40-APP 1 a12-16116_240app.htm 40-APP

 

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 13, 2012

 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

 

Before the

 

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

 

In the matter of:

 

PNC CAPITAL ADVISORS, LLC

PNC FUNDS

PNC ADVANTAGE FUNDS

 

File No. 812-

 

Application for an Order Pursuant to Section 12(d)(1)(J) of

the Investment Company Act of 1940, as Amended (“the Act”), for an Exemption from

Sections 12(d)(1)(A) and (B) of the Act and Pursuant to Sections 6(c) and 17(b)

of the Act for an Exemption from Sections 17(a)(1) and (2) of the Act

 

July 13, 2012

 

Please direct all communications

regarding this Application to:

 

Jeremy C. Smith, Esq.

Ropes & Gray LLP

1211 Avenue of the Americas

New York, NY 10036-8704

Phone: 212-596-9858

Fax: 646-728-1643

 

With copies to:

 

Daniel O. Hirsch

PNC Legal Department

1600 Market Street, 28th Floor

Philadelphia, PA 19103

 



 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

 

Page

 

 

I. INTRODUCTION

1

 

 

II. THE APPLICANTS

1

 

 

III. REQUESTED RELIEF

2

 

 

IV. LEGAL ANALYSIS

3

 

 

V. PRECEDENTS IN SUPPORT OF THE REQUEST FOR EXEMPTION

11

 

 

VI. APPLICANTS’ CONDITIONS

13

 

 

VII. REQUEST FOR ORDER

18

 

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I.  INTRODUCTION

 

PNC Funds, PNC Advantage Funds (each a “Trust” and together, the “Trusts”) and PNC Capital Advisors, LLC (“PNC Capital Advisors” or the “Adviser”) (collectively referred to as the “Applicants”) submit this application (the “Application”) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) to request an order under Section 12(d)(1)(J) of the Act exempting certain transactions involving the Applicants from Sections 12(d)(1)(A) and 12(d)(1)(B) of the Act and under Sections 6(c) and 17(b) of the Act exempting certain transactions involving the Applicants from Sections 17(a)(1) and 17(a)(2) of the Act.

 

Applicants request that the order sought herein apply also to each existing and each future series of the Trusts, and to each existing and each future registered open-end management investment company or series thereof (each a “Fund” and collectively, “Funds”) which is advised by the Adviser or any entity controlling, controlled by or under common control with the Adviser and which is part of the same “group of investment companies” (as defined in Section 12(d)(1)(G)(ii) of the Act) as the Trusts.(1)

 

II.  THE APPLICANTS

 

A.                                   PNC Funds and PNC Advantage Funds

 

Each Trust, organized as a Delaware statutory trust, is registered under the Act as an open-end management investment company.  PNC Funds currently offers shares of 30 series, and PNC Advantage Funds currently offers shares of 3 series, which each pursue different investment objectives and principal investment strategies.

 


(1)  All entities that currently intend to rely on the requested order are named as Applicants.  Any other entity that relies on the order in the future will comply with the terms and conditions of the Application.

 

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B.                                     PNC Capital Advisors, LLC

 

The Adviser is registered as an investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the “Advisers Act”).  The Adviser is a Delaware limited liability company and a direct, wholly-owned subsidiary of PNC Bank, National Association (“PNC Bank”).  PNC Bank is a direct, wholly-owned subsidiary of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (“PNC”), a financial holding company.  The Adviser manages certain Funds by selecting one or more investment managers to serve as subadvisers with respect to the day-to-day management of a Fund’s portfolio.(2)

 

III.  REQUESTED RELIEF

 

Applicants seek an order under Section 12(d)(1)(J) of the Act, exempting them from the limitations set forth in Sections 12(d)(1)(A) and (B) of the Act to permit: (a) a Fund that operates as a “fund of funds” (each, a “ Fund of Funds”) to acquire shares of (i) registered open-end management investment companies that are not part of the same “group of investment companies,” within the meaning of Section 12(d)(1)(G)(ii) of the Act, as the Fund of Funds (the “Unaffiliated Investment Companies”) and unit investment trusts (“UITs”) that are not part of the same “group of investment companies” as the Fund of Funds (“Unaffiliated Trusts” and together with the Unaffiliated Investment Companies, “Unaffiliated Funds”)(3) or (ii) registered open-end management companies or UITs that are part of the same “group of investment companies” as the Fund of Funds (collectively, “Affiliated Funds,” and together with the Unaffiliated Funds, “Underlying Funds”) and (b) each Underlying Fund, any principal

 


(2)  The Adviser has received an exemptive order from the Commission that allows the Adviser to operate the Funds pursuant to a “manager of managers” structure.  See In re Allegiant Funds, Allegiant Advantage Funds and Allegiant Asset Management Company, Investment Company Release 27551 (Nov. 13, 2006) (Notice); In re Allegiant Funds, Allegiant Advantage Funds and Allegiant Asset Management Company, Investment Company Release 27596 (Dec. 11, 2006) (Order).

