Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3)
Registration File No.: 333-257241
PROSPECTUS
MONACHIL CREDIT INCOME FUND
Class I Shares MONIX
May 1, 2023
The Fund. Monachil Credit Income Fund (the “Fund”) is a Delaware statutory trust registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), as a non-diversified, closed-end management investment company. The Fund operates under an Amended and Restated Agreement and Declaration of Trust dated July 13, 2022 (the “Declaration of Trust”).
The Fund intends to operate as an interval fund , a type of fund that, in order to provide liquidity to shareholders, has adopted a fundamental investment policy to make quarterly offers to repurchase between 5% and 25% of its outstanding Shares at net asset value (“NAV”). The first repurchase request deadline for the Fund shall occur no later than two calendar quarters after the Fund’s initial effective date. See “QUARTERLY REPURCHASE OFFERS.”
Monachil Capital Partners LP (the “Investment Manager”) serves as the investment adviser of the Fund. The Investment Manager is an investment adviser registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended.
The Fund intends to elect to be treated as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). The Investment Manager, however, has contractually agreed to absorb the impact of any taxes that would be owed by the Fund if it fails to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code up to a maximum of $1 million in a tax year for Fund’s first two tax years or periods, subject to extension to future tax years.
The Fund commenced operations on December 5, 2022. Simultaneous with the commencement of the Fund’s operations, the Wolf River INV LLC (the “Predecessor Fund”), a Delaware limited liability company, reorganized with and transferred substantially all its assets and remaining liabilities into the Fund in exchange for 1,431,157 Class I shares valued at $14,311,572. The Predecessor Fund had substantially the same investment objective and strategies as those of the Fund. The Fund and the Predecessor Fund shared the same investment manager and portfolio managers.
Investment Objective. The Fund’s investment objective is to provide investors with current income and attractive risk adjusted returns with relatively low correlation to the public equity and fixed income markets. Risk-adjusted returns are generally understood to frame investments in the context of the level of risk that is associated with a particular investment. The Fund seeks to achieve low correlation to public equity and fixed income markets by investing, under normal market conditions, a majority of its assets in instruments that are not included in major fixed income indexes including high yield and investment grade indexes. These investments may include, but are not limited to, consumer whole loans, non-mortgage securitizations such as those backed by corporate and sovereign loans, consumer credit, project finance, lease/trade receivables, equipment retail installment contracts or leased equipment and individualized lending agreements, and instruments that either due to size or liquidity are not included in the more liquid index products. There can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective.
Principal Investment Strategies. The Fund intends to generate returns by investing across an array of credit and asset-backed sectors. The Fund will invest, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its Managed Assets in “credit and credit-related investments” (as defined below). “Managed Assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including any assets attributable to money borrowed for investment purposes) minus the sum of the Fund’s accrued liabilities (other than money borrowed for investment purposes). The Fund defines “credit and credit-related investments” as debt securities, such as bonds and loans, and fixed income investments. The Fund’s “credit and credit-related investments” will consist of secured and unsecured consumer loans, direct loans to middle market companies, syndicated loans, asset-based loans and leases, infrastructure loans and contracted assets, (where an infrastructure firm enters into long- term contracts to pre-sell all or a portion of its output at a pre-agreed price), or other types of loans, which loans may include secured and unsecured notes, senior loans, second lien loans or other types of subordinated loans, or mezzanine loans, any of which may be “covenant-lite” (i.e., loans containing fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower than certain other types of loans), corporate debt, structured products, such as collateralized debt obligations and collateralized loan obligations, backed by such assets, including debt tranches of collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”) and loan accumulation facilities (loans secured or otherwise collateralized by other loans), asset-backed securities, including subordinated or residual tranches of such asset-backed securities, marketplace lending instruments, royalties (payments made by a licensee to a licensor to earn the right to continue using or exploiting a certain property) and convertible securities. The Fund may make direct investments in individual loans or in pools of loans and in whole loans as well as in loan participations or assignments. The Fund may invest in pools of performing and non-performing loans as well as credit facilities backed by such assets. Non-performing loans are in default, however, the Fund generally invests in small balance non-performing loans (as opposed to larger corporate non-performing loans) where the creditor is expected to see some collection activity on a more periodic basis. The Fund may invest in credit and credit-related instruments of any credit quality and may invest without limit in debt securities that are at the time of investment rated below investment grade, including high-yield bonds (commonly referred to as “junk” bonds) or unrated securities judged by Investment Manager to be of comparable quality. The Fund concentrates its investments (invests more than 25% of its total assets) in securities related to consumer finance industries, including consumer loans and securitizations backed by consumer loans. The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its assets in preferred stock.
The Fund may hold these assets directly or through wholly owned subsidiaries of the Fund (“SPVs”). The Fund may also invest in shares of other pooled investment vehicles, including business development companies (“BDCs”), registered investment companies and unregistered private funds (“Private Investment Funds”). The Fund will consider the investments of such pooled investment vehicles when determining its compliance with its 80% policy. The Fund will limit its total investments in Private Investment Funds that are excepted from the definition of “investment company” under the Investment Company Act by Section 3(c)(1) or Section 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act to no more than 15% of the Fund’s total assets. See “Investment Objectives and Strategies — Investment Strategies and Overview of Investment Process.”
The Fund may seek to provide exposure to certain securities that are not freely tradable in the U.S., such as Regulation S securities, as well as certain other securities that can only be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person or where it may be advantageous for the security or asset to be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person (“other restricted non-U.S. securities”) by investing in such securities through one or more wholly-owned subsidiaries (each a “Subsidiary” and, collectively, the “Subsidiaries”). As the date of this prospectus, the Fund’s Subsidiaries are Wolf River Cayman Ltd. and Taffy III Ltd., each of which is a company organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands. The Fund applies its investment restrictions and compliance policies and procedures on an aggregate basis with the Subsidiaries. The Fund will only invest up to 25% of its assets in a Subsidiary under normal circumstances and subject to the asset diversification requirements to qualify as a RIC under the Code. Because the Fund may invest a substantial portion of its assets in a Subsidiary, which may hold certain of the investments described in this prospectus, the Fund may be considered to be investing indirectly in those investments through its Subsidiary. Therefore, references in this prospectus to investments by the Fund also may be deemed to include the Fund’s indirect investments through the Subsidiaries. The Subsidiaries are advised by the Investment Manager and has the same investment objective as the Fund. The Subsidiaries may also hold cash and invest in other instruments, including fixed-income investments, either as investments or to serve as margin or collateral for a Subsidiary’s other investments.
The Fund’s investment program is speculative and entails substantial risks. There can be no assurance that the Fund’s investment objectives will be achieved or that its investment program will be successful. Investors should invest only if they are willing to undertake the risks involved. Investors could lose some or all of their investment (see “PRINCIPAL RISK FACTORS” beginning on page 24).
Leverage. In pursuing the Fund’s investment objective, the Fund may seek to enhance returns through the use of leverage. The Fund intends to use borrowings, including loans from certain financial institutions, to leverage its portfolio, in an aggregate amount of up to 33 1/3% of the Fund’s total assets (including the assets subject to, and obtained with the proceeds of, such borrowings) immediately after such borrowings. Leverage magnifies volatility and will decrease the Fund’s return if the Fund fails to earn as much on its investment purchased with borrowed funds as it pays for the use of those funds. The Fund’s leverage strategy may not work as planned or achieve its goal. All leverage expenses of the Fund will be borne solely by holders of the Fund’s common shares. See “Principal Risk Factors — General/Fund Structure Risks — Leverage.”
Total Offering(1)
| Class I Shares | ||
| Public Offering Price | Current Net Asset Value $ | |
| Maximum Sales Charge (as a percentage of purchase amount) | None | |
| Proceeds to Fund(2) | Current Net Asset Value |
| (1) | Foreside Financial Services, LLC (the “Distributor”) acts as the principal underwriter of the Fund’s Shares on a best-efforts basis. The Shares are being offered through the Distributor and may also be offered through other brokers or dealers that have entered into selling agreements with the Distributor. The Investment Manager and/or its affiliates may make payments to selected affiliated or unaffiliated third parties (including the parties who have entered into selling agreements with the Distributor) from time to time in connection with the distribution of Shares and/or the servicing of Shareholders and/or the Fund. These payments will be made out of the Investment Manager’s and/or affiliates’ own assets and will not represent an additional charge to the Fund. The amount of such payments may be significant in amount and the prospect of receiving any such payments may provide such third parties or their employees with an incentive to favor sales of Shares of the Fund over other investment options. See “DISTRIBUTOR.” The minimum initial investment in Class I Shares by any investor is $1,000,000 The Fund in its sole discretion may accept investments below this minimum amount. See “Fund Summary — The Offering.” |
| (2) | The Fund’s initial offering expenses are described under “FUND FEES AND EXPENSES” below. |
Shares Offered. This prospectus (the “Prospectus”) applies to the public offering of one class of the two separate classes of shares of beneficial interest (“Shares”) of the Fund, designated as Class I Shares. Class A Shares of the Fund are not currently being offered. The Fund has received an exemptive order that permits the Fund to offer more than one class of Shares. The Shares will be offered on a continuous basis. The Shares will generally be offered for purchase on any business day, which is any day the New York Stock Exchange is open for business, as described herein. The Shares will be issued at net asset value per Share. No holder of Shares (each, a “Shareholder”) will have the right to require the Fund to redeem its Shares.
This Prospectus concisely provides information that you should know about the Fund before investing. You are advised to read this Prospectus carefully and to retain it for future reference. Additional information about the Fund, including the Fund’s statement of additional information (the “SAI”), dated May 1, 2023, has been filed with the SEC. You may request a free copy of this Prospectus, the SAI, annual and semi-annual reports, when available, and other information about the Fund, and make inquiries without charge by writing to the Fund, c/o UMB Fund Services, Inc., 235 West Galena Street, Milwaukee, WI 53212, or by calling the Fund toll-free at (855) 552-5520. To obtain this information electronically, please visit www.monachilfunds.com. The SAI is incorporated by reference into this Prospectus in its entirety. The table of contents of the SAI appears on page 79 of this Prospectus. You may also obtain copies of the SAI, and the annual and semi-annual reports of the Fund, when available, as well as other information about the Fund on the SEC’s website (www.sec.gov). The address of the SEC’s internet site is provided solely for the information of prospective investors and is not intended to be an active link.
Shares are an illiquid investment.
| · | We do not intend to list the Shares on any securities exchange and we do not expect a secondary market in the Shares to develop. |
| · | You should generally not expect to be able to sell your Shares (other than through the limited repurchase process), regardless of how we perform. |
| · | Although we are required to implement a Share repurchase program, only a limited number of Shares will be eligible for repurchase by us. |
| · | You should consider that you may not have access to the money you invest for an indefinite period of time. |
| · | An investment in the Shares is not suitable for you if you need foreseeable access to the money you invest. |
| · | Because you will generally be unable to sell your Shares or have them repurchased immediately, you will find it difficult to reduce your exposure on a timely basis during a market downturn. |
| · | Although the Fund will offer to repurchase at least 5% of outstanding shares on a quarterly basis in accordance with the Fund’s repurchase policy, the Fund will not be required to repurchase shares at a shareholder’s option nor will shares be exchangeable for units, interests or shares of any security. |
| · | The Fund is not required to extend, and shareholders should not expect the Fund’s Board of Trustees to authorize, repurchase offers in excess of 5% of outstanding shares. |
| · | There is no assurance that monthly distributions paid by the Fund will be maintained at a certain level or that dividends will be paid at all. |
| · | The Fund’s distributions may be funded from unlimited amounts of offering proceeds or borrowings, which may constitute a return of capital and reduce the amount of capital available to the Fund for investment. Any capital returned to you through distributions will be distributed after payment of fees and expenses. |
| · | The ultimate tax characterization of the Fund’s distributions in a calendar year may not finally be determined until after the end of that calendar year. The Fund may make distributions during a calendar year that exceed the Fund’s net investment income and net realized capital gains for that year. In such a situation, the amount by which the Fund’s total distributions exceed net investment income and net realized capital gains would generally be treated as a tax-free return of capital up to the amount of your tax basis in your Shares, with any amounts exceeding such basis treated as gain from the sale of your Shares. |
| · | You should carefully consider the Fund’s risks and investment objective, as an investment in the Fund may not be appropriate for all investors and is not designed to be a complete investment program. |
No Prior History. The Fund has no operating history and the Shares have no history of trading.
Neither the SEC nor any state securities commission has determined whether this Prospectus is truthful or complete, nor have they made, nor will they make, any determination as to whether anyone should buy these securities. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
You should not construe the contents of this Prospectus and the SAI as legal, tax or financial advice. You should consult with your own professional advisers as to legal, tax, financial, or other matters relevant to the suitability of an investment in the Fund.
You should rely only on the information contained in this Prospectus. The Fund has not authorized anyone to provide you with different information. You should not assume that the information provided by this Prospectus is accurate as of any date other than the date shown below.
THE FUND’S PRINCIPAL UNDERWRITER IS FORESIDE FINANCIAL SERVICES, LLC.
As permitted by regulations adopted by the SEC, paper copies of the Fund’s shareholder reports will no longer be sent by mail, unless you specifically request paper copies of the reports from the Fund. Instead, the reports will be made available on the Fund’s website, www.monachilfunds.com, and you will be notified by mail each time a report is posted and provided with a website link to access the report.
If you already elected to receive shareholder reports electronically, you will not be affected by this change and you need not take any action. You may elect to receive shareholder reports and other communications from the Fund electronically by emailing us at MonachilFunds@umb.com.
You may elect to receive all future reports in paper free of charge. You can inform us that you wish to continue receiving paper copies of Fund shareholder reports by emailing us at Monachilfunds@umb.com.
The date of this Prospectus is May 1, 2023.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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FUND SUMMARY
This is only a summary and does not contain all of the information that investors should consider before investing in the Fund. Investors should review the more detailed information appearing elsewhere in this Prospectus and SAI, especially the information set forth under the heading “Principal Risk Factors.”
| The Fund and the Shares | Monachil Credit Income Fund (the “Fund”) is a closed-end management investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), and organized as a Delaware statutory trust on June 3, 2021. Monachil Capital Partners LP (the “Investment Manager”) serves as the investment adviser for the Fund. The Investment Manager provides day-to-day investment management services to the Fund. The Fund is non-diversified, which means that under the Investment Company Act, it is not limited in the percentage of its assets that it may invest in any single issuer of securities. | |
| The Fund has designated two separate classes of shares of beneficial interest (“Shares”) for the Fund: Class A Shares (“Class A Shares”) and Class I Shares (“Class I Shares”). This Prospectus relates to Class I Shares only. Each class of shares is subject to different fees and expenses. The Fund may offer additional classes of Shares in the future The Fund has received an exemptive order from the SEC with respect to the Fund’s multi-class structure. Only Class I Shares are currently being offered. | ||
| Simultaneous with the Fund beginning to accept offers to purchase Shares (“Commencement of Operations”) on December 5, 2022, Wolf River INV LLC (the “Predecessor Fund”), reorganized with the Fund by transferring all its portfolio securities to the Fund in exchange for Shares of the Fund which were then distributed to the Predecessor Fund’s investors in liquidation of the Predecessor Fund which was subsequently dissolved. The Predecessor Fund’s investment objective, strategies and investment policies, guidelines and restrictions were, in all material respects, equivalent to those of the Fund, although it did not have to comply with investment restrictions that have been adopted in order to comply with the Investment Company Act or the requirements of Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). The Fund and the Predecessor Fund share the same investment adviser and portfolio managers. | ||
| The Fund expects but is not guaranteed to satisfy the diversification requirements necessary to qualify as a regulated investment company (a “RIC”) under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), which generally requires that, at the end of each quarter: (1) at least 50% of the Fund’s total assets are invested in (i) cash and cash items (including receivables), Federal Government securities and securities of other regulated investment companies; and (ii) securities of separate issuers, each of which amounts to no more than 5% of the Fund’s total assets (and no more than 10% of the issuer’s outstanding voting shares), and (2) no more than 25% of the Fund’s total assets are invested in (i) securities (other than Federal Government securities or the securities of other regulated investment companies) of any one issuer; (ii) the securities (other than the securities of other regulated investment companies) of two or more issuers which the taxpayer controls and which are engaged in the same or similar trades or businesses; or (iii) the securities of one or more qualified publicly traded partnerships. The Investment Manager has contractually agreed under the terms of an expense limitation and reimbursement agreement to waive fees that it would otherwise be entitled to have been paid, and/or to assume payment of any taxes that would be owed by the Fund if it is unable to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code up to a maximum of $1 million in a tax year for Fund’s first two tax years or periods, subject to extensions for future tax years. |
6
| Principal Investment Objectives and Strategies | The Fund’s primary investment objective is to provide investors with current income and attractive risk-adjusted returns with low correlation to the equity and fixed income markets. Risk-adjusted returns are generally understood to frame investments in the context of the level of risk that is associated with a particular investment. The Fund seeks to achieve low correlation to public equity and fixed income markets by investing, under normal market conditions, a majority of its assets in instruments that are not included in major fixed income indexes including high yield and investment grade indexes. These investments may include, but are not limited to, consumer whole loans, non-mortgage securitizations such as those backed by corporate and sovereign loans, consumer credit, project finance, lease/trade receivables, equipment retail installment contracts or leased equipment and individualized lending agreements, and instruments that either due to size or liquidity are not included in the more liquid index products. There can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. | |
| The Fund intends to generate returns by investing across an array of credit and asset-backed sectors. The Fund will invest, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its Managed Assets in “credit and credit-related investments.” “Managed Assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including any assets attributable to money borrowed for investment purposes) minus the sum of the Fund’s accrued liabilities (other than money borrowed for investment purposes). The Fund defines “credit and credit-related investments” as debt securities, such as bonds and loans, and fixed income investments. The Fund’s “credit and credit-related investments” will typically consist of secured and unsecured consumer loans, direct loans to middle market companies, syndicated loans, asset-based loans and leases, infrastructure loans and contracted assets (where an infrastructure firm enters into long-term contracts to pre-sell all or a portion of its output at a pre-agreed price), or other types of loans, which loans may include secured and unsecured notes, senior loans, second lien loans or other types of subordinated loans, or mezzanine loans, any of which may be “covenant-lite” (i.e., loans containing fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower than certain other types of loans), corporate debt, structured products, such as collateralized debt obligations and collateralized loan obligations, backed by such assets, including debt tranches of collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”) and loan accumulation facilities (loans secured or otherwise collateralized by other loans), asset-backed securities, including subordinated or residual trances of such asset-backed securities, marketplace lending instruments, royalties (payments made by a licensee to a licensor to earn the right to continue using or exploiting a certain property) and convertible securities. The Fund concentrates its investments (invests more than 25% of its total assets) in securities related to consumer finance industries, including consumer loans and securitizations backed by consumer loans. The Fund may make direct investments in individual loans or in pools of loans and in whole loans as well as in loan participations or assignments. The Fund may invest in pools of performing and non-performing loans as well as credit facilities backed by such assets. Non-performing loans are in default, however, the Fund generally invests in small balance non-performing loans (as opposed to larger corporate non-performing loans) where the creditor is expected to see some collection activity on a more periodic basis. The assets may include loans and securities. The loans the Fund may invest in may vary in maturity and/or duration without limit. The Fund may hold these assets directly or in wholly owned subsidiaries of the Fund (“SPVs”). Subject to limits imposed by the Investment Company Act, the Fund may also invest in shares of other pooled investment vehicles, including business development companies (“BDCs”), registered investment companies and Private Investment Funds. The Fund will consider the investments of such pooled investment vehicles when determining its compliance with its 80% policy. The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its assets in preferred stock. The Fund will limit its total investments in Private Investment Funds that are excepted from the definition of “investment company” under the Investment Company Act by Section 3(c)(1) or Section 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act to no more than 15% of the Fund’s total assets. |
7
| The Fund may originate loans to middle market companies and other entities, which may be in the form of whole loans, secured and unsecured notes, senior and second lien loans, mezzanine loans or similar investments. While the Fund may not make loans except as permitted by the Investment Company Act or that would violate its concentration policy, it does not otherwise impose any limits on its loan origination activities. The Fund has not imposed specific limitations on the portion of its assets that may be invested in any of the categories outlined. The loans the Fund originates may vary in maturity and/or duration without limit. As part of the Fund’s underwriting process for any originated loans, the Investment Manager utilizes a proprietary multi-factor analysis of the appropriateness of each loan for the Fund that includes consideration of collateral quality, credit support, structure, market conditions, geographic concentration and interest rate and pre-payment risk, among other factors, before an investment is approved. The Fund does not currently intend to service the loans it originates. | ||
| The Fund may seek to provide exposure to certain securities that are not freely tradable in the U.S., such as Regulation S securities, as well as certain other securities that can only be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person or where it may be advantageous for the security or asset to be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person (“other restricted non-U.S. securities”) by investing in such securities through one or more wholly-owned subsidiaries (each a “Subsidiary” and, collectively, the “Subsidiaries”). As the date of this prospectus, the Fund’s Subsidiaries are Wolf River Cayman Ltd. and Taffy III Ltd., each of which is a company organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands. |
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| The Subsidiaries are advised by the Investment Manager. The Subsidiaries has the same investment objective as the Fund. The Subsidiaries may also hold cash and invest in other instruments, including fixed-income investments, that are not Regulation S securities or other restricted non-U.S. securities, either as investments or to serve as margin or collateral for a Subsidiary’s other investments. The Investment Manager, as investment adviser to the Subsidiaries, will comply with Section 15 of the 1940 Act with respect to advisory contract approval. The Fund and the Subsidiaries each complies with Section 8 and 18 of the Investment Company Act regarding investment policies and capital structure on an aggregate basis. In addition, the Subsidiaries comply with the provisions of Section 17 of the Investment Company Act relating to affiliated transactions and custody of portfolio investments. The Fund’s custodian also serves as the custodian to the Subsidiaries. | ||
| Except as otherwise indicated, the Fund may change its investment objective and any of its investment policies, restrictions, strategies, and techniques without Shareholder approval. The investment objective of the Fund is not fundamental and may be changed by the Board of Trustees of the Fund (the “Board”) without the approval of the Fund’s Shareholders. | ||
| The Investment Manager | As Investment Manager, Monachil Capital Partners, LLC, provides day-to-day investment management services to the Fund. Its principal place of business is located at 1 Sound Shore Drive, Suite 303, Greenwich, CT 06830. The Investment Manager is registered as an investment adviser with the SEC under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the “Advisers Act”). As of March 31, 2023, approximately $60,251,000 of assets were under the management (includes discretionary and non-discretionary accounts) of the Investment Manager and its affiliates. | |
| The Administrator | The Fund has retained UMB Fund Services, Inc. (the “Administrator”) to provide it with certain administrative services, including performing all actions related to the issuance and repurchase of Shares of the Fund. The Fund compensates the Administrator for these services and reimburses the Administrator for certain of its out-of-pocket expenses. See “Fees and Expenses” below. | |
| Fees and Expenses | The Fund bears its own operating expenses. A more detailed discussion of the Fund’s expenses can be found under “FUND EXPENSES.” | |
| Investment Management Fee. The Fund pays the Investment Manager a fee (the “Investment Management Fee”) that consists of two components: (i) an advisory fee, and (ii) an income-based incentive fee. The Investment Management Fee will be paid out of the Fund’s assets. | ||
| The advisory fee is paid at the annual rate of 1.25%, accrued daily and payable monthly in arrears, based upon the Fund’s average daily Managed Assets during such period. |
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| The incentive fee is calculated and payable quarterly in arrears based upon “pre-incentive fee net investment income” attributable to the Fund’s shares for the immediately preceding fiscal quarter. The incentive fee component is subject to a hurdle rate, expressed as a rate of return based on the Fund’s average daily net asset value (calculated in accordance with GAAP) equal to 1.50% per quarter (or an annualized hurdle rate of 6.00%), subject to a “catch-up” feature. | ||
| For this purpose, “pre-incentive fee net investment income” means interest income, dividend income and any other income accrued during the fiscal quarter, minus the Fund’s operating expenses for the quarter, not including the distribution and/or shareholder servicing fees (if any) applicable to each class, litigation or any extraordinary expenses accrued during the fiscal quarter. For such purposes, the Fund’s operating expenses will include the Management Fee and expenses reimbursed to the Investment Manager under the expense limitation agreement, but will exclude the Incentive Fee. The Incentive Fee may be calculated based on an amount greater than the amount of net investment income actually received by the Fund as pre-incentive net investment income excludes any distribution and/or shareholder servicing fees applicable to each class. | ||
| The “catch-up” provision is intended to provide the Investment Manager with an incentive fee of 15% the Fund’s pre-incentive fee net investment income when the pre-incentive fee net investment income exceeds 1.765% of the Fund’s average daily net asset value (calculated in accordance with GAAP) in any fiscal quarter. | ||
| Administration Fee. The Fund pays the Administrator a fee calculated by reference to the Fund’s assets, subject to a monthly minimum (the “Administration Fees”). Administration Fees are paid to the Administrator out of the assets of the Fund. The Fund also reimburses the Administrator for certain out-of-pocket expenses and pays the Administrator a separate fee for transfer agency services. See “ADMINISTRATION.” | ||
| Expense Limitation Agreement. The Investment Manager has entered into an expense limitation and reimbursement agreement (the “Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement”) with the Fund, whereby the Investment Manager has agreed to waive fees that it would otherwise have been paid, and/or to assume expenses of the Fund (a “Waiver”), if required to ensure the Total Annual Expenses (excluding the Investment Management Fee, taxes, borrowing and other investment-related costs and fees paid to unaffiliated third parties including interest payments on borrowed funds, loan origination fees, loan servicing fees, loan collection and administration fees and expenses, interest and commitment fees, distribution or servicing fees, brokerage and distribution costs and expenses, acquired fund fees and expenses (as determined in accordance with SEC Form N-2), expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization, and extraordinary or non-routine expenses, such as litigation expenses) do not exceed 0.50% of the average daily net assets of Class I Shares. (the “Expense Limit”).Additionally, under the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement, the Investment Manager has agreed to waive fees that it would otherwise have been paid, and/or to assume payment of any taxes that would be owed by the Fund if it fails to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code (“RIC Non-Qualification Taxes) up to a maximum of $1 million in a tax year for Fund’s first two tax years or periods, subject to extensions for future tax years. |
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| For a period not to exceed three years from the date on which a Waiver is made, the Investment Manager may recoup amounts waived or assumed, provided it is able to effect such recoupment and remain in compliance with the expense limit in effect at the time of waiver or the expense limit in effect at the time of recoupment, whichever is lower. A Waiver for RIC Non-Qualification Taxes is not subject to recoupment. The Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement has an initial two-year term, which ends on April 30, 2025. After its initial two year term, the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement is subject to renewal annually for one-year terms thereafter. The Investment Manager may not terminate the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement during the initial term without the approval of the Fund’s Board. See “FUND EXPENSES.” | ||
| The Offering | The minimum initial investment in the Fund by any investor in Class I Shares is $1,000,000. The Fund, in its sole discretion, may accept investments below this minimum. There is no subsequent minimum amount for Class I Shares. | |
| The Shares will be offered on a continuous basis. Shares will generally be offered for purchase on any day the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) is open for business (each, a “Business Day”), except that Shares may be offered more or less frequently as determined by the Board in its sole discretion. Once a prospective investor’s purchase order is received, a confirmation is sent to the investor. Potential investors should send subscription funds by wire transfer pursuant to instructions provided to them by the Fund. Subscriptions are generally subject to the receipt of cleared funds on or prior to the acceptance date set by the Fund and notified to prospective investors. | ||
| A prospective investor must submit a completed investor application on or prior to the acceptance date set by the Fund. The Fund reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to reject any purchase order for Shares, in whole or in part, when in the judgment of management, such rejection is in the best interests of the Fund. The Fund also reserves the right to suspend or terminate offerings of Shares at any time at the Board’s discretion. | ||
| Distribution Policy | The Fund plans to make monthly distributions of substantially all of its net investment income. Distributions cannot be assured, and the amount of each distribution is likely to vary. Distributions will be paid at least annually in amounts representing substantially all of the net investment income not previously distributed in a monthly distribution and net capital gains, if any, earned each year. | |
| Each Shareholder whose Shares are registered in its own name will automatically be a participant under the Fund’s dividend reinvestment program (the “DRIP”) and have all income dividends and/or capital gains distributions automatically reinvested in Shares priced at the then-current net asset value (“NAV”) unless such Shareholder, at any time, specifically elects to receive income dividends and/or capital gains distributions in cash by giving written notice to the Plan Agent or by contacting their broker or dealer, who will inform the Fund. A request must be received by the Fund at least ten days prior to the payment date of the distribution to be effective for that dividend or capital gain distribution. An election to receive cash may be revoked or reinstated at the option of the shareholder. Automatically reinvested dividends and distributions are taxed in the same manner as cash dividends and distributions. See “TAXES.” A Shareholder receiving Shares under the DRIP instead of cash distributions may still owe taxes and, because Fund Shares are generally illiquid, may need other sources of funds to pay any taxes due. Inquiries concerning income dividends and/or capital gains distributions as well as the DRIP should be directed to the Fund’s Administrator, UMB Fund Services, Inc. at (855) 552-5520 or 235 West Galena Street, Milwaukee, WI 53212. |
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| Repurchase Offers | The Fund has adopted a fundamental policy to provide a limited degree of liquidity to Shareholders by conducting repurchase offers quarterly at per-class NAV, of not less than 5% of the Fund’s outstanding Shares on the repurchase request deadline. In each repurchase offer, the Fund may offer to repurchase Shares at their NAV as determined as of the date chosen by the Board (the “Repurchase Pricing Date”). Each repurchase offer will be for no less than 5% of the Fund’s Shares outstanding, but if the amount of Shares tendered for repurchase exceeds the amount the Fund intended to repurchase, the Fund will generally repurchase less than the full number of Shares tendered. In such event, Shareholders will have their Shares repurchased on a pro rata basis, and tendering Shareholders will not have all of their tendered Shares repurchased by the Fund. Shareholders tendering Shares for repurchase will be asked to give written notice of their intent to do so by the date specified in the notice describing the terms of the applicable repurchase offer . See “QUARTERLY REPURCHASE OFFERS.” | |
| Risk Factors | The Fund is subject to substantial risks — including market risks. The Fund will be subject to the risks associated with the investment strategies employed by the Investment Manager, which may include credit risk, prepayment risk, valuation risk, and interest rate risk. While the Investment Manager will attempt to moderate risk, there can be no assurance that the Fund’s investment activities will be successful or that investors will not suffer losses. There may also be certain conflicts of interest relevant to the management of the Fund, arising out of, among other things, activities of the Investment Manager and its affiliates and employees with respect to the management of accounts for other clients as well as the fact that its fees are tied to the performance of the Fund’s portfolio, as valued pursuant to the Fund’s valuation procedures. Prospective investors should review carefully the “PRINCIPAL RISK FACTORS” section of this Prospectus. An investment in the Fund should only be made by investors who understand the risks involved and who are able to withstand the loss of the entire amount invested. | |
| The Fund should be considered a speculative investment, and you should invest in the Fund only if you can sustain a complete loss of your investment. Past results of the Investment Manager and its principals, and any prior results achieved by the Fund, are not indicative of future results. See “PRINCIPAL RISK FACTORS.” | ||
| Summary of Taxation | The Fund has elected to be treated as a regulated investment company (a “RIC”) for federal income tax purposes. As a RIC, the Fund will generally not be subject to federal corporate income tax, provided that when it is a RIC, it distributes out all of its income and gains each year. If the Fund is unable to qualify for treatment as a RIC, the Fund would be subject to U.S. federal income tax on all of its net taxable income at regular corporate rates. The Fund would not be able to deduct distributions to shareholders, nor would they be required to be made. Distributions would generally be taxable to non-corporate shareholders as ordinary dividend income eligible for the reduced rates of U.S. federal income tax to the extent of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits. Subject to certain limitations under the Code, corporate U.S. Shareholders would be eligible for the dividends received deduction. Distributions in excess of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits would be treated first as a return of capital to the extent of the shareholder’s tax basis, and any remaining distributions would be treated as a capital gain. If the Fund were to fail to meet the RIC requirements in its first taxable year or, with respect to later years, for more than two consecutive years, and then to seek to requalify as a RIC, the Fund would be required to recognize gain to the extent of any unrealized appreciation in its assets unless the Fund made a special election to pay corporate-level tax on any such unrealized appreciation recognized during the succeeding ten year period. The Investment Manager has contractually agreed under the terms of an expense limitation and reimbursement agreement to waive fees that it would otherwise be entitled to have been paid, and/or to assume payment of any taxes that would be owed by the Fund if it fails to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code up to a maximum of $1 million in a tax year for Fund’s first two tax years or periods, subject to extension for future tax years. The Predecessor Fund operated without regard to the requirements applicable to RICs. See “TAXES.” |
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FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe the aggregate fees and expenses that the Fund expects to incur and that the Shareholders can expect to bear, either directly or indirectly, through the Fund’s investments. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial professional and in the section titled “Purchasing Shares” beginning on page 76 of this Prospectus.
| Class I Shares | ||||||||
| TRANSACTION EXPENSES: | ||||||||
| Maximum Sales Charge (Load) (as a percentage of subscription amount) |
| None |
| |||||
| ANNUAL EXPENSES (AS A PERCENTAGE OF NET ASSETS ATTRIBUTABLE TO SHARES)(1]) | ||||||||
| Management Fees(2) | 1.25 | % | ||||||
| Incentive Fees (15% of pre-incentive fee net investment income subject to hurdle rates)(3) | 1.24 | % | ||||||
| Distribution and/or Service Fee | None | |||||||
| Fees and Interest Payments on Borrowed Funds(4) | 0.00 | % | ||||||
| Other Expenses(4) | 3.30 | % | ||||||
| Expenses of the Subsidiaries | 0.00 | % | ||||||
| Remaining Other Expenses | 3.30 | % | ||||||
| Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses(4), (5) | 0.01 | % | ||||||
| Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses | 5.80 | % | ||||||
| Less: Fee Waiver/Expense Reimbursement(6) | (2.80 | )% | ||||||
| Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver/Expense Reimbursement(6) | 3.00 | % |
| (1) | This table summarizes the expenses of the Fund and is designed to help investors understand the costs and expenses they will bear, directly or indirectly, by investing in the Fund. For purposes of determining net assets in fee table calculations, derivatives are valued at market value. |
| (2) | Management Fees reflects the advisory fee paid to the Investment Manager at an annual rate of 1.25% accrued daily based upon the Fund’s average daily Managed Assets and payable monthly in arrears. “Managed Assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including any assets attributable to money borrowed for investment purposes) minus the sum of the Fund’s accrued liabilities (other than money borrowed for investment purposes). Additionally, in calculating Managed Assets, (i) any derivatives in which the Fund invests will be valued at market value and (ii) any leverage utilized by the Fund will result in an increase in such fee (as a percentage of net assets attributable to Shares). The Management Fee is paid to the Investment Manager before giving effect to any repurchase of Shares in the Fund effective as of that date and will decrease the net profits or increase the net losses of the Fund that are credited to its Shareholders. The Management Fee and Incentive Fee, if any, paid to the Investment Manager will be paid out of the Fund’s assets. The Management Fee and Incentive Fee are, collectively, the “Investment Management Fee.” |
| In light of current and estimated market conditions for the upcoming year, the table above assumes that the Fund borrows money for investment purposes at an average amount of 0% of its net assets. If the Fund borrows money in excess of the estimated 0% debt-to-NAV ratio, then the Management Fee in relation to its net assets would be higher than the estimate presented in the table The Management Fee estimate in the table would be greater than 1.25% in this case since it is computed as a percentage of the Fund’s net assets for presentation therein.. The Investment Manager does not receive separate compensation from the Subsidiaries for providing them with investment management or administrative services. |
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| (3) | The Incentive Fee is based on the Fund’s performance and will not be paid unless the Fund achieves certain performance targets. The Fund expects the Incentive Fee the Fund pays to increase to the extent the Fund earns greater interest income through its investments. The Incentive Fee is calculated and payable quarterly in arrears based upon the Fund’s “pre-incentive fee net investment income” attributable to the Fund’s Shares for the immediately preceding fiscal quarter, and is subject to a hurdle rate, expressed as a rate of return on the Fund’s average daily net asset value (calculated in accordance with GAAP) equal to 1.50% per quarter, or an annualized hurdle rate of 6.00%, subject to a “catch-up” feature. For this purpose, “pre-incentive fee net investment income” means interest income, dividend income and any other income accrued during the fiscal quarter, minus the Fund’s operating expenses for the quarter, not including distribution and/or shareholder servicing fees (if any) applicable to each class, litigation or any extraordinary expenses accrued during the fiscal quarter. For such purposes, the Fund’s operating expenses will include the Management Fee and expenses reimbursed to the Investment Manager under expense limitation agreement, but will exclude the Incentive Fee. The Incentive Fee may be calculated based on an amount greater than the amount of net investment income actually received by the Fund as pre-incentive net investment income excludes any distribution and/or shareholder servicing fees applicable to each class. As we cannot predict whether the necessary performance targets will be met, we have assumed no incentive fee for this chart. If the Fund achieved an annualized total return of 10% for each quarter made up entirely of net investment income, no incentive fees would be payable to the Investment Manager because the hurdle rate was not exceeded. See “INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT FEE” for a full explanation of how the Incentive Fee is calculated. |
| (4) | Fees and Interest Payments on Borrowed Funds, “Other Expenses” (as defined below), and Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses represent estimated amounts for the current fiscal year. Other expenses include accounting, legal and auditing fees of the Fund, organizational and offering costs, as well as fees paid to the Administrator, the transfer agent, the custodian and the Independent Trustees. |
| (5) | Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses shown in this table may differ from the ratio of gross expenses included in the financial highlights of the shareholder reports, because the amounts presented in this table estimate the amounts the Fund expects to pay during the upcoming fiscal year, and shareholder reports include only direct expenses and do not include indirect expenses such as Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses. |
| (6) | The Investment Manager has entered into an expense limitation and reimbursement agreement (the “Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement”) with the Fund, whereby the Investment Manager has agreed to waive fees that it would otherwise have been paid, and/or to assume expenses of the Fund (a “Waiver”), if required to ensure the Total Annual Expenses (excluding the Investment Management Fee, taxes, borrowing and other investment-related costs and fees paid to unaffiliated third parties including interest payments on borrowed funds, loan origination fees, loan servicing fees, loan collection and administration fees and expenses, interest and commitment fees, distribution or servicing fees, brokerage and distribution costs and expenses, acquired fund fees and expenses (as determined in accordance with SEC Form N-2), expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization, and extraordinary or non-routine expenses, such as litigation expenses) do not exceed 0.50% of the average daily net assets of Class I Shares. (the “Expense Limit”). Additionally, under the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement, the Investment Manager has agreed to waive fees that it would otherwise have been paid, and/or to assume payment of any taxes that would be owed by the Fund if it fails to qualify as a “regulated investment company” under Subchapter M of the Code (“RIC Non-Qualification Taxes”) up to a maximum of $1 million in a tax year for Fund’s first two tax years or periods, subject to extensions for future tax years. For a period not to exceed three years from the date on which a waiver is made, the Investment Manager may recoup amounts waived or assumed, provided it is able to effect such recoupment and remain in compliance with the expense limit in effect at the time of waiver or the expense limit in effect at the time of recoupment, whichever is lower. A waiver for RIC Non-Qualification Taxes is not subject to recoupment. The Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement has an initial two-year term, which ends on April 30, 2025. After its initial two year term, the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement is subject to renewal annually for one-year terms thereafter. The Investment Manager may not terminate the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement during the initial term without the approval of the Fund’s Board. |
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The purpose of the table above is to assist prospective investors in understanding the various fees and expenses Shareholders will bear directly or indirectly. “Other Expenses,” as shown above, is an estimate based on anticipated investments in the Fund and anticipated expenses for the current fiscal year of the Fund’s operations, and includes, among other things, professional fees and other expenses that the Fund will bear, including initial and ongoing offering costs and fees and expenses of the Administrator and custodian.
For a more complete description of the various fees and expenses of the Fund, see “INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT FEE,” “ADMINISTRATION,” “FUND EXPENSES,” and “PURCHASING SHARES.”
The following example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The example assumes that all distributions are reinvested at NAV and that the percentage amounts listed under annual expenses remain the same in the years shown (except that the example reflects the expense limitation for the 1 Year period and the first two years of the 3 Years, 5 Years and 10 Years periods in the example). The assumption in the hypothetical example of a 5% annual return is the same as that required by regulation of SEC applicable to all registered investment companies. The assumed 5% annual return is not a prediction of, and does not represent, the projected or actual performance of the Shares.
EXAMPLE
Class I Shares
| You Would Pay the Following Expenses Based on a $1,000 Investment in the Fund, Assuming a 5% Annual Return: | 1 Year | 3 Years | 5 Years | 10 Years | ||||||||||||
| $ | 30 | $ | 121 | $ | 240 | $ | 529 | |||||||||
The example is based on the annual fees and expenses of Class I Shares set out in the table above and should not be considered a representation of future expenses. Actual expenses may be greater or less than those shown. Moreover, the rate of return of the Fund may be greater or less than the hypothetical 5% return used in the example. A greater rate of return than that used in the example would increase the dollar amount of the asset-based fees paid by the Fund.
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FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
The information contained in the table below for the period from the commencement of operations on December 5, 2022 through December 31, 2022 sets forth selected information derived from the Fund’s financial statements. Financial statements for the period from the commencement of operations on December 5, 2022 through December 31, 2022 have been audited by Tait, Weller & Baker, LLP, the Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm. Tait, Weller & Baker, LLP’s report, along with the Fund’s financial statements and notes thereto, are included in the Fund’s annual report for the period from the commencement of operations on December 5, 2022 through December 31, 2022, which is incorporated by reference into this Prospectus. The Fund’s annual report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 is available upon request and without charge from the Fund. The information in the table below should be read in conjunction with each of those financial statements and the notes thereto.
Monachil Credit Income Fund
CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
Per share operating performance.
For a capital share outstanding throughout each period.
| For the Period December 5, 2022* through December 31, 2022 | ||||
| Net asset value, beginning of period | $ | 10.00 | ||
| Income from Investment Operations: | ||||
| Net investment gain | 0.07 | |||
| Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments | 0.02 | |||
| Total from investment operations | 0.09 | |||
| Less Distributions: | ||||
| From return of capital | (0.07 | ) | ||
| From net realized gains | — | |||
| Total distributions | (0.07 | ) | ||
| Net asset value, end of period | $ | 10.02 | ||
| Total return | 0.91 | %1 | ||
| Ratios and Supplemental Data: | ||||
| Net Assets, end of period (in thousands) | $ | 14,436 | ||
| Gross investment income (loss) to average net assets | (7.73 | )%2 | ||
| Net investment income (loss) to average net assets | 9.41 | %2 | ||
| Ratio of gross expenses to average net assets | 21.06 | %2 | ||
| Ratio of net expenses to average net assets | 3.93 | %2 | ||
| Portfolio turnover rate | 0 | %1 | ||
| * | Commencement of operations. |
| 1 | Not annualized. |
| 2 | Annualized. |
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USE OF PROCEEDS
The proceeds from the sale of Shares, not including the Fund’s fees and expenses, will be invested by the Fund in accordance with the Fund’s investment objectives and strategies as soon as practicable, consistent with market conditions and the availability of suitable investments. It is currently anticipated that the Fund will be able to invest all or substantially all of the net proceeds from the sale of Shares according to its investment objective and strategies within approximately three months after receipt of the proceeds, depending on the amount and timing of proceeds available to the Fund as well as the availability of investments consistent with the Fund’s investment objectives and strategies, and except to the extent proceeds are held in cash to pay dividends or expenses, satisfy repurchase offers or for temporary defensive purposes. Pending the investment of available funds pursuant to the Fund’s investment objectives and strategies, such amounts may be invested in short-term debt securities or money market funds. Furthermore, subject to applicable law, the Fund may maintain a portion of its assets in cash or such short-term securities or money market funds to meet operational needs, for temporary defensive purposes, or to maintain liquid assets.
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
The Fund’s investment objective is to provide investors with current income and attractive risk adjusted returns with low correlation to the equity and credit markets.
The investment objective of the Fund is not a fundamental policy and may be changed by the Board of Trustees of the Fund (the “Board”) without the approval of the Fund’s Shareholders. There can be no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND INVESTMENT PROCESS
The Fund intends to generate returns by investing across an array of credit and asset-backed sectors. The Fund will invest, under normal market conditions, at least 80% of its Managed Assets in “credit and credit-related investments.” The Fund defines “credit and credit-related investments” as debt securities, such as bonds and loans, and securities that have fixed income investments. The Fund’s “credit and credit- related investments” will typically consist of secured and unsecured consumer loans, direct loans to middle market companies, syndicated loans, asset-based loans and leases, infrastructure loans and contracted assets, or other types of loans, which loans may include secured and unsecured notes, senior loans, second lien loans or other types of subordinated loans, or mezzanine loans, any of which may be “covenant-lite” (i.e., loans containing fewer or less restrictive constraints on the borrower than certain other types of loans), corporate debt, structured products, such as collateralized debt obligations and collateralized loan obligations, backed by such assets, including debt tranches of CLOs and loan accumulation facilities (loans secured or otherwise collateralized by other loans), asset-backed securities, including subordinated or residual tranches of such asset-backed securities, marketplace lending instruments, royalties (payments made by a licensee to a licensor to earn the right to continue using or exploiting a certain property) and convertible securities. The Fund may make direct investments in individual loans or in pools of loans and in whole loans as well as in loan participations or assignments. The Fund may invest in pools of performing and non-performing loans as well as credit facilities backed by such assets. Non-performing loans are in default, however, the Fund generally invests in small balance non-performing loans (as opposed to larger corporate non-performing loans) where the creditor is expected to see some collection activity on a more periodic basis. The Fund concentrates its investments (invests more than 25% of its total assets) in securities related to consumer finance industries, including consumer loans and securitizations backed by consumer loans.
