Delaware
(State or Other Jurisdiction
of Incorporation or
Organization)
|
6221
(Primary Standard Industrial Classification Code Number)
|
84-6953191
(I.R.S. Employer
Identification Number)
|
2 Park Avenue, 20th Floor
New York, New York 10016
(917) 671-9097
|
||
(Address, including Zip Code, and Telephone
Number, including Area Code, of Registrant's
Principal Executive Offices)
___________________________
|
||
William Cai, Partner
Wilshire Phoenix Funds LLC
2 Park Avenue, 20th Floor
New York, New York 10016
(917) 671-9097
(Name, Address, including Zip Code, and Telephone
Number, including Area Code, of Agent for Service)
____________________
|
||
Copies to:
Gregg Bateman
Anthony Tu-Sekine
Christopher D. Carlson
Seward & Kissel LLP
One Battery Park Plaza
New York, NY 10004
|
||
___________________________
|
||
Large accelerated filer
|
☐
|
Accelerated filer
|
☐
|
|
Non-accelerated filer
|
☐
|
Smaller reporting company
|
☐
|
|
Emerging growth company
|
☒
|
Title of Each Class of Securities to be Registered
|
Amount to be
Registered
|
Proposed
Maximum
Offering Price
Per Share (1)
|
Proposed
Maximum
Aggregate
Offering Price (1)
|
Amount of
Registration
Fee(1)(2)
|
||||||||||||
Units of Beneficial Interest
|
25,000,000
|
$
|
18.00
|
$
|
450,000,000
|
$
|
49,095.00
|
(1) |
Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(d) under the Securities Act.
|
(2) |
In connection with the Registrant’s filing of its initial registration statement on Form S-1, Securities Act registration fees of $129.80 were previously paid.
|
• |
The success of the Trust’s ability to track its Index depends upon the skill of the Trust's applicable service providers.
|
• |
You could lose all or substantially all of your investment.
|
• |
The Trust is concentrated in Physical Gold. Concentration may result in greater volatility for the Shares.
|
|
• |
general economic, market and business conditions;
|
|
• |
success in obtaining Physical Gold in a timely manner;
|
|
• |
sources of and demand for Physical Gold, and the performance of the gold market;
|
|
• |
gold price volatility and fluctuations in the spot and forward prices of gold, as well as overall changes, movements and trends in gold demand and supply and the value of investments in Physical Gold;
|
|
• |
the use of technology by the Trust and its service providers in conducting or supporting the Trust's business, including disruptions in the Trust’s computer systems and data centers and the Trust’s transition to, and quality of, new
technology platforms; and
|
|
• |
other world economic and political developments.
|
holdings monthly, in the periods between such monthly rebalances, as a result of changes in the value of Physical Gold, among other factors, the percentages of Physical Gold relative to the percentages of
cash held by the Trust may diverge from the initial percentages in the Index on the most recent Rebalance Date.
The Trust's assets, other than Physical Gold, shall consist of cash.
The Trust's Physical Gold and cash are carried, for financial statement purposes, at fair value, as required by the U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP").
|
||
The Trust's NAV and the NAV
per Share |
The Trust's NAV is determined on each Business Day by the Administrator as of 4:00 p.m. (New York City time) or as soon thereafter as practicable. The Trust's NAV shall be determined by the Administrator on a
GAAP basis, and shall be equal to the sum of the values of the Physical Gold held by the Trust and cash held by the Trust (the "Cash Holdings"), less expenses and liabilities of the Trust. The NAV per Share, which is calculated by the
Administrator on each Business Day, is equal to the Trust's NAV divided by the number of outstanding Shares.
In accordance with the Trust's valuation policy and procedures, the Administrator will determine the price of the Trust's Physical Gold by reference to the LBMA Gold Price. This price will generally be based
on the LBMA Gold Price PM.
The Administrator determines the amount of any U.S. dollars held by the Trust, as of 4:00 p.m. (New York City time) or as soon thereafter as practicable, on each Business Day.
The Trust's investment objective is for the Shares to closely reflect the Index less the Trust's liabilities and expenses. The Trust's NAV and NAV per Share will be determined, in part, by reference to the
LBMA Gold Price and the value of the Trust’s holdings in cash. See "Valuation of the Trust's Physical Gold Holdings" and “Valuation of the Trust’s Cash Holdings" below.
|
|
The Shares
|
The Trust issues and redeems Shares at NAV with Authorized Participants and only in large blocks of 10,000 shares (each block of Shares is called a “Creation Unit”) or multiples thereof in exchange for cash.
Except when aggregated in Creation Units, the Shares are not redeemable securities of the Trust.
Individual Shares may be purchased and sold only on the Exchange through brokers. Because the Shares will trade at market prices rather than NAV, Shares may trade at prices greater than NAV (at a premium), at
NAV, or less than NAV (at a discount).
Retail investors may purchase and sell Shares through traditional brokerage accounts. Purchases or sales of Shares may be subject to brokerage commissions. Investors are encouraged to review the terms of
their brokerage accounts for applicable charges.
