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Agreements
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2019
Agreements [Abstract]  
AGREEMENTS

NOTE 4 – AGREEMENTS

 

Sponsor

 

On May 15, 2019, the Funds filed a prospectus supplement with the SEC and the NFA (Prospectus Supplement No. 1 ("Supplement No. 1") to the prospectus dated April 19, 2019 (the "Prospectus").) The NFA accepted and approved Supplement No. 1 on the same day. The SEC accepted the filing on May 15, 2019, and noted it as filed on May 16, 2019. Among other things, Supplement No. 1 provided that, effective immediately, the Funds were adopting a unitary fee structure pursuant to which each Fund will pay the Sponsor a management fee in consideration of the services provided by the Sponsor and other services provided to each Fund that the Sponsor pays directly (the "Management Fee"). Following the adoption of the unitary fee structure, the Sponsor will pay for all of the routine operational, administrative, and other ordinary expenses of each Fund as determined by the Sponsor as set forth in the Prospectus and Supplement No.1. The Funds will pay for certain other expenses and all of the Funds' extraordinary fees and expenses, if any, as determined by the Sponsor, as set forth in the Prospectus and Supplement No. 1.

  

Prior to May 16, 2019, each Fund paid its periodic professional expenses, including, but not limited to the fees of the Trustee, continuous offering expenses, legal, audit, tax, accounting, performance, administrative, filing, reporting and data processing fees and expenses and other operating expenses. For each Fund, the Sponsor had agreed to pay any professional expenses of each Fund in excess of $150,000 in each of 2018 and 2019. The Funds were responsible for any extraordinary expenses and liabilities. Each Fund paid for its printing and mailing expenses.

 

While neither of the Funds individually incurred professional expenses in excess of $150,000 through December 31, 2019, the Sponsor had elected to voluntarily reimburse certain expenses beginning on January 1, 2019 totaling $97,121 and $51,310 for the Dividend Fund and Ex-Dividend Fund, respectively, through May 15, 2019 when the Sponsor ceased to reimburse such expenses following the adoption of the unitary fee. The Sponsor had also elected to voluntarily reimburse certain expenses totaling $221,301 and $127,456 for the Dividend Fund and Ex-Dividend Fund, respectively from May 1, 2018 to December 31, 2018. Previously, the Sponsor had voluntarily waived a portion of its Management Fee from the Funds. Effective May 16, 2019, the Sponsor is no longer reimbursing such expenses, and is no longer waiving its Management Fee from the Funds.

 

At the time the Funds commenced operations, the Sponsor entered into an agreement (the "Reimbursement Agreement") with the Funds to reimburse the Sponsor for amounts provided to the Funds to pay for the fees to register the offering of the Shares with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Reimbursement Agreement provided that the amount due to the Sponsor, as disclosed on the Statements of Financial Condition, will be repaid over a maximum ten-year period. The Reimbursement Agreement, provided that the amount to be reimbursed to the Sponsor by a Fund over a given calendar year will vary depending on the number of Shares issued by the Fund during such year. The Reimbursement Agreement contained a prepayment provision where upon issuance of any shares of the Funds, the prorated portion of the amount due based on the percentage of shares issued to the percentage of the overall shares registered is due within 90 days of the share issuance date. In addition, it provided that should the Funds terminate prior to the full repayment of the amount due, the Sponsor agrees to forfeit the unpaid amount. Interest would not be charged on any amounts due. The Dividend Fund and Ex-Dividend Fund reimbursed the Sponsor $13,065 and $13,892, respectively, for 2018 and will reimburse the Sponsor $4,627 and $4,511, respectively, for the amount accrued from January 1, 2019 through May 15, 2019. No additional repayments/reimbursements under the Reimbursement Agreements will be paid following the Funds' adoption of the unitary fee structure effective May 16, 2019. As a result of the adoption of the unitary fee, the remaining unpaid balances under the Reimbursement Agreement of $106,808 and $106,097, for the Dividend Fund and Ex-Dividend Fund, respectively, will not be reimbursed to the Sponsor. The Sponsor agreed to absorb these unpaid balances and wrote off both the deferred offering costs and the related payable due to the Sponsor during the second quarter of 2019.

 

Administrator, Custodian, Fund Accountant and Transfer Agent

 

SEI Investments Global Fund Services, Inc. (the "Administrator") serves as the Funds' Administrator pursuant to an administration agreement. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. (the "Custodian") serves as the Funds' custodian and transfer agent pursuant to a custodian and transfer agent agreement.

 

Clearing FCM

 

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC ("MS&Co." or the "Clearing FCM") serves as the Fund's Clearing FCM pursuant to the terms of a commodity futures customer agreement among the Sponsor, on behalf of the Funds, severally and not jointly, and the Clearing FCM (the "Futures Account Agreement"). As Clearing FCM, MS&Co. serves as the Funds' clearing broker and as such arranges for the execution and clearing of the Funds' futures transactions. As such, MS&Co. holds, on behalf of the Funds, positions in futures contracts and Treasury Securities, cash and cash equivalents as futures margin. Treasury Securities, cash and cash equivalents not held as futures margin will be held by the Custodian. The Funds may engage additional and/or other futures commission merchants in the future.

 

Distribution Agreement

 

SEI Investments Distribution Co., a wholly-owned subsidiary of SEI Investments and an affiliate of the Administrator, serves as the Funds' distributor of Baskets pursuant to a distribution agreement. The Distributor does not maintain any secondary market in the Shares.

 

Management Fee/Advisory Fee

 

The Management Fee is paid to the Sponsor in consideration of its services as sponsor, commodity pool operator, commodity trading advisor, and for managing the business and affairs of the Funds. The Sponsor supervises and directs the investment of the assets of the Funds in accordance with the Funds' investment objectives and investment strategies outlined in the Funds' prospectus.

 

Effective May 16, 2019, as set forth in Supplement No.1, the Dividend Fund will pay the Sponsor a Management Fee equal to 0.87% per year of the Dividend Fund's average daily net assets, calculated and payable monthly in arrears, or pro rata for any partial month. The Ex-Dividend Fund will pay the Sponsor a Management Fee equal to 0.58% per year of the Ex-Dividend Fund's average daily net assets, calculated and payable monthly in arrears, or pro rata for any partial month.

 

Prior to May 16, 2019, the Dividend Fund paid the Sponsor a Management Fee equal to 0.58% per year of the Dividend Fund's average daily NAV, calculated and payable monthly, subject to a minimum monthly fee of $0.005 per Share. This minimum monthly fee was expected to apply when the Dividend Fund's average daily NAV for such month was less than $10.34 per Share. The Ex-Dividend Fund paid the Sponsor a Management Fee equal to 0.29% per year of the Ex-Dividend Fund's average daily NAV, calculated and payable monthly.