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The Fund may invest in obligations of US and foreign issuers, including emerging market borrowers, without limitation. In addition, the Fund may itself or in conjunction with others originate any of the foregoing types of loans. The Fund may also be involved in, or finance, the origination of loans to corporations or other legal entities, including foreign entities. Such activity may result in additional costs to the Fund to the extent costs such as loan origination or servicing fees are paid to unaffiliated third parties. In certain instances, the Investment Manager may act as an originator of loans and other credit assets, in which case the Investment Manager will not charge the Fund any additional fees for such services. The Fund does not primarily control any entity which engages in investment activities in securities or other assets other than entities wholly owned by the Fund.
The Fund may invest in credit instruments of any credit quality and may invest without limit in debt securities that are at the time of investment rated below investment grade, including high-yield bonds (commonly referred to as “junk” bonds) or unrated securities judged by Investment Manager to be of comparable quality.
The Fund may invest in preferred stocks common stocks and other equity securities from time to time, including, among others, those it has received through the conversion of a convertible security held by the Fund or in connection with the restructuring of a debt security. The Fund may invest in securities that have not been registered for public sale, including securities eligible for purchase and sale pursuant to Rule 144A or Regulation S under the Securities Act, and other securities issued in private placements.
The Fund may hold these assets directly or through wholly-owned special purpose vehicles, partnerships and other structures. The Fund may also seek to provide exposure to certain securities that are not freely tradable in the U.S., such as Regulation S securities, as well as certain other securities that can only be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person or where it may be more advantageous for the security or asset to be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person (“other restricted non-U.S. securities”) by investing in such securities through one or more wholly-owned subsidiaries (each a “Subsidiary” and, collectively, the “Subsidiaries”). As the date of this prospectus, the Fund’s Subsidiaries are Wolf River Cayman Ltd. and Taffy III Ltd., each of which is a company organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands,. Subject to limits imposed by the Investment Company Act, the Fund may also invest in shares of other pooled investment vehicles, including business development companies (“BDCs”), registered investment companies and Private Investment Funds. Private Investment Funds in which the Fund may invest are those that principally invest in credit and credit-related investments as defined in this prospectus. The Fund will consider the investments of such pooled investment vehicles when determining its compliance with its 80% policy. The Fund will limit its total investments in Private Investment Funds that are excepted from the definition of “investment company” under the Investment Company Act by Section 3(c)(1) or Section 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act to no more than 15% of the Fund’s total assets.
The Investment Manager may use a variety of hedging tools to hedge against certain portfolio risks, The Investment Manager may hedge portfolio risks such as credit risk and interest risk using credit default swaps and short positions on bonds. For investment in jurisdictions outside the United States, the Investment Manager may hedge certain risks associated with such investments, including currency risk and certain forms of sovereign risk, using a variety of hedging tools including currency forwards, non-deliverable forwards, currency options and currency swaps.
Collectively, the instruments discussed above are referred to herein as “Portfolio Investments.
Except as otherwise indicated, the Fund may change its investment policies, restrictions, strategies and techniques without Shareholder approval.
Types of Investments
It is expected that the majority of the Fund’s investments will consist of credit and credit-related instruments, including:
Structured Products. The Fund may invest in asset-backed opportunities across broad sectors such as consumer and commercial specialty finance and corporate credit. The Fund will target investment opportunities that are directly originated and privately negotiated that may include (i) financings secured by pools of consumer loans, commercial loans or real estate assets; (ii) the outright purchase of pools of consumer loans, commercial loans or real estate assets; and (iii) debt and equity investments in U.S.-dollar- denominated CLOs that are primarily backed by corporate leveraged loans or consumer loans issued to primarily U.S. CLOs, as well as Euro-denominated CLOs that are backed primarily by corporate leveraged loans or consumer loans issued to primarily European CLOs. The investments in the “equity” of structured credit products (including CLOs) refers to the Residual Tranche.
The CLO equity tranches (or other similar junior tranches) and privately issued asset-backed securities in which the Fund invests may be highly leveraged, which magnifies the Fund’s risk of loss on such investments.
18
Asset-Based Loans and Leases. The Investment Manager intends to originate and purchase asset based loans and leases that are secured by collateral consisting of inventory, accounts receivable, machinery/ equipment, real estate, intellectual property/brands and/or other assets owned by the borrower(s) where by the underlying loan will be underwritten by the value of the collateral rather than cash flow. These loans are highly structured and typically include frequent monitoring including but not limited to financial and collateral reporting. The term loans are provided to both private and public borrowers with varying ownership structures.
Asset-Backed Securities. Asset-backed securities are securities backed by a pool of some underlying asset, including but not limited to home equity loans, installment sale contracts, credit card receivables; leases of various types of real, personal and other property (including those relating to aircrafts, telecommunication, energy, and/or other infrastructure assets and infrastructure-related assets); student loans; consumer loans; mobile home loans; boat loans; business and small business loans; project finance loans; airplane leases; other equipment retail installment contracts or leased equipment, other non-mortgage- related income streams, such as income from renewable energy projects and franchise rights; or other assets. Asset-backed securities also include trust certificates representing undivided fractional interests in a trust whose assets consist of one of or a pool of the foregoing assets. Asset-backed securities are “pass-through” securities, meaning that principal and interest payments — net of expenses — made by the borrower on the underlying assets (such as credit card receivables) are passed through to the Fund. The value of asset-backed securities, like that of traditional fixed income securities, typically increases when interest rates fall and decreases when interest rates rise. However, asset-backed securities differ from traditional fixed income securities because of their potential for prepayment. The price paid by the Fund for its asset-backed securities, the yield the Fund expects to receive from such securities and the average life of the securities are based on a number of factors, including the anticipated rate of prepayment of the underlying assets. In a period of declining interest rates, borrowers may prepay the underlying assets more quickly than anticipated, thereby reducing the yield to maturity and the average life of the asset-backed securities. Moreover, when the Fund reinvests the proceeds of a prepayment in these circumstances, it will likely receive a rate of interest that is lower than the rate on the security that was prepaid.
Infrastructure Loans and Contracted Assets. The Fund may invest in securities and other obligations of U.S. and non-U.S. issuers providing exposure to infrastructure investments. Infrastructure investments include, without limitation, fixed or floating-rate debt instruments or loans issued to finance (or re-finance) the ownership, development, construction, maintenance, renovation, enhancement, or operation of infrastructure assets. Infrastructure investments also include investments in the debt securities of or loans made to issuers of various types including issuers that invest in, own or hold infrastructure assets; or issuers that operate infrastructure assets or provide services, products or raw materials related to the development, construction, maintenance, renovation, enhancement or operation of infrastructure assets. Issuers in which the Fund may invest may include, among others, operating companies, special purpose vehicles, including vehicles created to hold or finance infrastructure assets, municipal issuers, and government-related issuers.
Infrastructure investments include assets or projects that support the operation, function, growth or development of a community or economy. The infrastructure assets to which the Fund may have exposure, directly or indirectly, include, without limitation, those related to transportation (e.g., airports, metro systems, subways, railroads, ports, toll roads, airplanes); electric utilities and power (e.g., power generation, transmission and distribution); energy (e.g., exploration & production, pipeline, storage, refining and distribution of energy); renewable energies (e.g., wind, solar, hydro, geothermal); communication networks and equipment; water and sewage treatment; social infrastructure (e.g., health care facilities, government accommodations, and other public service facilities); metals and mining; and shipping, cement, steel, and other resources and services related to infrastructure assets (e.g., chemical companies). Contracted assets are where an infrastructure firm enters into long-term contracts to pre-sell all or a portion of its output at a pre- agreed price. Examples include toll roads, power plants with off take and/or supply agreements and assets that are subject to lease or other revenue support schemes, such as regulated utilities.
Syndicated Loans. Syndicated loans are typically underwritten and syndicated by large commercial and investment banks. These loans may be recently originated by such banks pursuant to the originating bank’s, or lead arranger’s, underwriting standards applicable to corporate borrowers at the time of issuance. The Fund may purchase syndicated loans either in the primary market in connection with their syndication or in the secondary market. In most cases, syndicated loans will be secured by specific collateral of the issuer. In general, most of the syndicated loans purchased by the Fund will be current on principal and interest payments at the time of purchase. However, the Fund can purchase syndicated loans that are not current on principal and are likely to default. In addition, syndicated loans held by the Fund may at times cease being current on principal and interest payments.
Direct Loans. The Fund may invest in first lien senior secured loans (including “unitranche” loans, which are loans that combine both senior and mezzanine debt, generally in a first lien position), second lien senior secured loans and mezzanine debt, which in some cases includes an equity component, of U.S. and European middle-market companies, where the Investment Manager believes the supply of primary capital is limited and the investment opportunities are most attractive. Such loans are directly originated by non-bank entities and are typically underwritten on a cash flow or EBITDA basis usually made to companies with annual EBITDA between $10 million and $250 million. As used herein, EBITDA represents net income before net interest expense, income tax expense, depreciation and amortization.
Corporate Debt. The Fund may purchase debt securities of corporations and other businesses, including bonds, notes, debentures and commercial paper as well as bank loans to companies.
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Marketplace Lending Instruments. The Fund may invest in marketplace lending instruments. The Fund’s marketplace lending investments may be made through a combination of: (i) loans to consumers, small- and mid-sized companies (“SMEs”) and other borrowers, including borrowers of student loans, originated through online platforms (or an affiliate) that provide a marketplace for lending (“Marketplace Loans”) through purchases of whole loans (either individually or in aggregations); (ii) notes or other pass-through obligations issued by a marketplace lending platform (or an affiliate) representing the right to receive the principal and interest payments on a Marketplace Loan (or fractional portions thereof) originated through the platform (“Pass-Through Notes”); (iii) asset-backed securities representing ownership in a pool of Marketplace Loans; (iv) Private Investment Funds that purchase Marketplace Loans, (v) equity in a marketplace lending platform (or an affiliate); and (vi) providing loans, credit lines or other extensions of credit to a marketplace lending platform (or an affiliate) (the foregoing listed investments are collectively referred to herein as the “Marketplace Lending Instruments”). The Fund may invest in such Marketplace Lending Instruments without limitation, except that the Fund will limit its total investments in Private Investment Funds that are excepted from the definition of “investment company” under the Investment Company Act by Section 3(c)(1) or Section 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act to no more than 15% of the Fund’s total assets. The Fund currently anticipates that its Marketplace Loan investments will originate from lending platforms based both in and outside the United States.
The Fund may also invest in Marketplace Lending Instruments in the form of receivables or merchant cash advances that are originated from lending platforms (collectively, “Marketplace Receivables”). Under normal circumstances, the Fund expects to invest between 0% and 25% of its net assets in Marketplace Receivables. Technically, the purchase of Marketplace Receivables is not a loan; rather, it is a commercial agreement pursuant to which the Fund provides a cash advance to a merchant in exchange for the right to receive a portion of the merchant's future receivables, up to a stated amount. However, notwithstanding this distinction, the Fund's purchase of Marketplace Receivables will be similar in many ways to its purchase of Marketplace Loans and, accordingly, references herein to the Fund's investments in Marketplace Loans should be read to include Marketplace Receivables, unless the context requires otherwise.
The Fund accounts for whole Marketplace Loans at the individual loan level for valuation purposes, and whole loans are fair valued using inputs that take into account borrower-level data that is updated as often as the NAV is calculated to reflect new information regarding the borrower and loan. Such borrower-level data will include the borrower’s payment history, including the payment, principal and interest amounts of each loan and the current status of each loan, which will allow the Investment Manager to determine, among other things, the historical prepayment rate, charge-off rate, delinquency and performance with respect to such borrower/loan.
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The Fund, in accordance with the investment limitations approved by the Board, will limit its investments in Marketplace Loans to loans originated by platforms that will provide the Fund with a written commitment to deliver or cause to be delivered individual loan-level data on an ongoing basis throughout the life of each individual loan that is updated periodically as often as the NAV is calculated to reflect new information regarding the borrower or loan. The Fund will not invest through platforms where it cannot evaluate the completeness and accuracy of the individual loan data provided by the platforms relevant to the existence and valuation of the loans purchased and utilized in the accounting of the loans.
The Investment Manager will conduct initial due diligence and ongoing monitoring of the credit underwriting policies of the originating platforms, which look to a number of borrower-specific factors to determine a borrower’s ability to repay a particular Marketplace Loan, including income, assets, collateral and credit bureau data where available.
For whole Marketplace Loans purchased by the Fund (which would not include, for example, underlying loans in a securitized product held by the Fund), it is expected that the Fund’s qualified custodian will typically receive or be provided with access to an executed loan package. While the executed packages may differ for certain investments, it is typically comprised of evidence in the form of a promissory note or similar document, an executed copy of the underlying loan agreement or security instrument, and an executed copy of the loan assignment. Although the Fund’s custodian would have access to loan files, whether in electronic form or otherwise, it is expected that the enforcement of the loans will generally be handled by the loan servicer.
The non-bank platforms through which the Marketplace Loans in the Fund’s portfolio are originated have backup servicers in place to service Marketplace Loans in the event that a non-bank platform or third-party servicer ceases or fails to perform the servicing functions, which the Fund expects will mitigate some of the risks associated with a reliance on non-bank platforms or third-party servicers for servicing of the Marketplace Loans.
Royalties. The Fund may invest in intellectual property rights with credit-like cash flow characteristics or debt investments to companies collateralized by intellectual property rights
Other Instruments. The Fund may also acquire convertible and preferred securities, common stock, warrants, options, credit and other derivatives such as swaps, forward contracts, total return swaps and credit default swaps on single names and indices, and options on such instruments. The Fund may also enter into repurchase agreements and reverse repurchase agreements and other security lending and borrowing transactions, including litigation financing arrangements (either directly or through special purpose vehicles), including where the Fund provides immediate funds or credit facilities to cover litigation expenses in exchange for a portion of the award or settlement or for interest and principal payments.
Loan Origination. The Fund may originate loans, which may be in the form of whole loans, secured and unsecured notes, senior and second lien loans, mezzanine loans or similar investments. The Fund may originate loans to middle market companies and other entities. Such borrowers may have credit ratings that are determined by one or more nationally recognized statistical rating organizations or the Investment Manager to be below investment grade. The loans the Fund originates may vary in maturity and/or duration. The Fund is not limited in the size or type of loans it may originate, including with respect to a single borrower, except as limited by the Fund’s concentration policy, or with respect to borrowers that are determined to be below investment grade. The Fund’s origination of loans may be limited by the Fund’s intention to qualify as a regulated investment company under the Tax Code. The Fund may retain all, or an applicable pro rata portion of, fees received in connection with originating or structuring the terms of any such loan. The Fund does not intend to service the loans it originates.
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Investment Categories
The Investment Manager expects that Portfolio Investments will generally fit within four broad categories: (i) credit facilities and asset-based loans secured with pools of loans or other assets; (ii) structures where the originator co-invests with the Fund, proportionally sharing in in the risk, with certain protections provided to the Fund, (iii) pools of loans, and (iv) structured products, such as collateralized loan obligations, asset-backed securities (“ABS”) and other securitizations. Under normal market conditions, the Investment Manager expects the majority of these investments to be in categories (i) and (ii). Category (ii) investments generally would be in the form of co-investments with preferred return rights. For example, the Fund and the originator could be pari-passu in the investment as long as returns exceed a certain threshold (e.g., 10%), however, in the event that returns are less than 10% or if there are losses, the Fund may have the right to collect its principal and preferred return ahead of the originator, therefore subordinating the originator’s preferred return rights.
Investment Process
The Investment Manager’s approach relies on a number of key principles:
| · | Flexible Allocation Strategy: The ability to allocate capital of the Fund across multiple portfolio companies, with a focus on diversification across, products, industries, sectors, regions, and creditworthiness. |
| · | Independent credit analysis |
| · | Diversification across products, sectors, originators and regions |
| · | Structuring transactions to ensure alignment of interest through recourse, including by negotiating bespoke terms and covenants and relying on bankruptcy remote structures. |
| · | Ongoing monitoring of completed deals, including capturing performance information from the servicers. |
| · | Phased increase of exposure to originators over time by gradually acquiring additional assets and increasing the size of the investment. |
The Investment Manager will look at a diverse variety of opportunities in order to identify transactions and investment opportunities that are expected to provide the Fund with attractive risk return opportunities. The analysis and process could include (i) reviewing the operational capabilities of the origination partner, (ii) reviewing the financial and credit profile and conducting due diligence of the origination and servicing partner, (iii) negotiating the terms and the covenants of the loan with the aim to minimize risks from a deterioration in the performance of the loans or increases in defaults, (iv) structuring the transaction through special purpose vehicles or other bankruptcy remote structures and developing backup servicing plans to protect the investments in instance of a possible failure of the servicing partner, (v) reviewing loan origination history and performance of historical portfolios originated and serviced by the originator and servicer, (vi) reviewing any intercreditor terms to the extent there are other creditors in the borrower capital structure, and (vii) on-site visiting and discussing with the servicer’s staff, vendors and professional services providers. The Fund may sell securities without regard to the length of time that they are held to take advantage of new investment opportunities as they may arise.
In determining whether to originate a direct loan, in addition to a review of the investment opportunity, the Fund will rely upon the creditworthiness of the borrower and/or any collateral for payment of interest and repayment of principal. The Investment Manager will utilize a proprietary multi-factor analysis of the appropriateness of each loan for the Fund that includes consideration of collateral quality, credit support, structure, market conditions, geographic concentration and interest rate and pre-payment risk, among other factors, before an investment is approved.
Ongoing Monitoring
The Investment Manager expects the Fund’s investments to be in a variety of forms, including secured credit facilities, asset-based loans, and pools of assets to be phased in over time. As such, ongoing monitoring of positions in the portfolio plays an important role in the risk management and the investment strategy. The Investment Manager expects to generally review performance of the investments on a continuous basis, whenever such data is available.
Risk Management
Risk management is an important feature of the Investment Manager’s strategy, enabling the Investment Manager to earn attractive returns while effectively managing the risks inherent to the instruments and the strategy. The Investment Manager has identified certain risks and intends to manage these risks through a combination of term negotiation, deal structuring, and hedging activities. The risks include risks related to the quality of assets, as well as risks relating to the performance of the originator and the servicer. The Investment Manager will rely on its experience to implement the risk management process.
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The Investment Manager intends to deploy a multi-tier framework for risk management. The framework relies on the Investment Manager’s experience structuring, negotiating and managing various assets and pools of capital in a variety of capital cycles and market environments.
| · | In addition to the initial due diligence on the originators and their asset quality, the Investment Manager intends to negotiate deal terms and structure the investments that aim to achieve the Fund’s target returns while mitigating risks. |
| · | Ongoing analytics and monitoring of investments post-closing are core to the risk management and investment decision processes. An important aspect of the risk management methodology is the ability to gradually build up positions in investments on a continuous basis. Subject to an investment continuing to meet performance targets, the Investment Manager may gradually increase the size of the investment. However, if an investment shows diversion from the performance expectation, the Investment Manager may scale back or limit the growth of the exposure. |
| · | The Investment Manager anticipates engaging in hedging activity to mitigate certain potentially adverse impacts of foreign exchange fluctuations and minimize the impact of other macroeconomic events. The Investment Manager can utilize a variety of hedging tools, such as currency forwards, non- deliverable forwards, currency options, currency swaps, credit default swaps, shorts and other financial instruments for hedging purposes. |
Leverage
The Investment Manager may use leverage as part of the Fund’s investment program. Leverage may be obtained by borrowing funds to make trades or by purchasing or entering into derivative instruments that are inherently leveraged, such as swaps, options, futures and forward contracts. The Fund may finance the origination and acquisition of a portion of its investments with credit facilities, securitization financing transactions and other term borrowings of up to 33 1/3% of the Fund’s total assets, including leverage incurred through the Fund’s wholly owned subsidiaries, if any, and the value of the assets purchased with the proceeds of the Fund’s indebtedness, if any.
The Subsidiaries and SPVs
As noted above, the Fund may seek to provide exposure to certain securities that are not freely tradable in the U.S., such as Regulation S securities, as well as certain other securities that can only be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person or where it may be advantageous for the security or asset to be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person (“other restricted non-U.S. securities”) by investing through Subsidiaries. The Fund may also use SPVs wholly-owned by the Fund to hold certain investments of the Fund, including similar investments as held by a Subsidiary. The Fund will not invest more than 25% of its assets in a Subsidiary or any single SPV or more than 50% of its assets in the Subsidiaries and all SPVs in total under normal circumstances. The Fund does not primarily control any entity which engages in investment activities in securities or other assets other than entities wholly owned by the Fund. The Subsidiaries and each SPV is advised by the Investment Manager. The Subsidiary and each SPV has the same investment objective as the Fund. The Subsidiaries may also hold cash and invest in any other instrument that the Fund may invest in. The Investment Manager, as investment adviser to the Subsidiaries and any SPV, will comply with Section 15 of the 1940 Act with respect to advisory contract approval. The Fund, the Subsidiaries and each SPV complies with Sections 8 and 18 of the Investment Company Act regarding investment policies and capital structure on an aggregate basis. In addition, the Subsidiaries and each SPV complies with the provisions of Section 17 of the Investment Company Act relating to affiliated transactions and custody of portfolio investments. The Fund’s custodian also serves as the custodian to the Subsidiaries and each SPV.
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The Subsidiaries and each SPV will be managed pursuant to compliance policies and procedures that are the same, in all material respects, as the policies and procedures adopted by the Fund. As a result, the Investment Manager, in managing the portfolio of each Subsidiary and each SPV, will be subject to the same investment policies and restrictions that apply to the management of the Fund, and, in particular, to the requirements relating to portfolio leverage, liquidity, brokerage, and the timing and method of the valuation of each Subsidiary and each SPV’s portfolio investments and shares of each Subsidiary and each SPV. These policies and restrictions are described in detail throughout this Prospectus. The Fund, each Subsidiary and each SPV will test for compliance with investment restrictions on a consolidated basis.
The Investment Manager will provide investment management and other services to each Subsidiary and each SPV pursuant to separate investment management agreements. The Investment Manager will not receive separate compensation from a Subsidiary or a SPV for providing it with investment management or administrative services. However, the Fund will pay the Investment Manager based on the Fund’s assets, including the assets invested in the Subsidiaries or a SPV. The Subsidiaries and SPVs will also enter into separate contracts for the provision of custody and audit services with the same or with affiliates of the same service providers that provide those services to the Fund.
The financial statements of each Subsidiary and each SPV will be consolidated with the Fund’s financial statements in the Fund’s annual and semi-annual reports. The Fund’s annual and semi-annual reports, when produced, will be distributed to shareholders, and copies of the reports will be available on the Fund’s website (www.monachilfunds.com) free of charge. Please refer to the SAI for additional information about the organization and management of the Subsidiaries.
Temporary Investments
The Fund may, from time to time, take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with the Fund’s principal investment strategy in attempting to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions. During such times, the Investment Manager may determine that a large portion of the Fund’s assets should be invested in cash or cash equivalents, including money market instruments, prime commercial paper, repurchase agreements, municipal bonds, bank accounts, Treasury bills and other short-term obligations of the U.S. Government, its agencies or instrumentalities. In these and in other cases, the Fund may not achieve its investment objective.
PRINCIPAL RISK FACTORS
All investments carry risks to some degree. The Fund cannot guarantee that its investment objective will be achieved or that its strategy of investing in the Fund will be successful. An investment in the Fund involves substantial risks, including the risk that the entire amount invested may be lost.
The Fund has been organized as a continuously offered, closed-end management investment company. Closed-end funds differ from open-end funds (commonly known as mutual funds) in that investors in closed-end funds do not have the right to redeem their shares on a daily basis. Unlike closed-end funds that list their shares on a securities exchange, the Fund does not currently intend to list the Shares for trading on any securities exchange, and the Fund does not expect any secondary market to develop for the Shares in the foreseeable future. Therefore, an investment in the Fund, unlike an investment in a typical closed-end fund, is not a liquid investment. To provide some liquidity to Shareholders, the Fund has been structured as an “interval fund” and will quarterly repurchase offers for a limited amount of the Fund’s Shares (at least 5%). The first repurchase request deadline of the Fund shall occur no later than two calendar quarters after the Fund’s initial effective date.
The Fund believes that an unlisted closed-end structure is most appropriate for the long-term nature of the Fund’s strategy. The Fund’s ability to hold positions through all manner of market environments is crucial. Features that interfere with this ability (such as daily redemptions permitted by open-end funds) could impair the Fund’s ability to execute its investment strategy. Accordingly, an unlisted closed-end structure helps the Fund achieve its investment objective.
GENERAL/FUND STRUCTURE RISKS
LIMITED OPERATING HISTORY. The Fund was organized on June 3, 2021 and commenced operations on December 5, 2022. The Fund is subject to all of the business risks and uncertainties associated with any new business, including the risk that the Fund will not achieve its investment objectives and that the value of Shares could decline.
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The Fund may not succeed in meeting its objective, and its NAV may decrease. As a new Fund, there is no assurance that the Fund will grow or maintain economically viable size, which may result in increased Fund expenses or a determination to liquidate the Fund.
MINIMAL CAPITALIZATION. The Fund is not obligated to raise any specific amount of capital prior to commencing operations. There is a risk that the amount of capital actually raised by the Fund through the offering of its shares may be insufficient to achieve profitability or allow the Fund to realize its investment objective. An inability to raise additional capital may adversely affect the Fund’s financial condition, liquidity and results of operations, as well as its compliance with regulatory requirements. Further, if the Fund is unable to raise sufficient capital, Shareholders may bear higher expenses due to a lack of economies of scale.
REPURCHASE OFFERS; LIMITED LIQUIDITY. The Fund is a closed-end investment company structured as an “interval fund” and, as such, has adopted a fundamental policy to make quarterly repurchase offers, at per-class NAV, of not less than 5% of the Fund’s outstanding Shares on the repurchase request deadline. Pursuant to this policy, the Fund will offer to purchase only a small portion of its Shares each quarter, and there is no guarantee that Shareholders will be able to sell all of the Shares that they desire to sell in any particular repurchase offer. Under current regulations, such offers must be for not less than 5% nor more than 25% of the Fund’s Shares outstanding on the repurchase request deadline. Investors should understand there is likely to be little or no willingness on the Board’s part to move to the 25% level in connection with any particular repurchase offer. If a repurchase offer is oversubscribed, the Fund may repurchase only a pro rata portion of the Shares tendered by each Shareholder. The potential for proration may cause some investors to tender more Shares for repurchase than they wish to have repurchased. The NAV of the Fund’s Shares tendered in a repurchase offer may decline between the Repurchase Request Deadline and the date on which the NAV for tendered Shares is determined. In addition, the repurchase of Shares by the Fund will be a taxable event to Shareholders, potentially even to those Shareholders that do not participate in the repurchase. For a discussion of these tax consequences, please see “TAXES” and “TAX MATTERS” in the Fund’s SAI.
Shares in the Fund provide limited liquidity since Shareholders will not be able to redeem Shares on a daily basis. A Shareholder may not be able to tender its Shares in the Fund promptly after it has made a decision to do so. In addition, with very limited exceptions, Shares are not transferable, and liquidity will be provided only through repurchase offers made quarterly by the Fund. Shares in the Fund are therefore suitable only for investors who can bear the risks associated with the limited liquidity of Shares and should be viewed as a long-term investment.
The Fund’s repurchase policy will have the effect of decreasing the size of the Fund over time from what it otherwise would have been. Such a decrease may therefore force the Fund to sell assets it would not otherwise sell. It may also reduce the investment opportunities available to it and cause its expense ratio to increase.
If a Shareholder tenders all of its Shares (or a portion of its Shares) in connection with a repurchase offer made by the Fund, that tender may not be rescinded by the Shareholder after the date on which the repurchase offer terminates. However, although the amount payable to the Shareholder will be based on the value of the Fund’s assets as of the repurchase date, the amount of Shares that are tendered by Shareholders generally will not be determined until as many as 14 days after the repurchase offer terminates. Thus, a Shareholder will not know its repurchase price until after it has irrevocably tendered its Shares.
DISTRIBUTION POLICY. The Fund’s distribution policy is to make monthly distributions of substantially all of its net investment income. Distributions cannot be assured, and the amount of each distribution is likely to vary. Distributions will be paid at least annually in amounts representing substantially all of the net investment income not previously distributed in a monthly distribution and net capital gains, if any, earned each year. All or a portion of an annual distribution may consist solely of a return of capital (i.e., from your original investment) and not a return of net investment income. Shareholders should not assume that the source of a distribution from the Fund is net investment income. Shareholders should note that return of capital will reduce the tax basis of their shares and potentially increase the taxable gain, if any, upon disposition of their shares.
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SUBSIDIARY RISK. By investing through the Subsidiaries, the Fund is indirectly exposed to the risks associated with the Subsidiaries’ investments which are securities that are not freely tradable in the U.S., such as Regulation S securities, as well as certain other securities that can only be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person or where it may be advantageous for the security or asset to be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person (“other restricted non-U.S. securities”), although may include any security that the Fund itself may invest in. The Subsidiaries are not registered under the Investment Company Act, and, unless otherwise noted in this prospectus, is not subject to all the investor protections of the Investment Company Act. However, the Fund wholly owns and controls each Subsidiary, and the Fund and each Subsidiary are both managed by Investment Manager making it unlikely that the Subsidiaries will take action contrary to the interests of the Fund and its shareholders. The Board of Trustees has oversight responsibility for the investment activities of the Fund, including its investment in the Subsidiaries, and the Fund’s role as sole shareholder of the Subsidiaries. The Subsidiaries are subject to the same investment restrictions and limitations, and follow the same compliance policies and procedures, as the Fund. Changes in the laws of the United States and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of the Fund and/or a Subsidiary to operate as described in this prospectus and the SAI and could adversely affect the Fund. Changes in the laws of the United States and/or the Cayman Islands could adversely affect the performance of the Fund and/or a Subsidiary. For example, the Cayman Islands currently does not impose certain taxes on exempted companies like the Subsidiaries, including income and capital gains tax, among others. If Cayman Islands laws were changed to require such entities to pay Cayman Islands taxes, the investment returns of the Fund would likely decrease. See “Risks — Portfolio Level Risks — Regulation S Securities Risk.”
LEVERAGE. The Fund may use leverage. The use of leverage increases both risk of loss and profit potential. The Fund is subject to the Investment Company Act requirement that an investment company satisfy an asset coverage requirement of 300% of its indebtedness, including amounts borrowed, measured at the time the investment company incurs the indebtedness (the “Asset Coverage Requirement”). The Fund may finance the origination and acquisition of a portion of its investments with credit facilities, securitization financing transactions and other term borrowings of up to 33 1/3% of the Fund’s total assets, including leverage incurred through the Fund’s wholly owned subsidiaries, if any, and the value of the assets purchased with the proceeds of the Fund’s indebtedness, if any. This means that at any given time the value of the Fund’s total indebtedness may not exceed one-third the value of its total assets (including such indebtedness). The interests of persons with whom the Fund enters into leverage arrangements will not necessarily be aligned with the interests of the Fund’s Shareholders and such persons will have claims on the Fund’s assets that are senior to those of the Fund’s Shareholders. In addition to the risks created by the Fund’s use of leverage, the Fund is subject to the additional risk that it would be unable to timely, or at all, obtain leverage borrowing. The Fund might also be required to de-leverage, selling securities at a potentially inopportune time and incurring tax consequences. Further, the Fund’s ability to generate income from the use of leverage would be adversely affected.
The Fund anticipates that any money borrowed from a bank or other financial institution for investment purposes will accrue interest based on shorter-term interest rates that would be periodically reset. So long as the Fund’s portfolio provides a higher rate of return, net of expenses, than the interest rate on borrowed money, as reset periodically, the leverage may cause common shareholders to receive a higher current rate of return than if the Fund were not leveraged. If, however, long-term and/or short-term rates rise, the interest rate on borrowed money could exceed the rate of return on securities held by the Fund, reducing returns to common shareholders. Developments in the credit markets may adversely affect the ability of the Fund to borrow for investment purposes and may increase the costs of such borrowings, which would reduce returns to common shareholders. There is no assurance that a leveraging strategy will be successful. Leverage involves risks and special considerations, including the likelihood of greater volatility of NAV, market price and dividend rates and the fact that the Management Fee payable to the Investment Manager will be higher if the Fund uses leverage than if the Fund did not use leverage, and may provide a financial incentive to the Investment Manager to increase the Fund’s use of leverage.
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NON-DIVERSIFIED STATUS. The Fund is a “non-diversified” investment company. Thus, there are no percentage limitations imposed by the Investment Company Act on the Fund’s assets that may be invested, directly or indirectly, in the securities of any one issuer. Consequently, if one or more securities are allocated a relatively large percentage of the Fund’s assets, losses suffered by such securities could result in a higher reduction in the Fund’s capital than if such capital had been more proportionately allocated among a larger number of securities. The Fund may also be more susceptible to any single economic or regulatory occurrence than a diversified investment company.
LEGAL, TAX AND REGULATORY. Legal, tax and regulatory changes could occur that may materially adversely affect the Fund. For example, the regulatory environment for leveraged investors is evolving, and changes in the direct or indirect regulation of leveraged investors may materially adversely affect the ability of the Fund to pursue its investment objective or strategies. Increased regulatory oversight and other legislation or regulation could result. Such legislation or regulation could pose additional risks and result in material adverse consequences to the Fund and/or limit potential investment strategies that would have otherwise been used by the Fund in order to seek to obtain higher returns.
DEPENDENCE ON THE INVESTMENT MANAGER. The success of the Fund depends upon the ability of the Investment Manager to develop and implement investment strategies that seek to achieve the investment objective of the Fund. Shareholders will have no right or power to participate in the management or control of the Fund.
NEW INVESTMENT ADVISER RISK. The Investment Manager is a newly registered investment adviser and has not previously managed a registered investment company. Registered investment companies, unlike private funds are subject to certain legal and tax-related restrictions on investments. Additionally, there is no long-term track record against which an investor may judge the Investment Manager and it is possible the Investment Manager may not achieve the Fund’s intended investment objective.
MANAGEMENT RISK. The net asset value of the Fund changes based on the performance of the securities in which it invests. The Investment Manager’s judgment about the attractiveness, value and potential appreciation of a particular sector and securities in which the Fund invests may prove to be incorrect and may not produce the desired results.
INCENTIVE FEE RISK. The Investment Management Agreement entitles the Investment Manager to receive incentive compensation on income regardless of any capital losses. In such case, the Fund may be required to pay the Investment Manager incentive compensation for a fiscal quarter even if there is a decline in the value of the Fund’s portfolio or if the Fund incurs a net loss for that quarter.
Any Incentive Fee payable by the Fund that relates to its net investment income may be computed and paid on income that may include interest that has been accrued but not yet received. If a portfolio company defaults on a loan that is structured to provide accrued interest, it is possible that accrued interest previously included in the calculation of the Incentive Fee will become uncollectible. The Investment Manager is not under any obligation to reimburse the Fund for any part of the Incentive Fee it receives that was based on accrued income that the Fund never received as a result of a default by an entity on the obligation that resulted in the accrual of such income, and such circumstances would result in the Fund’s paying an Incentive Fee on income it never received.
The Incentive Fee payable by the Fund to the Investment Manager may create an incentive for it to make investments on the Fund’s behalf that are risky or more speculative than would be the case in the absence of such compensation arrangement. The way in which the Incentive Fee payable to the Investment Manager is determined may encourage the Investment Manager to use leverage to increase the return on the Fund’s investments. In addition, the fact that the Management Fee is payable based upon the Fund’s average daily Managed Assets, which would include any borrowings for investment purposes, may encourage the Investment Manager to use leverage to make additional investments. Under certain circumstances, the use of leverage may increase the likelihood of default, which would disfavor shareholders. Such a practice could result in the Fund’s investing in more speculative securities than would otherwise be in its best interests, which could result in higher investment losses, particularly during cyclical economic downturns.
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RISKS RELATING TO DUE DILIGENCE. Before making Portfolio Investments, the Investment Manager will typically conduct due diligence that it deems reasonable and appropriate based on facts and circumstances. Due diligence generally entails evaluation of important and complex business, financial, tax, accounting and legal issues. Due diligence also entails operational evaluation of the company issuing Portfolio Investments, including evaluating the staffing and technological resources available to service the investments, as well as the financial well-being of the company. Outside consultants, legal advisors, accountants, investment banks and other third parties may be involved in the due diligence process to varying degrees depending on the type of investment. If the Investment Manager is unable to timely engage third-party providers, its ability to evaluate and acquire more complex targets could be adversely affected.
When conducting due diligence and making an assessment regarding an investment, the Investment Manager will rely on the resources available to it, including information provided by the target of the investment and, in some circumstances, third-party investigations. The due diligence investigation that the Investment Manager carries out with respect to any investment opportunity may not reveal or highlight all relevant facts that are necessary or helpful in evaluating such investment opportunity. There can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to detect or prevent irregular accounting, employee misconduct or other fraudulent practices (including, without limitation, violations of applicable anti-bribery laws, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (the “FCPA”) and the U.K. Bribery Act (the “Bribery Act”)) during the due diligence phase or during its efforts to monitor the company on an ongoing basis. In the event of fraud by any company or any of its affiliates, the Fund may suffer a partial or total loss of capital invested in that company. An additional concern, particularly in the case of investments in loans, is the possibility of material misrepresentation or omission on the part of the company or the seller. Such inaccuracy or incompleteness may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s securities and/or instruments in such company and/or the valuation of the collateral underlying the loans or adversely affect the ability of the Fund to perfect or effectuate a lien on the collateral securing the loan. The Fund will rely upon the accuracy and completeness of representations made by companies and/or their former owners in the due diligence process to the extent reasonable when it makes investments, but cannot guarantee such accuracy or completeness.
BROKER SELECTION, The Investment Manager may engage the services of brokers and dealers for creating investment transactions, both, for the purchase and the sale of assets. Portfolio transactions for the Fund will be allocated to brokers and dealers on the basis of best execution and in consideration of such broker’s or dealer’s ability to effect such transactions, its facilities, its reliability and financial responsibility. Accordingly, the commissions and other transaction costs (which may include dealer markups or markdowns) charged to the Fund by brokers or dealers in the foregoing circumstances may be higher than those charged by other brokers or dealers that may not offer such products or services.
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER. The Fund may sell securities without regard to the length of time they have been held to take advantage of new investment opportunities, when the Investment Manager feels either the securities no longer meet its investment criteria or the potential for capital appreciation has lessened, or for other reasons. The Fund’s portfolio turnover rate may vary from year to year. A high portfolio turnover rate (100% or more) increases the Fund’s transaction costs (including brokerage commissions and dealer costs), which would adversely impact the Fund’s performance. Higher portfolio turnover may result in the realization of more short-term capital gains than if the Fund had lower portfolio turnover. The turnover rate will not be a limiting factor, however, if the Investment Manager considers portfolio changes appropriate.
NON-QUALIFICATION AS A REGULATED INVESTMENT COMPANY. If for any taxable year the Fund were to fail to qualify as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of Subtitle A, Chapter 1, of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), all of its taxable income would be subject to tax at regular corporate rates without any deduction for distributions. To qualify as a regulated investment company, the Fund must meet three numerical requirements each year regarding (i) the diversification of the assets it holds, (ii) the income it earns, and (iii) the amount of taxable income that it distributes to Shareholders. These requirements and certain additional tax risks associated with investments in the Fund are discussed in “TAXES” in this Prospectus. The Investment Manager has agreed to include the impact of any such taxes (up to $1 million in each of the Fund’s first two tax years or periods) on the Fund and its shareholders within its Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement.
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CYBERSECURITY RISK. Cybersecurity refers to the combination of technologies, processes and procedures established to protect information technology systems and data from unauthorized access, attack or damage. The Fund and its affiliates and third-party service providers are subject to cybersecurity risks. Cybersecurity risks have significantly increased in recent years and the Fund could suffer such losses in the future. The Fund’s and its affiliates’ and third-party service providers’ computer systems, software and networks may be vulnerable to unauthorized access, computer viruses or other malicious code and other events that could have a security impact. If one or more of such events occur, this potentially could jeopardize confidential and other information, including nonpublic personal information and sensitive business data, processed and stored in, and transmitted through, computer systems and networks, or otherwise cause interruptions or malfunctions in the Fund’s operations or the operations of its respective affiliates and third-party service providers. This could result in significant losses, reputational damage, litigation, regulatory fines or penalties, or otherwise adversely affect the Fund’s business, financial condition or results of operations. Privacy and information security laws and regulation changes, and compliance with those changes, may result in cost increases due to system changes and the development of new administrative processes. In addition, the Fund may be required to expend significant additional resources to modify the Fund’s protective measures and to investigate and remediate vulnerabilities or other exposures arising from operational and security risks.
OPERATIONAL RISK. An investment in the Fund, like any fund, can involve operational risks arising from factors such as processing errors, human errors, inadequate or failed internal or external processes, failures in systems and technology, changes in personnel and errors caused by third-party service providers. The occurrence of any of these failures, errors or breaches could result in a loss of information, regulatory scrutiny, reputational damage or other events, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the Fund. While the Fund seeks to minimize such events through controls and oversight, there may still be failures that could cause losses to the Fund.
RELIANCE ON TECHNOLOGY. The Fund’s business is highly dependent on the communications and information systems of the Investment Manager and the Administrator. In addition, certain of these systems are provided to the Investment Manager by third-party service providers. Any failure or interruption of such systems, including as a result of the termination of an agreement with any such third-party service provider, could cause delays or other problems in the Fund’s activities. This, in turn, could have a material adverse effect on the Fund’s operating results.
BUSINESS CONTINUITY. Various force majeure events, including acts of God, natural disasters like fire, flood or earthquakes, wars, terrorist acts, outbreaks of infectious disease, epidemics, pandemics or other serious public health concerns, cyber-attacks, technology and/or power failures, labor strikes, or geopolitical or other extraordinary, or other unforeseen circumstances or events, may materially disrupt the Investment Manager’s business and operations, or the business and operations of any counterparty or service provider to the Investment Manager or the Fund, and the Fund may be adversely affected thereby. For example, if a significant number of the Investment Manager’s personnel were to be unavailable in a force majeure event (such as war, terror attack or an outbreak of infectious disease), the Investment Manager’s ability to effectively conduct the Fund’s business could be severely compromised. In addition, the cost to the Fund, the Investment Manager or its affiliates of repairing or replacing damaged assets or systems resulting from such force majeure event could be considerable. While the Investment Manager has adopted certain policies and procedures designed to restore and/or continue the Investment Manager’s business and operations in such situations, there is no guarantee that such policies and procedures will be effective in any of such situations or will be implemented in time, and the Fund may be adversely affected thereby.
DEPENDENCE ON KEY PERSONNEL. The Investment Manager may be dependent upon the experience and expertise of certain key personnel in providing services with respect to the Fund’s investments. If the Investment Manager were to lose the services of these individuals, its ability to service the Fund could be adversely affected. As with any managed fund, the Investment Manager may not be successful in selecting the best-performing securities or investment techniques for the Fund’s portfolio and the Fund’s performance may lag behind that of similar funds. The Investment Manager has informed the Fund that their respective investment professionals are actively involved in other investment activities not concerning the Fund and will not be able to devote all of their time to the Fund’s business and affairs. In addition, individuals not currently associated with the Investment Manager may become associated with the Fund and the performance of the Fund may also depend on the experience and expertise of such individuals.
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LACK OF EXCLUSIVITY. The Investment Management Agreement does not require the Investment Manager to devote all or any specified portion of its time to managing the Fund’s affairs, but only to devote so much time to such affairs as it believes is necessary in good faith. The Investment Manager and its personnel will not be restricted from forming other accounts, from entering into other investment advisory relationships or from engaging in other business activities, even if such activities may be in competition with the Fund and/or may involve substantial time and resources of the Investment Manager. These activities could be viewed as creating a conflict of interest in that the time and effort of the Investment Manager and its personnel will not be devoted exclusively to the business of the Fund but will be allocated between the business of the Fund and the management of other accounts and businesses.
DIFFERING COMPENSATION ARRANGEMENTS WITH OTHER ACCOUNTS. The Investment Manager could be subject to a conflict of interest because varying compensation arrangements among the Fund and other accounts could incentivize the Investment Manager to manage the Fund and such other accounts differently. These and other differences could make the investments made on behalf of the Fund less profitable to the Investment Manager than certain other accounts. In addition, the Investment Manager faces a conflict of interest to the extent that employees of the Investment Manager have a greater financial interest in another account over the Fund (or another account with overlapping trading strategies). To mitigate such conflicts of interest, the Investment Manager generally follows documented policies and procedures in allocating trading opportunities among its client accounts, which do not take into account the fees and/or allocations to which such accounts are subject or the financial interest that employees of the Investment Manager may have in the Fund or any other account.
INVESTMENT-RELATED RISKS
GENERAL RISKS
CREDIT RISK. One of the fundamental risks associated with the Fund’s investments is credit risk, which is the risk that an issuer or borrower will be unable to make principal and interest payments on its outstanding debt obligations when due or otherwise defaults on its obligations to the Fund and/or that the guarantors or other sources of credit support for such persons do not satisfy their obligations. The Fund’s return would be adversely impacted if an issuer of debt securities or a borrower under a loan in which the Fund’s invests becomes unable to make such payments when due. Although the Fund may make investments that the Investment Manager believes are secured by specific collateral the value of which may initially exceed the principal amount of such investments or the Fund’s fair value of such investments, there can be no assurance that the liquidation of any such collateral would satisfy the borrower’s obligation in the event of non-payment of scheduled interest or principal payments with respect to such investment, or that such collateral could be readily liquidated. In addition, in the event of bankruptcy of a borrower, the Fund could experience delays or limitations with respect to its ability to enforce rights against and realize the benefits of the collateral securing an investment.
INTEREST RATE RISK. The Fund is subject to the risks of changes in interest rates. While it is expected that the majority of the Fund’s investments will be in floating rate loans, which typically re-price every 90 days, some of the Fund’s investments may be in fixed rate loans and similar debt obligations. The value of such fixed rate loans are susceptible to general changes in interest rates. A decline in interest rates could reduce the amount of current income the Fund is able to achieve from interest on fixed-income securities and convertible debt. An increase in interest rates could reduce the value of any fixed income securities and convertible securities owned by the Fund. To the extent that the cash flow from a fixed income security is known in advance, the present value (i.e., discounted value) of that cash flow decreases as interest rates increase; to the extent that the cash flow is contingent, the dollar value of the payment may be linked to then prevailing interest rates. Moreover, the value of many fixed income securities depends on the shape of the yield curve, not just on a single interest rate. Thus, for example, a callable cash flow, the coupons of which depend on a short rate such as three-month LIBOR, may shorten (i.e., be called away) if the long rate decreases. In this way, such securities are exposed to the difference between long rates and short rates.