Shares issued by the Trust will be registered in a book-entry system and held in the name of "Cede & Co." at the facilities of DTC, and one or more global certificates issued by the Trust to DTC will
evidence the Shares.
|
The Sponsor, on each Rebalance Date, shall instruct the Representative to purchase and/or sell Physical Gold. In addition, the Administrator, acting pursuant to instructions from the Sponsor, shall, on the
Rebalance Date, instruct the Cash Custodian to pay amounts due and payable by the Trust as of the Determination Date.
|
|||
Gold Custodian
|
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. will serve as the Trust's Physical Gold custodian (in such capacity, "Gold Custodian"). The Gold Custodian is responsible for the safekeeping of the Trust’s Physical Gold and
supplying inventory information to the Trust. The Gold Custodian is also responsible for facilitating the transfer of Physical Gold in and out of the Trust. The Gold Custodian must allocate, or cause to be allocated, all Physical Gold
that can be credited to an allocated account maintained at the Gold Custodian on behalf of the Trust at the close of business on each Business Day. The Gold Custodian shall safely store Physical Gold in its own vaulting facilities and any
other vaulting facility as approved by the Gold Custodian. The Trust’s Physical Gold holdings are subject to periodic audits by the Trust’s independent registered public accounting firm, as defined in the Trust’s agreement with the Gold
Custodian.
|
||
Cash Custodian
|
The Bank of New York Mellon (the "Cash Custodian") will serve as the Trust's custodian of cash pursuant to the terms and provisions of a custody agreement between the Trust and the Cash Custodian (the "Cash
Custody Agreement").
|
||
The Trust's Cash Account
|
Under the Cash Custody Agreement, the Cash Custodian will be responsible for administering and maintaining a custodial account that holds cash for the benefit of the Trust (the "Cash Account"). Pursuant to
the instruction of the Sponsor, the Cash Custodian deposits cash into the Cash Account from amounts received on account of the sale of Physical Gold. The Cash Custodian withdraws cash from the Cash Account (i) at the instruction of the
Administrator or the Sponsor to pay certain fees and expenses of the Trust, or (ii) at the instruction of the Sponsor for the purpose of settling redemption orders from Authorized Participants. See the "Description of the Trust
Documents—Description of the Cash Custody Agreement" for more information.
|
||
Risk Factors |
An investment in the Shares of the Trust involves significant risks and is suitable only for persons who can bear the economic risk of the loss of their entire investment. Certain of
these risks are highlighted below and are discussed in the section “Risk Factors” beginning on page 12 of this prospectus.
|
||
• |
There can be no assurance that the Trust will achieve its investment objective.
|
||
• | There can be no assurance that the Trust will achieve profits or avoid losses, significant or otherwise. | ||
• | An investment in Shares of the Trust carries with it the inherent risks associated with investments related to Physical Gold. | ||
• |
Fluctuations in the price of Physical Gold could materially and adversely affect an investment in the Shares because the value
|
of the Shares relates directly to the value of the Physical Gold held by the Trust. | |||
• | The price of gold is volatile and historical fluctuations in gold prices are not a reliable indicator of future gold price movements. | ||
• | Certain members of the Sponsor have no history operating an investment vehicle like the Trust, their experience may be inadequate or unsuitable to manage the Trust. | ||
• | The Trust’s NAV may not always correspond to the market price of the Shares and, as a result, Shares may trade at prices greater than NAV (at a premium), at NAV, or less than NAV (at a discount). | ||
• | Performance of the Trust may not track the Index during particular periods or over the long term. Tracking error may cause the Trust to outperform or underperform its Index. | ||
• | The Share price reported under “WGLD” is not the same as the INAV; the INAV may vary significantly from the Share price, particularly during times of volatility of gold prices. | ||
• | The Index level calculated and published by approximately 7:00 p.m. (New York City time) under “WGIX” is not the same as the IIV; the IIV may vary significantly from the Index level, particularly during times of volatility in gold prices. | ||
• | The Index has a limited operating history and may perform in unanticipated ways. | ||
• | The historical performance of the Index or gold may not be indicative of future results. | ||
•
|
The Index is not diversified, unlike other indices.
|
||
• | An investment in the Shares may be adversely affected by competition from other methods of investing in commodities, and the availability of other gold products. | ||
• | Disruptions in the ability to create or redeem Creation Units may adversely affect investors. | ||
• | The Trust may terminate and liquidate at a time that is disadvantageous to Shareholders. | ||
• | The Trust and the Shares may be negatively impacted by the effects of the spread of illnesses or other public health emergencies (such as COVID-19) on the global economy, the markets and the Trust’s service providers. | ||
• | Certain potential conflicts of interest exist between the Sponsor, its affiliates and the Trust’s Shareholders. There can be no assurance that the conflicts described herein or others may not result in adverse consequences to the Trust and its Shareholders. | ||
• | Shareholders will be subject to taxation on their allocable share of the Trust’s taxable income, whether or not they receive cash distributions. |
• | The Trust’s purchases and sales of Physical Gold will be taxed less favorably compared to other types of investments. Long-term capital gains from the sale of “collectibles,” including gold bullion, are taxed at a maximum rate of 28%, rather than the 20% rate applicable to most other long-term capital gains. | ||
|
• |
Shareholders will receive partner information tax returns on Schedule K-1, which could increase the complexity of tax returns.
|
|
Reports |
At the end of each Business Day, the Sponsor, based on information received from the Administrator, shall post to the website www.wshares.com a report detailing the following items: the LBMA Gold Price, the
value of the Physical Gold, the value of cash, the Trust's NAV, the Trust's NAV per Share and such other information required to be posted pursuant to the requirements of the Exchange. On the first Business Day after the Rebalance Date, the
updated weights for Physical Gold and cash for the Index are posted to the Trust's website.
