As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 31, 2019

 

Registration File No. 333-220480

Registration File No. 811-23289

 

 

 

U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM N-2

 

☒     REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

☒     Post-Effective Amendment No. 4

☒     REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940

☒     Amendment No. 6

 

ANGEL OAK STRATEGIC CREDIT FUND
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

 

One Buckhead Plaza

3060 Peachtree Road NW, Suite 500

Atlanta, Georgia 30305
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

 

Registrant's Telephone Number, including Area Code: (404) 953-4900

 

Dory S. Black, Esq., President

c/o Angel Oak Capital Advisors, LLC

One Buckhead Plaza

3060 Peachtree Rd. NW, Suite 500

Atlanta, GA 30305
(Name and Address of Agent for Service)

 

Copies of information to:

 

Douglas P. Dick

Stephen T. Cohen

Dechert LLP

1900 K Street NW

Washington, DC 20006

 

Approximate Date of Proposed Public Offering:
From time to time after the effective date of this Registration Statement.

 

 

If any securities being registered on this form will be offered on a delayed or continuous basis in reliance on Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, other than securities offered in connection with a dividend reinvestment plan, check the following box.  ý

 

                       It is proposed that this filing will become effective (check appropriate box):

 

                       ☐   when declared effective pursuant to section 8(c).

 

                       ☐   immediately upon filing pursuant to paragraph (b) of Rule 486.

 

                       ý   on May 31, 2019, pursuant to paragraph (b) of Rule 486.

 

                       ☐   60 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a) of Rule 486.

 

                       ☐   on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a) of Rule 486.

 

 

 

(1) The Securities and Exchange Commission has granted exemptive relief permitting the Registrant to offer multiple classes of shares of beneficial interest.  This registration statement relates to the maximum aggregate offering of $250,000,000 of shares of beneficial interest of the Registrant.  The offering currently includes Class A shares and Institutional Class shares.  In the future, other classes of shares of beneficial interest of the registrant may be registered and included in the offering.

(2) Estimated pursuant to Rule 457(a) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, solely for the purposes of calculating the registration fee.

(3) All of which has been previously paid.

 

 

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PROSPECTUS

May 31, 2019

ANGEL OAK STRATEGIC CREDIT FUND

CLASS A SHARES (ASCAX) AND INSTITUTIONAL CLASS SHARES (ASCIX) OF BENEFICIAL INTEREST

The Angel Oak Strategic Credit Fund (the “Fund”) is a Delaware statutory trust that is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), as a diversified, closed-end management investment company.

Investment Objective . The Fund seeks total return.

Interval Fund. The Fund operates as an “interval fund” (defined below) pursuant to which it, subject to applicable law, will conduct quarterly repurchase offers for between 5% and 25% of the Fund’s outstanding common shares of beneficial interest (“Shares”) at net asset value (“NAV”). 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 investment of the Fund. In connection with each repurchase offer, it is possible that the Fund may offer to repurchase only the minimum amount of 5% of its outstanding Shares. It is also possible that a repurchase offer may be oversubscribed, with the result that shareholders may only be able to have a portion of their Shares repurchased. The Fund does not currently intend to list its Shares for trading on any national securities exchange. The Shares are, therefore, not readily marketable. Even though the Fund will make quarterly repurchase offers to repurchase a portion of the Shares to try to provide liquidity to shareholders, investors should consider the Shares to be illiquid.

Principal Investment Strategies . In pursuing its investment objective, the Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in credit-related instruments.  These credit-related instruments may consist of a broad range of instruments across liquid and illiquid asset classes, including: corporate debt, with a focus on subordinated debt and senior debt of banks and diversified financials companies; agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (“RMBS”); commercial mortgage-backed securities (“CMBS”); collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”); asset-backed securities (“ABS”); residential loans and mortgages; and municipal securities.  The Fund may invest without limit in below investment grade fixed income instruments, which are commonly referred to as “junk” or “high-yield” instruments and are regarded as speculative with respect to the issuer’s ability to pay interest and repay principal.  The fixed income instruments in which the Fund invests may include those of issuers from the United States and other countries.  The Fund may also invest in preferred securities.  Under normal circumstances, the Fund expects to concentrate its investments ( i.e. , invest 25% or more of its total assets (measured at the time of investment)) in RMBS (agency and non-agency) and CMBS.  For purposes of the Fund’s 80% investment policy, the Fund may also invest in derivative instruments that are linked to, or provide investment exposure to, credit instruments.

Unlisted Closed-End Fund. An investment in the Fund is subject to, among others, the following risks:

Investing in Shares involves a high degree of risk. See “Types of Investments and Related Risks” beginning on page 21 of this Prospectus.

Investment Adviser. The investment adviser to the Fund is Angel Oak Capital Advisors, LLC, an investment adviser registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the “Advisers Act”). The Adviser oversees the management of the Fund’s activities and is responsible for making investment decisions for the Fund’s portfolio.

Securities Offered. The Fund is offering on a continuous basis up to 10,000,000 Shares. For Class A shares, the maximum sales charge is 2.25% of the amount invested. Institutional Class shares are not subject to sales charges. The minimum initial investment for Class A shares of the Fund is $1,000, and the minimum subsequent investment for Class A shares of the Fund is $100. The minimum initial investment for Institutional Class Shares is $50,000, while subsequent investments may be made in any amount. The Fund reserves the right to waive the investment minimum. Shares are being offered through Quasar Distributors, LLC (the “Distributor”) at an offering price equal to the Fund’s then current NAV per Share plus any applicable sales charge.

This Prospectus concisely provides the information that a prospective investor should know about the Fund before investing. Investors are advised to read this Prospectus carefully and to retain it for future reference. Additional information about the Fund, including a statement of additional information, dated May 31, 2019 (the “Statement of Additional Information”), has been filed with the SEC and is incorporated by reference in its entirety into this Prospectus. The Statement of Additional Information and, when available, the Fund’s annual and semi-annual reports and other information filed with the SEC, can be obtained upon request and without charge by writing to the Fund at c/o U.S. Bank Global Fund Services at P.O. Box 701, Milwaukee, WI 53201-0701, by calling (855) 751-4324 or by visiting the Fund’s website at www.angeloakcapital.com . The table of contents of the Statement of Additional Information appears on page 77 of this Prospectus. Investors may request the Statement of Additional Information, annual and semi-annual reports, when available, and other information about the Fund or make Shareholder inquiries by calling (855) 751-4324 or by visiting www.angeloakcapital.com . In addition, the contact information provided above may be used to request additional information about the Fund and to make Shareholder inquiries. The Statement of Additional Information, other material incorporated by reference into this Prospectus and other information about the Fund is also available on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov . The address of the SEC’s website is provided solely for the information of prospective investors and is not intended to be an active link.

Shares are not deposits or obligations of, and are not guaranteed or endorsed by, any bank or other insured depository institution, and Shares are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or any other government agency.

Neither the SEC nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved these securities or determined if this Prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

Beginning on January 1, 2021, 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 or from your financial intermediary, such as a broker-dealer or bank. Instead, the reports will be made available on a website, 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 contacting your financial intermediary (such as broker-dealer or bank) or, if you are a direct investor, by calling (855) 751-4324.

You may elect to receive all future reports in paper free of charge. If you invest through a financial intermediary, you can contact your financial intermediary to request that you continue to receive paper copies of your shareholder reports. If you invest directly with the Fund, you can call (855) 751-4324 to let the Fund know you wish to continue receiving paper copies of your shareholder reports. Your election to receive reports in paper will apply to all funds held in your account if you invest through a financial intermediary or all funds held with the fund complex if you invest directly with the Fund.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

SUMMARY OF TERMS	1
SUMMARY OF FEES AND EXPENSES	12
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS	14
THE FUND	15
THE ADVISER	15
USE OF PROCEEDS	15
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE AND STRATEGIES	15
TYPES OF INVESTMENTS AND RELATED RISKS	20
MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND	40
FUND EXPENSES	41
MANAGEMENT FEE	43
DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE	44
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST	45
SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM	47
DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STRUCTURE	49
TAX ASPECTS	52
CHOOSING A SHARE CLASS	61
PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION	62
SALES CHARGES – CLASS A SHARES	63
HOW TO BUY SHARES	68
DISTRIBUTIONS	70
FISCAL YEAR; REPORTS	72
INQUIRIES	73
TABLE OF CONTENTS OF THE STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION	74
APPENDIX A—WAIVERS AND DISCOUNTS AVAILABLE FROM INTERMEDIARIES	A-1

Example:

The following example demonstrates the projected dollar amount of total expenses that would be incurred over various periods with respect to a hypothetical investment in the Fund. In calculating the following expense amounts, the Fund has assumed its direct and indirect annual operating expenses would remain at the percentage levels set forth in the table above.

An investor would pay the following expenses on a $1,000 investment, assuming a 5.0% annual return:

The example and the expenses in the tables above should not be considered a representation of the Fund’s future expenses, and actual expenses may be greater or less than those shown . While the example assumes a 5.0% annual return, as required by the SEC, the Fund’s performance will vary and may result in a return greater or less than 5.0%. For a more complete description of the various fees and expenses borne directly and indirectly by the Fund, see “Fund Expenses” and “Management Fee.”

 

THE FUND

The Fund is a diversified, closed-end management investment company that is registered under the 1940 Act. The Fund is structured as an “interval fund” and continuously offers its Shares. The Fund was organized as a Delaware statutory trust on August 18, 2017 and has limited operating history. The principal office of the Fund is located at One Buckhead Plaza, 3060 Peachtree Rd. NW, Suite 500, Atlanta, Georgia 30305, and its telephone number is 404-953-4900.

THE ADVISER

Angel Oak, One Buckhead Plaza, 3060 Peachtree Rd. NW, Suite 500, Atlanta, Georgia 30305, an investment adviser registered with the SEC under the Advisers Act, serves as the investment adviser to the Fund. The Adviser has overall supervisory management responsibility for the general management and investment of the Fund’s portfolio. The Adviser was formed in 2009 and provides advisory services to high net worth individuals and institutions. As of March 31, 2019, the Adviser had assets under management of approximately $9.1 billion. The Adviser is controlled by the Managing Partners, Michael A. Fierman, Sreeniwas V. Prabhu, and Brad A. Friedlander.

USE OF PROCEEDS

The proceeds from the sale of Shares are invested by the Fund to pursue its investment program and strategies. The Fund currently intends to fully invest substantially all of the net proceeds of its continuous offering in accordance with its investment objectives and policies within three months after receipt thereof. However, certain investments may be delayed up to an additional three months if suitable investments are unavailable at the time or for other reasons, such as market volatility and lack of liquidity in the markets of suitable investments.

There can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to sell all the Shares it is offering. If the Fund sells only a portion of the Shares it is offering, the Fund may be unable to achieve its investment objective.

INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE AND STRATEGIES

Investment Objective

The Fund seeks total return.

Investment Opportunities and Strategies

In pursuing its investment objective, the Fund invests, under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in credit-related instruments.  These credit-related instruments may consist of a broad range of instruments across liquid and illiquid asset classes, including: corporate debt, with a focus on subordinated debt and senior debt of banks and diversified financials companies; agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (“RMBS”); commercial mortgage-backed securities (“CMBS”); collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”); asset-backed securities (“ABS”); residential loans and mortgages; and municipal securities.  The Fund may invest without limit in below investment grade fixed income instruments, which are commonly referred to as “junk” or “high-yield” instruments and are regarded as speculative with respect to the issuer’s ability to pay interest and repay principal.  The fixed income instruments in which the Fund invests may include those of issuers from the United States and other countries.  The Fund may also invest in preferred securities.  Under normal circumstances, the Fund expects to concentrate its investments (i.e., invest 25% or more of its total assets (measured at the time of investment)) in RMBS (agency and non-agency) and CMBS.  For purposes of the Fund’s 80% investment policy, the Fund may also invest in derivative instruments that are linked to, or provide investment exposure to, credit instruments. Such derivative instruments will be valued on a mark-to-market basis. The Fund’s 80% investment policy is not fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval. The Fund will provide shareholders with 60 days’ notice of any change in its 80% investment policy.

The Fund does not have a policy to target a particular average maturity or duration and may invest in fixed income securities of any maturity or duration. Maturity refers to the length of time until a bond’s principal is repaid with interest. Duration is a measure used to determine the sensitivity of a security’s price to changes in interest rates that incorporates a security’s yield, coupon, final maturity and call features, among other characteristics. For example, if a portfolio has a duration of three years, and interest rates increase (fall) by 1%, the portfolio would decline (increase) in value by approximately 3%. However, duration may not accurately reflect the true interest rate sensitivity of instruments held by the Fund and, therefore the Fund’s exposure to changes in interest rates.

In managing the Fund’s portfolio, the Adviser uses a relative value analysis, and sector allocation is conducted across all fixed income asset classes.  The Fund’s asset allocation is not static and is expected to change over time.  The Fund’s portfolio managers lead a team of sector specialists responsible for researching opportunities within their sector and making recommendations to the Fund’s portfolio managers. This top-down approach incorporates analysis of interest rates, global economic expectations, and fixed income valuation.

Portfolio Composition

The Fund’s portfolio will consist primarily of:

Subordinated Debt, Senior Debt and Preferred Securities of Banks and Diversified Financials Companies.   Subordinated debt securities, sometimes also called “junior debt,” are debt securities for which the issuer’s obligations to make principal and interest payment are secondary to the issuer’s payment obligations to more senior debt securities. Such investments will consist primarily of debt issued by community banks or savings institutions (or their holding companies), which are subordinated to senior debt issued by the banks and deposits held by the bank, but are senior to trust preferred obligations, preferred stock, and common stock issued by the bank. To a lesser extent, the Fund may also invest in similar securities of other U.S. and non-U.S. financial services companies of any size. These companies may include, but are not limited to, banks, thrifts, finance companies, brokerage and advisory firms, insurance companies and financial holding companies. Many subordinated debt securities may be unrated and some may be considered high-yield securities or “junk bonds.” See “High Yield Securities.” Preferred securities may pay fixed or adjustable rates of return and are subject to many of the risks associated with debt securities, as well as issuer-specific and market risks applicable generally to equity securities.  A company’s preferred securities generally pay dividends only after the company makes required payments to holders of its bonds and other debt.

Subordinated debt securities and Structured Products collateralized by such securities typically have floating or variable interest rates based on the London Inter-bank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”), or may have a fixed coupon for a period of years and then convert to a floating rate, and are subject to the risks associated with securities tied to LIBOR, including the risks associated with the future replacement of LIBOR with an alternative reference rate. See “Risks—LIBOR Risk.”

Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities .   RMBS are fixed income instruments that may be secured by interests in a single residential mortgage loan or a pool of mortgage loans secured by residential property.  The Fund may purchase, without limitation, RMBS that may be senior, subordinate, interest-only, principal-only, investment-grade, non-investment grade, unrated or in default.  The Fund acquires RMBS from private originators as well as from other mortgage loan investors, including savings and loan associations, mortgage bankers, commercial banks, finance companies and investment banks.  The credit quality of any RMBS issue depends primarily on the credit quality of the underlying mortgage loans.  The investment characteristics of RMBS differ from traditional debt securities.  Among the major differences are that interest and principal payments are made more frequently, usually monthly, and that principal may be prepaid at any time because the underlying residential mortgage loans or other assets generally may be prepaid at any time.

Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities .   CMBS are fixed income instruments that are secured by mortgage loans on commercial real property.  CMBS typically take the form of multi-class debt or pass-through certificates secured by mortgage loans on commercial properties. They generally are structured to provide protection to investors in senior tranches against potential losses on the underlying mortgage loans. Such protection generally is provided by causing holders of subordinated classes of securities (“Subordinated CMBS”) to take the first loss in the event of defaults on the underlying commercial mortgage loans. Other protection, which may benefit all of the classes or particular classes, may include issuer guarantees, reserve funds, additional Subordinated CMBS, cross-collateralization and over-collateralization. The Fund may invest in CMBS of any credit quality, including, without limitation, Subordinated CMBS, CMBS that are rated below investment grade or are unrated and CMBS that are in default.

High Yield Securities . The Fund may invest in below investment grade bonds of corporate issuers. These “high-yield” securities (also known as “junk bonds”) will generally be rated BB or lower by S&P or will be of equivalent quality rating from another Nationally Recognized Statistical Ratings Organization, or if unrated, considered by the Adviser to be of comparable quality. There is no minimum credit quality for securities in which the Fund may invest.  The Fund will not acquire defaulted bonds of corporate issuers but may hold such securities in the event that a corporate issuer defaults.

CLOs . The Fund may invest in CLOs, which are debt instruments typically backed by a pool of loans. The risks of an investment in a CLO depend largely on the type of the collateral securities and the class of the CLO in which the Fund invests. Some CLOs have credit ratings, but are typically issued in various classes with various priorities. Normally, CLOs are privately offered and sold (that is, they are not registered under the securities laws) and may be characterized by the Fund as illiquid securities; however, an active dealer market may exist for CLOs that qualify for Rule 144A transactions. In addition to the normal interest rate, default and other risks of fixed income securities, CLOs carry additional risks, including the possibility that distributions from collateral securities will not be adequate to make interest or other payments, the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default, the Fund will, at times, invest in CLOs that are subordinate to other classes, values may be volatile, and disputes with the issuer may produce unexpected investment results. The most subordinate tranche of a CLO has the highest risk of default and losses to the Fund.

Derivatives .   Derivatives, which are instruments that have a value based on another instrument, exchange rate or index, may be used as substitutes for securities in which the Fund can invest. The Fund uses derivatives to gain or adjust exposure to markets, sectors, securities and currencies and to manage exposure to risks relating to creditworthiness, interest rate spreads, volatility and changes in yield curves. In certain market environments, the Fund may use interest rate swaps and futures contracts to help protect its portfolio from interest rate risk. The Fund may also utilize foreign currency transactions, including currency options and forward currency contracts, to hedge non-U.S. Dollar investments or to establish or adjust exposure to particular foreign securities, markets or currencies.

Leverage .   The Fund may use leverage to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act.  The Fund is permitted to obtain leverage using any form or combination of financial leverage instruments, including through funds borrowed from banks or other financial institutions ( i.e. , a credit facility), margin facilities, the issuance of preferred shares or notes and leverage generated by reverse repurchase agreements, dollar rolls or similar transactions in an aggregate amount up to 33 1/3% of the Fund’s total assets, including any assets purchased with borrowed money, immediately after giving effect to the leverage. The Fund may use leverage opportunistically and may use different types, combinations or amounts of leverage over time, based on the Adviser’s views concerning market conditions and investment opportunities.  The Fund’s strategies relating to its use of leverage may not be successful, and the Fund’s use of leverage will cause the Fund’s NAV to be more volatile than it would otherwise be.  There can be no guarantee that the Fund will leverage its assets or, to the extent the Fund does utilize leverage, what percentage of its assets such leverage will represent.

International Securities. The Fund may invest in the debt securities of non-U.S. issuers, including direct investments in companies whose securities are principally traded outside the United States on foreign exchanges or foreign over-the-counter markets.  The Fund is not limited in the amount of assets it may invest in such international securities.

Residential Loans and Mortgages.  The Fund may acquire residential loans and mortgages (including through participations, assignments and whole loans) from third-party mortgage originators.  The Fund may purchase residential loans and mortgages from a variety of geographical locations, such loans and mortgages may be of any credit quality, including, without limitation, instruments that are rated below investment grade or are unrated and instruments that are in default.

Municipal Securities.   Municipal securities are types of debt obligations, which may have a variety of issuers, including governmental entities or other qualifying issuers. Issuers may be states, territories and possessions of the United States and the District of Columbia and their political subdivisions, agencies and instrumentalities. Municipal securities include, among other instruments, general obligation bonds, revenue bonds, municipal leases, certificates of participation, private activity bonds, and moral obligation bonds, as well as short-term, tax-exempt obligations such as municipal notes and variable rate demand obligations. The Fund may purchase municipal securities of any credit quality, including, without limitation, municipal securities that are rated below investment grade or are unrated and municipal securities that are in default.

Subsidiary.   The Fund may implement its strategy by making investments directly or through one or more wholly-owned and controlled subsidiaries formed by the Fund and organized in the United States (each, a “Subsidiary”). A Subsidiary may invest in residential and commercial real estate whole loans, participations in such loans or instruments representing the right to receive interest payments and principal due on such loans. The Subsidiary may invest in residential and commercial real estate loans of any credit rating or no credit rating, including without limit in loans that are rated below investment grade. The principal risks of investments in the Subsidiary are the same as those relating to residential loans and mortgages. See “Residential Loans and Mortgages Risk.” The allocation of the Fund’s investments, if any, in a Subsidiary will vary over time.

The Investment Process

Angel Oak’s investment strategies employ a top-down approach focused on identifying valuation dislocations within the structured fixed income markets and a bottom-up selection process for fixed income instruments. The Adviser will invest opportunistically at various levels of the capital structure of its investments based on its relative value analysis.

The Adviser analyzes a variety of factors when selecting investments for the Fund, such as collateral quality, credit support, structure and market conditions, all of which are tailored to the unique characteristics of each asset class. The Adviser will seek to hold a portfolio with a range of position sizes, geography, ratings, duration, structure and collateral values. The Adviser will also seek to invest in securities that have relatively low volatility. In constructing the Fund’s portfolio, t he Adviser seeks to limit risk to principal by targeting assets that it considers undervalued.

Portfolio Construction

The Adviser does not manage the Fund’s asset allocation to track the Fund’s benchmark, but positions the portfolio from a total return perspective.  The Adviser has the capability to analyze numerous fixed income assets classes, including both traditional and non-traditional (ABS, CMBS, non-agency RMBS, CLOs, etc.). Generally, the relative value of these non-traditional asset classes will be primary drivers of security selection and sector allocation.  The Fund’s portfolio management process is continuous and ongoing, resulting in regular performance monitoring and relative-value trading. Forward-looking expectations are re-calibrated given market changes and security performance. The Fund’s portfolio is re-positioned as market conditions and global economic trends warrant. In monitoring, trading, and re-positioning the Fund’s portfolio, the Adviser’s primary focus is on credit and yield optimization.

Idea Generation

The Adviser’s portfolio managers utilize various data sources to generate investment ideas. Most of the “idea generation” and sourcing of potential alpha opportunities (both at the asset class and individual security level) is driven by internal research and analysis. In addition, portfolio managers and analysts regularly monitor market conditions, trade flows, and trade execution. Active market participation provides a strong understanding of current market trends, which leads to formation of immediate views on relative value within the structured fixed income markets, thus generating new investment ideas in real time.

Angel Oak’s investment committee meets frequently to discuss strategies in the context of current market events and their impact on the Fund, and existing approaches to each strategy are affirmed or altered based on these discussions.  The Adviser makes its asset allocation decisions based on its view of macroeconomic trends as well as by identifying opportunities in the capital markets it believes are providing the greatest relative value.  Investment opportunities are evaluated on a relative value basis while consideration is also given to liquidity. The portfolio management process involves four main disciplines that form a continuous process, consisting of: (i) strategy and target allocation; (ii) security selection; (iii) sourcing, execution and allocation; and (iv) surveillance and optimization.

