record date but has sold them prior to the meeting date.

In some non-U.S. jurisdictions, although Invesco uses reasonable efforts to vote a proxy, proxies may not be accepted or may be rejected due to changes in the agenda for a shareholder meeting for which Invesco does not have sufficient notice, due to a proxy voting service not being offered by the custodian in the local market or due to operational issues experienced by third parties involved in the process or by the issuer or sub-custodian. In addition, despite the best efforts of Invesco and its proxy voting agent, there may be instances where our votes may not be received or properly tabulated by an issuer or the

 

A-5


issuer’s agent. Invesco will generally endeavor to vote and maintain any paper ballots received provided they are delivered in a timely manner ahead of the vote deadline.

 

  F.

Securities Lending

Invesco’s funds may participate in a securities lending program. In circumstances where funds’ shares are on loan, the voting rights of those shares are transferred to the borrower. If the security in question is on loan as part of a securities lending program, Invesco may determine that the vote is material to the investment and therefore, the benefit to the client of voting a particular proxy outweighs the economic benefits of securities lending. In those instances, Invesco may determine to recall securities that are on loan prior to the meeting record date, so that we will be entitled to vote those shares. For example, for certain actively managed funds, the lending agent has standing instructions to systematically recall all securities on loan for Invesco to vote the proxies on those previously loaned shares. There may be instances where Invesco may be unable to recall shares or may choose not to recall shares. Such circumstances may include instances when Invesco does not receive timely notice of the meeting, or when Invesco deems the opportunity for a fund to generate securities lending revenue to outweigh the benefits of voting at a specific meeting. The relevant portfolio manager will make these determinations.

 

  G.

Conflicts of Interest

There may be occasions where voting proxies may present a perceived or actual conflict of interest between Invesco, as investment adviser, and one or more of Invesco’s clients or vendors.

Firm-Level Conflicts of Interest

A conflict of interest may exist if Invesco has a material business relationship with either the company soliciting a proxy or a third party that has a material interest in the outcome of a proxy vote or that is actively lobbying for a particular outcome of a proxy vote. Such relationships may include, among others, a client relationship, serving as a vendor whose products / services are material or significant to Invesco, serving as a distributor of Invesco’s products, or serving as a significant research provider or broker to Invesco.

Invesco identifies potential conflicts of interest based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to the materiality of the relationship between the issuer or its affiliates to Invesco.

Material firm-level conflicts of interests are identified by individuals and groups within Invesco globally based on criteria established by the Proxy Voting and Governance team. These criteria are monitored and updated periodically by the Proxy Voting and Governance team so up-to-date information is available when conducting conflicts checks. Operating procedures and associated governance are designed to seek to ensure conflicts of interest are appropriately considered ahead of voting proxies. The Global IPAC Conflict of Interest Sub-committee maintains oversight of the process. Companies identified as conflicted will be voted in line with the principles below as implemented by Invesco’s internal proxy voting guidelines. To the extent a portfolio manager disagrees with the Policy, our processes and procedures seek to ensure that justifications and rationales are fully documented and presented to the Global IPAC Conflict of Interest Sub-committee for approval by a majority vote.

As an additional safeguard, persons from Invesco’s marketing, distribution and other customer-facing functions may not serve on the Global IPAC. For the avoidance of doubt, Invesco may not consider Invesco Ltd.’s pecuniary interest when voting proxies on behalf of clients. To avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest, Invesco will not vote proxies issued by Invesco Ltd. that are held in client accounts.

Personal Conflicts of Interest

A conflict also may exist where an Invesco employee has a known personal or business relationship with other proponents of proxy proposals, participants in proxy contests, corporate directors, or candidates for directorships. Under Invesco’s Global Code of Conduct, Invesco entities and individuals must act in the best interests of clients and must avoid any situation that gives rise to an actual or perceived conflict of interest.

 

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All Invesco personnel with proxy voting responsibilities are required to report any known personal or business conflicts of interest regarding proxy issues with which they are involved. In such instances, the individual(s) with the conflict will be excluded from the decision-making process relating to such issues.

Voting Funds of Funds

There may be conflicts that arise from Invesco voting on matters when shares of Invesco-sponsored funds are held by other Invesco funds or entities. The scenarios below set out examples of how Invesco votes in these instances:

 

   

When required by law or regulation, shares of an Invesco fund held by other Invesco funds will be voted in the same proportion as the votes of external shareholders of the underlying fund. If such proportional voting is not operationally possible, Invesco will not vote the shares.

 

   

When required by law or regulation, shares of an unaffiliated registered fund held by one or more Invesco funds will be voted in the same proportion as the votes of external shareholders of the underlying fund. If such proportional voting is not operationally possible, Invesco will not vote the shares.

 

   

For U.S. funds of funds where proportional voting is not required by law or regulation, shares of Invesco funds will be voted in the same proportion as the votes of external shareholders of the underlying fund. If such proportional voting is not operationally possible, Invesco will vote in line with our internally developed voting guidelines.

 

   

Non-U.S. funds of funds will not be voted proportionally. The applicable Invesco entity will vote in line with its local policies, as indicated in Exhibit A. If no local policies exist, Invesco will vote non-U.S. funds of funds in line with the firm level conflicts of interest process described above.