After the end of each fiscal year, the Trust will cause to be prepared an annual report containing audited financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP for the Trust. In addition to the annual
report, the Trust will cause quarterly and required periodic reports to be prepared, filed with the SEC and the Exchange.
|
||
The Trust is responsible for the registration and qualification of the Shares under the federal securities laws and any other securities laws of the United States or any other jurisdiction as the Trust may
select.
The Trust will make elections, file or cause to be filed tax returns and prepare, disseminate and file tax reports, as advised by its counsel or accountants and/or as required by any applicable statute, rule
or regulation.
A website at www.wshares.com will be maintained for Shareholders that will contain the reports and financial statements set forth above. The website will generally be updated as of each Business Day by
approximately 7:00 p.m. (New York City time).
|
|||
Principal Offices
|
The Trust's principal office is located at 2 Park Avenue, 20th Floor, New York, New York 10016, and its telephone number is (917) 671-9097.
|
||
Emerging Growth Company Status
|
The Trust qualifies as an "emerging growth company," as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the "JOBS Act"). An emerging growth company may take advantage of specified reduced
reporting requirements and is relieved of certain other significant requirements that are otherwise generally applicable to public companies. As an emerging growth company, among other things:
|
||
• | The Trust is exempt from the requirement to obtain an attestation and report from its auditors on the assessment of its internal control over financial reporting pursuant to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the "Sarbanes-Oxley Act"); | ||
• |
The Trust is exempt from compliance with any requirement that the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (the "PCAOB") may adopt regarding mandatory audit firm rotation
|
or a supplement to the auditor's report providing additional information about the audit and the financial statements; | |||
• | The Trust is permitted to provide less extensive disclosure about executive compensation arrangements; | ||
• | The Trust is not required to give Shareholders non-binding advisory votes on executive compensation or golden parachute arrangements; | ||
• | The Trust is granted the ability to present more limited financial data in this registration statement, of which this prospectus is a part; and | ||
• | The Trust may elect not to use an extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards. | ||
The Trust may take advantage of these provisions for up to five years from the last day of its fiscal year following the date of this prospectus or such earlier time that the Trust is no longer an emerging
growth company. The Trust will cease to be an emerging growth company by 2025 or if it has more than $1.07 billion in annual revenues, has more than $700 million in market value of its common shares held by non-affiliates of issues more
than $1.0 billion of non-convertible debt securities over a three-year period. The Trust may choose to take advantage of some but not all of these reduced burdens. The Trust has elected not to opt-out of such extended transition period,
which means that when a new or revised accounting standard is issued, and it has different application dates for public or private companies, the Trust, as an emerging growth company, may elect not to adopt the new or revised standard until
the time private companies are required to adopt the new or revised standard.
|
|||
Ticker and Other Symbols
|
Shares: WGLD (NYSE)
Index level: WGIX (Bloomberg) and .WGIX (Refinitiv)
|
|
• |
Global or regional political, economic or financial events and situations, especially those unexpected in nature;
|
|
• |
Interest rates in fiat currencies;
|
|
• |
Currency exchange rates, including the rates at which gold is priced in exchanges and trading venues around the world;
|
|
• |
Investment and trading activities of large investors, including private and registered trusts, hedge funds and commodity funds, commodity pools, that may directly or indirectly invest in gold;
|
|
• |
Changes in economic variables such as economic output and growth, and monetary policies;
|
|
• |
Changes in global gold supply and demand; and
|
|
• |
Investor and speculator attitude and confidence toward gold.
|
|
• |
the Sponsor and its respective affiliates will be indemnified pursuant to the Trust Agreement;
|
|
• |
allocating resources among different clients and potential future business ventures, to each of which they owe fiduciary duties, is the responsibility of the Sponsor;
|
|
• |
the Sponsor's respective staff also service affiliates of the Sponsor and its respective clients. Time or resources to the management of the business and affairs of the Trust must be shared with other clients;
|
|
• |
the Trust Agreement does not prohibit the Sponsor, its respective affiliates and their respective officers and employees from engaging in other businesses or activities that might be in direct competition with the Trust;
|
|
• |
there has been no independent due diligence conducted with respect to this offering, where applicable, and there is an absence of arm's-length negotiation with respect to certain terms of the Trust; and
|
|
• |
the Sponsor decides whether to obtain third party services for the Trust.