Research

The Adviser uses a combination of proprietary fundamental and quantitative research to analyze opportunities across the fixed income spectrum.  This discipline is conducted from a bottom-up perspective. The research team’s risk modeling analysis provides a granular focus on seeking to mitigate credit risk and creating a diversified portfolio.

Scenario analysis is conducted to help portfolio managers understand how an individual security would perform under a range of economic and capital market conditions. Scenario analysis is completed by applying multiple interest rate, credit, and cash flow assumptions. Once the critical factors for individual security selection have been evaluated, a recommendation is made.  The Adviser also makes use of various third-party analytical systems and uses proprietary models to confirm or eliminate results of non-proprietary models. Portfolio managers and analysts merge the outputs of these analytical models with their own views on future market and economic conditions to generate more qualified pre-purchase assumptions.

TYPES OF INVESTMENTS AND RELATED RISKS

Investors should carefully consider the risk factors described below before deciding on whether to make an investment in the Fund.

Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund

The derivative instruments and techniques that the Fund may principally use include:

Certain risks may impact the value of investments in the group of industries related to banks and diversified financials more severely than those of investments outside these industries, including the risks associated with companies that operate with substantial financial leverage. Companies in the group of industries related to banks and diversified financials may also be adversely affected by increases in interest rates and loan losses, decreases in the availability of money or asset valuations, credit rating downgrades and adverse conditions in other related markets.

Insurance companies, in particular, may be subject to severe price competition and/or rate regulation, which may have an adverse impact on their profitability. Insurance companies are subject to extensive government regulation in some countries and can be significantly affected by changes in interest rates, general economic conditions, price and marketing competition, the imposition of premium rate caps, or other changes in government regulation or tax law. Different segments of the insurance industry can be significantly affected by mortality and morbidity rates, environmental clean-up costs and catastrophic events such as earthquakes, hurricanes and terrorist acts.

During the financial crisis that began in 2007, the deterioration of the credit markets impacted a broad range of mortgage, asset-backed, auction rate, sovereign debt and other markets, including U.S. and non-U.S. credit and interbank money markets, thereby affecting a wide range of financial institutions and markets. A number of large financial institutions failed during that time, merged with stronger institutions or had significant government infusions of capital. Instability in the financial markets caused certain financial companies to incur large losses. Some financial companies experienced declines in the valuations of their assets, took actions to raise capital (such as the issuance of debt or equity securities), or even ceased operations. Some financial companies borrowed significant amounts of capital from government sources and may face future government-imposed restrictions on their businesses or increased government intervention. Those actions caused the securities of many financial companies to decline in value.

The financial sector is also a target for cyber attacks and may experience technology malfunctions and disruptions. In recent years, cyber attacks and technology failures have become increasingly frequent and have caused significant losses.

Fixed-income instruments that are fixed-rate are generally more susceptible than floating rate instruments to price volatility related to changes in prevailing interest rates. The prices of floating rate fixed-income instruments tend to have less fluctuation in response to changes in interest rates, but will have some fluctuation, particularly when the next interest rate adjustment on such security is further away in time or adjustments are limited in amount over time. The Fund may invest in short-term securities that, when interest rates decline, affect the Fund’s yield as these securities mature or are sold and the Fund purchases new short-term securities with lower yields. Subordinated debt securities that receive payments of interest and principal after other more senior security holders are paid carry the risk that the issuer will not be able to meet its obligations and that the subordinated investments may lose value. An obligor’s willingness and ability to pay interest or to repay principal due in a timely manner may be affected by its cash flow.

A forward foreign currency contract is a negotiated agreement between two parties to exchange specified amounts of two or more currencies at a specified future time at a specified rate. The rate specified by the forward contract can be higher or lower than the spot rate between the currencies that are the subject of the contract. Currency futures are similar to currency forward contracts, except that they are traded on an exchange and standardized as to contract size and delivery date. Most currency futures call for payment or delivery in U.S. dollars. Unanticipated changes in currency prices may result in losses to the Fund and poorer overall performance for the Fund than if it had not entered into currency forward or futures contracts. The Fund may enter into forward or futures contracts under various circumstances, including for hedging purposes.

Lower grade instruments, though higher yielding, are characterized by higher risk. The retail secondary market for lower grade instruments, which are often thinly traded or subject to irregular trading, may be less liquid than that for higher rated instruments. Such instruments can be more difficult to sell and to value than higher rated instruments because there is generally less public information available about such securities. As a result, subjective judgment may play a greater role in valuing such instruments. Adverse conditions could make it difficult at times for the Fund to sell certain instruments or could result in lower prices than those used in calculating the Fund’s NAV. Because of the substantial risks associated with investments in lower grade instruments, investors could lose money on their investment in the Fund, both in the short-term and the long-term.

Illiquid and restricted securities may be difficult to dispose of at a fair price at the times when the Fund believes it is desirable to do so. The market price of illiquid and restricted securities generally is more volatile than that of more liquid securities, which may adversely affect the price that the Fund pays for or recovers upon the sale of such securities. Illiquid and restricted securities are also more difficult to value, especially in challenging markets. The Adviser’s judgment may play a greater role in the valuation process. Investment of the Fund’s assets in illiquid and restricted securities may restrict the Fund’s ability to take advantage of market opportunities. To dispose of an unregistered security, the Fund, where it has contractual rights to do so, may have to cause such security to be registered. A considerable period may elapse between the time the decision is made to sell the security and the time the security is registered, thereby enabling the Fund to sell it. Contractual restrictions on the resale of securities vary in length and scope and are generally the result of a negotiation between the issuer and acquiror of the securities. In either case, the Fund would bear market risks during that period. Liquidity risk may impact the Fund’s ability to meet shareholder repurchase requests and as a result, the Fund may be forced to sell securities at inopportune prices.

Certain fixed-income instruments are not readily marketable and may be subject to restrictions on resale. Fixed-income instruments may not be listed on any national securities exchange and no active trading market may exist for certain of the fixed-income instruments in which the Fund will invest. Where a secondary market exists, the market for some fixed-income instruments may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods. In addition, dealer inventories of certain securities are at historic lows in relation to market size, which indicates a potential for reduced liquidity as dealers may be less able to “make markets” for certain fixed-income securities.

Foreign banks and securities depositories at which the Fund holds its international securities and cash may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business and may be subject to only limited or no regulatory oversight. Additionally, many foreign governments do not supervise and regulate stock exchanges, brokers and the sale of securities to the same extent as does the United States and may not have laws to protect investors that are comparable to U.S. securities laws. Settlement and clearance procedures in certain foreign markets may result in delays in payment for or delivery of securities not typically associated with settlement and clearance of U.S. investments.

Less information may be publicly available with respect to foreign issuers than is available with respect to U.S. companies. Accounting standards in non-U.S. countries may differ from U.S. accounting standards. If the accounting standards in another country do not require as much detail as U.S. accounting standards, it may be more difficult to completely and accurately assess a company’s financial condition.

The volume of transactions on foreign stock exchanges is generally lower than the volume of transactions on U.S. exchanges. Therefore, the market for securities that trade on foreign stock exchanges may be less liquid and their prices may be more volatile than securities that trade on U.S. securities. In recent years, the European financial markets have experienced volatility and adverse trends due to concerns about economic downturns in, or rising government debt levels of, several European countries. These events may spread to other countries in Europe, including countries that do not use the Euro. These events may affect the value and liquidity of certain of the Fund’s investments.

In July 2017, the head of the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority announced the desire to phase out the use of LIBOR by the end of 2021. There is currently no definitive information regarding the future utilization of LIBOR or of any particular replacement rate. Abandonment of or modifications to LIBOR could have adverse impacts on newly issued financial instruments and existing financial instruments that reference LIBOR. The effect of a phase out of LIBOR on U.S. community bank subordinated debt and other instruments in which the Fund may invest is currently unclear. 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. To the extent that any replacement rate utilized for community bank subordinated debt securities or other securities differs from that utilized for a Structured Product that holds those securities, the Structured Product would experience an interest rate mismatch between its assets and liabilities. Structured Products generally contemplate a scenario where LIBOR is no longer available by requiring the Structured Product’s administrator to calculate a replacement rate primarily through dealer polling on the applicable measurement date. However, there is uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of the dealer polling processes, including the willingness of banks to provide such quotations. Recently, some Structured Products have included, or have been amended to include, language permitting the Structured Product’s investment manager to implement a market replacement rate upon the occurrence of certain material disruption events. However, not all Structured Products may adopt such provisions, nor can there be any assurance that Structured Products’ investment managers will undertake the suggested amendments when able. Abandonment of or modifications to 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.

To the extent that there is not an established liquid market for instruments in which the Fund invests, or there is a reduced number or capacity of traditional market makers with respect to certain instruments, trading in such instruments may be relatively inactive or irregular. In addition, during periods of reduced market liquidity or market turmoil, or in the absence of readily accessible market quotations for an investment in the Fund’s portfolio, the ability of the Fund to assign an accurate daily value to that investment may be limited and the Adviser, on behalf of the Fund, may be required to perform a fair valuation of the instrument. Fair value determinations are inherently subjective and reflect good faith judgments based on available information. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that the determination of an instrument’s fair value, conducted in accordance with the Fund’s valuation procedures, will in fact approximate the price at which the Fund could sell that instrument at the time of the fair valuation. The Fund relies on various sources of information to value investments and calculate net asset value. The Fund may obtain pricing information from third parties that are believed to be reliable. In certain cases, this information may be unavailable or this information may be inaccurate because of errors by the third parties, technological issues, absence of current  or reliable market data or otherwise, which could impact the Fund’s ability to accurately value its investments or calculate its NAV.

Investors who purchase shares of the Fund on, or whose repurchase requests are valued on, days when the Fund is holding instruments that have been fair valued may receive fewer or more shares or lower or higher repurchase proceeds than they would have received if the instruments had not been fair valued or if the Fund had employed an alternative valuation methodology. Such risks may be more pronounced in a rising interest rate environment, and, to the extent the Fund holds a significant percentage of fair valued or otherwise difficult to value securities, it may be particularly susceptible to the risks associated with valuation. For additional information about valuation determinations, see “Determination of Net Asset Value” below. Portions of the Fund’s portfolio that are fair valued or difficult to value vary from time to time. The Fund’s shareholder reports contain detailed information about the Fund’s holdings that are fair valued or difficult to value, including values of such holdings as of the dates of the reports.

In addition to the risks associated with other asset-backed securities as described above, mortgage-backed securities are subject to the general risks associated with investing in real estate securities; that is, they may lose value if the value of the underlying real estate to which a pool of mortgages relates declines. In addition, mortgage-backed securities comprised of subprime mortgages and investments in other asset-backed securities collateralized by subprime loans may be subject to a higher degree of credit risk and valuation risk. Additionally, such securities may be subject to a higher degree of liquidity risk, because the liquidity of such investments may vary dramatically over time.

Mortgage-backed securities may be issued by governments or their agencies and instrumentalities, such as, in the United States, Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They may also be issued by private issuers but represent an interest in or are collateralized by pass-through securities issued or guaranteed by a government or one of its agencies or instrumentalities. In addition, mortgage-backed securities may be issued by private issuers and be collateralized by securities without a government guarantee. Such securities usually have some form of private credit enhancement.

Pools created by private issuers generally offer a higher rate of interest than government and government-related pools because there are no direct or indirect government or agency guarantees of payments. Notwithstanding that such pools may be supported by various forms of private insurance or guarantees, there can be no assurance that the private insurers or guarantors will be able to meet their obligations under the insurance policies or guarantee arrangements. The Fund may invest in private mortgage pass-through securities without such insurance or guarantees. Any mortgage-backed securities that are issued by private issuers are likely to have some exposure to subprime loans as well as to the mortgage and credit markets generally. In addition, such securities are not subject to the underwriting requirements for the underlying mortgages that would generally apply to securities that have a government or government-sponsored entity guarantee, thereby increasing their credit risk. The risk of non-payment is greater for mortgage-related securities that are backed by mortgage pools that contain subprime loans, but a level of risk exists for all loans. Market factors adversely affecting mortgage loan repayments may include a general economic downturn, high unemployment, a general slowdown in the real estate market, a drop in the market prices of real estate, or an increase in interest rates resulting in higher mortgage payments by holders of adjustable rate mortgages.

Certain municipal securities may not be registered with the SEC or any state securities commission and will not be listed on any national securities exchange. The amount of public information available about the municipal securities to which the Fund is economically exposed is generally less than that for corporate bonds and certain other securities, and the investment performance of the Fund’s investments in municipal securities may therefore be dependent on the analytical abilities of the Adviser. The secondary market for municipal securities, particularly non-investment grade bonds, also tends to be less well-developed or liquid than many other securities markets, which may adversely affect the Fund’s ability to sell such securities at attractive prices.

In addition, certain state and municipal governments that issue securities may be under significant economic and financial stress and may not be able to satisfy their obligations. The ability of municipal issuers to make timely payments of interest and principal may be diminished during general economic downturns and as governmental cost burdens are reallocated among Federal, state and local governments. The taxing power of any governmental entity may be limited by provisions of state constitutions or laws and an entity’s credit generally will depend on many factors, including the entity’s tax base, the extent to which the entity relies on Federal or state aid, and other factors which are beyond the entity’s control.

In addition, issuers of municipal securities might seek protection under the bankruptcy laws. In the event of bankruptcy of such an issuer, holders of municipal bonds could experience delays in collecting principal and interest and such holders may not, in all circumstances, be able to collect all principal and interest to which they are entitled. To enforce its rights in the event of a default in the payment of interest or repayment of principal, or both, the Fund may take possession of and manage the assets securing the issuer’s obligations on such securities, which may increase the Fund’s operating expenses.

In addition, because the Fund’s non-fundamental policies (including its policy to invest under normal circumstances, at least 80% of its net assets, plus any borrowings for investment purposes, in credit-related instruments) may be changed by a vote of the Board without the approval of shareholders, in the event of such a change, you may hold an investment with a strategy you did not anticipate, with limited means by which to dispose of your investment in a timely manner.

The Fund may also experience difficulty disposing of loans, which do not trade in a liquid market and typically can only be sold to a limited universe of institutional investors.  The absence of a liquid market for these instruments could adversely impact their value and may inhibit the Fund’s ability to dispose of them at times when it would be desirable to do so, including in response to particular economic events, such as a deterioration in the creditworthiness of the borrower.  Because they do not trade in a liquid market residential loans may also be difficult for the Fund to value.

Investing in loans may subject the Fund to greater levels of credit risk, call risk, settlement risk and liquidity risk than other types of fixed income instruments.  Transactions involving loans may also involve greater costs than transactions involving more actively traded securities.  In addition, a number of factors, including restrictions on transfers, irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods may make it more difficult for the Fund to acquire, dispose of or accurately price such instruments compared with other types of investments.  As a result, the Fund may not be able to realize the full value for loans and there may be extended delays in the Fund’s receipt of proceeds from the sale of a loan, which could adversely impact the Fund’s performance.  Because transactions in many loans are subject to extended trade settlement periods, proceeds from the sale of a loan may not be immediately available to the Fund.  As a result, proceeds related to the sale of loans may not be available to make additional investments or to meet the Fund’s share repurchase obligations for a period after the sale of the loans, and, as a result, the Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions if necessary to raise cash to meet its obligations.

When acquiring residential loans, the Fund relies on third-party mortgage originators to originate mortgage loans that comply with applicable law. Mortgage loan originators and brokers are subject to strict and evolving consumer protection laws and other legal obligations with respect to the origination of residential mortgage loans. These laws may be highly subjective and open to interpretation and, as a result, a regulator or court may determine that that there has been a violation where an originator or servicer of mortgage loans reasonably believed that the law or requirement had been satisfied. Failure or alleged failure of originators or servicers to comply with these laws and regulations could subject the Fund, as an assignee or purchaser of these loans or securities backed by these loans, to, among other things, delays in foreclosure proceedings, increased litigation expenses, monetary penalties and defenses to foreclosure, including by recoupment or setoff of finance charges and fees collected, and in some cases could also result in rescission of the affected residential mortgage loans, which could adversely impact the Fund’s business and financial results. While some of these laws may not explicitly hold the Fund responsible for the legal violations of these third parties, federal and state agencies and private litigants have increasingly sought to impose such liability. Various regulators and plaintiffs’ lawyers have also sought to hold assignees of mortgage loans liable for the alleged violations of the originating lender under theories of express or implied assignee liability. Accordingly, the Fund may be subject to fines, penalties or civil liability based upon the conduct of the mortgage lenders that originated the mortgage loans the Fund holds.

Despite the Fund’s efforts to manage credit risk related to the residential mortgage loans the Fund acquires, there are many aspects of credit risk that the Fund cannot control. The Fund’s due diligence process may not be effective at preventing or limiting compliance violations or borrower delinquencies and defaults, and the loan servicing companies that service the mortgage loans may not comply with applicable servicing regulations or investor requirements. Prior to acquiring loans, the Fund will perform due diligence and the Fund will rely on resources and data available to it from the seller, which may be limited. The Fund’s due diligence efforts may not detect matters that could lead to losses. If the Fund’s due diligence processes are not adequate, and the Fund fails to detect certain loan defects or compliance issues related to origination, the Fund may incur losses. The Fund could also incur losses if a counterparty that sold the Fund a loan is unwilling or unable ( e.g. , due to its financial condition) to repurchase that loan or asset or pay damages to the Fund if the Fund determines subsequent to purchase that one or more of the representations or warranties made to the Fund in connection with the sale was inaccurate. There may be less readily available information about loans and their underlying borrowers than is the case for other types of investments and issuers.  In addition, because loans may not be considered “securities,” investors in loans, such as the Fund, may not be entitled to rely on the anti-fraud protections of the federal securities laws, although they may be entitled to certain contractual remedies.

The mortgage loans that the Fund purchases, and in which the Fund directly and indirectly invests through RMBS, CMBS or other investments, may be concentrated in a specific state or states. Weak economic conditions in these locations or any other location (which may or may not affect real property values), may affect the ability of borrowers to repay their mortgage loans on time. Properties in certain jurisdictions may be more susceptible than homes located in other parts of the country to certain types of uninsurable hazards, such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, wildfires and other natural disasters. Declines in the residential real estate market of a particular jurisdiction may reduce the values of properties located in that jurisdiction, which would result in an increase in the loan-to-value ratios. Any increase in the market value of properties located in a particular jurisdiction would reduce the loan-to-value ratios of the mortgage loans and could, therefore, make alternative sources of financing available to the borrowers at lower interest rates, which could result in an increased rate of prepayment of the mortgage loans.

Structured Products are typically privately offered and sold, and thus, are not registered under the securities laws. As a result, investments in certain Structured Products or other asset-backed securities may be characterized by the Fund as illiquid securities. The Fund may invest in any tranche of a Structured Product, including the subordinated/equity tranches. If applicable accounting pronouncements or SEC staff guidance require the Fund to consolidate the Structured Product’s financial statements with the Fund’s financial statements, any debt issued by the Structured Product would be generally treated as if it were issued by the Fund for purposes of the asset coverage ratio applicable to the Fund. If the assets of a Structured Product are not consolidated with the Fund’s assets and liabilities, then the leverage incurred by such Structured Product may or may not be treated as borrowings by the Fund for purposes applicable limitations on the Fund’s ability to issue debt.

In addition to the general risks associated with fixed-income securities discussed herein, Structured Products carry additional 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 quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the investments in Structured Products are subordinate to other classes or tranches thereof; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results.

The activities of the issuers of certain Structured Products will generally be directed by a collateral manager. In the Fund’s capacity as holder of interests in such a Structured Product, the Fund is generally not able to make decisions with respect to the management, disposition or other realization of any investment, or other decisions regarding the business and affairs, of the Structured Product. Consequently, the success of the securitizations in will depend, in part, on the financial and managerial expertise of the collateral manager. To the extent that an affiliate of the Adviser serves as the sponsor and/or collateral manager of a Structured Product in which the Fund invests, or the Adviser or its affiliates hold other interests in Structured Products in which the Fund invests, the Fund may be limited in its ability to participate in certain transactions with the Structured Product and may not be able to dispose of its interests in the Structured Product if no secondary market exists for the interests. Even if a secondary market exists, the Adviser or its affiliates at times may possess material non-public information that may restrict the Fund’s ability to dispose of its interests in the Structured Product. The Fund does not currently contemplate making investments in any specific investments sponsored by the Adviser or an affiliate; however, to the extent the Fund does, it will do so only as permitted under the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder.

To the extent the invests in the equity tranches of a Structured Product, such investments typically represent the first loss position, are unrated and are subject to greater risk. To the extent that any losses are incurred by the Structured Product in respect of any collateral, such losses will be borne first by the owners of the equity interests, which may include the Fund. Any equity interests that the Fund holds in a Structured Product will not be secured by the assets of the Structured Product or guaranteed by any party, and the Fund will rank behind all creditors of the Structured Product, including the holders of the secured notes issued by the Structured Product. Equity interests are typically subject to certain payment restrictions in the indenture governing the senior tranches. Accordingly, equity interests may not be paid in full, may be adversely impacted by defaults by a relatively small number of underlying assets held by the Structured Product and may be subject to up to 100% loss. Structured Products may be highly levered, and therefore equity interests may be subject to a higher risk of loss, including the potential for total loss. The market value of equity interests may be significantly affected by a variety of factors, including changes in interest rates, changes in the market value of the collateral held by the securitization, defaults and recoveries on that collateral and other risks associated with that collateral. The leveraged nature of equity interest is likely to magnify these impacts. Equity interests typically do not have a fixed coupon and payments on equity interests will be based on the income received from the underlying collateral and the payments made to the senior tranches, both of which may be based on floating rates. While the payments on equity interest will be variable, equity interests may not offer the same level of protection against changes in interest rates as other floating rate instruments. Equity interests are typically illiquid investments and subject to extensive transfer restrictions, and no party is under any obligation to make a market for equity interests. At times, there may be no market for equity interests, and the Fund may not be able to sell or otherwise transfer equity interests at their fair value, or at all, in the event that it determines to sell them.

In addition to the risks generally associated with fixed income instruments (e.g., interest rate risk, counterparty risk, credit risk, etc.), bank subordinated debt is also subject to risks inherent to banks. Because banks are highly regulated and operate in a highly competitive environment, it may be difficult for a bank to meet its debt obligations. Banks also may be affected by changes in legislation and regulations applicable to the financial markets. Bank subordinated debt is often issued by smaller community banks that may be overly concentrated in a specific geographic region, lack the capacity to comply with new regulatory requirements or lack adequate capital. Some preferred securities allow the issuer to convert its preferred stock into common stock, these preferred securities are often sensitive to declining common stock values. Preferred security values can be affected by changes in interest rates. Preferred securities may trade less frequently and in a more limited volume and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than many other securities. Although the Fund will invest in securities and other obligations of FDIC-insured depository institutions and their affiliates, neither those securities and obligations nor your investment in the Fund will be protected by FDIC insurance.

