3. DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS (continued)
derivatives, if any, is held in segregated accounts with the Fund’s custodian/counterparty broker and can be in the form of cash and/or securities. Unrestricted cash may be invested according to the Fund’s investment objectives. To the extent that the amounts due to the Fund from its counterparties are not subject to collateralization or are not fully collateralized, the Fund bears the risk of loss from counterparty non-performance.
At March 31, 2020 the Fund received $7,685,002 in United Kingdom Treasury Bonds and U.S. Treasury Bills, Bonds and Notes as collateral for derivatives.
The Fund entered into OTC forward exchange contracts primarily to manage and/or gain exposure to certain foreign currencies. A forward exchange contract is an agreement between the Fund and a counterparty to buy or sell a foreign currency for a specific exchange rate on a future date.
The Fund entered into interest rate swap contracts primarily to manage interest rate risk. An interest rate swap is an agreement between the Fund and a counterparty to exchange cash flows based on the difference between two interest rates, applied to a notional amount. These agreements may be privately negotiated in the over-the-counter market (OTC interest rate swaps) or may be executed on a registered exchange (centrally cleared interest rate swaps). For centrally cleared interest rate swaps, required initial margins are pledged by the Fund, and the daily change in fair value is accounted for as a variation margin payable or receivable. Over the term of the contract, contractually required payments to be paid and to be received are accrued daily and recorded as unrealized depreciation and appreciation until the payments are made, at which time they are realized. The Fund did not hold any interest rate swap contracts at period end.
The Fund purchased or wrote OTC option contracts primarily to manage and/or gain exposure to foreign exchange rate risk. An option is a contract entitling the holder to purchase or sell a specific amount of shares or units of an asset or notional amount of a swap (swaption), at a specified price. When an option is purchased or written, an amount equal to the premium paid or received is recorded as an asset or liability, respectively. Upon exercise of an option, the acquisition cost or sales proceeds of the underlying investment is adjusted by any premium received or paid. Upon expiration of an option, any premium received or paid is recorded as a realized gain or loss. Upon closing an option other than through expiration or exercise, the difference between the premium received or paid and the cost to close the position is recorded as a realized gain or loss.
The Fund invests in value recovery instruments (VRI) primarily to gain exposure to economic growth. Periodic payments from VRI are dependent on established benchmarks for underlying variables. VRI has a notional amount, which is used to calculate amounts of payments to holders. Payments are recorded upon receipt as realized gains. The risks of investing in VRI include growth risk, liquidity, and the potential loss of investment.
4. CONCENTRATION OF RISK
Investments in issuers domiciled or with significant operations in developing or emerging market countries may be subject to higher risks than investments in developed countries. These risks include fluctuating currency values, underdeveloped legal or business systems, and changing local and regional economic, political and social conditions, which may result in greater market volatility. In addition, certain foreign securities may not be as liquid as U.S. securities. Currencies of developing or emerging market countries may be subject to significantly greater risks than currencies of developed countries, including the potential inability to repatriate those currencies into U.S. dollars.
At March 31, 2020, the Fund had 1.4% of its net assets denominated in Argentine Pesos, which has restricted currency repatriation since September 2019, and had restructured certain issues of its debt. Political and economic conditions in Argentina could continue to affect the value of the Fund’s holdings.