The Fund expects to invest the majority of its assets in variable and floating rate securities. Variable and floating rate securities generally are less sensitive to interest rate changes but may decline in value if their interest rates do not rise as much, or as quickly, as interest rates in general. Conversely, floating rate securities will not generally increase in value if interest rates decline. When the Fund holds variable or floating rate securities, a decrease in market interest rates will adversely affect the income received from such securities and may impact the NAV of the Fund’s shares. Interest rates, however, have recently been at or near historic lows. The historically low interest rate environment increases the risks associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility.
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COUNTERPARTY RISK. Many of the markets in which the Fund effects its transactions are “over the counter” or “inter-dealer” markets. The participants in these markets are typically not subject to credit evaluation and regulatory oversight as are members of “exchange based” markets. These risks may differ materially from those associated with transactions effected on an exchange, which generally are backed by clearing organization guarantees, daily marking to market and settlement, and segregation and minimum capital requirements applicable to intermediaries. Transactions entered into directly between two counterparties generally do not benefit from such protections. This exposes the Fund to the risk that a counterparty will not settle a transaction in accordance with its terms and conditions because of a dispute over the terms of the contract (whether or not bona fide) or because of a credit or liquidity problem, thus causing the Fund to suffer a loss. Such counterparty risk is accentuated in the case of contracts with longer maturities where events may intervene to prevent settlement, or where the Fund has concentrated its transactions with a single or small group of counterparties. The Fund is not restricted from dealing with any particular counterparty or from concentrating its investments with one counterparty. The ability of the Fund to transact business with any one or number of counterparties, the lack of any independent evaluation of such counterparties’ financial capabilities and the absence of a regulated market to facilitate settlement may increase the potential for losses by the Fund.
FRAUD RISK. A major concern when investing in loans and other debt securities is the possibility of a material misrepresentation or omission on the part of the borrower. Such inaccuracy or incompleteness may adversely affect the valuation of the collateral underlying the loans or may adversely affect the ability of the Fund to perfect or effectuate a lien on the collateral securing the loan. The Fund relies upon the accuracy and completeness of representations made by borrowers to the extent reasonable when it makes its investments, but cannot guarantee such accuracy or completeness. Under certain circumstances, payments to the Fund may be reclaimed if any such payment or distribution is later determined to have been a fraudulent conveyance or a preferential payment.
GENERAL ECONOMIC AND MARKET CONDITIONS. The success of the Fund’s investment program may be affected by general economic and market conditions, such as interest rates, availability of credit, inflation rates, economic uncertainty, changes in laws, and national and international political circumstances. These factors may affect the level and volatility of securities prices and the liquidity of investments held by the Fund. Unexpected volatility or illiquidity could impair the Fund’s profitability or result in losses.
MARKET RISK. An investment in shares is subject to investment risk, including the possible loss of the entire principal amount invested. An investment in shares represents an indirect investment in the securities owned by the Fund. The value of these securities, like other market investments, may move up or down, sometimes rapidly and unpredictably. The value of your shares at any point in time may be worth less than the value of your original investment, even after taking into account any reinvestment of dividends and distributions. U.S. and foreign securities markets may additionally be impacted by negative external and or direct and indirect economic factors such as global trade policies, economic growth and market conditions, interest rates, war, terrorism, natural and environmental disasters, public health emergencies and political events. The adverse impact of any one or more of these events on the market value of fund investments could be significant and cause losses.
MARKET DISRUPTION RISK. The onset of an infectious respiratory disease called COVID-19, caused by a novel coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2 has had, and is expected to continue to have, a severely adverse impact on the economies of many nations, individual companies and the market in general. The Investment Manager cannot predict the likelihood of occurrence or the effects of similar pandemics and epidemics in the future on the U.S. and other economies, or the investments in the Fund’s portfolio or the potential for success of the Fund. Certain markets have experienced temporary closures, extreme volatility, severe losses, reduced liquidity and increased trading costs. In general, the securities or other instruments that the Investment Manager believes represent an attractive investment opportunity or in which the Fund seeks to invest may be unavailable entirely or in the specific quantities sought by the Fund. As a result, the Fund may need to obtain the desired exposure through a less advantageous investment, forgo the investment at the time or seek to replicate the desired exposure through a derivative transaction or investment in another investment vehicle. Any such event(s) could have a significant adverse impact on the value and risk profile of the Fund’s portfolio and could impact the Fund’s ability to purchase or sell securities. Other infectious illness outbreaks in the future may result in similar impacts. There is a risk that you may lose money by investing in the Fund.
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Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and corresponding events in late February 2022, have had, and could continue to have, severe adverse effects on regional and global economic markets for securities and commodities. Following Russia’s actions, various governments, including the United States, have issued broad- ranging economic sanctions against Russia, including, among other actions, a prohibition on doing business with certain Russian companies, large financial institutions, officials and oligarchs; the removal by certain countries and the European Union of selected Russian banks from the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (“SWIFT”), the electronic banking network that connects banks globally; and restrictive measures to prevent the Russian Central Bank from undermining the impact of the sanctions. The current events, including sanctions and the potential for future sanctions, including any impacting Russia’s energy sector, and other actions, and Russia’s retaliatory responses to those sanctions and actions, may continue to adversely impact the Russian economy and may result in the further decline of the value and liquidity of Russian securities, a continued weakening of the ruble and continued exchange closures, and may have other adverse consequences on the Russian economy that could impact the value of Russian investments and impair the ability of the Fund to buy, sell, receive or deliver those securities. Moreover, those events have, and could continue to have, an adverse effect on global markets performance and liquidity, thereby negatively affecting the value of the Fund’s investments beyond any direct exposure to Russian issuers. The duration of ongoing hostilities and the vast array of sanctions and related events cannot be predicted. Those events present material uncertainty and risk with respect to markets globally and the performance of the Fund and its investments or operations could be negatively impacted.
EUROZONE RISK. The Fund may invest from time to time in European companies and companies that may be affected by the Eurozone economy. Ongoing concerns regarding the sovereign debt of various Eurozone countries, including the potential for investors to incur substantial write-downs, reductions in the face value of sovereign debt and/or sovereign defaults, as well as the possibility that one or more countries might leave the EU or the Eurozone create risks that could materially and adversely affect the Fund’s investments. Sovereign debt defaults and EU and/or Eurozone exits could have material adverse effects on the Fund’s investments in European companies, including, but not limited to, the availability of credit to support such companies’ financing needs, uncertainty and disruption in relation to financing, increased currency risk in relation to contracts denominated in Euros and wider economic disruption in markets served by those companies, while austerity and/or other measures introduced to limit or contain these issues may themselves lead to economic contraction and resulting adverse effects for the Fund. Legal uncertainty about the funding of Euro denominated obligations following any breakup or exits from the Eurozone, particularly in the case of investments in companies in affected countries, could also have material adverse effects on the Fund.
INVESTING IN SPAIN RISK. At launch, the Fund will have significant exposure to a pool of Spanish consumer loans through Euro denominated notes issued by a securitization vehicle. Investment in Spanish issuers or those providing exposure to the Spanish market involve risks that are specific to Spain, including, legal, regulatory, political, currency, security and economic risks. The Spanish economy, along with certain other EU economies, experienced a significant economic slowdown during the financial crisis that began in 2008. In reaction to the crisis, the Spanish government introduced austerity reforms aimed at reducing its fiscal deficit to sustainable levels. Austerity reforms included, among other things, reduction in government employees’ salaries, freezing of pension funds, and suspension of public work projects. Such austerity reforms, while directed at stimulating the Spanish economy in the long-term, may have a negative short-term effect on Spain’s financial markets. Due largely to outstanding bad loans to construction companies and real estate developers, Spanish banks underwent a series of mergers to increase liquidity and made efforts to shift debt off of their balance sheets. However, reports indicate that debt levels remain high, although bank lending has contracted. In addition, unemployment rates remain high. In addition, the Spanish government is engaged in a long-running campaign against terrorism. Acts of terrorism on Spanish soil or against Spanish interests abroad may cause uncertainty in the Spanish financial markets and adversely affect the performance of the consumer loans to which the Fund has exposure. Political tensions and social conflict have escalated recently as a result of a referendum by Catalonia for independence from Spain. The secessionist movement could have a negative impact on the Spanish economy and a destabilizing effect on the country.
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INVESTING IN EASTERN EUROPE. At launch, the Fund will have significant exposure to East European invoice financing receivables. The Fund may also seek other investment opportunities within Eastern Europe. Most Eastern European countries had a centrally planned, socialist economy for a substantial period of time. The governments of many Eastern European countries have more recently been implementing reforms directed at political and economic liberalization, including efforts to decentralize the economic decision-making process and move towards a market economy. However, business entities in many Eastern European countries do not have an extended history of operating in a market-oriented economy, and the ultimate impact of Eastern European countries’ attempts to move toward more market-oriented economies is currently unclear. In addition, any change in the leadership or policies of Eastern European countries may halt the expansion of or reverse the liberalization of foreign investment policies now occurring and adversely affect existing investment opportunities. In addition, Eastern European markets are particularly sensitive to social, economic and currency events in Western Europe and Russia. Russia may attempt to assert its influence in the region through military measures as it has most recently in Ukraine.
Where the Fund invests in securities or other assets issued by or with exposure to companies incorporated in or whose principal operations are located in Eastern Europe, other risks may also be encountered. Legal, political, economic and fiscal uncertainties in Eastern European markets may affect the value of the Fund’s investment in such securities. The currencies in which these investments may be denominated may be unstable, may be subject to significant depreciation and may not be freely convertible. Existing laws and regulations may not be consistently applied. The markets of the countries of Eastern Europe are still in the early stages of their development, have less volume, are less highly regulated, are less liquid and experience greater volatility than more established markets. Settlement of transactions may be subject to delay and administrative uncertainties. Custodians are not able to offer the level of service and safekeeping, settlement and administration services that is customary in more developed markets, and there is a risk that the Fund will not be recognized as the owner of securities held on its behalf by a sub-custodian.
BREXIT AND CONSEQUENCES. The Fund may invest a portion of its capital in debt securities issued by issuers domiciled in Europe, including issuers domiciled in the United Kingdom (“U.K.”). The government of the U.K. held an in-or-out referendum on the U.K.’s membership in the EU on June 23, 2016. The referendum resulted in a vote in favor of the exit of the U.K. from the EU (“Brexit”). On January 31, 2020, the UK officially withdrew from the EU and entered an 11-month transition period during which the United Kingdom remained part of the European Union single market and customs union, the laws of which governed the economic, trade, and security relations between the United Kingdom and European Union. The transition period concluded on December 31, 2020, and the United Kingdom left the European Union single market and customs union under the terms of a new trade agreement. The agreement governs the new relationship between the United Kingdom and European Union with respect to trading goods and services, but critical aspects of the relationship remain unresolved and subject to further negotiation and agreement. It is not currently possible to determine the full extent to which Brexit will impact financial markets and potentially, Fund investments. The longer term economic, legal, political and social framework to be put in place between the United Kingdom and the European Union remain unclear at this stage and are likely to lead to ongoing political and economic uncertainty and periods of exacerbated volatility in both the United Kingdom and in wider European markets for some time. In particular, the decision made in the United Kingdom referendum may lead to a call for similar referenda in other European jurisdictions which may cause increased economic volatility and uncertainty in the European and global markets. This volatility and uncertainty may have an adverse effect on the economy generally and the Fund’s ability, and the ability of its investments, to execute respective strategies and to receive attractive returns.
LIBOR RISK. Instruments in which the Fund invests may pay interest at floating rates based on LIBOR or may be subject to interest caps or floors based on LIBOR. The Fund and issuers of instruments in which the Fund invests may also obtain financing at floating rates based on LIBOR. The underlying collateral of CLOs in which the Fund invests may pay interest at floating rates based on LIBOR.
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Regulators and law-enforcement agencies from a number of governments, including entities in the United States, Japan, Canada and the United Kingdom, conducted civil and criminal investigations into whether the banks that contribute to the British Bankers’ Association, or the “BBA,” in connection with the calculation of daily LIBOR may have been manipulating or attempting to manipulate LIBOR. Several financial institutions have reached settlements with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the U.S. Department of Justice Fraud Section and the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority in connection with investigations by such authorities into submissions made by such financial institutions to the bodies that set LIBOR and other interbank offered rates. Additional investigations remain ongoing with respect to other major banks. There can be no assurance that there will not be additional admissions or findings of rate-setting manipulation or that manipulations of LIBOR or other similar interbank offered rates will not be shown to have occurred. Additional findings of manipulation may decrease the confidence of the market in LIBOR and lead market participants to look for alternative, non-LIBOR based types of financing, such as fixed rate loans or bonds or floating rate loans based on non-LIBOR indices.
Recently regulators around the world have determined to phase-out LIBOR by the end of 2021. At that point, all US dollar-denominated loans, derivatives and debt will reference a new rate — the Secured Overnight Funding Rate (“SOFR”) — which is a median of rates that market participants pay to borrow cash on an overnight basis, using Treasury securities as collateral. The transition from LIBOR to SOFR has been in the works for years, and recently has started to gather momentum and, not incidentally, generate complications. Both SOFR and LIBOR reflect short-term borrowing costs, but key differences between them make the transition less than straightforward. SOFR relies entirely on transaction data, whereas LIBOR is based partially on “expert judgment.” Also, SOFR is purely a daily rate — an overnight rate — as opposed to LIBOR’s seven varying rates on terms of one day to one year. Further, LIBOR incorporates a built-in credit- risk component because it represents the average cost of borrowing by a bank; by contrast, SOFR represents a “risk free” rate because it is based on US Treasury securities. Given these differences, USD LIBOR cannot simply be “swapped out” with SOFR in existing contracts that reference LIBOR — at least not without appropriate adjustments. To account for the differences in SOFR and LIBOR during the transition (and in the event that LIBOR sunsets before 2021), regulators are encouraging institutions to include “fallback” clauses in all new contracts. These clauses outline exactly how differences between SOFR and LIBOR will be calculated.
This transition could have adverse impacts on newly issued financial instruments and existing financial instruments which reference LIBOR. While some instruments may contemplate a scenario where LIBOR is no longer available by providing for an alternative rate setting methodology, not all instruments may have such provisions and there is significant uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of any such alternative methodologies. Abandonment of LIBOR could lead to significant short-term and long-term uncertainty and market instability. It remains uncertain how such changes would be implemented and the effects such changes would have on the Fund, issuers of instruments in which the Fund invests and financial markets generally.
EXTENSION RISK. Rising interest rates tend to extend the duration of long-term, fixed rate securities, making them more sensitive to changes in interest rates. The value of longer-term securities generally changes more in response to changes in interest rates than shorter-term securities. As a result, in a period of rising interest rates, securities may exhibit additional volatility and may lose value.
PREPAYMENT RISK. When interest rates decline, fixed income securities with stated interest rates may have their principal paid earlier than expected. This may result in the Fund having to reinvest that money at lower prevailing interest rates, which can reduce the returns of the Fund.
REINVESTMENT RISK. Income from the Fund’s portfolio will decline if and when the Fund invests the proceeds from matured, traded or called debt obligations at market interest rates that are below the portfolio’s current earnings rate. For instance, during periods of declining interest rates, an issuer of debt obligations may exercise an option to redeem securities prior to maturity, forcing the Fund to invest in lower- yielding securities. The Fund also may choose to sell higher yielding portfolio securities and to purchase lower yielding securities to achieve greater portfolio diversification, because the portfolio managers believe the current holdings are overvalued or for other investment-related reasons. A decline in income received by the Fund from its investments is likely to have a negative effect on dividend levels, NAV and/or overall return of the Fund’s shares.
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INFLATION/DEFLATION RISK. Inflation risk is the risk that the value of assets or income from the Fund’s investments will be worth less in the future as inflation decreases the value of payments at future dates. As inflation increases, the real value of the Fund’s portfolio could decline. Deflation risk is the risk that prices throughout the economy decline over time. Deflation may have an adverse effect on the creditworthiness of issuers and may make issuer default more likely, which may result in a decline in the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
RISKS OF SECURITIES ACTIVITIES. The Fund will invest and trade in a variety of different securities, and utilize a variety of investment instruments and techniques. Each security and each instrument and technique involves the risk of loss of capital. While the Investment Manager will attempt to moderate these risks, there can be no assurance that the Fund’s investment activities will be successful or that the Shareholders will not suffer losses.
HEDGING TRANSACTIONS. The Fund may utilize financial instruments, both for investment purposes and for risk management purposes: (i) to protect against possible changes in the market value of the Fund’s Investment Portfolio resulting from fluctuations in the securities markets and changes in interest rates, foreign currency and prices of reference investments; (ii) to limit losses; (iii) to enhance or preserve future returns, spreads or gains on any investment in the Fund’s portfolio; or (iv) to hedge the interest rate or currency exchange rate on any of the Fund’s liabilities or assets. The success of the Fund’s hedging strategy will depend, in part, upon the Investment Manager’s ability to correctly assess the degree of correlation between the performance of the instruments used in the hedging strategy and the performance of the Portfolio Investments being hedged. Since the characteristics of many securities change as markets change or time passes, the success of the Fund’s hedging strategy will also be subject to the Investment Manager’s ability to continually recalculate, readjust and execute hedges in an efficient and timely manner. While the Fund may enter into hedging transactions to seek to reduce risk, such transactions may result in a poorer overall performance for the Fund than if it had not engaged in such hedging transactions. The successful utilization of hedging and risk management transactions requires skills complementary to those needed in the selection of the Fund’s portfolio holdings.
INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES. If it is determined by the Investment Manager that it would be appropriate for the Fund and one or more other accounts managed by the Investment Manager to participate in an investment opportunity, the Investment Manager will seek to execute orders for the Fund and all of the participating other accounts on an equitable basis, taking into account such factors as the relative amounts of capital available for new investments or net asset value, as applicable, and the investment programs and portfolio positions of the Fund and the other accounts for which participation is appropriate. Orders may be combined for all such accounts, and if any order is not filled at the same price, they may be allocated on an average price basis. Similarly, if an order on behalf of more than one account cannot be fully executed under prevailing market conditions, securities may be allocated among the different accounts on a basis which the Investment Manager or its affiliates consider equitable .
STRATEGY AND INVESTMENT SPECIFIC RISKS
In addition to the risks generally described in this Prospectus and the SAI, the following are some of the specific risks of the investment strategy:
DEBT SECURITIES. Under normal market conditions, the Fund expects to primarily invest in debt and debt-related securities. One of the fundamental risks associated with such investments is credit risk, which is the risk that a borrower will be unable to make principal and interest payments on its outstanding debt obligations when due. Adverse changes in the financial condition of a borrower or in general economic conditions (or both) may impair the ability of such person or entity to make such payments and result in defaults on, and declines in, the value of its debt. The Fund’s return to Shareholders would be adversely impacted if a borrower and issuer of debt securities in which the Fund invests becomes unable to make such payments when due. Other risk factors include interest rate risk (a rise in interest rates causes a decline in the value of debt securities) and prepayment risk (the debtor may pay its obligation early, reducing the amount of interest payments). These risks could affect the value of a particular investment, possibly causing the Fund’s share price and total return to be reduced and fluctuate more than other types of investments.
DEFAULT RISK. The ability of the Fund to generate income through its investments is dependent upon payments being made by the borrower underlying such loan investments. If a borrower is unable to make its payments on a loan, the Fund may be greatly limited in its ability to recover any outstanding principal and interest under such loan.
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A portion of the loans in which the Fund may invest will not be secured by any collateral, will not be guaranteed or insured by a third party and will not be backed by any governmental authority. The Fund may need to rely on the collection efforts of third parties, which also may be limited in their ability to collect on defaulted loans. The Fund may not have direct recourse against borrowers, may not be able to contact a borrower about a loan and may not be able to pursue borrowers to collect payment under loans. To the extent a loan is secured, there can be no assurance as to the amount of any funds that may be realized from recovering and liquidating any collateral or the timing of such recovery and liquidation and hence there is no assurance that sufficient funds (or, possibly, any funds) will be available to offset any payment defaults that occur under the loans. Loans are credit obligations of the borrowers and the terms of certain loans may not restrict the borrowers from incurring additional debt. If a borrower incurs additional debt after obtaining a loan through a platform, the additional debt may adversely affect the borrower’s creditworthiness generally, and could result in the financial distress, insolvency or bankruptcy of the borrower. This circumstance would ultimately impair the ability of that borrower to make payments on its loans and the Fund’s ability to receive the principal and interest payments that it expects to receive on such loan. To the extent borrowers incur other indebtedness that is secured, the ability of the secured creditors to exercise remedies against the assets of that borrower may impair the borrower’s ability to repay its loans, or it may impair a third party’s ability to collect, on behalf of the Fund, on the loan upon default. To the extent that a loan is unsecured, borrowers may choose to repay obligations under other indebtedness (such as loans obtained from traditional lending sources) before repaying an unsecured loan because the borrowers have no collateral at risk. The Fund will not be made aware of any additional debt incurred by a borrower or whether such debt is secured.
If a borrower files for bankruptcy, any pending collection actions will automatically be put on hold and further collection action will not be permitted absent court approval. It is possible that a borrower’s liability on its loan will be discharged in bankruptcy. In most cases involving the bankruptcy of a borrower with an unsecured loan, unsecured creditors will receive only a fraction of any amount outstanding on the loan, if anything.
SERVICER RISK. The Fund’s direct and indirect investments in loans originated or sourced by alternative lending platforms are typically serviced by that platform or a third-party servicer. In the event that the servicer is unable to service the loan, there can be no guarantee that a backup servicer will be able to assume responsibility for servicing the loans in a timely or cost-effective manner; any resulting disruption or delay could jeopardize payments due to the Fund in respect of its investments or increase the costs associated with these investments. If the servicer becomes subject to a bankruptcy or similar proceeding, there is some risk that the Fund’s investments could be recharacterized as a secured loan to the platform, as described more fully (with respect to the potential bankruptcy of a platform) above under “Regulatory Risk/ Loan Industry,” which could result in uncertainty, costs and delays from having the Fund’s investment deemed part of the bankruptcy estate of the platform, rather than an asset owned outright by the Fund.
ASSET-BACKED SECURITIES. Asset-backed securities often involve risks that are different from or more acute than risks associated with other types of debt instruments. For instance, asset-backed securities may be particularly sensitive to changes in prevailing interest rates. In addition, the underlying assets are subject to prepayments that shorten the securities’ weighted average maturity and may lower their return. Asset-backed securities are also subject to risks associated with their structure and the nature of the assets underlying the security and the servicing of those assets. Payment of interest and repayment of principal on asset-backed securities is largely dependent upon the cash flows generated by the assets backing the securities and, in certain cases, supported by letters of credit, surety bonds or other credit enhancements. The values of asset-backed securities may be substantially dependent on the servicing of the underlying asset pools, and are therefore subject to risks associated with the negligence by, or defalcation of, their servicers. Furthermore, debtors may be entitled to the protection of a number of state and federal consumer credit laws with respect to the assets underlying these securities, which may give the debtor the right to avoid or reduce payment. In addition, due to their often complicated structures, various asset-backed securities may be difficult to value and may constitute illiquid investments. If many borrowers on the underlying loans default, losses could exceed the credit enhancement level and result in losses to investors in asset-backed securities.
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An investment in subordinated (residual) classes of asset-backed securities is typically considered to be an illiquid and highly speculative investment, as losses on the underlying assets are first absorbed by the subordinated classes. The risks associated with an investment in such subordinated classes of asset-backed securities include credit risk, regulatory risk pertaining to the Fund’s ability to collect on such securities and liquidity risk.
HIGH YIELD DEBT. The Fund may invest in high yield debt (or “junk bonds”). A substantial portion of the high yield debt in which the Fund intends to invest are rated below investment-grade by one or more nationally recognized statistical rating organizations or are unrated but of comparable credit quality to obligations rated below investment-grade, and have greater credit and liquidity risk than more highly rated debt obligations. Lower-rated securities may include securities that have the lowest rating or are in default. High yield debt is generally unsecured and may be subordinate to other obligations of the obligor. The lower rating of high yield debt reflects a greater possibility that adverse changes in the financial condition of the borrower or in general economic conditions (including, for example, a substantial period of rising interest rates or declining earnings) or both may impair the ability of the borrower to make payment of principal and interest. High yield debt has historically experienced greater default rates than has been the case for investment-grade securities. The Fund may also invest in equity securities issued by entities with unrated or below investment-grade debt.
Many issuers of high yield debt are highly leveraged, and their relatively high debt-to-equity ratios create increased risks that their operations might not generate sufficient cash flow to service their debt obligations. In addition, many issuers of high yield debt may be in poor financial condition, experiencing poor operating results, having substantial capital needs or negative net worth or be facing special competitive or product obsolescence problems, and may include companies involved in bankruptcy or other reorganizations or liquidation proceedings. High yield debt may be more susceptible to real or perceived adverse economic and individual corporate developments than would investment grade debt securities. Many of these securities are not publicly traded, and therefore it may be difficult to accurately value certain portfolio securities and to obtain information as to the true condition of the issuers. Overall declines in the below investment-grade bond and other markets may adversely affect such issuers by inhibiting their ability to refinance their debt at maturity. Because investment in high yield debt involves greater investment risk, achievement of the Fund’s investment objectives will be more dependent on the Investment Manager’s analysis than would be the case if the Fund were investing in higher quality debt securities.
High yield debt may also be in the form of zero-coupon or deferred interest bonds, which are bonds which are issued at a significant discount from face value. The original discount approximates the total amount of interest the bonds will accrue and compound over the period until maturity or the first interest accrual date at a rate of interest reflecting the market rate of the security at the time of issuance. While zero-coupon bonds do not require the periodic payment of interest, deferred interest bonds generally provide for a period of delay before the regular payment of interest begins. Such investments experience greater volatility in market value due to changes in the interest rates than bonds that that provide for regular payments of interest.
Investing in lower-rated securities involves special risks in addition to the risks associated with investments in higher-rated fixed income securities, including a high degree of credit risk. Lower-rated securities may be regarded as predominately speculative with respect to the issuer’s continuing ability to meet principal and interest payments. Analysis of the creditworthiness of issuers/issues of lower-rated securities may be more complex than for issuers/issues of higher quality debt securities. Securities that are in the lowest rating category are considered to have extremely poor prospects of ever attaining any real investment standing, to have a current identifiable vulnerability to default and/or to be unlikely to have the capacity to pay interest and repay principal. The secondary markets on which lower-rated securities are traded may be less liquid than the market for higher grade securities. Less liquidity in the secondary trading markets could adversely affect and cause large fluctuations in the value of the Fund’s portfolio. Adverse publicity and investor perceptions, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may decrease the values and liquidity of lower-rated securities, especially in a thinly traded market.
The use of credit ratings as the sole method of evaluating lower-rated securities can involve certain risks. For example, credit ratings evaluate the safety of principal and interest payments, not the market value risk of lower-rated securities. Also, credit rating agencies may fail to change credit ratings in a timely fashion to reflect events since the security was rated.
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SECURED DEBT. Secured debt holds the most senior position in the capital structure of a borrower. Secured debt in most circumstances is fully collateralized by assets of the borrower. Thus, it is generally repaid before unsecured bank loans, corporate bonds, subordinated debt, trade creditors, and preferred or common stockholders. However, there is a risk that the collateral securing the loans held by the Fund may decrease in value over time, may be difficult to sell in a timely manner, may be difficult to appraise, and may fluctuate in value based upon the success of the business and market conditions, including as a result of the inability of the borrower to raise additional capital. Also, substantial increases in interest rates may cause an increase in loan defaults as borrowers may lack resources to meet higher debt service requirements. In some circumstances, the Fund’s security interest could be subordinated to claims of other creditors. In addition, any deterioration in a borrower’s financial condition and prospects, including any inability on its part to raise additional capital, may result in the deterioration in the value of the related collateral. Consequently, the fact that debt is secured does not guarantee that the Fund will receive principal and interest payments according to the investment terms or at all, or that the Fund will be able to collect on the investment if one of them is forced to enforce its remedies. Moreover, the security for the Fund’s investments in secured debt may not be recognized for a variety of reasons, including the failure to make required filings by lenders, trustees or other responsible parties and, as a result, the Fund may not have priority over other creditors as anticipated.
Secured debt usually includes restrictive covenants, which must be maintained by the borrower. The Fund may have an obligation with respect to certain senior secured term loan investments to make additional loans, including delayed draw term loans and revolving facilities, upon demand by the borrower. Such instruments, unlike certain bonds, usually do not have call protection. This means that such interests, while having a stated term, may be prepaid, often without penalty. The rate of such prepayments may be affected by, among other things, general business and economic conditions, as well as the financial status of the borrower. Prepayment would cause the actual duration of a senior loan to be shorter than its stated maturity.
Secured debt typically will be secured by pledges of collateral from the borrower in the form of tangible and intangible assets. In some instances, the Fund may invest in secured debt that is secured only by stock of the borrower or its subsidiaries or affiliates. The value of the collateral may decline below the principal amount of the senior secured term loans subsequent to an investment by the Fund.
UNSECURED LOANS. The Fund may purchase or make unsecured loans to borrowers, meaning that such loans will not benefit from any interest in collateral of such borrowers. Liens on such a borrower’s collateral, if any, will secure the borrower’s obligations under its outstanding secured debt and may secure certain future debt that is permitted to be incurred by the borrower under its secured loan agreements. The holders of obligations secured by such liens will generally control the liquidation of, and be entitled to receive proceeds from, any realization of such collateral to repay their obligations in full before the Fund. In addition, the value of such collateral in the event of liquidation will depend on market and economic conditions, the availability of buyers and other factors. There can be no assurance that the proceeds, if any, from sales of such collateral would be sufficient to satisfy the Fund’s unsecured loan obligations after payment in full of all secured loan obligations. If such proceeds were not sufficient to repay the outstanding secured loan obligations, then the Fund’s unsecured claims generally would rank equally with the unpaid portion of such secured creditors’ claims against the borrower’s remaining assets, if any.
VALUATION RISK. Unlike publicly traded common stock which trades on national exchanges, there is no central place or exchange for most of the Fund’s investments to trade. Due to the lack of centralized information and trading, the valuation of loans or fixed-income instruments may carry more risk than that of common stock. Uncertainties in the conditions of the financial market, unreliable reference data, lack of transparency and inconsistency of valuation models and processes may lead to inaccurate asset pricing. In addition, other market participants may value securities differently than the Fund. As a result, the Fund may be subject to the risk that when an instrument is sold in the market, the amount received by the Fund is less than the value of such loans or fixed-income instruments carried on the Fund’s books.
Shareholders should recognize that valuations of illiquid assets involve various judgments and consideration of factors that may be subjective. As a result, the NAV of the Fund, as determined based on the fair value of its investments, may vary from the amount ultimately received by the Fund from its investments. This could adversely affect Shareholders whose Shares are repurchased as well as new Shareholders and remaining Shareholders. For example, in certain cases, the Fund might receive less than the fair value of its investment, resulting in a dilution of the value of the Shares of Shareholders who do not tender their Shares in any coincident repurchase offer and a windfall to tendering Shareholders; in other cases, the Fund might receive more than the fair value of its investment, resulting in a windfall to Shareholders remaining in the Fund, but a shortfall to tendering Shareholders.
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ILLIQUID PORTFOLIO INVESTMENTS. It is expected that a substantial portion of the securities and instruments in which the Fund invests will not trade on any exchange and will be illiquid. The Fund generally considers “illiquid securities” to be securities or loans that cannot be sold within seven days in the ordinary course of business at approximately the value used by the Fund in determining its NAV. These instruments may be illiquid at the time an investment is made or may become and potentially stay illiquid during the pendency of an investment.
The market prices, if any, for such investments may not be readily ascertainable, and the Fund could typically be unable to sell them when it desires to do so or to realize what it perceives to be their fair value in the event of a sale. Any possible sale of restricted and illiquid securities often requires more time and results in higher brokerage charges or dealer discounts and other selling expenses than does the sale of securities eligible for trading on national securities exchanges or in the over-the-counter markets. The Fund may not be able to readily dispose of such illiquid investments and, in some cases, may be contractually prohibited from disposing of such investments for a specified period of time. Restricted securities may sell at a price lower than similar securities that are not subject to restrictions on resale.
Investors acquiring direct loans hoping to recoup their entire principal must generally hold their loans through maturity. Direct loans may not be registered under the Securities Act, and are not listed on any securities exchange. Accordingly, those loan investments may not be transferred unless they are first registered under the Securities Act and all applicable state or foreign securities laws or the transfer qualifies for exemption from such registration. A reliable secondary market has yet to develop, nor may one ever develop for direct loans and, as such, these investments should be considered illiquid. Until an active secondary market develops, the Fund intends to primarily hold its direct loans until maturity. The Fund may not be able to sell any of its direct loans even under circumstances when the Investment Manager believes it would be in the best interests of the Fund to sell such investments. In such circumstances, the overall returns to the Fund from its direct loans may be adversely affected. Moreover, certain direct loans may be subject to certain additional significant restrictions on transferability. Although the Fund may attempt to increase its liquidity by borrowing from a bank or other institution, its assets may not readily be accepted as collateral for such borrowing.
Some syndicated loans are not readily marketable and may be subject to restrictions on resale. Syndicated loans generally are not listed on any national securities exchange and no active trading market may exist for the syndicated loans in which the Fund may invest. When a secondary market exists, if at all, the market for some syndicated loans may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods. The Fund has no limitation on the amount of its assets that may be invested in securities that are not readily marketable or are subject to restrictions on resale.
INDUSTRY CONCENTRATION RISK. The Fund’s investments will be concentrated in the consumer finance industries. As a result, the Fund’s portfolio may be more sensitive to, and possibly more adversely affected by, regulatory, economic or political factors or trends affecting the consumer finance industries than a portfolio representing a larger number of industries and the Fund itself may present more risks than if it were broadly diversified over numerous industries. A downturn in the consumer finance industries may have a larger impact on the Fund than on an investment company that does not concentrate in such industries. At times, the performance of investments related to consumer finance industries will lag behind the performance of other industries or the broader market as a whole. A fund that concentrates its investments (invests more than 25% of its total assets) in a particular industry (or group of industries) is more exposed to the overall condition of the particular industry than a fund that invests in a wider variety of industries. A particular industry could be affected by economic, business, supply-and-demand, political, or regulatory factors. As a result, a fund’s concentration in a particular industry would increase the possibility that the Fund’s performance will be affected by such factors.
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FOCUSED INVESTMENT RISK. To the extent that the Fund focuses its investments in a particular industry, the Fund’s NAV will be more susceptible to events or factors affecting companies in that industry. These may include, but are not limited to, governmental regulation, inflation, rising interest rates, cost increases in raw materials, fuel and other operating expenses, technological innovations that may render existing products and equipment obsolete, competition from new entrants, high research and development costs, increased costs associated with compliance with environmental or other regulation and other economic, market, political or other developments specific to that industry. Also, the Fund may invest a substantial portion of its assets in companies in related sectors that may share common characteristics, are often subject to similar business risks and regulatory burdens and whose securities may react similarly to the types of events and factors described above, which will subject the Fund to greater risk. The Fund also will be subject to focused investment risk to the extent that it invests a substantial portion of its assets in a particular country or geographic region.
DIRECT LENDING/ORIGINATION RISK. The Fund may invest in loans or privately placed debt securities, either of which may be directly originated by the Fund. The Fund’s operations depend on several factors, including the availability of opportunities for the origination or acquisition of target investments, the level and volatility of interest rates, the availability of adequate short and long-term financing, conditions in the financial markets and economic conditions. Further, the Fund’s ability or inability to raise capital and the risk of portfolio company defaults may materially and adversely affect the Fund’s investment originations, business, liquidity, financial condition, results of operations and its ability to make distributions to its shareholders. In addition, competition for originations of and investments in the Fund’s target investments may lead to the price of such assets increasing or the decrease of interest income from loans originated by the Fund, which may further limit its ability to generate desired returns. Also, as a result of this competition, desirable investments may be limited in the future, and the Fund may not be able to take advantage of attractive investment opportunities from time to time, as the Fund can provide no assurance that the Investment Manager will be able to identify and make investments that are consistent with its investment objective.
Additionally, in making a direct loan, the Fund is exposed to the risk that the borrower may default or become insolvent and, consequently, that the Fund may lose money on the loan depending on, among other things, the value of the underlying collateral and the Fund’s rights to that collateral. Furthermore, direct loans may subject the Fund to liquidity and interest rate risk and certain direct loans may be deemed illiquid. Direct loans are not publicly traded and may not have a secondary market. The lack of a secondary market for direct loans may have an adverse impact on the ability of the Fund to dispose of a direct loan and/or to value the direct loan. When engaging in direct lending, the Fund’s performance may depend, in part, on the ability of the Fund to originate loans on advantageous terms. In originating and purchasing loans, the Fund will compete with a broad spectrum of lenders. Increased competition for, or a diminishment in the available supply of, qualifying loans could result in lower yields on such loans, which could reduce Fund performance. To the extent the Fund is the sole lender in privately offered debt, it may be solely responsible for the expense of servicing that debt, including, if necessary, taking legal actions to foreclose on any security instrument securing the debt (e.g., the mortgage or, in the case of a mezzanine loan, the pledge). This may increase the risk and expense to the Fund compared to syndicated or publicly offered debt.
LENDER LIABILITY CONSIDERATIONS AND EQUITABLE SUBORDINATION. A number of U.S. judicial decisions have upheld judgments obtained by borrowers against lending institutions on the basis of various evolving legal theories, collectively termed “lender liability.” Generally, lender liability is founded on the premise that a lender has violated a duty (whether implied or contractual) of good faith, commercial reasonableness and fair dealing, or a similar duty owed to the borrower or has assumed an excessive degree of control over the borrower resulting in the creation of a fiduciary duty owed to the borrower or its other creditors or shareholders. Because of the nature of its investments, the Fund may be subject to allegations of lender liability.
In addition, under common law principles that in some cases form the basis for lender liability claims, if a lender or bondholder (a) intentionally takes an action that results in the undercapitalization of a borrower to the detriment of other creditors of such borrower, (b) engages in other inequitable conduct to the detriment of such other creditors, (c) engages in fraud with respect to, or makes misrepresentations to, such other creditors or (d) uses its influence as a stockholder to dominate or control a borrower to the detriment of other creditors of such borrower, a court may elect to subordinate the claim of the offending lender or bondholder to the claims of the disadvantaged creditor or creditors, a remedy called “equitable subordination.”
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Because affiliates of, or persons related to, the Investment Manager may hold equity or other interests in obligors of the Fund, the Fund could be exposed to claims for equitable subordination or lender liability or both based on such equity or other holdings.
COLLATERALIZED LOAN OBLIGATIONS (“CLOs”) AND COLLATERALIZED DEBT OBLIGATIONS (“CDOs”). The Fund may invest in CLOs and CDOs. CLOs and CDOs are created by the grouping of certain private loans and other lender assets/collateral into pools. A sponsoring organization establishes a special purpose vehicle to hold the assets/collateral and issue securities. Interests in these pools are sold as individual securities. Payments of principal and interest are passed through to investors and are typically supported by some form of credit enhancement, such as a letter of credit, surety bond, limited guaranty or senior/subordination. Payments from the asset pools may be divided into several different tranches of debt securities, offering investors various maturity and credit risk characteristics. Some tranches entitled to receive regular installments of principal and interest, other tranches entitled to receive regular installments of interest, with principal payable at maturity or upon specified call dates, and other tranches only entitled to receive payments of principal and accrued interest at maturity or upon specified call dates. Different tranches of securities will bear different interest rates, which may be fixed or floating.
Investors in CLOs and CDOs bear the credit risk of the assets/collateral. Tranches are categorized as senior, mezzanine, and subordinated/equity, according to their degree of credit risk. If there are defaults or the CDO’s collateral otherwise underperforms, scheduled payments to senior tranches take precedence over those of mezzanine tranches, and scheduled payments to mezzanine tranches take precedence over those to subordinated/equity tranches. Senior and mezzanine tranches are typically rated, with the former receiving S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”) ratings of A to AAA and the latter receiving ratings of B to BBB. The ratings reflect both the credit quality of underlying collateral as well as how much protection a given tranche is afforded by tranches that are subordinate to it.
Because the loans held in the pool often may be prepaid without penalty or premium, CLOs and CDOs can be subject to higher prepayment risks than most other types of debt instruments. Prepayments may result in a capital loss to the Fund to the extent that the prepaid securities purchased at a market discount from their stated principal amount will accelerate the recognition of interest income by the Fund, which would be taxed as ordinary income when distributed to the Shareholders. The credit characteristics of CLOs and CDOs also differ in a number of respects from those of traditional debt securities. The credit quality of most CLOs and CDOs depends primarily upon the credit quality of the assets/collateral underlying such securities, how well the entity issuing the securities is insulated from the credit risk of the originator or any other affiliated entities, and the amount and quality of any credit enhancement to such securities.
CLOs and CDOs are typically privately offered and sold, and thus, are not registered under the securities laws, which means less information about the security may be available as compared to publicly offered securities and only certain institutions may buy and sell them. As a result, investments in CLOs and CDOs may be characterized by the Fund as illiquid securities. An active dealer market may exist for CLOs and CDOs that can be resold in Rule 144A transactions, but there can be no assurance that such a market will exist or will be active enough for the Fund to sell such securities. The Fund’s investments in (i) CLOs, (ii) CDOs, and (iii) warehouses, which are financing structures created prior to and in anticipation of CLO or CDO closings and issuing securities and are intended to aggregate direct loans, corporate loans and/or other debt obligations that may be used to form the basis of CLO or CDO vehicles (“Warehouses”), in each case structured as 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) funds, are not included for purposes of the Fund’s 15% limitation on Private Investment Funds that are excepted from the definition of “investment company” under the Investment Company Act by Section 3(c)(1) or Section 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act.
In addition to the typical risks associated with fixed-income securities and asset-backed securities, CLOs and CDOs carry other risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral securities will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the risk that the collateral may default, decline in value or quality, or be downgraded by a rating agency; (iii) the Fund may invest in tranches of CLOs and CDOs that are subordinate to other tranches, diminishing the likelihood of payment; (iv) the structure and complexity of the transaction and the legal documents could lead to disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results; (v) risk of forced “fire sale” liquidation due to technical defaults such as coverage test failures; and (vi) the manager of the CLO or CDO may perform poorly.
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STRUCTURED PRODUCTS. The CLOs and other CDOs in which the Fund may invest are structured products. Holders of structured products bear risks of the underlying assets and are subject to counterparty risk.
The Fund may have the right to receive payments only from the structured product, and generally does not have direct rights against the issuer or the entity that sold the assets to be securitized. While certain structured products enable the investor to acquire interests in a pool of securities without the brokerage and other expenses associated with directly holding the same securities, investors in structured products generally pay their share of the structured product’s administrative and other expenses. Although it is difficult to predict whether the prices of assets underlying structured products will rise or fall, these prices (and, therefore, the prices of structured products) will be influenced by the same types of political and economic events that affect issuers of securities and capital markets generally. If the issuer of a structured product uses shorter-term financing to purchase longer-term securities, the issuer may be forced to sell its securities at below-market prices if it experiences difficulty in obtaining short-term financing, which may adversely affect the value of the structured products owned by the Fund.
Certain structured products may be thinly traded or have a limited trading market. CLOs and credit- linked notes are typically privately offered and sold.
SYNDICATED LOANS RISK. The syndicated loans in which the Fund will invest will primarily be rated below investment grade, but may also be unrated and of comparable credit quality. As a result, the risks associated with such syndicated loans are generally similar to the risks of other below investment grade fixed income instruments, although syndicated loans are senior and typically secured in contrast to other below investment grade fixed income instruments, which are often subordinated or unsecured. Investments in below investment grade syndicated loans are considered speculative because of the credit risk of the borrowers. Such borrowers are more likely than investment grade borrowers to default on their payments of interest and principal owed to the Fund, and such defaults could reduce the Fund’s NAV and income dividends. An economic downturn would generally lead to a higher non-payment rate, and a syndicated loan may lose significant market value before a default occurs. Moreover, any specific collateral used to secure a syndicated loan may decline in value or become illiquid, which would adversely affect the syndicated loan’s value. Syndicated loans are subject to a number of risks described elsewhere in this prospectus, including liquidity risk and the risk of investing in below investment grade fixed income instruments.
Syndicated loans are subject to the risk of non-payment of scheduled interest or principal. Such non- payment would result in a reduction of income to the Fund, a reduction in the value of the investment and a potential decrease in the NAV of the Fund. There can be no assurance that the liquidation of any collateral securing a syndicated loan would satisfy the borrower’s obligation in the event of non-payment of scheduled interest or principal payments, whether when due or upon acceleration, or that the collateral could be liquidated, readily or otherwise. In the event of bankruptcy or insolvency of a borrower, the Fund could experience delays or limitations with respect to its ability to realize the benefits of the collateral, if any, securing a syndicated loan. The collateral securing a syndicated loan, if any, may lose all or substantially all of its value in the event of the bankruptcy or insolvency of a borrower. Some syndicated loans are subject to the risk that a court, pursuant to fraudulent conveyance or other similar laws, could subordinate such syndicated loans to presently existing or future indebtedness of the borrower or take other action detrimental to the holders of syndicated loans including, in certain circumstances, invalidating such syndicated loans or causing interest previously paid to be refunded to the borrower.
Additionally, a syndicated loan may be “primed” in bankruptcy, which reduces the ability of the holders of the syndicated loan to recover on the collateral. Priming takes place when a debtor in bankruptcy is allowed to incur additional indebtedness by the bankruptcy court and such indebtedness has a senior or pari passu lien with the debtor’s existing secured indebtedness, such as existing syndicated loans or secured corporate bonds.
There may be less readily available information about most syndicated loans and the borrowers thereunder than is the case for many other types of securities, including securities issued in transactions registered under the Securities Act, or registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and borrowers subject to the periodic reporting requirements of Section 13 of the Exchange Act. Syndicated loans may be issued by companies that are not subject to SEC reporting requirements and these companies, therefore, do not file reports with the SEC that must comply with SEC form requirements and in addition are subject to a less stringent liability disclosure regime than companies subject to SEC reporting requirements. As a result, the Investment Manager will rely primarily on its own evaluation of a borrower’s credit quality rather than on any available independent sources. Therefore, the Fund will be particularly dependent on the analytical abilities of the Investment Manager.