To the extent a bank in which the Fund invests were to be placed into a FDIC-administered receivership or conservatorship, the Fund would not be entitled to the same rights that it would have as a creditor in a typical bankruptcy proceeding, and creditors of failed banking organizations typically receive little or no recovery.  See “Risks—Financial Sector Risk—Capital Risk.” In addition to the risks generally associated with fixed income instruments ( e.g. , interest rate risk, credit risk, etc.), bank subordinated debt is also subject to risks inherent to banks. Because banks are highly regulated and operate in a highly competitive environment, it may be difficult for a bank to meet its debt obligations. Banks also may be affected by changes in legislation and regulations applicable to the financial markets. This is especially true in light of the large amount of regulatory developments in recent years. Bank subordinated debt is often issued by smaller community banks that may be overly concentrated in a specific geographic region, lack the capacity to comply with new regulatory requirements or lack adequate capital. Smaller banks may also have a lower capacity to withstand negative developments in the market in general. If any of these or other factors were to negatively affect a bank’s operations, the bank could fail to make payments on its debt obligations, which would hurt the Fund’s bank subordinated debt investments.

Preferred securities are subject to risks associated with both equity and debt instruments. Because many preferred securities allow the issuer to convert its preferred stock into common stock, preferred securities are often sensitive to declining common stock values. In addition, certain preferred securities contain provisions that allow an issuer to skip or defer distributions, which may be more likely when the issuer is less able to make dividend payments as a result of financial difficulties. Preferred securities can also be affected by changes in interest rates, especially if dividends are paid at a fixed rate, and may also include call features in favor of the issuer. In the event of redemptions by the issuer, the Fund may not be able to reinvest the proceeds at comparable or favorable rates of return. Preferred securities are generally subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in an issuer’s capital structure in terms of priority for corporate income and liquidation payments, and may trade less frequently and in a more limited volume and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than many other securities.

Although the Fund may invest in securities and other obligations of FDIC-insured depository institutions and their affiliates, neither those securities and obligations nor your investment in the Fund will be protected by FDIC insurance.

Subordinated debt, senior debt and preferred securities of banks and diversified companies are subject to the risks generally associated with the financial sector. See “Financial Sector Risk.”

Other Risks Relating to the Fund

In addition to risks generally associated with investments in mutual fund securities, ETFs and closed-end funds are subject to the following risks that do not apply to traditional mutual funds: (i) the market price of an ETF’s or closed-end fund’s shares may be above or below its NAV; (ii) an active trading market for an ETF’s and closed-end fund’s shares may not develop or be maintained; (iii) the ETF or closed-end fund may employ an investment strategy that utilizes high leverage ratios; (iv) trading of an ETF’s or closed-end fund’s shares may be halted if the listing exchange’s officials deem such action appropriate; and (v) underlying ETF or closed-end fund shares may be de-listed from the exchange or the activation of market-wide “circuit breakers” (which are tied to large decreases in stock prices) may temporarily stop stock trading.

Until the Fund replaces a security borrowed in connection with a short sale, it may be required to maintain a segregated account of cash or liquid assets with a broker or custodian to cover the Fund’s short position. Generally, securities held in a segregated account cannot be sold unless they are replaced with other liquid assets. The Fund’s ability to access the pledged collateral may also be impaired in the event the broker becomes bankrupt, insolvent or otherwise fails to comply with the terms of the contract. In such instances, the Fund may not be able to substitute or sell the pledged collateral and may experience significant delays in obtaining any recovery in a bankruptcy or other reorganization proceeding. Additionally, the Fund must maintain sufficient liquid assets (less any additional collateral pledged to the broker), marked-to-market daily, to cover the borrowed securities obligations. This may limit the Fund’s investment flexibility, as well as its ability to meet other current obligations.

In times of unusual or adverse market, economic, regulatory or political conditions, the Fund may not be able, fully or partially, to implement its short selling strategy. Periods of unusual or adverse market, economic, regulatory or political conditions generally may exist for as long as six months and, in some cases, much longer.

MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND

Trustees

Pursuant to the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust (“Declaration of Trust”) and Amended and Restated By-Laws (“By-Laws”), the Fund’s business and affairs are managed under the direction of the Board, which has overall responsibility for monitoring and overseeing the Fund’s management and operations. The Board consists of seven members, five of whom are considered Independent Trustees. The Trustees are subject to removal or replacement in accordance with Delaware law and the Declaration of Trust. The Trustees serving on the Board were elected by the organizational Shareholder of the Fund. The Statement of Additional Information provides additional information about the Trustees.

Angel Oak serves as the Fund’s investment adviser pursuant to the terms of the Investment Advisory Agreement and subject to the authority of, and any policies established by, the Board. Pursuant to the Investment Advisory Agreement, the Adviser manages the Fund’s investment portfolio, directs purchases and sales of portfolio securities and reports thereon to the Fund’s officers and Trustees regularly.

The Board, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, oversees and monitors the Fund’s investment performance. After an initial two-year term, the Board will review on an annual basis the Investment Advisory Agreement to determine, among other things, whether the fees payable thereunder are reasonable in light of the services provided.

Investment Personnel

Control Persons

A control person generally is a person who beneficially owns more than 25% of the voting securities of a company or has the power to exercise control over the management or policies of such company. As of May 1, 2019, Pershing LLC owned approximately 73.23% of the voting securities of the Fund. For so long as Pershing LLC has a greater than 25% interest in the Fund, it may be deemed to be a “control person” of the Fund for purposes of the 1940 Act.

Administrator and Transfer Agent

U.S. Bancorp Fund Services, LLC, doing business as U.S. Bank Global Fund Services, 615 East Michigan Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53202, acts as administrator, fund accountant and transfer agent to the Fund pursuant to respective agreements. Fund Services provides certain administrative services to the Fund, including, among other responsibilities, coordinating the negotiation of contracts and fees with, and the monitoring of performance and billing of, the Fund’s independent contractors and agents; preparation for signature by an officer of the Fund of all documents required to be filed for compliance by the Fund with applicable laws and regulations excluding those of the securities laws of various states; arranging for the computation of performance data, including NAV and yield; responding to shareholder inquiries; and arranging for the maintenance of books and records of the Fund, and providing, at its own expense, office facilities, equipment and personnel necessary to carry out its duties. In this capacity, Fund Services does not have any responsibility or authority for the management of the Fund, the determination of investment policy, or for any matter pertaining to the distribution of Fund Shares.

Pursuant to the Fund’s agreements with Fund Services, Fund Services receives fees from the Fund for services performed as administrator, transfer agent and fund accountant. Fund Services receives a fee based on the average daily net assets of the Fund, subject to an annual minimum amount.

Custodian

U.S. Bank National Association, which has its principal office at 1555 North Rivercenter Drive, Suite 302, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53212, serves as custodian for the Fund.

FUND EXPENSES

The Adviser bears all of its own costs incurred in providing investment advisory services to the Fund. As described below, however, the Fund bears all other expenses incurred in the business and operation of the Fund, including amounts that the Fund pays Angel Oak and Fund Services for certain services that Angel Oak and Fund Services provide or arrange to be provided to the Fund.

Expenses borne directly by the Fund include:

Voluntary Expense Limitation Arrangement

The Adviser has voluntarily agreed to waive its fees and/or reimburse certain expenses (exclusive of any taxes, interest on borrowings, dividends on securities sold short, brokerage commissions, acquired fund fees and expenses, expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization and extraordinary expenses) to limit the Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses after fee waiver/expense reimbursement to 0.75% of the Fund ’ s average daily net assets (the “ Expense Limit ” ) until May 31, 2020. The Expense Limit excludes certain expenses and consequently, the Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses after fee waiver/expense reimbursement may be higher than the Expense Limit. The Adviser may amend, extend or discontinue this waiver at any time without advance notice. The Adviser may not recoup from the Fund any waived amount or reimbursed expenses pursuant to this arrangement.

Organization and Offering Costs

Organizational costs include, among other things, the cost of organizing as a Delaware statutory trust, including the cost of legal services and other fees pertaining to the Fund’s organization. These costs are paid by the Adviser on behalf of the Fund.

The Fund’s initial offering costs included, among other things, legal, accounting, printing and other expenses pertaining to this offering. These costs were paid by the Adviser on behalf of the Fund.

MANAGEMENT FEE

Pursuant to the Investment Advisory Agreement, and in consideration of the advisory services provided by the Adviser to the Fund, the Adviser is entitled to a Management Fee. The Management Fee is calculated and payable monthly in arrears at the annual rate of 1.25% of the average daily value of the Fund’s net assets.

Approval of the Investment Advisory Agreement

A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s approval of the Investment Advisory Agreement is available in the Fund’s annual report on Form N-CSR for the period ending January 31, which is publicly filed with the SEC.

DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

Actual or apparent conflicts of interest may arise when a portfolio manager has day-to-day management responsibilities with respect to more than one fund or other account. More specifically, portfolio managers who manage multiple funds and/or other accounts may experience the following potential conflicts: The management of multiple accounts may result in a portfolio manager devoting unequal time and attention to the management of each account. Investment decisions for client accounts are also made consistent with a client’s individual investment objective and needs. Accordingly, there may be circumstances when purchases or sales of securities for one or more client accounts will have an adverse effect on other clients. The Adviser may seek to manage such competing interests by, among other things, having a portfolio manager focus on a particular investment discipline and/or   reviewing performance differences between similarly managed accounts on a periodic basis to ensure that any such differences are attributable by differences in investment guidelines and timing of cash flows. The Adviser also maintains a Code of Ethics to establish standards and procedures for the detection and prevention of activities by which persons having knowledge of the investments and investment intentions of the Fund may abuse their fiduciary duties to the Fund .

If a portfolio manager identifies a limited investment opportunity that may be suitable for more than one client, the 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 accounts. There has been significant growth in the number of firms organized to make investments similar to those which the Fund intends to make, which may result in increased competition to the Fund in obtaining suitable investments. Because the Adviser manages other funds and accounts with similar investments strategies as the Fund that seek to invest in these limited investment opportunities, the Adviser may have to allocate available investment opportunities among the Fund and other funds and accounts it manages. To deal with these situations, the Adviser has adopted Trade Aggregation and Allocation Policies and Procedures for allocating portfolio transactions across multiple accounts. In accordance with these procedures, at times, the Fund may receive a smaller portion of an investment opportunity than desired or certain investment opportunities may be allocated to other funds or accounts managed by the Adviser as part of the allocation procedures.

From time to time, the Fund and other funds or accounts managed by the Adviser may make investments at different levels of an issuer’s capital structure or otherwise in different classes of an issuer’s securities.  These investments could inherently give rise to conflicts of interest between or among the Fund and the other holders of various classes of securities .   The Adviser and its clients may pursue or enforce rights with respect to an issuer in which the Fund has invested, and those activities may have an adverse effect on the Fund. Prices, availability, liquidity and terms of the Fund’s investments may be negatively impacted by the activities of the Adviser and its clients, and Fund transactions may be impaired or effected at prices or terms that may be less favorable than would otherwise have been the case.

Through the various activities of the Adviser and its affiliates, the Adviser and/or its affiliates may acquire material non-public information or otherwise be restricted from trading in certain potential investments that the Fund otherwise might have purchased or sold.

With respect to securities transactions for clients, the Adviser determines which dealer to use to execute each order. However, the Adviser may direct securities transactions to a particular dealer for various reasons including receipt of research or participation interests in initial public offerings that may or may not benefit the Fund. To deal with these situations, the Adviser has adopted procedures to help ensure best execution of all client transactions.

Investment decisions for the Fund are made independently from those for any other account or investment company that is or may in the future become advised by the Adviser or its affiliates. Investment decisions are the product of many factors, including basic suitability for the particular client involved. Likewise, a particular security may be bought or sold for certain clients even though it could have been bought or sold for other clients at the same time. Likewise, a particular security may be bought for one or more clients when one or more clients are selling the security. In some instances, one client may sell a particular security to another client. In addition, two or more clients may simultaneously purchase or sell the same security, in which event, each day’s transactions in such security are, insofar as is possible, averaged as to price and allocated between such clients in a manner which, in the Adviser’s opinion, is in the best interest of the affected accounts and is equitable to each and in accordance with the amount being purchased or sold by each. There may be circumstances when purchases or sales of a portfolio security for one client could have an adverse effect on another client that has a position in that security. In addition, when purchases or sales of the same security for the Fund and other client accounts managed by the Adviser occurs contemporaneously, the purchase or sale orders may be aggregated to obtain any price advantages available to large denomination purchases or sales.

While the Fund generally may not purchase Structured Products (such as equity and junior debt tranches of asset‑backed securities and debt securitizations) sponsored by the Adviser or its affiliates directly from the issuer thereof, the Fund may, under certain circumstances, purchase Structured Products sponsored by the Adviser or its affiliates from third parties in secondary market transactions. The Fund does not currently contemplate making investments in any specific investments sponsored by the Adviser or an affiliate; however, to the extent the Fund does, it will do so only as permitted under the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder. To the extent that the Fund holds Structured Products sponsored by the Adviser or its affiliates, or holds Structured Products in which the Adviser or its affiliates also hold interests, certain conflicts of interest may arise. The Fund may be limited in its ability to participate in certain transactions with the Structured Product and may not be able to dispose of its interests in the Structured Product if no secondary market exists for the interests. Even if a secondary market exists, the Adviser or its affiliates at times may possess material non-public information that may restrict the Fund’s ability to dispose of its interests in the Structured Product.

SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM

The Fund does not currently intend to list the Shares on a securities exchange and does not expect a secondary market to develop in the foreseeable future. Accordingly, Shareholders should expect that they will be unable to sell their Shares for an indefinite time or at a desired price. No Shareholder will have the right to require the Fund to repurchase or redeem such Shareholder’s Shares or any portion thereof. Shareholders are not permitted to transfer their investment from the Fund to any other registered investment company. Because no public market exists for the Shares, and no such market is expected to develop in the foreseeable future, Shareholders will not be able to liquidate their investment, other than through the Fund’s share repurchase program, or, in limited circumstances, as a result of transfers of Shares to other investors.

The Fund is an “interval fund,” which is designed to provide some liquidity to Shareholders by making quarterly offers to repurchase between 5% and 25% of its outstanding Shares at NAV, pursuant to Rule 23c-3 under the 1940 Act, unless such offer is suspended or postponed in accordance with relevant regulatory requirements (as discussed below). In connection with any given repurchase offer, it is possible that the Fund may offer to repurchase only the minimum allowable amount of 5% of its outstanding Shares. Quarterly repurchases will occur in the months of March, June, September and December. The Fund’s offer to purchase Shares is a fundamental policy that may not be changed without the approval of the holders of a majority of the Fund’s outstanding voting securities (as defined in the 1940 Act). Written notifications of each quarterly repurchase offer (the “Repurchase Offer Notice”) will be sent to Shareholders at least 21 calendar days before the repurchase request deadline ( i.e. , the date by which Shareholders can tender their Shares in response to a repurchase offer) (the “Repurchase Request Deadline”), which is ordinarily on the third Friday of the month in which the repurchase occurs. The Fund expects to determine the NAV applicable to repurchases on the business day following the Repurchase Request Deadline. However, the NAV will be calculated no later than the 14th calendar day (or the next business day if the 14th calendar day is not a business day) after the Repurchase Request Deadline (the “Repurchase Pricing Date”), although the NAV is expected to be determined on the business day following the Repurchase Request Deadline. The Fund expects to distribute payment to Shareholders between one and three business days after the Repurchase Pricing Date and will distribute such payment no later than seven calendar days after such Date. The Fund’s Shares are not listed on any securities exchange, and the Fund anticipates that no secondary market will develop for its Shares. Accordingly, you may not be able to sell Shares when and/or in the amount that you desire. Thus, the Shares are appropriate only as a long-term investment. In addition, the Fund’s repurchase offers may subject the Fund and Shareholders to special risks. See “Types of Investments and Related Risks—Repurchase Offers Risks.”

DESCRIPTION OF CAPITAL STRUCTURE

Shares of Beneficial Interest

The Declaration of Trust authorizes the Fund’s issuance of an unlimited number of Shares of beneficial interest of each class. There is currently no market for Shares and the Fund does not expect that a market for Shares will develop in the foreseeable future. Pursuant to the Declaration of Trust and as permitted by Delaware law, Shareholders are entitled to the same limitation of personal liability extended to stockholders of private corporations organized for profit incorporated in the State of Delaware and therefore generally will not be personally liable for the Fund’s debts or obligations.

Share Classes

The Fund applied for and was granted exemptive relief from the SEC that permits the Fund to issue multiple classes of shares. The Fund currently offers two classes of shares, Class A and Institutional Class. The Fund may offer additional classes of shares in the future.

Shares

Under the terms of the Declaration of Trust, all Shares, when consideration for Shares is received by the Fund, will be fully paid and nonassessable. Distributions may be paid to Shareholders if, as and when authorized and declared by the Board. Except as otherwise provided by the Trustees, Shares will have no preemptive or other right to subscribe to any additional Shares or other securities issued by the Fund, and will be freely transferable, except where their transfer is restricted by law or contract. The Declaration of Trust provides that the Board shall have the power to repurchase or redeem Shares. In the event of the Fund’s dissolution, after the Fund pays or adequately provides for the payment of all claims and obligations of the Fund, and upon the receipt of such releases, indemnities and refunding agreements deemed necessary by the Board, each Share will be entitled to receive, according to its respective rights, a pro rata portion of the Fund’s assets available for distribution for the applicable class, subject to any preferential rights of holders of the Fund’s outstanding preferred Shares, if any. Each whole Share will be entitled to one vote as to any matter on which it is entitled to vote and each fractional Share will be entitled to a proportionate fractional vote. However, to the extent required by the 1940 Act or otherwise determined by the Board, classes of the Fund will vote separately from each other. Shareholders shall be entitled to vote on all matters on which a vote of Shareholders is required by the 1940 Act, the Declaration of Trust or a resolution of the Board. There will be no cumulative voting in the election of Trustees. Under the Declaration of Trust, the Fund is not required to hold annual meetings of Shareholders. The Fund only expects to hold Shareholder meetings to the extent required by the 1940 Act or pursuant to special meetings called by the Board or a majority of Shareholders.

Preferred Shares and Other Securities

The Declaration of Trust provides that the Board may, subject to the Fund’s investment policies and restrictions and the requirements of the 1940 Act, authorize and cause the Fund to issue securities of the Fund other than Shares (including preferred Shares, debt securities or other senior securities), by action of the Board without the approval of Shareholders. The Board may determine the terms, rights, preferences, privileges, limitations and restrictions of such securities as the Board sees fit.

Preferred Shares could be issued with rights and preferences that would adversely affect Shareholders. Preferred Shares could also be used as an anti-takeover device. Every issuance of preferred Shares will be required to comply with the requirements of the 1940 Act. The 1940 Act requires, among other things, that (i) immediately after issuance of preferred Shares and before any distribution is made with respect to the Shares and before any purchase of Shares is made, the aggregate involuntary liquidation preference of such preferred Shares together with the aggregate involuntary liquidation preference or aggregate value of all other senior securities must not exceed an amount equal to 50% of the Fund’s total assets after deducting the amount of such distribution or purchase price, as the case may be; and (ii) the holders of preferred Shares, if any are issued, must be entitled as a class to elect two Trustees at all times and to elect a majority of the Trustees if distributions on such preferred Shares are in arrears by two years or more. Certain matters under the 1940 Act require the separate vote of the holders of any issued and outstanding preferred Shares.

Limitation on Liability of Trustees and Officers; Indemnification and Advance of Expenses

Pursuant to the Declaration of Trust, Trustees and officers of the Fund will not be subject in such capacity to any personal liability to the Fund or Shareholders, unless the liability arises from bad faith, willful misfeasance, gross negligence or reckless disregard for the Trustee’s or officer’s duty.

Except as otherwise provided in the Declaration of Trust, the Fund will indemnify and hold harmless any current or former Trustee or officer of the Fund against any liabilities and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees relating to the defense of any claim, action, suit or proceeding with which such person is involved or threatened), while and with respect to acting in the capacity of a Trustee or officer of the Fund, except with respect to matters in which such person did not act in good faith in the reasonable belief that his or her action was in the best interest of the Fund. In accordance with the 1940 Act, the Fund will not indemnify any Trustee or officer for any liability to which such person would be subject by reason of his or her willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties of his or her position. The Fund will provide indemnification to Trustees and officers prior to a final determination regarding entitlement to indemnification as described in the Declaration of Trust.

The Fund has entered into the Investment Advisory Agreement with Angel Oak. The Investment Advisory Agreement provides that, in the absence of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard for its obligations and duties thereunder, the Adviser is not liable for any error of judgment or mistake of law or for any loss the Fund suffers.

Pursuant to the Declaration of Trust, the Fund will advance the expenses of defending any action for which indemnification is sought if the Fund receives an undertaking by the indemnitee which provides that the indemnitee will reimburse the Fund unless it is subsequently determined that the indemnitee is entitled to such indemnification.

Number of Trustees; Appointment of Trustees; Vacancies; Removal

The Declaration of Trust provides that the number of Trustees shall be no less than two and no more than 10, as determined in writing by a majority of the Trustees then in office. As set forth in the Declaration of Trust, a Trustee’s term of office shall continue until his or her death, resignation or removal. Subject to the provisions of the 1940 Act, individuals may be appointed by the Trustees at any time to fill vacancies on the Board by the appointment of such persons by a majority of the Trustees then in office. Each Trustee shall hold office until his or her successor shall have been appointed pursuant to the Declaration of Trust. To the extent that the 1940 Act requires that Trustees be elected by Shareholders, any such Trustees will be elected by a plurality of all Shares voted at a meeting of Shareholders at which a quorum is present.

The Declaration of Trust provides that any Trustee may be removed (provided that after the removal the aggregate number of Trustees is not less than the minimum required by the Declaration of Trust) (i) with or without cause, by at least two-thirds (66 2/3%) of the remaining Trustees; or (ii) with or without cause, at any meeting of Shareholders, by at least two-thirds (66 2/3%) of the outstanding shares of the Trust.

Action by Shareholders

The Declaration of Trust provides that Shareholder action can be taken only at a meeting of Shareholders or by unanimous written consent in lieu of a meeting. Subject to the 1940 Act, the Declaration of Trust or a resolution of the Board specifying a greater or lesser vote requirement, the affirmative vote of a majority of Shares present in person or represented by proxy at a meeting and entitled to vote on the subject matter shall be the act of the Shareholders with respect to any matter submitted to a vote of the Shareholders.

