| • | The list entitled “VARIABLE INVESTMENT OPTIONS” at the beginning of the Prospectus is amended by adding the following: |
| • | The footnote below is added to the footnotes that follow the list entitled “Variable Investment Options” |
| • | The annual expenses for the new Variable Investment Options are shown below. The table captioned “UNDERLYING PORTFOLIO ANNUAL EXPENSES” in the “SUMMARY OF CONTRACT FEES AND CHARGES” section of the Prospectus is supplemented with the information about the Portfolios shown below: |
| UNDERLYING PORTFOLIO ANNUAL EXPENSES | |||||||||
| (as a percentage of the average net assets of the underlying Portfolios) | |||||||||
| FUNDS | Management Fees | Other Expenses | Distribution (12b-1) Fees | Dividend Expense on Short Sales | Broker Fees and Expenses on Short Sales | Acquired Portfolio Fees & Expenses | Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses | Fee Waiver or Expense Reimbursement | Net Annual Fund OperatingExpenses |
American Funds Insurance Series® Asset Allocation Fund – Class 41 | 0.27% | 0.27% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.79% | 0.00% | 0.79% |
American Funds Insurance Series® Blue Chip Income and Growth Fund – Class 41 | 0.39% | 0.27% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.91% | 0.00% | 0.91% |
American Funds Insurance Series® Bond Fund – Class 41 | 0.36% | 0.27% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.88% | 0.00% | 0.88% |
American Funds Insurance Series® Global Growth and Income Fund – Class 41 | 0.59% | 0.29% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 1.13% | 0.00% | 1.13% |
American Funds Insurance Series® Global Small Capitalization Fund – Class 41 | 0.70% | 0.29% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 1.24% | 0.00% | 1.24% |
American Funds Insurance Series® Growth Fund – Class 41 | 0.32% | 0.27% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.84% | 0.00% | 0.84% |
American Funds Insurance Series® Growth-Income Fund – Class 41 | 0.26% | 0.27% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.78% | 0.00% | 0.78% |
American Funds Insurance Series® International Fund – Class 41 | 0.49% | 0.29% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 1.03% | 0.00% | 1.03% |
American Funds Insurance Series® New World Fund – Class 41 | 0.70% | 0.31% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 1.26% | 0.00% | 1.26% |
BlackRock Advantage Large Cap Core V.I. Fund – Class III1,* | 0.46% | 0.26% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.97% | 0.12% | 0.85% |
BlackRock Advantage Large Cap Value V.I. Fund – Class III1,* | 0.75% | 0.38% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 1.38% | 0.53% | 0.85% |
BlackRock Basic Value V.I. Fund – Class III1,* | 0.60% | 0.28% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.01% | 1.14% | 0.12% | 1.02% |
BlackRock Capital Appreciation V.I. Fund – Class III1,* | 0.65% | 0.27% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 1.17% | 0.12% | 1.05% |
BlackRock Equity Dividend V.I. Fund – Class III1,* | 0.60% | 0.27% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.01% | 1.13% | 0.21% | 0.92% |
BlackRock Large Cap Focus Growth V.I. Fund – Class III1,* | 0.65% | 0.30% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 1.20% | 0.14% | 1.06% |
Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Balanced Portfolio - Service Class 21, | 0.39% | 0.10% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.74% | 0.00% | 0.74% |
Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Contrafund® Portfolio – Service Class 21 | 0.54% | 0.07% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.86% | 0.00% | 0.86% |
Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Growth Opportunities Portfolio – Service Class 21 | 0.54% | 0.10% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.89% | 0.00% | 0.89% |
Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Health Care Portfolio – Service Class 21 | 0.54% | 0.12% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.91% | 0.00% | 0.91% |
1 | The Portfolios will be available on or about August 17, 2020. |
BlackRock Advantage Large Cap Core V.I. Fund – Class III As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets estimated to be attributable to investments in other equity and fixed-income mutual funds and exchange-traded funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates that have a contractual management fee, through April 30, 2021. In addition, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive its management fees by the amount of investment advisory fees the Fund pays to BlackRock indirectly through its investment in money market funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates, through April 30, 2021. The contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of BlackRock Variable Series Funds, Inc. (the “Company”) or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) to 1.25% (for Class I Shares), 1.40% (for Class II Shares) and 1.50% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. BlackRock has also contractually agreed to reimburse fees in order to limit certain operational and recordkeeping fees to 0.05% (for Class I Shares), 0.07% (for Class II Shares) and 0.08% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. Each of these contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of the Company or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. |