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The secondary trading market for syndicated loans may be less liquid than the secondary trading market for registered investment grade debt securities. No active trading market may exist for certain syndicated loans, which may make it difficult to value them. Illiquidity and adverse market conditions may mean that the Fund may not be able to sell syndicated loans quickly or at a fair price. To the extent that a secondary market does exist for certain syndicated loans, the market for them may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods.
Syndicated loans and other variable rate debt instruments are subject to the risk of payment defaults of scheduled interest or principal. Such payment defaults would result in a reduction of income to the Fund, a reduction in the value of the investment and a potential decrease in the NAV of the Fund. Similarly, a sudden and significant increase in market interest rates may increase the risk of payment defaults and cause a decline in the value of these investments and in the Fund’s NAV. Other factors (including, but not limited to, rating downgrades, credit deterioration, a large downward movement in share prices, a disparity in supply and demand of certain securities or market conditions that reduce liquidity) can reduce the value of syndicated loans and other debt obligations, impairing the Fund’s NAV.
Syndicated loans are subject to legislative risk. If legislation or state or federal regulations impose additional requirements or restrictions on the ability of financial institutions to make loans, the availability of syndicated loans for investment by the Fund may be adversely affected. In addition, such requirements or restrictions could reduce or eliminate sources of financing for certain borrowers. This would increase the risk of default. If legislation or federal or state regulations require financial institutions to increase their capital requirements this may cause financial institutions to dispose of syndicated loans that are considered highly levered transactions. Such sales could result in prices that, in the opinions of the Investment Manager, do not represent fair value. If the Fund attempts to sell a syndicated loan at a time when a financial institution is engaging in such a sale, the price the Fund could receive for the syndicated loan may be adversely affected.
The Fund expects to acquire syndicated loans through assignments and, to a lesser extent, through participations. The purchaser of an assignment typically succeeds to all the rights and obligations of the assigning institution and becomes a lender under the credit agreement with respect to the debt obligation; however, the purchaser’s rights can be more restricted than those of the assigning institution, and the Fund may not be able to unilaterally enforce all rights and remedies under the loan and with regard to any associated collateral. In general, a participation is a contractual relationship only with the institution participating out the interest, not with the borrower. Sellers of participations typically include banks, broker-dealers, other financial institutions and lending institutions. In purchasing participations, the Fund generally will have no right to enforce compliance by the borrower with the terms of the loan agreement against the borrower, and the Fund may not directly benefit from the collateral supporting the debt obligation in which it has purchased the participation. As a result, (i) the Fund will be exposed to the credit risk of both the borrower and the institution selling the participation; and (ii) both the borrower and the institution selling the participation will be considered issuers for purposes of the Fund’s investment restriction concerning industry concentration. See “INVESTMENT POLICIES AND RESTRICTIONS” in the Fund’s SAI. Further, in purchasing participations in lending syndicates, the Fund may be more limited than it otherwise would be in its ability to conduct due diligence on the borrower. In addition, as a holder of the participations, the Fund may not have voting rights or inspection rights that the Fund would otherwise have if it were investing directly in the syndicated loan, which may result in the Fund being exposed to greater credit or fraud risk with respect to the borrower or the syndicated loan.
REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS AND REVERSE REPURCHASE AGREEMENTS. Repurchase agreements carry certain risks not associated with direct investments in securities, including a possible decline in the market value of the underlying obligations. If their value becomes less than the epurchase price, plus any agreed-upon additional amount, the counterparty must provide additional collateral so that at all times the collateral is at least equal to the repurchase price plus any agreed-upon additional amount. The difference between the total amount to be received upon repurchase of the obligations and the price that was paid by the Fund upon acquisition is accrued as interest and included in its net investment income.
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Repurchase agreements involving obligations other than U.S. Government securities (such as commercial paper and Corporate Bonds) may be subject to special risks and may not have the benefit of certain protections in the event of the counterparty’s insolvency. In the event of the bankruptcy or other default of a seller of a repurchase agreement, the Fund could experience both delays in liquidating the underlying securities and losses, including (i) possible decline in the value of the underlying security during the period in which the Fund seeks to enforce its rights thereto; (ii) possible lack of access to income on the underlying security during this period; and (iii) expenses of enforcing its rights.
Reverse repurchase agreements involve the sale of securities held by the Fund with an agreement to repurchase the securities at an agreed-upon price and date, thereby establishing an effective interest rate. The Fund’s use of reverse repurchase agreements, in economic essence, constitute a securitized borrowing by the Fund from the security purchaser. The Fund may enter into reverse repurchase agreements for the purpose of creating a leveraged investment exposure and, as such, their usage involves essentially the same risks associated with a leveraging strategy generally since the proceeds from these agreements may be invested in additional securities. Reverse repurchase agreements tend to be short-term in tenor, and there can be no assurances that the purchaser (lender) will commit to extend or “roll” a given agreement upon its agreed-upon repurchase date or an alternative purchaser can be identified on similar terms.
Reverse repurchase agreements also involve the risk that the buyer of the securities sold by the Fund might be unable to deliver them when the Fund seeks to repurchase. In the event that the buyer of securities under a reverse repurchase agreement files for bankruptcy or becomes insolvent, the buyer, trustee or receiver may receive an extension of time to determine whether to enforce the Fund’s obligation to repurchase the securities, and the Fund’s use of the proceeds of the reverse repurchase agreement may effectively be restricted pending such decision.
MEZZANINE DEBT. A portion of the Fund’s debt investments may be made in certain high yield securities known as mezzanine investments, which are subordinated debt securities that may be issued together with an equity security (e.g., with attached warrants). Those mezzanine investments may be issued with or without registration rights. Mezzanine investments can be unsecured and generally subordinate to other obligations of the issuer. The expected average life of the Fund��s mezzanine investments may be significantly shorter than the maturity of these investments due to prepayment rights. Mezzanine investments share all of the risks of other high yield securities and are subject to greater risk of loss of principal and interest than higher-rated securities. They are also generally considered to be subject to greater risk than securities with higher ratings in the case of deterioration of general economic conditions. Because investors generally perceive that there are greater risks associated with the lower-rated securities, the yields and prices of those securities may tend to fluctuate more than those for higher-rated securities. The Fund does not anticipate a market for its mezzanine investments, which can adversely affect the prices at which these securities can be sold. In addition, adverse publicity and investor perceptions about lower-rated securities, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may be a contributing factor in a decrease in the value and liquidity of those lower-rated securities. Mezzanine securities are often even more subordinated than other high yield debt, as they often represent the most junior debt security in an issuer’s capital structure.
NON-PERFORMING LOANS. The Fund may invest in non-performing and sub-performing loans which often involve workout negotiations, restructuring and the possibility of foreclosure. These processes are often lengthy and expensive. In addition, the Fund’s investments may include securities and debt obligations of financially distressed issuers, including companies involved in bankruptcy or other reorganization and liquidation proceedings. As a result, the Fund’s investments may be subject to additional bankruptcy related risks, and returns on such investments may not be realized for a considerable period of time.
An investment in subordinated (residual) classes of asset-backed securities is typically considered to be an illiquid and highly speculative investment, as losses on the underlying assets are first absorbed by the subordinated classes. The risks associated with an investment in such subordinated classes of asset-backed securities include credit risk, regulatory risk pertaining to the Fund’s ability to collect on such securities and liquidity risk.
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COVENANT-LITE LOANS: Loans in which the Fund may invest or to which the Fund may gain exposure indirectly through its investments in CDOs, CLOs or other types of structured securities may be considered “covenant-lite” loans. Covenant-lite refers to loans which do not incorporate traditional performance-based financial maintenance covenants. Covenant-lite does not refer to a loan’s seniority in the borrower’s capital structure nor to a lack of the benefit from a legal pledge of the borrower’s assets, and it also does not necessarily correlate to the overall credit quality of the borrower. Covenant-lite loans generally do not include terms which allow the lender to take action based on the borrower’s performance relative to its covenants. Such actions may include the ability to renegotiate and/or re-set the credit spread on the loan with the borrower, and even to declare a default or force a borrower into bankruptcy restructuring if certain criteria are breached. Covenant-lite loans typically still provide lenders with other covenants that restrict a company from incurring additional debt or engaging in certain actions. Such covenants can only be breached by an affirmative action of the borrower, rather than by a deterioration in the borrower’s financial condition. Accordingly, the Fund may have fewer rights against a borrower when it invests in or has exposure to covenant-lite loans and, accordingly, may have a greater risk of loss on such investments as compared to investments in or exposure to loans with additional or more conventional covenants.
DISTRESSED SECURITIES. Certain of the companies in whose securities the Fund may invest may be in transition, out of favor, financially leveraged or troubled, or potentially troubled, and may be or have recently been involved in major strategic actions, restructurings, bankruptcy, reorganization or liquidation. These characteristics of these companies can cause their securities to be particularly risky, although they also may offer the potential for high returns. These companies’ securities may be considered speculative, and the ability of the companies to pay their debts on schedule could be affected by adverse interest rate movements, changes in the general economic factors affecting a particular industry or specific developments within the companies. Such investments can result in significant or even total losses. In addition, the markets for distressed investment assets are frequently illiquid. Also, among the risks inherent in investments in a troubled issuer is that it frequently may be difficult to obtain information as to the true financial condition of such issuer. The Investment Manager’s judgments about the credit quality of a financially distressed issuer and the relative value of its securities may prove to be wrong.
In liquidation (both in and out of bankruptcy) and other forms of corporate reorganization, there exists the risk that the reorganization either will be unsuccessful (due to, for example, failure to obtain requisite approvals), will be delayed (for example, until various liabilities, actual or contingent, have been satisfied) or will result in a distribution of cash or a new security the value of which will be less than the purchase price to the Fund of the security in respect to which such distribution was made. Consequently, the Fund will be subject to significant uncertainty as to when, and in what manner, and for what value obligations evidenced by securities of financially distressed issuers will eventually be satisfied (e.g., through a liquidation of the issuer’s assets, an exchange offer or plan of reorganization, or a payment of some amount in satisfaction of the obligation). In certain transactions, the Fund may not be “hedged” against market fluctuations, or, in liquidation situations, may not accurately value the assets of the company being liquidated. This can result in losses, even if the proposed transaction is consummated.
MARKETPLACE LENDING. The Investment Manager may also invest the Fund’s assets in marketplace lending investments. The Fund’s marketplace lending investments may be made through a combination of: (i) investing in loans to consumers, small- and mid-sized companies (“SMEs”) and other borrowers, including borrowers of student loans, originated through online platforms (or an affiliate) that provide a marketplace for lending (“Marketplace Loans”) through purchases of whole loans (either individually or in aggregations); (ii) investing in notes or other pass-through obligations issued by a marketplace lending platform (or an affiliate) representing the right to receive the principal and interest payments on a Marketplace Loan (or fractional portions thereof) originated through the platform (“Pass-Through Notes”); (iii) purchasing asset-backed securities representing ownership in a pool of Marketplace Loans; (iv) investing in Private Investment Funds that purchase Marketplace Loans, (v) acquiring an equity interest in a marketplace lending platform (or an affiliate); and (vi) providing loans, credit lines or other extensions of credit to a marketplace lending platform (or an affiliate) (the foregoing listed investments are collectively referred to herein as the “Marketplace Lending Instruments”). The Fund may invest in such Marketplace Lending Instruments without limitation, except that the Fund will limit its total investments in Private Investment Funds that are excepted from the definition of “investment company” under the Investment Company Act by Section 3(c)(1) or Section 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act to no more than 15% of the Fund’s total assets. Marketplace Lending Instruments are generally not rated and constitute a highly risky and speculative investment, similar to an investment in “junk” bonds. There can be no assurance that payments due on underlying Marketplace Loans will be made. Shares of the Fund therefore should be purchased only by investors who could afford the loss of the entire amount of their investment.
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The Fund may also invest in Marketplace Lending Instruments in the form of receivables or merchant cash advances that are originated from lending platforms (collectively, “Marketplace Receivables”). Under normal circumstances, the Fund expects to invest between 0% and 25% of its net assets in Marketplace Receivables. Technically, the purchase of Marketplace Receivables is not a loan; rather, it is a commercial agreement pursuant to which the Fund provides a cash advance to a merchant in exchange for the right to receive a portion of the merchant's future receivables, up to a stated amount. However, notwithstanding this distinction, the Fund's purchase of Marketplace Receivables will be similar in many ways to its purchase of Marketplace Loans and, accordingly, references herein to the Fund's investments in Marketplace Loans should be read to include Marketplace Receivables, unless the context requires otherwise.
A substantial portion of the Marketplace Loans in which the Fund may invest will not be secured by any collateral, will not be guaranteed or insured by a third party and will not be backed by any governmental authority. Accordingly, the platforms and any third-party collection agencies will be limited in their ability to collect on defaulted Marketplace Loans. With respect to Marketplace Loans secured by collateral, there can be no assurance that the liquidation of any such collateral would satisfy a borrower’s obligation in the event of a default under its Marketplace Loan.
Furthermore, Marketplace Loans may not contain any cross-default or similar provisions. A cross-default provision makes a default under certain debt of a borrower an automatic default on other debt of that borrower. The effect of this can be to allow other creditors to move more quickly to claim any assets of the borrower. To the extent a Marketplace Loan does not contain a cross-default provision, the loan will not be placed automatically in default upon that borrower’s default on any of the borrower’s other debt obligations, unless there are relevant independent grounds for a default on the loan. In addition, the Marketplace Loan will not be referred to a third-party collection agency for collection because of a borrower’s default on debt obligations other than the Marketplace Loan. If a borrower first defaults on debt obligations other than the Marketplace Loan, the creditors to such other debt obligations may seize the borrower’s assets or pursue other legal action against the borrower, which may adversely impact the ability to recoup any principal and interest payments on the Marketplace Loan if the borrower subsequently defaults on the loan. In addition, an operator of a platform is generally not required to repurchase Marketplace Loans from a lender except under very narrow circumstances, such as in cases of verifiable identity fraud by the borrower or as may otherwise be negotiated by the Fund when purchasing whole loans.
Borrowers may seek protection under federal bankruptcy law or similar laws. If a borrower files for bankruptcy (or becomes the subject of an involuntary petition), a stay will go into effect that will automatically put any pending collection actions on hold and prevent further collection action absent bankruptcy court approval. Whether any payment will ultimately be made or received on a Marketplace Loan after bankruptcy status is declared depends on the borrower’s particular financial situation and the determination of the court. It is possible that the borrower’s liability on the Marketplace Loan will be discharged in bankruptcy. In most cases involving the bankruptcy of a borrower with an unsecured Marketplace Loan, unsecured creditors will receive only a fraction of any amount outstanding on their loan, if anything at all.
As Pass-Through Notes are pass-through obligations of the operators of the lending platforms, and not direct obligations of the borrowers under the underlying Marketplace Loans originated by such platforms, holders of certain Pass-Through Notes are exposed to the credit risk of the operator. An operator that becomes subject to bankruptcy proceedings may be unable to make full and timely payments on its Pass- Through Notes even if the borrowers of the underlying Marketplace Loans timely make all payments due from them. In addition, Pass-Through Notes are non-recourse obligations (except to the extent that the operator actually receives payments from the borrower on the loan). Accordingly, lenders assume all of the borrower credit risk on the loans they fund and are not entitled to recover any deficiency of principal or interest from the operator if the borrower defaults on its payments.
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There may be a delay between the time the Fund commits to purchase a Pass-Through Note and the issuance of such note and, during such delay, the funds committed to such an investment will not be available for investment in other Marketplace Lending Instruments. Because the funds committed to an investment in Pass-Through Notes do not earn interest until the issuance of the note, the delay in issuance will have the effect of reducing the effective rate of return on the investment.
PLATFORM RELIANCE RISK. The Fund materially depends on the platforms that originate the Fund’s Marketplace Loans for loan data and the origination, sourcing and servicing of Marketplace Loans. If such platforms were unable or impaired in their ability to operate their lending business, the Investment Manager may be required to seek alternative sources of investments (e.g., Marketplace Loans originated by other platforms), which could adversely affect the Fund’s performance and/or prevent the Fund from pursuing its investment objective and strategies. In order to sustain its business, platforms and their affiliated entities may be dependent in large part on their ability to raise additional capital to fund their operations. If a platform and its affiliated entities are unable to raise additional funding, they may be unable to continue their operations.
The Fund may have limited knowledge about the underlying Marketplace Loans in which it invests and will be dependent upon the platform originating such loans for information on the loans. Some investors of Marketplace Loans, including the Fund, may not review the particular characteristics of the loans in which they invest at the time of investment, but rather negotiate in advance with platforms the general criteria of the investments. As a result, the Fund is dependent on the platforms’ ability to collect, verify and provide information to the Fund about each Marketplace Loan and borrower.
REGULATORY AND OTHER RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH PLATFORMS AND MARKETPLACE LOANS IN AND OUTSIDE THE U.S. The platforms in the United States through which Marketplace Loans are originated are subject to various rules and regulations issued by federal, state and local government authorities. For example, these rules may require extensive disclosure to, and consents from, applicants and borrowers and may impose multiple qualification and licensing obligations on platforms before they may conduct their business. Federal and state consumer protection laws in particular impose requirements and place restrictions on creditors in connection with extensions of credit and collections on personal loans and protection of sensitive customer data obtained in the origination and servicing thereof. A failure to comply with the applicable rules and regulations may, among other things, subject the platform or its related entities to certain registration requirements with government authorities and the payment of any penalties and fines; result in the revocation of their licenses; cause the loan contracts originated by the platform to be voided or otherwise impair the enforcement of such loans; and subject them to potential civil and criminal liability, class action lawsuits and/or administrative enforcement actions. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on a platform’s financial condition, results of operations or ability to perform its obligations with respect to its lending business or could otherwise result in modifications in the platform’s methods of doing business which could impair the platform’s ability to service Marketplace Loans or collect on Marketplace Loans.
Marketplace Lending platforms located outside the United States are subject to rules and regulations of the applicable foreign jurisdiction which may subject to such platforms to more, less, similar or different regulation than those located in the United States.
RISKS RELATED TO INVESTMENTS IN RECEIVABLES OR INVOICES. The Fund may invest in alternative lending-related securities with exposure to receivables or invoice financing, including Marketplace Receivables. In making such investments, the Fund is dependent upon the platforms’ ability to monitor and curtail fraud, including factoring fraud, which involves the falsification of invoice documents. False invoices can easily be created online to appear as if they have been issued by legitimate debtors or as if the invoiced amounts are higher than they actually are. Platforms that originate trade receivables financing loans to corporations usually conduct due diligence but do not always conduct on-site visits to verify that the business exists and is in good standing. For this reason, the risk of fraud may be greater with corporate trade receivables. Typically, a platform will seek to validate that the debtor has received the goods or services for which it has been invoiced and is willing to pay the creditor before making the receivables available for investment, although this may not always be the case. There can be no assurance, however, that the debtor will not subsequently dispute the quality or price of the goods or services and withhold payments. Fraud, delays or write-offs associated with such disputes could directly impact the profitability of the Fund’s investments in alternative lending-related securities with exposure to trade receivables. In the event of insolvency of any debtor owing funds on a receivable that the Fund has purchased directly or indirectly, the Fund may only rank as an unsecured creditor. In the case of receivables transferred with recourse, when a debtor defaults on its obligations to the purchaser of the receivable (such as the Fund, directly or indirectly), the seller of the receivable will become obligated to fulfill any remaining invoice amounts owed to the purchaser. In the case of receivables transferred without recourse, the Fund or other direct owner of the receivable will have no such “back-up” obligor in the event of a debtor default. In either scenario, there is a risk that the party with the payment obligation will fail to make payments timely or at all.
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REGULATORY RISK/LOAN INDUSTRY. The loan industry is highly regulated and the alternative lending-related securities in which the Fund invests are subject to extensive rules and regulations issued by governmental authorities in each of the jurisdictions in which the Fund invests. These authorities also may impose obligations and restrictions on the platforms’ activities or those of other entities involved in the alternative lending process. These rules and regulations, as well as any change thereof, could increase the Fund’s or the platforms’ expenses and/or decrease the value of the Fund’s investments in alternative lending- related securities. As a result of COVID-19, changes to federal, state or local law or regulation may negatively affect the Fund’s ability to receive payments of interest and repayments of principal on its investments.
The platforms’ failure to comply with the requirements of applicable law may cause, among other things, the platforms to be required to register with or be licensed by governmental authorities and/or the revocation of requisite licenses, the voiding of loan contracts, impairment of the enforcement of loans or collection of interest, indemnification liability to contract counterparties, class action lawsuits, administrative enforcement actions and/or civil and criminal liability in the relevant jurisdiction. The evolving nature of the platforms’ respective business models may complicate their ability to determine the applicability of, and to effect compliance with, such requirements. Moreover, legal and regulatory requirements and any interpretations of those requirements are subject to periodic changes. Any such failure to comply with, or change in, applicable law necessitating new significant compliance obligations could have an adverse effect on the platforms’ compliance costs and ability to operate. The platforms could seek to pass through any increase in their costs to their borrowers or investors, such as the Fund, in the form of higher origination or servicing fees.
In connection with the sale and servicing of the whole loans, fractions of whole loans or pools of whole loans, the platforms typically make representations and warranties to investors, such as the Fund, that the loans were originated and are being serviced in accordance with and in compliance with applicable laws (and in some cases specifically with the laws described herein) in all material respects. Despite these representations and warranties, the Fund cannot guarantee that the platforms have been and will continue to be in compliance with all applicable laws. If those representations and warranties were not correct, the platforms could be required to repurchase the loans or indemnify the Fund for losses, but the Fund cannot be certain that the platform would be required and able to repurchase loans or indemnify the Fund for losses in all such cases.
In addition to laws governing the activities of lenders and servicers, a limited number of states require purchasers of certain loans, primarily consumer loans, to be licensed or registered in order to own the loans or, in certain states, to collect a rate of interest above a specified rate.
In addition, regulators, enforcement agencies and courts are increasingly considering the role of non-bank lenders. There is no guarantee that laws and regulations applicable to non-bank lenders will not change in a manner that adversely affects or restricts the Fund, including the ability of the Fund to acquire loans from the platforms, or otherwise restricts or materially increases the cost to the Fund of pursuing potential investment strategies.
Finally, increased reporting, registration, and compliance requirements may divert the attention of personnel and the management team of the Investment Manager, and may furthermore place the Fund at a competitive disadvantage to the extent that the Investment Manager or companies in which the Fund invests are required to disclose sensitive business information. The Fund will be required to bear the Fund’s expenses relating to compliance-related matters and regulatory filings.
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INFRASTRUCTURE AND CONTRACTED ASSETS. The Fund may invest its assets in securities issued by companies in the infrastructure industry. Infrastructure assets consist of those assets which provide the underlying foundation of basic services, facilities and institutions upon which the growth and development of a community depends, including physical structures, networks and systems of transportation, energy, water and sewage, and communication. A contracted asset is where an infrastructure firm enters into long-term contracts to pre-sell all or a portion of its output at a pre-agreed price. Examples include toll roads, power plants with off take and/or supply agreements and assets that are subject to lease or other revenue support schemes, such as regulated utilities. Infrastructure companies are subject to a variety of factors that may adversely affect their business or operations, including high interest costs in connection with capital construction programs, high leverage, costs associated with environmental and other regulations, the effects of economic slowdown including surplus capacity, government budgetary constraints and other factors. Additionally, infrastructure companies may be subject to regulation by various governmental authorities and also may be affected by governmental regulation of rates charged to customers, service interruptions and/or legal challenges due to environmental, operational or other issues and the imposition of special tariffs and changes in tax laws, regulatory policies and accounting standards. There is also the risk that publicly-funded infrastructure projects, especially in emerging markets, may be subject to changing regulations and the effects of public corruption, resulting in delays and cost overruns. Other risks include environmental damage due to a company’s operations or an accident, changes in market sentiment toward infrastructure and terrorist acts. Infrastructure securities may also be highly illiquid investments.
ROYALTIES. The Fund may invest in royalties, either directly purchasing the asset generating royalties or providing loans secured by royalties. Investments in royalties incorporate a number of general market risks along with risks specific to various underlying royalty strategies, such as music and healthcare, among others. Included in these risks could be volatility in commodities, regulatory changes, delays in government approvals, patent defense and enforcement, product liabilities, product pricing and the dependence on third parties to market or distribute the product. The market performance of the target products, therefore, may be diminished by any number of factors that are beyond the Fund’s control.
REGULATION S SECURITIES RISK. The Fund may seek to provide exposure to Regulation S securities that are not freely tradable in the U.S. by investing through the Subsidiaries. Regulation S securities are debt or equity securities of U.S. and foreign issuers offered through private offerings exempt from registration with the SEC pursuant to Regulation S of the Securities Act. Offerings of Regulation S securities may be conducted outside of the United States, and Regulation S securities may be relatively less liquid as a result of legal or contractual restrictions on resale. Although Regulation S securities may be resold in privately negotiated transactions, the price realized from these sales could be less than the price originally paid by the Fund. Further, companies whose securities are not publicly traded may not be subject to the disclosure of other investor protection requirements that would be applicable if their securities were publicly traded. Accordingly, Regulation S securities may involve a high degree of business and financial risk and may result in substantial losses. The risk that Regulation S securities may be less liquid than publicly traded securities. Regulation S securities may not be subject to the disclosure and other investor protection requirements that would be applicable to publicly traded securities. As a result, Regulation S securities may involve a high degree of business and financial risk and may result in losses. See “Risks — General/Fund Structure Risks — Subsidiary Risk.”
DERIVATIVE INSTRUMENTS. The Fund may use options, swaps, futures contracts, forward agreements and other derivatives contracts. The Fund’s derivative investments have risks, including the imperfect correlation between the value of such instruments and the underlying asset, rate or index, which creates the possibility that the loss on such instruments may be greater than the gain in the value of the underlying asset, rate or index; the loss of principal; the possible default of the other party to the transaction; and illiquidity of the derivative investments. If a counterparty becomes bankrupt or otherwise fails to perform its obligations under a derivative contract due to financial difficulties, the Fund may experience significant delays in obtaining any recovery under the derivative contract in a bankruptcy or other reorganization proceeding, or may not recover at all. In addition, in the event of the insolvency of a counterparty to a derivative transaction, the derivative contract would typically be terminated at its fair market value. If the Fund is owed this fair market value in the termination of the derivative contract and its claim is unsecured, the Fund will be treated as a general creditor of such counterparty, and will not have any claim with respect to the underlying security. Certain of the derivative investments in which the Fund may invest may, in certain circumstances, give rise to a form of financial leverage, which may magnify the risk of owning such instruments. The ability to successfully use derivative investments depends on the ability of the Investment Manager to predict pertinent market movements, which cannot be assured. In addition, amounts paid by the Fund as premiums and cash or other assets held in margin accounts with respect to the Fund’s derivative investments would not be available to the Fund for other investment purposes, which may result in lost opportunities for gain. To the extent derivative instruments are counted towards the Fund’s 80% policy to invest in credit and credit-related instruments, such derivative instruments are valued on a mark to market basis.
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The derivative instruments and techniques that the Fund may principally use include:
| • | Futures. A futures contract is a standardized agreement to buy or sell a specific quantity of an underlying instrument at a specific price at a specific future time. The value of a futures contract tends to increase and decrease in tandem with the value of the underlying instrument. Depending on the terms of the particular contract, futures contracts are settled through either physical delivery of the underlying instrument on the settlement date or by payment of a cash settlement amount on the settlement date. A decision as to whether, when and how to use futures involves the exercise of skill and judgment and even a well-conceived futures transaction may be unsuccessful because of market behavior or unexpected events. In addition to the derivatives risks discussed above, the prices of futures can be highly volatile, using futures can lower total return, and the potential loss from futures can exceed the Fund’s initial investment in such contracts. |
• | Options. The Fund may purchase call and put options on specific securities, and may write and sell covered or uncovered call and put options for hedging purposes in pursuing its investment objective. A put option gives the purchaser of the option the right to sell, and obligates the writer to buy, the underlying security at a stated exercise price, typically at any time prior to the expiration of the option. A call option gives the purchaser of the option the right to buy, and obligates the writer to sell, the underlying security at a stated exercise price, typically at any time prior to the expiration of the option. A covered call option is a call option with respect to which the seller of the option owns the underlying security. The sale of a call option exposes the seller during the term of the option to possible loss of opportunity to realize appreciation in the market price of the underlying security or to possible continued holding of a security that might otherwise have been sold to protect against depreciation in the market price of the security. A covered put option is a put option with respect to which cash or liquid securities have been placed in a segregated account on the books of or with a custodian to fulfill the obligation undertaken. The sale of a put option exposes the seller during the term of the option to a decline in price of the underlying security while depriving the seller of the opportunity to invest the segregated assets. A decision as to whether, when and how to use options involves the exercise of skill and judgment and even a well-conceived option transaction may be unsuccessful because of market behavior or unexpected events. The prices of options can be highly volatile and the use of options can lower total returns. |
• | Swaps. A swap contract is an agreement between two parties pursuant to which the parties exchange payments at specified dates on the basis of a specified notional amount, with the payments calculated by reference to specified securities, indexes, reference rates, currencies or other instruments. Most swap agreements provide that when the period payment dates for both parties are the same, the payments are made on a net basis (i.e., the two payment streams are netted out, with only the net amount paid by one party to the other). The Fund’s obligations or rights under a swap contract entered into on a net basis will generally be equal only to the net amount to be paid or received under the agreement, based on the relative values of the positions held by each counterparty. Swap agreements are particularly subject to counterparty credit, liquidity, valuation, correlation and leverage risk. Certain standardized swaps are now subject to mandatory central clearing requirements and others are now required to be exchange-traded. While central clearing and exchange-trading are intended to reduce counterparty and liquidity risk, they do not make swap transactions risk-free. Swaps could result in losses if interest rate or foreign currency exchange rates or credit quality changes are not correctly anticipated by the Fund or if the reference index, security or investments do not perform as expected. The Fund’s use of swaps may include those based on the credit of an underlying security, commonly referred to as “credit default swaps.” Where the Fund is the buyer of a credit default swap contract, it would be entitled to receive the par (or other agreed-upon) value of a referenced debt obligation from the counterparty to the contract only in the event of a default or similar event by a third party on the debt obligation. If no default occurs, the Fund would have paid to the counterparty a periodic stream of payments over the term of the contract and received no benefit from the contract. When the Fund is the seller of a credit default swap contract, it receives the stream of payments but is obligated to pay an amount equal to the par (or other agreed-upon) value of a referenced debt obligation upon the default or similar event of that obligation. The use of credit default swaps can result in losses if the Fund’s assumptions regarding the creditworthiness of the underlying obligation prove to be incorrect. The Fund will “cover” its swap positions by segregating an amount of cash and/or liquid securities as required by the Investment Company Act and applicable SEC interpretations and guidance from time to time. |
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SEGREGATION AND COVERAGE RISK. Certain portfolio management techniques, such as, among other things, entering into swap agreements, using reverse repurchase agreements, futures contracts or other derivative transactions, may be considered senior securities under the Investment Company Act unless steps are taken to segregate (or earmark on the Fund’s books) the Fund’s assets or otherwise cover its obligations. To avoid having these instruments considered senior securities, in some cases the Fund segregates or earmarks liquid assets with a value equal (on a daily mark-to-market basis) to its obligations under these types of transactions, enters into offsetting transactions or otherwise covers such transactions. In cases where the Fund does not cover such transactions, such instruments may be considered senior securities and the Fund’s use of such transactions will be required to comply with the restrictions on senior securities under the Investment Company Act. The Fund may be unable to use segregated assets for certain other purposes, which could result in the Fund earning a lower return on its portfolio than it might otherwise earn if it did not have to segregate those assets in respect of or otherwise cover such portfolio positions. To the extent the Fund’s assets are segregated or committed as cover, it could limit the Fund’s investment flexibility. Segregating assets and covering positions will not limit or offset losses on related positions.
In October 2020, the SEC finalized new Rule 18f-4 under the Investment Company Act providing for the regulation of registered investment companies’ use of derivatives and certain related instruments. Compliance with Rule 18f-4 will not be required until approximately the middle of 2022. The new rule, among other things, limits derivatives exposure through one of two value-at-risk tests, requires funds to adopt and implement a derivatives risk management program (including the appointment of a derivatives risk manager and the implementation of certain testing requirements), and subjects funds to certain reporting requirements in respect of derivatives. Limited derivatives users (as determined by Rule 18f-4) are not, however, subject to the full requirements under the rule. In connection with the adoption of Rule 18f-4, the SEC also eliminated the asset segregation framework for covering derivatives and certain financial instruments arising from the SEC’s Release 10666 and ensuing staff guidance. This may impact the Fund’s approach to asset segregation and coverage requirements. In addition, Rule 18f-4 could restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in certain derivatives transactions and/or increase the costs of such derivatives transactions, which could adversely affect the value or performance of the Fund.
NON-U.S. INVESTMENTS. The Fund expects to invest a portion of its assets outside of the U.S., with a preference for those jurisdictions with a clear, well-developed and respected legal framework. Non-U.S. securities or instruments involve certain risk factors not typically associated with investing in U.S. securities or instruments, including risks relating to the following: (i) currency exchange matters, including fluctuations in the rate of exchange between the U.S. dollar and the various foreign currencies in which the Fund’s foreign investments are denominated, and costs associated with conversion of investment principal and income from one currency into another; (ii) exposure to fluctuations in interest rates payable with respect to the instruments in which the Fund invests; (iii) differences in conventions relating to documentation, settlement, corporate actions, stakeholder rights and other matters; (iv) differences between the U.S. and foreign securities markets, including potential price volatility in and relative liquidity of some foreign securities markets, the absence of uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards, practices and disclosure requirements and less government supervision and regulation; (v) certain economic, social and political risks, including potential exchange control regulations and restrictions on foreign investment and repatriation of capital, the risks of political, economic or social instability, including the risk of sovereign defaults, regulatory change, and the possibility of expropriation or confiscatory taxation or the imposition of withholding or other taxes on dividends, interest, capital gains, other income, gross sales or disposition proceeds; (vi) the possible imposition of foreign taxes on income, gains and gross sale or other proceeds recognized with respect to such securities or instruments; and (vii) differing and potentially less well-developed or well-tested corporate laws regarding the rights of creditors and other stakeholders (including the rights of secured parties), fiduciary duties and the protection of investors.
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Additionally, in emerging and developing markets, there is often less government supervision and regulation of business and industry practices, stock exchanges, over-the-counter markets, brokers, dealers, counterparties and issuers than in other more established markets. Any regulatory supervision which is in place may be subject to manipulation or control. Some emerging and developing market countries do not have mature legal systems comparable to those of more developed countries. Moreover, the process of legal and regulatory reform may not be proceeding at the same pace as market developments, which could result in investment risk. Legislation to safeguard the rights of private ownership may not yet be in place in certain areas, and there may be the risk of conflict among local, regional and national requirements. In certain cases, the laws and regulations governing investments in securities or financial instruments may not exist or may be subject to inconsistent or arbitrary appreciation or interpretation. Both the independence of judicial systems and their immunity from economic, political or nationalistic influences remain largely untested in many countries. The Fund may also encounter difficulties in pursuing legal remedies or in obtaining and enforcing judgments in non-U.S. courts. Due to the foregoing risks and complications, the costs associated with investments in emerging market securities generally are higher than for securities and other instruments of issuers based in developed countries.
In addition, economic problems in a single country are increasingly affecting other markets and economies. A continuation of this trend could adversely affect global economic conditions and world markets and, in turn, could adversely affect the Partnership’s performance. Existing and new laws and regulations in non-U.S. jurisdictions in which the Fund may invest may affect the Fund’s investments in such jurisdictions in a manner that differs adversely from the results that would occur under U.S. laws and regulations applied to similar facts. The implementation or interpretation of such laws and regulations as they relate to the Funds’ activities are largely outside the Fund’s control. Moreover, while the Investment Manager intends to exercise caution in relation to the foregoing risks where known, there can be no assurance that these and other risks of investing in non-U.S. markets will not adversely affect the assets of the Fund that are held in certain countries and the Fund’s performance.
EMERGING MARKETS. Investment in emerging market securities involves greater risk than that associated with investment in securities of issuers in developed foreign countries. These risks include volatile currency exchange rates, periods of high inflation, increased risk of default, greater social, economic and political uncertainty and instability, less governmental supervision and regulation of securities markets, weaker auditing and financial reporting standards, lack of liquidity in the markets, and the significantly smaller market capitalizations of emerging market issuers.
CURRENCY RISK. The Fund may engage in practices and strategies that will result in exposure to fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, in which case the Fund will be subject to foreign currency risk. The Fund’s shares are priced in U.S. dollars and the distributions paid by the Fund to Shareholders are paid in U.S. dollars. However, a portion of the Fund’s assets may be denominated directly in foreign (non-U.S.) currencies or in securities that trade in, and receive revenues in, foreign (non-U.S.) currencies, or in derivatives that provide exposure to foreign (non-U.S.) currencies, it will be subject to the risk that those currencies will decline in value relative to the U.S. dollar, or, in the case of hedging positions, that the U.S. dollar will decline in value relative to the currency being hedged.
Currency rates in foreign (non-U.S.) countries may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time for a number of reasons, including changes in interest rates, rates of inflation, balance of payments and governmental surpluses or deficits, intervention (or the failure to intervene) by U.S. or foreign (non-U.S.) governments, central banks or supranational entities such as the International Monetary Fund, or by the imposition of currency controls or other political developments in the United States or abroad. These fluctuations may have a significant adverse impact on the value of the Fund’s portfolio and/or the level of Fund distributions made to Shareholders. The Fund intends to hedge exposure to reduce the risk of loss due to fluctuations in currency exchange rates relative to the U.S. dollar. There is no assurance, however, that these strategies will be available or will be used by the Fund or, if used, that they will be successful. As a result, the Fund’s investments in foreign currency-denominated securities may reduce the returns of the Fund.
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Currency risk may be particularly high to the extent that the Fund invests in foreign (non-U.S.) currencies or engages in foreign currency transactions that are economically tied to emerging market countries. These currency transactions may present market, credit, currency, liquidity, legal, political and other risks different from, or greater than, the risks of investing in developed foreign (non-U.S.) currencies or engaging in foreign currency transactions that are economically tied to developed foreign countries.
HEDGING FOREIGN CURRENCY. Hedging transactions involving currency forwards, non- deliverable forwards, currency options, and currency swaps (collectively, “Currency Instruments”) involve substantial risks, including correlation risk. While the Fund’s use of Currency Instruments, if any, to effect hedging strategies is intended to reduce the volatility of the NAV of the Fund’s Shares, the NAV of the Fund’s Shares will fluctuate. Moreover, although Currency Instruments may be used with the intention of hedging against adverse currency movements, transactions in Currency Instruments involve the risk that anticipated currency movements will not be accurately predicted and that the Fund’s hedging strategies will be ineffective. To the extent that the Fund hedges against anticipated currency movements that do not occur, the Fund may realize losses and decrease its total return as the result of its hedging transactions. Furthermore, the Fund will only engage in hedging activities from time to time and may not be engaging in hedging activities when movements in currency exchange rates occur.
It may not be possible for the Fund to hedge against currency exchange rate movements, even if correctly anticipated, in the event that (i) the currency exchange rate movement is so generally anticipated that the Fund is not able to enter into a hedging transaction at an effective price, or (ii) the currency exchange rate movement relates to a market with respect to which Currency Instruments are not available and it is not possible to engage in effective foreign currency hedging. The cost to the Fund of engaging in foreign currency transactions varies with such factors as the currencies involved, the length of the contract period and the market conditions then prevailing. Since transactions in foreign currency exchange usually are conducted on a principal basis, no fees or commissions are involved.
| • | FOREIGN CURRENCY FORWARDS. Forward foreign currency exchange contracts do not eliminate fluctuations in the value of non-U.S. securities but rather allow the Fund to establish a fixed rate of exchange for a future point in time. This strategy can have the effect of reducing returns and minimizing opportunities for gain. In connection with its trading in forward foreign currency contracts, the Fund will contract with a foreign or domestic bank, or foreign or domestic securities dealer, to make or take future delivery of a specified amount of a particular currency. There are no limitations on daily price moves in such forward contracts, and banks and dealers are not required to continue to make markets in such contracts. There have been periods during which certain banks or dealers have refused to quote prices for such forward contracts or have quoted prices with an unusually wide spread between the price at which the bank or dealer is prepared to buy and that at which it is prepared to sell. Governmental imposition of credit controls might limit any such forward contract trading. With respect to its trading of forward contracts, if any, the Fund will be subject to the risk of bank or dealer failure and the inability of, or refusal by, a bank or dealer to perform with respect to such contracts. Any such default would deprive the Fund of any profit potential or force the Fund to cover its commitments for resale, if any, at the then market price and could result in a loss to the Fund. |
The Fund may also engage in proxy hedging transactions to reduce the effect of currency fluctuations on the value of existing or anticipated holdings of portfolio securities. Proxy hedging is often used when the currency to which the Fund is exposed is difficult to hedge or to hedge against the dollar. Proxy hedging entails entering into a forward contract to sell a currency whose changes in value are generally considered to be linked to a currency or currencies in which some or all of the Fund’s securities are, or are expected to be, denominated, and to buy U.S. dollars. Proxy hedging involves some of the same risks and considerations as other transactions with similar instruments. Currency transactions can result in losses to the Fund if the currency being hedged fluctuates in value to a degree or in a direction that is not anticipated. In addition, there is the risk that the perceived linkage between various currencies may not be present or may not be present during the particular time that the Fund is engaging in proxy hedging. The Fund may also cross-hedge currencies by entering into forward contracts to sell one or more currencies that are expected to decline in value relative to other currencies to which the Fund has or in which the Fund expects to have portfolio exposure. For example, the Fund may hold both Canadian government bonds and Euro denominated notes, and the Investment Manager may believe that Canadian dollars will deteriorate against the Euro. The Fund would sell Canadian dollars to reduce its exposure to that currency and buy Euros. This strategy would be a hedge against a decline in the value of Canadian dollars, although it would expose the Fund to declines in the value of the Euro relative to the U.S. dollar.
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Some of the forward non-U.S. currency contracts entered into by the Fund may be classified as non- deliverable forwards (“NDFs”). NDFs are cash-settled, short-term forward contracts that may be thinly traded or are denominated in non-convertible foreign currency, where the profit or loss at the time at the settlement date is calculated by taking the difference between the agreed upon exchange rate and the spot rate at the time of settlement, for an agreed upon notional amount of funds. All NDFs have a fixing date and a settlement date. The fixing date is the date at which the difference between the prevailing market exchange rate and the agreed upon exchange rate is calculated. The settlement date is the date by which the payment of the difference is due to the party receiving payment. NDFs are commonly quoted for time periods of one month up to two years, and are normally quoted and settled in U.S. dollars. They are often used to gain exposure to and/or hedge exposure to foreign currencies that are not internationally traded.
| • | CURRENCY OPTIONS. The Fund may also seek to hedge against the decline in the value of a currency or to enhance returns through the use of currency options. Currency options are similar to options on securities. For example, in consideration for an option premium the writer of a currency option is obligated to sell (in the case of a call option) or purchase (in the case of a put option) a specified amount of a specified currency on or before the expiration date for a specified amount of another currency. The Fund may engage in transactions in options on currencies either on exchanges or OTC markets. Such transactions in options may include exotic options on currencies, which are typically traded in OTC markets and have additional features that result in different payment structures and/or expirations. Currency options involve substantial currency risk, and may also involve credit, leverage or illiquidity risk. |
• | CURRENCY SWAPS. The Fund may enter into currency swaps. Currency swaps involve the exchange of the rights of the Fund and another party to make or receive payments in specified currencies. The Fund may also hedge portfolio positions through currency swaps, which are transactions in which one currency is simultaneously bought for a second currency on a spot basis and sold for the second currency on a forward basis. Currency swaps usually involve the delivery of the entire principal value of one designated currency in exchange for the other designated currency. Because currency swaps usually involve the delivery of the entire principal value of one designated currency in exchange for the other designated currency, the entire principal value of a currency swap is subject to the risk that the other party to the swap will default on its contractual delivery obligations. |
LITIGATION FINANCING RISK. Investments in litigation finance can be structured in various ways. For example, the Fund may extend a loan to a law firm secured by future fee proceeds from some or all of the firm’s portfolio of cases, or the Fund may advance funds to a party in a lawsuit or their counsel in return for a share of litigation proceeds or other financial reward if the party is successful. Where a loan is secured by litigation proceeds, or where the recipient of litigation financing is not obligated to make any payment unless and until litigation proceeds are actually received by the litigant or their counsel, the Fund could suffer a complete loss of the capital invested if the matter fails to be resolved in the recipient’s favor.
Other risks the Fund may face in connection with litigation financing include: (i) losses from terminated or rejected settlements, (ii) evaluations of the strength of the cases, claims or settlements may turn out to be inaccurate; (iii) losses as a result of the inability or timing uncertainty relating to collection on judgments or awards, (iv) lack of ability to control decisions of lawyers acting pursuant to their professional duties in connection with formulating and implementing their litigation strategies or otherwise, (v) expenses and uncertainties involving reliance on outside counsel and experts; (vi) changes in law, regulations or professional standards on litigation financing; (vii) poor case selection and lost cases; (viii) timing or delays inherent to litigation; (ix) changes in counsel; (x) costs of litigation; (xi) inability of a defendant to pay a judgement or settlement; (xii) general competition and industry-related risks, (xiii) conflicts of interest and (xiv) issues associated with the treatment of the Fund’s investment for tax purposes.
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EQUITY INVESTMENTS. When the Fund invests in loans and debt securities, the Fund may acquire warrants or other equity securities of borrowers as well. The Fund may also invest in warrants and equity securities directly. To the extent the Fund holds equity investments, the Fund will attempt to dispose of them and realize gains upon the disposition of such equity investments. However, the equity interests the Fund receives may not appreciate in value and, may decline in value. As a result, the Fund may not be able to realize gains from its equity interests, and any gains that the Fund does realize on the disposition of any equity interests may not be sufficient to offset any other losses the Fund experiences.