Amendment of Declaration of Trust and By-Laws

Subject to the provisions of the 1940 Act, pursuant to the Declaration of Trust, the Board may amend the Declaration of Trust without any vote of Shareholders. Pursuant to the Declaration of Trust and By-Laws, the Board has the exclusive power to amend or repeal the By-Laws or adopt new By-Laws at any time.

No Appraisal Rights

In certain extraordinary transactions, some jurisdictions provide the right to dissenting Shareholders to demand and receive the fair value of their Shares, subject to certain procedures and requirements set forth in such statute. Those rights are commonly referred to as appraisal rights. The Declaration of Trust provides that Shares shall not entitle Shareholders to appraisal rights.

Conflict with Applicable Laws and Regulations

The Declaration of Trust provides that if and to the extent that any provision of the Declaration of Trust conflicts with any provision of the 1940 Act, the provisions under the Code applicable to the Fund as a RIC or other applicable laws and regulations, the conflicting provision shall be deemed never to have constituted a part of the  Declaration of Trust; provided, however, that such determination shall not affect any of the remaining provisions of the Declaration of Trust or affect the validity of any action taken or omitted to be taken prior to such determination.

TAX ASPECTS

The following is a general summary of certain material U.S. federal income tax considerations applicable to the Fund and an investment in the Fund. The discussion below provides general tax information related to an investment in the Fund, but does not purport to be a complete description of the U.S. federal income tax consequences of an investment in the Fund and does not address any state, local, non-U.S. or other tax consequences. It is based on the Code and U.S. Treasury regulations thereunder and administrative pronouncements, all as of the date hereof, any of which is subject to change, possibly with retroactive effect. In addition, it does not describe all of the tax consequences that may be relevant in light of a Shareholder’s particular circumstances, including (but not limited to) alternative minimum tax consequences and tax consequences applicable to Shareholders subject to special tax rules, such as certain financial institutions; dealers or traders in securities who use a mark-to-market method of tax accounting; persons holding Shares as part of a hedging transaction, wash sale, conversion transaction or integrated transaction or persons entering into a constructive sale with respect to Shares; entities classified as partnerships or other pass-through entities for U.S. federal income tax purposes; insurance companies; U.S. Shareholders (as defined below) whose functional currency is not the U.S. dollar; or tax-exempt entities, including “individual retirement accounts” or “Roth IRAs.” As with any taxable investment, Shareholders may be subject to the federal alternative minimum tax on their income (including taxable income from the Fund), depending on their individual circumstances. Unless otherwise noted, the following discussion applies only to a Shareholder that holds Shares as a capital asset and is a U.S. Shareholder. A “U.S. Shareholder” generally is a beneficial owner of Shares who is for U.S. federal income tax purposes:

If a partnership (including an entity treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) holds Shares, the tax treatment of a partner in the partnership will generally depend upon the status of the partner and the activities of the partnership. A prospective Shareholder that is a partner in a partnership holding Shares should consult his, her or its tax advisors with respect to the purchase, ownership and disposition of Shares.

The discussion set forth herein does not constitute tax advice. Tax laws are complex and often change, and Shareholders should consult their tax advisors about the U.S. federal, state, local or non-U.S. tax consequences of an investment in the Fund.

Taxation of the Fund

The Fund intends to elect, to be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and intends to qualify annually, as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code. As a RIC, the Fund generally will not be subject to corporate-level U.S. federal income taxes on any ordinary income or capital gains that it distributes as dividends to Shareholders. To qualify as a RIC in any tax year, the Fund must, among other things, satisfy both a source of income test and asset diversification tests. The Fund will qualify as a RIC if (i) at least 90% of the Fund’s gross income for such tax year consists of dividends; interest; payments with respect to certain securities loans; gains from the sale or other disposition of shares, securities or foreign currencies; other income (including, but not limited to, gains from options, futures or forward contracts) derived with respect to its business of investing in such shares, securities or currencies; and net income derived from interests in “qualified publicly-traded partnerships” (such income, “Qualifying RIC Income”); and (ii) the Fund’s holdings are diversified so that, at the end of each quarter of such tax year, (a) at least 50% of the value of the Fund’s total assets is represented by cash and cash equivalents, securities of other RICs, U.S. government securities and other securities, with such other securities limited, in respect of any one issuer, 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 (b) not more than 25% of the value of the Fund’s total assets is invested (x) in securities (other than U.S. government securities or securities of other RICs) of any one issuer or of two or more issuers that the Fund controls and that are engaged in the same, similar or related trades or businesses or (y) in the securities of one or more “qualified publicly-traded partnerships.” The Fund’s share of income derived from a partnership other than a “qualified publicly-traded partnership” will be treated as Qualifying RIC Income only to the extent that such income would have constituted Qualifying RIC Income if derived directly by the Fund. A “qualified publicly-traded partnership” is generally defined as an entity that is treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes if (1) interests in such entity are traded on an established securities market or are readily tradable on a secondary market or the substantial equivalent thereof and (2) less than 90% of its gross income for the relevant tax year consists of Qualifying RIC Income. The Code provides that the Treasury Department may by regulation exclude from Qualifying RIC Income foreign currency gains that are not directly related to the RIC’s principal business of investing in shares or securities (or options and futures with respect to shares or securities). The Fund anticipates that, in general, its foreign currency gains will be directly related to its principal business of investing in shares and securities.

In addition, to maintain RIC tax treatment, the Fund must distribute on a timely basis with respect to each tax year dividends of an amount at least equal to 90% of the sum of its “investment company taxable income” and its net tax-exempt interest income, determined without regard to any deduction for dividends paid, to Shareholders (the “90% distribution requirement”). If the Fund qualifies as a RIC and satisfies the 90% distribution requirement, the Fund generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on its “investment company taxable income” and net capital gains (that is, the excess of net long-term capital gains over net short-term capital losses) that it distributes as dividends to Shareholders (including amounts that are reinvested pursuant to the DRP). In general, a RIC’s “investment company taxable income” for any tax year is its taxable income, determined without regard to net capital gains and with certain other adjustments. The Fund intends to distribute all or substantially all of its “investment company taxable income,” net tax-exempt interest income (if any) and net capital gains on an annual basis. Any taxable income, including any net capital gains that the Fund does not distribute in a timely manner, will be subject to U.S. federal income tax at regular corporate rates.

If the Fund retains any net capital gains for reinvestment, it may elect to treat such capital gains as having been distributed to Shareholders. If the Fund makes such an election, each Shareholder will be required to report its share of such undistributed net capital gains attributed to the Fund as long-term capital gain and will be entitled to claim its share of the U.S. federal income taxes paid by the Fund on such undistributed net capital gains as a credit against its own U.S. federal income tax liability, if any, and to claim a refund on a properly-filed U.S. federal income tax return to the extent that the credit exceeds such liability. In addition, each Shareholder will be entitled to increase the adjusted tax basis of its Shares by the difference between its share of such undistributed net capital gain and the related credit. There can be no assurance that the Fund will make this election if it retains all or a portion of its net capital gain for a tax year.

As a RIC, the Fund will be, subject to a nondeductible 4% federal excise tax on certain undistributed amounts for each calendar year (the “4% excise tax”). To avoid the 4% excise tax, the Fund must distribute in respect of each calendar year dividends of an amount at least equal to the sum of (1) 98% of its ordinary taxable income (taking into account certain deferrals and elections) for the calendar year, (2) 98.2% of its capital gain net income (adjusted for certain ordinary losses) generally for the one-year period ending on October 31 of the calendar year and (3) any ordinary income and capital gains for previous calendar years that were not distributed during those calendar years. For purposes of determining whether the Fund has met this distribution requirement, the Fund will be deemed to have distributed any income or gains previously subject to U.S. federal income tax. Furthermore, any distribution declared by the Fund in October, November or December of any calendar year, payable to Shareholders, of record on a specified date in such a month and actually paid during January of the following calendar year, will be treated for tax purposes as if it had been paid on December 31 of the calendar year in which the distribution was declared. The Fund generally intends to avoid the imposition of the 4% excise tax, but there can be no assurance in this regard.

If the Fund fails to qualify as a RIC or fails to satisfy the 90% distribution requirement in respect of any tax year, the Fund would be subject to U.S. federal income tax at regular corporate rates on its taxable income, including its net capital gains, even if such income were distributed, and all distributions out of earnings and profits would be taxed as ordinary dividend income. Such distributions generally would be eligible for the dividends-received deduction in the case of certain corporate Shareholders and may be eligible to be qualified dividend income in the case of certain non-corporate Shareholders. In addition, the Fund could be required to recognize unrealized gains, pay taxes and make distributions (any of which could be subject to interest charges) before re-qualifying for taxation as a RIC. If the Fund fails to satisfy either the income test or asset diversification test described above, in certain cases, however, the Fund may be able to avoid losing its status as a RIC by timely providing notice of such failure to the IRS, curing such failure and possibly paying an additional tax or penalty.

Some of the investments that the Fund is expected to make, such as investments in debt instruments having market discount and/or treated as issued with OID, may cause the Fund to recognize income or gain for U.S. federal income tax purposes prior to the receipt of any corresponding cash or other property. As a result, the Fund may have difficulty meeting the 90% distribution requirement necessary to maintain RIC tax treatment. Because this income will be included in the Fund’s investment company taxable income for the tax year it is accrued, the Fund may be required to make a distribution to Shareholders to meet the distribution requirements described above, even though the Fund will not have received any corresponding cash or property. The Fund may be required to borrow money, dispose of other securities or forgo new investment opportunities for this purpose.

There may be uncertainty as to the appropriate treatment of certain of the Fund’s investments for U.S. federal income tax purposes. In particular, the Fund expects to invest a portion of its net assets in below investment grade instruments. U.S. federal income tax rules with respect to such instruments are not entirely clear about issues such as whether and to what extent the Fund should recognize 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 general intention to distribute sufficient income to qualify, and maintain its qualification to be subject to tax as a RIC and to minimize the risk that it becomes subject to U.S. federal income or excise tax.

Income received by the Fund from sources outside the United States may be subject to withholding and other taxes imposed by such countries, thereby reducing income available to the Fund. Tax conventions between certain countries and the United States may reduce or eliminate such taxes. The Fund generally intends to conduct its investment activities to minimize the impact of foreign taxation, but there is no guarantee that the Fund will be successful in this regard. If more than 50% of the value of the Fund’s total assets at the close of its tax year consists of securities of foreign corporations, the Fund will be eligible to elect to “pass-through” to the Fund the foreign source amount of income deemed earned and the respective amount of foreign taxes paid by the Fund. If at least 50% of the value of the Fund’s total assets at the close of each quarter of its tax year is represented by interests in other RICs, the Fund may elect to “pass-through” to Shareholders the foreign source amount of income deemed earned and the respective amount of foreign taxes paid or deemed paid by the Fund. If the Fund so elects, each Shareholder would be required to include in gross income, even though not actually received, each Shareholder’s pro rata share of the foreign taxes paid or deemed paid by the Fund, but would be treated as having paid its pro rata share of such foreign taxes and would therefore be allowed to either deduct such amount in computing taxable income or use such amount (subject to various limitations) as a foreign tax credit against federal income tax (but not both).

The Fund may invest in shares of foreign companies that are classified under the Code as passive foreign investment companies (“PFICs”). In general, a foreign company is considered a PFIC if at least 50% of its assets constitute investment-type assets or 75% or more of its gross income is investment-type income. In general under the PFIC rules, an “excess distribution” received with respect to PFIC shares is treated as having been realized ratably over the period during which the Fund held the PFIC shares. The Fund generally will be subject to tax on the portion, if any, of the excess distribution that is allocated to the Fund’s holding period in prior tax years (and an interest factor will be added to the tax, as if the tax had actually been payable in such prior tax years) even though the Fund distributes the corresponding income to Shareholders. Excess distributions include any gain from the sale of PFIC shares as well as certain distributions from a PFIC. All excess distributions are taxable as ordinary income.

The Fund may be eligible to elect alternative tax treatment with respect to PFIC shares. Under one such election ( i.e. , a “QEF” election), the Fund generally would be required to include in its gross income its share of the earnings of a PFIC on a current basis, regardless of whether any distributions are received from the PFIC. If this election is made, the special rules, discussed above, relating to the taxation of excess distributions, would not apply. Alternatively, the Fund may be able to elect to mark its PFIC shares to market, resulting in any unrealized gains at the Fund’s tax year end being treated as though they were recognized and reported as ordinary income. Any mark-to-market losses and any loss from an actual disposition of the PFIC’s Shares would be deductible as ordinary losses to the extent of any net mark-to-market gains included in income in prior tax years with respect to shares in the same PFIC.

Because the application of the PFIC rules may affect, among other things, the character of gains, the amount of gain or loss and the timing of the recognition of income, gain or loss with respect to PFIC shares, as well as subject the Fund itself to tax on certain income from PFIC shares, the amount that must be distributed to Fund Shareholders, and which will be recognized by Fund Shareholders as ordinary income or long-term capital gain, may be increased or decreased substantially as compared to a fund that did not invest in PFIC shares. Note that distributions from a PFIC are not eligible for the reduced rate of tax on distributions of “qualified dividend income” as discussed below.

Some of the CLOs in which the Fund invests may be PFICs, which are generally subject to the tax consequences described above. Investment in certain equity interests of CLOs that are subject to treatment as PFICs for U.S. federal income tax purposes may cause the Fund to recognize income in a tax year in excess of the Fund’s distributions from such CLOs, PFICs and the Fund’s proceeds from sales or other dispositions of equity interests in other CLOs and other PFICs during that tax year. As a result, the Fund generally would be required to distribute such income to satisfy the distribution requirements applicable to RICs.  Furthermore, the IRS recently issued final regulations that generally treat the Fund’s income inclusion with respect to a PFIC with respect to which the Fund has made a qualified electing fund, or “QEF”, election, as qualifying income for purposes of determining the Fund’s ability to be subject to tax as a RIC if (A) there is a current distribution out of the earnings and profits of the PFIC that are attributable to such income inclusion or (B) such inclusion is derived with respect to the Fund’s business of investing in stock, securities, or currencies.

If the Fund holds more than 10% of the interests treated as equity for U.S. federal income tax purposes in a foreign corporation that is treated as a controlled foreign corporation (“CFC”), including equity tranche investments and certain debt tranche investments in a CLO treated as CFC, the Fund may be treated as receiving a deemed distribution (taxable as ordinary income) each tax year from such foreign corporation of an amount equal to the Fund’s pro rata share of the foreign corporation’s earnings for such tax year (including both ordinary earnings and capital gains), whether or not the corporation makes an actual distribution to the Fund during such tax year. This deemed distribution is required to be included in the income of certain U.S. shareholders of a CFC, such as the Fund, regardless of whether a U.S. shareholder has made a QEF election with respect to such CFC. The Fund is generally required to distribute such income in order to satisfy the distribution requirements applicable to RICs, even to the extent the Fund’s income from a CFC exceeds the distributions from the CFC and the Fund’s proceeds from the sales or other dispositions of CFC stock during that tax year. In general, a foreign corporation will be treated as a CFC for U.S. federal income tax purposes if more than 50% of the shares of the foreign corporation, measured by reference to combined voting power or value, is owned (directly, indirectly or by attribution) by U.S. Shareholders. A “U.S. Shareholder,” for this purpose, is any U.S. person that possesses (actually or constructively) 10% or more of the combined value or voting power of all classes of shares of a corporation.  Additionally, the IRS recently issued final regulations that generally treat the Fund’s income inclusion with respect to a CFC as qualifying income for purposes of determining the Fund’s ability to be subject to tax as a RIC either if (A) there is a distribution out of the earnings and profits of the CFC that are attributable to such income inclusion or (B) such inclusion is derived with respect to the Fund’s business of investing in stock, securities, or currencies.

The functional currency of the Fund, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, is the U.S. dollar. Gains or losses attributable to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates that occur between the time the Fund accrues interest income or other receivables or accrues expenses or other liabilities denominated in a foreign currency and the time the Fund actually collects such receivables or pays such liabilities generally are respectively characterized as ordinary income or ordinary loss for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Similarly, on the sale of other disposition of certain investments, including debt securities, certain forward contracts, as well as other derivative financial instruments, denominated in a foreign currency, gains or losses attributable to fluctuations in the value of foreign currency between the date of acquisition of the security or contract and the date of disposition also are generally treated as ordinary gain or loss. These gains and losses, referred to under the Code as “section 988” gains and losses, may increase or decrease the amount of the Fund’s investment company taxable income subject to distribution to Fund Shareholders as ordinary income. For example, fluctuations in exchange rates may increase the amount of income that the Fund must distribute to qualify for tax treatment as a RIC and to prevent application of an excise tax on undistributed income. Alternatively, fluctuations in exchange rates may decrease or eliminate income available for distribution. If section 988 losses exceed other investment company taxable income during a tax year, the Fund would not be able to distribute amounts considered dividends for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and any distributions during a tax year made by the Fund before such losses were recognized would be re-characterized as a return of capital to Fund Shareholders for U.S. federal income tax purposes, rather than as ordinary dividend income, and would reduce each Fund Shareholder’s tax basis in Fund Shares.

If the Fund utilizes leverage through the issuance of preferred Shares or borrowings, it will be prohibited from declaring a distribution or dividend if it would fail the applicable asset coverage test(s) under the 1940 Act after the payment of such distribution or dividend. In addition, certain covenants in credit facilities or indentures may impose greater restrictions on the Fund’s ability to declare and pay dividends on Fund Shares. Limits on the Fund’s ability to pay dividends on Fund Shares may prevent the Fund from meeting the distribution requirements described above and, as a result, may affect the Fund’s ability to be subject to tax as a RIC or subject the Fund to the 4% excise tax. The Fund endeavors to avoid restrictions on its ability to make distribution payments. If the Fund is precluded from making distributions on Fund Shares because of any applicable asset coverage requirements, the terms of preferred Shares (if any) may provide that any amounts so precluded from being distributed, but required to be distributed by the Fund to enable the Fund to satisfy the distribution requirements that would enable the Fund to be subject to tax as a RIC, will be paid to the holders of preferred Shares as a special distribution. This distribution can be expected to decrease the amount that holders of preferred Shares would be entitled to receive upon repurchase or liquidation of such preferred Shares.

Certain of the Fund’s investments are expected to be subject to special U.S. federal income tax provisions that may, among other things, (1) disallow, suspend or otherwise limit the allowance of certain losses or deductions, (2) convert lower-taxed long-term capital gains into higher-taxed short-term capital gains or ordinary income, (3) convert an ordinary loss or a deduction into a capital loss, the deductibility of which is more limited, (4) adversely affect when a purchase or sale of shares or securities is deemed to occur, (5) adversely alter the intended characterization of certain complex financial transactions, (6) cause the Fund to recognize income or gain without a corresponding receipt of cash, (7) treat dividends that would otherwise constitute qualified dividend income as non-qualified dividend income, (8) treat dividends that would otherwise be eligible for the corporate dividends received deduction as ineligible for such treatment and (9) produce income that will not constitute Qualifying RIC Income. The application of these rules could cause the Fund to be subject to U.S. federal income tax or the 4% excise tax and, under certain circumstances, could affect the Fund’s status as a RIC. The Fund monitors its investments and may make certain tax elections to mitigate the effect of these provisions.

The remainder of this discussion assumes that the Fund has qualified and maintain its qualification as a RIC and has satisfied the distribution requirements described above.

Taxation of U.S. Shareholders

Distributions

Distributions of the Fund’s ordinary income and net short-term capital gains will, except as described below with respect to distributions of “qualified dividend income,” generally be taxable to Shareholders as ordinary income to the extent such distributions are paid out of the Fund’s current or accumulated earnings and profits, as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Distributions (or deemed distributions, as described above), if any, of net capital gains will be taxable as long-term capital gains, regardless of the length of time a Shareholder has owned Shares. The ultimate tax characterization of the Fund’s distributions made in a tax year cannot be determined until after the end of the tax year. As a result, the Fund may make total distributions during a tax year in an amount that exceeds the current and accumulated earnings and profits of the Fund. A distribution of an amount in excess of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits will be treated by a Shareholder as a return of capital that will be applied against and reduce the Shareholder’s tax basis in its Shares. To the extent that the amount of any such distribution exceeds the Shareholder’s tax basis in its Shares, the excess will be treated as gain from a sale or exchange of Shares. Distributions will be treated in the manner described above regardless of whether such distributions are paid in cash or invested in additional Shares. Generally, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, a Shareholder receiving Shares under the DRP will be treated as having received a distribution equal to the fair market value of such Shares on the date the Shares are credited to the Shareholder’s account.

A return of capital to Shareholders is a return of a portion of their original investment in the Fund, thereby reducing the tax basis of their investment. As a result from such reduction in tax basis, Shareholders may be subject to tax in connection with the sale of Fund Shares, even if such Shares are sold at a loss relative to the Shareholder’s original investment.

It is expected that a substantial portion of the Fund’s income will consist of ordinary income. For example, interest and OID derived by the Fund characterized as ordinary income for U.S. federal income tax purposes. In addition, gain derived by the Fund from the disposition of debt instruments with “market discount” (generally, securities with a fixed maturity date of more than one year from the date of issuance acquired by the Fund at a price below the lesser of their stated redemption price at maturity or accreted value, in the case of securities with OID) will be characterized as ordinary income for U.S. federal income tax purposes to the extent of the market discount that has accrued, as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes, at the time of such disposition, unless the Fund makes an election to accrue market discount on a current basis. In addition, certain of the Fund’s investments will be subject to other special U.S. federal income tax provisions that may affect the character, increase the amount and/or accelerate the timing of distributions to Shareholders.

Distributions made by the Fund to a corporate Shareholder will qualify for the dividends-received deduction only to the extent that the distributions consist of qualifying dividends received by the Fund. In addition, any portion of the Fund’s dividends otherwise qualifying for the dividends-received deduction will be disallowed or reduced if the corporate Shareholder fails to satisfy certain requirements, including a holding period requirement, with respect to its Shares. Distributions of “qualified dividend income” to an individual or other non-corporate Shareholder will be treated as “qualified dividend income” to such Shareholder and generally will be taxed at long-term capital gain rates, provided the Shareholder satisfies the applicable holding period and other requirements. “Qualified dividend income” generally includes dividends from domestic corporations and dividends from foreign corporations that meet certain specified criteria. Given the Fund’s investment strategy, it is not expected that a significant portion of the distributions made by the Fund will be eligible for the dividends-received deduction or the reduced rates applicable to “qualified dividend income.”

If a person acquires Shares shortly before the record date of a distribution, the price of the Shares may include the value of the distribution, and the person will be subject to tax on the distribution even though economically it may represent a return of his, her or its investment in such Shares.

Distributions paid by the Fund generally will be treated as received by a Shareholder at the time the distribution is made. However, the Fund may, under certain circumstances, elect to treat a distribution that is paid during the following tax year as if it had been paid during the tax year in which the income or gains supporting the distribution was earned. If the Fund makes such an election, the Shareholder will still be treated as receiving the distribution in the tax year in which the distribution is received. In this instance, however, any distribution declared by the Fund in October, November or December of any calendar year, payable to Shareholders of record on a specified date in such a month and actually paid during January of the following calendar year, will be treated for tax purposes as if it had been received by Shareholders on December 31 of the calendar year in which the distribution was declared.

