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Risk
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2019
Risks and Uncertainties [Abstract]  
RISK

NOTE 8 – RISK

 

Principal Risks

 

A shareholder of the Funds is subject to the risk that his or her investment could lose money. The Funds are subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect a Fund’s NAV, trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective. A more complete description of principal risks is included in the prospectus under the heading “Principal Risks”. This could result in the Funds’ underperformance compared to other funds with similar investment objectives.

 

Market Trading Risks

 

Individual Shares may be purchased and sold only on a national securities exchange, an alternative trading system, or in the over-the-counter market and may not be directly purchased or redeemed from the Funds. There can be no guarantee that an active trading market for Shares will develop or be maintained, or that the listing of the Shares will continue unchanged. Buying and selling Shares may require a shareholder to pay brokerage commissions and expose a shareholder to other trading costs. Due to brokerage commissions and other transaction costs that may apply, frequent trading may detract from realized investment returns. Trading prices of Shares may be above, at or below the Funds’ NAV, will fluctuate in relation to NAV based on supply and demand in the market for Shares and other factors, and may vary significantly from NAV during periods of market volatility. The return on an investor’s investment will be reduced when the investor sells Shares at a discount or buys Shares at a premium to NAV.

 

Contingent Pricing Risks

 

Creation and redemption prices of Baskets are directly linked to the Funds’ next-computed NAV, which is normally determined at the end of each business day. Buyers and sellers of Shares will not know the value of their purchases and sales until the Funds’ NAV is determined at the end of the trading day. Like mutual funds, the Funds do not offer opportunities to purchase or redeem Baskets intraday at currently determined (as opposed to end-of-day) prices. Creation and redemption prices of Baskets are contingent upon the determination of NAV and may vary significantly from anticipated levels (including estimates based on intraday indicative values disseminated by the Funds) during periods of market volatility. Although limit orders can be used to restrict differences between prices of the Shares in the secondary market and NAV (i.e., premiums and discounts to NAV), they cannot be used to specify trade execution prices. However, unlike shares of mutual funds, Shares will trade on NYSE Arca, Inc. during the day at market-determined prices. The Funds will disseminate an indicative NAV every 15 seconds during the trading day.

 

Cash Transactions Risk

 

Each Fund intends to create and redeem Baskets primarily through EFRP transactions. In certain instances, the Funds may effect creations and redemptions partly or wholly for cash, rather than through an EFRP transaction. Because the Funds may effect redemptions for cash, rather than through an EFRP transaction, they may be required to sell Deposit Instruments in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds, and they may subsequently recognize gains on such sales. As a result, an investment in Shares redeemed partially or wholly for cash may be less tax-efficient than if the Shares were redeemed through an EFRP transaction which generally will not trigger any tax consequences to Shareholders. Moreover, cash transactions may have to be carried out over several days if the market for any of the Deposit Instruments is relatively illiquid and may involve considerable brokerage fees and taxes. These brokerage fees and taxes, which generally are expected to be higher than if the Basket was created or redeemed through an EFRP transaction, may be passed on to purchasers and redeemers of Baskets in the form of creation and redemption transaction fees. In addition, these factors may result in wider spreads between the bid and the offered prices of the Shares.

 

Authorized Participant Concentration Risk

 

Only an Authorized Participant may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Funds. The Funds may have relationships with a limited number of institutions that act as Authorized Participants. To the extent these institutions exit the business or are unable or unwilling to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Funds and no other Authorized Participant is able to step forward to create or redeem Baskets, Shares of the Funds may trade at a discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or delisting.

 

Guarantees and Indemnifications

 

In the normal course of business, the Funds enter into contracts with third-party service providers that contain a variety of representations and warranties and that provide general indemnifications. Additionally, under the Funds’ organizational documents, the Sponsor, Wilmington Trust, N.A., a national banking association and the trustee of the Trust, and their officers and affiliates are indemnified against certain liabilities arising out of the performance of their duties to the Funds. The Funds’ maximum exposure under these arrangements is unknown, as it involves possible future claims that may or may not be made against the Funds. Based on experience, the Sponsor is of the view that the risk of loss to the Funds in connection with the Funds’ indemnification obligations is remote; however, there can be no assurance that such obligations will not result in material liabilities that adversely affect the Funds.