Warrants are securities that give the holder the right, but not the obligation, to purchase equity securities of the company issuing the warrants, or a related company, at a fixed price either on a date certain or during a set period. The price of a warrant tends to be more volatile than, and may not correlate exactly to, the price of the underlying security. If the market price of the underlying security is below the exercise price of the warrant on its expiration date, the warrant will generally expire without value. Investing in warrants can provide a greater potential for profit or loss than an equivalent investment in the underlying security, and, thus, can be a speculative investment. The value of a warrant may decline because of a decline in the value of the underlying security, the passage of time, changes in interest rates or in the dividend or other policies of the company whose equity underlies the warrant or a change in the perception as to the future price of the underlying security, or any combination thereof. Warrants do not carry with them the right to dividends or voting rights with respect to the securities that they entitle the holder to purchase, and they do not represent any rights in the assets of the issuer.
PREFERRED SECURITIES. The Fund may invest in preferred securities. There are various risks associated with investing in preferred securities, including credit risk, interest rate risk, deferral and omission of distributions, subordination to bonds and other debt securities in a company’s capital structure, limited liquidity, limited voting rights and special redemption rights. Interest rate risk is, in general, the risk that the price of a debt security falls when interest rates rise. Securities with longer maturities tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes. Credit risk is the risk that an issuer of a security may not be able to make principal and interest or dividend payments on the security as they become due. Holders of preferred securities may not receive dividends, or the payment can be deferred for some period of time. In bankruptcy, creditors are generally paid before the holders of preferred securities.
CONVERTIBLE SECURITIES. The Fund may invest in convertible securities. Convertible securities are hybrid securities that have characteristics of both bonds and common stocks and are subject to risks associated with both debt securities and equity securities. Convertible securities are similar to fixed-income securities because they usually pay a fixed interest rate (or dividend) and are obligated to repay principal on a given date in the future. The market value of fixed-income and preferred securities tends to decline as interest rates increase and tends to increase as interest rates decline. If a convertible security held by the Fund is called for redemption, the Fund will be required to surrender the security for redemption, convert it into the issuing company’s common stock or cash or sell it to a third party at a time that may be unfavorable to the Fund. In addition, the Fund may invest in fixed-income and preferred securities rated less than investment grade that are sometimes referred to as high yield. These securities are speculative investments that carry greater risks and are more susceptible to real or perceived adverse economic and competitive industry conditions than higher quality securities. Such securities also may be subject to resale restrictions.
INVESTMENT FUNDS. The Fund may invest in shares of open-end (mutual) funds, exchange- traded funds (“ETFs”), closed-end funds and business development companies (“BDCs”). The Fund will incur higher and duplicative expenses, including advisory fees, when it invests in shares of such funds (including money market funds), There is also the risk that the Fund may suffer losses due to the investment practices of such funds (such as the use of derivatives). The ETFs in which the Fund invests that attempt to track an index may not be able to replicate exactly the performance of the indices they track, due to transactions costs and other expenses of the ETFs. The shares of closed-end funds frequently trade at a discount to their net asset value. There can be no assurance that the market discount on shares of any closed-end fund purchased by the Fund will ever decrease, and it is possible that the discount may increase.
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PRIVATE INVESTMENT FUNDS. The Fund may invest in Private Investment Funds that are not registered as investment companies. As a result, the Fund as an investor in these funds would not have the benefit of certain protections afforded to investors in registered investment companies. Investments in Private Investment Funds generally will be illiquid and generally may not be transferred without the consent of the Fund. The Fund may be unable to liquidate its investment in a Private Investment Fund when desired (and may incur losses as a result), or may be required to sell such investment regardless of whether it desires to do so. Upon its withdrawal of all or a portion of its interest in a Private Investment Fund, the Fund may receive securities that are illiquid or difficult to value. The Fund may not be able to withdraw from a Private Investment Fund except at certain designated times, thereby limiting the ability of the Fund to withdraw assets from the private fund due to poor performance or other reasons. The fees paid by Private Investment Funds to their advisers and general partners or managing members often are higher than those paid by registered funds and generally include a percentage of gains. The Fund will bear its proportionate share of the management fees and other expenses that are charged by a Private Investment Fund in addition to the Investment Management Fee and other expenses paid by the Fund. The Fund will limit its total investments in Private Investment Funds that are excepted from the definition of “investment company” under the Investment Company Act by Section 3(c)(1) or Section 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act to no more than 15% of the Fund’s total assets.
INVESTMENTS IN CASH, CASH-EQUIVALENT INVESTMENTS OR MONEY MARKET FUNDS. A portion of the Fund’s assets may be invested in cash, cash-equivalent investments or money market funds when, for example, other investments are unattractive, to provide a reserve for anticipated obligations of the Fund or for other temporary purposes. Although such a practice may assist in the preservation of capital, the assumption of cash positions may also impact overall investment return. Cash investment practices of the Fund may be expected, therefore, to affect total investment performance of the Fund. Although a money market fund seeks to preserve a $1.00 per share net asset value, it cannot guarantee it will do so. The sponsor of a money market fund has no legal obligation to provide financial support to the money market fund and investors in money market funds should not expect that the sponsor will provide support to a money market fund at any time.
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LIMITS OF RISK DISCLOSURES. The above discussions of the various risks that are associated with the Fund and its Shares and the related discussion of risks in the SAI include the material risks involved with an investment in the Fund of which the Fund is currently aware. Prospective investors should read this entire Prospectus and consult with their own advisers before deciding whether to invest in the Fund. In addition, as the Fund’s investment program changes or develops over time, an investment in the Fund may be subject to risk factors not currently contemplated or described in this Prospectus.
In view of the risks noted above, the Fund should be considered a speculative investment and prospective investors should invest in the Fund only if they can sustain a complete loss of their investment.
No guarantee or representation is made that the investment program of the Fund will be successful or that the Fund will achieve its investment objective.
FUND PERFORMANCE
The tables below illustrate the performance of the Fund. Past performance is no indication of future returns. The Fund commenced operations on December 5, 2022. The performance history is net of all fees and reflects the impact of the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement. If the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement were not in place, the Fund’s performance would be reduced.
MONTHLY PERFORMANCE (%) RETURNS
(December 2022-March 2023)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022 | 0.91 | % | N/A | % | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | 1.43 | % | 1.23 | % | 1.95 | % | 4.68 | % |
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MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND
THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES. The Board has overall responsibility for the management and supervision of the business operations of the Fund on behalf of the Shareholders. A majority of the Board is and will be persons who are not “interested persons,” as defined in Section 2(a)(19) of the Investment Company Act (the “Independent Trustees”). To the extent permitted by the Investment Company Act and other applicable law, the Board may delegate any of its rights, powers and authority to, among others, the officers of the applicable fund, any committee of such board, or service providers. See “BOARD OF TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS” in the Fund’s SAI for the identities of the Trustees and executive officers of the Fund, brief biographical information regarding each of them, and other information regarding the election and membership of the Board.
THE INVESTMENT MANAGER. Monachil Capital Partners LP serves as the investment adviser (the “Investment Manager”) of the Fund and will be responsible for determining and implementing the Fund’s overall investment strategy. The Investment Manager is an investment adviser registered with the SEC under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended. As of March 31, 2023, the Investment Manager and its affiliates had assets under advisement (includes discretionary and non-discretionary accounts) of approximately $60,251,000.
The Investment Manager and its affiliates may serve as investment managers to other funds that have investment programs which are similar to the investment program of the Fund, and the Investment Manager or one of its affiliates may in the future serve as the investment manager or otherwise manage or direct the investment activities of other registered and/or private investment companies with investment programs similar to the investment program of the Fund. See “CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.”
PORTFOLIO MANAGERS. The key personnel of the Investment Manager who currently have primary responsibility for management of the Fund (the “Portfolio Managers”) are as follows:
Ali Meli
As Lead Portfolio Manager for the Fund, Mr. Meli is responsible for all investment decisions, including working on deal origination and evaluation, structuring the investments and negotiating the critical terms, and portfolio constructions.
Prior to launching the Investment Manager, Mr. Meli spent more than 14 years at Goldman Sachs & Co., where he was a Partner and served as the Global Co-head of Structured Finance, Investing and Lending (SFIL). His deal experience includes North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia, across credit, commodity finance, mortgages, consumer loans and repos, and he worked in the New York, London and Hong Kong offices. Mr. Meli holds dual Majors in Electrical Engineering and Management Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Christopher Pryor
As a Portfolio Manager of the Fund, Mr. Pryor is responsible for deal origination, including identifying appropriate opportunities, the due diligence and qualitative evaluation, and working on the negotiation of critical terms.
Prior to joining the Investment Manager in mid-2019, Mr. Pryor had eight years of experience in investment banking and private equity. His deal experience includes subprime consumer credit, supply chain finance, real estate finance, and repos. Prior to joining the Investment Manager in 2019, Mr. Pryor was the Head of Corporate Investments at Fifteen Group from April 2017 to January 2019. He was an investment banker at Marlin & Associates from November 2015 to January 2017 and at INTL FCStone before October 2015. He holds an MS in Financial Mathematics and a BS in Mathematics from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
The Fund’s SAI provides additional information about the Portfolio Managers’ compensation, other accounts managed, and ownership of Fund’s shares.
THE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT. The Investment Management Agreement between the Investment Manager and the Fund became effective as of October 24, 2022, and will continue in effect for an initial two-year term. Thereafter, the Investment Management Agreement will continue in effect from year to year provided such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by (i) the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund or a majority of the Board, and (ii) the vote of a majority of the Independent Trustees of the Fund, cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval. See “VOTING.” The Investment Management Agreement will terminate automatically if assigned (as defined in the Investment Company Act), and is terminable at any time without penalty upon sixty (60) days’ written notice to the Fund by either the Board or the Investment Manager.
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The Investment Management Agreement provides that, in the absence of willful misfeasance, gross negligence or reckless disregard of its obligations to the Fund, the Investment Manager and any partner, member, manager, director, officer or employee of the Investment Manager, or any of their affiliates, executors, heirs, assigns, successors or other legal representatives, will not be subject to liability to the Fund or otherwise under the Investment Management Agreement for any act or omission in the course of, or connected with, rendering services under the Investment Management Agreement or for any losses that may be sustained in the purchase, holding or sale of any security by the Fund, including, without limitation, for any error of judgment, for any mistake of law, or for any act or omission by the Investment Manager or any affiliate of the Investment Manager, except as may otherwise be provided under provisions of applicable state law or Federal securities law which cannot be waived or modified. The Investment Management Agreement also provides for indemnification, to the fullest extent permitted by law, by the Fund, of the Investment Manager or any partner, member, manager, officer or employee of the Investment Manager, and any of their affiliates, executors, heirs, assigns, successors or other legal representatives, against any claim, loss, damage, liability, reasonable cost, or reasonable expense (including reasonable attorney’s fees, judgments, and other related expenses in connection therewith and amounts paid in defense and settlement thereof) (individually, the “Liability,” and collectively, the “Liabilities”) to which the person may be liable that arises or results from the Investment Management Agreement or the performance of any services under the Investment Management Agreement, so long as such Liabilities did not arise primarily from such person’s willful misfeasance, gross negligence or reckless disregard of its obligations and duties under the Investment Management Agreement.
A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s approval of the Investment Management Agreement will be available in the Fund’s first annual or semi-annual report to Shareholders.
INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT FEES
The Fund pays to the Investment Manager an investment management fee (the “Investment Management Fee”) in consideration of the advisory and other services provided by the Investment Manager to the Fund. The fee consists of two components — an advisory fee (the “Management Fee”), and an incentive fee (the “Incentive Fee”).
Management Fee
The Fund pays the Investment Manager a monthly Management Fee equal to 1.25% on an annualized basis of the Fund’s average daily Managed Assets for the period. Managed Assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including any assets attributable to money borrowed for investment purposes) minus the sum of the Fund’s accrued liabilities (other than money borrowed for investment purposes). The Management Fee is paid to the Investment Manager out of the Fund’s assets and decreases the net profits or increases the net losses of the Fund.
The Management Fee will be paid to the Investment Manager before giving effect to any repurchase of Shares of the Fund effective as of that date and will decrease the net profits or increase the net losses of the Fund that are credited to its Shareholders. The Management Fee will be accrued daily, and will be due and payable monthly in arrears within ten (10) Business Days after the end of the month.
Incentive Fee
The Incentive Fee is calculated and payable quarterly in arrears based upon the Fund’s “pre-incentive fee net investment income” attributable to the Fund’s shares for the immediately preceding fiscal quarter. The Incentive Fee is subject to a hurdle rate, expressed as a rate of return based on each class’s average daily net asset value (calculated in accordance with GAAP), equal to 1.50% per quarter (or an annualized hurdle rate of 6.00%), subject to a “catch-up” feature. For this purpose, “pre-incentive fee net investment income” means interest income, dividend income and any other income accrued during the fiscal quarter, minus the Fund’s operating expenses for the quarter, not including distribution and/or shareholder servicing fees (if any) applicable to each class, litigation or any other extraordinary expenses accrued during the fiscal quarter. For such purposes, the Fund’s operating expenses will include the Management Fee and expenses reimbursed to the Investment Manager under expense limitation agreement, but will exclude the Incentive Fee. The Incentive Fee may be calculated based on an amount greater than the amount of net investment income actually received by the Fund as pre-incentive net investment income excludes any distribution and/or shareholder servicing fees applicable to each class.
The calculation of the Incentive Fee for each fiscal quarter is as follows:
| · | No Incentive Fee is payable in any fiscal quarter in which the pre-incentive fee net investment income attributable to the Fund’s shares does not exceed the quarterly hurdle rate of 1.50% of the Fund’s average daily net assets (calculated in accordance with GAAP, or 6.00% annualized; |
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| · | 100% of the pre-incentive fee net investment income attributable to the Fund’s shares, if any, that exceeds the hurdle rate but is less than or equal to 1.765% of the Fund’s average daily net asset value (calculated in accordance with GAAP) in any fiscal quarter (7.06% annualized) is payable to the Investment Manager; and |
| · | 15% of the pre-incentive fee net investment income attributable to the Fund’s shares, if any, that exceeds 1.765% of the Fund’s average daily net assets (calculated in accordance with GAAP) in any fiscal quarter (7.06% annualized) is payable to the Investment Manager once the hurdle rate is reached and the catch-up is achieved, (15% of all the pre-incentive fee net investment income thereafter is allocated to the Investment Manager). |
The following is a graphical representation of the calculation of the Incentive Fee:
Quarterly Incentive Fee
Class’s pre-incentive fee net investment income
(expressed as a percentage of the Class’s average daily net asset value)
DISTRIBUTOR
Foreside Financial Services, LLC (the “Distributor”) is the distributor (also known as principal underwriter) of the Shares of the Fund and is located at Three Canal Plaza, Ste. 100, Portland, ME 04101. The Distributor is a registered broker-dealer and is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”).
Under a Distribution Agreement with the Fund, the Distributor acts as the agent of the Fund in connection with the continuous offering of shares of the Fund. The Distributor continually distributes shares of the Fund on a best efforts basis. The Distributor has no obligation to sell any specific quantity of Fund shares. The Distributor and its officers have no role in determining the investment policies or which securities are to be purchased or sold by the Fund.
The Distributor may enter into agreements with selected broker-dealers, banks or other financial intermediaries for distribution of shares of the Fund. With respect to certain financial intermediaries and related fund “supermarket” platform arrangements, the Fund and/or the Investment Manager, rather than the Distributor, typically enter into such agreements. These financial intermediaries may charge a fee for their services and may receive shareholder service or other fees from parties other than the Distributor. These financial intermediaries may otherwise act as processing agents and are responsible for promptly transmitting purchase, redemption and other requests to the Fund.
Investors who purchase shares through financial intermediaries will be subject to the procedures of those intermediaries through which they purchase shares, which may include charges, investment minimums, cutoff times and other restrictions in addition to, or different from, those listed herein. Information concerning any charges or services will be provided to customers by the financial intermediary through which they purchase shares. Investors purchasing shares of the Fund through financial intermediaries should acquaint themselves with their financial intermediary’s procedures and should read the Prospectus in conjunction with any materials and information provided by their financial intermediary. The financial intermediary, and not its customers, will be the shareholder of record. The Distributor does not receive compensation from the Fund for its distribution services. The Investment Manager pays the Distributor a fee for certain distribution-related services.
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Pursuant to the Distribution Agreement, the Distributor is solely responsible for its costs and expenses incurred in connection with its qualification as a broker-dealer under state or federal laws. The Distribution Agreement also provides that the Fund will indemnify the Distributor, its affiliates and each of their respective members, managers, directors, officers, employees, representatives and any person who controls or previously controlled the Distributor within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act (collectively, the “Distributor Indemnitees”), free and harmless from and against any and all losses, claims, demands, liabilities, damages and expenses (including the reasonable costs of investigating or defending any alleged losses, claims, demands, liabilities, damages or expenses and any reasonable counsel fees incurred in connection therewith) (collectively, “Losses”) that any Distributor Indemnitee may incur under the Securities Act, the 1934 Act, the Investment Company Act any other statute (including Blue Sky laws) or any rule or regulation thereunder, or under common law or otherwise, arising out of or relating to (i) the Distributor serving as principal underwriter of the Fund pursuant to Distribution Agreement; (ii) the Fund’s breach of any of its obligations, representations, warranties or covenants contained in Distribution Agreement; (iii) the Fund’s failure to comply with any applicable securities laws or regulations; or (iv) any claim that the Registration Statement, Prospectus, shareholder reports, sales literature and advertising materials or other information filed or made public by the Fund (as from time to time amended) include or included an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein not misleading under the Securities Act, or any other statute or the common law any violation of any rule of FINRA or of the SEC or any other jurisdiction wherein Shares of the Fund is sold. The Fund’s obligation to indemnify any of the Distributor Indemnitees, however, shall not be deemed to cover any Losses arising out of (i) a Distributor Indemnitee’s willful misfeasance, bad faith, or gross negligence, in the performance of its duties, or by reason of its reckless disregard of its obligations and duties under the Distribution Agreement, or (ii). any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in the Registration Statement, Prospectus, annual or interim shareholder report, or any such advertising materials or sales literature in reliance upon, and in conformity with, information relating to the Distributor and furnished to the Fund or its counsel by the Distributor in writing for use in such Registration Statement, Prospectus, shareholder reports, or sales literature and advertising materials.
Class I Shares in the Fund are offered at their current net asset value
The Investment Manager and/or its affiliates may make payments to selected affiliated or unaffiliated third parties (including the parties who have entered into selling agreements with the Distributor) from time to time in connection with the distribution of Shares and/or the provision of non-distribution services to Shareholders and/or the Fund. These payments will be made out of the Investment Manager’s and/or affiliates’ own assets and will not represent an additional charge to the Fund. The amount of such payments may be significant in amount and the prospect of receiving any such payments may provide such third parties or their employees with an incentive to favor sales of Shares of the Fund over other investment options. Contact your financial intermediary for details about revenue sharing payments it receives or may receive.
SHAREHOLDER SERVICES EXPENSES
Certain broker-dealers or other intermediaries perform services that otherwise could be handled by the Fund’s Transfer Agent. These services may include preparing and distributing client statements, tax reporting, order-processing and client relations. As a result, these third parties may charge fees (sometimes called “sub- transfer agency fees” or “sub-accounting fees”) to the Fund for these services. The Fund may pay for such services outside of a Rule 12b-1 Plan (meaning in addition to or instead of as Rule 12b-1 fees) so long as such compensation does not exceed certain limits set from time to time by the Board of Trustees in consultation with management. Arrangements may involve a dollar per-account fee, an asset-based fee, transaction or other charges, cost reimbursement or, in some cases, a combination of these inputs.
Sub-transfer agency fees can comprise a substantial portion of the Fund’s ongoing expenses. While the Investment Manager and the Distributor consider sub-transfer agency fees to be payments for services rendered, they represent an additional business relationship between these sub-transfer agents and the Fund that often results, at least in part, from past or present sales of Fund shares by the sub-transfer agents or their affiliates. The Investment Manager, the Distributor or an affiliate may make additional payments to intermediaries for these and other services, and their payments may be based on the same or other methods of calculation. See “REVENUE SHARING” below.
REVENUE SHARING
The Investment Manager or an affiliate may make cash payments from their own resources to broker-dealers or financial intermediaries for various reasons. These payments, often referred to as “revenue sharing,” may support the delivery of services to the Fund or shareholders in the Fund, including transaction processing and sub-accounting services.
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These payments also may serve as an incentive to sell Fund Shares or to promote shareholder retention. As such, the payments may go to firms providing various marketing support or other promotional services relating to the Fund, including advertising and sales meetings, as well as inclusion of the Fund in various promotional and sales programs. Marketing support services also may include business planning assistance, broker-dealer education about the Fund and shareholder financial planning assistance.
Revenue sharing payments may include any portion of the sub-transfer agency fees (described in the preceding section) that exceed the limits for those fees established by the Board of Trustees in consultation with management and which, accordingly, the Fund does not pay. They also may include any other payment requirement of a broker-dealer or another third-party intermediary, including certain agreed upon “finder’s fees.”
The Investment Manager or an affiliate pay all such payments out of its (or their) own resources. Such payments are in addition to any recordkeeping, sub-transfer agency/networking fees payable by the Fund (through the Distributor or otherwise) to others for performing such services and distribution or service plan payments described elsewhere in this prospectus. Revenue sharing payments may be structured, among other means, as: (i) a percentage of sales; (ii) a percentage of net assets; (iii) a flat fee per transaction; (iv) a fixed dollar amount; or (v) some combination of any of these. In many cases, revenue sharing arrangements may be viewed as encouraging sales activity or retention of assets in the Fund. Generally, any revenue sharing or similar payments are requested by the party receiving them, often as a condition of distribution, but they are subject to negotiation as to their structure and scope.
The Investment Manager or an affiliate also may pay from their own resources for travel and other expenses, including lodging, entertainment and meals, incurred by brokers for attending diligence or informational meetings with the Fund’s investment professionals. The Investment Manager or an affiliate also may pay for costs of organizing and holding such meetings and also may make payments to or on behalf of brokers or other financial intermediaries for other types of events, including pre-approved conferences, seminars or sales or training programs (and payments for travel, lodging, etc.), and may provide small gifts and/or entertainment as permitted by applicable rules. The Investment Manager or an affiliate also may pay fixed fees for the listing of the Fund on a broker-dealers or financial intermediary’s system. This compensation is not included in, and is made in addition to, the compensation described in the preceding paragraph.
Please be aware that revenue sharing arrangements or other payments to intermediaries could create incentives on the part of the parties receiving the payments to consider the Fund relative more positively to mutual funds either not making payments of this nature or making smaller such payments. A shareholder or prospective investor with questions regarding revenue sharing or other such payments may obtain more details by contacting his or her broker representative or other financial intermediary directly.
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ADMINISTRATION
The Fund has retained the Administrator, UMB Fund Services, Inc., whose principal business address is 235 West Galena Street, Milwaukee, WI 53212, to provide administrative services, and to assist with operational needs. The Administrator provides such services to the Fund pursuant to an administration agreement between the Fund and the Administrator (the “Administration Agreement”). The Administrator is responsible directly or through its agents for, among other things, providing the following services to each of the Fund; (1) maintaining a list of Shareholders and generally performing all actions related to the issuance and repurchase of Shares of the Fund, if any, including delivery of trade confirmations and capital statements; (2) providing certain administrative, clerical and bookkeeping services; (3) providing transfer agency services, services related to the payment of distributions, and accounting services; (4) computing the NAV of the Fund in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and procedures defined in consultation with the Investment Manager; (5) overseeing the preparation of semi-annual and annual financial statements of the Fund in accordance with GAAP, quarterly reports of the operations of the Fund and information required for tax returns; (6) supervising regulatory compliance matters and preparing certain regulatory filings; and (7) performing additional services, as agreed upon, in connection with the administration of the Fund. The Administrator may from time to time delegate its responsibilities under the Administration Agreement to one or more parties selected by the Administrator, including its affiliates or affiliates of the Investment Manager.
In consideration for these services, the Administrator earns and is paid monthly in an amount equal to at least 1/12th of the applicable annual fee calculated based upon the average net asset value of the Fund, subject to a monthly minimum fee (the “Administration Fee”). The Administration Fee is paid to the Administrator out of the assets of the Fund and therefore decreases the net profits or increases the net losses of the Fund. The Administrator is also reimbursed by the Fund for out-of-pocket expenses relating to services provided to the Fund, and receives a fee for transfer agency services. The Administration Fee and the other terms of the Administration Agreement may change from time to time as may be agreed to by the Fund and the Administrator.
The Administration Agreement provides that, in the absence of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of its obligations to the Fund, the Administrator and any partner, director, officer or employee of the Administrator, or any of their affiliates, executors, heirs, assigns, successors or other legal representatives, will not be liable to the Fund for any error of judgment, for any mistake of law or for any act or omission by the person in connection with the performance of administration services for the Fund. The Administration Agreement also provides for indemnification, to the fullest extent permitted by law, by the Fund or the Administrator, or any partner, director, officer or employee of the Administrator, and any of their affiliates, executors, heirs, assigns, successors or other legal representatives, against any liability or expense to which the person may be liable that arises in connection with the performance of services to such fund, so long as the liability or expense is not incurred by reason of the person’s willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of its obligations to the Fund.
CUSTODIAN
UMB Bank, N.A., (the “Custodian”) serves as the primary custodian of the assets of the Fund and the Subsidiaries, and may maintain custody of such assets with U.S. and non-U.S. sub-custodians (which may be banks and trust companies), securities depositories and clearing agencies in accordance with the requirements of Section 17(f) of the Investment Company Act and the rules thereunder. Assets of the Fund are not held by the Investment Manager or commingled with the assets of other accounts other than to the extent that securities are held in the name of the Custodian or U.S. or non-U.S. sub-custodians in a securities depository, clearing agency or omnibus customer account of such custodian. The Custodian’s principal business address is 1010 Grand Boulevard, Kansas City, MO 64106.
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FUND EXPENSES
The Fund will pay all of its expenses, or reimburse the Investment Manager or its affiliates to the extent they have previously paid such expenses on behalf of the Fund. The expenses of the Fund include, but are not limited to, any fees and expenses in connection with the offering and issuance of Shares; all fees and expenses reasonably incurred in connection with the operation of the Fund; all fees and expenses directly related to portfolio transactions and positions for the Fund’s account such as direct and indirect expenses associated with the Fund’s investments, and enforcing the Fund’s rights in respect of such investments; quotation or valuation expenses; the Investment Management Fee, and the Administration Fee; brokerage commissions; interest and fees on any borrowings by the Fund; professional fees; research expenses (including, without limitation, expenses of consultants who perform fund manager due diligence research); fees and expenses of outside legal counsel (including fees and expenses associated with the review of documentation for prospective investments by the Fund), including foreign legal counsel; accounting, auditing and tax preparation expenses; fees and expenses in connection with repurchase offers and any repurchases or redemptions of Shares; taxes and governmental fees (including tax preparation fees); fees and expenses of any custodian, sub-custodian, transfer agent, and registrar, and any other agent of the Fund; all costs and charges for equipment or services used in communicating information regarding the Fund’s transactions with any custodian or other agent engaged by the Fund; bank services fees; costs and expenses relating to any amendment of the Agreement and Declaration of Trust or other organizational documents of the Fund; expenses of preparing, amending, printing, and distributing the Prospectus and any other sales material (and any supplements or amendments thereto), reports, notices, other communications to Shareholders, and proxy materials; expenses of preparing, printing, and filing reports and other documents with government agencies; expenses of Shareholders’ meetings, including the solicitation of proxies in connection therewith; expenses of corporate data processing and related services; shareholder recordkeeping and account services, fees, and disbursements; expenses relating to investor and public relations; fees and expenses of the members of the Board who are not employees of the Investment Manager or its affiliates; insurance premiums; Extraordinary Expenses (as defined below); and all costs and expenses incurred as a result of dissolution, winding-up and termination of the Fund. The Fund may need to sell portfolio securities to pay fees and expenses, which could cause the Fund to realize taxable gains.
“Extraordinary Expenses” means all expenses incurred by the Fund outside of the ordinary course of its business, including, without limitation, costs incurred in connection with any claim, litigation, arbitration, mediation, government investigation or dispute and the amount of any judgment or settlement paid in connection therewith, or the enforcement of the rights against any person or entity; costs and expenses for indemnification or contribution payable to any person or entity; expenses of a reorganization, restructuring or merger, as applicable; expenses of holding, or soliciting proxies for, a meeting of shareholders; and the expenses of engaging a new administrator, custodian or transfer agent.
The Investment Manager will bear all of its expenses and costs incurred in providing investment advisory services to the Fund, including travel and other expenses related to the selection and monitoring of investments. In addition, the Investment Manager is responsible for the payment of the compensation and expenses of those officers of the Fund affiliated with the Investment Manager, and making available, without expense to the Fund, the services of such individuals, subject to their individual consent to serve and to any limitations imposed by law.
The Fund will bear directly certain ongoing offering costs associated with any periodic offers of Shares which will be expensed as they are incurred. Offering costs cannot be deducted by the Fund or the Shareholders.
The Investment Manager has entered into an expense limitation and reimbursement agreement (the “Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement”) with the Fund, whereby the Investment Manager has agreed to waive fees that it would otherwise have been paid, and/or to assume expenses of the Fund (a “Waiver”), if required to ensure the Total Annual Expenses (excluding the Investment Management Fee, any taxes, borrowing and other investment-related costs and fees paid to unaffiliated third parties including interest payments on borrowed funds, loan origination fees, loan servicing fees, loan collection and administration fees and expenses, interest and commitment fees, distribution or servicing fees, brokerage and distribution costs and expenses, acquired fund fees and expenses (as determined in accordance with SEC Form N-2), expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization, and extraordinary or non-routine expenses, such as litigation expenses) do not exceed 0.50% of the average daily net assets of Class I Shares (the “Expense Limit”). Because Investment Management Fees, taxes, borrowing and other investment-related costs and fees paid to unaffiliated third parties including interest payments on borrowed funds, loan origination fees, loan servicing fees, loan collection and administration fees and expenses, interest and commitment fees, distribution or servicing fees, brokerage and distribution costs and expenses, acquired fund fees and expenses, expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization, and extraordinary or non- routine expenses are excluded from the Expense Limit, Total Annual Expenses (after fee waivers and expense reimbursements) are expected to exceed 0.50% for Class I Shares. Additionally, under the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement, the Investment Manager has agreed to waive fees that it would otherwise have been paid, and/or to assume payment of any taxes that would be owed by the Fund if it fails to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code (“RIC Non-Qualification Taxes) up to a maximum of $1 million in a tax year for Fund’s first two tax years or periods, subject to extensions for future tax years. For a period not to exceed three years from the date on which a Waiver is made, the Investment Manager may recoup amounts waived or assumed, provided it is able to effect such recoupment and remain in compliance with the Expense Limit in place at the time of the Waiver and the current Expense Limit. A Waiver for RIC Non-Qualification Taxes is not subject to recoupment. The Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement has an initial two-year term, which ends on April 30, 2025. After its initial two year term, the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement is subject to renewal annually for one-year terms thereafter. The Investment Manager may not terminate the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement during the initial term without the approval of the Fund’s Board.
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The Fund’s fees and expenses will decrease the net profits or increase the net losses of the Fund that are credited to Shareholders.
VOTING
Each Shareholder will have the right to cast a number of votes, based on the number of such Shareholder’s Shares, at any meeting of Shareholders called by the Board. Except for the exercise of such voting privileges, Shareholders will not be entitled to participate in the management or control of the Fund’s business, and may not act for or bind the Fund.
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
The Fund may be subject to a number of actual and potential conflicts of interest.
The Investment Manager and its affiliates engage in financial advisory activities that are independent from, and may from time to time conflict with, those of the Fund. In the future, there might arise instances where the interests of such affiliates conflict with the interests of the Fund. The Investment Manager and its affiliates may provide services to, invest in, advise, sponsor and/or act as investment manager to investment vehicles and other persons or entities (including prospective investors in the Fund) which may have structures, investment objectives and/or policies that are similar to (or different than) those of the Fund; which may compete with the Fund for investment opportunities; and which may, subject to applicable law, co-invest with the Fund in certain transactions. In addition, the Investment Manager and its affiliates and respective clients may themselves invest in securities that would be appropriate for the Fund. By acquiring Shares, each Shareholder will be deemed to have acknowledged the existence of any such actual and potential conflicts of interest and to have waived any claim with respect to any liability arising from the existence of any such conflict of interest.
Although the Investment Manager and its affiliates will seek to allocate investment opportunities among the Fund and their other clients in a fair and reasonable manner, there can be no assurance that an investment opportunity which comes to the attention of the Investment Manager or its affiliates will be appropriate for the Fund or will be referred to the Fund. The Investment Manager and its affiliates are not obligated to refer any investment opportunity to the Fund.
The Fund and the Investment Manager intend to seek exemptive relief from the SEC to permit greater flexibility to negotiate the terms of co-investments if the Fund’s Board determines that it would be advantageous for the Fund to co-invest with investment funds, accounts and investment vehicles managed by Investment Manager in a manner consistent with the Fund’s investment objective, positions, policies, strategies and restrictions as well as regulatory requirements and other pertinent factors. The Fund believes that co-investment by the Fund and investment funds, accounts and investment vehicles managed by Investment Manager may afford the Fund additional investment opportunities and an ability to achieve greater diversification. Accordingly, the application for exemptive relief will seek an exemptive order permitting the Fund to invest with investment funds, accounts and investment vehicles managed by the Investment Manager in the same portfolio companies under circumstances in which such investments would otherwise not be permitted by the Investment Company Act. The Fund expects that such exemptive relief permitting co-investments, if granted, would apply only if the Fund’s independent trustees review and approve each co-investment. There can be no assurance if and when the SEC would grant such relief.
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The directors, partners, trustees, managers, members, officers and employees of the Investment Manager and its affiliates may buy and sell securities or other investments for their own accounts (including through funds managed by the Investment Manager or its affiliates). As a result of differing trading and investment strategies or constraints, investments may be made by directors, partners, trustees, managers, members, officers and employees of the Investment Manager that are the same, different from or made at different times than investments made for the Fund. To reduce the possibility that the Fund will be materially adversely affected by the personal trading described above, the Fund and the Investment Manager have individually adopted codes of ethics (collectively, the “Codes of Ethics”) in compliance with Section 17(j) of the Investment Company Act that restrict securities trading in the personal accounts of investment professionals and others who normally come into possession of information regarding the portfolio transactions of the Fund. The Codes of Ethics can be reviewed and copied at the SEC’s Public Reference Room in Washington, D.C. Information on the operation of the Public Reference Room may be obtained by calling the SEC at 1-202-551-8090. The Codes of Ethics are also available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s Internet site at http://www.sec.gov, and copies may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by email at publicinfo@sec.gov or by writing the SEC’s Public Reference Section, Washington, DC 20549-0102.
The following table shows the amounts of Common Shares of the Fund that were authorized and outstanding as of March 31, 2023:
| (1) | (2) | (3) | (4) |
| Title of Class | Amount Authorized | Amount Held by the Fund for its Own Account | Amount Outstanding Exclusive of Amount Shown under Column |
| Class I | Unlimited | 0 | 2,032,390 |
QUARTERLY REPURCHASE OFFERS
A substantial portion of the Fund’s investments are illiquid. For this reason, the Fund is structured as a closed-end interval fund which means that the Shareholders will not have the right to redeem their Shares on a daily basis. In addition, the Fund does not expect any trading market to develop for the Shares. As a result, if investors decide to invest in the Fund, they will have very limited opportunity to sell their Shares.
The Fund intends to provide a limited degree of liquidity to the Shareholders by conducting repurchase offers quarterly.
Repurchase Dates
Once each quarter, the Fund will offer to repurchase at per-class NAV per Share no less than 5% of the outstanding Shares of the Fund, unless such offer is suspended or postponed in accordance with regulatory requirements (as discussed below).
Determination of Repurchase Offer Amount
For each quarterly repurchase offer the Board will set an amount between 5% and 25% of the Fund’s Shares based on relevant factors, including the liquidity of the Fund’s positions and the Shareholders’ desire for liquidity. The offer to purchase shares is a fundamental policy that may not be changed without the vote of the holders of a majority of the Fund’s outstanding voting securities (as defined in the Investment Company Act). For each quarterly repurchase offer, the Fund currently expects to offer to repurchase 5% of the Fund’s outstanding Shares at NAV subject to approval of the Board of Trustees.
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Notice to Shareholders
No less than 21 days and more than 42 days before each Repurchase Request Deadline, Shareholders will be notified in writing about each quarterly repurchase offer (each, a “Repurchase Offer”), how they may request that the Fund repurchase their Shares, and the date the Repurchase Offer ends (the “Repurchase Request Deadline”). Shares tendered for repurchase by shareholders prior to any Repurchase Request Deadline will be repurchased subject to the aggregate repurchase amounts established for that Repurchase Request Deadline. The time between the notification to Shareholders and the Repurchase Request Deadline is generally thirty (30) days, but may vary from no more than forty-two (42) days to no less than twenty-one (21) days. The Shareholder Notification will contain information Shareholders should consider in deciding whether to tender their Shares for repurchase. The Shareholder Notification also will include detailed instructions on how to tender Shares for repurchase, state the Repurchase Offer Amount and identify the dates of the Repurchase Request Deadline, the scheduled Repurchase Pricing Date, and the date the repurchase proceeds are scheduled for payment (the “Repurchase Payment Deadline”). The Shareholder Notification also will set forth the NAV per Share that has been computed no more than seven (7) days before the date of such notification, and how Shareholders may ascertain the NAV per Share after the notification date.
Determination of Repurchase Price and Payment for Shares
Shares will be repurchased at their NAV per share determined as of the close of business typically as of the Repurchase Request Deadline, but no later than the 14th day after the Repurchase Request Deadline (each, a “Repurchase Pricing Date”). Payment pursuant to the repurchase will be made by checks to the Shareholder’s address of record, or credited directly to a predetermined bank account on the Purchase Payment Date, which will be no more than seven (7) days after the Repurchase Pricing Date. The Board may establish other policies for repurchases of Shares that are consistent with the Investment Company Act, regulations thereunder and other pertinent laws.
Oversubscribed Repurchase Offers
If Shareholders tender for repurchase more than the Repurchase Offer Amount for a given repurchase offer, the Fund may, but is not required to, repurchase an additional amount of Shares not to exceed 2% of the outstanding Shares of the Fund on the Repurchase Request Deadline. If the Fund determines not to repurchase more than the Repurchase Offer Amount, or if Shareholders tender Shares in an amount exceeding the Repurchase Offer Amount plus 2% of the outstanding Shares on the Repurchase Request Deadline, the Fund will repurchase the Shares on a pro rata basis. However, the Fund may accept all shares tendered for repurchase by Shareholders who own less than one hundred (100) Shares and who tender all of their Shares, before prorating other amounts tendered.
Suspension or Postponement of Repurchase Offers
The Fund may suspend or postpone a repurchase offer only: (a) if making or effecting the repurchase offer would cause the Fund to lose its status as a regulated investment company under the Code; (b) for any period during which the NYSE or any market on which the securities owned by the Fund are principally traded is closed, other than customary weekend and holiday closings, or during which trading in such market is restricted; (c) for any period during which an emergency exists as a result of which disposal by the Fund of securities owned by it is not reasonably practicable, or during which it is not reasonably practicable for the Fund fairly to determine the value of its net assets; or (d) for such other periods as the SEC may by order permit for the protection of Shareholders of the Fund.
Consequences of Repurchase Offers
The Fund must maintain liquid assets equal to the Repurchase Offer Amount from the time that the Shareholder Notification is sent to Shareholders until the Repurchase Pricing Date. The Fund will ensure that a percentage of its net assets equal to at least 100% of the Repurchase Offer Amount consists of assets that can be sold or disposed of in the ordinary course of business at approximately the price at which the Fund has valued the investment within the time period between the Repurchase Request Deadline and the Repurchase Payment Deadline. The Board has adopted procedures that are reasonably designed to ensure that the Fund’s assets are sufficiently liquid so that the Fund can comply with the repurchase offer and the liquidity requirements described in the previous paragraph. If, at any time, the Fund falls out of compliance with these liquidity requirements, the Board will take whatever action it deems appropriate to ensure compliance.
Mandatory Repurchases
The Fund may cause a mandatory repurchase or redemption of all or some of the Shares of a Shareholder, or any person acquiring Shares from or through a Shareholder, at net asset value in accordance with the Declaration of Trust and Section 23 of the Investment Company Act and Rule 23c-2 thereunder.
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TRANSFERS OF SHARES
No person shall become a substituted Shareholder of the Fund without the consent of the Fund, which consent may be withheld in its sole discretion. Shares held by Shareholders may be transferred only: (i) by operation of law in connection with the death, divorce, bankruptcy, insolvency, or adjudicated incompetence of the Shareholder; or (ii) under other limited circumstances, with the consent of the Board (which may be withheld in its sole discretion and is expected to be granted, if at all, only under extenuating circumstances).
Notice to the Fund of any proposed transfer must include evidence satisfactory to the Board that the proposed transferee, at the time of transfer, meets any requirements imposed by the Fund with respect to investor eligibility and suitability. Notice of a proposed transfer of a Share must also be accompanied by a properly completed investor application in respect of the proposed transferee. In connection with any request to transfer Shares, the Fund may require the Shareholder requesting the transfer to obtain, at the Shareholder’s expense, an opinion of counsel selected by the Fund as to such matters as the Fund may reasonably request. The Board generally will not consent to a transfer of Shares by a Shareholder (i) unless such transfer is to a single transferee, or (ii) if, after the transfer of the Shares, the balance of the account of each of the transferee and transferor is less than $2,500. Each transferring Shareholder and transferee may be charged reasonable expenses, including, but not limited to, attorneys’ and accountants’ fees, incurred by the Fund in connection with the transfer.
Any transferee acquiring Shares by operation of law in connection with the death, divorce, bankruptcy, insolvency, or adjudicated incompetence of the Shareholder, will be entitled to the distributions allocable to the Shares so acquired, to transfer the Shares in accordance with the terms of the Agreement and Declaration of Trust and to tender the Shares for repurchase by the Fund, but will not be entitled to the other rights of a Shareholder unless and until the transferee becomes a substituted Shareholder as specified in the Agreement and Declaration of Trust. If a Shareholder transfers Shares with the approval of the Board, the Fund shall as promptly as practicable take all necessary actions so that each transferee or successor to whom the Shares are transferred is admitted to the Fund as a Shareholder.
By subscribing for Shares, each Shareholder agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Fund, the Board, the Investment Manager, the Administrator, the Custodian and each other Shareholder, and any affiliate of the foregoing against all losses, claims, damages, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including legal or other expenses incurred in investigating or defending against any losses, claims, damages, liabilities, costs, and expenses or any judgments, fines, and amounts paid in settlement), joint or several, to which such persons may become subject by reason of or arising from any transfer made by that Shareholder in violation of the Agreement and Declaration of Trust or any misrepresentation made by that Shareholder in connection with any such transfer.
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING
If the Fund, the Investment Manager or any governmental agency believes that the Fund has sold Shares to, or is otherwise holding assets of, any person or entity that is acting, directly or indirectly, in violation of U.S., international or other anti-money laundering laws, rules, regulations, treaties or other restrictions, or on behalf of any suspected terrorist or terrorist organization, suspected drug trafficker, or senior foreign political figure(s) suspected of engaging in corruption, the Fund, the Investment Manager or such governmental agency may freeze the assets of such person or entity invested in the Fund or suspend the repurchase of Shares. The Fund may also be required to, or deem it necessary or advisable to, remit or transfer those assets to a governmental agency, in some cases without prior notice to the investor.
CREDIT FACILITY
The Fund may enter into one or more credit agreements or other similar agreements negotiated on market terms (each, a “Borrowing Transaction”) with one or more banks or other financial institutions (each, a “Financial Institution”) as chosen by the Investment Manager and approved by the Board. The Fund may borrow under a credit facility for a number of reasons, including without limitation, in connection with its investment activities, to make monthly income distributions, to satisfy repurchase requests from Shareholders, and to otherwise provide the Fund with temporary liquidity. To facilitate such Borrowing Transactions, the Fund may pledge its assets to the Financial Institution.
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CALCULATION OF NET ASSET VALUE
GENERAL
The Fund’s NAV per Share is determined, on a per class basis, by dividing the value of the Fund’s total assets (the value of the securities the Fund holds plus cash or other assets, including interest accrued but not yet received), less accrued expenses of the Fund, less the Fund’s other liabilities by the total number of shares outstanding.
The Administrator calculates the Fund’s NAV on each business day, as of the close of regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) (normally, 4:00 p.m., Eastern time). Each time the Fund calculates its NAV, it will accrue as a liability any amounts owed to the Investment Manager as payment for incentive fees, which could vary over time.
Class I shares are offered at NAV. During the continuous offering, the price of the Shares will increase or decrease on a daily basis according to the NAV of the Shares.
The value of the Fund’s securities and other assets is determined pursuant to valuation procedures of the Fund and the Investment Manager. For purposes of calculating the Fund’s NAV, investments for which market quotations are readily available are valued at their current market values. Market values for various types of securities and other instruments are determined on the basis of closing prices or last sale prices on an exchange or other market, or based on quotes or other market information obtained from quotation reporting systems, established market makers, brokers, data delivery vendors, or pricing services.
If market quotations are not readily available for an investment or are believed by the Investment Manager to be unreliable, securities and other assets are valued at fair value as determined in good faith pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the 1940 Act. Pursuant to Rule 2a-5, the Board of Trustees has designated the Investment Manager as its valuation designee to perform the fair value determinations relating to all the Fund’s investments. The Investment Manager may carry out its designated responsibilities as valuation designee through a committee. The Investment Manager’s policies and procedures govern the Investment Manager’s selection and application of methodologies for determining and calculating the fair value of Fund investments. As a general matter, fair value represents the amount that the Fund could reasonably expect to receive if the Fund’s investment in the security were sold at the time of valuation, based on information reasonably available at the time the valuation is made and that the Investment Manager believes to be reliable. As the valuation designee, the Investment Manager acts under the Board of Trustees’ oversight.