(3)  Certain of the Unaffiliated Funds may be registered under the Act as either UITs or open-end management investment companies and have received exemptive relief to permit their shares to be listed and traded on a national securities exchange at negotiated prices (“ETFs”).

 

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underwriter for the Underlying Fund, and any broker or dealer registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Broker”) to sell shares of the Underlying Fund to the Fund of Funds in amounts in excess of limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1)(B).  Applicants also request that the Commission issue an order under Sections 6(c) and 17(b) to exempt applicants from Section 17(a) to the extent necessary to permit Underlying Funds to sell their shares to Funds of Funds and redeem their shares from Funds of Funds.

 

IV.  LEGAL ANALYSIS

 

A.                                   Section 12(d)(1)

 

Section 12(d)(1)(A) of the Act prohibits a registered investment company from acquiring shares of an investment company if the securities represent more than 3% of the total outstanding voting stock of the acquired company, more than 5% of the total assets of the acquiring company, or, together with the securities of any other investment companies, more than 10% of the total assets of the acquiring company.  Section 12(d)(1)(B) of the Act prohibits a registered open-end investment company, its principal underwriter and any broker or dealer from knowingly selling the shares of the investment company to another investment company if the sale will cause the acquiring company to own more than 3% of the acquired company’s total outstanding voting stock, or if the sale will cause more than 10% of the acquired company’s total outstanding voting stock to be owned by investment companies generally.  Subject to certain conditions, Section 12(d)(1)(G) provides that the limits under Section 12(d)(1) will not apply to securities of an acquired company purchased by an acquiring company if the acquiring company and acquired company are part of the same “group of investment companies.”  Subject to certain conditions, Section 12(d)(1)(F) of the Act provides that the limits under Section 12(d)(1) will not apply if the acquiring fund does not charge a sales charge in connection with the sale of its shares in excess of 1.5%.

 

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Section 12(d)(1)(J) of the Act provides that the Commission may exempt any person, security, or transaction, or any class or classes of persons, securities or transactions, from any provision of Section 12(d)(1) if the exemption is consistent with the public interest and the protection of investors.  The Applicants seek an exemption pursuant to Section 12(d)(1)(J) from the limitations in Section 12(d)(1)(A) and (B) to permit the Funds of Funds to acquire shares of the Underlying Funds and the Underlying Funds, any principal underwriter for the Underlying Fund and any Broker to sell shares to the Funds of Funds beyond the limits set forth in Sections 12(d)(1)(A) and (B), to the extent that a Fund of Funds may not rely on the provisions of Sections 12(d)(1)(F) or (G), subject to the conditions and limitations discussed below.  The legislative history of Section 12(d)(1)(J) indicates that when granting relief under Section 12(d)(1)(J), the Commission should consider, among other things, the extent to which a proposed arrangement is subject to conditions that are designed to address conflicts of interest and overreaching by a participant in the arrangement, so that the abuses that gave rise to the initial adoption of the Act’s restrictions against investment companies investing in other investment companies are not repeated.(4)

 

B.                                     Sections 17(a), 17(b) and 6(c)

 

Section 17(a) of the Act generally prohibits sales or purchases of securities between a registered investment company and any affiliated persons of the company.  Section 2(a)(3) of the Act defines an “affiliated person” of another person to include (a) any person directly or indirectly owning, controlling, or holding with power to vote, 5% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the other person; (b) any person 5% or more of whose outstanding voting securities are directly or indirectly owned, controlled, or held with power to vote by the other

 


(4)  H.R. Rep. No. 104-622, at 43-44 (1996).

 

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person; and (c) any person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the other person.

 

Section 17(b) of the Act authorizes the Commission to grant an order permitting a transaction otherwise prohibited by Section 17(a) if it finds that (a) the terms of the proposed transaction are fair and reasonable and do not involve overreaching on the part of any person concerned; (b) the proposed transaction is consistent with the policies of each registered investment company involved; and (c) the proposed transaction is consistent with the general purposes of the Act.

 

Section 6(c) of the Act permits the Commission to exempt any person or transactions from any provision of the Act if such exemption is necessary or appropriate in the public interest and consistent with the protection of investors and the purposes fairly intended by the policy and provisions of the Act.  Because multiple transactions could occur between a Fund of Funds and an Unaffiliated Fund, and because the Commission may interpret its authority under Section 17(b) as extending only to a single transaction and not a series of transactions, Applicants are also seeking relief pursuant to Section 6(c).