 

   

Where client accounts are invested directly in shares issued by Invesco affiliates and Invesco has proxy voting authority, shares will be voted proportionally in line with non-affiliated holders. If proportional voting is not possible, the shares will be voted in line with a Proxy Service Provider’s recommendation.

 

  H.

Review of Policy

It is the responsibility of the Global IPAC to review this Policy and the internal proxy voting guidelines annually to consider whether any changes are warranted. This annual review seeks to ensure this Policy and the internal proxy voting guidelines remain consistent with clients’ best interests, regulatory requirements, local market standards and best practices. Further, this Policy and our internal proxy voting guidelines are reviewed at least annually by various departments within Invesco to seek to ensure that they remain consistent with Invesco’s views on best practice in corporate governance and long-term investment stewardship.

 

III.

Our Good Governance Principles

Invesco’s good governance principles outline our views on best practice in corporate governance and long-term investment stewardship. These principles have been developed by our global investment teams in collaboration with the Proxy Voting and Governance team and various departments internally. The broad philosophy and guiding principles in this section inform our approach to long-term investment stewardship and proxy voting. The principles and positions reflected in this Policy are designed to guide Invesco’s investment professionals in voting proxies; they are not intended to be exhaustive or prescriptive.

Our portfolio management teams retain full discretion on vote execution in the context of our good governance principles and internal proxy voting guidelines, except where otherwise specified in this Policy. The final voting decisions may consider the unique circumstances affecting companies, regional best practices and any dialogue we have had with company management. As a result, different portfolio management teams may vote differently on particular proxy votes for the same company. To the extent

 

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portfolio management teams choose to vote a proxy in a way that is not aligned with the principles below, such manager’s rationales are fully documented.

When evaluating proxy issues and determining how to cast our votes, Invesco’s portfolio management teams may engage with companies in advance of shareholder meetings, and throughout the year. These meetings can be joint efforts between our global investment professionals.

The following guiding principles apply to proxy voting with respect to operating companies. We apply a separate approach to open-end and closed-end investment companies and unit investment trusts. Where appropriate, these guidelines may be supplemented by additional internal guidance that considers regional variations in best practices, company disclosure and region-specific voting items. Invesco may vote on proposals not specifically addressed by these principles based on an evaluation of a proposal’s likelihood to enhance long-term shareholder value.

Our good governance principles are divided into six key themes that Invesco endorses:

 

A.

Transparency

We expect companies to provide accurate, timely and complete information that enables investors to make informed investment decisions and effectively carry out their stewardship activities. Invesco supports the highest standards in corporate transparency and believes that these disclosures should be made available ahead of the voting deadlines for the Annual General Meeting or Extraordinary General Meeting to allow for timely review and decision-making.

Financial reporting: Company accounts and reporting must accurately reflect the underlying economic position of a company. Arrangements that may constitute an actual or perceived conflict with this objective should be avoided.

 

   

We will generally support proposals to accept the annual financial statements, statutory accounts and similar proposals unless these reports are not presented in a timely manner or significant issues are identified regarding the integrity of these disclosures.

 

   

We will generally vote against the incumbent audit committee chair, or nearest equivalent, where the non-audit fees paid to the independent auditor exceed audit fees for two consecutive years or other problematic accounting practices are identified such as fraud, misapplication of audit standards or persistent material weaknesses/deficiencies in internal controls over financial reporting.

 

   

We will generally not support the ratification of the independent auditor and/or ratification of their fees payable if non-audit fees exceed audit and audit related fees or if there are significant auditing controversies or questions regarding the independence of the external auditor. We will consider an auditor’s length of service as a company’s independent auditor in applying this policy.

 

B.

Accountability

Robust shareholder rights and strong board oversight help ensure that management adhere to the highest standards of ethical conduct, are held to account for poor performance and responsibly deliver value creation for stakeholders over the long-term. We therefore encourage companies to adopt governance features that ensure board and management accountability. In particular, we consider the following as key mechanisms for enhancing accountability to investors:

One share one vote: Voting rights are an important tool for investors to hold boards and management teams accountable. Unequal voting rights may limit the ability of investors to exercise their stewardship obligations.

 

   

We generally do not support proposals that establish or perpetuate dual classes of voting shares, double voting rights or other means of differentiated voting or disproportionate board nomination rights.

 

   

We generally support proposals to decommission differentiated voting rights.

 

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Where unequal voting rights are established, we expect these to be accompanied by reasonable safeguards to protect minority shareholders’ interests.

Anti-takeover devices: Mechanisms designed to prevent or unduly delay takeover attempts may unduly limit the accountability of boards and management teams to shareholders.

 

   

We generally will not support proposals to adopt antitakeover devices such as poison pills. Exceptions may be warranted at entities without significant operations and to preserve the value of net operating losses carried forward or where the applicability of the pill is limited in scope and duration.

 

   

In addition, we will generally not support capital authorizations or amendments to corporate articles or bylaws at operating companies that may be utilized for antitakeover purposes, for example, the authorization of classes of shares of preferred stock with unspecified voting, dividend, conversion or other rights (“blank check” authorizations).

Shareholder rights: We support the rights of shareholders to hold boards and management teams accountable for company performance. We generally support best practice aligned proposals to enhance shareholder rights, including but not limited to the following:

 

   

Adoption of proxy access rights

 

   

Rights to call special meetings

 

   

Rights to act by written consent

 

   

Reduce supermajority vote requirements

 

   

Remove antitakeover provisions

 

   

Requirement that directors are elected by a majority vote

In addition, we oppose practices that limit shareholders’ ability to express their views at a general meeting such as bundling unrelated proposals or several significant article or bylaw amendments into a single voting item. We will generally vote against these proposals unless we are satisfied that all the underlying components are aligned with our views on best practice. We may make exceptions to this policy for non-operating companies (e.g., open-end and closed-end investment companies).