Fair valuation may require subjective determinations about the value of a security. There is no single standard for determining fair value of a security. Rather, the fair value determinations involve significant professional judgment in the application of both observable and unobservable attributes, While the Fund’s and Investment Manager’s policies and procedures are intended to result in a calculation of the Fund’s NAV that fairly reflects security values as of the time of pricing, the Fund cannot ensure that fair values accurately reflect the price that the Fund could obtain for a security if it were to dispose of that security as of the time of pricing (for instance, in a forced or distressed sale). The prices used by the Fund may differ from the value that would be realized if the securities were sold.
The Fund’s portfolio will normally consist primarily of debt and other credit-related investments. The price for these investments, including CLO investments, will generally be based on prices provided by the Fund’s approved independent third party pricing services or by reference to observable, recent transactions. Pricing services may use evaluated or matrix pricing or valuation models that utilize certain inputs and assumptions to provide estimated values. Debt and other credit-related investments may also be valued based on quotations obtained from unaffiliated market makers and other financial institutions that trade in similar investments. Whole loans may be fair valued using inputs that take into account borrower- or loan- level data (e.g., credit risk of the borrower) that is updated periodically throughout the life of each individual loan; any new borrower- or loan-level data received in written reports periodically by the Fund normally will be taken into account in calculating the NAV. Short-term debt obligations that will mature in 60 days or less are valued at amortized cost, unless it is determined that using this method would not reflect an investment’s fair value.
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Readily marketable portfolio securities listed on the NYSE are valued, except as indicated below, at the last sale price reflected on the consolidated tape at the close of the NYSE on the business day as of which such value is being determined. If there has been no sale on such day, the securities are valued at the mean of the closing bid and asked prices on such day. If no bid or asked prices are quoted on such day or if market prices may be unreliable because of events occurring after the close of trading, then the security is valued by such method as the Investment Manager determines in good faith to reflect its fair market value. Readily marketable securities not listed on the NYSE but listed on other domestic or foreign securities exchanges are valued in a like manner. Portfolio securities traded on more than one securities exchange are valued at the last sale price on the business day as of which such value is being determined as reflected on the consolidated tape at the close of the exchange representing the principal market for such securities. Securities trading on the NASDAQ are valued at the NASDAQ official closing price.
Readily marketable securities traded in the over-the-counter market, including listed securities whose primary market is believed by the Investment Manager to be over-the-counter, are valued at the mean of the current bid and asked prices as reported by the NASDAQ or, in the case of securities not reported by the NASDAQ or a comparable source, as the Investment Manager deems appropriate to reflect their fair market value. Where securities are traded on more than one exchange and also over-the-counter, the securities will generally be valued using the quotations the Board of Trustees believes reflect most closely the value of such securities.
Foreign (non-U.S.) securities are valued as of the close of the NYSE at the closing price of such securities in their principal trading market, but may be valued at fair value if subsequent events occurring before the computation of NAV materially have affected the value of the securities. Trading may take place in foreign issues held by the Fund, if any, at times when the Fund is not open for business. As a result, the Fund’s NAV may change at times when it is not possible to purchase or sell shares of the Fund. The Fund may use a third-party pricing service to assist it in determining the market value of securities in the Fund’s portfolio.
Investments initially valued in currencies other than the U.S. dollar are converted to U.S. dollars using exchange rates obtained from pricing services. As a result, the value of such investments and, in turn, the NAV of the Fund’s shares may be affected by changes in the value of currencies in relation to the U.S. dollar. The value of investments traded in markets outside the United States or denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar may be affected significantly on a day that the Fund is not open for business. As a result, the value of the Fund’s foreign (non-U.S.) investments may change at times when shareholders are unable to buy or sell shares and the value of such investments will be reflected in the Fund’s next calculated NAV.
The Investment Manager provides the Board of Trustees with periodic reports that discuss the functioning of the fair valuation process, if applicable to that period, and that identify issues and valuations problems that have arisen, if any.
SUSPENSION OF CALCULATION OF NET ASSET VALUE
As noted above, the Administrator calculates the Fund’s NAV as of the close of regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) (normally, 4:00 p.m., Eastern time) on each Business Day. However, there may be circumstances where it may not be practicable to determine an NAV, including, but not limited to during any period when the principal stock exchanges for securities in which the Fund has invested its assets are closed other than for weekends and customary holidays (or when trading on such exchanges is restricted or suspended), or an emergency exists as determined by the SEC, making securities sales or determinations of NAV not practicable, or the SEC permits a delay for the protection of shareholders. In such circumstances, the Board (after consultation with the Investment Manager) may suspend the calculation of NAV. The Fund will not accept subscriptions for Shares if the calculation of NAV is suspended, and the suspension may require the termination of a pending repurchase offer by the Fund (or the postponement of the valuation date for a repurchase offer). Notwithstanding a suspension of the calculation of NAV, the Fund will be required to determine the value of its assets and report NAV in its semi-annual and annual reports to Shareholders, and in its reports on Form N-PORT filed with the SEC. The Administrator will resume calculation of the Fund’s NAV after the Board (in consultation with the Investment Manager) determines that conditions no longer require suspension of the calculation of NAV.
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TAXES
INTRODUCTION
The following is a summary of certain material federal income tax consequences of acquiring, holding and disposing of Shares. Because the federal income tax consequences of investing in the Fund may vary from Shareholder to Shareholder depending on each Shareholder’s unique federal income tax circumstances, this summary does not attempt to discuss all of the federal income tax consequences of such an investment. Among other things, except in certain limited cases, this summary does not purport to deal with persons in special situations (such as financial institutions, non-U.S. persons, insurance companies, entities exempt from federal income tax, regulated investment companies, dealers in commodities and securities and pass through entities). Further, to the limited extent this summary discusses possible foreign, state and local income tax consequences, it does so in a very general manner. Finally, this summary does not purport to discuss federal tax consequences (such as estate and gift tax consequences other than those arising under the federal income tax laws). The Fund and its service providers do not provide tax advice. You are therefore urged to consult your tax advisers to determine the federal, state, local and foreign tax consequences of acquiring, holding and disposing of Shares.
The following summary is based upon the Code as well as administrative regulations and rulings and judicial decisions thereunder, as of the date hereof, all of which are subject to change at any time (possibly on a retroactive basis). Accordingly, no assurance can be given that the tax consequences to the Fund or its shareholder will continue to be as described herein.
The Fund has not sought or obtained a ruling from the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) (or any other federal, state, local or foreign governmental agency) or an opinion of legal counsel as to any specific federal, state, local or foreign tax matter that may affect it. Accordingly, although this summary is considered to be a correct interpretation of applicable law, no assurance can be given that a court or taxing authority will agree with such interpretation or with the tax positions taken by the Fund.
Except where specifically noted, this summary relates solely to U.S. Shareholders. A U.S. Shareholder for purposes of this discussion is a person who is a citizen or a resident alien of the U.S., a corporation (or other entity treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes) organized under the laws of the U.S. or any political subdivision thereof, an estate whose income is subject to U.S. federal income tax regardless of its source or a trust if: (i) a U.S. court can exercise primary supervision over the trust’s administration and one or more U.S. persons are authorized to control all substantial decisions of the trust or (ii) the trust has a valid election in effect under applicable Treasury Regulations to be treated as a U.S. person.
TAXATION OF THE FUND
The below is a summary of certain U.S. federal income tax considerations relevant under current law, which is subject to change. Except where otherwise specifically indicated, the discussion relates to investors who are individual U.S. citizens or residents. You should consult your own tax adviser regarding tax considerations relevant to your specific situation, including federal, state, local and non-U.S. taxes.
The Fund has elected to be treated as a RIC under federal income tax law.
When the Fund qualifies as a RIC, the Fund will generally not be subject to federal corporate income taxes, provided that it distributes out to Shareholders their taxable income and gain each year. To qualify for treatment as a RIC, the Fund must meet three important tests each year.
First, the Fund must derive with respect to each taxable year at least 90% of its gross income from dividends, interest, certain payments with respect to securities loans, gains from the sale or other disposition of stock or securities or foreign currencies, other income derived with respect to its business of investing in such stock, securities or currencies, or net income derived from interests in qualified publicly traded partnerships.
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Second, generally, at the close of each quarter of its taxable year, at least 50% of the value of the Fund’s assets must consist of cash and cash items, U.S. government securities, securities of other RICs, and securities of other issuers (as to which the Fund has not invested more than 5% of the value of its total assets in securities of the issuer and as to which the Fund does not hold more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of the issuer), and no more than 25% of the value of the Fund’s total assets may be invested in the securities of (1) any one issuer (other than U.S. government securities and securities of other regulated investment companies), (2) two or more issuers that the Fund controls and which are engaged in the same or similar trades or businesses, or (3) one or more qualified publicly traded partnerships.
Third, the Fund must distribute an amount equal to at least the sum of 90% of its investment company taxable income (net investment income and the excess of net short-term capital gain over net long-term capital loss) and 90% of its tax-exempt income, if any, for the year.
The Fund intends to comply with this distribution requirement. If the Fund were to fail to make sufficient distributions, it could be liable for corporate income tax and for excise tax in respect of the shortfall or, if the shortfall is large enough, the Fund could be disqualified as a RIC. If for any taxable year the Fund were not to qualify as a RIC, all its taxable income would be subject to tax at regular corporate rates without any deduction for distributions to Shareholders. In that event, taxable Shareholders would recognize dividend income on distributions to the extent of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits, and corporate Shareholders could be eligible for the dividends-received deduction.
The Code imposes a nondeductible 4% excise tax on RICs that fail to distribute each year an amount equal to specified percentages of their ordinary taxable income and capital gain net income (excess of capital gains over capital losses). The Fund intends to make sufficient distributions or deemed distributions each year to avoid liability for this excise tax.
The Fund invests in the Subsidiaries in order to gain exposure to securities that are not freely tradable in the U.S., such as Regulation S securities, as well as certain other securities that can only be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person or where it may be advantageous for the security or asset to be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person (“other restricted non-U.S. securities”).
The Fund intends for some of the Subsidiaries, including Wolf River Cayman Ltd., to be treated as a disregarded entity for U.S. federal income tax purposes. As such, the Fund intends for such Subsidiaries to be disregarded as an entity separate from its sole shareholder, the Fund, and assuming that the Subsidiary is a disregarded entity, the income, gains, losses, deductions and credits of that Subsidiary will be reported by the Fund as such items are realized.
In other cases, a Subsidiary, such as Taffy III, Ltd., will be classified as a controlled foreign corporation for US tax purposes. Any income received from such a Subsidiary is passed through to the Fund as ordinary income, which may be taxed at less favorable rates than capital gains.
If the Fund is unable to qualify for treatment as a RIC, the Fund would be subject to U.S. federal income tax on all of its net taxable income at regular corporate rates. The Fund would not be able to deduct distributions to Shareholders, nor would they be required to be made. Distributions would generally be taxable to non-corporate Shareholders as ordinary dividend income eligible for the reduced rates of U.S. federal income tax to the extent of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits. Subject to certain limitations under the Code, corporate U.S. Shareholders would be eligible for the dividends received deduction. Distributions in excess of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits would be treated first as a return of capital to the extent of the shareholder’s tax basis, and any remaining distributions would be treated as a capital gain. If the Fund were to fail to meet the RIC requirements in its first taxable year or, with respect to later years, for more than two consecutive years, and then to seek to requalify as a RIC, the Fund would be required to recognize gain to the extent of any unrealized appreciation in its assets unless the Fund made a special election to pay corporate-level tax on any such unrealized appreciation recognized during the succeeding ten year period. The Investment Manager has contractually agreed under the terms of an expense limitation and reimbursement agreement to waive fees that it would otherwise be entitled to have been paid, and/or to assume payment of any taxes that would be owed by the Fund if it fails to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code up to a maximum of $1 million in a tax year for Fund’s first two tax years or periods, subject to extension for future tax years. When the Fund qualifies as a RIC, the Fund will generally not be subject to federal corporate income tax, provided that when it is a RIC, it distributes out all of its income and gains each year. The Predecessor Fund operated without regard to the requirements applicable to RICs.
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Distributions To Shareholders. The Fund contemplates declaring as dividends each year all or substantially all of its taxable income and intends to make monthly distributions. In general, distributions will be taxable to you for federal, state and local income tax purposes unless you are a tax-exempt entity, including qualified retirement plans or individual retirement accounts. Distributions are taxable whether they are received in cash or reinvested in Shares. A Shareholder may thus recognize income and gains taxable for federal, state and local income tax purposes and not receive any cash distributions to pay any resulting taxes.
Fund distributions, if any, that are attributable to “qualified dividend income” or “long-term capital gains” earned by the Fund would be taxable to non-corporate Shareholders at reduced rates. Shareholders must have owned the Shares for at least sixty-one (61) days during the one hundred twenty-one (121) day period beginning sixty (60) days before the ex-dividend date to benefit from the lower rates on qualified dividend income. However, U.S. individuals with modified adjusted gross income exceeding $200,000 ($250,000 for married couples filing jointly) and trusts and estates with income above specified levels are subject to a 3.8% tax on their net investment income, which includes interest, dividends and capital gains.
Shareholders are generally taxed on any dividends from the Fund in the year they are actually distributed. Dividends declared in October, November or December of a year, and paid in January of the following year, will generally be treated for federal income tax purposes as having been paid to Shareholders on December 31st of the year in which the dividend was declared.
Certain Withholding Taxes. The Fund may be subject to taxes, including foreign withholding taxes, attributable to investments of the Fund. If at the close of the Fund’s taxable year more than 50% of the value of its assets consists of foreign stock or securities, the Fund will be eligible to elect, for federal income tax purposes, to treat certain foreign taxes paid by it, including generally any withholding and other foreign income taxes, as paid by its Shareholders. If the Fund so elects, the pro rata amount of such foreign taxes paid by the Fund will be included in its Shareholders’ income and each such Shareholder will be entitled either (1) to credit that proportional amount of taxes against U.S. Federal income tax liability as a foreign tax credit or (2) to take that amount as an itemized deduction. The Fund does not expect to be able to make such election.
Sale or other Taxable Disposition of Shares. Upon the sale or other taxable disposition of Shares (except pursuant to a repurchase by the Fund, as described below), a Shareholder will generally realize a capital gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the amount realized and the Shareholder’s adjusted tax basis in the Shares sold. Such gain or loss will be long-term or short-term, depending upon the Shareholder’s holding period for the Shares. Generally, a Shareholder’s gain or loss will be a long-term gain or loss if the Shares have been held for more than one year. For non-corporate taxpayers, long-term capital gains are currently eligible for reduced rates of taxation.
No loss will be allowed on the sale or other taxable disposition of Shares if the owner acquires or enters into a contract or option to acquire securities that are substantially identical to such Shares within 30 days before or after the disposition. In such a case, the basis of the securities acquired will be adjusted to reflect the disallowed loss. Losses realized by a Shareholder on the sale or other taxable disposition of Shares held for six months or less are treated as long-term capital losses to the extent of any distribution of long-term capital gain received (or amounts designated as undistributed capital gains) with respect to such Shares.
From time to time, the Fund may offer to repurchase its outstanding Shares. Shareholders who tender all Shares held, or considered to be held, by them will be treated as having sold their Shares and generally will realize a capital gain or loss. If a Shareholder tenders fewer than all of its Shares or fewer than all Shares tendered are repurchased, such Shareholder may be treated as having received a taxable dividend upon the tender of its Shares. In such a case, there is a risk that non-tendering Shareholders, and Shareholders who tender some but not all of their Shares or fewer than all of whose Shares are repurchased, in each case whose percentage interests in the Fund increase as a result of such tender, will be treated as having received a taxable distribution from the Fund.
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Under U.S. Treasury regulations, if a Shareholder recognizes a loss with respect to Shares of $2 million or more for an individual shareholder or $10 million or more for a corporate shareholder, the shareholder must file with the IRS a disclosure statement on IRS Form 8886. Direct shareholders of portfolio securities are in many cases excepted from this reporting requirement, but under current guidance, shareholders of a RIC are not excepted. Future guidance may extend the current exception from this reporting requirement to shareholders of most or all RICs. The fact that a loss is reportable under these regulations does not affect the legal determination of whether the taxpayer’s treatment of the loss is proper. Shareholders should consult their tax advisors to determine the applicability of these regulations in light of their individual circumstances.
IRAs and Other Tax Qualified Plans. In general, dividends received and gain or loss realized with respect to Shares held in an IRA or other tax qualified plan are not currently taxable unless the Shares were acquired with borrowed funds.
Pursuant to the Regulations directed at tax shelter activity, taxpayers are required to disclose to the IRS certain information on Form 8886 if they participate in a “reportable transaction.” A transaction may be a “reportable transaction” based upon any of several indicia with respect to a Shareholder, including the recognition of a loss in excess of certain thresholds (for individuals, $2 million in one year or $4 million in any combination of years). Investors should consult their own tax advisers concerning any possible disclosure obligation with respect to their investment in Shares.
U.S. Tax Treatment Of Foreign Shareholders. Nonresident aliens, foreign corporations and other foreign investors in the Fund will generally be exempt from U.S. federal income tax on Fund distributions attributable to net capital gains. However, the Fund does not expect to make significant distributions that will be designated as net capital gains. The exemption may not apply, however, if the investment in the Fund is connected to a trade or business of the foreign investor in the United States or if the foreign investor is present in the United States for one hundred eighty-three (183) days or more in a year and certain other conditions are met.
Fund distributions attributable to other categories of Fund income, such as interest, and dividends from companies whose securities are held by the Fund, will generally be subject to a 30% withholding tax when paid to foreign Shareholders. However, the Fund may be able to designate a portion of the distributions made as interest related dividends or short term capital gain dividends which are generally exempt from this withholding tax. The withholding tax may, however, be reduced (and, in some cases, eliminated) under an applicable tax treaty between the United States and a Shareholder’s country of residence or incorporation, provided that the Shareholder furnishes the Fund with a properly completed Form W-8BEN to establish entitlement for these treaty benefits.
A foreign Shareholder will generally not be subject to U.S. tax on gains realized on sales or exchanges of Shares unless the investment in the Fund is connected to a trade or business of the Shareholder in the United States or if the Shareholder is present in the United States for one hundred eighty-three (183) days or more in a year and certain other conditions are met.
In addition, the Fund will be required to withhold 30% tax on payments to foreign entities that do not meet specified information reporting requirements under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act.
All foreign Shareholders should consult their own tax advisers regarding the tax consequences of an investment in the Fund in their country of residence.
State and Local Taxes. In addition to the U.S. federal income tax consequences summarized above, you may be subject to state and local taxes on distributions and redemptions. State income taxes may not apply, however, to the portions of the Fund’s distributions, if any, that are attributable to interest on U.S. government securities.
Information Reporting And Backup Withholding. Under applicable “backup withholding” requirements, the Fund may be required in certain cases to withhold and remit to the IRS a percentage of taxable dividends or gross proceeds realized upon sale payable to Shareholders who have failed to provide a correct tax identification number in the manner required, or who are subject to withholding by the IRS for failure to properly include on their return payments of taxable interest or dividends, or who have failed to certify to the Fund that they are not subject to backup withholding when required to do so or that they are “exempt recipients.” The amount of any backup withholding from a payment to a Shareholder will be allowed as a credit against the Shareholder’s U.S. federal income tax liability and may entitle such a Shareholder to a refund, provided that the required information is timely furnished to the IRS.
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RIC-Related Risks of Investments Generating Non-Cash Taxable Income. Certain of the Fund’s investments will require the Fund to recognize taxable income in a tax year in excess of the cash generated on those investments during that year. In particular, the Fund expects to invest in loans and other debt instruments that will be treated as having “market discount” and/or original issue discount (“OID”) for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Because the Fund may be required to recognize income in respect of these investments before, or without receiving, cash representing such income, the Fund may have difficulty satisfying the annual distribution requirements applicable to RICs and avoiding Fund-level U.S. federal income and/or excise taxes. The Fund may be required to sell assets, including at potentially disadvantageous times or prices, raise additional debt or equity capital, make taxable distributions of Shares or debt securities, or reduce new investments, to obtain the cash needed to make these income distributions. If the Fund liquidates assets to raise cash, the Fund may realize additional gain or loss on such liquidations. In the event the Fund realizes additional net capital gains from such liquidation transactions, Shareholders, may receive larger capital gain distributions than it or they would in the absence of such transactions. Instruments that are treated as having OID for U.S. federal income tax purposes may have unreliable valuations because their continuing accruals require judgments about the collectability of the deferred payments and the value of any collateral. Loans that are treated as having OID generally represent a significantly higher credit risk than coupon loans. Accruals on such instruments may create uncertainty about the source of Fund distributions to Shareholders. OID creates the risk of non-refundable cash payments to the Advisors based on accruals that may never be realized. In addition, the deferral of payment-in-kind interest also reduces a loan’s loan-to-value ratio at a compounding rate.
Uncertain Tax Treatment. The Fund may invest a portion of its net assets in below investment grade instruments. Investments in these types of instruments may present special tax issues for the Fund. U.S. federal income tax rules are not entirely clear about issues such as when the Fund may cease to accrue interest, OID or market discount, when and to what extent deductions may be taken for bad debts or worthless instruments, how payments received on obligations in default should be allocated between principal and income and whether exchanges of debt obligations in a bankruptcy or workout context are taxable. These and other issues will be addressed by the Fund to the extent necessary in connection with the Fund’s intention to distribute sufficient income each tax year to minimize the risk that it becomes subject to U.S. federal income or excise tax.
OTHER TAX MATTERS
The preceding is a summary of some of the tax rules and considerations affecting Shareholders and the Fund’s operations, and does not purport to be a complete analysis of all relevant tax rules and considerations, nor does it purport to be a complete listing of all potential tax risks inherent in making an investment in the Fund. A Shareholder may be subject to other taxes, including but not limited to, state and local taxes, estate and inheritance taxes, and intangible taxes that may be imposed by various jurisdictions. The Fund also may be subject to state, local, and foreign taxes that could reduce cash distributions to Shareholders. It is the responsibility of each Shareholder to file all appropriate tax returns that may be required. Each prospective Shareholder is urged to consult with his or her tax adviser with respect to any investment in the Fund.
ERISA AND CODE CONSIDERATIONS
Persons who are fiduciaries with respect to an employee benefit plan or other arrangements subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”) (an “ERISA Plan”), certain individual retirement accounts (“IRAs”), or certain Keogh plans, should consider, among other things, the matters described below before determining whether to invest in the Fund. ERISA imposes certain general and specific responsibilities on persons who are fiduciaries with respect to an ERISA Plan, including prudence, diversification, the avoidance of prohibited transactions, and other standards. In determining whether a particular investment is appropriate for an ERISA Plan, U.S. Department of Labor regulations provide that a fiduciary of the ERISA Plan must give appropriate consideration to, among other things, the role that the investment plays in the ERISA Plan’s portfolio, whether the investment is designed reasonably to further the ERISA Plan’s purposes, the risk and return factors, the portfolio’s composition with regard to diversification, the liquidity and current total return of the portfolio relative to the anticipated cash flow needs of the ERISA Plan and the proposed investment, the income taxes (if any) attributable to the investment, and the projected return of the investment relative to the ERISA Plan’s funding objectives. Before investing the assets of an ERISA Plan in the Fund, an ERISA Plan fiduciary should determine whether such an investment is consistent with ERISA’s fiduciary responsibilities and the foregoing considerations. If a fiduciary with respect to any such ERISA Plan breaches such responsibilities with regard to selecting an investment or an investment course of action for such ERISA Plan, the fiduciary may be held personally liable for losses incurred by the ERISA Plan as a result of such breach. Non-ERISA-covered IRAs and Keogh plans and other arrangements not subject to ERISA, but subject to the prohibited transaction rules of Section 4975 of the Code (“Code Plans”; together with ERISA Plans, “Plans”), should determine whether an investment in the Fund will violate those rules.
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Because the Fund will be registered as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, the underlying assets of the Fund will not be considered “plan assets” of the Plans investing in the Fund for purposes of ERISA’s fiduciary responsibility rules and ERISA and the Code’s prohibited transaction rules. Thus, the Investment Manager will not be a fiduciary within the meaning of ERISA and the Code with respect to the assets of any Plan that becomes a Shareholder of the Fund, solely as a result of the Plan’s investment in the Fund.
Certain prospective ERISA Plan investors may currently maintain relationships with the Investment Manager or with other entities that are affiliated with the Investment Manager. Each of such persons may be deemed to be a party in interest to, a disqualified person of, and/or a fiduciary of any ERISA Plan to which it provides investment management, investment advisory, or other services. ERISA and the Code prohibit ERISA Plan assets from being used for the benefit of a party in interest or disqualified person and also prohibit a fiduciary from using its position to cause the ERISA Plan to make an investment from which it or certain third parties in which such fiduciary has an interest would receive a fee or other consideration. ERISA Plan investors should consult with legal counsel to determine if participation in the Fund is a transaction that is prohibited by ERISA or the Code. ERISA Plan fiduciaries will be required to represent that the decision to invest in the Fund was made by them as fiduciaries that are independent of such affiliated persons, that they are duly authorized to make such investment decisions, and that they have not relied on any individualized advice or recommendation of such affiliated persons as a primary basis for the decision to invest in the Fund.
The provisions of ERISA and the Code are subject to extensive and continuing administrative and judicial interpretation and review. The discussion of ERISA and the Code contained herein is, of necessity, general and may be affected by the future publication or the future applicability of final regulations and rulings. Potential investors should consult with their legal advisers regarding the consequences under ERISA and the Code of the acquisition and ownership of Shares.
DESCRIPTION OF SHARES
The Fund is authorized to offer two separate classes of Shares designated as Class A Shares and Class I Shares although only Class I Shares are currently being offered. The Fund has received an exemptive order permitting the multi- class structure. From time to time, the Board may create and offer additional classes of Shares, or may vary the characteristics of existing shares, including Class A Shares and/or Class I Shares, including without limitation, in the following respects: (1) the amount of fees permitted by a distribution and/or service plan as to such class; (2) voting rights with respect to a distribution and/or service plan as to such class; (3) different class designations; (4) the impact of any class expenses directly attributable to a particular class of Shares; (5) differences in any dividends and net asset values resulting from differences in fees under a distribution and/or service plan or in class expenses; (6) any sales load structure; and (7) any conversion features, as permitted under the Investment Company Act. The Fund’s repurchase offers will be made to all of its classes of Shares at the same time, in the same proportional amounts and on the same terms, except for differences in net asset values resulting from differences in fees under a distribution and/or service plan or in class expenses.
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PURCHASING SHARES
Investors may purchase Class I Shares directly from the Fund in accordance with the instructions below. Investors will be assessed fees for returned checks and stop payment orders at prevailing rates charged by the Administrator. The returned check and stop payment fee is currently $25.00.
Shares will generally be offered for purchase on each Business Day, except that Shares may be offered more or less frequently as determined by the Board in its sole discretion. The Board may also suspend or terminate offerings of Shares at any time. Class I Shares are sold at NAV per share.
Investors may also buy Shares of the Fund through financial intermediaries and their agents that have made arrangements with the Fund and are authorized to buy Shares of the Fund (collectively, “Financial Intermediaries”). Orders will be priced at the appropriate price next computed after it is received by a Financial Intermediary and received by the Fund. A Financial Intermediary may hold Shares in an omnibus account in the Financial Intermediary’s name or the Financial Intermediary may maintain individual ownership records. The Fund may pay the Financial Intermediary for maintaining individual ownership records as well as providing other shareholder services. Financial intermediaries may charge fees for the services they provide in connection with processing your transaction order or maintaining an investor’s account with them. Investors should check with their Financial Intermediary to determine if it is subject to these arrangements. Financial Intermediaries are responsible for placing orders correctly and promptly with the Fund and forwarding payment promptly. Orders transmitted with a Financial Intermediary before the close of regular trading (generally 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time) on a day that the NYSE is open for business, will be priced based on the Fund’s NAV per Share of that Class next computed after it is received by the Financial Intermediary.
Investors may be charged a fee if they effect transactions through an intermediary, broker or agent. The Fund has authorized one or more brokers to receive on its behalf purchase orders. Such brokers are authorized to designate other intermediaries to receive purchase orders on the Fund’s behalf. The Fund will be deemed to have received a purchase order when an authorized broker or, if applicable, a broker’s authorized designee, receives the order. Purchase orders will be priced at the Fund’s NAV per Share of that Class next computed after they are received by an authorized broker or the broker’s authorized designee.
If an investment is made through an IRA, Keogh plan or 401(k) plan, an approved trustee must process and forward the subscription to the Fund. In such case, the Fund will send the confirmation and notice of its acceptance to the trustee.
By Mail — Initial Investment
To make an initial purchase by mail, complete an account application and mail the application, together with a check made payable to Monachil Credit Income Fund to:
| Overnight: | Regular Mail: | |
| Monachil Credit Income Fund | Monachil Credit Income Fund | |
| c/o UMB Fund Services, Inc. | P.O. Box 2175 | |
| 235 W. Galena St. | Milwaukee, WI 53201 | |
| Milwaukee, WI 53212 |
All checks must be in US Dollars drawn on a domestic bank. The Fund will not accept payment in cash or money orders. To prevent check fraud, the Fund will neither accept third-party checks, Treasury checks, credit card checks, traveler’s checks or starter checks for the purchase of Shares, nor post-dated checks, postdated on-line bill pay checks, or any conditional purchase order or payment.
The transfer agent will charge a $5.00 fee against an investor’s account, in addition to any loss sustained by the Fund, for any payment that is returned. It is the policy of the Fund not to accept applications under certain circumstances or in amounts considered disadvantageous to Shareholders. The Fund reserves the right to reject any application.
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By Wire — Initial Investment
To make an initial investment in the Fund, the transfer agent must receive a completed account application from a Financial Intermediary before an investor wires funds. The Financial Intermediary may mail or overnight deliver an account application to the transfer agent. Upon receipt of the completed account application, the transfer agent will establish an account. The account number assigned will be required as part of the instruction that should be provided to an investor’s bank to send the wire. An investor’s bank must include both the name of the Fund, the account number, and the investor’s name so that monies can be correctly applied. If you wish to wire money to make an investment in the Fund, please call the Fund at (855) 552-5520 for wiring instructions and to notify the Fund that a wire transfer is coming. Any commercial bank can transfer same-day funds via wire. The Fund will normally accept wired funds for investment on the day received if they are received by the Fund’s designated bank before the close of regular trading on the NYSE in accordance with the procedures described above. Your bank may charge you a fee for wiring same-day funds. The bank should transmit funds by wire to:
UMB Bank, NA
Credit to: Monachil Credit Income Fund ABA #: 101000695
Account #: 987258662
Further Credit to: Shareholder name or account registration, account number and SSN or TIN
In compliance with the USA Patriot Act of 2001, the Administrator will verify certain information on each account application as part of the Fund’s Anti-Money Laundering Program. As requested on the application, investors must supply full name, date of birth, social security number and permanent street address. Mailing addresses containing only a P.O. Box will not be accepted. Registered representatives/ investment advisers may call the Fund at (855) 552-5520 for additional assistance when completing an application.
If the Administrator does not have a reasonable belief of the identity of a customer, the account will be rejected or the customer will not be allowed to perform a transaction on the account until such information is received. The Fund also may reserve the right to close the account within five business days if clarifying information/documentation is not received.
Investment Minimums
The minimum initial investment in Class I Shares by an investor is $1,000,000. However, the Fund, in its sole discretion, may accept investments below this minimum. There is no subsequent minimum amount for Class I Shares. Shares may be purchased by current and former trustees of the Fund, by and by employees (including the employee’s spouse, domestic partner, children, grandchildren, parents, grandparents, siblings or any dependent of the employee, as defined in Section 152 of the Code) of the Investment Manager or its affiliates (a trust, pension, profit sharing or other benefit plan which beneficially owns Shares for an associated individual or eligible family member also qualifies) (collectively, the “Eligible Participants”) without being subject to the minimum investment requirements.
SHAREHOLDER DERIVATIVE ACTIONS
A shareholder may bring derivative action on behalf of the Fund only if the shareholder or shareholders first make a pre-suit demand upon the Trustees to bring the subject action unless an effort to cause the Trustees to bring such action is excused. A demand on the Trustees shall only be excused if a majority of the Board of Trustees, or a majority of any committee established by the Board to consider the merits of such action, has a personal financial interest in the action at issue.
TERM, DISSOLUTION AND LIQUIDATION
The Fund may be dissolved upon approval of a majority of the Trustees. Upon the liquidation of the Fund, its assets will be distributed first to satisfy (whether by payment or the making of a reasonable provision for payment) the debts, liabilities and obligations of the Fund, including actual or anticipated liquidation expenses, other than debts, liabilities or obligations to Shareholders, and then to the Shareholders proportionately in accordance with the amount of Shares that they own. Assets may be distributed in-kind on a proportionate basis if the Board or liquidator determines that the distribution of assets in-kind would be in the interests of the Shareholders in facilitating an orderly liquidation.
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REPORTS TO SHAREHOLDERS
The Fund will furnish to Shareholders as soon as practicable after the end of each of its taxable years such information as is necessary for them to complete U.S. federal and state income tax or information returns, along with any other tax information required by law. The Fund anticipates sending Shareholders an unaudited semi-annual and an audited annual report within 60 days after the close of the period for which the report is being made, or as otherwise required by the Investment Company Act. Shareholders also will be sent reports regarding the Fund’s operations each quarter.
FISCAL YEAR
The Fund’s fiscal year is the 12-month period ending on December 31. The Fund’s taxable year is the 12-month period ending on December 31.
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM; LEGAL COUNSEL
The Board has selected Tait, Weller & Baker, LLP, as the independent registered public accountants of the Fund.
Alston & Bird LLP, 950 F St. NW, Washington, DC, 20004, serves as counsel to the Fund, including the Independent Trustees.
INQUIRIES
Inquiries concerning the Fund and Shares (including procedures for purchasing Shares) should be directed to the Fund’s Administrator, UMB Fund Services, Inc. at 235 West Galena Street, Milwaukee, WI 53212.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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MONACHIL CREDIT INCOME FUND
c/o UMB Fund Services, Inc.
235 West Galena Street
Milwaukee, WI 53212
(855) 552-5520
| Investment Manager | Transfer Agent / Administrator |
| Monachil Capital Partners LP | UMB Fund Services, Inc. |
| 1 Sound Shore Drive, Suite 303 | 235 West Galena Street |
| Greenwich, CT 06830 | Milwaukee, WI 53212 |
| Custodian Bank | Distributor |
| UMB Bank, n.a. | Foreside Financial Services, LLC |
| 1010 Grand Boulevard | Three Canal Plaza, Suite 100 |
| Kansas City, MO 64106 | Portland, ME 04101 |
| Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm | Fund Counsel |
| Tait, Weller & Baker LLP | Alston & Bird LLP |
| Two Liberty Place | 950 F St. NW |
| 50 S. 16th Street, Suite 2900 | Washington, DC 20004 |
| Philadelphia, PA 19102 |
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
MONACHIL CREDIT INCOME FUND
Class I Shares MONIX
Dated May 1, 2023
c/o UMB Fund Services, Inc.
235 West Galena Street
Milwaukee, WI 53212
(855) 552-5520
This Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) is not a prospectus. This SAI relates to and should be read in conjunction with the prospectus (the “Prospectus”) of the Monachil Credit Income Fund (the “Fund”) dated May 1, 2023, as it may be further amended or supplemented from time to time. A copy of the Prospectus may be obtained without charge by contacting the Fund at the telephone number or address set forth above.
This SAI is not an offer to sell shares of beneficial interest (“Shares”) of the Fund and is not soliciting an offer to buy Shares in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.
Capitalized terms not otherwise defined herein have the same meaning set forth in the Prospectus.
Shares are distributed by Foreside Financial Services, LLC (“Distributor”) to institutions and financial intermediaries who may distribute Shares to clients and customers (including affiliates and correspondents) of the Fund’s investment adviser, and to clients and customers of other organizations. The Fund’s Prospectus, which is dated May 1, 2023, provides basic information investors should know before investing. This SAI is intended to provide additional information regarding the activities and operations of the Fund and should be read in conjunction with the Prospectus.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Monachil Credit Income Fund (the “Fund”) is a Delaware statutory trust organized on June 3, 2021, and which commenced operations on December 5, 2022. Simultaneous with the commencement of the Fund’s operations, the Wolf River INV LLC (the “Predecessor Fund”), a Delaware limited liability company, reorganized with and transferred substantially all its assets and remaining liabilities into the Fund in exchange for 1,431,157 Class I shares valued at $14,311,572. The Predecessor Fund had substantially the same investment objective and strategies as those of the Fund. The Fund and the Predecessor Fund shared the same investment manager and portfolio managers. The Fund is a non-diversified, closed-end management investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”)which operates as an interval fund.
The Fund is authorized to offer two separate classes of Shares designated as Class A Shares and Class I Shares although only Class I Shares are currently being offered. The Fund has received an exemptive order permitting the multi- class structure. From time to time, the Board may create and offer additional classes of Shares, or may vary the characteristics of existing shares, including Class I Shares and Class A shares, including without limitation, in the following respects: (1) the amount of fees permitted by a distribution and/or service plan as to such class; (2) voting rights with respect to a distribution and/or service plan as to such class; (3) different class designations; (4) the impact of any class expenses directly attributable to a particular class of Shares; (5) differences in any dividends and net asset values resulting from differences in fees under a distribution and/or service plan or in class expenses; (6) any sales load structure; and (7) any conversion features, as permitted under the Investment Company Act. The Fund’s repurchase offers will be made to all of its classes of Shares at the same time, in the same proportional amounts and on the same terms, except for differences in net asset values resulting from differences in fees under a distribution and/or service plan or in class expenses.
INVESTMENT POLICIES AND PRACTICES
The investment objective of the Fund, as well as the principal investment strategies of the Fund and the principal risks associated with such investment strategies, are set forth in the Prospectus. Certain additional information regarding the investment program of the Fund is set forth below:
Commodity Pool Operators and Commodity Trading Advisors.
The CFTC has adopted regulations that subject registered investment companies and their investment advisers to regulation by the CFTC if the registered investment company invests more than a prescribed level of its liquidation value in futures, options on futures or commodities, swaps, or other financial instruments regulated under the Commodity Exchange Act, as amended (“CEA”) and the rules thereunder (“commodity interests”), or if the Fund markets itself as providing investment exposure to such instruments. The Fund and/or the Investment Manager has claimed an exclusion from commodity pool operator (“CPO”) registration pursuant to CFTC Rule 4.5 with respect to the Fund. To remain eligible for this exclusion, the Fund must comply with certain limitations, including limits on its ability to use any commodity interests and limits on the manner in which the Fund holds out its use of such commodity interests. These limitations may restrict the Fund’s ability to pursue its investment objectives and strategies, increase the costs of implementing its strategies, result in higher expenses for the Fund, and/or adversely affect the Fund’s total return.
Leverage and Borrowing
The Fund intends to add leverage to its portfolio by utilizing borrowings, such as through bank loans or commercial paper and/or other credit facilities. The Fund may also enter into other transactions that may give rise to a form of leverage including, among others, loans of portfolio securities. The Fund may choose to increase or decrease, or eliminate entirely, its use of leverage over time and from time to time based on the Investment Manager’s assessment of the yield curve environment, interest rate trends, market conditions and other factors.
The net proceeds the Fund obtains from leverage utilized will be invested in accordance with the Fund’s investment objective and policies as described in the Prospectus. So long as the rate of return, net of applicable Fund expenses, on the debt obligations and other investments purchased by the Fund exceeds the costs to the Fund of the leverage it utilizes, the investment of the Fund’s assets attributable to leverage will generate more income than will be needed to pay the costs of the leverage. If so, and all other things being equal, the excess may be used to pay higher dividends to Shareholders than if the Fund were not so leveraged.
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The Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”) generally prohibits the Fund from engaging in most forms of leverage representing indebtedness (including the use of bank loans, loans of portfolio securities, short sales and when-issued, delayed delivery and forward commitment transactions, to the extent that these instruments are not covered as described below) unless immediately after the issuance of the leverage the Fund has satisfied the asset coverage test with respect to senior securities representing indebtedness prescribed by the Investment Company Act; that is, the value of the Fund’s total assets less all liabilities and indebtedness not represented by senior securities (for these purposes, “total net assets”) is at least 300% of the senior securities representing indebtedness (effectively limiting the use of leverage through senior securities representing indebtedness to 33 1/3% of the Fund’s total net assets, including assets attributable to such leverage). In addition, the Fund is not permitted to declare any cash dividend or other distribution on Shares unless, at the time of such declaration, this asset coverage test is satisfied. To the extent that the Fund engages in borrowings, it may prepay a portion of the principal amount of the borrowing to the extent necessary in order to maintain the required asset coverage. Failure to maintain certain asset coverage requirements could result in an event of default.
Under the Investment Company Act, the Fund is not permitted to issue preferred shares unless immediately after such issuance the Fund’s asset coverage is at least 200% of the liquidation value of the outstanding preferred shares (i.e., such liquidation value may not exceed 50% of the Fund’s assets less all liabilities other than borrowings and outstanding preferred shares). In addition, the Fund is not permitted to declare any cash dividend or other distribution on its Shares unless, at the time of such declaration, the value of the Fund’s assets less liabilities other than borrowings and outstanding preferred shares satisfies the above-referenced 200% coverage requirement. If the Fund uses a combination of borrowing (including notes and other securities representing indebtedness) and issuing preferred shares, the minimum asset coverage required would be between 300% and 200% depending on the relative amounts of borrowings and preferred shares.
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Leveraging is a speculative technique and there are special risks and costs involved. There is no assurance that the Fund will utilize borrowings, issue preferred shares or utilize any other forms of leverage. If used, there can be no assurance that the Fund’s leveraging strategies will be successful or result in a higher yield on your Shares. When leverage is used, the NAV of the Shares and the yield to Shareholders will be more volatile. In addition, interest and other expenses borne by the Fund with respect to its use of borrowings or any other forms of leverage are borne by Shareholders and result in a reduction of the NAV of the Shares.
Certain loans made by the Fund represent advance commitments to extend credit as and when requested by the borrower. These commitments typically are subject to various contingencies and conditions, but nonetheless generally require that the Fund lend monies on short notice. This exposes the Fund to the risk that completing a loan may be required at a time when it is no longer as desirable from a credit or investment perspective as when the original commitment was made. The Fund also must manage its available cash, cash equivalents and borrowings so as to have cash on hand to complete the loan when required. A rule recently adopted by the SEC will require that the Fund reasonably believe, at the time it enters into an unfunded commitment agreement, that it will have sufficient cash and cash equivalents to meet its obligations on these commitments when due. The Fund will consider its overall circumstances when evaluating sufficiency of its cash and cash equivalents for this purpose. For example, the Fund will consider any conditions on its commitments, its reasonable expectations as to when each commitment will be due, other obligations of the Fund (such as the obligation to hold liquid assets during periods when the Fund has offered to repurchase its shares), and the Fund’s ability to borrow. The rule recently adopted by the SEC also may limit the Fund’s ability to utilize leverage through derivatives and related instruments.
The Fund also may borrow money in order to repurchase its shares or as a temporary measure for extraordinary or emergency purposes, including for the payment of dividends or the settlement of securities transactions which otherwise might require untimely dispositions of portfolio securities held by the Fund.
Illiquid Investments
The Fund intends to invest in illiquid investments. An illiquid investment is a security or other investment that cannot be sold or disposed of within seven days or less in current market conditions without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. Illiquid investments often can be resold only in privately negotiated transactions with a limited number of purchasers or in a public offering registered under the 1933 Act. Considerable delay could be encountered in either event and, unless otherwise contractually provided, the Fund’s proceeds upon sale may be reduced by the costs of registration or underwriting discounts. The difficulties and delays associated with such transactions could result in the Fund’s inability to realize a favorable price upon disposition of illiquid investments, and at times might make disposition of such securities impossible. In addition, the Fund may be unable to sell other illiquid investments when it desires to do so, resulting in the Fund obtaining a lower price or being required to retain the investment. Illiquid investments generally must be valued at fair value, which is inherently less precise than utilizing market value for liquid investments, and may lead to differences between the price at which a security is valued for determining the Fund’s NAV and the price the Fund actually receives upon sale. For the period between the repurchase offer notice and the end of the repurchase period, the Fund must maintain 100% of the repurchase offer amount in liquid assets.
Derivatives and Hedging
While the Investment Manager may, but is not required to, enter into transactions to seek to reduce currency exchange rate and interest rate risks, unanticipated changes in currency exchange rates or interest rates may result in poorer overall investment performance than if the Investment Manager had not engaged in any such hedging transactions. In addition, the degree of correlation between price movements of the instruments used in a hedging strategy and price movements in the portfolio positions being hedged may vary. Moreover, for a variety of reasons, the Investment Manager may not seek or be able to establish a perfect correlation between such hedging instruments and the portfolio holdings being hedged. Any such imperfect correlation may prevent the Investment Manager from achieving the intended hedge and expose the Fund to risk of loss. In addition, it may not be possible to hedge fully or perfectly against currency fluctuations affecting the value of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies because the value of those securities is likely to fluctuate as a result of factors not related to currency fluctuations.
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Investments in Foreign Companies
A portion of the Fund’s investments may be in securities of foreign companies. Investing in foreign companies may expose us to additional risks not typically associated with investing in U.S. companies. These risks include changes in exchange control regulations, political and social instability, expropriation, imposition of foreign taxes, less liquid markets and less available information than is generally the case in the United States, higher transaction costs, less government supervision of exchanges, brokers and issuers, less developed bankruptcy laws, difficulty in enforcing contractual obligations, lack of uniform accounting and auditing standards and greater price volatility. These risks many be more pronounced for portfolio companies located or operating primarily in emerging markets, whose economies, markets and legal systems may be less developed.
Tax Consequences
The Fund’s investments in certain securities and transactions described above will potentially be limited by its intention to qualify and be eligible for treatment as a regulated investment company. While the Investment Manager has contractually agreed to absorb the impact of any taxes that would be owed by the Fund if it fails to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code, reimbursement is capped up to a maximum of $1 million in a tax year for the Fund’s first two tax years or periods, subject to extension for future tax years.
In addition, the Fund’s utilization of certain investment instruments may alter the amount, timing and character of the Fund’s income, and, in turn, of the Fund’s distributions to its shareholders, relative to other means of achieving similar investment exposure. In certain circumstances, the Fund may be required to sell assets in order to meet regulated investment company distribution requirements even when investment considerations make such sales otherwise undesirable. For more information concerning these requirements and the taxation of the Fund’s investments, see “Tax Matters” below.