 

C.                                     Investments by Funds of Funds in Unaffiliated Funds

 

1.                                       Section 12(d)(1)(J).  The proposed arrangement will not give rise to the policy concerns, each discussed specifically below, which underlie Sections 12(d)(1)(A) and (B).(5)  Applicants agree to conditions that adequately address these concerns.  Accordingly, the Applicants believe that the requested exemption is consistent with the public interest and the protection of investors.

 


(5)  See Report of the Securities and Exchange Commission on the Public Policy Implications of Investment Company Growth, H.R. Rep. No. 892-2337, at 311-324 (1966) (the “PPI Report”).

 

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a.                                       No Undue Influence.  Pyramiding of control is one of the potential abuses of fund holding company structures discussed in the PPI Report.  The PPI Report also expressed concern over the potential concentration of voting control in a fund holding company with respect to its underlying funds.  The PPI Report also expressed concern that sizeable share percentage ownership by one fund in another presents management of underlying funds with an omnipresent threat of lost advisory fees when large redemptions may occur.  Applicants submit that the proposed arrangement will not result in the exercise of undue influence by a Fund of Funds or its affiliated persons over the Unaffiliated Funds.

 

Condition 1 contains measures designed to limit the control that a Fund of Funds may have over an Unaffiliated Fund.  Condition 1 prohibits the Adviser, any person controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the Adviser, and any investment company or issuer that would be an investment company but for Section 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of the Act that is advised or sponsored by the Adviser or any person controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the Adviser (the “Advisory Group”) from controlling (individually or in the aggregate) an Unaffiliated Fund within the meaning of Section 2(a)(9) of the Act.  The same prohibition would apply to any other investment adviser within the meaning of Section 2(a)(20)(B) of the Act to a Fund of Funds (“Subadviser”), any person controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the Subadviser, and any investment company or issuer that would be an investment company but for Section 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of the Act (or portion of such investment company or issuer) advised or sponsored by the Subadviser or any person controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the Subadviser (the “Subadvisory Group”).

 

Applicants further state that condition 2 precludes a Fund of Funds or the Adviser, any Subadviser, promoter or principal underwriter of a Fund of Funds, as well as any person

 

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controlling, controlled by or under common control with any of those entities (each, a “Fund of Funds Affiliate”) from taking advantage of an Unaffiliated Fund, with respect to transactions between the Fund of Funds or a Fund of Funds Affiliate and the Unaffiliated Fund or its investment adviser(s), sponsor, promoter, and principal underwriter and any person controlling, controlled by or under common control with any of those entities (each, an “Unaffiliated Fund Affiliate”).  No Fund of Funds or Fund of Funds Affiliate (except to the extent it is acting in its capacity as an investment adviser to an Unaffiliated Investment Company or sponsor to an Unaffiliated Trust) will cause an Unaffiliated Fund to purchase a security in an offering of securities during the existence of any underwriting or selling syndicate of which a principal underwriter is an officer, director, trustee, advisory board member, investment adviser, Subadviser, or employee of the Fund of Funds, or a person of which any such officer, director, trustee, investment adviser, Subadviser, member of an advisory board, or employee is an affiliated person (each, an “Underwriting Affiliate,” except any person whose relationship to the Unaffiliated Fund is covered by Section 10(f) of the Act is not an Underwriting Affiliate).  An offering of securities during the existence of any underwriting or selling syndicate of which a principal underwriter is an Underwriting Affiliate is an “Affiliated Underwriting.”

 

To further assure that an Unaffiliated Investment Company understands the implications of an investment by a Fund of Funds under the requested order, prior to a Fund of Funds’ investment in the shares of an Unaffiliated Investment Company in excess of the limit in Section 12(d)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, the Fund of Funds and the Unaffiliated Investment Company will execute an agreement stating, without limitation, that their Boards and their investment advisers understand the terms and conditions of the order and agree to fulfill their responsibilities under the order (“Participation Agreement”).  Applicants note that an Unaffiliated Investment

 

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Company (other than an ETF whose shares are purchased by a Fund of Funds in the secondary market) will retain its right at all times to reject any investment by a Fund of Funds.(6)