Shareholders will be notified annually, as promptly as practicable after the end of each calendar year, 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 NAV of those Shares.

Sale or Exchange of Shares

The repurchase or transfer of Shares may result in a taxable gain or loss to the tendering Shareholder. Different tax consequences may apply for tendering and non-tendering Shareholders in connection with a repurchase offer. For example, if a Shareholder does not tender all of his or her Shares, such repurchase may  be treated as a dividend (as opposed to a sale or exchange) for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and may result in deemed distributions to non-tendering Shareholders. On the other hand, Shareholders holding Shares as capital assets who tender all of their Shares (including Shares deemed owned by Shareholders under constructive ownership rules) will be treated as having sold their Shares and generally will recognize capital gain or loss. The amount of the gain or loss will be equal to the difference between the amount received for the Shares and the Shareholder’s adjusted tax basis in the relevant Shares. Such gain or loss generally will be a long-term capital gain or loss if the Shareholder has held such Shares as capital assets for more than one year. Otherwise, the gain or loss will be treated as short-term capital gain or loss.

Losses realized by a Shareholder on the sale or exchange of Shares held as capital assets for six months or less will be treated as long-term capital losses to the extent of any distribution of long-term capital gains received (or deemed received, as discussed above) with respect to such Shares. In addition, no loss will be allowed on a sale or other disposition of Shares if the Shareholder acquires (including through reinvestment of distributions or otherwise) Shares, or enters into a contract or option to acquire Shares, within 30 days before or after any disposition of such Shares at a loss. In such a case, the basis of the Shares acquired will be adjusted to reflect the disallowed loss. Under current law, net capital gains recognized by non-corporate Shareholders are generally subject to U.S. federal income tax at lower rates than the rates applicable to ordinary income.

In general, U.S. Shareholders currently are generally subject to a maximum federal income tax rate of either 15% or 20% (depending on whether the Shareholder’s income exceeds certain threshold amounts) on their net capital gain ( i.e. , the excess of realized net long-term capital gains over realized net short-term capital losses), including any long-term capital gain derived from an investment in Shares. Such rate is lower than the maximum rate on ordinary income currently payable by individuals. Corporate U.S. Shareholders currently are subject to U.S. federal income tax on net capital gain at the maximum 21% rate also applied to ordinary income. Non-corporate Shareholders with net capital losses for a tax year ( i.e. , capital losses in excess of capital gains) generally may deduct up to $3,000 of such losses against their ordinary income each tax year. Any net capital losses of a non-corporate Shareholder in excess of $3,000 generally may be carried forward and used in subsequent tax years as provided in the Code. Corporate Shareholders generally may not deduct any net capital losses for a tax year, but may carry back such losses for three tax years or carry forward such losses for five tax years.

An additional 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on certain net investment income (including ordinary dividends and capital gain distributions received from the Fund and net gains from repurchases or other taxable dispositions of Shares) of U.S. individuals, estates and trusts to the extent that such person’s “modified adjusted gross income” (in the case of an individual) or “adjusted gross income” (in the case of an estate or trust) exceeds certain threshold amounts. U.S. persons that are individuals, estates or trusts are urged to consult their tax advisors regarding the applicability of this tax to their income and gains in respect of their investment in the Fund.

The Fund (or if a U.S. Shareholder holds Shares through an intermediary, such intermediary) will send to each of its U.S. Shareholders, as promptly as possible after the end of each calendar year, a notice detailing, on a per Share and per distribution basis, the amounts includible in such U.S. Shareholder’s taxable income for such year as ordinary income and as long-term capital gain. In addition, the federal tax status of each year’s distributions generally will be reported to the IRS, including the amount of distributions, if any, eligible for the preferential maximum rate generally applicable to long-term capital gains. Distributions paid by the Fund generally will not be eligible for the corporate dividends received deduction or the preferential tax rate applicable to Qualifying Dividends because the Fund’s income generally will not consist of dividends. Distributions may also be subject to additional state, local and foreign taxes depending on a U.S. Shareholder’s particular situation.

Under U.S. Treasury regulations, if a Shareholder recognizes losses 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.

Reporting of adjusted cost basis information is required for covered securities, which generally include shares of a RIC acquired after January 1, 2012, to the IRS and to taxpayers. Shareholders should contact their financial intermediaries with respect to reporting of cost basis and available elections for their accounts.

Backup Withholding and Information Reporting

Information returns will be filed with the IRS in connection with payments on Shares and the proceeds from a sale or other disposition of Shares. A Shareholder will be subject to backup withholding on all such payments if it fails to provide the payor with its correct taxpayer identification number (generally, in the case of a U.S. resident Shareholder, on an IRS Form W-9) and to make required certifications or otherwise establish an exemption from backup withholding. Corporate Shareholders and certain other Shareholders generally are exempt from backup withholding. Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld as backup withholding may be credited against the applicable Shareholder’s U.S. federal income tax liability, provided the required information is timely furnished to the IRS.

Taxation of Non-U.S. Shareholders

Whether an investment in the Fund is appropriate for a non-U.S. Shareholder (as defined below) will depend upon that investor’s particular circumstances. An investment in the Fund by a non-U.S. Shareholder may have adverse tax consequences. Non-U.S. Shareholders should consult their tax advisors before investing in Shares.

The U.S. federal income taxation of a Shareholder that is a nonresident alien individual, a foreign trust or estate or a foreign corporation, as defined for U.S. federal income tax purposes (a “non-U.S. Shareholder”), depends on whether the income that the Shareholder derives from the Fund is “effectively connected” with a U.S. trade or business carried on by the Shareholder.

If the income that a non-U.S. Shareholder derives from the Fund is not “effectively connected” with a U.S. trade or business carried on by such non-U.S. Shareholder, distributions of “investment company taxable income” (including any deemed distributions with respect to a repurchase offer) will generally be subject to a U.S. federal withholding tax at a rate of 30% (or a lower rate provided under an applicable treaty). Alternatively, if the income that a non-U.S. Shareholder derives from the Fund is effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business of the non-U.S. Shareholder, the Fund will not be required to withhold U.S. federal tax if the non-U.S. Shareholder complies with applicable certification and disclosure requirements, although such income will be subject to U.S. federal income tax in the manner described below and at the rates applicable to U.S. residents. Backup withholding will not, however, be applied to payments that have been subject to this 30% withholding tax applicable to non-U.S. Shareholders.

A non-U.S. Shareholder whose income from the Fund is not “effectively connected” with a U.S. trade or business will generally be exempt from U.S. federal income tax on capital gains distributions, any amounts retained by the Fund that are designated as undistributed capital gains and any gains realized upon the sale or exchange of Shares. If, however, such a non-U.S. Shareholder is a nonresident alien individual and is physically present in the United States for 183 days or more during the tax year and meets certain other requirements such capital gains distributions, undistributed capital gains and gains from the sale or exchange of Shares will be subject to a 30% U.S. tax.

Furthermore, properly designated distributions by the Fund and received by non-U.S. Shareholders are generally exempt from U.S. federal withholding tax when they (a) are paid by the Fund in respect of the Fund’s “qualified net interest income” ( i.e., the Fund’s U.S. source interest income, subject to certain exceptions, reduced by expenses that are allocable to such income), or (b) are paid by the Fund in connection with the Fund’s “qualified short-term capital gains” (generally, the excess of the Fund’s net short-term capital gains over the Fund’s long-term capital losses for such tax year). However, depending on the circumstances, the Fund may designate all, some or none of the Fund’s potentially eligible distributions as derived from such qualified net interest income or from such qualified short-term capital gains, and a portion of such distributions ( e.g. , derived from interest from non-U.S. sources or any foreign currency gains) would be ineligible for this potential exemption from withholding. Moreover, in the case of Shares held through an intermediary, the intermediary may have withheld amounts even if the Fund reported all or a portion of a distribution as exempt from U.S. federal withholding tax. To qualify for this exemption from withholding, a non-U.S. Shareholder must comply with applicable certification requirements relating to its non-U.S. tax residency status (including, in general, furnishing an IRS Form W-8BEN, IRS Form W-8BEN-E, IRS Form W-8ECI, IRS Form W-8IMY or IRS Form W-8EXP, or an acceptable substitute or successor form). Thus, an investment in the Shares by a non-U.S. Shareholder may have adverse tax consequences as compared to a direct investment in the assets in which the Fund will invest.

If the income from the Fund is “effectively connected” with a U.S. trade or business carried on by a non-U.S. Shareholder, any distributions of “investment company taxable income,” capital gains distributions, amounts retained by the Fund that are designated as undistributed capital gains and any gains realized upon the sale or exchange of Shares will be subject to U.S. income tax, on a net income basis, in the same manner, and at the graduated rates applicable to, U.S. persons. If such a non-U.S. Shareholder is a corporation, it may also be subject to the U.S. branch profits tax.

A non-U.S. Shareholder other than a corporation may be subject to backup withholding on net capital gains distributions that are otherwise exempt from withholding tax or on distributions that would otherwise be taxable at a reduced treaty rate if such Shareholder does not certify its non-U.S. status under penalties of perjury or otherwise establish an exemption.

If the Fund distributes net capital gains in the form of deemed rather than actual distributions, a non-U.S. Shareholder will be entitled to a U.S. federal income tax credit or tax refund equal to the Shareholder’s allocable share of the tax the Fund pays on the capital gains deemed to have been distributed. To obtain the refund, the non-U.S. Shareholder must obtain a U.S. taxpayer identification number and file a federal income tax return even if the non-U.S. Shareholder would not otherwise be required to obtain a U.S. taxpayer identification number or file a federal income tax return.

Under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act provisions of the Code, withholding of U.S. tax (at a 30% rate) is required on payments of taxable dividends made to certain non-U.S. entities that fail to comply (or be deemed compliant) with extensive reporting and withholding requirements in the Code designed to inform the U.S. Department of the Treasury of U.S.-owned foreign investment accounts. Shareholders may be requested to provide additional information to the Fund to enable the Fund to determine whether withholding is required.

The tax consequences to a non-U.S. Shareholder entitled to claim the benefits of an applicable tax treaty may differ from those described herein. Non-U.S. Shareholders are advised to consult their tax advisors with respect to the particular tax consequences to them of an investment in the Fund, including the potential application of the U.S. estate tax.

Other Taxes

Shareholders may be subject to state, local and non-U.S. taxes applicable to their investment in the Fund. In those states or localities, entity-level tax treatment and the treatment of distributions made to Shareholders under those jurisdictions’ tax laws may differ from the treatment under the Code. Accordingly, an investment in Shares may have tax consequences for Shareholders that are different from those of a direct investment in the Fund’s portfolio investments. Shareholders are advised to consult their tax advisors with respect to the particular tax consequences to them of an investment in the Fund.

CHOOSING A SHARE CLASS

PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION

HOW TO BUY SHARES

DISTRIBUTIONS

The Fund intends to distribute to its shareholders as dividends all or substantially all of its net investment income and any realized net capital gains. Distributions from the Fund’s net investment income are accrued daily and typically paid monthly. The dividend rate may be modified by the Board from time to time.

To the extent that any portion of the Fund’s monthly distributions are considered a return of capital to Shareholders, such portion would not be considered dividends for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and would represent a return of the amounts that such Shareholders invested.  Although such return of capital distributions are not currently taxable to Shareholders, such distributions will have the effect of lowering a Shareholder’s tax basis in such Shares, and could result in a higher tax liability when the Shares are sold, even if they have not increased in value, or in fact, have lost value.  The Fund’s final distribution for each tax year is expected to include any remaining investment company taxable income and net tax-exempt income undistributed during the tax year, as well as any undistributed net capital gain realized during the tax year.  If the total distributions made in any tax year exceed investment company taxable income, net tax-exempt income and net capital gain, such excess distributed amount would be treated as ordinary dividend income to the extent of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits   and as return of capital thereafter.  This distribution policy, may, under certain circumstances, have adverse consequences to the Fund and its Shareholders because it may result in a return of capital resulting in less of a Shareholder’s assets being invested in the Fund and, over time, increase the Fund’s expense ratio.  The distribution policy also may cause the Fund to sell securities at a time it would not otherwise do so to manage the distribution of income and gain.  The initial distribution will be declared on date determined by the Board.

Each year, a statement on Form 1099-DIV identifying the sources of the distributions ( i.e. , paid from ordinary income, paid from net capital gains on the sale of securities, and/or a return of capital, which is a nontaxable distribution) will be furnished to Shareholders subject to IRS reporting. Fund ordinary distributions may exceed the Fund’s earnings, especially during the period before the Fund has substantially invested the proceeds from this offering. To the extent that the Fund pays distributions to Shareholders using proceeds it receives from Fund distributions, such distributions generally would constitute a return of investor capital and generally will lower an investor’s tax basis in his or her Shares. A return of capital generally is a return of an investor’s investment rather than a return of earnings or gains derived from the Fund’s investment activities. There can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to pay distributions at a specific rate or at all.

As discussed in the “Tax Aspects” section, to qualify for and maintain RIC tax treatment, the Fund is required to distribute on a timely basis with respect to each tax year dividends for U.S. federal income tax purposes of an amount at least equal to the sum of 90% of “investment company taxable income” and net tax-exempt interest income, determined without regard to any deduction for dividends paid, for such tax year. To avoid certain excise taxes imposed on RICs, the Fund is required to distribute in respect of each calendar year dividends of an amount at least equal to the sum of (1) 98% of ordinary income (taking into account certain deferrals and elections) for the calendar year, (2) 98.2% of capital gain net income (adjusted for certain ordinary losses) generally for the one-year period ending on October 31 of the calendar year and (3) any ordinary income and capital gain net income for previous calendar years that were not distributed during such calendar years and on which the Fund paid no U.S. federal income tax. The Fund can offer no assurance that it will achieve results that will permit the payment of any cash distributions. If the Fund issues senior securities, the Fund will be prohibited from making distributions if doing so causes it to fail to maintain the asset coverage ratios stipulated by the 1940 Act or if distributions are limited by the terms of any of the Fund’s borrowings. Any such limitations would adversely impact the Fund’s ability to make distributions to Shareholders.

Dividend Reinvestment Plan

FISCAL YEAR; REPORTS

For accounting purposes, the Fund’s fiscal year and tax year end is January 31. As soon as practicable after the end of each calendar year, a statement on Form 1099-DIV identifying the sources of the distributions paid by the Fund to Shareholders for tax purposes will be furnished to Shareholders subject to IRS reporting. In addition, the Fund will prepare and transmit to 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 1940 Act.

INQUIRIES

Inquiries concerning the Fund and the Shares should be directed to:

Angel Oak Strategic Credit Fund

c/o U.S. Bank Global Fund Services

P.O. Box 701

Milwaukee, WI 53201-0701

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ANGEL OAK STRATEGIC CREDIT FUND

 

STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

INVESTMENT POLICIES AND RISKS	1
INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS	18
REPURCHASE OF SHARES	28
PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS	29
PROXY VOTING POLICY AND PROXY VOTING RECORD	31
TAXATION	32
CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS OF SECURITIES	39
OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS	40
DISTRIBUTION PLAN	41
OTHER MATTERS	41
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS	41

INVESTMENT POLICIES AND RISKS

 

The Fund’s principal investment strategies and the risks associated with the same are described in the “Summary of Terms” and “Types of Investments and Related Risks” sections of the Prospectus. The following discussion provides additional information about those principal investment strategies and related risks, as well as information about investment strategies (and related risks) that the Fund may utilize, even though they are not considered to be “principal” investment strategies. Accordingly, an investment strategy (and related risk) that is described below, but which is not described in the Prospectus, should not be considered to be a principal strategy (or related risk) applicable to the Fund.

 

Borrowing . The Fund may borrow for investment purposes and for other purposes permitted by the 1940 Act. Under current law as interpreted by the SEC and its staff, the Fund may borrow money in the amount of up to one-third of the Fund’s total assets for any purpose and up to 5% of the Fund’s total assets from banks or other lenders for temporary purposes. The Fund’s total assets include the amounts being borrowed. Under the 1940 Act, the Fund is required to maintain continuous asset coverage of 300% with respect to permitted borrowings. Borrowing tends to amplify the effects on the Fund’s NAV of any change in the Fund’s portfolio securities. Borrowing subjects the Fund to costs in the form of interest, which the Fund may not recover through investment earnings. The Fund may also be required to maintain minimum average balances in connection with a borrowing or to pay a commitment or other fee to maintain a line of credit. These types of requirements would increase the cost of borrowing to the Fund over the stated interest rate.

 

Cash Investments . When Angel Oak Capital Advisors, LLC (“Angel Oak” or the “Adviser”) believes market, economic or political conditions are unfavorable for investors, the Adviser may invest up to 100% of the Fund’s net assets in cash, cash equivalents or other short-term investments. Unfavorable market or economic conditions may include excessive volatility or a prolonged general decline in the securities markets, or the U.S. economy. The Adviser also may invest in these types of securities or hold cash while looking for suitable investment opportunities or to maintain liquidity.

 

Collateralized Debt Obligations (“CDOs”) . The Fund may invest in CDOs. A CDO is a security backed by a pool of bonds, loans and other debt obligations. CDOs are not limited to investing in one type of debt and accordingly, a CDO may own corporate bonds, commercial loans, asset-backed securities, residential mortgage-backed securities, commercial mortgage-backed securities, and emerging market debt. The CDO’s securities are typically divided into several classes, or bond tranches, that have differing levels of investment grade or credit tolerances. Most CDO issues are structured in a way that enables the senior bond classes and mezzanine classes to receive investment-grade credit ratings. Credit risk is shifted to the most junior class of securities. If any defaults occur in the assets backing a CDO, the senior bond classes are first in line to receive principal and interest payments, followed by the mezzanine classes and finally by the lowest rated (or non-rated) class, which is known as the equity tranche. Similar in structure to a collateralized mortgage obligation (described above) CDOs are unique in that they represent different types of debt and credit risk.

 

Collateralized Loan Obligations (“CLOs”) . The Fund may invest in CLOs, which are debt instruments typically backed by a pool of loans. The risks of an investment in a CLO depend largely on the type of the collateral securities and the class of the CLO in which the Fund invests. Some CLOs have credit ratings, but are typically issued in various classes with various priorities. Normally, CLOs are privately offered and sold (that is, they are not registered under the securities laws) and may be characterized by the Fund as illiquid securities; however, an active dealer market may exist for CLOs that qualify for Rule 144A transactions. In addition to the normal interest rate, default and other risks of fixed income securities, CLOs carry additional risks, including the possibility that distributions from collateral securities will not be adequate to make interest or other payments, the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default, the Fund may invest in CLOs that are subordinate to other classes, values may be volatile, and disputes with the issuer may produce unexpected investment results.

 

Collateralized Mortgage Obligations (CMOs) . The Fund may invest in CMOs. A CMO is a hybrid between a mortgage-backed bond and a mortgage pass-through security. A CMO is a type of mortgage-backed security that creates separate classes with varying maturities and interest rates, called tranches. Similar to a bond, interest and prepaid principal is paid, in most cases, semiannually. CMOs may be collateralized by whole mortgage loans, but are more typically collateralized by portfolios of mortgage pass-through securities guaranteed by GNMA, FHLMC, or FNMA, and their income streams.

 

CMOs are structured into multiple classes, each bearing a different fixed or floating interest rate and stated maturity. Actual maturity and average life will depend upon the prepayment experience of the collateral. CMOs provide for a modified form of call protection through a de facto breakdown of the underlying pool of mortgages according to how quickly the loans are repaid. Monthly payment of principal received from the pool of underlying mortgages, including prepayments, is first returned to investors holding the shortest maturity class. Investors holding the longer maturity classes receive principal only after the first class has been retired. An investor is partially guarded against a sooner than desired return of principal because of the sequential payments.

 

In a typical CMO transaction, a corporation (issuer) issues multiple series ( e.g. , Series A, B, C and Z) of CMO bonds (Bonds). Proceeds of the Bond offering are used to purchase mortgages or mortgage pass-through certificates (Collateral). The Collateral is pledged to a third party trustee as security for the Bonds. Principal and interest payments from the Collateral are used to pay principal on the Bonds in the following order: Series A, B, C and Z. The Series A, B, and C Bonds all bear current interest. Interest on a Series Z Bond is accrued and added to principal and a like amount is paid as principal on the Series A, B, or C Bond currently being paid off. Only after the Series A, B, and C Bonds are paid in full does the Series Z Bond begin to receive payment. With some CMOs, the issuer serves as a conduit to allow loan originators (primarily builders or savings and loan associations) to borrow against their loan portfolios.

 

CMOs that are issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or by any of its agencies or instrumentalities will be considered U.S. government securities by the Fund, while other CMOs, even if collateralized by U.S. government securities, will have the same status as other privately issued securities for purposes of applying the Fund’s diversification tests.

 

FHLMC CMOs are debt obligations of FHLMC issued in multiple classes having different maturity dates which are secured by the pledge of a pool of conventional mortgage loans purchased by FHLMC. Payments of principal and interest on the FHLMC CMOs are made semiannually. The amount of principal payable on each semiannual payment date is determined in accordance with FHLMC’s mandatory sinking fund schedule, which, in turn, is equal to approximately 100% of FHA prepayment experience applied to the mortgage collateral pool. All sinking fund payments in the FHLMC CMOs are allocated to the retirement of the individual classes of bonds in the order of their stated maturities. Payment of principal on the mortgage loans in the collateral pool in excess of the amount of FHLMC’s minimum sinking fund obligation for any payment date are paid to the holders of the FHLMC CMOs as additional sinking fund payments. Because of the “pass-through” nature of all principal payments received on the collateral pool in excess of FHLMC’s minimum sinking fund requirement, the rate at which principal of the FHLMC CMOs is actually repaid is likely to be such that each class of bonds will be retired in advance of its scheduled maturity date. If collection of principal (including prepayments) on the mortgage loans during any semiannual payment period is not sufficient to meet FHLMC CMO’s minimum sinking fund obligation on the next sinking fund payment date, FHLMC agrees to make up the deficiency from its general funds.

 

Classes of CMOs may also include interest only (“IOs”) and principal only (“POs”). IOs and POs are stripped mortgage-backed securities representing interests in a pool of mortgages the cash flow from which has been separated into interest and principal components. IOs (interest only securities) receive the interest portion of the cash flow while POs (principal only securities) receive the principal portion. IOs and POs can be extremely volatile in response to changes in interest rates. As interest rates rise and fall, the value of IOs tends to move in the same direction as interest rates. POs perform best when prepayments on the underlying mortgages rise since this increases the rate at which the investment is returned and the yield to maturity on the PO. When payments on mortgages underlying a PO are slow, the life of the PO is lengthened and the yield to maturity is reduced.