FUNDAMENTAL INVESTMENT POLICIES AND RESTRICTIONS
The Fund’s fundamental policies, which are listed below, may only be changed by the affirmative vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. No other policy is a fundamental policy of the Fund, except as expressly stated. At the present time the Shares are the only outstanding voting securities of the Fund. As defined by the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), the vote of a “majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund” means the vote, at an annual or special meeting of the Shareholders of the Fund, duly called, (i) of 67% or more of the Shares represented at such meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding Shares are present in person or represented by proxy or (ii) of more than 50% of the outstanding Shares, whichever is less.
The Fund may:
| (1) | borrow money and issue senior securities (as defined under the Investment Company Act), except as prohibited under the Investment Company Act, the rules and regulations thereunder (except as permitted by an exemption therefrom), as such statute, rules or regulations may be amended or interpreted by the SEC from time to time. |
| (2) | underwrite securities issued by other persons, except as prohibited under the Investment Company Act, the rules and regulations thereunder (except as permitted by an exemption therefrom), as such statute, rules or regulations may be amended or interpreted by the SEC from time to time. |
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| (3) | make loans, except as prohibited under the Investment Company Act, the rules and regulations thereunder (except as permitted by an exemption therefrom), as such statute, rules or regulations may be amended or interpreted by the SEC from time to time. |
| (4) | purchase or sell commodities or real estate, except as prohibited under the Investment Company Act, the rules and regulations thereunder (except as permitted by an exemption therefrom), as such statute, rules or regulations may be amended or interpreted by the SEC from time to time. |
| (5) | not concentrate investments in a particular industry or group of industries, as concentration is defined under the Investment Company Act, the rules and regulations thereunder or any exemption therefrom, as such statute, rules or regulations may be amended or interpreted from time to time, except that the Fund will concentrate its investments in the consumer finance industry and may invest without limitation in securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities and repurchase agreements involving such securities or tax-exempt obligations of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions. |
With respect to these investment restrictions and other policies described in this SAI or the Prospectus, if a percentage restriction is adhered to at the time of an investment or transaction, a later change in percentage resulting from a change in the values of investments or the value of the Fund’s total assets, unless otherwise stated, will not constitute a violation of such restriction or policy.
In addition to the above, the Fund has adopted the following additional fundamental policies:
| · | it will make quarterly repurchase offers for no less than for 5% and not more than 25% (except as permitted by Rule 23c-3) of the shares outstanding at per-class net asset value (“NAV”) per share (measured on the repurchase request deadline) less any repurchase fee, unless suspended or postponed in accordance with regulatory requirements; |
| · | each repurchase request deadline will be determined in accordance with Rule 23c-3, as may be amended from time to time. Currently, Rule 23c-3 requires the repurchase request deadline to be no less than 21 and no more than 42 days after the Fund sends a notification to Shareholders of the repurchase offer; and |
| · | each repurchase pricing date will be determined in accordance with Rule 23c-3, as may be amended from time to time. Currently, Rule 23c-3 requires the repurchase pricing date to be no later than the 14th day after a repurchase request deadline, or the next business day if the 14th day is not a business day. |
The following descriptions of the Investment Company Act may assist investors in understanding the above policies and restrictions.
Borrowing. The Investment Company Act restricts an investment company from borrowing in excess of 33 1/3% of its total assets (including the amount borrowed, but excluding temporary borrowings not in excess of 5% of its total assets). Transactions that are fully collateralized in a manner that does not involve the prohibited issuance of a “senior security” within the meaning of Section 18(f) of the Investment Company Act, shall not be regarded as borrowings for the purposes of the Fund’s investment restriction.
Concentration. The SEC staff has defined concentration as investing 25% or more of an investment company’s total assets in any particular industry or group of industries, with certain exceptions such as with respect to investments in obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Government or its agencies and instrumentalities, or tax-exempt obligations of state or municipal governments and their political subdivisions. For purposes of the Fund’s concentration policy, the Fund may classify and re-classify companies in a particular industry and define and re-define industries in any reasonable manner, consistent with SEC guidance. The Fund will consider the holdings of underlying funds in which it invests when determining compliance with its concentration policy to the extent information regarding the holdings of such underlying funds is available to the Investment Manager.
Real Estate. While the Fund may purchase or sell real estate, except as prohibited under the Investment Company Act, the rules and regulations thereunder (except as permitted by an exemption therefrom), as such statute, rules or regulations may be amended or interpreted by the SEC from time to time., the Fund does not intend to invest directly in real estate. The Fund, however, may purchase securities of companies that deal in real estate or interests therein (including REITs).
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Senior Securities. Senior securities may include any obligation or instrument issued by a fund evidencing indebtedness. The Investment Company Act generally prohibits funds from issuing senior securities, although it does not treat certain transactions as senior securities, such as certain borrowings, short sales, reverse repurchase agreements, firm commitment agreements and standby commitments, with appropriate earmarking or segregation of assets to cover such obligation.
Underwriting. Under the Investment Company Act, underwriting securities involves an investment company purchasing securities directly from an issuer for the purpose of selling (distributing) them or participating in any such activity either directly or indirectly.
Lending. Under the Investment Company Act, an investment company may only make loans if expressly permitted by its investment policies.
THE FUND MAY CHANGE ITS INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE, POLICIES, RESTRICTIONS, STRATEGIES, AND TECHNIQUES.
Except as otherwise indicated, the Fund may change its investment objectives and any of its policies, restrictions, strategies, and techniques without Shareholder approval. The investment objective of the Fund is not a fundamental policy of the Fund and may be changed by the Board of Trustees of the Fund (the “Board”) without the vote of a majority (as defined by the Investment Company Act) of the Fund’s outstanding Shares.
BOARD OF TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS
The business operations of the Fund are managed and supervised under the direction of the Board, subject to the laws of the State of Delaware and the Fund’s Agreement and Declaration of Trust. The Board has overall responsibility for the management and supervision of the business affairs of the Fund on behalf of its Shareholders, including the authority to establish policies regarding the management, conduct and operation of its business. The Board exercises the same powers, authority and responsibilities on behalf of the Fund as are customarily exercised by the board of directors of a registered investment company organized as a corporation. The officers of the Fund conduct and supervise the daily business operations of the Fund.
The members of the Board (each, a “Trustee”) are not required to contribute to the capital of the Fund or to hold Shares. A majority of Trustees of the Board are not “interested persons” (as defined in the Investment Company Act) of the Fund (collectively, the “Independent Trustees”). Any Trustee who is not an Independent Trustee is an interested trustee (“Interested Trustee”).
The Trustees serve on the Board for terms of indefinite duration. A Trustee’s position in that capacity will terminate if the Trustee is removed or resigns or, among other events, upon the Trustee’s death, incapacity, retirement or bankruptcy. A Trustee may resign upon written notice to the other Trustees of the Fund, and may be removed either by (i) the vote of at least two-thirds of the Trustees of the Fund not subject to the removal vote or (ii) the vote of Shareholders of the Fund holding not less than two-thirds of the total number of votes eligible to be cast by all Shareholders of the Fund. In the event of any vacancy in the position of a Trustee, the remaining Trustees of the Fund may appoint an individual to serve as a Trustee so long as immediately after the appointment at least two-thirds of the Trustees of the Fund then serving have been elected by the Shareholders of the Fund. The Board may call a meeting of the Fund’s Shareholders to fill any vacancy in the position of a Trustee of the Fund, and must do so if the Trustees who were elected by the Shareholders of the Fund cease to constitute a majority of the Trustees then serving on the Board.
The identity of Trustees of the Board and officers of the Fund, and their brief biographical information, including their addresses, their year of birth and descriptions of their principal occupations during the past five years is set forth below:
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INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES
| NUMBER OF | ||||||||||
| NAME, | PORTFOLIOS | |||||||||
| ADDRESS AND YEAR OF BIRTH* | POSITION(S) HELD WITH THE FUND** | LENGTH OF TIME SERVED | PRINCIPAL OCCUPATION(S) DURING PAST 5 YEARS | IN FUND COMPLEX OVERSEEN BY TRUSTEE | OTHER DIRECTORSHIPS HELD BY TRUSTEES | |||||
Thomas G. Knipper Year of Birth: 1957 | Trustee | Since June 2022 | Retired; Independent Consulting, financial services organizations (March 2021 – March 2022); Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer, Ameritas Investment Partners, (registered investment adviser) (1995 – March 2021). | 1 | Independent Trustee, Audit Committee Chair, Investment Managers Series Trust II (a registered investment company with 41 portfolios) | |||||
Margaret E. Wyrwas Year of Birth: 1958 | Trustee | Since June 2022 | Retired; Chief Marketing Officer and Managing Director, AQR Capital Management (registered investment adviser) (2012 – 2015) | 1 | Director, PanAgora Asset Management, Inc. (financial services firm) (2018 – present); Harvard Business School Alumni Board (2017 – 2023) |
INTERESTED TRUSTEE AND OFFICERS
| NAME, | NUMBER OF PORTFOLIOS | |||||||||
| ADDRESS | PRINCIPAL | IN FUND | OTHER | |||||||
| AND YEAR OF BIRTH* | POSITION(S) HELD WITH THE FUND** | LENGTH OF TIME SERVED | OCCUPATION(S) DURING PAST 5 YEARS | COMPLEX OVERSEEN BY TRUSTEE | DIRECTORSHIPS HELD BY TRUSTEE | |||||
Ali Meli ^ 1981 | Trustee, Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer | Since June 2021 | Founder and Managing Partner, Monachil Capital Partners (financial services firm) | 1 | None |
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| NAME, | NUMBER OF PORTFOLIOS | |||||||||
| ADDRESS | PRINCIPAL | IN FUND | OTHER | |||||||
| AND YEAR OF BIRTH* | POSITION(S) HELD WITH THE FUND** | LENGTH OF TIME SERVED | OCCUPATION(S) DURING PAST 5 YEARS | COMPLEX OVERSEEN BY TRUSTEE | DIRECTORSHIPS HELD BY TRUSTEE | |||||
| (2019 – Present); Partner, Goldman Sachs Group(financial services firm) (2004 – 2019) | N/A | N/A | ||||||||
Joseph McNeila Year of Birth: 1963 | Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer, and Secretary | Since June 2022 | President, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer, Monachil Capital Partners (financial services firm) (2021 to present); Managing Director, Goldman Sachs (2018 – 2021); Partner, Copper Street Capital LLP (financial services firm) (2015 to 2018) | N/A | N/A | |||||
John Ramirez Year of Birth: 1977 | Chief Compliance Officer | Since April 2023 | Partner, Practus (law firm) (2019 – Present); Founder and Principal, Accredence (compliance consultant) (2018 – Present) | N/A | N/A | |||||
Ronak Patel Year of Birth: 1992 | Assistant Treasurer | Since June 2022 | Controller, Monachil Capital Partners (2022 – Present); Director of Finance and Operations, Antler VC (2019 – 2022); | N/A | N/A |
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| NAME, | NUMBER OF PORTFOLIOS | |||||||||
| ADDRESS | PRINCIPAL | IN FUND | OTHER | |||||||
| AND YEAR OF BIRTH* | POSITION(S) HELD WITH THE FUND** | LENGTH OF TIME SERVED | OCCUPATION(S) DURING PAST 5 YEARS | COMPLEX OVERSEEN BY TRUSTEE | DIRECTORSHIPS HELD BY TRUSTEE | |||||
Fund Accountant, The Beekman Group (2017 – 2019); Fund Accountant, SS&C Technologies (2016 – 2017) | ||||||||||
* The address for the trustees and officers listed is: 1 Sound Shore Drive, Suite 303, Greenwich, CT 06830.
** Trustees and officers serve until their successors have been duly elected
^ “Interested person” of the Trust as that term is defined under the 1940 Act because of his affiliation with Monachil Capital Partners, LP, the Fund’s Adviser
Trustee Qualifications
The Board believes that each of the Trustees’ experience, qualifications, attributes and skills on an individual basis and in combination with those of the other Trustees lead to the conclusion that each Trustee should serve in such capacity. Among the attributes common to all Trustees is the ability to review critically, evaluate, question and discuss information provided to them, to interact effectively with the other Trustees, the Investment Manager, the Fund’s other service providers, counsel and the independent registered public accounting firm, and to exercise effective business judgment in the performance of their duties as Trustees. A Trustee’s ability to perform his or her duties effectively may have been attained through the Trustee’s business, consulting, and public service; experience as a board member of non-profit entities or other organizations; education or professional training; and/or other life experiences. In addition to these shared characteristics, set forth below is a brief discussion of the specific experience, qualifications, attributes or skills of each Trustee.
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Ali Meli. Mr. Meli has significant investment management experience. Currently, Mr. Meli serves as the Managing Partner of Monachil Capital Partners, LP, and President and Chief Executive Officer of the Fund. Prior to that, Mr. Ali spent more than 14 years at Goldman Sachs & Co., where he was a Partner and served as the Global Co-Head of Structured Finance, Investing and Lending (SFIL).
Thomas Knipper. Mr. Knipper has more than 40 years of experience in the financial services industry having substantial experience with respect to the operation, administration and compliance programs of mutual funds and as a senior executive with a registered investment adviser. Mr, Knipper is a board member and audit committee chair for Investment Managers Series Trust II, a registered investment company with multiple funds, and was previously Chief Compliance Officer for Ameritas Investment Partners as well as Vice President, Controller and Chief Compliance Officer for Summit Mutual Funds, Inc. Before Summit, Mr. Knipper was Controller at Gateway Investment Advisers, LLC. Mr. Knipper began his career at Deloitte.
Margaret E. Wyrwas. Ms. Wyrwas has more than 35 years of experience in the financial services industry having substantial experience working as a strategic partner to senior leadership teams with expertise in global marketing, communications and investor relations, grounded in finance. She was AQR Capital Management's first Chief Marketing Officer and prior to that, served as a Senior Managing Director of Communications, Marketing and Investor Relations at Knight Capital Group for more than a decade. Before Knight, Ms. Wyrwas was Senior Managing Director and Group Head of the New York Financial Communications division at Hill & Knowlton. She began her career at Mellon Bank. A past Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Investor Relations Institute and a former Board Member of the Independent Research Network, a joint venture of NASDAQ and Reuters, Ms. Wyrwas is currently serving on PanAgora Asset Management and the Harvard Business School Alumni Boards.
Leadership Structure and Oversight Responsibilities
Overall responsibility for oversight of the Fund rests with the Board. The Fund has engaged the Investment Manager to manage the Fund on a day-to-day basis. The Board is responsible for overseeing the Investment Manager and other service providers in the operations of the Fund in accordance with the provisions of the Investment Company Act, applicable provisions of state and other laws and the Fund’s Agreement and Declaration of Trust. The Board is currently composed of three members, two of whom are Independent Trustees. The Board will meet in-person at regularly scheduled meetings four times each year. In addition, the Board may hold special in-person or telephonic meetings or informal conference calls to discuss specific matters that may arise or require action between regular meetings. The Independent Trustees have also engaged independent legal counsel to assist them in performing their oversight responsibility. The Independent Trustees will meet with their independent legal counsel in person prior to and during each quarterly in-person board meeting. As described below, the Board has established an Audit Committee and a Nominating and Governance Committee, and may establish ad hoc committees or working groups from time to time to assist the Board in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities.
The Board has appointed Ali Meli, an Interested Trustee, to serve in the role of Chairman. The Chairman’s role is to preside at all meetings of the Board and to act as liaison with the Investment Manager, other service providers, counsel and other Trustees generally between meetings. The Chairman serves as a key point person for dealings between management and the Trustees. The Chairman may also perform such other functions as may be delegated by the Board from time to time. The Board has not appointed a lead independent trustee. The Board has determined that the Board’s leadership structure is appropriate because it allows the Board to exercise informed and independent judgment over matters under its purview and it allocates areas of responsibility among committees of Trustees and the full Board in a manner that enhances effective oversight.
The Fund is subject to a number of risks, including investment, compliance, operational and valuation risks, among others. Risk oversight forms part of the Board’s general oversight of the Fund and will be addressed as part of various Board and committee activities. Day-to-day risk management functions are subsumed within the responsibilities of the Investment Manager and other service providers (depending on the nature of the risk), which carry out the Fund’s investment management and business affairs. The Investment Manager and other service providers employ a variety of processes, procedures and controls to identify various events or circumstances that give rise to risks, to lessen the probability of their occurrence and/or to mitigate the effects of such events or circumstances if they do occur. Each of the Investment Manager and other service providers has its own independent interests in risk management, and their policies and methods of risk management will depend on their functions and business models. The Board recognizes that it is not possible to identify all of the risks that may affect the Fund or to develop processes and controls to eliminate or mitigate their occurrence or effects. The Board will require senior officers of the Fund, including the President, Treasurer and Chief Compliance Officer (“CCO”) and the Investment Manager, to report to the full Board on a variety of matters at regular and special meetings of the Board, including matters relating to risk management. The Board and the Audit Committee will receive regular reports from the Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm on internal control and financial reporting matters. The Board will also receive reports from certain of the Fund’s other primary service providers on a periodic or regular basis, including the Fund’s custodian, distributor and administrator. The Board may, at any time and in its discretion, change the manner in which it conducts risk oversight.
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Committees of the Board of Trustees
Audit Committee
The Board has formed an Audit Committee that is responsible for overseeing the Fund’s accounting and financial reporting policies and practices, its internal controls, and, as appropriate, the internal controls of certain service providers; overseeing the quality and objectivity of the Fund’s financial statements and the independent audit of those financial statements; and acting as a liaison between the Fund’s independent auditors and the full Board. In performing its responsibilities, the Audit Committee will select and recommend annually to the entire Board a firm of independent certified public accountants to audit the books and records of the Fund for the ensuing year, and will review with the firm the scope and results of each audit. The Audit Committee currently consists of each of the Fund’s Independent Trustees. The Audit Committee held one initial meeting on June 16, 2022.
Nominating and Governance Committee
The Board has formed a Nominating and Governance Committee (the “Nominating Committee”) that is responsible for selecting and nominating persons to serve as Trustees of the Fund. The Nominating Committee is responsible for both nominating candidates to be appointed by the Board to fill vacancies and for nominating candidates to be presented to Shareholders for election. In performing its responsibilities, the Nominating Committee will consider candidates recommended by management of the Fund and by Shareholders and evaluate them both in a similar manner, as long as the recommendation submitted by a Shareholder includes at a minimum: the name, address and telephone number of the recommending Shareholder and information concerning the Shareholder’s interests in the Fund in sufficient detail to establish that the Shareholder held Shares on the relevant record date; and the name, address and telephone number of the recommended nominee and information concerning the recommended nominee’s education, professional experience, and other information that might assist the Nominating Committee in evaluating the recommended nominee’s qualifications to serve as a trustee. The Nominating Committee may solicit candidates to serve as trustees from any source it deems appropriate. With the Board’s prior approval, the Nominating Committee may employ and compensate counsel, consultants or advisers to assist it in discharging its responsibilities. The Nominating Committee currently consists of each of the Fund’s Independent Trustees. As the Fund is recently organized, the Nominating Committee did not hold any meetings during the last year.
Trustee Ownership of Securities
The following table sets forth the dollar range of Shares beneficially owned by each Trustee as of March 31, 2023 and the aggregate dollar range of equity securities in all registered investment companies overseen by each Trustee in the family of investment companies that includes the Fund.
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| Name of Trustee | Dollar Range of Equity Securities in the Fund(1) | Aggregate Dollar Range of Equity Securities in All Registered Investment Companies Overseen by Trustee in Family of Investment Companies(1)(2) | ||
| Interested Trustees | ||||
| Ali Meli | Over $1,000,000 | Over $1,000,000 | ||
| Independent Trustees | ||||
| Thomas G. Knipper | None | None | ||
| Margaret Wyrwas | None | None |
| (1) | Dollar ranges are as follows: None, $1 – $10,000, $10,001 – $50,000, $50,001 – $100,000, $100,001 – $500,000, $500,001 – $1,000,000 or Over $1,000,000. |
| (2) | Beneficial ownership determined in accordance with Rule 16a-1(a)(2) under the Exchange Act. |
Independent Trustee Ownership of Securities
As of March 31, 2023, none of the Independent Trustees (or their immediate family members) owned securities of the Investment Manager, or of an entity (other than a registered investment company or business development company) controlling, controlled by or under common control with the Investment Manager.
Trustee Compensation
In consideration of the services rendered by the Independent Trustees, the Fund will pay each Independent Trustee (i) a quarterly retainer in the amount of $2,000, or $2,500 for Committee Chairs (to be prorated for a partial term); (ii) a fee with respect to each regular board meeting attended in the amount of $2,000 per meeting; (iii) a fee with respect to each committee meeting attended in the amount of $500 per meeting; (iv) a fee with respect to each special Board meeting attended in the amount of $500 per special meeting; and (v) a fee with respect to each shareholder meeting attended in the amount of $500 per meeting. Trustees that are interested persons will be compensated by the Investment Manager and/or its affiliates and will not be separately compensated by the Fund.
During the period from the commencement of operations on December 5, 2022 through December 31, 2022, the Independent Trustees were not paid any compensation from the Fund.
Organization and Management of Wholly-Owned Subsidiaries
The Fund may seek to provide exposure to securities that are not freely tradeable in the U.S., such as Regulation S securities, as well as certain other securities that can only be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person or where it may be advantageous for the security or asset to be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person (“other restricted non-U.S. securities) by investing through one or more wholly owned subsidiaries of the Fund (each a “Subsidiary” and, collectively, the “Subsidiaries”). Each Subsidiary is advised by Monachil Capital Partners, LLC (the “Investment Manager”). The Investment Manager, as investment adviser to a Subsidiary, will comply with Section 15 of the 1940 Act with respect to advisory contract approval. The Fund and each Subsidiary will comply with Section 8 and 18 of the Investment Company Act regarding investment policies and capital structure on an aggregate basis. In addition, the Subsidiaries comply with the provisions of Section 17 of the Investment Company Act relating to affiliated transactions and custody of portfolio investments. The Fund’s custodian also serves as the custodian to each Subsidiary.
The Fund’s Subsidiaries are Wolf River Cayman Ltd. and Taffy III Ltd., each of which is a company organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands, and whose registered office is located at the offices of Maples Corporate Services Limited, P.O. Box 309, Ugland House, Grand Cayman, KY1-1104, Cayman Islands.
The Investment Manager provides investment management and other services to each Subsidiary. The Investment Manager will not receive separate compensation from the Subsidiaries for providing it with investment management services. However, the Fund will pay the Investment Manager based on the Fund’s assets, including the assets invested in each Subsidiary. The Subsidiaries will also enter into separate contracts for the provision of custody and audit services with the same or with affiliates of the same service providers that provide those services to the Fund.
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Each Subsidiary is managed pursuant to compliance policies and procedures that are the same, in all material respects, as the policies and procedures adopted by the Fund. As a result, the Investment Manager, in managing a Subsidiary’s portfolio, is subject to the same investment policies and restrictions that apply to the management of the Fund, and, in particular, to the requirements relating to portfolio leverage, liquidity, brokerage, and the timing and method of the valuation of the Subsidiary’s portfolio investments and shares of the Subsidiary. These policies and restrictions are described elsewhere in detail in the Prospectus and this SAI. The Fund and each Subsidiary test for compliance with certain investment restrictions on a consolidated basis, except that with respect to its investments in certain securities that may involve leverage, the Subsidiaries comply with asset segregation requirements to the same extent as the Fund.
CODES OF ETHICS
The Fund and the Investment Manager have each adopted a code of ethics pursuant to Rule 17j-1 of the Investment Company Act, which is designed to prevent affiliated persons of the Fund and the Investment Manager from engaging in deceptive, manipulative, or fraudulent activities in connection with securities held or to be acquired by the Fund. The codes of ethics permit persons subject to them to invest in securities, including securities that may be held or purchased by the Fund, subject to a number of restrictions and controls. Compliance with the codes of ethics is carefully monitored and enforced.
The codes of ethics are included as exhibits to the Fund’s registration statement filed with the SEC and can be reviewed and copied at the SEC’s Public Reference Room in Washington, DC. Information on the operation of the Public Reference Room may be obtained by calling the SEC at 1-202-551-8090. The codes of ethics are available on the EDGAR database on the SEC’s Internet site at http://www.sec.gov, and may also be obtained after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following E-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov, or by writing the SEC’s Public Reference Section, Washington, DC 20549-0102.
INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT AND OTHER SERVICES
The Investment Manager
Monachil Capital Partners LLC (the “Investment Manager”), located at 1 Sound Shore Drive, Suite 303, Greenwich, CT 06830, serves as the investment adviser to the Fund. The Investment Manager is an investment adviser registered with the SEC under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended. Subject to the general supervision of the Board, and in accordance with the investment objective, policies, and restrictions of the Fund, the Investment Manager is responsible for the management and operation of the Fund and the investment of the Fund’s assets. The Investment Manager provides such services to the Fund pursuant to the Investment Management Agreement.
The Investment Management Agreement became effective as of October 24, 2022, and will continue in effect for an initial two-year term. Thereafter, the Investment Management Agreement will continue in effect from year to year provided such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by (i) the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund or a majority of the Board, and (ii) the vote of a majority of the Independent Trustees of the Fund, cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval. A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s approval of the Agreements is available in the Fund’s most recent Annual Report.
The Investment Management Agreement provides that, in the absence of willful misfeasance, bad faith, reckless disregard or gross negligence of its obligations to the Fund, the Investment Manager and any partner, director, officer or employee of the Investment Manager, or any of their affiliates, executors, heirs, assigns, successors or other legal representatives, will not be liable for any error of judgment, for any mistake of law or for any act or omission by the person in connection with the performance of services to the Fund. The Investment Management Agreement also provides for indemnification, to the fullest extent permitted by law, by the Fund, of the Investment Manager, or any partner, director, officer or employee of the Investment Manager, and any of their affiliates, executors, heirs, assigns, successors or other legal representatives, against any liability or expense to which the person may be liable that arises in connection with the performance of services to the Fund, so long as the liability or expense is not incurred by reason of the person’s willful misfeasance or gross negligence of its obligations to the Fund. Such indemnification includes losses sustained by the Investment Manager or its affiliates as an indemnitor under any sub- servicing or other agreement entered into by the Investment Manager for the benefit of the Fund to the extent that such losses relate to the Fund and the indemnity giving rise to the losses is not broader than that granted by the Fund to the Investment Manager or its affiliates pursuant to the Investment Management Agreement. The Fund has the right to consent before the Investment Manager settles or consents to the settlement of a claim involving such indemnitor losses (but such consent right will not affect the Investment Manager’s entitlement to indemnification).
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Pursuant to the Investment Management Agreement, the Fund pays the Investment Manager a fee (the “Investment Management Fee” consisting of two components: (i) an advisory fee (the “Management Fee”), and (i) an incentive fee (the “Incentive Fee”).
The Fund pays the Investment Manager a monthly Management Fee equal to 1.25% on an annualized basis of the Fund’s average daily Managed Assets for the period. Managed Assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including any assets attributable to money borrowed for investment purposes) minus the sum of the Fund’s accrued liabilities (other than money borrowed for investment purposes). The Management Fee is paid to the Investment Manager out of the Fund’s assets and decreases the net profits or increases the net losses of the Fund. The Management Fee will be paid to the Investment Manager before giving effect to any repurchase of Shares of the Fund effective as of that date and will decrease the net profits or increase the net losses of the Fund that are credited to its Shareholders. The Management Fee will be accrued daily, and will be due and payable monthly in arrears within ten (10) business days after the end of the month.
The Incentive Fee is calculated and payable quarterly in arrears based upon the Fund’s “pre-incentive fee net investment income” attributable to the Fund’s shares for the immediately preceding fiscal quarter. The Incentive Fee component is subject to a hurdle rate, expressed as a rate of return on the Fund’s average daily net asset value (calculated in accordance with GAAP) equal to 1.50% per quarter (or an annualized hurdle rate of 6.00%), subject to a “catch-up” feature. For this purpose, “pre-incentive fee net investment income” means interest income, dividend income and any other income accrued during the fiscal quarter, minus the Fund’s operating expenses for the quarter, not including the distribution and/or shareholder servicing fees (if any) applicable to each class accrued during the fiscal quarter. For such purposes, the Fund’s operating expenses will include the Management Fee and expenses reimbursed to the Investment Manager under the expense limitation agreement, but will exclude the Incentive Fee.
The portion of the Fund’s pre-incentive fee net investment income which exceeds the hurdle rate but is less than or equal to 1.765% is referred to as the “catch-up.” The “catch-up” provision is intended to provide the Investment Manager with an incentive fee of 15% on all of the Fund’s pre-incentive fee net investment income when the Fund’s pre-incentive fee net investment income reaches 1.765% of adjusted capital in any fiscal quarter; and 15% of the Fund’s pre-incentive fee net investment income, if any, that exceeds 1.765% in any fiscal quarter is payable to the Investment Manager once the hurdle rate is reached and the catch-up is achieved.
The calculation of the Incentive Fee for each fiscal quarter is as follows:
No Incentive Fee is payable in any fiscal quarter in which the pre-incentive fee net investment income attributable to the Fund’s shares does not exceed the quarterly hurdle rate of 1.50% of the Fund’s average daily net assets (calculated in accordance with GAAP, or 6.00% annualized;
100% of the Fund’s pre-incentive fee net investment income attributable to the Fund’s shares, if any, that exceeds the hurdle rate but is less than or equal to 1.765% of the Fund’s average daily net asset value (calculated in accordance with GAAP) in any fiscal quarter (7.06% annualized) is payable to the Investment Manager; and 15% of the Fund’s pre-incentive fee net investment income attributable to the Fund’s shares, if any, that exceeds 1.765% of the Fund’s average daily net assets (calculated in accordance with GAAP) in any fiscal quarter (7.06% annualized) is payable to the Investment Manager once the hurdle rate is reached and the catch-up is achieved, (15% of all the pre-incentive fee net investment income thereafter is allocated to the Investment Manager).
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The Investment Manager has entered into an expense limitation and reimbursement agreement (the “Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement”) with the Fund, whereby the Investment Manager has agreed to waive fees that it would otherwise have been paid, and/or to assume expenses of the Fund (a “Waiver”), if required to ensure the Total Annual Expenses (excluding the Investment Management Fee, any taxes, borrowing and other investment-related costs and fees paid to unaffiliated third parties including interest payments on borrowed funds, loan origination fees, loan servicing fees, loan collection and administration fees and expenses, interest and commitment fees, distribution or servicing fees, brokerage and distribution costs and expenses, acquired fund fees and expenses (as determined in accordance with SEC Form N-2), expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization, and extraordinary or non-routine expenses, such as litigation expenses) do not exceed 0.50% of the average daily net assets of the Class I Shares (the “Expense Limit”). Because Investment Management Fees, taxes, fees and interest payments on borrowed funds, distribution and servicing fees, brokerage and distribution costs and expenses, acquired fund fees and expenses, expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization, and extraordinary or non-routine expenses are excluded from the Expense Limit, Total Annual Expenses (after fee waivers and expense reimbursements) are expected to exceed 1.75% for the Class I Shares. Additionally, under the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement, the Investment Manager has agreed to waive fees that it would otherwise have been paid, and/or to assume payment of any taxes that would be owed by the Fund due to an inability to qualify as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code (“RIC Non-Qualification Taxes) up to a maximum of $1 million in a tax year for Fund’s first two tax years or periods. For a period not to exceed three years from the date on which a Waiver is made, the Investment Manager may recoup amounts waived or assumed, provided it is able to effect such recoupment and remain in compliance with the Expense Limit in place at the time of the Waiver and the current Expense Limit. A Waiver for RIC Non-Qualification Taxes is not subject to recoupment. The Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement has an initial two-year term, which ends on April 30, 2025. After its initial two year term, the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement is subject to renewal annually for one-year terms thereafter. The Investment Manager may not terminate the Expense Limitation and Reimbursement Agreement during the initial term without the approval of the Fund’s Board.
For the fiscal period ended December 31, the Fund paid the following investment management fees to the Adviser pursuant to the Advisory Agreement, of which the Adviser waived the amount set forth in the following table.
| Fiscal Year Period | Management Fee |
Incentive Fee | Waiver | Expense Reimbursement | Advisory Fee after Waiver | |||||||||||||||
| December 31, 2022* | $ | 14,339 | $ | 21,880 | $ | (36,219 | ) | $ | 146,898 | $ | 0 | |||||||||
* During the period from the commencement of operations on December 5, 2022 through December 31, 2022.
The Portfolio Managers
The persons who will initially have primary responsibility for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio (the “Portfolio Managers”) are as follows:
Ali Meli
As a Portfolio Manager of the Investment Manager, Mr. Meli is responsible for all investment decisions, including working on deal origination and evaluation, structuring the investments and negotiating the critical terms, and portfolio constructions.
Prior to launching the Investment Manager, Mr. Meli spent more than 14 years at Goldman Sachs & Co., where he was a Partner and served as the Global Co-head of Structured Finance, Investing and Lending (SFIL). His deal experience includes North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia, across credit, commodity finance, mortgages, consumer loans and repos, and he worked in the New York, London and Hong Kong offices. Mr. Meli holds dual Majors in Electrical Engineering and Management Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
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Christopher Pryor
As a Portfolio Manager, Mr. Pryor is responsible for deal origination, including identifying appropriate opportunities, the due diligence and qualitative evaluation, and working on the negotiation of critical terms.
Prior to joining the Investment Manager in mid-2019, Mr. Pryor had eight years of experience in investment banking and private equity. His deal experience includes subprime consumer credit, supply chain finance, real estate finance, and repos. Mr. Pryor is the Former Head of Corporate Investments at Fifteen Group, and he was an investment banker at Marlin & Associates and INTL FCStone. He holds an MS in Financial Mathematics and a BS in Mathematics from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
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Other Accounts Managed by the Portfolio Manager
In addition to the Fund, the Fund’s portfolio managers manage other accounts, including other pooled investment vehicles. The table below identifies the number of accounts for which the portfolio managers have day-to-day management responsibilities and the total assets in such accounts, within each of the following categories: registered investment companies, other pooled investment vehicles and other accounts, as of December 31, 2022.
| Registered Investment Companies(1) | Other Pooled Investment Vehicles | Other Accounts | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number of | Total | Number of | Number of | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Portfolio Manager | Accounts | Assets | Accounts | Total Assets | Accounts | Total Assets | ||||||||||||||||||
| Ali Meli | 0 | $ | 0 | 2 | $ | 33.5 million | 0 | $ | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| Christopher Pryor | 0 | $ | 0 | 2 | $ | 33.5 million | 0 | $ | 0 | |||||||||||||||
(1) Does not include the Fund.
The table below identifies the number of accounts for which the portfolio managers have day-to-day management responsibilities and the total assets in such accounts with respect to which the advisory fee is based on the performance of the account, within each of the following categories: registered investment companies, other pooled investment vehicles, and other accounts, as of December 31, 2022. The accounts included within the categories “other pooled investment vehicles” and “other accounts” consist of accounts that invest primarily in U.S. primary fund investments.
| Registered Investment Companies for which Investment Manager receives a performance-based fee | Other Pooled Investment Vehicles managed for which Investment Manager receives a performance-based fee | Other Accounts managed for which Investment Manager receives a performance- based fee | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number of | Total | Number of | Number of | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Portfolio Manager | Accounts | Assets | Accounts | Total Assets | Accounts | Total Assets | ||||||||||||||||||
| Ali Meli | 0 | $ | 0 | 2 | $ | 33.5 million | 0 | $ | 0 | |||||||||||||||
| Christopher Pryor | 0 | $ | 0 | 2 | $ | 33.5 million | 0 | $ | 0 | |||||||||||||||
(1) Does not include the Fund.
Conflicts of Interest
The Investment Manager and Portfolio Managers may manage multiple funds and/or other accounts, and as a result may be presented with one or more of the following actual or potential conflicts:
The management of multiple funds and/or other accounts may result in the Investment Manager or Portfolio Manager devoting unequal time and attention to the management of each fund and/or other account. The Investment Manager seeks to manage such competing interests for the time and attention of a Portfolio Manager by having the Portfolio Manager focus on a particular investment discipline. Most other accounts managed by a Portfolio Manager are managed using the same investment models that are used in connection with the management of the Fund.
If the Investment Manager or Portfolio Manager identifies a limited investment opportunity which may be suitable for more than one fund or other account, a fund may not be able to take full advantage of that opportunity due to an allocation of filled purchase or sale orders across all eligible funds and other accounts. To deal with these situations, the Investment Manager has adopted procedures for allocating portfolio transactions across multiple accounts.
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The Investment Manager has adopted certain compliance procedures which are designed to address these types of conflicts. However, there is no guarantee that such procedures will detect each and every situation in which a conflict arises.
Compensation of the Portfolio Managers
Mr. Meli has ownership and financial interests in, and may receive compensation and/or variable profit distributions from, the Investment Manager based on the Investment Manager’s financial performance, such as its overall revenues and profitability. Mr. Pryor’s compensation is not tied to the Fund’s performance, except to the extent that the fee paid to the Investment Manager impacts the Investment Manager’s financial performance.
Portfolio Managers’ Ownership of Shares
The following table shows the dollar range of equity securities in the Fund beneficially owned by each of the portfolio managers as of December 31, 2023:
| Name of Portfolio Manager | Dollar Range of Shares Beneficially Owned by Portfolio Manager (1) | |
| Ali Meli | Over $1,000,000 | |
| Christopher Pryor | None |
| (1) | Dollar ranges are as follows: None, $1 – $10,000, $10,001 – $50,000, $50,001 – $100,000, $100,001 – $500,000, $500,001 – $1,000,000 or Over $1,000,000. |
The Administrator
The Fund has retained the administrator, UMB Fund Services, Inc. (the “Administrator”) to provide administrative services, and to assist with operational needs. In consideration for these services, the Administrator earns and is paid monthly in an amount equal to at least 1/12th of the applicable annual fee calculated based upon the average net asset value of the Fund, subject to a monthly minimum fee (the “Administration Fee”). The Administration Fee is paid to the Administrator out of the assets of the Fund and therefore decreases the net profits or increases the net losses of the Fund. The Administrator is also reimbursed by the Fund for out-of-pocket expenses relating to services provided to the Fund and receives a fee for transfer agency services. The Administration Fee and the other terms of the Administration Agreement may change from time to time as may be agreed to by the Fund and the Administrator.
During the period from the commencement of operations on December 5, 2022 through December 31, 2022, the Administrator earned $4,701.
BROKERAGE
In following the Fund’s investment strategy, the Investment Manager expects few of the Fund’s transactions to involve brokerage. To the extent the Fund’s transactions involve brokerage, the Fund does not expect to use one particular broker or dealer. It is the Fund’s policy to obtain the best results in connection with effecting its portfolio transactions, taking into account factors such as price, size of order, difficulty of execution and operational facilities of a brokerage firm and the firm’s risk in positioning a block of securities. Generally, equity securities are bought and sold through brokerage transactions for which commissions are payable. Purchases from underwriters will include the underwriting commission or concession, and purchases from dealers serving as market makers will include a dealer’s mark-up or reflect a dealer’s mark-down. Money market securities and other debt securities are usually bought and sold directly from the issuer or an underwriter or market maker for the securities. Generally, the Fund will not pay brokerage commissions for such purchases. When a debt security is bought from an underwriter, the purchase price will usually include an underwriting commission or concession. The purchase price for securities bought from dealers serving as market makers will similarly include the dealer’s mark up or reflect a dealer’s mark down. When the Fund executes transactions in the over-the-counter market, it will generally deal with primary market makers unless prices that are more favorable are otherwise obtainable.
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In addition, the Investment Manager may place a combined order for two or more accounts it manages, including the Fund, that are engaged in the purchase or sale of the same security if, in its judgment, joint execution is in the best interest of each participant and will result in best price and execution. Transactions involving commingled orders are allocated in a manner deemed equitable to each account or fund. Although it is recognized that, in some cases, the joint execution of orders could adversely affect the price or volume of the security that a particular account or the Fund may obtain, it is the opinion of the Investment Manager that the advantages of combined orders outweigh the possible disadvantages of separate transactions. The Investment Manager believes that the ability of the Fund to participate in higher volume transactions will generally be beneficial to the Fund.
The Investment Manager may pay a higher commission than otherwise obtainable from other brokers in return for brokerage or research services only if a good faith determination is made that the commission is reasonable in relation to the services provided.
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While it is the Fund’s general policy to seek to obtain the most favorable price and execution available in selecting a broker-dealer to execute portfolio transactions for the Fund, weight is also given to the ability of a broker-dealer to furnish brokerage and research services as defined in Section 28(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, to the Fund or to the Investment Manager, even if the specific services are not directly useful to the Fund and may be useful to the Investment Manager in advising other clients. When one or more brokers is believed capable of providing the best combination of price and execution, the Investment Manager may select a broker based upon brokerage or research services provided to the Investment Manager. In negotiating commissions with a broker or evaluating the spread to be paid to a dealer, the Fund may therefore pay a higher commission or spread than would be the case if no weight were given to the furnishing of these supplemental services, provided that the amount of such commission or spread has been determined in good faith by the Investment Manager to be reasonable in relation to the value of the brokerage and/or research services provided by such broker-dealer. The standard of reasonableness is to be measured in light of the Investment Manager’s overall responsibilities to the Fund.
The Subsidiary follows the same brokerage practices as the Fund.
During the period from the commencement of operations on December 5, 2022 through December 31, 2022, there were no brokerage commissions paid by the Fund or the Subsidiaries.
TAX MATTERS
The following is intended to be a general summary of certain U.S. federal income tax consequences of investing, holding and disposing of Shares of the Fund. It is not intended to be a complete discussion of all such federal income tax consequences, nor does it purport to deal with all categories of investors. INVESTORS ARE ADVISED TO CONSULT WITH THEIR TAX ADVISORS BEFORE MAKING AN INVESTMENT IN THE FUND.
Set forth below is a discussion of certain U.S. federal income tax issues concerning the Fund and the purchase, ownership and disposition of Shares. This discussion does not purport to be complete or to deal with all aspects of federal income taxation that may be relevant to Shareholders in light of their particular circumstances. Unless otherwise noted, this discussion assumes you are a U.S. Shareholder and that you hold your Shares as a capital asset. This discussion is based upon present provisions of the Code, the regulations promulgated thereunder, and judicial and administrative ruling authorities, all of which are subject to change, which change may be retroactive. Prospective investors should consult their own tax advisers with regard to the federal tax consequences of the purchase, ownership, or disposition of Shares, as well as the tax consequences arising under the laws of any state, foreign country, or other taxing jurisdiction.
The Fund intends to qualify annually as a regulated investment company (a “RIC”) under the Code. To qualify for the favorable U.S. federal income tax treatment generally accorded to RICs, the Fund must, among other things, (a) derive in each taxable year at least 90% of its gross income from dividends, interest, payments with respect to certain securities loans and gains from the sale or other disposition of stock, securities or foreign currencies or other income derived with respect to its business of investing in such stock, securities or currencies and net income derived from interests in qualified publicly traded partnerships; (b) diversify its holdings so that, at the end of each quarter of its taxable year, (i) at least 50% of the market value of the Fund’s assets is represented by cash and cash items (including receivables), U.S. Government securities, the securities of other RICs and other securities, with such other securities of any one issuer limited for the purposes of this calculation to an amount not greater than 5% of the value of the Fund’s total assets and not greater than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer, and (ii) not more than 25% of the value of its total assets is invested in the securities (other than U.S. Government securities or the securities of other RICs) of a single issuer, in the securities (other than securities of other RICs) of two or more issuers which the Fund controls and are engaged in the same, similar or related trades or businesses, or in the securities of one or more qualified publicly traded partnerships; and (c) distribute for each taxable year an amount at least equal to the sum of 90% of its investment company taxable income (determined without regard to the deduction for dividends paid) and 90% of its net tax exempt interest income.
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The Fund might not distribute all of its net investment income, and the Fund is not required to distribute any portion of its net capital gain. If the Fund qualifies for treatment as a RIC but does not distribute all of its net capital gain and net investment income, it will be subject to tax at regular corporate rates on the amount retained. If the Fund retains any net capital gain, it may designate the retained amount of capital gain as undistributed capital gain in a notice to its Shareholders who, if subject to federal income tax on long-term capital gains, (i) will be required to include in income for federal income tax purposes, as long-term capital gain, their share of such undistributed amount; (ii) will be deemed to have paid their proportionate share of the tax paid by the Fund on such undistributed amount and will be entitled to credit that amount of tax against their federal income tax liabilities, if any; and (iii) will be entitled to claim refunds to the extent the credit exceeds such liabilities. For federal income tax purposes, the tax basis of Shares owned by a Shareholder of the Fund will be increased by an amount equal to the difference between the amount of undistributed capital gains included in the shareholder’s gross income and the tax deemed paid by the Shareholder.
As a RIC, the Fund generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on its investment company taxable income (as that term is defined in the Code, but without regard to the deduction for dividends paid) and net capital gain (the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss), if any, that it distributes to Shareholders. The Fund intends to distribute to its Shareholders, at least annually, substantially all of its net investment income and net capital gain. Amounts not distributed on a timely basis in accordance with a calendar year distribution requirement are subject to a nondeductible 4% excise tax. To prevent imposition of the excise tax, the Fund must distribute during each calendar year an amount equal to the sum of (1) at least 98% of its ordinary income (not taking into account any capital gains or losses) for the calendar year, (2) at least 98.2% of its capital gains in excess of its capital losses (adjusted for certain ordinary losses) for the one-year period ending October 31 of the calendar year, and (3) any ordinary income and capital gains for previous years that were not distributed during those years. To prevent application of the excise tax, the Fund intends to make its distributions in accordance with the calendar year distribution requirement.
Although dividends generally will be treated as distributed when paid, any dividend declared by the Fund in October, November or December and payable to Shareholders of record in such a month that is paid during the following January will be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as received by Shareholders on December 31 of the calendar year in which it was declared. In addition, certain other distributions made after the close of a taxable year of the Fund may be “spilled back” and treated for certain purposes as paid by the Fund during such taxable year. In such case, Shareholders generally will be treated as having received such dividends in the taxable year in which the distributions were actually made. For purposes of calculating the amount of a RIC’s undistributed income and gain subject to the 4% excise tax described above, such “spilled back” dividends are treated as paid by the RIC when they are actually paid.