 

b.                                      No Excessive Layering of Fees.  Applicants do not believe that the proposed arrangement will involve excessive layering of fees.  To assure that the investment advisory or management fees are not duplicative, Applicants state that, in connection with the approval of any investment advisory or management contract under Section 15 of the Act, the Board of the Fund of Funds, including a majority of the trustees who are not “interested persons,” as defined in Section 2(a)(19) of the Act (“Independent Trustees”), will find that the advisory fees charged under such advisory contract are based on services provided that are in addition to, rather than duplicative of, services provided pursuant to any Underlying Fund’s advisory contract(s).  Such finding, and the basis upon which the finding was made, will be recorded fully in the minute books of the Fund of Funds.  Applicants further state that the Adviser will waive fees otherwise payable to it by a Fund of Funds in an amount at least equal to any compensation (including fees received pursuant to any plan adopted by an Unaffiliated Investment Company pursuant to rule 12b-1 under the Act) received from an Unaffiliated Fund by the Adviser, or an affiliated person of the Adviser, in connection with the investment by the Fund of Funds in the Unaffiliated Fund, subject to certain exceptions noted in Condition 10.

 

Any sales charges and/or service fees charged with respect to shares of a Fund of Funds will not exceed the limits applicable to a fund of funds set forth in Rule 2830 of the Conduct Rules of the NASD (“NASD Conduct Rule 2830”).(7)

 


(6)  An Unaffiliated Investment Company, including an ETF, would retain its right to reject any initial investment by a Fund of Funds in excess of the limit in Section 12(d)(1)(A)(i) of the Act by declining to execute the Participation Agreement with the Fund of Funds.

(7)  Any references to NASD Conduct Rule 2830 include any successor or replacement FINRA rule to NASD Conduct Rule 2830.

 

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c.                                       Structure is Not Overly Complex.  Applicants state that the proposed arrangement will not create an overly complex fund structure because no Underlying Fund will acquire securities of any other investment company or company relying on Section 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of the Act in excess of the limits contained in Section 12(d)(1)(A) of the Act, except to the extent that such Underlying Fund: (a) receives securities of another investment company as a dividend or as a result of a plan of reorganization of a company (other than a plan devised for the purpose of evading Section 12(d)(1) of the Act); or (b) acquires (or is deemed to have acquired) securities of another investment company pursuant to exemptive relief from the Commission permitting such Underlying Fund to: (i) acquire securities of one or more investment companies for short-term cash management purposes, or (ii) engage in interfund borrowing and lending transactions.

 

2.                                       Section 17(a).  Section 17(a) of the Act generally prohibits sales or purchases of securities between a registered investment company and any affiliated persons of the company.  Section 2(a)(3) of the Act defines an “affiliated person” of another person to include (a) any person directly or indirectly owning, controlling, or holding with power to vote, 5% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the other person; (b) any person 5% or more of whose outstanding voting securities are directly or indirectly owned, controlled, or held with power to vote by the other person; and (c) any person directly or indirectly controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the other person.

 

Applicants state that the Funds of Funds and the Affiliated Funds might be deemed to be under common control of the Adviser and therefore affiliated persons of one another.  Applicants also state that the Funds of Funds and the Unaffiliated Funds might be deemed to be affiliated persons of one another if a Fund of Funds acquires 5% or more of an Unaffiliated Fund’s

 

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outstanding voting securities.  In light of these and other possible affiliations, Section 17(a) could prevent an Underlying Fund from selling shares to and redeeming shares from a Fund of Funds.

 

Section 17(b) of the Act authorizes the Commission to grant an order permitting a transaction otherwise prohibited by Section 17(a) if it finds that (a) the terms of the proposed transaction are fair and reasonable and do not involve overreaching on the part of any person concerned; (b) the proposed transaction is consistent with the policies of each registered investment company involved; and (c) the proposed transaction is consistent with the general purposes of the Act.  Section 6(c) of the Act permits the Commission to exempt any persons or transactions from any provision of the Act if such exemption is necessary or appropriate in the public interest and consistent with the protection of investors and the purposes fairly intended by the policy and provisions of the Act.

 

Applicants believe that the proposed transactions satisfy the requirements for relief under Sections 17(b) and 6(c) of the Act as the terms are fair and reasonable and do not involve overreaching.(8)

 

Applicants state that the terms upon which an Underlying Fund will sell its shares to or purchase its shares from a Fund of Funds will be based on the net asset value of each Underlying Fund.(9)  Applicants also state that the proposed transactions will be consistent with the policies of each Fund of Funds and Underlying Fund, and with the general purposes of the Act.

 


(8)  Applicants acknowledge that receipt of any compensation by (a) an affiliated person of a Fund of Funds, or an affiliated person of such person, for the purchase by the Fund of Funds of shares of an Underlying Fund or (b) an affiliated person of a Underlying Fund, or an affiliated person of such person, for the sale by the Underlying Fund of its shares to a Fund of Funds may be prohibited by Section 17(e)(1) of the Act. The Participation Agreement also will include this acknowledgement.

