INSTRUCTIONS
Forming Part of the Terms and Conditions of the Offer
1. Guarantee of Signatures. No signature guarantee on this Letter of Transmittal is required (i) if this Letter of Transmittal is signed by the registered holder of the Shares tendered herewith, or (ii) if such Shares are tendered for the account of a firm which is a broker, dealer, commercial bank, credit union, savings association or other entity and which is a member in good standing of a stock transfer association’s approved medallion program (such as STAMP, SEMP or MSP) (each being hereinafter referred to as an “Eligible Institution”). In all other cases, all signatures on this Letter of Transmittal must be guaranteed by an Eligible Institution.
THE METHOD OF DELIVERY OF THIS LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL AND ALL OTHER REQUIRED DOCUMENTS IS AT THE OPTION AND RISK OF THE TENDERING SHAREHOLDER AND EXCEPT AS OTHERWISE PROVIDED IN THIS INSTRUCTION, THE DELIVERY WILL BE DEEMED MADE ONLY WHEN ACTUALLY RECEIVED BY THE DEPOSITARY. IF DELIVERY IS BY MAIL, REGISTERED MAIL WITH RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED, PROPERLY INSURED, IS RECOMMENDED. THE SHAREHOLDER HAS THE RESPONSIBILITY TO CAUSE THE LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL AND ANY OTHER DOCUMENTS TO BE TIMELY DELIVERED.
No alternative, conditional or contingent tenders will be accepted, except as may be permitted in the Fund’s Offer to Purchase. All shareholders of the Fund (“Shareholders”) who are tendering their Shares, by execution of this Letter of Transmittal (or facsimile thereof), waive any right to receive any notice of the acceptance for purchase of Shares.
2. Signatures on Letter of Transmittal; Stock Powers and Endorsements.
(a) If this Letter of Transmittal is signed by the registered holder(s) of the Shares tendered hereby, the signature(s) must correspond exactly with the name(s) on the face of the account registration.
(b) If any of the tendered Shares are held of record by two or more joint holders, ALL such holders must sign this Letter of Transmittal.
(c) If this Letter of Transmittal or any stock powers are signed by trustees, executors, administrators, guardians, agents, attorneys-in-fact, officers of corporations or others acting in a fiduciary or representative capacity, such persons should so indicate when signing and must submit original documents satisfactory to the Fund constituting proper evidence of their authority to so act.
3. Tender of More Than 1,221 Shares. If more than 1,221 Shares are duly tendered prior to the expiration of the Offer (and not properly withdrawn), the Fund will purchase Shares from tendering Shareholders, in accordance with the terms and conditions specified in the Offer to Purchase and herein, on a pro rata basis (disregarding fractions), in accordance with the number of Shares duly tendered by each Shareholder during the period the Offer is open (and not properly withdrawn), unless the Fund determines not to purchase any Shares.
4. Irregularities. All questions as to the validity, form, eligibility (including time of receipt) and acceptance for purchase of any tender of Shares will be determined by the Fund, in its sole discretion, which determination shall be final and binding. The Fund reserves the absolute right to reject any or all tenders of any particular Shares (i) determined by it not to be in proper form or (ii) the acceptance for purchase of, or payment for, which may in the opinion of the Fund’s counsel, be unlawful. The Fund also reserves the absolute right to waive any of the conditions of the Offer, in whole or in part, or any defect or irregularity in tender of any particular Shares or Shareholder, and the Fund’s interpretations of the terms and conditions of the Offer (including these instructions) shall be final and binding. No tender of Shares will be deemed to be properly made until all defects and irregularities have been cured or waived. None of the Fund, the Depositary, the Information Agent (as defined below) or any other person shall be obligated to give notice of defects or irregularities in tenders, nor shall any of them incur any liability for failure to give any such notice. Unless waived, any defects or irregularities must be cured within such time as the Fund shall determine.
5. Requests for Assistance and Additional Copies. Requests for assistance should be directed to, and additional copies of the Fund’s Offer to Purchase and this Letter of Transmittal may be obtained from, the Information Agent at the address set forth at the end of this Letter of Transmittal. The Information Agent will also provide Shareholders, upon request, with a Certificate of Foreign Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Tax Withholding and Reporting (Individuals) (W-8BEN), a Certificate of Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Tax Withholding and Reporting (Entities) (W-8BEN-E) or a Certificate of Foreign Person’s Claim That Income Is Effectively Connected With the Conduct of a Trade or Business in the United States (W-8ECI).