If the Fund fails to satisfy the qualifying income or diversification requirements in any taxable year, the Fund may be eligible for certain relief provisions if the failures are due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect and if a penalty tax is paid with respect to each failure to satisfy the applicable requirements. Additionally, relief is provided for certain de minimis failures of the diversification requirements where the Fund corrects the failure within a specified period. In order to be eligible for the relief provisions with respect to a failure to meet the diversification requirements, the Fund may be required to dispose of certain assets. If these relief provisions are not available to the Fund and it fails to qualify for treatment as a RIC for a taxable year, the Fund will be taxable at regular corporate tax rates (and, to the extent applicable, at corporate alternative minimum tax rates). In such an event, all distributions (including capital gain distributions) will be taxable as ordinary dividends to the extent of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits, subject to the dividends-received deduction for corporate Shareholders and to the tax rates applicable to qualified dividend income distributed to non-corporate Shareholders. In such an event, distributions in excess of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits will be treated first as a return of capital to the extent of the holder’s adjusted tax basis in the Shares (reducing that basis accordingly), and any remaining distributions will be treated as a capital gain. To requalify for treatment as a RIC in a subsequent taxable year, the Fund would be required to satisfy the RIC qualification requirements for that year and to distribute any earnings and profits from any year in which the Fund failed to qualify for tax treatment as a RIC. In addition, if the Fund were to fail to qualify as a RIC for a period greater than two taxable years, it would generally be required to pay a Fund-level tax on certain net built-in gains recognized with respect to certain of its assets upon a disposition of such assets within five years of qualifying as a RIC in a subsequent year.
The Board reserves the right not to maintain the qualification of the Fund for treatment as a RIC if it determines such course of action to be beneficial to Shareholders.
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Distributions
Dividends paid out of the Fund’s net investment income generally will be taxable to a Shareholder as ordinary income to the extent of the Fund’s earnings and profits, whether paid in cash or reinvested in additional Shares. The Fund may be able to report a portion of its income as “qualified dividend income,” however, which is taxable to non-corporate Shareholders at rates of up to 20%.
In general, dividends may be reported by the Fund as qualified dividend income if they are attributable to qualified dividend income received by the Fund. Qualified dividend income generally means dividend income received from investments in common and preferred stock of U.S. companies and stock of certain qualified foreign corporations, provided that certain holding period and other requirements are met by both the Fund and the Shareholders.
A foreign corporation is treated as a qualified foreign corporation for this purpose if it is incorporated in a possession of the United States or it is eligible for the benefits of certain income tax treaties with the United States and meets certain additional requirements. Certain foreign corporations that are not otherwise qualified foreign corporations will be treated as qualified foreign corporations with respect to dividend paid by them if the stock with respect to which the dividends are paid is readily tradable on an established securities market in the United States. Passive foreign investment companies are not qualified foreign investment companies for this purpose.
A dividend that is attributable to qualified dividend income of the Fund that is paid by the Fund to a Shareholder will not be taxable as qualified dividend income to such Shareholder (1) if the dividend is received with respect to any share of the Fund held for fewer than 61 days during the 121-day period beginning on the date which is 60 days before the date on which such share became ex-dividend with respect to such dividend, (2) to the extent that the Shareholder is under an obligation (whether pursuant to a short sale or otherwise) to make related payments with respect to positions in substantially similar or related property, or (3) if the Shareholder elects to have the dividend treated as investment income for purposes of the limitation on deductibility of investment interest. The ex-dividend date is the date on which the owner of the share at the commencement of such date is entitled to receive the next issued dividend payment for such share even if the share is sold by the owner on that date or thereafter.
Distributions of net capital gain (the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital loss), if any, reported as capital gain dividends are generally taxable to a Shareholder as long-term capital gains regardless of how long the Shareholder has held Shares, at rates of up to 20% for non-corporate taxpayers. Distributions of short-term capital gain are taxable to Shareholders as ordinary income. Shareholders receiving distributions in the form of additional Shares, rather than cash, generally will have a cost basis in each such share equal to the greater of the net asset value or fair market value of a share of the Fund on the reinvestment date. A distribution of an amount in excess of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits will first be treated by a Shareholder as a return of capital, which is applied against and reduces the Shareholder’s basis in his or her Shares. To the extent that the amount of any such distribution exceeds the Shareholder’s basis in his or her Shares, the excess will be treated by the Shareholder as gain from a sale or exchange of Shares.
Shareholders will be notified annually as to the U.S. federal tax status of distributions, and Shareholders receiving distributions in the form of additional Shares will receive a report as to the net asset value of those Shares.
A dividend or distribution received shortly after the purchase of Shares reduces the net asset value of the Shares by the amount of the dividend or distribution and, although in effect a return of capital will be taxable to the Shareholder. If the net asset value of Shares were reduced below the Shareholder’s cost by dividends and distributions representing gains realized on sales of securities, such dividends and distributions, although also in effect returns of capital, would be taxable to the Shareholder in the same manner as other dividends or distributions.
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Capital losses in excess of capital gains (“net capital losses”) are not permitted to be deducted against a RIC’s net investment income. Instead, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, potentially subject to certain limitations, the Fund may carry net capital losses from any taxable year forward to offset capital gains in future years. For U.S. federal income tax purposes, the Fund is permitted to carry forward a net capital loss from any taxable year that began on or before December 22, 2010 to offset its capital gains, if any, for up to eight years following the year of the loss. The Fund is permitted to carry forward indefinitely a net capital loss from any taxable year that began after December 22, 2010 to offset its capital gains, if any, in years following the year of the loss. To the extent subsequent capital gains are offset by such losses, they will not result in U.S. federal income tax liability to the Fund and may not be distributed as capital gains to Shareholders. Carryforwards of losses from taxable years that began after December 22, 2010 must be fully utilized before the Fund may utilize carryforwards of losses from taxable years that began on or before December 22, 2010. Generally, the Fund may not carry forward any losses other than net capital losses. Under certain circumstances, the Fund may elect to treat certain losses as though they were incurred on the first day of the taxable year immediately following the taxable year in which they were actually incurred.
The Fund has no capital loss carryforwards as of December 31, 2022.
Sale or Exchange of Fund Shares
Sales and repurchases generally are taxable events for Shareholders that are subject to tax. Shareholders should consult their own tax advisers with reference to their individual circumstances to determine whether any particular transaction in Shares is properly treated as a sale for tax purposes, as the following discussion assumes, and to ascertain the tax treatment of any gains or losses recognized in such transactions. In general, if Shares are sold, the Shareholder will recognize gain or loss equal to the difference between the amount realized on the sale and the Shareholder’s adjusted tax basis in the Shares. Such gain or loss generally will be treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the Shares were held for more than one year and otherwise generally will be treated as short-term capital gain or loss. Any loss recognized by a Shareholder upon the sale, repurchase or other disposition of Shares with a tax holding period of six months or less will be treated as a long-term capital loss to the extent of any amounts treated as distributions to the Shareholder of long-term capital gain with respect to such Shares (including any amounts credited to the Shareholder as undistributed capital gains).
Losses on sales or other dispositions of Shares may be disallowed under “wash sale” rules in the event of other investments in the fund (including investments made pursuant to reinvestment of dividends and/or capital gain distributions) within a period of 61 days beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the sale or other disposition of Shares or in the event the Shareholder enters into a contract or option to repurchase Shares within such period. In such a case, the disallowed portion of any loss generally would be included in the adjusted tax basis of the Shares acquired in the other investments.
Original Issue Discount Securities
Investments by the Fund in zero coupon or other discount securities will result in income to the Fund equal to a portion of the excess of the face value of the securities over their issue price (“original issue discount”) each year that the securities are held, even though the Fund may receive no cash interest payments or may receive cash interest payments that are less than the income recognized for tax purposes. This income is included in determining the amount of income, which the Fund must distribute to avoid the payment of federal income tax and the 4% excise tax. Because such income may not be matched by a corresponding cash payment to the Fund, the Fund may be required to borrow money or dispose of securities to be able to make distributions to its Shareholders.
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Investments in Non-U.S. Securities
The Fund may invest in non-U.S. securities, which investments could subject the Fund to complex provisions of the Code applicable to equity interests in passive foreign investment companies (each, a “PFIC”). A PFIC is an equity interest (under Treasury regulations that may be promulgated in the future, generally including not only stock but also an option to acquire stock such as is inherent in a convertible bond) in certain foreign corporations (i) that receive at least 75% of their annual gross income from passive sources (such as interest, dividends, certain rents and royalties, or capital gains) or (ii) where at least 50% of the corporation’s assets (computed based on average fair market value) either produce or are held for the production of passive income. If the Fund invests in PFICs, the Fund could be subject to U.S. federal income tax and nondeductible interest charges on “excess distributions” received from such companies or on gain from the sale of stock in such companies, even if all income or gain actually received by the Fund is timely distributed to its Shareholders. The Fund would not be able to pass through to its Shareholders any credit or deduction for such a tax. A “qualified electing fund” election or a “mark-to-market” election may be available that would ameliorate these adverse tax consequences, but such elections could require the Fund to recognize taxable income or gain (subject to the distribution requirements applicable to RICs, as described above) without the concurrent receipt of cash. In order to satisfy the distribution requirements and avoid a tax at the Fund level, the Fund may be required to liquidate portfolio securities that it might otherwise have continued to hold, potentially resulting in additional taxable gain or loss to the Fund. Gains from the sale of stock of PFICs may also be treated as ordinary income. In order for the Fund to make a qualified electing fund election with respect to a PFIC, the PFIC would have to agree to provide certain tax information to the Fund on an annual basis, which it might not agree to do. The Fund may limit and/or manage its holdings in PFICs to limit its tax liability or maximize its returns from these investments.
Dividends received by the Fund on foreign securities may give rise to withholding and other taxes imposed by foreign countries. Tax conventions between certain countries and the United States may reduce or eliminate such taxes. Shareholders of the Fund generally will not be entitled to a credit or deduction with respect to any such taxes paid by the Fund.
Gains or losses attributable to fluctuations in exchange rates between the time the Fund accrues income or receivables or expenses or other liabilities denominated in a foreign currency and the time the Fund actually collects such income or receivables or pays such liabilities are generally treated as ordinary income or loss. Similarly, gains or losses on foreign currency forward contracts and the disposition of debt securities denominated in foreign currency, to the extent attributable to fluctuations in exchange rates between the acquisition and disposition dates, are also treated as ordinary income or loss.
Investment in the Subsidiaries
The Fund invests in the Subsidiaries in order to gain exposure to certain securities that are not freely tradeable in the U.S., such as Regulation S securities, as well as other securities that can only be held by a non-U.S. person or where it may be advantageous for the security or asset to be purchased or held by a non-U.S. person (“other restricted non-U.S. securities). The Fund intends some Subsidiaries, such as Wolf River Cayman Ltd., to be treated as a disregarded entity for U.S. federal income tax purposes. As such, the Fund intends for such Subsidiary to be disregarded as an entity separate from its sole shareholder the Fund, and the Subsidiary is treated as a division or branch of the Fund. Instead, assuming that the Subsidiary is a disregarded entity, the Fund is treated as owning the Subsidiary’s assets directly for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The Fund will report separately on its own income tax return the Subsidiary’s income, gains, losses, deductions, and credits as such items are realized. Cash distributions by the Subsidiary to the Fund are a nonevent for U.S. federal income tax purposes and, therefore, result in no income or gain to the Fund.
In other cases, the Fund intends to invest a portion of its assets in Subsidiaries, such as Taffy III Ltd., which will be classified as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes. A foreign corporation, such as Taffy III Ltd., will generally not be subject to U.S. federal income taxation unless it is deemed to be engaged in a U.S. trade or business. It is expected that such Subsidiaries will conduct their activities in a manner so as to meet the requirements of a safe harbor under Section 864(b)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Safe Harbor”) pursuant to which the Subsidiary, provided it is not a dealer in stocks, securities or commodities, may engage in the following activities without being deemed to be engaged in a U.S. trade or business: (1) trading in stocks or securities (including contracts or options to buy or sell securities) for its own account; and (2) trading, for its own account, in commodities that are “of a kind customarily dealt in on an organized commodity exchange” if the transaction is of a kind customarily consummated at such place. Thus, the Subsidiary’s securities and commodities trading activities should not constitute a U.S. trade or business. However, if certain of the Subsidiary’s activities were determined not to be of the type described in the Safe Harbor or if the Subsidiary’s gains are attributable to investments in securities that constitute U.S. real property interests (which is not expected), then the activities of the Subsidiary may constitute a U.S. trade or business, or be taxed as such.
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In general, a foreign corporation that does not conduct a U.S. trade or business is nonetheless subject to tax at a flat rate of 30 percent (or lower tax treaty rate), generally payable through withholding, on the gross amount of certain U.S.-source income that is not effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business. There is presently no tax treaty in force between the U.S. and the Cayman Islands that would reduce this rate of withholding tax. Income subject to such a flat tax includes dividends and certain interest income. The 30 percent tax does not apply to U.S.-source capital gains (whether long-term or short-term) or to interest paid to a foreign corporation on its deposits with U.S. banks. The 30 percent tax also does not apply to interest which qualifies as “portfolio interest.” The term “portfolio interest” generally includes interest (including original issue discount) on an obligation in registered form which has been issued after July 18, 1984, and with respect to which the person, who would otherwise be required to deduct and withhold the 30 percent tax, received the required statement that the beneficial owner of the obligation is not a U.S. person within the meaning of the Code. Under certain circumstances, interest on bearer obligations may also be considered portfolio interest.
Further, the “Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act” (“FATCA”) imposes a 30% withholding tax on withholdable payments made after December 31, 2013, to foreign financial institutions unless certain requirements are satisfied. This new U.S. withholding tax regime is completely separate and distinct from the one described immediately above, and imposes a 30% withholding tax on fixed or determinable annual or periodic income, gains from the disposition of property that produces dividends and interest income, and certain other amounts, unless the foreign fund enters into an agreement with the IRS (or satisfies the requirements of certain applicable tax treaties) to provide certain information with respect to U.S. persons having an interest in such Fund and otherwise complies with its obligations under FATCA.
The Subsidiaries will be wholly-owned by the Fund. A U.S. person who owns (directly, indirectly or constructively) 10 percent or more of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock of a foreign corporation is a “U.S. Shareholder” for purposes of the controlled foreign corporation (“CFC”) provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. A foreign corporation is a CFC if, on any day of its taxable year, more than 50 percent of the voting power or value of its stock is owned (directly, indirectly or constructively) by “U.S. Shareholders.” Because the Fund is a U.S. person that will own all of the stock of the Subsidiaries that are classified as corporations, such as Taffy III, Ltd., the Fund will be a “U.S. Shareholder” and such Subsidiary will be a CFC. As a “U.S. Shareholder,” the Fund will be required to include in gross income for United States federal income tax purposes all of such Subsidiary’s “subpart F income” (defined, in part, below), whether or not such income is distributed by the Subsidiary. It is expected that all of such Subsidiary’s income will be “subpart F income.” “Subpart F income” generally includes interest, original issue discount, dividends, net gains from the disposition of stocks or securities, receipts with respect to securities loans and net payments received with respect to equity swaps and similar derivatives. “Subpart F income” also includes the excess of gains over losses from transactions (including futures, forward and similar transactions) in any commodities. The Fund’s recognition of such Subsidiary’s “subpart F income” will increase the Fund’s tax basis in the Subsidiary. Distributions by such a Subsidiary to the Fund will be tax-free, to the extent of its previously undistributed “subpart F income,” and will correspondingly reduce the Fund’s tax basis in the Subsidiary. “Subpart F income” is generally treated as ordinary income, regardless of the character of such Subsidiary’s underlying income.
In general, each “U.S. Shareholder” is required to file IRS Form 5471 with its U.S. federal income tax (or information) returns providing information about its ownership of the CFC and the CFC. In addition, a “U.S. Shareholder” may in certain circumstances be required to report a disposition of shares in such a Subsidiary by attaching IRS Form 5471 to its U.S. federal income tax (or information) return that it would normally file for the taxable year in which the disposition occurs. In general, these filing requirements will apply to investors of the Fund if the investor is a U.S. person who owns directly, indirectly or constructively (within the meaning of Sections 958(a) and (b) of the Internal Revenue Code) 10 percent or more of the total combined voting power of all classes of voting stock of a foreign corporation that is a CFC for an uninterrupted period of 30 days or more during any tax year of the foreign corporation, and who owned that stock on the last day of that year.
The U.S. Internal Revenue Service is no longer issuing private letter rulings to taxpayers on the use of controlled foreign corporations, structured notes and other types of derivatives by regulated investment companies, such as the Fund, to obtain indirect exposure to commodities. In the event the U.S. Internal Revenue Service changes its prior technical analysis and position of its prior letter rulings and concludes that using such structures and instruments to obtain indirect exposure to commodities does not produce good qualifying income for a regulated investment company, such change could result in the inability of the Fund and/or such Subsidiary to operate as described in this Statement of Additional Information and could adversely affect the Fund and its shareholders.
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Backup Withholding
The Fund is required to withhold (as “backup withholding”) a portion of dividends and certain other payments paid to certain holders of Shares who do not to provide the Fund with their correct taxpayer identification number (or, in the case of individuals, their social security numbers) or to make required certifications, or who are otherwise subject to backup withholding. The withholding rate is 24%. Corporate Shareholders and certain other Shareholders specified in the Code generally are exempt from such backup withholding. This withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld from payments made to a Shareholder may be refunded or credited against the Shareholder’s U.S. federal income tax liability, provided the required information and forms are timely furnished to the IRS.
Foreign Shareholders
U.S. taxation of a Shareholder who, as to the United States, is a nonresident alien individual, a foreign trust or estate, a foreign corporation or foreign partnership (“foreign shareholder”) generally depends on whether the income received from the Fund is “effectively connected” with a U.S. trade or business carried on by the Shareholder. In addition, unless certain foreign entities that hold Shares comply with IRS requirements that will generally require them to report information regarding U.S. persons investing in, or holding accounts with, such entities, a 30% withholding tax may apply to Fund distributions and repurchase proceeds payable to such entities. A foreign shareholder may be exempt from the withholding described in this paragraph under an applicable intergovernmental agreement between the U.S. and a foreign government, provided that the Shareholder and the applicable foreign government comply with the terms of such agreement.
26
Other Tax Considerations
A 3.8% Medicare contribution tax generally applies to all or a portion of the net investment income of a Shareholder who is an individual and not a nonresident alien for federal income tax purposes and who has adjusted gross income (subject to certain adjustments) that exceeds a threshold amount ($250,000 if married filing jointly or if considered a “surviving spouse” for federal income tax purposes, $125,000 if married filing separately, and $200,000 in other cases). This 3.8% tax also applies to all or a portion of the undistributed net investment income of certain Shareholders that are estates and trusts. For these purposes, interest, dividends, and certain capital gains (among other categories of income) are generally taken into account in computing a Shareholder’s net investment income.
Fund Shareholders may be subject to state, local and foreign taxes on their Fund distributions. Shareholders are advised to consult their own tax advisers with respect to the particular tax consequences to them of an investment in the Fund.
If a Shareholder recognizes a loss on a disposition of Shares of $2 million or more for an individual Shareholder, or $10 million or more for a corporate Shareholder, in any single taxable year (or certain greater amounts over a combination of years), the Shareholder must file with the IRS a disclosure statement on Form 8886. Direct Shareholders of portfolio securities are in many cases excepted from this reporting requirement, but under current guidance, shareholders of a RIC are not excepted. In addition, significant penalties may be imposed for the failure to comply with the reporting requirements. The fact that a loss is reportable under these regulations does not affect the legal determination of whether the taxpayer’s treatment of the loss is proper. Shareholders should consult their tax advisers to determine the applicability of these regulations in light of their individual circumstances.
The foregoing discussion is a summary only and is not intended as a substitute for careful tax planning. Purchasers of Shares should consult their own tax advisers as to the tax consequences of investing in such Shares, including under state, local and other tax laws.
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM; LEGAL COUNSEL
Tait, Weller & Baker LLP, located at Two Liberty Place, 50 S. 16th Street, Suite 2900, Philadelphia, PA 19102, has been selected as the independent registered public accountant for the Fund and in such capacity will audit the Fund’s annual financial statements and financial highlights.
Alston & Bird, LLP, 950 F St. NW, Washington, DC, 20004, serves as counsel to the Fund and the Independent Trustees.
CUSTODIAN
UMB Bank, n.a. (the “Custodian”), serves as the primary custodian of the assets of the Fund and the Subsidiary, and may maintain custody of such assets with U.S. and non-U.S. sub-custodians (which may be banks, trust companies, securities depositories and clearing agencies) in accordance with the requirements of Section 17(f) of the Investment Company Act. Assets of the Fund are not held by the Investment Manager or commingled with the assets of other accounts other than to the extent that securities are held in the name of the Custodian or U.S. or non-U.S. sub-custodians in a securities depository, clearing agency or omnibus customer account of such custodian. The Custodian’s principal business address is 1010 Grand Boulevard, Kansas City, MO 64106.
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DISTRIBUTOR
Foreside Financial Services, LLC, (the “Distributor”) is the distributor of Shares and is located at Three Canal Plaza, Suite 100, Portland, Maine 04101. The Distributor is a registered broker-dealer and is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. Pursuant to the Distribution Agreement, the Distributor acts as the agent of the Fund in connection with the continuous offering of Shares of the Fund. The Distributor continually distributes Shares of the Fund on a best efforts basis. The Distributor has no obligation to sell any specific quantity of Shares. The Distributor and its officers have no role in determining the investment policies of the Fund.
PROXY VOTING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
The Board has delegated responsibility for decisions regarding proxy voting for securities held by the Fund to the Investment Manager. The Investment Manager will vote such proxies in accordance with its proxy policies and procedures. Copies of the Investment Manager’s proxy policies and procedures are included as Appendix A to this SAI.
The Fund will be required to file Form N-PX, with its complete proxy voting record for the twelve months ended June 30, no later than August 31 of each year. The Fund’s Form N-PX filing will be available: (i) without charge, upon request, by calling the Fund at (855) 552-5520 or (ii) by visiting the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.
CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL SHAREHOLDERS
A principal shareholder is any person who owns of record or is known by the Fund to own of record or beneficially 5% or more of any class of the Fund’s outstanding equity securities. A control person is a person who beneficially owns more than 25% of the voting securities of the Fund. As of March 31, 2023 Ali Meli, Managing Partner, of the Investment Manager, owned approximately 58% of the outstanding Class I Shares of the Fund and Pitt’s Bay 18 Partners, LP owned approximately 42% of the outstanding Class I Shares of the Fund. These shareholders may continue to be deemed to control the Fund until such time as they own less than 25% of the outstanding Shares.
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The Fund’s audited financial statements and financial highlights for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 (including the report of Tait, Weller & Baker LLP, the Fund’s independent public accounting firm) appearing in the annual report to shareholders (the “Annual Report”) are incorporated by reference into this SAI. No other parts of the Annual Report are incorporated by reference herein. A copy of the Prospectus and Annual Report may be obtained without charge by calling the Fund at (855) 552-5520 contacting the Fund at the telephone number or address set forth above.
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APPENDIX A — PROXY VOTING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
Monachil Capital Partners LP
PROXY VOTING POLICY AND PROCEDURES
Adopted: April 2022
| I. | STATEMENT OF POLICY |
Proxy voting is an important right of shareholders, and the Adviser must undertake reasonable care and diligence to ensure that such rights are properly and timely exercised. When the Adviser has discretion to vote its Clients’ proxies, it will vote those proxies according to its Clients’ best interests to maximize shareholder value and in accordance with these policies and procedures. For purposes of this policy, “proxies” are deemed to include the exercise of voluntary corporate actions, class actions and other rights.
| II. | PROXY VOTING PROCEDURES |
The CCO, a Delegate or a third party retained by the Adviser to assist in coordinating and voting proxies will:
| A. | determine which accounts managed by the Adviser hold the security to which the proxy relates; |
| B. | determine whether any material conflict of interest exists that would inhibit the Adviser’s ability to vote the proxies objectively and in the best interest of the Client(s); and |
| C. | complete the proxy form and mail or electronically submit it in a timely and appropriate manner. |
To determine whether a material conflict of interest exists, the Adviser should attempt to consider all factors related to a proxy vote that could affect the value of the investment. If a material conflict of interest exists, the Adviser will give the Client(s) the opportunity to vote the proxies themselves.
| III. | VOTING GUIDELINES |
Absent specific voting guidelines from Clients, the Adviser will vote proxies in the best interest of each particular Client, which may result in different voting results for proxies for the same issuer.
For other proposals, the Adviser should determine whether a proposal is in its Clients’ best interests and may consider the following factors, among others:
| A. | whether the proposal was recommended by management and the Adviser's opinion of management; |
| B. | whether the proposal acts to entrench existing management; and |
| C. | whether the proposal fairly compensates management for past and future performance. |
The Adviser may refrain from voting a proxy (a) if the Adviser determines it is not in the best interest(s) of its Client(s), (b) if the security is not held as of the record date or (c) if the Adviser determines there is insufficient benefit to voting the proxy.
| IV. | RECORDKEEPING |
The CCO, a delegate, or a third party retained by the Adviser will maintain files relating to the Adviser’s proxy voting procedures in an easily accessible place, and Clients may obtain such files from the Adviser by submitting a written request. The party responsible for maintaining such files will keep a record of each proxy statement received, how the Adviser voted each proxy, and any document the Adviser created that was material to its voting decision or that memorializes such decision.
A-1
| V. | CLASS ACTION LAWSUITS |
From time to time, securities held in the accounts of Clients will be the subject of class action lawsuits. The Adviser has no obligation to determine if securities held by the Client are subject to a pending or resolved class action lawsuit. It also has no duty to evaluate a Client's eligibility or to submit a claim to participate in the proceeds of a securities class action settlement or verdict. Furthermore, the Adviser has no obligation or responsibility to initiate litigation to recover damages on behalf of Clients who may have been injured because of actions, misconduct, or negligence by corporate management of issuers whose securities are held by Clients.
Where the Adviser receives written or electronic notice of a class action lawsuit, settlement, or verdict directly relating to a Client account, it will forward all notices, proof of claim forms, and other materials, to the Client. Electronic mail is acceptable where appropriate if the Client has authorized contact in this manner.
A-2
APPENDIX B — DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES RATINGS
Short-Term Credit Ratings
An S&P Global Ratings short-term issue credit rating is generally assigned to those obligations considered short-term in the relevant market. The following summarizes the rating categories used by S&P Global Ratings for short-term issues:
“A-1” — A short-term obligation rated “A-1” is rated in the highest category by S&P Global Ratings. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is strong. Within this category, certain obligations are designated with a plus sign (+). This indicates that the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on these obligations is extremely strong.
“A-2” — A short-term obligation rated “A-2” is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher rating categories. However, the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is satisfactory.
“A-3” — A short-term obligation rated “A-3” exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to weaken an obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.
“B” — A short-term obligation rated “B” is regarded as vulnerable and has significant speculative characteristics. The obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitments; however, it faces major ongoing uncertainties that could lead to the obligor’s inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitments.
“C” — A short-term obligation rated “C” is currently vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.
“D” — A short-term obligation rated “D” is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non- hybrid capital instruments, the “D” rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P Global Ratings believes that such payments will be made within any stated grace period. However, any stated grace period longer than five business days will be treated as five business days. The “D” rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of a similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. A rating on an obligation is lowered to “D” if it is subject to a distressed exchange offer.
Local Currency and Foreign Currency Ratings — S&P Global Ratings’ issuer credit ratings make a distinction between foreign currency ratings and local currency ratings. A foreign currency rating on an issuer will differ from the local currency rating on it when the obligor has a different capacity to meet its obligations denominated in its local currency, versus obligations denominated in a foreign currency.
“NR” — This indicates that a rating has not been assigned or is no longer assigned.
Moody’s Investors Service (“Moody’s”) short-term ratings are forward-looking opinions of the relative credit risks of financial obligations with an original maturity of thirteen months or less and reflect both on the likelihood of a default or impairment on contractual financial obligations and the expected financial loss suffered in the event of default or impairment.
Moody’s employs the following designations to indicate the relative repayment ability of rated issuers:
“P-1” — Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-1 have a superior ability to repay short-term debt obligations.
“P-2” — Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-2 have a strong ability to repay short-term debt obligations.
“P-3” — Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-3 have an acceptable ability to repay short-term obligations.
B-1
“NP” — Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Not Prime do not fall within any of the Prime rating categories.
“NR” — Is assigned to an unrated issuer.
Fitch, Inc. / Fitch Ratings Ltd. (“Fitch”) short-term issuer or obligation rating is based in all cases on the short-term vulnerability to default of the rated entity and relates to the capacity to meet financial obligations in accordance with the documentation governing the relevant obligation. Short-term deposit ratings may be adjusted for loss severity. Short-term ratings are assigned to obligations whose initial maturity is viewed as “short-term” based on market convention.1 Typically, this means up to 13 months for corporate, sovereign, and structured obligations and up to 36 months for obligations in U.S. public finance markets. The following summarizes the rating categories used by Fitch for short-term obligations:
“F1” — Securities possess the highest short-term credit quality. This designation indicates the strongest intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments; may have an added “+” to denote any exceptionally strong credit feature.
“F2” — Securities possess good short-term credit quality. This designation indicates good intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments.
“F3” — Securities possess fair short-term credit quality. This designation indicates that the intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments is adequate.
“B” — Securities possess speculative short-term credit quality. This designation indicates minimal capacity for timely payment of financial commitments, plus heightened vulnerability to near term adverse changes in financial and economic conditions.
“C” — Securities possess high short-term default risk. Default is a real possibility.
“RD” — Restricted default. Indicates an entity that has defaulted on one or more of its financial commitments, although it continues to meet other financial obligations. Typically applicable to entity ratings only.
“D” — Default. Indicates a broad-based default event for an entity, or the default of a short-term obligation.
Plus (+) or minus (-) — The “F1” rating may be modified by the addition of a plus (+) or minus (-) sign to show the relative status within that major rating category.
“NR” — Is assigned to an unrated issue of a rated issuer.
The DBRS Morningstar® Ratings Limited (“DBRS Morningstar”) short-term debt rating scale provides an opinion on the risk that an issuer will not meet its short-term financial obligations in a timely manner. Ratings are based on quantitative and qualitative considerations relevant to the issuer and the relative ranking of claims. The R-1 and R-2 rating categories are further denoted by the sub-categories “(high)”, “(middle)”, and “(low)”.
The following summarizes the ratings used by DBRS Morningstar for commercial paper and short-term debt:
“R-1 (high)” — Short-term debt rated “R-1 (high)” is of the highest credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is exceptionally high. Unlikely to be adversely affected by future events.
| 1 | A long-term rating can also be used to rate an issue with short maturity. |
“R-1 (middle)” — Short-term debt rated “R-1 (middle)” is of superior credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is very high. Differs from “R-1 (high)” by a relatively modest degree. Unlikely to be significantly vulnerable to future events.
“R-1 (low)” — Short-term debt rated “R-1 (low)” is of good credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is substantial. Overall strength is not as favorable as higher rating categories. May be vulnerable to future events, but qualifying negative factors are considered manageable.
B-2
“R-2 (high)” — Short-term debt rated “R-2 (high)” is considered to be at the upper end of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events.
“R-2 (middle)” — Short-term debt rated “R-2 (middle)” is considered to be of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events or may be exposed to other factors that could reduce credit quality.
“R-2 (low)” — Short-term debt rated “R-2 (low)” is considered to be at the lower end of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events. A number of challenges are present that could affect the issuer’s ability to meet such obligations.
“R-3” — Short-term debt rated “R-3” is considered to be at the lowest end of adequate credit quality. There is a capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due. May be vulnerable to future events and the certainty of meeting such obligations could be impacted by a variety of developments.
“R-4” — Short-term debt rated “R-4” is considered to be of speculative credit quality. The capacity for the payment of short-term financial obligations as they fall due is uncertain.
“R-5” — Short-term debt rated “R-5” is considered to be of highly speculative credit quality. There is a high level of uncertainty as to the capacity to meet short-term financial obligations as they fall due.
“D” — Short-term debt rated “D” is assigned when the issuer has filed under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or winding up statute or there is a failure to satisfy an obligation after the exhaustion of grace periods, a downgrade to “D” may occur. DBRS Morningstar may also use “SD” (Selective Default) in cases where only some securities are impacted, such as the case of a “distressed exchange”.
Long-Term Credit Ratings
The following summarizes the ratings used by S&P Global Ratings for long-term issues:
“AAA” — An obligation rated “AAA” has the highest rating assigned by S&P Global Ratings. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is extremely strong.
“AA” — An obligation rated “AA” differs from the highest-rated obligations only to a small degree. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is very strong.
“A” — An obligation rated “A” is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher-rated categories. However, the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is still strong.
“BBB” — An obligation rated “BBB” exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to weaken the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.
“BB,” “B,” “CCC,” “CC” and “C” — Obligations rated “BB,” “B,” “CCC,” “CC” and “C” are regarded as having significant speculative characteristics. “BB” indicates the least degree of speculation and “C” the highest. While such obligations will likely have some quality and protective characteristics, these may be outweighed by large uncertainties or major exposure to adverse conditions.
“BB” — An obligation rated “BB” is less vulnerable to nonpayment than other speculative issues. However, it faces major ongoing uncertainties or exposure to adverse business, financial, or economic conditions that could lead to the obligor’s inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.
B-3
“B” — An obligation rated “B” is more vulnerable to nonpayment than obligations rated “BB”, but the obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. Adverse business, financial, or economic conditions will likely impair the obligor’s capacity or willingness to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.
“CCC” — An obligation rated “CCC” is currently vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. In the event of adverse business, financial, or economic conditions, the obligor is not likely to have the capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation.
“CC” — An obligation rated “CC” is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment. The “CC” rating is used when a default has not yet occurred but S&P Global Ratings expects default to be a virtual certainty, regardless of the anticipated time to default.
“C” — An obligation rated “C” is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment, and the obligation is expected to have lower relative seniority or lower ultimate recovery compared with obligations that are rated higher.
“D” — An obligation rated “D” is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non-hybrid capital instruments, the “D” rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P Global Ratings believes that such payments will be made within five business days in the absence of a stated grace period or within the earlier of the stated grace period or 30 calendar days. The “D” rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. An obligation’s rating is lowered to “D” if it is subject to a distressed exchange offer.
Plus (+) or minus (-) — The ratings from “AA” to “CCC” may be modified by the addition of a plus (+) or minus (-) sign to show relative standing within the rating categories.
“NR” — This indicates that a rating has not been assigned, or is no longer assigned.
Local Currency and Foreign Currency Risks — S&P Global Ratings’ issuer credit ratings make a distinction between foreign currency ratings and local currency ratings. An issuer’s foreign currency rating will differ from its local currency rating on it when the obligor has a different capacity to meet its obligations denominated in its local currency, versus obligations denominated in a foreign currency.
Moody’s long-term ratings are forward-looking opinions of the relative credit risks of financial obligations with an original maturity of one year or more. Such ratings reflect both on the likelihood of default or impairment on contractual financial obligations and the expected financial loss suffered in the event of default or impairment. The following summarizes the ratings used by Moody’s for long-term debt:
“Aaa” — Obligations rated “Aaa” are judged to be of the highest quality, subject to the lowest level of credit risk.
“Aa” — Obligations rated “Aa” are judged to be of high quality and are subject to very low credit risk.
“A” — Obligations rated “A” are judged to be upper-medium grade and are subject to low credit risk.
“Baa” — Obligations rated “Baa” are judged to be medium-grade and subject to moderate credit risk and as such may possess certain speculative characteristics.
“Ba” — Obligations rated “Ba” are judged to be speculative and are subject to substantial credit risk.
“B” — Obligations rated “B” are considered speculative and are subject to high credit risk.
“Caa” — Obligations rated “Caa” are judged to be speculative of poor standing and are subject to very high credit risk.
“Ca” — Obligations rated “Ca” are highly speculative and are likely in, or very near, default, with some prospect of recovery of principal and interest.
“C” — Obligations rated “C” are the lowest rated and are typically in default, with little prospect for recovery of principal or interest.
B-4
Note: Moody’s appends numerical modifiers 1, 2, and 3 to each generic rating classification from “Aa” through “Caa.” The modifier 1 indicates that the obligation ranks in the higher end of its generic rating category; the modifier 2 indicates a mid-range ranking; and the modifier 3 indicates a ranking in the lower end of that generic rating category.
“NR” — Is assigned to unrated obligations.
The following summarizes long-term ratings used by Fitch:
“AAA” — Securities considered to be of the highest credit quality. “AAA” ratings denote the lowest expectation of credit risk. They are assigned only in cases of exceptionally strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is highly unlikely to be adversely affected by foreseeable events.
“AA” — Securities considered to be of very high credit quality. “AA” ratings denote expectations of very low credit risk. They indicate very strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is not significantly vulnerable to foreseeable events.
“A” — Securities considered to be of high credit quality. “A” ratings denote expectations of low credit risk. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered strong. This capacity may, nevertheless, be more vulnerable to adverse business or economic conditions than is the case for higher ratings.
“BBB” — Securities considered to be of good credit quality. “BBB” ratings indicate that expectations of credit risk are currently low. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered adequate, but adverse business or economic conditions are more likely to impair this capacity.
“BB” — Securities considered to be speculative. “BB” ratings indicate that there is an elevated vulnerability to credit risk, particularly in the event of adverse changes in business or economic conditions over time; however, business or financial alternatives may be available to allow financial commitments to be met.
“B” — Securities considered to be highly speculative. “B” ratings indicate that material credit risk is present.
“CCC” — A “CCC” rating indicates that substantial credit risk is present. “CC” — A “CC” rating indicates very high levels of credit risk.
“C” — A “C” rating indicates exceptionally high levels of credit risk.
Defaulted obligations typically are not assigned “RD” or “D” ratings but are instead rated in the “CCC” to “C” rating categories, depending on their recovery prospects and other relevant characteristics. Fitch believes that this approach better aligns obligations that have comparable overall expected loss but varying vulnerability to default and loss.
Plus (+) or minus (-) may be appended to a rating to denote relative status within major rating categories. Such suffixes are not added to the “AAA” obligation rating category, or to corporate finance obligation ratings in the categories below “CCC”.
“NR” — Is assigned to an unrated issue of a rated issuer.
The DBRS Morningstar long-term rating scale provides an opinion on the risk of default. That is, the risk that an issuer will fail to satisfy its financial obligations in accordance with the terms under which an obligation has been issued. Ratings are based on quantitative and qualitative considerations relevant to the issuer, and the relative ranking of claims. All rating categories other than AAA and D also contain subcategories “(high)” and “(low)”. The absence of either a “(high)” or “(low)” designation indicates the rating is in the middle of the category. The following summarizes the ratings used by DBRS Morningstar for long-term debt:
“AAA” — Long-term debt rated “AAA” is of the highest credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is exceptionally high and unlikely to be adversely affected by future events.
B-5
“AA” — Long-term debt rated “AA” is of superior credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is considered high. Credit quality differs from “AAA” only to a small degree. Unlikely to be significantly vulnerable to future events.
“A” — Long-term debt rated “A” is of good credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is substantial, but of lesser credit quality than “AA.” May be vulnerable to future events, but qualifying negative factors are considered manageable.
“BBB” — Long-term debt rated “BBB” is of adequate credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is considered acceptable. May be vulnerable to future events.
“BB” — Long-term debt rated “BB” is of speculative, non-investment grade credit quality. The capacity for the payment of financial obligations is uncertain. Vulnerable to future events.
“B” — Long-term debt rated “B” is of highly speculative credit quality. There is a high level of uncertainty as to the capacity to meet financial obligations.
“CCC”, “CC” and “C” — Long-term debt rated in any of these categories is of very highly speculative credit quality. In danger of defaulting on financial obligations. There is little difference between these three categories, although “CC” and “C” ratings are normally applied to obligations that are seen as highly likely to default, or subordinated to obligations rated in the “CCC” to “B” range. Obligations in respect of which default has not technically taken place but is considered inevitable may be rated in the “C” category.
“D” — A security rated “D” is assigned when the issuer has filed under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or winding up statute or there is a failure to satisfy an obligation after the exhaustion of grace periods, a downgrade to “D” may occur. DBRS Morningstar may also use “SD” (Selective Default) in cases where only some securities are impacted, such as the case of a “distressed exchange”.
Municipal Note Ratings
An S&P Global Ratings U.S. municipal note rating reflects S&P Global Ratings’ opinion about the liquidity factors and market access risks unique to the notes. Notes due in three years or less will likely receive a note rating. Notes with an original maturity of more than three years will most likely receive a long-term debt rating. In determining which type of rating, if any, to assign, S&P Global Ratings’ analysis will review the following considerations:
| · | Amortization schedule — the larger the final maturity relative to other maturities, the more likely it will be treated as a note; and |
| · | Source of payment — the more dependent the issue is on the market for its refinancing, the more likely it will be treated as a note. |
Municipal Short-Term Note rating symbols are as follows:
“SP-1” — A municipal note rated “SP-1” exhibits a strong capacity to pay principal and interest. An issue determined to possess a very strong capacity to pay debt service is given a plus (+) designation.
“SP-2” — A municipal note rated “SP-2” exhibits a satisfactory capacity to pay principal and interest, with some vulnerability to adverse financial and economic changes over the term of the notes.
“SP-3” — A municipal note rated “SP-3” exhibits a speculative capacity to pay principal and interest.
“D” — This rating is assigned upon failure to pay the note when due, completion of a distressed exchange offer, or the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions.
Moody’s uses the global short-term Prime rating scale (listed above under Short-Term Credit Ratings) for commercial paper issued by U.S. municipalities and nonprofits. These commercial paper programs may be backed by external letters of credit or liquidity facilities, or by an issuer’s self-liquidity.
For other short-term municipal obligations, Moody’s uses one of two other short-term rating scales, the Municipal Investment Grade (“MIG”) and Variable Municipal Investment Grade (“VMIG”) scales provided below.
B-6
Moody’s uses the MIG scale for U.S. municipal cash flow notes, bond anticipation notes and certain other short-term obligations, which typically mature in three years or less. Under certain circumstances, Moody’s uses the MIG scale for bond anticipation notes with maturities of up to five years.
MIG Scale
“MIG-1” — This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by established cash flows, highly reliable liquidity support, or demonstrated broad-based access to the market for refinancing.
“MIG-2” — This designation denotes strong credit quality. Margins of protection are ample, although not as large as in the preceding group.
“MIG-3” — This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Liquidity and cash-flow protection may be narrow, and market access for refinancing is likely to be less well-established.
“SG” — This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Debt instruments in this category may lack sufficient margins of protection.
“NR” — Is assigned to an unrated obligation.
In the case of variable rate demand obligations (“VRDOs”), a two-component rating is assigned: a long or short-term debt rating and a demand obligation rating. The long-term rating addresses the issuer’s ability to meet scheduled principal and interests payments. The short-term demand obligation rating addresses the ability of the issuer or the liquidity provider to make payments associated with the purchase-price-upon demand feature (“demand feature”) of the VRDO. The short-term demand obligation rating uses the VMIG scale. VMIG ratings with liquidity support use as an input the short-term Counterparty Risk Assessment of the support provider, or the long-term rating of the underlying obligor in the absence of third party liquidity support. Transitions of VMIG Ratings of demand obligations with conditional liquidity support differ from transitions on the Prime scale to reflect the risk that external liquidity support will terminate if the issuer’s long-term rating drops below investment grade.
Moody’s typically assigns the VMIG short-term demand obligation rating if the frequency of the demand feature is less than every three years. If the frequency of the demand feature is less than three years but the purchase price is payable only with remarketing proceeds, the short-term demand obligation rating is “NR”.
“VMIG-1” — This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by the superior short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.
“VMIG-2” — This designation denotes strong credit quality. Good protection is afforded by the strong short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.
“VMIG-3” — This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Adequate protection is afforded by the satisfactory short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.
“SG” — This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Demand features rated in this category may be supported by a liquidity provider that does not have a sufficiently strong short-term rating or may lack the structural and/or legal protections necessary to ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.
“NR” — Is assigned to an unrated obligation.
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About Credit Ratings
An S&P Global Ratings issue credit rating is a forward-looking opinion about the creditworthiness of an obligor with respect to a specific financial obligation, a specific class of financial obligations, or a specific financial program (including ratings on medium-term note programs and commercial paper programs). It takes into consideration the creditworthiness of guarantors, insurers, or other forms of credit enhancement on the obligation and takes into account the currency in which the obligation is denominated. The opinion reflects S&P Global Ratings’ view of the obligor’s capacity and willingness to meet its financial commitments as they come due, and this opinion may assess terms, such as collateral security and subordination, which could affect ultimate payment in the event of default.
Ratings assigned on Moody’s global long-term and short-term rating scales are forward-looking opinions of the relative credit risks of financial obligations issued by non-financial corporates, financial institutions, structured finance vehicles, project finance vehicles, and public sector entities.
Fitch’s credit ratings relating to issuers are an opinion on the relative ability of an entity to meet financial commitments, such as interest, preferred dividends, repayment of principal, insurance claims or counterparty obligations. Fitch credit ratings are used by investors as indications of the likelihood of receiving the money owed to them in accordance with the terms on which they invested. Fitch’s credit ratings cover the global spectrum of corporate, sovereign financial, bank, insurance, and public finance entities (including supranational and sub-national entities) and the securities or other obligations they issue, as well as structured finance securities backed by receivables or other financial assets.
DBRS Morningstar provides independent credit ratings services for financial institutions, corporate and sovereign entities and structured finance products and instruments. Credit ratings are forward-looking opinions about credit risk that reflect the creditworthiness of an entity or security. The Rating Committee process facilitates rating decisions, which are a collective assessment of DBRS Morningstar’s opinion rather than the view of an individual analyst. Ratings are based on sufficient information that incorporates both global and local considerations and the use of approved methodologies. They are independent of any actual or perceived conflicts of interest. DBRS Morningstar credit ratings are formed and disseminated based on established methodologies, models and criteria (Methodologies) that apply to entities and securities that we rate, including corporate finance issuers, financial institutions, insurance companies, public finance and sovereign entities as well as Structured Finance transactions. DBRS Morningstar methodologies are periodically reviewed and updated by the team.
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