(9)  Applicants note that a Fund of Funds generally would purchase and sell shares of an Unaffiliated Fund that operates as an ETF through secondary market transactions rather than through principal transactions with the Unaffiliated Fund. To the extent that a Fund of Funds purchases or redeems shares from an ETF that is an affiliated person of the Fund of Funds in exchange for a basket of specified securities as described in the application for the exemptive order upon which the ETF relies, Applicants also request relief from Section 17(a) for those in-kind transactions.  Applicants are not seeking relief from Section 17(a) for, and the requested relief will not apply to, transactions where an ETF could be deemed an affiliated person, or an affiliated person of an affiliated person, of a Fund of Funds because an investment adviser to the ETF is also an investment adviser to the Fund of Funds.

 

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V.  PRECEDENTS IN SUPPORT OF THE REQUEST FOR EXEMPTION

 

The Commission has granted exemptive orders to other mutual fund complexes who sought relief for fund of funds arrangements with affiliated and unaffiliated investment companies, and whose requests for relief included conditions substantially similar to those included in this Application.  Reference is made to GPS Funds I, et al. (GPS) Investment Company Act Rel. No. 30044 (April 24, 2012) (Notice); Investment Company Act Rel. No. 30067 (May 22, 2012) (Order) (the “GPS Order”).  The GPS Order, which is substantially identical to this Application, in all material respects with respect to the relief sought herein, granted, in relevant part, an exemption under Section 12(d)(1)(J) of the Act from Sections 12(d)(1)(A) and (B) of the Act and under Sections 6(c) and 17(b) from Section 17(a) of the Act to permit the GPS Funds of Funds to acquire shares of affiliated and unaffiliated funds in excess of the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1)(A) of the Act.

 

Reference is made to Aston Funds, et al. (Aston) Investment Company Act Rel. No. 29400 (August 26, 2010) (Notice); Investment Company Act Rel. No. 29443 (Sept. 27, 2010) (Order) (the “Aston Order”).  The Aston Order granted, in relevant part, an exemption under Section 12(d)(1)(J) of the Act from Sections 12(d)(1)(A) and (B) of the Act and under Sections 6(c) and 17(b) from Section 17(a) of the Act to permit the Aston Funds of Funds to acquire shares of affiliated and unaffiliated funds in excess of the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1)(A) of the Act.

 

Additional reference is made to Lincoln Variable Insurance Products Trust, et al. (Lincoln), Investment Company Act Rel. No. 29168 (March 5, 2010) (Notice), Investment Company Act Rel. No. 29196 (March 31, 2010) (Order) (the “Lincoln Order”).  The Lincoln

 

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Order permitted, in relevant part, certain funds to sell shares to unaffiliated Funds of Funds in excess of the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1)(B) of the Act, and for such unaffiliated Funds of Funds to purchase shares of the Lincoln funds in excess of the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1)(A) of the Act.

 

Reference is made to Massachusetts Financial Services Company, et al. (MFS) Investment Company Act Rel. No. 28649 (March 17, 2009) (Notice); Investment Company Act Rel. No. 28694 (April 14, 2009) (Order) (the “MFS Order”).  The MFS Order permitted, in relevant part, certain funds to sell shares to unaffiliated Funds of Funds in excess of the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1)(B) of the Act, and for such unaffiliated Funds of Funds to purchase shares of the MFS funds in excess of the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1)(A) of the Act.

 

Reference is made to John Hancock Trust, et al. (Hancock) Investment Company Act Rel. No. 27848 (May 30, 2007) (Notice); Investment Company Act Rel. No. 27873 (June 26, 2007) (Order) (the “Hancock Order”).  Hancock requested an exemption under Section 12(d)(1)(J) of the Act from Sections 12(d)(1)(A) and (B) of the Act and under Sections 6(c) and 17(b) from Section 17(a) of the Act.  The Hancock Order permitted their Funds of Funds to acquire shares of affiliated and unaffiliated funds in excess of the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1)(A) of the Act.

 

Reference is also made to HealthShares et al., Investment Company Act Rel. No. 27844 (May 29, 2007) (Notice), Investment Company Act Rel. No. 27871 (June 21, 2007) (Order); ProFunds, et al., Investment Company Act Rel. No. 27599 (Dec. 19, 2006) (Notice), Investment Company Act Rel. 27658 (Jan. 9, 2007) (Order); Frank Russell Investment Company et al., Investment Company Act Rel. No. 27288 (April 17, 2006) (Notice), Investment Company Act Rel. No. 27319 (May 15, 2006) (Order); ING Partners, Inc. et al., Investment Company Act Rel.