BlackRock Advantage Large Cap Value V.I. Fund - Class III As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets estimated to be attributable to investments in other equity and fixed-income mutual funds and exchange-traded funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates that have a contractual management fee, through April 30, 2021. In addition, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive its management fees by the amount of investment advisory fees the Fund pays to BlackRock indirectly through its investment in money market funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates, through April 30, 2021. The contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of BlackRock Variable Series Funds, Inc. (the “Company”) or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) to 0.60% (for Class I Shares), 0.75% (for Class II Shares) and 0.85% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. BlackRock has also contractually agreed to reimburse fees in order to limit certain operational and recordkeeping fees to 0% (for Class I Shares), 0.05% (for Class II Shares) and 0.11% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. Each of these contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of the Company or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. |
BlackRock Basic Value V.I. Fund - Class III The Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses do not correlate to the ratios of expenses to average net assets given in the Fund’s most recent annual report, which do not include Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses. As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets estimated to be attributable to investments in other equity and fixed-income mutual funds and exchange-traded funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates that have a contractual management fee, through April 30, 2021. In addition, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive its management fees by the amount of investment advisory fees the Fund pays to BlackRock indirectly through its investment in money market funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates, through April 30, 2021. The contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of BlackRock Variable Series Funds, Inc. (the “Company”) or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) to 1.25% (for Class I Shares), 1.40% (for Class II Shares) and 1.50% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. BlackRock has also contractually agreed to reimburse fees in order to limit certain operational and recordkeeping fees to 0.06% (for Class I Shares), 0.08% (for Class II Shares) and 0.09% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. Each of these contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of the Company or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. |
BlackRock Capital Appreciation V.I. Fund - Class III As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets estimated to be attributable to investments in other equity and fixed-income mutual funds and exchange-traded funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates that have a contractual management fee, through April 30, 2021. In addition, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive its management fees by the amount of investment advisory fees the Fund pays to BlackRock indirectly through its investment in money market funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates, through April 30, 2021. The contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of BlackRock Variable Series Funds, Inc. (the “Company”) or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) to 1.25% (for Class I Shares) and 1.50% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. BlackRock has also contractually agreed to reimburse fees in order to limit certain operational and recordkeeping fees to 0.07% (for Class I Shares) and 0.08% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. Each of these contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of the Company or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. |
BlackRock Equity Dividend V.I. Fund - Class III The Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses do not correlate to the ratios of expenses to average net assets given in the Fund’s most recent annual report, which do not include Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses. As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets estimated to be attributable to investments in other equity and fixed-income mutual funds and exchange-traded funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates that have a contractual management fee, through April 30, 2021. In addition, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive its management fees by the amount of investment advisory fees the Fund pays to BlackRock indirectly through its investment in money market funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates, through April 30, 2021. The contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of BlackRock Variable Series Funds, Inc. (the “Company”) or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) to 1.25% (for Class I Shares) and 1.50% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. BlackRock has also contractually agreed to reimburse fees in order to limit certain operational and recordkeeping fees to 0% (for Class I Shares) and 0% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. Each of these contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of the Company or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. |