|
Realized Volatility of LBMA Gold Price PM
|
Realized Volatility of S&P 500 Index
|
Weight of Physical Gold Component for Next Month
|
|
Scenario 1
|
15.0%
|
12.0%
|
100.0%
|
Scenario 2
|
20.0%
|
12.0%
|
75.0%
|
Scenario 3
|
20.0%
|
15.0%
|
90.0%
|
Cumulative Return
|
Annualized Volatility**
|
||||||||||||||||
Index
|
Gold
|
Index
|
Gold
|
||||||||||||||
20-year
|
1/4/2000-10/30/2020
|
715.2
|
%
|
568.5
|
%
|
15.4
|
%
|
17.4
|
%
|
||||||||
10-year
|
10/29/2010-10/30/2020
|
61.1
|
%
|
39.7
|
%
|
14.3
|
%
|
16.1
|
%
|
||||||||
5-year
|
10/30/2015-10/30/2020
|
67.2
|
%
|
64.7
|
%
|
13.4
|
%
|
14.1
|
%
|
||||||||
2-year
|
10/31/2018-10/30/2020
|
54.9
|
%
|
53.6
|
%
|
14.9
|
%
|
15.6
|
%
|
||||||||
1-year
|
10/31/2019-10/30/2020
|
27.4
|
%
|
26.1
|
%
|
18.0
|
%
|
18.9
|
%
|
||||||||
Great Recession
|
|||||||||||||||||
12/31/2007 – 3/31/2009
|
15.7
|
%
|
9.9
|
%
|
27.0
|
%
|
31.4
|
%
|
|||||||||
First Decade in the 2000's
|
|||||||||||||||||
1/4/2000-12/31/2009
|
315.7
|
%
|
286.3
|
%
|
16.4
|
%
|
18.7
|
%
|
Index
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Number of Years
|
1
|
2
|
5
|
10
|
All**
|
|||||||||||||||
Annualized Internal Rate of Return
|
27.4
|
%
|
24.4
|
%
|
10.8
|
%
|
4.9
|
%
|
10.6
|
%
|
||||||||||
Gold
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Annualized Internal Rate of Return
|
26.1
|
%
|
23.9
|
%
|
10.5
|
%
|
3.4
|
%
|
9.5
|
%
|
||||||||||
|
• |
The LBMA PM Gold Fixing is not available due to:
|
|
o |
The London Gold Market/LBMA being closed;
|
|
o |
Technical disruptions exist causing no LBMA PM Fixing to be calculated or published;
|
|
o |
ICE or LBMA ceases to publish;
|
|
o |
A public statement or publication of information by the regulatory supervisor or the administrator of the LBMA announcing that the LBMA is no longer representative of gold prices; or
|
|
o |
A force majeure event has occurred.
|
|
• |
The S&P 500® Index level is not available due to:
|
|
o |
The S&P 500® Index level has not been published; or
|
|
o |
A force majeure event has occurred.
|
|
1. |
Determine the LBMA Gold Price—see “Calculation of the Trust's NAV”; and
|
|
2. |
Multiply the LBMA Gold Price by the amount of Physical Gold owned by the Trust as of the Evaluation Time on such day.
|
|
• |
any material breach by the Sponsor, its affiliates, or any of their respective agents or employees, of any provision of the Authorized Participant Agreement, including any representations, warranties and covenants by any of them except
that the Sponsor will not be required to indemnify a Sponsor Indemnified Party (as defined in the Authorized Participant Agreement) to the extent that such failure was caused by the strict adherence to instructions reasonably given by one or
more Sponsor Indemnified Parties therein;
|
|
• |
any material failure on the part of the Sponsor to perform any obligation of the Sponsor set forth in the Authorized Participant Agreement except that the Sponsor will not be required to indemnify a Sponsor Indemnified Party (as defined in
the Authorized Participant Agreement) to the extent that such failure was caused by the strict adherence to instructions reasonably given by one or more Sponsor Indemnified Parties;
|
|
• |
any failure by the Sponsor to comply with applicable laws and regulations in connection with the Authorized Participant Agreement;
|
|
• |
any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the registration statement of the Trust as originally filed with the SEC, or in any amendment thereof, or in any prospectus, or in any amendment thereof or
supplement thereto, or in certain marketing materials, or arising out of or based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading,
except those statements in the registration statement or the prospectus based on information furnished in writing by or on behalf of the Authorized Participant expressly for use in the registration statement or the prospectus.
|
|
• |
Upon the withdrawal or the adjudication or admission of bankruptcy or insolvency of the Sponsor unless within ninety (90) days of such event, Shareholders holding at least fifty-one percent (51%) of the outstanding Shares of the Trust as
of the Record Date (not including Shares held by the Sponsor or its affiliates) agree in writing to continue the Trust and to select, effective as of the date of such event, one or more successor sponsors;
|
|
• |
Shares are delisted from the Exchange and are not approved for listing on another national securities exchange within five (5) Business Days of their delisting;
|
|
• |
The Trust becomes insolvent or bankrupt;
|
|
• |
All of the Trust's assets are sold;
|
|
• |
The SEC determines that the Trust is an investment company required to be registered under the Investment Company Act, and the Sponsor has made the determination that dissolution of the Trust is advisable;
|
|
• |
Sixty (60) days have elapsed since DTC or another depository has ceased to act as depository with respect to the Shares, and the Sponsor has not identified another depository that is willing to act in such capacity;
|
|
• |
After any Service Provider resigns or otherwise ceases to act in such capacity with respect to the Trust, and no replacement Service Provider is engaged, the Sponsor makes a determination that dissolution of the Trust is advisable; or
|
|
• |
The Sponsor, in its sole discretion, determines for any other reason to dissolve the Trust.
|
Nature of Payment
|
Recipient
|
Payor
|
Amount of Payment
|
Services Provided
|
Selling Commission
|
Authorized Participants
|
Shareholders
|
No greater than 2% of the gross offering proceeds.
|
Brokering purchases and sales of the Shares and creating and redeeming Creation Units.
|
Marketing Services Fee
|
Marketing Agent
|
Trust
|
A range from 0.005% - 0.01% per annum of the Trust’s assets during each year calculated in U.S. dollars; subject to an annual minimum fee based on the total number of funds, at $15,000 per fund, and not to exceed 7.5% of the gross offering
proceeds.
|
Works with the Sponsor, the Trust, and the Transfer Agent to facilitate the execution of Authorized Participant Agreements; reviews all proposed advertising materials and sales literature and files with appropriate regulators; reviews and
accepts creation and redemption orders from Authorized Participants; and provides other ancillary services related to the Marketing Agent services.
|
Advertising Compliance Review
|
Marketing Agent
|
Trust
|
$125 per communication piece for the first 10 pages, $10 per page thereafter.