 

CMOs are generally subject to the same risks as mortgage-backed securities. In addition, CMOs may be subject to credit risk because the issuer or credit enhancer has defaulted on its obligations and the Fund may not receive all or part of its principal. Obligations issued by U.S. government-related entities are guaranteed as to the payment of principal and interest, but are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. The performance of private label mortgage-backed securities, issued by private institutions, is based on the financial health of those institutions. Although GNMA guarantees timely payment of GNMA certificates even if homeowners delay or default, tracking the “pass-through” payments may, at times, be difficult.

 

Convertible Securities . The Fund may invest in convertible securities which are preferred stocks or bonds that pay a fixed dividend or interest payment and are convertible into common stock or other equity interests at a specified price or conversion ratio during a specified period. Although convertible bonds, convertible preferred stocks, and other securities convertible into equity securities may have some attributes of income securities or debt securities, the Fund generally treats such securities as equity securities. By investing in convertible securities, the Fund may seek income, and may also seek the opportunity, through the conversion feature, to participate in the capital appreciation of the common stock or other interests into which the securities are convertible, while potentially earning a higher fixed rate of return than is ordinarily available in common stocks. While the value of convertible securities depends in part on interest rate changes and the credit quality of the issuers, the value of these securities will also change based on changes in the value of the underlying stock. Income paid by a convertible security may provide a limited cushion against a decline in the price of the security; however, convertible securities generally have less potential for gain than common stocks. Also, convertible bonds generally pay less income than non-convertible bonds.

 

The Fund may invest in contingent securities structured as contingent convertible securities, also known as “CoCos.” Contingent convertible securities are a hybrid debt securities typically issued by non-U.S. banks and are designed to behave like bonds in times of economic health and either convert into equity at a predetermined share price or are written down in value based on the specific terms of the individual security if a pre-specified trigger event occurs. Unlike traditional convertible securities, the conversion of a contingent convertible security from debt to equity is “contingent” and will occur only in the case of a trigger event. Trigger events vary by instrument and are defined by the documents governing the contingent convertible security. Trigger events may include a decline in the issuer’s capital below a specified threshold level, increase in the issuer’s risk weighted assets, the share price of the issuer falling to a particular level for a certain period of time and certain regulatory events.

 

Contingent convertible securities are subject to the credit, interest rate, high yield security, foreign security and markets risks associated with bonds and equities, and to the risks specific to convertible securities in general. Contingent convertible securities are also subject to additional risks specific to their structure including conversion risk. Because trigger events are not consistently defined among contingent convertible securities, this risk is greater for contingent convertible securities that are issued by banks with capital ratios close to the level specified in the trigger event.

 

In addition, coupon payments on contingent convertible securities are discretionary and may be cancelled by the issuer at any point, for any reason, and for any length of time. Due to the uncertainty surrounding coupon payments, contingent convertible securities may be volatile and their price may decline rapidly in the event that coupon payments are suspended.

 

Convertible contingent securities are a newer form of instrument and the regulatory environment for these instruments continues to evolve. Because the market for contingent convertible securities is evolving, it is uncertain how the larger market for contingent convertible securities would react to a trigger event or coupon suspension applicable to a single issuer.

 

Corporate Debt Securities . Corporate debt securities are long- and short-term debt obligations issued by companies (such as publicly issued and privately placed bonds, notes and commercial paper). The Adviser considers corporate debt securities to be of investment grade quality if they are rated BBB or higher by Standard & Poor’s (“S&P”), a division of the McGraw Hill Companies, or Baa or higher by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”), or if unrated, determined by the Adviser to be of comparable quality. Investment grade debt securities generally have adequate to strong protection of principal and interest payments. In the lower end of this category, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity to pay interest and repay principal than in higher rated categories.

 

Credit Linked Notes (“CLNs”) . The Fund may invest in CLNs. A CLN is a security with an embedded credit default swap allowing the issuer to transfer a specific credit risk to credit investors.

 

Derivative Instruments .  The Fund’s derivative investments have risks, including the imperfect correlation between the value of such instruments and the underlying assets of the Fund, which creates the possibility that the loss on such instruments may be greater than the gain in the value of the underlying assets in the Fund’s portfolio; 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. 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.

 

The counterparty risk for cleared derivative transactions is generally lower than for uncleared over-the-counter (“OTC”) derivatives because generally a clearing organization becomes substituted for each counterparty to a cleared derivative contract and, in effect, guarantees the parties’ performance under the contract as each party to a trade looks only to the clearing house for performance of financial obligations. However, there can be no assurance that the clearing house, or its members, will satisfy its obligations to the Fund.

 

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 Adviser 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.

 

OTC derivatives may be more difficult to purchase, sell or value than other investments. Although both OTC and exchange-traded derivatives markets may experience a lack of liquidity, OTC non-standardized derivative transactions are generally less liquid than exchange-traded instruments. The illiquidity of the derivatives markets may be due to various factors, including congestion, disorderly markets, limitations on deliverable supplies, the participation of speculators, government regulation and intervention, and technical and operational or system failures. In addition, the liquidity of a secondary market in an exchange-traded derivative contract may be adversely affected by “daily price fluctuation limits” established by the exchanges which limit the amount of fluctuation in an exchange-traded contract price during a single trading day. Once the daily limit has been reached in the contract, no trades may be entered into at a price beyond the limit, thus preventing the liquidation of open positions. Prices have in the past moved beyond the daily limit on a number of consecutive trading days. If it is not possible to close an open derivative position entered into by the Fund, the Fund would continue to be required to make cash payments of variation (or mark-to-market) margin in the event of adverse price movements. In such a situation, if the Fund has insufficient cash, it may have to sell portfolio securities to meet variation margin requirements at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so. The absence of liquidity may also make it more difficult for the Fund to ascertain a market value for such instruments. The inability to close derivatives transactions positions also could have an adverse impact on the Fund’s ability to effectively hedge its portfolio. OTC derivatives that are not cleared are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party to the contract will not fulfill its contractual obligation to complete the transaction with the Fund. If a counterparty were to default on its obligations, the Fund’s contractual remedies against such counterparty may be subject to bankruptcy and insolvency laws, which could affect the Fund’s rights as a creditor ( e.g. , the Fund may not receive the net amount of payments that it is contractually entitled to receive). In addition, the use of certain derivatives may cause the Fund to realize higher amounts of income or short-term capital gains (generally taxed at ordinary income tax rates).

 

The derivatives markets have become subject to comprehensive statutes, regulations and margin requirements. In particular, in the United States the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) regulates the OTC derivatives market by, among other things, requiring many derivative transactions to be cleared and traded on an exchange, expanding entity registration requirements, imposing business conduct requirements on dealers and requiring banks to move some derivatives trading units to a non-guaranteed affiliate separate from the deposit-taking bank or divest them altogether. Rulemaking proposed or implemented under the Dodd-Frank Act could potentially limit or completely restrict the ability of the Fund to use these instruments as a part of its investment strategies, increase the costs of using these instruments or make them less effective. Limits or restrictions applicable to the counterparties with which the Fund engages in derivative transactions could also prevent the Fund from using these instruments or affect the pricing or other factors relating to these instruments, or may change availability of certain investments.

 

The Fund’s investments in regulated derivatives instruments, such as swaps, futures and options, will be subject to maximum position limits established by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) and U.S. and foreign futures exchanges. Under the exchange rules all accounts owned or managed by advisers, such as the Adviser, their principals and affiliates would be combined for position limit purposes. To comply with the position limits established by the CFTC and the relevant exchanges, the Adviser may in the future reduce the size of positions that would otherwise be taken for the Fund or not trade in certain markets on behalf of the Fund to avoid exceeding such limits. A violation of position limits by the Adviser could lead to regulatory action resulting in mandatory liquidation of certain positions held by the Adviser on behalf of the Fund. There can be no assurance that the Adviser will liquidate positions held on behalf of all the Adviser’s accounts in a proportionate manner or at favorable prices, which may result in substantial losses to the Fund. Such policies could affect the nature and extent of derivatives use by the Fund.

 

Swaps.  The Fund may invest in credit default swaps, total return swaps, interest rate swaps, equity swaps, currency swaps and other types of swaps. Such transactions are subject to market risk, liquidity risk, risk of default by the other party to the transaction, known as “counterparty risk,” regulatory risk and risk of imperfect correlation between the value of such instruments and the underlying assets and may involve commissions or other costs.

 

A credit default swap agreement may reference one or more debt securities or obligations that are not currently held by the Fund. The Fund is permitted to enter into a credit default swap as either the protection buyer or seller in the discretion of the Adviser. When buying protection under a credit default swap, the Fund is generally obligated to pay the protection seller an upfront or periodic stream of payments over the term of the contract until a credit event occurs, such as a default of the reference obligation. If no credit event occurs, the Fund may recover nothing if the swap is held through the terminate date. However, if a credit event does occur, the Fund may receive the full notional value of the swap in exchange for the face amount of the obligations underlying the swap, the value of which may have significantly decreased. When selling protection under a credit default swap, the Fund receives an upfront or periodic stream of payments over the term of the contract provided that a credit event does not occur. However, as the seller of protection, the Fund effectively adds leverage to its portfolio because it gains exposure to the notional amount of the swap. Entering into a credit default swap may subject the Fund to greater risk than if the Fund had invested in the reference obligation directly. In addition to general market risks, credit default swaps also involve illiquidity risk, counter-party risk (for OTC swaps) and credit risk.

 

Swap agreements are primarily entered into by institutional investors and the value of such agreements may be extremely volatile. Certain swap agreements are traded OTC between two parties, while other more standardized swaps must be transacted through a Futures Commission Merchant and centrally cleared or exchange-traded. While central clearing and exchange-trading are intended to reduce counterparty credit and liquidity risk, they do not make a swap transaction risk-free. The current regulatory environment regarding swap agreements is subject to change. The Adviser will continue to monitor these developments, particularly to the extent regulatory changes affect the Fund’s ability to enter into swap agreements.

 

The swap market has matured in recent years with a large number of banks and investment banking firms acting both as principals and as agents utilizing standardized swap documentation. As a result, the swap market has become relatively liquid; however there is no guarantee that the swap market will continue to provide liquidity and may be subject to liquidity risk, which exists when a particular swap is difficult to purchase or sell. The absence of liquidity may also make it more difficult for the Fund to ascertain a market value for such instruments. The inability to close derivative positions also could have an adverse impact on the Fund’s ability to effectively hedge its portfolio. If the Adviser is incorrect in its forecasts of market values, interest rates or currency exchange rates, the investment performance of the Fund would be less favorable than it would have been if these investment techniques were not used. In a total return swap, the Fund pays the counterparty a floating short-term interest rate and receive in exchange the total return of underlying loans or debt securities. The Fund bears the risk of default on the underlying loans or debt securities, based on the notional amount of the swap and, therefore, incurs a form of leverage. The Fund would typically have to post collateral to cover this potential obligation.

 

The Fund will “cover” its swap positions by segregating an amount of cash and/or liquid securities as required by the 1940 Act and applicable SEC interpretations and guidance from time to time.

 

Options and Futures Risk.  The Fund may utilize options, including equity options, futures contracts and so-called “synthetic” options or other derivatives written by broker-dealers or other permissible financial intermediaries. Options transactions may be effected on securities exchanges or in the OTC market. When options are purchased OTC, the Fund’s portfolio bears the risk that the counterparty that wrote the option will be unable or unwilling to perform its obligations under the option contract. Options may also be illiquid and, in such cases, the Fund may have difficulty closing out its position. OTC options also may include options on baskets of specific securities.

 

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 objectives. 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 for American options or only at expiration for European options. 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 such an 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 such an 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.

 

The Fund may close out a position when writing options by purchasing an option on the same underlying security with the same exercise price and expiration date as the option that it has previously written on the security. In such a case, the Fund will realize a profit or loss if the amount paid to purchase an option is less or more than the amount received from the sale of the option.

 

Engaging in transactions in futures contracts and options involves risk of loss to the Fund. No assurance can be given that a liquid market will exist for any particular futures contract or option at any particular time. Many futures exchanges and boards of trade limit the amount of fluctuation permitted in futures contract prices during a single trading day. Once the daily limit has been reached in a particular contract, no trades may be made that day at a price beyond that limit or trading may be suspended for specified periods during the trading day. Futures contract prices could move to the limit for several consecutive trading days with little or no trading, preventing prompt liquidation of futures positions and potentially subjecting the Fund to substantial losses.

 

A market could become unavailable if one or more exchanges were to stop trading options or it could become unavailable with respect to options on a particular underlying security if the exchanges stopped trading options on that security. In addition, a market could become temporarily unavailable if unusual events ( e.g. , volume exceeds clearing capability) were to interrupt normal exchange operations. If an options market were to become illiquid or otherwise unavailable, an option holder would be able to realize profits or limit losses only by exercising and an options seller or writer would remain obligated until it is assigned an exercise or until the option expires.

 

If trading is interrupted in an underlying security, the trading of options on that security is usually halted as well. Holders and writers of options will then be unable to close out their positions until options trading resumes, and they may be faced with considerable losses if the security reopens at a substantially different price. Even if options trading is halted, holders of options will generally be able to exercise them. However, if trading has also been halted in the underlying security, option holders face the risk of exercising options without knowing the security’s current market value. If exercises do occur when trading of the underlying security is halted, the party required to deliver the underlying security may be unable to obtain it, which may necessitate a postponed settlement and/or the fixing of cash settlement prices.

 

Structured Notes.  Structured notes are derivative debt securities, the interest rate and/or principal of which is determined by an unrelated indicator. The value of the principal of and/or interest on structured notes is determined by reference to changes in the return, interest rate or value at maturity of a specific asset, reference rate or index (the “reference instrument”) or the relative change in two or more reference instruments. The interest rate or the principal amount payable upon maturity or redemption may be increased or decreased, depending upon changes in the applicable reference instruments. Structured notes may be positively or negatively indexed, so that an increase in value of the reference instrument may produce an increase or a decrease in the interest rate or value of the structured note at maturity. In addition, changes in the interest rate or the value of the structured note at maturity may be calculated as a specified multiple of the change in the value of the reference; therefore, the value of such note may be very volatile. Structured notes may entail a greater degree of market risk than other types of debt securities because the investor bears the risk of the reference instrument. Structured notes may also be more volatile, less liquid and more difficult to accurately price than less complex securities or more traditional debt securities. In order to cover structured notes, the Fund, to the extent required by the SEC, will designate assets to cover its obligations with respect to such instruments.

 

Energy Sector Risk . The Fund may invest in securities tied to the energy sector and energy infrastructure. Energy infrastructure companies are engaged in the (i) gathering, transporting, processing, treating, terminalling, storing, refining, distributing, mining or marketing of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, refined products or coal, (ii) the acquisition, exploitation and development of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids, (iii) processing, treating, and refining of natural gas liquids and crude oil, (iv) owing, managing and transporting alternative fuels such as ethanol, hydrogen and biodiesel. The energy sector is highly regulated. Companies operating in the energy sector are subject to significant regulation of virtually every aspect of their operations by federal, state and local governmental agencies, including how facilities are constructed, maintained and operated, environmental and safety controls, and the prices they may change for the products and services they provide. Companies in the energy sector may be affected by fluctuations in the prices of energy commodities, including natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil and coal. Companies engaged in the exploration, development, management or production of energy commodities are at risk of the natural resources depleting over time, which may cause the market value of the company to decline over time. Companies operating in the energy sector may be adversely affected by reductions in the supply or demand for energy commodities. Companies in the energy sector may be subject to various operational risks, such as disruption of operations, inability to timely and effectively integrate newly acquired assets, unanticipated operation and maintenance expenses, underestimated cost projections, and other risks arising from specific business strategies. Rising interest rates which could adversely impact the financial performance of these companies by increasing their costs of capital, which may reduce a company’s ability to execute acquisitions or expansion products in a cost-effective manner. Extreme weather or other natural disasters could adversely impact the value of the debt and equity securities of the companies operating in the energy sector in which the Fund invests. Threats of attacks by terrorists on energy assets could impact the market for companies operating in the energy sector. A significant accident or event occurs and a company is not fully insured, it could adversely affect a company’s operations and financial condition and the securities issued by the company.

 

Fixed Income Securities .   The Fund may invest in fixed income securities. Even though interest-bearing securities are investments that promise a stable stream of income, the prices of such securities are affected by changes in interest rates. In general, fixed income security prices rise when interest rates fall and fall when interest rates rise. Securities with shorter maturities, while offering lower yields, generally provide greater price stability than longer term securities and are less affected by changes in interest rates. The values of fixed income securities also may be affected by changes in the credit rating or financial condition of the issuing entities. Once the rating of a portfolio security has been changed, the Fund will consider all circumstances deemed relevant in determining whether to continue to hold the security. A fund with a negative average portfolio duration may increase in value when interest rates rise, and generally incurs a loss when interest rates decline. If an issuer calls or redeems an instrument held by the Fund during a time of declining interest rates, the Fund might need to reinvest the proceeds in an investment offering a lower yield, and therefore may not benefit from any increase in value as a result of declining interest rates. A fund with a negative average portfolio duration may decline in value as interest rates decrease.

 

Fixed income investments bear certain risks, including credit risk, or the ability of an issuer to pay interest and principal as they become due. Generally, higher yielding bonds are subject to more credit risk than lower yielding bonds. Interest rate risk refers to the fluctuations in value of fixed income securities resulting from the inverse relationship between the market value of outstanding fixed income securities and changes in interest rates. An increase in interest rates will generally reduce the market value of fixed income investments and a decline in interest rates will tend to increase their value.

 

Call risk is the risk that an issuer will pay principal on an obligation earlier than scheduled or expected, which would accelerate cash flows from, and shorten the average life of, the security. Bonds are typically called when interest rates have declined. In the event of a bond being called, the Adviser may have to reinvest the proceeds in lower yielding securities to the detriment of the Fund.

 

Extension risk is the risk that an issuer may pay principal on an obligation slower than expected, having the effect of extending the average life and duration of the obligation. This typically happens when interest rates have increased.

 

A number of factors, including changes in a central bank’s monetary policies or general improvements in the economy, may cause interest rates to rise. Fixed income securities with longer durations are more sensitive to interest rate changes than securities with shorter durations, making them more volatile. This means their prices are more likely to experience a considerable reduction in response to a rise in interest rates.

 

High Yield Securities . When investing in fixed income securities, the Fund may purchase securities regardless of their rating, including fixed income securities rated below investment grade – securities rated below investment grade are often referred to as high yield securities or “junk bonds”. Investments in securities rated below investment grade that are eligible for purchase by the Fund are described as “speculative” by Moody’s, S&P and Fitch. Investments in lower rated corporate debt securities generally provide greater income and increased opportunity for capital appreciation than investments in higher quality securities, but they also typically entail greater price volatility and principal and income risk. These high yield securities are regarded as predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s continuing ability to meet principal and interest payments. Analysis of the creditworthiness of issuers of debt securities that are high yield may be more complex than for issuers of higher quality debt securities.

 

High yield securities may be more susceptible to real or perceived adverse economic and competitive industry conditions than investment grade securities. The prices of high yield securities have been found to be more sensitive to adverse economic downturns or individual corporate developments. A projection of an economic downturn or of a period of rising interest rates, for example, could cause a decline in high yield security prices because the advent of a recession could lessen the ability of a highly leveraged company to make principal and interest payments on its debt securities. If an issuer of high yield securities defaults, in addition to risking payment of all or a portion of interest and principal, the Fund by investing in such securities may incur additional expenses to obtain recovery. In the case of high yield securities structured as zero-coupon or pay-in-kind securities, their market prices are affected to a greater extent by interest rate changes, and therefore tend to be more volatile than securities that pay interest periodically and in cash.

 

The secondary market on which high yield securities are traded may be less liquid than the market for higher grade securities. Less liquidity in the secondary trading market could adversely affect the price at which the Fund could sell a high yield security, and could adversely affect the daily net asset value (“NAV”) of the shares. Adverse publicity and investor perceptions, whether or not based on fundamental analysis, may decrease the values and liquidity of high yield securities, especially in a thinly-traded market. When secondary markets for high yield securities are less liquid than the market for higher grade securities, it may be more difficult to value the securities because such valuation may require more research, and elements of judgment may play a greater role in the valuation because there is less reliable, objective data available.

 

The use of credit to evaluate high yield securities can involve certain risks. For example, credit ratings evaluate the safety of principal and interest payments, not the market value risk of high yield securities. Also, credit rating agencies may fail to change credit ratings in a timely fashion to reflect events since the security was last rated. The Adviser does not rely solely on credit ratings when selecting securities for the Fund, and develops its own analysis of issuer credit quality. If a credit rating agency changes the rating of a portfolio security held by the Fund, the Fund may retain the security if the Adviser deems it in the best interest of shareholders.

 

Hybrid Securities . Preferred stock, including trust-preferred stocks, has a preference in liquidation (and, generally dividends) over common stock but is subordinated in liquidation to debt. As a general rule the market value of preferred stocks with fixed dividend rates and no conversion rights varies inversely with interest rates and perceived credit risk, with the price determined by the dividend rate. Some preferred stocks are convertible into other securities (for example, common stock) at a fixed price and ratio or upon the occurrence of certain events. The market price of convertible preferred stocks generally reflects an element of conversion value. Because many preferred stocks lack a fixed maturity date, these securities generally fluctuate substantially in value when interest rates change; such fluctuations often exceed those of long-term bonds of the same issuer. Some preferred stocks pay an adjustable dividend that may be based on an index, formula, auction procedure or other dividend rate reset mechanism. In the absence of credit deterioration, adjustable rate preferred stocks tend to have more stable market values than fixed rate preferred stocks. All preferred stocks are also subject to the same types of credit risks of the issuer as corporate bonds. In addition, because preferred stock is junior to debt securities and other obligations of an issuer, deterioration in the credit rating of the issuer will cause greater changes in the value of a preferred stock than in a more senior debt security with similar yield characteristics. Preferred stocks may be rated by S&P and Moody’s although there is no minimum rating which a preferred stock must have (and a preferred stock may not be rated) to be an eligible investment for the Fund. The Adviser expects, however, that generally the preferred stocks in which the Fund invests will be rated at least CCC by S&P or Caa by Moody’s or, if unrated, of comparable quality in the opinion of the Advisor. Preferred stocks rated CCC by S&P are regarded as predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay preferred stock obligations and represent the highest degree of speculation among securities rated between BB and CCC; preferred stocks rated Caa by Moody’s are likely to be in arrears on dividend payments. Moody’s rating with respect to preferred stocks does not purport to indicate the future status of payments of dividends.

 

Restricted securities may be sold only in privately negotiated transactions or in a public offering with respect to which a registration statement is in effect under the Securities Act. Where registration is required, the Fund may be obligated to pay all or part of the registration expenses and a considerable period may elapse between the time of the decision to sell and the time the Fund may be permitted to sell a security under an effective registration statement. If, during such a period, adverse market conditions were to develop, the Fund might obtain a less favorable price than that which prevailed when it decided to sell. Illiquid securities will be priced at fair value as determined in good faith under procedures adopted by the Board.