Director Indemnification: Invesco recognizes that individuals may be reluctant to serve as corporate directors if they are personally liable for all related lawsuits and legal costs. As a result, reasonable limitations on directors’ liability can benefit a company and its shareholders by helping to attract and retain qualified directors while preserving recourse for shareholders in the event of misconduct by directors. Accordingly, unless there is insufficient information to make a decision about the nature of the proposal, Invesco will generally support proposals to limit directors’ liability and provide indemnification and/or exculpation, provided that the arrangements are reasonably limited in scope to directors acting in good faith and, in relation to criminal matters, limited in scope to directors having reasonable grounds for believing the conduct was lawful.

Responsiveness: Boards should respond to investor concerns in a timely fashion, including reasonable requests to engage with company representatives regarding such concerns, and address matters that receive significant voting dissent at general meetings of shareholders.

 

   

We will generally vote against the incumbent chair of the governance committee, or nearest equivalent, in cases where the board has not adequately responded to items receiving significant voting opposition from shareholders at an annual or extraordinary general meeting.

 

   

We will generally vote against the incumbent chair of the governance committee, or nearest equivalent, where the board has not adequately responded to a shareholder proposal which has received significant support from shareholders.

 

   

We will generally vote against the incumbent chair of the compensation committee, or nearest

 

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equivalent, if there are significant ongoing concerns with a company’s compensation practices that have not been addressed by the committee or egregious concerns with the company’s compensation practices for two years consecutively.

 

   

We will generally vote against the incumbent compensation committee chair, or nearest equivalent, where there are ongoing concerns with a company’s compensation practices and there is no opportunity to express dissatisfaction by voting against an advisory vote on executive compensation, remuneration report (or policy) or nearest equivalent.

 

   

Where a company has not adequately responded to engagement requests from Invesco or satisfactorily addressed issues of concern, we may oppose director nominations, including, but not limited to, nominations for the lead independent director and/or committee chairs.

 

   

Virtual shareholder meetings: Companies should hold their annual or special shareholder meetings in a manner that best serves the needs of its shareholders and the company. Shareholders should have an opportunity to participate in such meetings. Shareholder meetings provide an important mechanism by which shareholders provide feedback or raise concerns without undue censorship and hear from the board and management.

 

   

We will generally support management proposals seeking to allow for the convening of hybrid shareholder meetings (allowing shareholders the option to attend and participate either in person or through a virtual platform).

 

   

Management or shareholder proposals that seek to authorize the company to hold virtual-only meetings (held entirely through virtual platform with no corresponding in-person physical meeting) will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Companies have a responsibility to provide strong justification and establish safeguards to preserve comparable rights and opportunities for shareholders to participate virtually as they would have during an in-person meeting. Invesco will consider, among other things, a company’s practices, jurisdiction and disclosure, including the items set forth below:

 

  i.

meeting procedures and requirements are disclosed in advance of a meeting detailing the rationale for eliminating the in-person meeting;

 

  ii.

clear and comprehensive description of which shareholders are qualified to participate, how shareholders can join the virtual-only meeting, how and when shareholders submit and ask questions either in advance of or during the meeting;

 

  iii.

disclosure regarding procedures for questions received during the meeting, but not answered due to time or other restrictions; and

 

  iv.

description of how shareholder rights will be protected in a virtual-only meeting format including the ability to vote shares during the time the polls are open.

 

C.

Board Composition and Effectiveness

Director election process: Board members should generally stand for election annually and individually.

 

   

We will generally support proposals requesting that directors stand for election annually.

 

   

We will generally vote against the incumbent governance committee chair or nearest equivalent, if a company has a classified board structure that is not being phased out. We may make exceptions to this policy for non-operating companies (e.g., open-end and closed-end investment companies) or in regions where market practice is for directors to stand for election on a staggered basis.

 

   

When a board is presented for election as a slate (e.g., shareholders are unable to vote against individual nominees and must vote for or against the entire nominated slate of directors) and this

 

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approach is not aligned with local market practice, we will generally vote against the slate in cases where we otherwise would vote against an individual nominee.

 

   

Where market practice is to elect directors as a slate we will generally support the nominated slate unless there are governance concerns with several of the individuals included on the slate or we have broad concerns with the composition of the board such as a lack independence.

Board size: We will generally defer to the board with respect to determining the optimal number of board members given the size of the company and complexity of the business, provided that the proposed board size is sufficiently large to represent shareholder interests and sufficiently limited to remain effective.

Board assessment and succession planning: When evaluating board effectiveness, Invesco considers whether periodic performance reviews and skills assessments are conducted to ensure the board represents the interests of shareholders. In addition, boards should have a robust succession plan in place for key management and board personnel.

Definition of independence: Invesco considers local market definitions of director independence but applies a proprietary standard for assessing director independence considering a director’s status as a current or former employee of the business, any commercial or consulting relationships with the company, the level of shares beneficially owned or represented and familial relationships, among others.