$600 per communication piece requiring expedited review (within 24 hours) for the first 10 pages, $25 per page thereafter.
|
See above.
|
Additional Marketing Agent Fees and Expense Reimbursements
|
Marketing Agent
|
Trust
|
Various one-time setup and fixed fees and out-of-pocket expense reimbursements, not to exceed 0.5% of the gross offering proceeds.
|
See above.
|
Assets:
|
||||
Cash
|
$
|
18
|
||
Total Assets
|
$
|
18
|
||
Liabilities:
|
||||
Total Liabilities
|
$
|
0
|
||
Net Assets (1 Share issued and outstanding, no par value, unlimited number of shares authorized)
|
$
|
18
|
||
Net asset value per Share
|
$
|
18.00
|
Item 13. |
Other Expenses of Issuance and Distribution.
|
SEC registration fee
|
$
|
49,095
|
||
NYSE Arca, Inc. listing fee
|
0
|
|||
Legal fees and expenses
|
30,000
|
|||
Accounting fees and expenses
|
0
|
|||
Printing and engraving costs
|
0
|
|||
Transfer agent and marketing agent fees
|
20,000
|
|||
Miscellaneous
|
0
|
|||
Total
|
$
|
99,095
|
Item 14. |
Indemnification of Directors and Officers.
|
Item 15. |
Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities.
|
Item 16. |
Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules.
|
1.1
|
|
4.1
|
|
4.2
|
Certificate of Trust (attached as Exhibit A to the Amended and Restated Trust Agreement)
|
5.1
|
|
8.1
|
|
10.1*
|
|
10.2*
|
|
10.3
|
|
10.4*
|
|
10.5
|
|
10.6*
|
|
10.7
|
|
10.8
|
|
10.9*
|
|
23.1
|
|
23.2
|
Consent of Seward & Kissel LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1)
|
23.3
|
Consent of Seward & Kissel LLP (included in Exhibit 8.1)
|
Item 17. |
Undertakings.
|
|
(1) |
To file, during any period in which offers, or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:
|
|
(i) |
To include any prospectus required by section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”);
|
|
(ii) |
To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post- effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change
in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered)
and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more
than a twenty percent (20%) change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the "Calculation of Registration Fee" table in the effective registration statement; and
|
|
(iii) |
To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement.
|
|
(2) |
That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such
securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.
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|
(3) |
To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.
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|
(4) |
That, for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act to any purchaser:
|
|
(i) |
If the Registrant is relying on Rule 430B under the Securities Act:
|
|
(A) |
Each prospectus filed by the Registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3) under the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of the registration statement as of the date the filed prospectus was deemed part of and included in the registration
statement; and
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|
(B) |
Each prospectus required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2), (b)(5), or (b)(7) (§ 230.424(b)(2), (b)(5), or (b)(7) under the Securities Act) as part of a registration statement in reliance or Rule 430B relating to an offering made
pursuant to Rule 415(a)(1)(i), (vii), or (x) (§ 230.415(a)(1)(i), (vii), or (x) under the Securities Act) for the purpose of providing the information required by section 10(a) of the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of an included
in the registration statement as of the earlier of the date such form of prospectus is first used after
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|
(ii) |
If the Registrant is subject to Rule 430C under the Securities Act, each prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) as part of a registration statement relating to an offering, other than registration statements relying on Rule 430B or other
than prospectuses filed in reliance on Rule 430A under the Securities Act, shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the date it is first used after effectiveness. Provided, however, that no statement made
in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration
statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such first use, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any
such document immediately prior to such date of first use.
|
|
(5) |
That, for the purpose of determining liability of the Registrant under the Securities Act to any purchaser in the initial distribution of the securities:
|
|
(i) |
The undersigned Registrant undertakes that in a primary offering of securities of the undersigned Registrant pursuant to this registration statement, regardless of the underwriting method used to sell the securities to the purchaser, if
the securities are offered or sold to such purchaser by means of any of the following communications, the undersigned Registrant will be a seller to the purchaser and will be considered to offer or sell such securities to such purchaser;
|
|
(ii) |
Any preliminary prospectus or prospectus of the undersigned Registrant relating to the offering required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act;
|
|
(iii) |
Any free writing prospectus relating to the offering prepared by or on behalf of the undersigned Registrant or used or referred to by the undersigned Registrant;
|
|
(iv) |
The portion of any other free writing prospectus relating to the offering containing material information about the undersigned Registrant or its securities provided by or on behalf of the undersigned Registrant; and
|
|
(v) |
Any other communication that is an offer in the offering made by the undersigned Registrant to the purchaser.