 

Industrial Development Bonds . The Fund may invest in municipal securities, such as industrial development bonds that are backed only by the assets and revenues of the non-governmental user (such as hospitals and airports). Municipal securities are issued to obtain funds for a variety of public purposes, including general financing for state and local governments, or financing for specific projects or public facilities. Municipal securities are classified as general obligation or revenue bonds or notes. Private activity bonds and industrial revenue bonds do not carry the pledge of the credit of the issuing municipality, but generally are guaranteed by the corporate entity on whose behalf they are issued.

 

International Securities .  The Fund may invest directly in international securities. Investing in securities of foreign companies and countries involves certain considerations and risks that are not typically associated with investing in U.S. government securities and securities of domestic companies. There may be less publicly available information about a foreign issuer than a domestic one, and foreign companies are not generally subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial standards and requirements comparable to those applicable to U.S. companies. There may also be less government supervision and regulation of foreign securities exchanges, brokers and listed companies than exists in the United States. Interest and dividends paid by foreign issuers as well as gains or proceeds realized from the sale or other disposition of international securities may be subject to withholding and other foreign taxes, which may decrease the net return on such investments as compared to dividends and interest paid to the Fund by domestic companies or the U.S. government. There may be the possibility of expropriations, seizure or nationalization of foreign deposits, the imposition of economic sanctions, confiscatory taxation, political, economic or social instability or diplomatic developments that could affect assets of the Fund held in foreign countries. The establishment of exchange controls or other foreign governmental laws or restrictions could adversely affect the payment of obligations. In addition, investing in international securities will generally result in higher commissions than investing in similar domestic securities.

 

Decreases in the value of currencies of the foreign countries in which the Fund will invest relative to the U.S. dollar will result in a corresponding decrease in the U.S. dollar value of the Fund’s assets denominated in those currencies (and possibly a corresponding increase in the amount of securities required to be liquidated to meet distribution requirements). Conversely, increases in the value of currencies of the foreign countries in which the Fund invests relative to the U.S. dollar will result in a corresponding increase in the U.S. dollar value of the Fund’s assets (and possibly a corresponding decrease in the amount of securities to be liquidated).

 

Investment Company Securities . The Fund may invest in the securities of other investment companies, including ETFs, closed-end funds and open-end (mutual) funds (also called underlying funds). The Fund may invest in inverse ETFs, including leveraged ETFs. Inverse ETFs seek to provide investment results that match a certain percentage of the inverse of the results of a specific index on a daily or monthly basis.

 

To the extent such underlying funds are index-based, these underlying funds will generally attempt to replicate the performance of a particular index. An underlying fund may not always hold all of the same securities as the index it attempts to track. An underlying fund may use statistical sampling techniques to attempt to replicate the returns of an index. Statistical sampling techniques attempt to match the investment characteristics of the index and the fund by taking into account such factors as capitalization, industry exposures, dividend yield, price/earnings (P/E) ratio, price/book (P/B) ratio, and earnings growth. An underlying fund may not track the index perfectly because differences between the index and the fund’s portfolio can cause differences in performance. In addition, expenses and transaction costs, the size and frequency of cash flow into and out of the fund, and differences between how and when the fund and the index are valued can cause differences in performance.

 

When the Fund invests in underlying funds it will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any fees and expenses payable directly by the underlying fund. In connection with its investments in other investment companies, the Fund will incur higher expenses, many of which may be duplicative. Furthermore, because the Fund invests in shares of ETFs and underlying funds their performances are directly related to the ability of the ETFs and underlying funds to meet their respective investment objectives, as well as the allocation of the Fund’s assets among the ETFs and underlying funds by the Adviser. Accordingly, the Fund’s investment performance will be influenced by the investment strategies of and risks associated with the ETFs and underlying funds in direct proportion to the amount of assets the Fund allocates to the ETFs and underlying funds utilizing such strategies.

 

Investments in ETFs involve certain inherent risks generally associated with investments in a broadly-based portfolio of stocks, including risks that: (1) the general level of stock prices may decline, thereby adversely affecting the value of each unit of the ETF or other instrument; (2) an ETF, to the extent such ETF is index-based, may not fully replicate the performance of its benchmark index because of the temporary unavailability of certain index securities in the secondary market or discrepancies between the ETF and the index with respect to the weightings of securities or number of stocks held; (3) an ETF may also be adversely affected by the performance of the specific index, market sector or group of industries on which it is based; and (4) an ETF, to the extent such ETF is index-based, may not track an index as well as a traditional index mutual fund because ETFs are valued by the market and, therefore, there may be a difference between the market value and the ETF’s NAV. Additionally, investments in fixed income ETFs involve certain inherent risks generally associated with investments in fixed income securities, including the risk of fluctuation in market value based on interest rates rising or declining and risks of a decrease in liquidity, such that no assurances can be made that an active trading market for underlying ETFs will be maintained.

 

There is also a risk that the underlying funds or ETFs may terminate due to extraordinary events. For example, any of the service providers to the underlying fund or ETF, such as the trustee or sponsor, may close or otherwise fail to perform their obligations to the underlying fund or ETF, and the underlying fund or ETF may not be able to find a substitute service provider. Also, the underlying fund or ETF may be dependent upon licenses to use the various indices as a basis for determining their compositions and/or otherwise to use certain trade names. If these licenses are terminated, the respective underlying fund or ETF may also terminate. In addition, an underlying fund or ETF may terminate if its net assets fall below a certain amount. Although the Fund believes that in the event of the termination of an underlying fund or ETF, the Fund will be able to invest instead in shares of an alternate underlying fund or ETF tracking the same market index or another index covering the same general market, there can be no assurance that shares of an alternate underlying fund or ETF would be available for investment at that time.

 

Inverse and leveraged ETFs are subject to additional risks not generally associated with traditional ETFs. To the extent that the Fund invests in inverse ETFs, the value of the Fund’s investments will decrease when the index underlying the ETF’s benchmark rises, a result that is the opposite from traditional equity or bond funds. The NAV and market price of leveraged or inverse ETFs are usually more volatile than the value of the tracked index or of other ETFs that do not use leverage. This is because inverse and leveraged ETFs use investment techniques and financial instruments that may be considered aggressive, including the use of derivative transactions and short selling techniques. The use of these techniques may cause the inverse or leveraged ETFs to lose more money in market environments that are adverse to their investment strategies than other funds that do not use such techniques.

 

Generally, under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”), a fund may not acquire shares of another investment company (including ETFs) if, immediately after such acquisition, (i) such fund would hold more than 3% of the other investment company’s total outstanding shares, (ii) if such fund’s investment in securities of the other investment company would be more than 5% of the value of the total assets of the fund, or (iii) if more than 10% of such fund’s total assets would be invested in investment companies. The SEC has granted orders for exemptive relief to certain ETFs that permit investments in those ETFs by other investment companies (such as the Fund) in excess of these limits. The Fund may invest in ETFs that have received such exemptive orders from the SEC, pursuant to the conditions specified in such orders. In accordance with Section 12(d)(1)(F)(i) of the 1940 Act, the Fund may also invest in ETFs that have not received such exemptive orders as long as the Fund (and all of is affiliated persons, including the Adviser) do not acquire more than 3% of the total outstanding stock of such underlying ETF, unless otherwise permitted to do so pursuant to permission granted by the SEC. If the Fund seeks to redeem shares of an underlying ETF purchased in reliance on Section 12(d)(1)(F), the underlying ETF is not obligated to redeem an amount exceeding 1% of the underlying ETF’s outstanding shares during a period of less than 30 days.

 

On December 19, 2018, the SEC published a proposed rule that, if adopted, would change the regulation of fund of funds arrangements. The SEC is currently seeking public comments on numerous aspects of the proposed rule, and as a result the nature of any final regulations is uncertain at this time. Such regulations could permit closed-end funds to invest in other investment companies in excess of the limits of section 12(d)(1), including those described above. The Adviser cannot predict the effects of these regulations on the Fund’s portfolio. The Adviser intends to monitor developments and seeks to manage the Fund’s portfolio in a manner consistent with achieving the Fund’s investment objectives, but there can be no assurance that they will be successful in doing so.

 

Mortgage-Backed and Asset-Backed Securities . The Fund may invest in mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities. Mortgage-backed securities are mortgage-related securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies and instrumentalities, or issued by nongovernment entities. Mortgage-related securities represent ownership in pools of mortgage loans assembled for sale to investors by various government agencies such as the Government National Mortgage Association (“GNMA”) and government-related organizations such as the Federal National Mortgage Association (“FNMA”) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“FHLMC”), as well as by nongovernment issuers such as commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, mortgage bankers and private mortgage insurance companies. Although certain mortgage-related securities are guaranteed by a third party or otherwise similarly secured, the market value of the security, which may fluctuate, is not so secured. These securities differ from conventional bonds in that the principal is paid back to the investor as payments are made on the underlying mortgages in the pool. Accordingly, the Fund receives monthly scheduled payments of principal and interest along with any unscheduled principal prepayments on the underlying mortgages. Because these scheduled and unscheduled principal payments must be reinvested at prevailing interest rates, mortgage-backed securities do not provide an effective means of locking in long-term interest rates for the investor.

 

In addition, there are a number of important differences among the agencies and instrumentalities of the U.S. government that issue mortgage-related securities and among the securities they issue. Mortgage-related securities issued by GNMA include GNMA Mortgage Pass-Through Certificates (also known as Ginnie Maes) which are guaranteed as to the timely payment of principal and interest. That guarantee is backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury. GNMA is a corporation wholly owned by the U.S. government within the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Mortgage-related securities issued by FNMA include FNMA Guaranteed Mortgage Pass-Through Certificates (also known as Fannie Maes) and are guaranteed as to payment of principal and interest by FNMA itself and backed by a line of credit with the U.S. Treasury. FNMA is a government-sponsored entity wholly owned by public stockholders. Mortgage-related securities issued by FHLMC include FHLMC Mortgage Participation Certificates (also known as Freddie Macs) guaranteed as to payment of principal and interest by FHLMC itself and backed by a line of credit with the U.S. Treasury. FHLMC is a government-sponsored entity wholly owned by public stockholders.

 

In September 2008, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (“FHFA”) placed FNMA and FHLMC into conservatorship, and FHFA succeeded to all rights, titles, powers and privileges of FNMA and FHLMC. The U.S. Treasury entered into a Senior Preferred Stock Purchase Agreement with each of FNMA and FHLMC pursuant to which the U.S. Treasury will disburse up to an aggregate of $200 billion to each of FNMA and FHLMC to maintain a positive net worth in each enterprise; this agreement contains various covenants that severely limit each enterprise’s operation. The U.S. Treasury also announced the creation of a new secured lending facility that is available to FNMA and FHLMC as a liquidity backstop and announced the creation of a temporary program to purchase mortgage-backed securities issued by FNMA and FHLMC. FHFA has the power to repudiate any contract entered into by FNMA or FHLMC prior to FHFA’s appointment if FHFA determines that performance of the contract is burdensome and the repudiation of the contract promotes the orderly administration of FNMA’s or FHLMC’s affairs. FHFA has indicated that it has no intention to repudiate the guaranty obligations of FNMA or FHLMC. FHFA also has the right to transfer or sell any asset or liability of FNMA or FHLMC without any approval, assignment or consent, although FHFA has stated that is has no present intention to do so. In addition, holders of mortgage-backed securities issued by FNMA and FHLMC may not enforce certain rights related to such securities against FHFA, or the enforcement of such rights may be delayed, during the conservatorship. While the actions of the U.S. Treasury are intended to support the operations of FNMA and FHLMC, there is no guarantee that such actions will be successful. Furthermore, the U.S. Congress has recently considered proposals to wind down or restructure the operations of both FNMA and FHLMC. The passage of any such proposal has the potential to impact the value of securities issued by FNMA or FHLMC, which could adversely affect the Fund.

 

Asset-backed securities are structured like mortgage-backed securities, but instead of mortgage loans or interests in mortgage loans, the underlying assets may include such items as motor vehicle installment sales contracts or installment loan contracts, leases of various types of real and personal property, and receivables from credit card agreements and from sales of personal property. Regular payments received on asset-backed securities include both interest and principal. Asset-backed securities typically have no U.S. government backing. Additionally, the ability of an issuer of asset-backed securities to enforce its security interest in the underlying assets may be limited.

 

If the Fund purchases a mortgage-backed or other asset-backed security at a premium, the premium may be lost if there is a decline in the market value of the security whether resulting from changes in interest rates or prepayments in the underlying collateral. As with other interest-bearing securities, the prices of such securities are inversely affected by changes in interest rates. Although the value of a mortgage-backed or other asset-backed security may decline when interest rates rise, the converse is not necessarily true, since in periods of declining interest rates the mortgages and loans underlying the securities are prone to prepayment, thereby shortening the average life of the security and shortening the period of time over which income at the higher rate is received. When interest rates are rising, the rate of prepayment tends to decrease, thereby lengthening the period of time over which income at the lower rate is received. For these and other reasons, a mortgage-backed or other asset-backed security’s average maturity may be shortened or lengthened as a result of interest rate fluctuations and, therefore, it is not possible to predict accurately the security’s return. In addition, while the trading market for short-term mortgages and asset-backed securities is ordinarily quite liquid, in times of financial stress the trading market for these securities may become restricted.

 

Municipal Securities . Municipal securities include, among other instruments, general obligation bonds, revenue bonds, municipal leases, certificates of participation, private activity bonds, and moral obligation bonds, as well as short-term, tax-exempt obligations such as municipal notes and variable rate demand obligations. The yields on municipal securities are dependent on a variety of factors, including prevailing interest rates and the condition of the general money market and the municipal securities market, the size of a particular offering, the maturity of the obligation and the rating of the issuer. The market value of municipal securities will vary with changes in interest rate levels and as a result of changing evaluations of the ability of bond issuers to meet interest and principal payments.

 

To be tax-exempt, municipal securities must meet certain regulatory requirements. If a municipal security fails to meet such requirements, the interest may be taxable, which could impact the value of the security.

 

General Obligation Bonds. General obligation bonds are backed by the issuer’s full faith and credit and taxing authority for the payment of principal and interest. The taxing authority of any governmental entity may be limited, however, by provisions of its state constitution or laws, and an entity’s creditworthiness will depend on many factors, including potential erosion of its tax base due to population declines, natural disasters, declines in the state’s industrial base or inability to attract new industries, economic limits on the ability to tax without eroding the tax base, state legislative proposals or voter initiatives to limit ad valorem real property taxes and the extent to which the entity relies on Federal or state aid, access to capital markets or other factors beyond the state’s or entity’s control. Accordingly, the capacity of the issuer of a general obligation bond as to the timely payment of interest and the repayment of principal when due is affected by the issuer’s maintenance of its tax base.

 

Revenue Bonds. Revenue bonds are issued to finance a wide variety of capital projects, including: electric, gas, water and sewer systems; port, airport, and mass transit facilities; colleges and universities; and hospitals. Revenue bonds may be repaid only from the revenues of a specific facility or source. An investment in revenue bonds is subject to greater risk of delay or non-payment if revenue does not accrue as expected or if other conditions are not met for reasons outside the control of the Fund. Conversely, if revenue accrues more quickly than anticipated, the Fund may receive payment before expected and have difficulty reinvesting the proceeds on equally favorable terms.

 

Private activity bonds are, in most cases, revenue bonds. Private activity bonds are issued by or on behalf of public authorities to obtain funds to provide privately operated facilities. Private activity bonds generally are not secured by a pledge of the taxing power of the issuer of such bonds. Therefore, the repayment of such bonds generally depends on the revenues of a private entity. Continued ability of a private entity to generate sufficient revenues for the payment of principal and interest on such bonds will be affected by many factors including the size of the entity, capital structure, demand for its products or services, competition, general economic conditions, government regulation and the entity’s dependence on revenues for the operation of the particular facility being financed.

 

Moral Obligation Bonds. The Fund also may invest in “moral obligation” bonds, which are normally issued by special purpose public authorities. If an issuer of moral obligation bonds is unable to meet its obligations, the repayment of such bonds becomes a moral commitment but not a legal obligation of the state or municipality in question.

 

Municipal Lease Obligations and Certificates of Participation. Municipal leases and certificates of participation involve special risks not normally associated with general obligations or revenue bonds. Leases and installment purchase or conditional sale contracts (which normally provide for title to the leased asset to pass eventually to the governmental issuer) have evolved as a means for governmental issuers to acquire property and equipment without meeting the constitutional and statutory requirements for the issuance of debt. The debt issuance limitations are deemed to be inapplicable because of the inclusion in many leases or contracts of “non-appropriation” clauses that relieve the governmental issuer of any obligation to make future payments under the lease or contract unless money is appropriated for such purpose by the appropriate legislative body on a yearly or other periodic basis. In addition, such leases or contracts may be subject to the temporary abatement of payments in the event that the governmental issuer is prevented from maintaining occupancy of the lease premises or utilizing the leased equipment. Although the obligations may be secured by the leased equipment or facilities, the disposition of the property in the event of non-appropriation or foreclosure might prove difficult, time consuming and costly, and may result in a delay in recovering or the failure to fully recover ownership of the assets.

 

Certificates of participation, which represent interests in unmanaged pools of municipal leases or installment contracts, involve the same risks as the underlying municipal leases. In addition, the Fund may be dependent upon the municipal authority issuing the certificate of participation to exercise remedies with respect to the underlying securities. Certificates of participation also entail a risk of default or bankruptcy, both of the issuer of the municipal lease and also the municipal agency issuing the certificate of participation.

 

Repurchase Agreements . The Fund may engage in repurchase agreement transactions involving the type of securities in which it is permitted to invest. Repurchase agreements are transactions by which the Fund purchases a security and simultaneously commits to resell that security to the seller (a bank or securities dealer) at an agreed upon price on an agreed upon date (usually within seven days of purchase). The resale price reflects the purchase price plus an agreed upon market rate of interest which is unrelated to the coupon rate or date of maturity of the purchased security. Repurchase agreements involve certain risks not associated with direct investments in the underlying securities. In the event of a default or bankruptcy by the seller, the Fund will seek to liquidate such collateral. The exercise of the Fund’s right to liquidate such collateral could involve certain costs or delays and, to the extent that proceeds from any sale upon a default of the obligation to repurchase were less than the repurchase price, the Fund could suffer a loss. Certain repurchase agreements the Fund may enter into may or may not be subject to an automatic stay in bankruptcy proceedings. Repurchase agreements are considered to be loans by an investment company under the 1940 Act. The Fund will not invest more than 33 1/3% of its net assets in repurchase agreements.

 

The use of repurchase agreements involves certain risks. For example, if the seller of the agreements defaults on its obligation to repurchase the underlying securities at a time when the value of these securities has declined, the Fund may incur a loss upon disposition of them. If the seller of the agreement becomes insolvent and subject to liquidation or reorganization under the Bankruptcy Code or other laws, a bankruptcy court may determine that the underlying securities are collateral not within the control of the Fund and therefore subject to sale by the trustee in bankruptcy. Finally, it is possible that the Fund may not be able to substantiate their interest in the underlying securities. While the management of the Fund acknowledges these risks, it is expected that they can be controlled through stringent security selection criteria and careful monitoring procedures.

 

  Reverse Repurchase Agreements . The Fund may engage in reverse repurchase agreements. Reverse repurchase agreements are agreements that involve the sale of securities held by the Fund to financial institutions such as banks and broker-dealers, with an agreement that the Fund will repurchase the securities at an agreed upon price and date. During the reverse repurchase agreement period, the Fund continues to receive interest and principal payments on the securities sold. The Fund may employ reverse repurchase agreements (i) for temporary emergency purposes or to meet repurchase requests so as to avoid liquidating other portfolio securities during unfavorable market conditions; (ii) to cover short-term cash requirements resulting from the timing of trade settlements; or (iii) to take advantage of market situations where the interest income to be earned from the investment of the proceeds of the transaction is greater than the interest expense of the transaction.

 

Reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the market value of securities to be purchased by the Fund may decline below the price at which the Fund is obligated to repurchase the securities, or that the other party may default on its obligation, so that the Fund is delayed or prevented from completing the transaction. At the time the Fund enters into a reverse repurchase agreement, it will segregate, and maintain, liquid assets having a dollar value equal to the repurchase price. In the event the buyer of securities under a reverse repurchase agreement files for bankruptcy or becomes insolvent, the Fund’s use of the proceeds from the sale of the securities may be restricted pending a determination by the other party, or its trustee or receiver, whether to enforce the Fund’s obligations to repurchase the securities. Reverse repurchase agreements are considered borrowings by the Fund under the 1940 Act.

 

U.S. Government Obligations . U.S. Government securities include direct obligations issued by the United States Treasury, such as U.S. Treasury bills (maturities of one year or less), U.S. Treasury notes (maturities of one to ten years) and U.S. Treasury bonds (generally maturities of greater than ten years). They also include U.S. Government agencies and instrumentalities that issue or guarantee securities, such as the Federal Home Loan Banks, The Federal National Mortgage Association and the Student Loan Marketing Association. Except for U.S. Treasury securities, obligations of U.S. Government agencies and instrumentalities may or may not be supported by the full faith and credit of the United States. Some, such as those of the Federal Home Loan Banks, are backed by the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury, others by discretionary authority of the U.S. Government to purchase the agencies’ obligations, while still others, such as the Student Loan Marketing Association, are supported only by the credit of the instrumentality. In the case of securities not backed by the full faith and credit of the United States, the investor must look principally to the agency issuing or guaranteeing the obligation for ultimate repayment and may not be able to assess a claim against the United States itself in the event the agency or instrumentality does not meet its commitment.

 

The total public debt of the United States as a percentage of gross domestic product has grown rapidly since the beginning of the 2008–2009 financial downturn. Although high debt levels do not necessarily indicate or cause economic problems, they may create certain systemic risks if sound debt management practices are not implemented. A high national debt can raise concerns that the U.S. government will not be able to make principal or interest payments when they are due. This increase has also necessitated the need for the U.S. Congress to negotiate adjustments to the statutory debt limit to increase the cap on the amount the U.S. government is permitted to borrow to meet its existing obligations and finance current budget deficits. In August 2011, S&P lowered its long term sovereign credit rating on the U.S. In explaining the downgrade at that time, S&P cited, among other reasons, controversy over raising the statutory debt limit and growth in public spending. On February 9, 2018, following passage by Congress, the President of the United States signed the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, which suspends the statutory debt limit through March 1, 2019. Any controversy or ongoing uncertainty regarding the statutory debt limit negotiations may impact the U.S. long term sovereign credit rating and may cause market uncertainty. As a result, market prices and yields of securities supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government may be adversely affected.