BlackRock Large Cap Focus Growth V.I. Fund - Class III As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets estimated to be attributable to investments in other equity and fixed-income mutual funds and exchange-traded funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates that have a contractual management fee, through April 30, 2021. In addition, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive its management fees by the amount of investment advisory fees the Fund pays to BlackRock indirectly through its investment in money market funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates, through April 30, 2021. The contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of BlackRock Variable Series Funds, Inc. (the “Company”) or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. As described in the “Management of the Funds” section of the Fund’s prospectus, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) to 1.25% (for Class I Shares) and 1.50% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. BlackRock has also contractually agreed to reimburse fees in order to limit certain operational and recordkeeping fees to 0.07% (for Class I Shares) and 0.07% (for Class III Shares) of average daily net assets through April 30, 2021. Each of these contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested directors of the Company or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. |
| • | In the “INVESTMENT OPTIONS - VARIABLE INVESTMENT OPTIONS” section of the Prospectus, information pertaining to the Portfolios is added as follows: |
American Funds Insurance Series® Asset Allocation Fund - Class 4 | BlackRock Advantage Large Cap Value V.I. Fund - Class III |
American Funds Insurance Series® Blue Chip Income and Growth Fund - Class 4 | BlackRock Basic Value V.I. Fund - Class III |
American Funds Insurance Series® Bond Fund - Class 4 | BlackRock Capital Appreciation V.I. Fund - Class III |
American Funds Insurance Series® Global Growth and Income Fund - Class 4 | BlackRock Equity Dividend V.I. Fund - Class III |
American Funds Insurance Series® Global Small Capitalization Fund - Class 4 | BlackRock Large Cap Focus Growth V.I. Fund - Class III |
American Funds Insurance Series® Growth Fund - Class 4 | Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Balanced Portfolio - Service Class 2 |
American Funds Insurance Series® Growth-Income Fund - Class 4 | Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products ContrafundSM Portfolio |
American Funds Insurance Series® International Fund - Class 4 | Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Growth Opportunities Portfolio - Service Class 2 |
American Funds Insurance Series® New World Fund - Class 4 | Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Health Care Portfolio - Service Class 2 |
| BlackRock Advantage Large Cap Core V.I. Fund - Class III | |
| • | In the “INVESTMENT OPTIONS - VARIABLE INVESTMENT OPTIONS” section of the Prospectus, information pertaining to the Portfolios is added as follows: |
PORTFOLIO NAME | INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE(S) | PORTFOLIO ADVISER/SUBADVISER(S) |
American Funds Insurance Series® Asset Allocation Fund - Class 4 | Seeks to provide high total return (including income and capital gains) consistent with preservation of capital over the long term. | Capital Research and Management Company℠ |
American Funds Insurance Series® Blue Chip Income and Growth Fund - Class 4 | Seeks to produce income exceeding the average yield on U.S. stocks generally and to provide an opportunity for growth of principal consistent with sound common stock investing. | Capital Research and Management Company℠ |
American Funds Insurance Series® Bond Fund - Class 4 | Seeks to provide as high a level of current income as is consistent with the preservation of capital. | Capital Research and Management Company℠ |
American Funds Insurance Series® Global Growth and Income Fund - Class 4 | Seeks to provide long-term growth of capital while providing current income. | Capital Research and Management Company℠ |
American Funds Insurance Series® Global Small Capitalization Fund - Class 4 | Seeks to provide long-term growth of capital. | Capital Research and Management Company℠ |
American Funds Insurance Series® Growth Fund - Class 4 | Seeks to provide growth of capital. | Capital Research and Management Company℠ |
American Funds Insurance Series® Growth-Income Fund - Class 4 | Seeks to achieve long-term growth of capital and income. | Capital Research and Management Company℠ |
American Funds Insurance Series® International Fund - Class 4 | Seeks to provide long-term growth of capital. | Capital Research and Management Company℠ |
PORTFOLIO NAME | INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE(S) | PORTFOLIO ADVISER/SUBADVISER(S) |
American Funds Insurance Series® New World Fund - Class 4 | Seeks long-term capital appreciation. | Capital Research and Management Company℠ |
| BlackRock Advantage Large Cap Core V.I. Fund - Class III | Seeks high total investment return. | BlackRock Advisors, LLC |
| BlackRock Advantage Large Cap Value V.I. Fund - Class III | Seeks long-term capital appreciation. | BlackRock Advisors, LLC |
| BlackRock Basic Value V.I. Fund - Class III | Seeks capital appreciation and, secondarily, income. | BlackRock Advisors, LLC |
| BlackRock Capital Appreciation V.I. Fund - Class III | Seeks long-term growth of capital. | BlackRock Advisors, LLC |
| BlackRock Equity Dividend V.I. Fund - Class III | Seeks long-term total return and current income. | BlackRock Advisors, LLC |
| BlackRock Large Cap Focus Growth V.I. Fund - Class III | Seeks long-term capital growth. | BlackRock Advisors, LLC |
Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Balanced Portfolio – Service Class 2 | Seeks income and capital growth consistent with reasonable risk. | Fidelity Management & Research Company (FMR) |
Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Contrafund℠ Portfolio – Service Class 2 | Seeks long-term capital appreciation. | Fidelity Management & Research Company (FMR) |
Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Growth Opportunities Portfolio – Service Class 2 | Seeks to provide capital growth. | Fidelity Management & Research Company (FMR) |
Fidelity® Variable Insurance Products Health Care Portfolio – Service Class 2 | Seeks capital appreciation. | Fidelity Management & Research Company (FMR) |