|
|
(6) |
That insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant
has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification
against such
|
|
||
|
|
|
|
By: Wilshire Phoenix Funds LLC, as Sponsor of the Trust
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
By:
|
/s/ William Herrmann
|
|
|
Name: William Herrmann
|
|
|
Title: Managing Partner
|
|
|
|
Signature
|
|
Title
|
Date
|
|
|
|
|
/s/ William Herrmann
|
|
Managing Partner of Wilshire Phoenix Funds LLC (serving in the capacity of principal executive officer and director)
|
December 18, 2020
|
William Herrmann
|
|
|
|
/s/ William Cai
|
|
Partner of Wilshire Phoenix Funds LLC (serving in the capacity of principal financial officer and principal accounting officer and director)
|
December 18, 2020
|
William Cai
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Certified By: __________________
Name: __________________
Title: __________________
Date: __________________
|
ARTICLE I DEFINITIONS AND OTHER PROVISIONS OF GENERAL APPLICATION
|
A-1
|
Section 1.01
|
Definitions
|
A-1
|
|
Section 1.02
|
Interpretation
|
A-3
|
|
Section 1.03
|
Conflicts
|
A-3
|
ARTICLE II CREATION PROCEDURES
|
A-3
|
Section 2.01
|
Creations of Shares
|
A-6
|
ARTICLE III REDEMPTION PROCEDURES
|
A-6
|
Section 3.01
|
Redemption of Shares
|
A-6
|
ARTICLE I
DEFINITIONS AND RULES OF CONSTRUCTION |
||
Section 1.1
|
Definitions
|
1
|
Section 1.2
|
Rules of Construction
|
6
|
ARTICLE II
CREATION AND DECLARATION OF TRUST |
||
Section 2.1
|
Creation and Declaration of Trust; Business of the Trust
|
7
|
Section 2.2
|
Legal Title
|
7
|
Section 2.3
|
Book-Entry System; Transferability of Shares
|
7
|
Section 2.4
|
Issuance and Redemption of Shares; General
|
8
|
Section 2.5
|
Purchase Orders
|
8
|
Section 2.6
|
Delivery of Shares
|
9
|
Section 2.7
|
Registration and Registration of Transfer of Shares
|
9
|
Section 2.8
|
Redemption of Shares and Withdrawal of Trust Property
|
9
|
Section 2.9
|
Limitations on Issuance and Delivery, Registration of Transfer and Surrender of Shares
|
10
|
Section 2.10
|
Splits and Reverse Splits of Shares
|
10
|
ARTICLE III
CERTAIN OBLIGATIONS OF REGISTERED OWNERS |
||
Section 3.1
|
Limitation on Liability
|
11
|
Section 3.2
|
Liability of Registered Owner for Taxes and Other Governmental Charges
|
11
|
ARTICLE IV
ADMINISTRATION OF THE TRUST |
||
Section 4.1
|
Valuation of Trust Property
|
11
|
Section 4.2
|
Responsibility of the Sponsor for Determinations
|
12
|
Section 4.3
|
Cash Distributions
|
12
|
Section 4.4
|
Other Distributions
|
12
|
Section 4.5
|
Fixing of Record Date
|
12
|
Section 4.6
|
Payment of Expenses; Sales of Trust Property
|
13
|
Section 4.7
|
Statements and Reports
|
14
|
Section 4.8
|
Further Provisions for Sales of Trust Property
|
14
|
Section 4.9
|
Counsel
|
15
|
Section 4.10
|
Tax Matters
|
15
|
ARTICLE V
THE DELAWARE TRUSTEE AND THE SPONSOR |
||
Section 5.1
|
Management of the Trust
|
18
|
Section 5.2
|
Maintenance of Office and Transfer Books by the Transfer Agent
|
18
|
Section 5.3
|
Authority of the Sponsor
|
19
|
Section 5.4
|
Prevention or Delay in Performance by the Sponsor or the Delaware Trustee
|
19
|
Section 5.5
|
Liability of Covered Persons
|
19
|
Section 5.6
|
Duties
|
21
|
Section 5.7
|
Obligations of the Sponsor and the Delaware Trustee
|
23
|
Section 5.8
|
Delegation of Obligations of the Sponsor
|
23
|
Section 5.9
|
Appointment of Successor Sponsor or Sponsors
|
24
|
Section 5.10
|
Resignation or Removal of the Delaware Trustee; Appointment of Successor Delaware Trustee
|
25
|
Section 5.11
|
Custodians
|
25
|
Section 5.12
|
Indemnification
|
26
|
Section 5.13
|
Reserved
|
27
|
Section 5.14
|
Charges of the Sponsor
|
27
|
Section 5.15
|
Retention of Trust Documents
|
28
|
Section 5.16
|
Federal Securities Law Filings
|
28
|
Section 5.17
|
Prospectus Delivery
|
28
|
Section 5.18
|
Discretionary Actions by Sponsor; Consultation
|
28
|
Section 5.19
|
Delaware Trustee
|
28
|
Section 5.20
|
Compensation and Expenses of the Delaware Trustee
|
29
|
ARTICLE VI
AMENDMENT AND TERMINATION |
||
Section 6.1
|
Amendment
|
30
|
Section 6.2
|
Termination
|
31
|
ARTICLE VII
MISCELLANEOUS |
Section 7.1
|
Counterparts
|
33
|
Section 7.2
|
Derivative Actions; Third-Party Beneficiaries
|
33
|
Section 7.3
|
Severability
|
33
|
Section 7.4
|
Notices
|
34
|
Section 7.5
|
Governing Law; Consent to Jurisdiction
|
34
|
Section 7.6
|
Headings
|
35
|
Section 7.7
|
Binding Effect; Entire Agreement
|
35
|
Section 7.8
|
Provisions in Conflict With Law or Regulations
|
35
|
Section 7.9
|
Conditions to Effectiveness of Amendments
|
35
|
EXHIBIT A
|
CERTIFICATE OF TRUST
|
|
ANNEX I
|
CAPITAL ACCOUNTS, DISTRIBUTIONS AND ALLOCATIONS
|
WILSHIRE PHOENIX FUNDS LLC,
|
||
as Sponsor
|
||
By:
|
||
Name:
|
||
Title:
|
||
DELAWARE TRUST COMPANY,
|
||
as Delaware Trustee
|
||
By:
|
||
Name:
|
||
Title:
|
|
1. |
Name. The name of the statutory trust formed by this Certificate of Trust
is United States Gold and Treasury Investment Trust.