 

Zero-Coupon, Delayed Interest and Capital Appreciation Securities . Zero-coupon, delayed interest, pay-in-kind (“PIK”) and capital appreciation securities are securities that make no periodic interest payments, but are sold at a discount from their face value. The buyer recognizes a rate of return determined by the gradual appreciation of the security, which is redeemed at face value on a specified maturity date. The discount varies depending on the time remaining until maturity, as well as market interest rates, liquidity of the security, and the issuer’s perceived credit quality. The discount, in the absence of financial difficulties of the issuer, typically decreases as the final maturity date approaches. If the issuer defaults, the Fund may not receive any return on its investment. Because such securities bear no interest and generally compound periodically at the rate fixed at the time of issuance, their value generally is more volatile than the value of other fixed income securities. Since such bondholders do not receive interest payments, when interest rates rise, zero-coupon, delayed interest and capital appreciation securities fall more dramatically in value than bonds paying interest on a current basis. When interest rates fall, zero-coupon, delayed interest and capital appreciation securities rise more rapidly in value because the bonds reflect a fixed rate of return. An investment in zero-coupon, delayed interest and capital appreciation securities may cause the Fund to recognize income and make distributions to shareholders before it receives any cash payments on its investment. To generate cash to satisfy distribution requirements, the Fund may have to sell portfolio securities that it otherwise would have continued to hold or to use cash flows from other sources such as the sale of Fund shares.

 

INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS

 

Fundamental . The investment policies described below have been adopted by the Fund and are fundamental (“Fundamental”), i.e. , they may not be changed without the affirmative vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of the Fund. As used in the Prospectus and this SAI, the term “majority of the outstanding shares of the Fund” means the lesser of: (1) 67% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund present at a meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Fund are present or represented at such meeting; or (2) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Fund. Except for those investment policies specifically identified as fundamental in the Prospectus and this SAI, the Fund’s investment objective as described in the Prospectus and all other investment policies and practices described in the Prospectus and this SAI are non-fundamental and may be changed by the Board without the approval of shareholders.

 

The fundamental policies adopted with respect to the Fund are as follows:

 

1. Borrowing Money . The Fund will borrow money as permitted under the 1940 Act.

 

2.  Senior Securities . The Fund will issue senior securities as permitted under the 1940 Act. 

 

3.  Underwriting . The Fund will not act as underwriter of securities issued by other persons. This limitation is not applicable to the extent that, in connection with the disposition of portfolio securities (including restricted securities), the Fund may be deemed an underwriter under certain federal securities laws.

 

4.  Real Estate . The Fund will not purchase or sell real estate. This limitation is not applicable to investments in securities that are secured by or represent interests in real estate. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from investing in mortgages, loans, mortgage-related securities or investing in companies engaged in the real estate business or that have a significant portion of their assets in real estate (including real estate investment trusts).

 

5.  Commodities . The Fund will not purchase or sell commodities unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other investments. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from purchasing or selling options or futures contracts, from investing in securities or other instruments backed by commodities or from investing in companies that are engaged in a commodities business or have a significant portion of their assets in commodities.

 

6.  Loans . The Fund will make loans to other persons as permitted under the 1940 Act.

 

7.  Concentration . The Fund will concentrate its investments in residential mortgage-backed securities (agency and non-agency) and commercial mortgage-backed securities.

 

In addition, the Fund has adopted a fundamental policy that it will make quarterly repurchase offers pursuant to Rule 23c-3 under the 1940 Act, as such rule may be amended from time to time, for between 5% and 25% of the Shares outstanding at NAV, unless suspended or postponed in accordance with regulatory requirements, and each repurchase pricing shall occur no later than the 14th day after the Repurchase Request Deadline (as defined in the Prospectus), or the next business day if the 14th day is not a business day.

 

The following are interpretations of the fundamental investment policies of the Fund and may be revised without shareholder approval, consistent with current laws and regulations as such may be interpreted or modified by regulatory authorities having jurisdiction, from time to time:

 

Borrowing Money . Under current law as interpreted by the SEC and its staff, the Fund may borrow money in the amount of up to one-third of the Fund’s total assets for any purpose and up to 5% of the Fund’s total assets from banks or other lenders for temporary purposes. The Fund’s total assets include the amounts being borrowed. To limit the risks that accompany borrowing, the 1940 Act requires the Fund to maintain at all times an asset coverage of 300% of the amount of its borrowings. The Fund expects to use proceeds from borrowing for investment purposes and to satisfy shareholder repurchase requests.

 

Senior Securities . Senior securities may include any obligation or instrument issued by an investment company evidencing indebtedness, including the issuance of debt or preferred shares of beneficial interest. Current law, as interpreted by the SEC and its staff, provides that, in the case of a senior security representing indebtedness, a closed-end investment company must have asset coverage of 300% immediately after such issuance, and no dividends on the company’s stock may be made unless the indebtedness generally has an asset coverage at that time of 300%. In the case of a class of senior security representing a stock, a closed-end investment company must have asset coverage of 200% immediately after such issuance, and no dividends on the company’s stock may be made unless the preferred stock generally has an asset coverage at that time of 200%.  Shareholders of preferred stock also must have the right, as a class, to elect at least two trustees at all times and to elect a majority of trustees if dividends on their stock are unpaid in certain amounts.

 

Underwriting . Under the 1940 Act, underwriting securities generally 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. The Fund’s limitation with respect to underwriting securities is not applicable to the extent that, in connection with the disposition of portfolio securities (including restricted securities), the Fund may be deemed an underwriter under certain federal securities laws.

 

Real Estate . The 1940 Act does not directly restrict an investment company’s ability to invest in real estate, but does require that every investment company have a fundamental investment policy governing such investments. The Fund’s limitation with respect to investing in real estate is not applicable to investments in securities or mortgages or loans that are secured by or represent interests in real estate. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from purchasing or selling mortgage-related securities or securities of companies engaged in the real estate business or that have a significant portion of their assets in real estate (including real estate investment trusts).

 

Commodities . The 1940 Act does not directly restrict an investment company’s ability to invest in commodities, but does require that every investment company have a fundamental investment policy governing such investments. The Fund may hold commodities acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other investments. This limitation does not preclude the Fund from purchasing or selling options or futures contracts, from investing in securities or other instruments backed by commodities or from investing in companies that are engaged in a commodities business or have a significant portion of their assets in commodities.

 

Loans . Under current law as interpreted by the SEC and its staff, the Fund may not lend any security or make any other loan if, as a result, more than 33 1/3% of its total assets would be lent to other parties (this restriction does not apply to purchases of debt securities or repurchase agreements). Subject to this limitation, the Fund may make loans, for example: (a) by loaning portfolio securities; (b) by engaging in repurchase agreements; (c) by making loans secured by real estate; (d) by making loans to affiliated funds as permitted by the SEC; or (e) by purchasing non-publicly offered debt securities. For purposes of this limitation, the term “loans” shall not include the purchase of a portion of an issue of publicly distributed bonds, debentures or other securities.

 

Concentration . Under current SEC and SEC staff interpretation, the Fund would “concentrate” its investments if 25% or more of the Fund’s total assets would be invested in securities of issuers conducting their principal business activities in the same industry. For purposes of this limitation, there is no limit on: (1) investments in U.S. Government securities, in repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. Government securities, or in tax-exempt securities issued by the states, territories, or possessions of the United States (“municipal securities”), excluding private activity municipal securities whose principal and interest payments are derived principally from the assets and revenues of a non-governmental entity; (2) investments in issuers domiciled in a single jurisdiction provided that the Fund does not invest greater than 25% in a particular industry; or (3) certain asset-backed securities that are backed by a pool of loans issued to companies in a wide variety of industries unrelated to each other such that the economic characteristics of such a security are not predominantly related to a single industry to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act, the Fund may invest in one or more investment companies; provided that, except to the extent the Fund invests in other investment companies pursuant to Section 12(d)(1)(A) or (F) of the 1940 Act, the Fund treats the assets of the investment companies in which it invests as its own for purposes of this policy.

 

With respect to the percentages adopted by the Fund as maximum limitations on its investment policies and limitations, an excess above the fixed percentage will not be a violation of the policy or limitation unless the excess results immediately and directly from the acquisition of any security or the action taken. This paragraph does not apply to fundamental policy 1.

 

Notwithstanding any of the foregoing policies, any investment company, whether organized as a trust, association or corporation, or a personal holding company, may be merged or consolidated with or acquired by the Fund, provided that if such merger, consolidation or acquisition results in an investment in the securities of any issuer prohibited by said paragraphs, the Fund shall, within 90 days after the consummation of such merger, consolidation or acquisition, dispose of all of the securities of such issuer so acquired or such portion thereof as shall bring the total investment therein within the limitations imposed by said paragraphs above as of the date of consummation.

 

MANAGEMENT

 

Trustees and Officers

 

The Board is responsible for the overall management of the Fund, including general supervision and review of the investment activities of the Fund. The Board, in turn, elects the officers of the Fund, who are responsible for administering the day-to-day operations of the Fund. Unless otherwise indicated in the table below, the address of each Trustee and officer of the Fund is c/o Angel Oak Capital Advisors, LLC, One Buckhead Plaza, 3060 Peachtree Rd. NW, Suite 500, Atlanta, Georgia 30305. Additional information about the Trustees and officers of the Fund is provided in the table below.

 

(1)	The Fund Complex includes the Fund, each series of Angel Oak Funds Trust, and Angel Oak Financial Strategies Income Term Trust.

Additional Information Concerning the Board of Trustees

 

The Role of the Board

 

The Board oversees the management and operations of the Fund. Like all mutual funds, the day-to-day management and operation of the Fund is the responsibility of the various service providers to the Fund, such as the Adviser, the distributor, administrator, the custodian and the transfer agent, each of whom are discussed in greater detail in this SAI. The Board has appointed various senior employees of the Adviser as officers of the Fund, with responsibility to monitor and report to the Board on the Fund’s operations. In conducting this oversight, the Board receives regular reports from these officers and the service providers. For example, the Treasurer reports as to financial reporting matters. In addition, the Adviser provides regular reports on the investment strategy and performance of the Fund. The Board has appointed a Chief Compliance Officer who administers the Fund’s compliance program and regularly reports to the Board as to compliance matters. These reports are provided as part of the Board’s regular Board meetings, which are typically held quarterly, and involve the Board’s review of recent operations. While Angel Oak compensates the CCO for his services to the Fund, the Fund reimburses Angel Oak for a portion of the CCO’s salary.

 

Board Structure, Leadership

 

The Board has structured itself in a manner that it believes allows it to perform its oversight function effectively. It has established three standing committees—an Audit, Financial, and Administrative Oversight Committee, a Nominating, Governance, and Compliance Oversight Committee and a Valuation and Risk Management Oversight Committee—that are discussed in greater detail below under “Fund Committees.” At least a majority of the Board is comprised of Independent Trustees who are not affiliated with the Adviser, the principal underwriter, or their affiliates. The Committees are each comprised entirely of Independent Trustees.

 

 The Board has an Independent Chairman. Except for any duties specified herein or pursuant to the Fund’s Declaration of Trust and By-Laws, the designation of Chairman does not impose on Mr. Cohen any duties, obligations or liability that are greater than the duties, obligations or liability imposed on such person as a member of the Board. As Chairman, Mr. Cohen acts as a spokesperson for the Trustees in between meetings of the Board, serves as a liaison for the Trustees with the Fund’s service providers, officers, and legal counsel to discuss ideas informally, and participates in setting the agenda for meetings of the Board and separate meetings or executive sessions of the Independent Trustees. As noted, the majority of the Board is comprised of Independent Trustees, and the Board believes that maintaining a Board that has a majority of Independent Trustees allows the Board to operate in a manner that provides for an appropriate level of independent oversight and action. In accordance with applicable regulations regarding the governance of the Fund, the Independent Trustees have an opportunity to meet in a separate quarterly executive session in conjunction with each quarterly meeting of the Board during which they may review matters relating to their independent oversight of the Fund.

 

The Board reviews annually the structure and operation of the Board and its committees. The Board has determined that the composition of the Board and the function and composition of its various committees provide the appropriate means and communication channels to address any potential conflicts of interest that may arise.

 

Board Oversight of Risk Management

 

As part of its oversight function, the Board receives and reviews various risk management reports and discusses these matters with appropriate management and other personnel. Because risk management is a broad concept comprised of many elements ( e.g. , investment risk, issuer and counterparty risk, compliance risk, operational risks, business continuity risks), the oversight of different types of risks is handled in different ways. For example, the Audit, Financial, and Administrative Oversight Committee meets with the Treasurer and the Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm to discuss, among other things, the internal control structure of the Fund’s financial reporting function. The Board and Nominating, Governance, and Compliance Oversight Committee meet regularly with the Chief Compliance Officer to discuss compliance and operational risks and how they are managed. The Board and Valuation and Risk Management Oversight Committee also receive reports from the Adviser and its Chief Risk Officer as to investment and other risks of the Fund.

 

Information about Each Trustee’s Qualification, Experience, Attributes or Skills

 

The Board believes that each of the Trustees has the qualifications, experience, attributes and skills (“Trustee Attributes”) appropriate to their continued service as Trustees of the Fund in light of the Fund’s business and structure. In addition to a demonstrated record of business and/or professional accomplishment, each of the Trustees has demonstrated a commitment to discharging their oversight duties as trustees in the interests of shareholders. The Board annually conducts a “self-assessment” wherein the effectiveness of the Board is reviewed.

 

In addition to the information provided in the table above, below is certain additional information concerning each particular Trustee and his Trustee Attributes.

 

Mr. Prabhu’s Trustee Attributes.

Mr. Prabhu has over 15 years of experience in the financial services and investment management industry and co-founded the Adviser in 2009. Mr. Prabhu has served in a variety of management roles throughout his career. The Board believes that Mr. Prabhu’s experience, qualifications, attributes and skills on an individual basis and in combination with those of the other Trustees lead to the conclusion that he possesses the requisite skills and attributes as a Trustee to carry out oversight responsibilities with respect to the Fund.

Mr. Cohen’s Trustee Attributes.

Mr. Cohen has over 36 years of experience in the financial services industry. He has served as Executive Vice President of Recognos Financial, a premier provider of semantic data analysis for the financial services industry, since 2015, and he has been an independent financial services consultant since 2005. Mr. Cohen has served a variety of management roles for various financial and investment companies throughout his career. Additionally, Mr. Cohen served as an independent trustee of the trust in which the Adviser’s first mutual fund was launched. The Board believes that Mr. Cohen’s experience, qualifications, attributes and skills on an individual basis and in combination with those of the other Trustees lead to the conclusion that he possesses the requisite skills and attributes as a Trustee to carry out oversight responsibilities with respect to the Fund.

Mr. Albe’s Trustee Attributes .

Mr. Albe has over 30 years of experience in the investment management industry, including having served as executive management for a large asset management firm and its affiliated investment companies. Mr. Albe is a Certified Public Accountant (non-practicing) and has past experience as a member of the board and audit committee of a publicly held company. Mr. Albe is an audit committee financial expert of the Fund. The Board believes that Mr. Albe’s experience, qualifications, attributes and skills on an individual basis and in combination with those of the other Trustees lead to the conclusion that he possesses the requisite skills and attributes as a Trustee to carry out oversight responsibilities with respect to the Fund.

Mr. Schappert’s Trustee Attributes .

Mr. Schappert has over 45 years of experience in the investment management industry. He has been an independent financial services consultant for his own consulting business, Schappert Consulting, LLC, since 2008 and has served a variety of management roles for various financial and investment companies throughout his career. The Board believes that Mr. Schappert’s experience, qualifications, attributes and skills on an individual basis and in combination with those of the other Trustees lead to the conclusion that he possesses the requisite skills and attributes as a Trustee to carry out oversight responsibilities with respect to the Fund.

 

Ms. Mullins’ Trustee Attributes.

Ms. Mullins worked in the Asset Management and Mutual Funds industry at Raymond James from 1990-2010 and her experience includes accounting, compliance, and operations. Ms. Mullins retired as Chief Financial Officer of Eagle Family of Funds (now Carillon Family of Funds) in 2010. Since 2014, Ms. Mullins has been an independent contractor with SWM Advisors, an SEC-registered investment adviser. In addition to this experience, Ms. Mullins also has experience serving as a Trustee for Valued Advisors Trust since 2013 and as its Chairperson since 2017. The Board believes that Ms. Mullins’ experience, qualifications, attributes and skills on an individual basis and in combination with those of the other Trustees lead to the conclusion that she possesses the requisite skills and attributes as a Trustee to carry out oversight responsibilities with respect to the Fund.

Mr. Stueve’s Trustee Attributes.

Mr. Stueve has worked in the asset management and investment company industry for 32 years and has held senior leadership roles in the business functions and for service providers to investment companies. Mr. Stueve served as Executive Vice President and Director of Retail Sales at AIM Investments from 2002 to 2007, where he integrated the company’s distribution channels during an acquisition by Invesco. He was with Ridgeworth Investments from 2007 to 2017, serving as President and Global Head of Distribution. Mr. Stueve also has board experience as member of the Executive Committee for Mutual Fund Education Alliance from 2011 to 2013, and as its Chairman from 2013 to 2016.  The Board believes that Mr. Stueve’s experience, qualifications, attributes and skills on an individual basis and in combination with those of the other Trustees lead to the conclusion that he possesses the requisite skills and attributes as a Trustee to carry out oversight responsibilities with respect to the Fund.

Mr. Dunlap’s Trustee Attributes.

Mr. Dunlap has served as a Managing Director and Senior Portfolio Manager for Angel Oak since 2009. In addition to serving as portfolio manager for Angel Oak funds, Mr. Dunlap is responsible of managing Angel Oak’s separately managed account clients, including depository institutions. Prior to joining Angel Oak, he spent six years with SunTrust Robinson Humphrey where he focused on marketing and structuring interest rate derivatives products. He previously was with Wachovia supporting the agency mortgage pass-through trading desk. The Board believes that Mr. Dunlap’s experience, qualifications, attributes and skills on an individual basis and in combination with those of the other Trustees lead to the conclusion that he possesses the requisite skills and attributes as a Trustee to carry out oversight responsibilities with respect to the Fund.

 

Fund Committees

 

The Fund has five standing committees: the Audit, Financial, and Administrative Oversight Committee, the Nominating and Governance Committee, the Compliance Oversight Committee, the Valuation Oversight Committee, and the Risk Management Oversight Committee.

 

The Audit, Financial, and Administrative Oversight Committee is comprised of all of the Independent Trustees. The function of the Audit, Financial, and Administrative Oversight Committee is to review the scope and results of the annual audit of the Fund and any matters bearing on the audit or the Fund’s financial statements and to ensure the integrity of the Fund’s financial reporting. The Audit, Financial, and Administrative Oversight Committee also recommends to the Board the annual selection of the independent registered public accounting firm for the Fund, and it reviews and pre-approves audit and certain non-audit services to be provided by the independent registered public accounting firm. The Committee also assists the Board in overseeing the review of financial and administrative reports and discussing with the Fund’s management financial and administrative matters relating to the Fund. For the fiscal year ended January 31, 2019, the Committee met four times.

 

The Nominating and Governance Committee, comprised of all the Independent Trustees, is responsible for seeking and reviewing candidates for consideration as nominees for Trustees. The Committee has a policy in place for considering Trustee candidates recommended by shareholders. Nomination submissions must be accompanied by all information relating to the recommended nominee that is required to be disclosed in solicitations or proxy statements for the election of Trustees, as well as information sufficient to evaluate the individual’s qualifications. Nomination submissions must be accompanied by a written consent of the individual to stand for election if nominated by the Board and to serve if elected by the shareholders. In addition, a nominee must provide such additional information as reasonably requested by the Committee. The Committee will consider recommendations by shareholders for up to one year from receipt. Nomination submissions should be sent to:

 

Secretary, Angel Oak Strategic Credit Fund

c/o Angel Oak Capital Advisors, LLC

3060 Peachtree Road NW, Suite 500

Atlanta, GA 30305

The Committee meets on an as needed basis.

 

The Compliance Oversight Committee, comprised of all the Independent Trustees,  assists the full Board in connection with matters relating to the compliance of the Fund and its service providers with applicable laws. The Committee meets on an as needed basis.

 

Prior to May 31, 2019, the Fund had a combined Nominating, Governance, and Compliance Committee that performed the functions of the Nominating and Governance Committee and the Compliance Oversight Committee.  For the fiscal year ended January 31, 2019, the Committee met five times.

 

 

 

Furthermore, neither the Independent Trustees nor members of their immediate family own securities beneficially or of record in the Adviser, the Fund’s principal underwriter, or any of their affiliates.

Compensation

 

 

Investment Adviser

 

The Fund’s Adviser is Angel Oak Capital Advisors, LLC, One Buckhead Plaza, 3060 Peachtree Rd. NW, Suite 500, Atlanta, Georgia 30305. Angel Oak Capital Advisors, LLC was formed in 2009 by the Managing Partners of the Adviser, Michael A. Fierman, Sreeniwas (Sreeni) V. Prabhu and Brad A. Friedlander.

 

Under the terms of the investment advisory agreement (the “Agreement”), the Adviser manages the Fund’s investments subject to oversight by the Board. As compensation for its management services, the Fund is obligated to pay the Adviser a fee computed and accrued daily and paid monthly at an annual rate of 1.25% of the average daily net assets of the Fund.

 

The Adviser has voluntarily agreed to waive its fees and/or reimburse certain expenses (exclusive of any front-end sales loads, taxes, interest on borrowings, dividends on securities sold short, brokerage commissions, acquired fund fees and expenses, expenses incurred in connection with any merger or reorganization and extraordinary expenses) to limit the Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses after fee waiver/expense reimbursement to 0.75% of the Fund’s average daily net assets (the “Expense Limit”) until May 31, 2020. The Expense Limit excludes certain expenses and consequently, the Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses after fee waiver/expense reimbursement may be higher than the Expense Limit. The Adviser may amend, extend or discontinue this waiver at any time without advance notice. The Adviser may not recoup from the Fund any waived amount or reimbursed expenses pursuant to this arrangement.

 

The Adviser retains the right to use the name “Angel Oak” in connection with another investment company or business enterprise with which the Adviser is or may become associated. The Fund’s right to use the name “Angel Oak” automatically ceases 90 days after termination of the Agreement and   may be withdrawn by the Adviser on 90 days’ written notice.

 

The Adviser may make payments to banks or other financial institutions that provide shareholder services and administer shareholder accounts. If a bank or other financial institution were prohibited from continuing to perform all or a part of such services, management of the Fund believes that there would be no material impact on the Fund or shareholders. Banks and other financial institutions may charge their customers fees for offering these services to the extent permitted by applicable regulatory authorities, and the overall return to those shareholders availing themselves of the bank services will be lower than to those shareholders who do not. The Fund may from time to time purchase securities issued by banks and other financial institutions that provide such services; however, in selecting investments for the Fund, no preference will be shown for such securities.

 

About the Portfolio Managers