Board and committee independence: The board of directors, board committees and regional equivalents should be sufficiently independent from management, substantial shareholders and conflicts of interest. We consider local market practices in this regard and in general we look for a balance across the board of directors. Above all, we like to see signs of robust challenge and discussion in the boardroom.

 

   

We will generally vote against one or more non-independent directors when a board is less than majority independent, but we will take into account local market practice with regards to board independence in limited circumstances where this standard is not appropriate.

 

   

We will generally vote against non-independent directors serving on the audit committee.

 

   

We will generally vote against non-independent directors serving on the compensation committee.

 

   

We will generally vote against non-independent directors serving on the nominating committee.

 

   

In relation to the board, compensation committee and nominating committee we will consider the appropriateness of significant shareholder representation in applying this policy. This exception will generally not apply to the audit committee.

Separation of Chair and CEO roles: We believe that independent board leadership generally enhances management accountability to investors. Companies deviating from this best practice should provide a strong justification and establish safeguards to ensure that there is independent oversight of a board’s activities (e.g., by appointing a lead or senior independent director with clearly defined powers and responsibilities).

 

   

We will generally vote against the incumbent nominating committee chair, or nearest equivalent, where the board chair is not independent unless a lead independent or senior director is appointed.

 

   

We will generally support shareholder proposals requesting that the board chair be an independent director.

 

   

We will generally not vote against a CEO or executive serving as board chair solely on the basis of this issue, however, we may do so in instances where we have significant concerns regarding a company’s corporate governance, capital allocation decisions and/or compensation practices.

Attendance and over boarding: Director attendance at board and committee meetings is a fundamental part of their responsibilities and provides efficient oversight for the company and its

 

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investors. In addition, directors should not have excessive external board or managerial commitments that may interfere with their ability to execute the duties of a director.

 

   

We will generally vote against or withhold votes from directors who attend less than 75% of board and committee meetings for two consecutive years. We expect companies to disclose any extenuating circumstances, such as health matters or family emergencies, that would justify a director’s low attendance, in line with good practices.

 

   

We will generally vote against directors who have more than four total mandates at public operating companies. We apply a lower threshold for directors with significant commitments such as executive positions and chairmanships.

Diversity: We believe an effective board should be comprised of directors with a mix of skills, experience, tenure, and industry expertise together with a diverse profile of individuals of different genders, ethnicities, race, culture, age, perspectives and backgrounds. The board should reflect the diversity of the workforce, customers, and the communities in which the business operates. In our view, greater diversity in the boardroom contributes to robust challenge and debate, avoids groupthink, fosters innovation, and provides competitive advantage to companies. We consider diversity at the board level, within the executive management team and in the succession pipeline.

 

   

In markets where there are regulatory expectations, listing standards or minimum quotas for board diversity, Invesco will generally apply the same expectations. In all other markets, we will generally vote against the incumbent nominating committee chair of a board, or nearest equivalent, where a company failed to demonstrate improvements are being made to diversity practices for three or more consecutive years, recognizing that building a qualified and diverse board takes time. We may make exceptions to this policy for non-operating companies (e.g., open-end and closed-end investment companies).

 

   

We generally believe that an individual board’s nominating committee is best positioned to determine whether director term limits would be an appropriate measure to help achieve these goals and, if so, the nature of such limits. Invesco generally opposes proposals to limit the tenure of outside directors through mandatory retirement ages.

 

D.

Long-Term Stewardship of Capital

Capital allocation: Invesco expects companies to responsibly raise and deploy capital toward the long-term, sustainable success of the business. In addition, we expect capital allocation authorizations and decisions to be made with due regard to shareholder dilution, rights of shareholders to ratify significant corporate actions and pre-emptive rights, where applicable.

Share issuance and repurchase authorizations: We generally support authorizations to issue shares up to 20% of a company’s issued share capital for general corporate purposes. Shares should not be issued at a substantial discount to the market price or be repurchased at a substantial premium to the market price.

Stock splits: We generally support management proposals to implement a forward or reverse stock split, provided that a reverse stock split is not being used to take a company private. In addition, we will generally support requests to increase a company’s common stock authorization if requested to facilitate a stock split.

Increases in authorized share capital: We will generally support proposals to increase a company’s number of authorized common and/or preferred shares, provided we have not identified concerns regarding a company’s historical share issuance activity or the potential to use these authorizations for antitakeover purposes. We will consider the amount of the request in relation to the company’s current authorized share capital, any proposed corporate transactions contingent on approval of these requests and the cumulative impact on a company’s authorized share capital, for example, if a reverse stock split is concurrently submitted for shareholder consideration.

 

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Mergers, acquisitions, proxy contests, disposals and other corporate transactions: Invesco’s investment teams will review proposed corporate transactions including mergers, acquisitions, reorganizations, proxy contests, private placements, dissolutions and divestitures based on a proposal’s individual investment merits. In addition, we broadly approach voting on other corporate transactions as follows:

 

   

We will generally support proposals to approve different types of restructurings that provide the necessary financing to save the company from involuntary bankruptcy.

 

   

We will generally support proposals to enact corporate name changes and other proposals related to corporate transactions that we believe are in shareholders’ best interests.

 

   

We will generally support reincorporation proposals, provided that management have provided a compelling rationale for the change in legal jurisdiction and provided further that the proposal will not significantly adversely impact shareholders’ rights.

