Risks Relating to Characteristics of the Underlying Assets
♦You are exposed to the market risk of each underlying asset — Your return on the Notes is not linked to a basket consisting of the underlying assets. Rather, it will be contingent upon the performance of each individual underlying asset. Unlike an instrument with a return linked to a basket of assets, in which risk is mitigated and diversified among all of the components of the basket, you will be exposed equally to the risks related to each underlying asset. Poor performance by any one of the underlying assets over the term of the Notes will negatively affect your return and will not be offset or mitigated by a positive performance by any other underlying asset. For instance, you will receive a negative return equal to the underlying return of the least performing underlying asset if UBS does not elect to call the Notes and the final level of one underlying asset is less than its downside threshold, even if the underlying return of each other underlying asset is positive or has not declined as much. Accordingly, your investment is subject to the market risk of each underlying asset.
♦Because the Notes are linked to the least performing underlying asset, you are exposed to a greater risk of no contingent coupons and losing a significant portion or all of your initial investment at maturity than if the Notes were linked to a single underlying asset or fewer underlying assets — The risk that you will not receive any contingent coupons and lose a significant portion or all of your initial investment in the Notes is greater if you invest in the Notes than the risk of investing in substantially similar securities that are linked to the performance of only one underlying asset or to fewer underlying assets. With more underlying assets, it is more likely that the closing level of an underlying asset will be less than its coupon barrier on any coupon observation date or that the final level of an underlying asset will be less than its downside threshold than if the Notes were linked to a single underlying asset or fewer underlying assets. In addition, the lower the correlation between a pair of underlying assets, the greater the likelihood that one of the underlying assets will decline to a closing level that is less than its coupon barrier on any coupon observation date or a final level that is less than its downside threshold. Although the correlation of the underlying assets’ performance may change over the term of the Notes, the economic terms of the Notes, including the contingent coupon rate, downside thresholds and coupon barriers are determined, in part, based on the correlation of the underlying assets’ performance calculated using our internal models at the time when the terms of the Notes are finalized. All things being equal, a higher contingent coupon rate and lower downside thresholds and coupon barriers are generally associated with lower correlation of the underlying assets. Therefore, if the performance of a pair of underlying assets is not correlated to each other or is negatively correlated, the risk that you will not receive any contingent coupons or that the final level of any underlying asset will be less than its downside threshold is even greater despite lower coupon barriers and downside thresholds, respectively. With four underlying assets, it is more likely that the performance of one pair of underlying assets will not be correlated, or will be negatively correlated. Therefore, it is more likely that you will not receive any contingent coupons, that the final level of any underlying asset will be less than its downside threshold and that you will lose a significant portion or all of your initial investment at maturity.
♦Single equity risk — The return on the Notes, which may be negative, is directly linked to the performance of the underlying assets. The levels of the underlying assets can rise or fall sharply due to factors specific to each underlying asset and its issuer (each, an “underlying asset issuer”), such as stock or commodity price volatility, earnings, financial conditions, corporate, industry and regulatory developments, management changes and decisions and other events, as well as general market factors, such as general stock and commodity market volatility and levels, interest rates and economic, political and other conditions. Recently, the coronavirus infection has caused volatility in the global financial markets and a slowdown in the global economy. Coronavirus or any other communicable disease or infection may adversely affect the underlying asset issuers and, therefore, the underlying assets. You, as an investor in the Notes, should conduct your own investigation into the underlying asset issuers and the underlying assets for your Notes. For additional information regarding the underlying assets and the underlying asset issuers, please see “Information About the Underlying Assets” herein and the underlying asset issuers' SEC filings referred to in that section. We urge you to review financial and other information filed periodically by the underlying asset issuers with the SEC.
♦There can be no assurance that the investment view implicit in the Notes will be successful — It is impossible to predict whether and the extent to which the levels of the underlying assets will rise or fall. There can be no assurance that the closing level of each underlying asset will be equal to or greater than its coupon barrier on each coupon observation date or, if UBS does not elect to call the Notes, that the final level of each underlying asset will be equal to or greater than its downside threshold. The levels of the underlying assets will be influenced by complex and interrelated political, economic, financial and other factors that affect the underlying asset issuers. You should be willing to accept the downside risks of owning equities in general and the underlying assets in particular, and the risk of losing a significant portion or all of your initial investment.
♦There is no affiliation between the underlying asset issuers and UBS, and UBS is not responsible for any disclosure by such issuers — We are not affiliated with the underlying asset issuers. We and our affiliates may currently, or from time to time in the future engage in business with the underlying asset issuers. However, we are not affiliated with the underlying asset issuers and are not responsible for such issuers' public disclosure of information, whether contained in SEC filings or otherwise. You, as an investor in the Notes, should conduct your own investigation into the underlying assets and the underlying asset issuers. The underlying asset issuers are not involved in the Notes offered hereby in any way and have no obligation to take your interests into consideration for any reason, including when taking any corporate actions that might affect the market value of, or return on, your Notes.
Estimated Value Considerations
♦The issue price you pay for the Notes will exceed their estimated initial value — The issue price you pay for the Notes will exceed their estimated initial value as of the trade date due to the inclusion in the issue price of the underwriting discount, hedging costs, issuance and other costs and projected profits. As of the close of the relevant markets on the trade date, we will determine the estimated initial value of the Notes by reference to our internal pricing models and it will be set forth in the final pricing supplement. The pricing models used to determine the estimated initial value of the Notes incorporate certain variables, including the levels and volatility of the underlying assets, any expected dividends on the underlying assets, the correlation of the underlying assets, prevailing interest rates, the term of the Notes and our internal funding rate. Our internal funding rate is typically lower than the rate we would pay to issue conventional fixed or floating rate debt securities of a similar term. The underwriting discount, hedging costs, issuance and other costs, projected profits and the difference in rates will reduce the economic value of the Notes to you. Due to these factors, the estimated initial value of the Notes as of the trade date will be less than the issue price you pay for the Notes.
♦The estimated initial value is a theoretical price; the actual price at which you may be able to sell your Notes in any secondary market (if any) at any time after the trade date may differ from the estimated initial value — The value of your Notes at any time will vary based on many factors, including the factors described above and in “— Risks Relating to Characteristics of the Underlying Assets — Single equity risk” above and is impossible to predict. Furthermore, the pricing models that we use are proprietary and rely in part on certain assumptions about future events, which may prove to be incorrect. As a result, after the trade date, if you attempt to sell the Notes in the secondary market, the actual value you would receive may differ, perhaps materially, from the estimated initial value of the Notes determined by reference to our internal pricing models. The estimated initial value of the Notes does not represent a minimum or maximum price at which we or any of our affiliates would be willing to purchase your Notes in any secondary market at any time.
♦Our actual profits may be greater or less than the differential between the estimated initial value and the issue price of the Notes as of the trade date — We may determine the economic terms of the Notes, as well as hedge our obligations, at least in part, prior to the trade date. In addition, there may be ongoing costs to us to maintain and/or adjust any hedges and such hedges are often imperfect. Therefore, our actual profits (or potentially, losses) in issuing the Notes cannot be determined as of the trade date and any such differential between the estimated initial value and the issue price of the Notes as of the trade date does not reflect our actual profits. Ultimately, our actual profits will be known only at the maturity of the Notes.