 

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No. 27116 (October 12, 2005) (Notice), Investment Company Act Rel. No. 27142 (November 8, 2005) (Order); and MetLife Investors USA Insurance Company, et al., Investment Company Act Rel. No. 27028 (August 16, 2005) (Notice), Investment Company Act Rel. No. 27059 (September 7, 2005) (Order).  Each of these applications requested similar relief to that requested by the Applicants.

 

VI.  APPLICANTS’ CONDITIONS

 

Applicants agree that the relief to permit Funds of Funds to invest in Underlying Funds shall be subject to the following conditions:

 

1.                                       The members of an Advisory Group will not control (individually or in the aggregate) an Unaffiliated Fund within the meaning of Section 2(a)(9) of the Act.  The members of a Subadvisory Group will not control (individually or in the aggregate) an Unaffiliated Fund within the meaning of Section 2(a)(9) of the Act.  If, as a result of a decrease in the outstanding voting securities of an Unaffiliated Fund, the Advisory Group or a Subadvisory Group, each in the aggregate, becomes a holder of more than 25 percent of the outstanding voting securities of the Unaffiliated Fund, then the Advisory Group or the Subadvisory Group will vote its shares of the Unaffiliated Fund in the same proportion as the vote of all other holders of the Unaffiliated Fund’s shares.  This condition will not apply to a Subadvisory Group with respect to an Unaffiliated Fund for which the Subadviser or a person controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the Subadviser acts as the investment adviser within the meaning of Section 2(a)(20)(A) of the Act (in the case of an Unaffiliated Investment Company) or as the sponsor (in the case of an Unaffiliated Trust).

 

2.                                       No Fund of Funds or Fund of Funds Affiliate will cause any existing or potential investment by the Fund of Funds in shares of an Unaffiliated Fund to influence the

 

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terms of any services or transactions between the Fund of Funds or a Fund of Funds Affiliate and the Unaffiliated Fund or an Unaffiliated Fund Affiliate.

 

3.                                       The Board of each Fund of Funds, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, will adopt procedures reasonably designed to assure that its Adviser and any Subadviser(s) to the Fund of Funds are conducting the investment program of the Fund of Funds without taking into account any consideration received by the Fund of Funds or Fund of Funds Affiliate from an Unaffiliated Fund or an Unaffiliated Fund Affiliate in connection with any services or transactions.

 

4.                                       Once an investment by a Fund of Funds in the securities of an Unaffiliated Investment Company exceeds the limit of Section 12(d)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, the Board of the Unaffiliated Investment Company, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, will determine that any consideration paid by the Unaffiliated Investment Company to a Fund of Funds or a Fund of Funds Affiliate in connection with any services or transactions: (a) is fair and reasonable in relation to the nature and quality of the services and benefits received by the Unaffiliated Investment Company; (b) is within the range of consideration that the Unaffiliated Investment Company would be required to pay to another unaffiliated entity in connection with the same services or transactions; and (c) does not involve overreaching on the part of any person concerned.  This condition does not apply with respect to any services or transactions between an Unaffiliated Investment Company and its investment adviser(s) or any person controlling, controlled by, or under common control with such investment adviser(s).

 

5.                                       No Fund of Funds or Fund of Funds Affiliate (except to the extent it is acting in its capacity as an investment adviser to an Unaffiliated Investment Company or sponsor

 

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to an Unaffiliated Trust) will cause an Unaffiliated Fund to purchase a security in any Affiliated Underwriting.

 

6.                                       The Board of an Unaffiliated Investment Company, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, will adopt procedures reasonably designed to monitor any purchases of securities by the Unaffiliated Investment Company in an Affiliated Underwriting once an investment by a Fund of Funds in the securities of the Unaffiliated Investment Company exceeds the limit of Section 12(d)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, including any purchases made directly from an Underwriting Affiliate.  The Board of the Unaffiliated Investment Company will review these purchases periodically, but no less frequently than annually, to determine whether the purchases were influenced by the investment by the Fund of Funds in the Unaffiliated Investment Company.  The Board of the Unaffiliated Investment Company will consider, among other things, (a) whether the purchases were consistent with the investment objectives and policies of the Unaffiliated Investment Company; (b) how the performance of securities purchased in an Affiliated Underwriting compares to the performance of comparable securities purchased during a comparable period of time in underwritings other than Affiliated Underwritings or to a benchmark such as a comparable market index; and (c) whether the amount of securities purchased by the Unaffiliated Investment Company in Affiliated Underwritings and the amount purchased directly from an Underwriting Affiliate have changed significantly from prior years.  The Board of the Unaffiliated Investment Company will take any appropriate actions based on its review, including, if appropriate, the institution of procedures designed to assure that purchases of securities in Affiliated Underwritings are in the best interests of shareholders.