 

   

With respect to contested director elections, we consider the following factors, among others, when evaluating the merits of each list of nominees: the long-term performance of the company relative to its industry, management’s track record, any relevant background information related to the contest, the qualifications of the respective lists of director nominees, the strategic merits of the approaches proposed by both sides, including the likelihood that the proposed goals can be met, and positions of stock ownership in the company.

 

E.

Environmental, Social and Governance Risk Oversight

Director responsibility for risk oversight: The board of directors are ultimately responsible for overseeing management and ensuring that proper governance, oversight and control mechanisms are in place at the companies they oversee. Invesco may take voting action against director nominees in response to material governance or risk oversight failures that adversely affect shareholder value.

Invesco considers the adequacy of a company’s response to material oversight failures when determining whether any voting action is warranted. In addition, Invesco will consider the responsibilities delegated to board sub-committees when determining if it is appropriate to hold the incumbent chair of the relevant committee, or nearest equivalent, accountable for these material failures.

Material governance or risk oversight failures at a company may include, without limitation:

 

  i.

significant bribery, corruption or ethics violations;

 

  ii.

events causing significant climate-related risks;

 

  iii.

significant health and safety incidents; or

 

  iv.

failure to ensure the protection of human rights.

Reporting of financially material ESG information: Companies should report on their environmental, social and governance opportunities and risks where material to their business operations.

 

   

Climate risk management: We encourage companies to report on material climate-related risks and opportunities and how these are considered within the company’s strategy, financial planning, governance structures and risk management frameworks aligned with applicable regional regulatory requirements. For companies in industries that materially contribute to climate change, we encourage comprehensive disclosure of greenhouse gas emissions and Paris-aligned emissions reduction targets, where appropriate. Invesco may take voting action at companies that fail to adequately address climate-related risks, including opposing director nominations in cases where we view the lack of effective climate transition risk management as potentially detrimental to long-term shareholder value.

 

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Shareholder proposals addressing environmental and social issues: We recognize environmental and social (E&S) shareholder proposals are nuanced and therefore, Invesco will analyze such proposals on a case-by-case basis.

Invesco may support shareholder resolutions requesting that specific actions be taken to address E&S issues or mitigate exposure to material E&S risks, including reputational risk, related to these issues. When considering such proposals, we will consider the following but not limited to: a company’s track record on E&S issues, the efficacy of the proposal’s request, whether the requested action is unduly burdensome, and whether we consider the adoption of such a proposal would promote long-term shareholder value. We will also consider company responsiveness to the proposal and any engagement on the issue when casting votes.

 

   

We generally do not support resolutions where insufficient information has been provided in advance of the vote or a lack of disclosure inhibits our ability to make fully informed voting decisions.

Ratification of board and/or management acts: We will generally support proposals to ratify the actions of the board of directors, supervisory board and/or executive decision-making bodies, provided there are no material oversight failures as described above. When such oversight concerns are identified, we will consider a company’s response to any issues raised and may vote against ratification proposals instead of, or in addition to, director nominees.

 

F.

Executive Compensation and Alignment

Invesco supports compensation polices and equity incentive plans that promote alignment between management incentives and shareholders’ long-term interests. We pay close attention to local market practice and may apply stricter or modified criteria where appropriate.

Advisory votes on executive compensation, remuneration policy and remuneration reports: We will generally not support compensation-related proposals where more than one of the following is present:

 

  i.

there is an unmitigated misalignment between executive pay and company performance for at least two consecutive years;

 

  ii.

there are problematic compensation practices which may include, among others, incentivizing excessive risk taking or circumventing alignment between management and shareholders’ interests via repricing of underwater options;

 

  iii.

vesting periods for long-term incentive awards are less than three years;

 

  iv.

the company “front loads” equity awards;

 

  v.

there are inadequate risk mitigating features in the program such as clawback provisions;

 

  vi.

excessive, discretionary one-time equity grants are awarded to executives;

 

  vii.

less than half of variable pay is linked to performance targets, except where prohibited by law.

Invesco will consider company reporting on pay ratios as part of our evaluation of compensation proposals, where relevant.

Equity plans: Invesco generally supports equity compensation plans that promote the proper alignment of incentives with shareholders’ long-term interests, and generally votes against plans that are overly dilutive to existing shareholders, plans that contain objectionable structural features which may include provisions to reprice options without shareholder approval, plans that include evergreen provisions or plans that provide for automatic accelerated vesting upon a change in control.

Employee stock purchase plans: We generally support employee stock purchase plans that are reasonably designed to provide proper incentives to a broad base of employees, provided that the price at which employees may acquire stock represents a reasonable discount from the market price.

 

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Severance Arrangements: Invesco considers proposed severance arrangements (sometimes known as “golden parachute” arrangements) on a case-by-case basis due to the wide variety among their terms. Invesco acknowledges that in some cases such arrangements, if reasonable, may be in shareholders’ best interests as a method of attracting and retaining high-quality executive talent. We generally vote in favor of proposals requiring shareholder ratification of senior executives’ severance agreements where the proposed terms and disclosure align with good market practice.

 

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Exhibit A

Harbourview Asset Management Corporation

Invesco Advisers, Inc.

Invesco Asset Management (India) Pvt. Ltd*1

Invesco Asset Management (Japan) Limited*1

Invesco Asset Management (Schweiz) AG

Invesco Asset Management Deutschland GmbH

Invesco Asset Management Limited1

Invesco Asset Management Singapore Ltd

Invesco Australia Ltd

Invesco European RR L.P.