|
|
2. |
Delaware Trustee. The name and address of the trustee of the Trust with a
principal place of business in the State of Delaware are Delaware Trust Company, 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington DE 19808, Attention: Corporate Trust Administration.
|
|
3. |
Effective Date. This Certificate of Trust shall be effective upon filing.
|
DELAWARE TRUST COMPANY, not in its individual capacity but solely as Delaware Trustee of the Trust
By: /s/ Alan R. Halpern Name: Alan R. Halpern Title: Vice Present |
|
1. |
Name. The name of the statutory trust amended hereby is United States Gold
and Treasury Investment Trust.
|
|
2. |
Amendment to Certificate of Trust. The Trust's Certificate of Trust is
hereby amended by changing the name of the Trust to Wilshire wShares Enhanced Gold Trust.
|
|
3. |
Effective Date. This Certificate of Amendment shall be effective upon
filing.
|
DELAWARE TRUST COMPANY, not in its individual capacity but solely as Delaware Trustee of the Trust
|
||||
By:
|
/s/ James L. Grier
|
|||
Name:
|
James L. Grier
|
|||
Title:
|
Assistant Vice President
|
Clause
|
Page
|
1.
|
INTERPRETATION
|
3
|
2.
|
ALLOCATED ACCOUNTS
|
5
|
3.
|
DEPOSITS
|
6
|
4.
|
WITHDRAWALS
|
8
|
5.
|
INSTRUCTIONS
|
10
|
6.
|
CONFIDENTIALITY
|
11
|
7.
|
CUSTODY SERVICES
|
12
|
8.
|
SUB-CUSTODIANS
|
14
|
9.
|
REPRESENTATIONS
|
14
|
10.
|
SANCTIONS
|
15
|
11.
|
FEES AND EXPENSES
|
16
|
12.
|
SCOPE OF RESPONSIBILITY
|
17
|
13.
|
TERMINATION
|
20
|
14.
|
VALUE ADDED TAX
|
20
|
15.
|
NOTICES
|
21
|
16.
|
GENERAL
|
22
|
17.
|
GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION
|
23
|
(1) |
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.; a company incorporated with limited liability as a National Banking Association, whose principal London Office is at 25 Bank Street, Canary Wharf, E14 5JP, London, United
Kingdom ("we" or "us"); and
|
(2) |
Wilshire wShares Enhanced Gold Trust, a Delaware statutory trust organized under the laws of the State of Delaware, whose principal office is at 2 Park Avenue, 20th Floor, New York, New
York 10016, United States of America ("you" or the "Trust").
|
1. |
INTERPRETATION
|
1.1 |
Definitions: In this Agreement:
|
|
(i) |
the United Nations Security Council;
|
|
(ii) |
the European Union;
|
|
(iii) |
Her Majesty's Treasury and the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation of the United Kingdom; and
|
|
(iv) |
The Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of Treasury of the United States of America.
|
1.2 |
Headings: The headings in this Agreement do not affect its interpretation.
|
1.3 |
Singular and plural: References to the singular include the plural and vice versa.
|
2. |
ALLOCATED ACCOUNTS
|
2.1 |
Opening Allocated Accounts: We shall open and maintain one or more Allocated Accounts in respect of each Precious Metal which you ask us, and we agree, to hold for you on an allocated basis on the
terms of this Agreement.
|
2.2 |
Denomination of Allocated Accounts: The Precious Metals recorded in Allocated Accounts shall be denominated: in the case of Gold, in fine troy ounces of Gold (to three decimal places); in the case of
silver, in troy ounces of silver (to at least one decimal place); and, in the case of any other metal, in such denomination as is provided for in the Rules or if there is no such provision, such denomination as may be agreed between us.
|
2.3 |
Reports: We will provide reports to you relating to deposits into and withdrawals from the Allocated Accounts and the Account Balance on each Allocated Account in such form and with such frequency as
required (but not less than annually), and containing such information, as may be agreed between us, or as otherwise specified in the Schedule. Such reports will also be available to you daily by means of eBTS, however, the paper record will
prevail.
|
2.4 |
Discrepancies: If a material error or discrepancy is noted by you on any report provided pursuant to Clause 2.3 above in relation to any activity or balances, you will promptly notify us in writing
so that we may investigate and resolve any such material error or discrepancy as soon as practicable. For the purposes of this Clause 2.4 only, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, a report shall be deemed received by you on the day
which is 2 Business Days after the date on which such report was sent by us to you in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.