 

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7.                                       Each Unaffiliated Investment Company shall maintain and preserve permanently in an easily accessible place a written copy of the procedures described in the preceding condition, and any modifications to such procedures, and shall maintain and preserve for a period not less than six years from the end of the fiscal year in which any purchase in an Affiliated Underwriting occurred, the first two years in an easily accessible place, a written record of each purchase of securities in an Affiliated Underwriting once an investment by a Fund of Funds in the securities of an Unaffiliated Investment Company exceeds the limit of Section 12(d)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, setting forth the: (a) party from whom the securities were acquired, (b) identity of the underwriting syndicate’s members, (c) terms of the purchase, and (d) information or materials upon which the determinations of the Board of the Unaffiliated Investment Company were made.

 

8.                                       Prior to its investment in shares of an Unaffiliated Investment Company in excess of the limit in Section 12(d)(1)(A)(i) of the Act, the Fund of Funds and the Unaffiliated Investment Company will execute a Participation Agreement stating, without limitation, that their Boards and their investment advisers understand the terms and conditions of the order and agree to fulfill their responsibilities under the order.  At the time of its investment in shares of an Unaffiliated Investment Company in excess of the limit in Section 12(d)(1)(A)(i), a Fund of Funds will notify the Unaffiliated Investment Company of the investment.  At such time, the Fund of Funds will also transmit to the Unaffiliated Investment Company a list of the names of each Fund of Funds Affiliate and Underwriting Affiliate.  The Fund of Funds will notify the Unaffiliated Investment Company of any changes to the list of the names as soon as reasonably practicable after a change occurs.  The Unaffiliated Investment Company and the Fund of Funds will maintain and preserve a copy of the order, the Participation Agreement, and the list with any

 

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updated information for the duration of the investment and for a period of not less than six years thereafter, the first two years in an easily accessible place.

 

9.                                       Before approving any advisory contract under Section 15 of the Act, the Board of each Fund of Funds, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, shall find that the advisory fees charged under such advisory contract are based on services provided that are in addition to, rather than duplicative of, services provided under the advisory contract(s) of any Underlying Fund in which the Fund of Funds may invest.  Such finding and the basis upon which the finding was made will be recorded fully in the minute books of the appropriate Fund of Funds.

 

10.                                 The Adviser will waive fees otherwise payable to it by a Fund of Funds in an amount at least equal to any compensation (including fees received pursuant to any plan adopted by an Unaffiliated Investment Company under Rule 12b-1 under the Act) received from an Unaffiliated Fund by the Adviser, or an affiliated person of the Adviser, other than any advisory fees paid to the Adviser or its affiliated person by an Unaffiliated Investment Company, in connection with the investment by the Fund of Funds in the Unaffiliated Fund.  Any Subadviser will waive fees otherwise payable to the Subadviser, directly or indirectly, by the Fund of Funds in an amount at least equal to any compensation received by the Subadviser, or an affiliated person of the Subadviser, from an Unaffiliated Fund, other than any advisory fees paid to the Subadviser or its affiliated person by an Unaffiliated Investment Company, in connection with the investment by the Fund of Funds in the Unaffiliated Fund made at the direction of the Subadviser.  In the event that the Subadviser waives fees, the benefit of the waiver will be passed through to the Fund of Funds.

 

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11.                                 No Underlying Fund will acquire securities of any other investment company or company relying on Section 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of the Act in excess of the limits contained in Section 12(d)(1)(A) of the Act, except to the extent that such Underlying Fund: (a) receives securities of another investment company as a dividend or as a result of a plan of reorganization of a company (other than a plan devised for the purpose of evading Section 12(d)(1) of the Act); or (b) acquires (or is deemed to have acquired) securities of another investment company pursuant to exemptive relief from the Commission permitting such Underlying Fund to (i) acquire securities of one or more investment companies for short-term cash management purposes, or (ii) engage in interfund borrowing and lending transactions.

 

12.                                 Any sales charges and/or service fees charged with respect to shares of a Fund of Funds will not exceed the limits applicable to fund of funds set forth in NASD Conduct Rule 2830.

 

VII.  REQUEST FOR ORDER

 

Applicants request an order under Section 12(d)(1)(J) of the Act exempting certain transactions involving the Applicants from Sections 12(d)(1)(A) and 12(d)(1)(B) of the Act, and under Sections 6(c) and 17(b) of the Act exempting certain transactions involving the Applicants from Sections 17(a)(1) and (2) of the Act.  Applicants submit, for the reasons stated herein, that their request for exemptive relief meets the respective standards for relief under Sections 12(d)(1)(J), 17(b), and 6(c) of the Act and therefore, Applicants respectfully request that the Commission grant the requested relief.