Invesco Canada Ltd.1

Invesco Capital Management LLC

Invesco Capital Markets, Inc.*1

Invesco Fund Managers Limited

Invesco Hong Kong Limited

Invesco Investment Advisers LLC

Invesco Investment Management (Shanghai) Limited

Invesco Investment Management Limited

Invesco Loan Manager, LLC

Invesco Managed Accounts, LLC

Invesco Management S.A.

Invesco Overseas Investment Fund Management (Shanghai) Limited

Invesco Pensions Limited

Invesco Private Capital, Inc.

Invesco Real Estate Management S.a.r.l1

Invesco RR Fund L.P.

Invesco Senior Secured Management, Inc.

Invesco Taiwan Ltd*1

Invesco Trust Company

Oppenheimer Funds, Inc.

WL Ross & Co. LLC

 

* 

Invesco entities with specific proxy voting guidelines

 

1 

Invesco entities with specific conflicts of interest policies

 

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INVESCO EXCHANGE-TRADED FUND TRUST

PART C. OTHER INFORMATION

Item 28. Exhibits.

 

Exhibit
Number
  

Description

(a)    (1)    (a)    Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of the Registrant dated as of April 7, 2003. (1)
      (b)    Amendment No. 1 to the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust dated as of June 4, 2018. (8)
(b)          Amended and Restated By-laws of the Registrant dated as of April 7, 2003. (9)
(c)    (1)       Amended and Restated Declaration of the Trust of the Registrant, incorporated by reference to Item (a)(1) above.
   (2)       Amended and Restated By-Laws of the Registrant, incorporated by reference to Item (b)  above.
(d)    (1)    (a)    Amended and Restated Investment Advisory Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Capital Management LLC, dated as of August 28, 2023, for unitary and non-unitary funds. (16)
      (b)    Schedule A (as of April 30, 2024) to Amended and Restated Investment Advisory Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Capital Management LLC, for unitary and non-unitary fee Funds. (20)
      (c)    Schedule B (as of April 30, 2024) to Amended and Restated Investment Advisory Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Capital Management LLC, for unitary and non-unitary fee Funds. (20)
   (2)    (a)    Amended and Restated Investment Advisory Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Capital Management LLC, for unitary fee Funds dated as of February 18, 2021. (13)
      (b)    Schedule A (as of April 30, 2024) to Amended and Restated Investment Advisory Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Capital Management LLC, for unitary fee Funds. (20)
   (3)    (a)    Excess Expense Agreement dated June 16, 2011, as amended August 28, 2023, between the Registrant and Invesco Capital Management LLC. (16)
      (b)    Schedule A (as of April 30, 2024) to Amended Excess Expense Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Capital Management LLC. (19)
   (4)       Management Services Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Capital Management LLC dated as of December 12, 2012. (2)
   (5)       Amended and Restated Memorandum of Agreement (Advisory Fee Waivers) between the Registrant and Invesco Capital Management LLC dated as of April 18, 2024. (19)
(e)    (1)    (a)    Amended and Restated Master Distribution Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Distributors, Inc. dated as of April 30, 2009. (6)
      (b)    Schedule A (as of April 30, 2024) to Amended and Restated Master Distribution Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Distributors, Inc. (20)
      (c)    Amendment to the Amended and Restated Master Distribution Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Distributors, Inc. dated as of September 17, 2020. (13)
(f)          Not applicable.
(g)    (1)    (a)    Custody Agreement (as of September 17, 2018) between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon. (10)
      (b)    Amendment to the Custody Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated July 1, 2024. (18)
   (2)       Foreign Custody Manager Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated as of December 18, 2007. (4)
(h)    (1)    (a)    Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement (as of September 17, 2018) between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon. (7)


Exhibit
Number
  

Description

      (b)    Amendment to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated March 13, 2020. (11)
      (c)    Amendment to the Fund Administration and Accounting Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated July 1, 2024. (18)
   (2)    (a)    Amended and Restated Transfer Agency and Service Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon dated as of June 17, 2013. (5)
      (b)    Exhibit D (as of June 27, 2024) to the Amended and Restated Transfer Agency and Service Agreement between Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon. (18)
   (3)       Form of Participant Agreement between Invesco Distributors, Inc., The Bank of New York Mellon and Participant. (15)
   (4)       Form of Sublicense Agreement between the Registrant and Invesco Capital Management LLC. (3)
   (5)       Form of Rule 12d1-4 Fund of Funds Investment Agreement. (14)
(i)          Consent of Counsel – None
(j)          Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm. (*)
(k)          Not applicable.
(l)          Not applicable.
(m)          Not applicable.
(n)          Not applicable.
(o)          Not applicable.
(p)          Code of Ethics adopted by the Invesco family of ETFs, Invesco investment advisers and distributor dated January 2025. (*)
(q)          Powers of Attorney for Trustees Bagge, Barre, Herget, Kole, Lim, Pace, Wicker and Wilson. (12)

 

(1)

Incorporated by reference to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed April 16, 2003.

(2)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 246 to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on February 18, 2014.

(3)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 611 of the Registration Statement of Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II on Form N-1A, filed on June 16, 2017.

(4)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 260 to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on August 25, 2017.

(5)

Incorporated by reference to Pre-Effective Amendment No. 1 to the Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on March 30, 2018.

(6)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 267 to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on April 5, 2018.

(7)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 272 to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on October 24, 2018.

(8)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 274 to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on December 28, 2018.

(9)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 280 to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on August 27, 2019.

(10)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 26 to the Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on November 21, 2018.

(11)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 757 to the Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on December 21, 2020.

(12)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 282 to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on August 27, 2020.

(13)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 286 to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on March 23, 2021.

(14)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 481 to the Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on February 25, 2022.

(15)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 94 to the Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on August 19, 2022.


(16)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 296 to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on August 25, 2023.

(17)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 839 to the Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on February 27, 2024.

(18)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 552 to the Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on July 9, 2024.

(19)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 846 to the Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on June 21, 2024.

(20)

Incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 301 to the Trust’s Registration Statement on Form N-1A, filed on August 27, 2024.

(*)

To be filed by subsequent amendment.

Item 29. Persons Controlled by or Under Common Control with the Fund.

None.

Item 30. Indemnification.

Reference is made to Article Twelve of the Registrant’s Declaration of Trust, which is incorporated by reference herein:

The Registrant (also, the “Trust”) is organized as a Massachusetts business trust and is operated pursuant to an Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust, dated April 7, 2003 (the “Declaration of Trust”), that permits the Registrant to indemnify every person who is, or has been, a Trustee, officer, employee or agent of the Trust, including persons who serve at the request of the Trust as directors, trustees, officers, employees or agents of another organization in which the Trust has an interest as a shareholder, creditor or otherwise (hereinafter referred to as a “Covered Person”), 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 in connection with any claim, action, suit or proceeding in which he becomes involved as a party or otherwise by virtue of his being or having been such a Trustee, director, officer, employee or agent and against amounts paid or incurred by him in settlement thereof. This indemnification is subject to the following conditions:

No indemnification shall be provided hereunder to a Covered Person:

i. For any liability to the Trust or its Shareholders by reason of a final adjudication by the court or other body before which the proceeding was brought that the Covered Person engaged in willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of his office;

ii. With respect to any matter as to which the Covered Person shall have been finally adjudicated not to have acted in good faith in the reasonable belief that his or her action was in the best interests of the Trust; or

iii. In the event of a settlement or other disposition not involving a final adjudication (as provided in paragraph (a) or (b) of this Section 12.4(c)) and resulting in a payment by a Covered Person, unless there has been either a determination that such Covered Person did not engage in willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of his office by the court or other body approving the settlement or other disposition, or a reasonable determination, based on a review of readily available facts (as opposed to a full trial-type inquiry), that he or she did not engage in such conduct, such determination being made by: (i) a vote of a majority of the Disinterested Trustees (as such term is defined in Section 12.4) acting on the matter (provided that a majority of Disinterested Trustees then in office act on the matter); or (ii) a written opinion of independent legal counsel.

The rights of indemnification under the Declaration of Trust may be insured against by policies maintained by the Trust, and shall be several, shall not affect any other rights to which any Covered Person may now or hereafter be entitled, shall continue as to a person who has ceased to be a Covered Person, and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs, executors and administrators of such a person. Nothing contained in the Declaration of Trust shall affect any rights to indemnification to which Trust personnel other than Covered Persons may be entitled by contract or otherwise under law.

Expenses of preparation and presentation of a defense to any claim, action, suit or proceeding subject to a claim for indemnification under Section 12.4 of the Declaration of Trust shall be advanced by the Trust prior to final disposition thereof upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of the recipient to repay such amount if it is ultimately determined that he or she is not entitled to indemnification under Section 12.4 of the Declaration of Trust, provided that either:

i. Such undertaking is secured by a surety bond or some other appropriate security or the Trust shall be insured against losses arising out of any such advances; or

ii. A majority of the Disinterested Trustees acting on the matter (provided that a majority of the Disinterested Trustees then in office act on the matter) or independent legal counsel in a written opinion shall determine, based upon a review of the readily available facts (as opposed to the facts available upon a full trial), that there is reason to believe that the recipient ultimately will be found entitled to indemnification.


As used in Section 12.4 of the Declaration of Trust, the following words shall have the meanings set forth below:

i. A “Disinterested Trustee” is one (i) who is not an Interested Person of the Trust (including anyone, as such Disinterested Trustee, who has been exempted from being an Interested Person by any rule, regulation or order of the Commission), and (ii) against whom none of such actions, suits or other proceedings or another action, suit or other proceeding on the same or similar grounds is then or has been pending;

ii. “Claim,” “action,” “suit” or “proceeding” shall apply to all claims, actions, suits, proceedings (civil, criminal, administrative or other, including appeals), actual or threatened; and “Liability” and “expenses” shall include without limitation, attorneys’ fees, costs, judgments, amounts paid in settlement, fines, penalties and other liabilities.

Item 31. Business and Other Connections of the Investment Adviser.

Reference is made to the caption “Management of the Fund” in the Prospectus constituting Part A, which is incorporated by reference to this Registration Statement and “Management” in the Statement of Additional Information constituting Part B, which is incorporated by reference to this Registration Statement.

The information as to the directors and executive officers of Invesco Capital Management LLC is set forth in Schedule A of Invesco Capital Management LLC’s Form ADV filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 27, 2024 (and as amended through the date hereof) and is incorporated herein by reference. The Form ADV may be obtained free of charge, at the SEC’s website at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov, and may be requested by File No. 801-61851.