 

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Applicants have caused this Application to be duly signed on their behalf on the 13th day of July, 2012.

 

 

 

PNC CAPITAL ADVISORS, LLC

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Kevin A. McCreadie

 

Name:

Kevin A. McCreadie

 

Title:

President

 

 

 

 

 

PNC FUNDS

 

PNC ADVANTAGE FUNDS

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Savonne L. Ferguson

 

Name:

Savonne L. Ferguson

 

Title:

Secretary

 



 

EXHIBIT INDEX

 

A.                                   Certification

 

B.                                     Rule 0-2(d) Verification

 



 

EXHIBIT A

 

Certification

 

The undersigned hereby certifies that she is the duly elected Secretary of PNC Funds and PNC Advantage Funds (the “Trusts”); that, with respect to the attached application for exemption from certain provisions of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Act”), and any amendments thereto (such application, along with any amendments, the “Application”), all actions necessary to authorize the execution and filing of the Application under the organizational documents and By-laws of the Trusts have been taken, and the person signing and filing the Application on behalf of the Trusts is fully authorized to do so; and that the Trustees of the Trusts adopted the following vote on June 1, 2012 in accordance with the By-laws of the Trusts:

 

RESOLVED, that the officers of PNC Funds and PNC Advantage Funds (collectively, the “Funds”) be, and they hereby are, authorized to execute and file with the Securities and Exchange Commission, on behalf of the Funds, an application (including any necessary or appropriate amendments to such application) for an order exempting the present and future series of the Funds from (a) the limitations in Section 12(d)(1)(A) and (B) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”) and (b) the limitations in Section 17(a) of the 1940 Act, as discussed during the in-person meetings of the Board of Trustees of the Funds held on May 31, 2012 and June 1, 2012, in a form satisfactory to such officers of and counsel for the Funds (the “Fund of Funds Exemptive Application”), the execution and filing of the Fund of Funds Exemptive Application and any amendment thereto to be conclusive evidence of the Trustees’ authorization hereby; and

 

FURTHER RESOLVED, that the officers of the Funds be, and each of them hereby is, authorized to take all such action, and to execute and deliver all such instruments and documents, in the name and on behalf of the Funds, and under its corporate seal or otherwise, as shall in his or her judgment be necessary, proper or advisable in order to arrange for the filing of the Fund of Funds Exemptive Application and any amendments thereto, and all related exhibits, on behalf of the Funds, and otherwise to fully carry out the intent and accomplish the purpose of the foregoing resolution, the taking of any such action and the execution and delivery of any such instrument or document by any such officer to be conclusive evidence that the same has been authorized by this resolution.

 

Dated:  July 13, 2012

 

 

By:

/s/ Savonne L. Ferguson

 

Name:

Savonne L. Ferguson

 

Title:

Secretary

 



 

Certification

 

The undersigned hereby certifies that he is the President of PNC Capital Advisors, LLC (“PNC Capital Advisors”); that, with respect to the attached application for exemption from a certain provision of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and any amendments thereto (such application, along with any amendments, the “Application”), all actions necessary to authorize the execution and filing of the Application under the organizational documents of PNC Capital Advisors have been taken, and the person signing and filing the Application on behalf of PNC Capital Advisors is fully authorized to do so:

 

Dated:  July 13, 2012

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Kevin A. McCreadie

 

Name:

Kevin A. McCreadie

 

Title:

President

 



 

EXHIBIT B

 

Rule 0-2(d) Verification

 

The undersigned, being duly deposed and sworn, deposes and states that she has duly executed the attached Application for an Exemptive Order on July 13, 2012 for and on behalf of PNC Funds and PNC Advantage Funds (the “Trusts”); that she is the Secretary of the Trusts; and that all actions by trustees, officers, and other persons necessary to authorize deponent to execute and file such instrument have been taken.  Deponent further states that she is familiar with such instrument, and the contents thereof, and that the facts therein set forth are true to the best of her knowledge, information and belief.

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Savonne L. Ferguson

 

Name:

Savonne L. Ferguson

 

Title:

Secretary

 



 

Rule 0-2(d) Verification

 

The undersigned, being duly deposed and sworn, deposes and states that he has duly executed the attached Application for an Exemptive Order on July 13, 2012 for and on behalf of PNC Capital Advisors, LLC (“PNC Capital Advisors”); that he is the President of PNC Capital Advisors; and that all actions necessary to authorize deponent to execute and file such instrument have been taken.  Deponent further states that he is familiar with such instrument, and the contents thereof, and that the facts therein set forth are true to the best of his knowledge, information and belief.

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Kevin A. McCreadie

 

Name:

Kevin A. McCreadie

 

Title:

President