Item 32. Principal Underwriters.

(a) The sole principal underwriter for the Registrant is Invesco Distributors, Inc., which acts as distributor for the Registrant and the following other funds:

AIM Counselor Series Trust (Invesco Counselor Series Trust)

AIM Equity Funds (Invesco Equity Funds)

AIM Funds Group (Invesco Funds Group)

AIM Growth Series (Invesco Growth Series)

AIM International Mutual Funds (Invesco International Mutual Funds)

AIM Investment Funds (Invesco Investment Funds)

AIM Investment Securities Funds (Invesco Investment Securities Funds)

AIM Sector Funds (Invesco Sector Funds)

AIM Tax-Exempt Funds (Invesco Tax-Exempt Funds)

AIM Treasurer’s Series Trust (Invesco Treasurer’s Series Trust)

AIM Variable Insurance Funds (Invesco Variable Insurance Funds)

Invesco Management Trust

Invesco Senior Loan Fund

Short-Term Investments Trust

Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Fund Trust

Invesco Actively Managed Exchange-Traded Commodity Fund Trust

Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust II

Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust

Invesco India Exchange-Traded Fund Trust

Invesco Exchange-Traded Self-Indexed Fund Trust


(b) The following are the Officers and Managers of Invesco Distributors, Inc., the Registrant’s underwriter.

 

NAME AND PRINCIPAL
BUSINESS ADDRESS*

  

POSITIONS AND OFFICES
WITH REGISTRANT

  

POSITIONS AND OFFICES
WITH UNDERWRITER

John McDonough    None   

Director, Chief Executive Officer and

President

Terry Gibson Vacheron    None    Executive Vice President
Mark W. Gregson    None    Chief Financial Officer
Trisha B. Hancock    None   

Chief Compliance Officer and Senior

Vice President

Rocco Benedetto    None    Senior Vice President
David Borrelli    None    Senior Vice President
Ken Brodsky    None    Senior Vice President
George Fahey    None    Senior Vice President
Eliot Honaker    None    Senior Vice President
Brian Kiley    None    Senior Vice President
Brian Levitt    None    Senior Vice President
Kevin Neznek    None    Senior Vice President
Adam Rochlin    None    Senior Vice President
Benjamin Stewart    None    Senior Vice President
Paul E. Temple    None    Senior Vice President
Melanie Ringold    Chief Legal Officer    Secretary
Greg Ketron    None    Treasurer
Lindsey Sparano    None   

Financial and Operations Principal and

Controller

Crissie Wisdom   

Anti-Money Laundering Compliance

Officer

  

Anti-Money Laundering Compliance

Officer

 

*

The principal business address for all directors and executive officers is Invesco Distributors, Inc., 11 Greenway Plaza, Houston, Texas 77046-1173.

(c) Not applicable.

Item 33. Location of Accounts and Records.

All accounts, books and other documents required to be maintained by Section 31(a) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and the rules promulgated thereunder, are held in physical possession at the offices, as applicable, of: (1) the Registrant, (2) the Registrant’s investment adviser and (3) the Registrant’s custodian and administrator.

 

  1.

Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust

 

3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700

 

Downers Grove, Illinois 60515

 

  2.

Invesco Capital Management LLC

 

3500 Lacey Road, Suite 700

 

Downers Grove, Illinois 60515

 

  3.

The Bank of New York Mellon

 

240 Greenwich Street

 

New York, New York 10286

Item 34. Management Services.

Not applicable.

Item 35. Undertakings.

None.


SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, the Registrant has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, duly authorized, in the City of Downers Grove and State of Illinois, on the 21st day of January, 2025.

 

Invesco Exchange-Traded Fund Trust
By:   /s/ Brian Hartigan
  Brian Hartigan
Title:   President and Trustee

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this registration statement has been signed below by the following persons in the capacities indicated on the dates indicated.

 

SIGNATURE

  

TITLE

 

DATE

/s/ Brian Hartigan    President and Trustee  

January 21, 2025

Brian Hartigan     
/s/ Kelli Gallegos    Treasurer  

January 21, 2025

Kelli Gallegos     
/s/ Adam Henkel    Secretary  

January 21, 2025

Adam Henkel     
*/s/ Ronn R. Bagge    Vice Chairman and Trustee  

January 21, 2025

Ronn R. Bagge     
*/s/ Todd J. Barre    Trustee  

January 21, 2025

Todd J. Barre     
*/s/ Victoria J. Herget    Trustee  

January 21, 2025

Victoria J. Herget     
*/s/ Marc M. Kole    Trustee  

January 21, 2025

Marc M. Kole     
*/s/ Yung Bong Lim    Trustee  

January 21, 2025

Yung Bong Lim     
*/s/ Joanne Pace    Trustee  

January 21, 2025

Joanne Pace     
*/s/ Gary R. Wicker    Trustee  

January 21, 2025

Gary R. Wicker     
*/s/ Donald H. Wilson    Chairman and Trustee  

January 21, 2025

Donald H. Wilson     
*By: /s/ Adam Henkel     

January 21, 2025

Adam Henkel     
Attorney-In-Fact     

 

*

Adam Henkel signs this Registration Statement pursuant to powers of attorney filed with Post-Effective Amendment No. 282 to the Trust’s Registration Statement and incorporated by reference herein.


EXHIBIT INDEX

None