|
2.5 |
Reversal of entries: We at all times reserve the right, without prior notice to you, to reverse any provisional or erroneous entries to an Allocated Account with effect back- valued to the date upon
which the final or correct entry (or no entry) should have been made (including, without limitation, where we have credited a deposit made pursuant to Clause 3.1(b) and on receipt by us of the Precious Metal we determine that it does not
comply with the Rules or that it is not the weight required by the Rules for the amount of the relevant Precious Metal which you notified to us for deposit), but shall notify you in writing as soon as reasonably practicable of any such
reversals.
|
3. |
DEPOSITS
|
3.1 |
Procedure: You may at any time notify us of your intention to deposit Precious Metal in an Allocated Account. A deposit may be made (in the manner and accompanied by such documentation as we may
require) by:
|
|
(a) |
procuring a book-entry transfer: (i) to us by arranging that our account with a Sub-Custodian (as notified by us to you) with which we hold Precious Metal of the type which we have agreed to hold for you (and which has the same
denomination as the Precious Metal to which your Allocated Account relates) is credited with the specific Precious Metal (identified, whether by bar serial numbers or otherwise) to be recorded in your Allocated Account; (ii) to your Allocated
Account by you arranging that a third party for whom we maintain an allocated account holding Precious Metal of the type which we have agreed to hold for you (and which has the same denomination as the Precious Metal to which your Unallocated
Account relates) instructs us to debit from its allocated account with us and to credit to your Allocated Account the specific Precious Metal (identified, whether by bar serial numbers or otherwise) to be recorded in your Allocated Account;
or (iii) to your Allocated Account by agreeing with us that, in relation to the specific Precious Metal (identified, whether by bar serial numbers or otherwise) which we hold on an allocated basis for our own account and which is of the type
which we have agreed to hold for you (and which has the same denomination as the Precious Metal to which your Allocated Account relates), we debit from our account record of our own Precious Metal and credit to your Allocated
|
|
(b) |
the delivery of Precious Metal to us at our nominated vault premises detailed in the Schedule attached hereto, at your expense and risk. Any Precious Metal delivered to us (or to a third party holding to our order) must be in the form of
bars which comply with the Rules (including the Rules relating to good delivery and fineness) or in such other form as may be agreed between us.
|
3.2 |
In relation to deposits pursuant to Clause 3.1(a) above, until we have credited the relevant Precious Metal to your Allocated Account: (i) you accept liability for all costs (including transportation and insurance, if any) in relation to
the delivery of such Precious Metal; and (ii) you shall bear all risk of loss of such Precious Metal, whether due to theft, destruction or otherwise.
|
3.3 |
Notice requirements: Any notice relating to a deposit of Precious Metal must:
|
|
(a) |
be in writing and be received by us no later than the time specified in the Schedule attached hereto (and if not received on a Business Day or received later will be deemed to be received on the next Business Day) unless otherwise agreed;
|
|
(b) |
in the case of a deposit pursuant to Clause 3.1(a), specify the details of the account from which the Precious Metal will be transferred;
|
|
(c) |
in the case of a deposit pursuant to Clause 3.1(b), specify the name of the person or carrier that will deliver the Precious Metal to us at the vault premises specified in the Schedule attached hereto and the manner in which the Precious
Metal will be packed; and
|
|
(d) |
in any case specify the amount (in the appropriate denomination) of the Precious Metal to be credited to the Allocated Account, the Availability Date and any other information which we may from time to time require.
|
3.4 |
Timing: A deposit of Precious Metal will not be credited to an Allocated Account until:
|
|
(a) |
in the case of a deposit pursuant to Clause 3.1(a)(i), an account of ours with a Sub-Custodian has been credited with the specific Precious Metal (identified, whether by bar serial numbers or otherwise) to be recorded in your Allocated
Account;
|
|
(b) |
in the case of a deposit pursuant to Clause 3.1(a)(ii) or (iii), the corresponding account recording the allocated Precious Metal to be transferred had been
|
|
(c) |
in the case of a deposit pursuant to Clause 3.1(b), we have received the Precious Metal in accordance with Clauses 3.1 and 3.2, verified its compliance with the Rules and weighed it in accordance with LBMA practice to confirm that it is
the weight required by the Rules for the amount of the relevant Precious Metal which you notified to us for deposit.
|
3.5 |
Right to refuse Precious Metal or amend procedure: We may refuse to accept Precious Metal, and amend the procedure in relation to the deposit of Precious Metal or impose such additional procedures in
relation to the deposit of Precious Metal as we may from time to time consider appropriate to comply with the Rules. Any such amendment or additional procedures will be notified to you, in accordance with Clause 15 of this Agreement, within a
commercially reasonable amount of time before we amend our procedures, and in so doing we shall consider your needs to communicate any such change to Investors and others. Any such refusal will be promptly notified to you, in accordance with
Clause 15 of this Agreement, and will (unless otherwise specified) take effect immediately upon your receipt of such notification.
|
4. |
WITHDRAWALS
|
4.1 |
Release of Precious Metal. Precious Metal will be made available for collection at a vault premises detailed in the Schedule attached hereto or at the office of a Sub-Custodian at which the Precious
Metal is held.
|
4.2 |
Procedure: You may at any time notify us in writing of your intention to withdraw Precious Metal from your Allocated Balance. A withdrawal may be made (in the manner and accompanied by such
documentation as we may require) by a debit by us of specific Precious Metal (identified, whether by bar serial numbers or otherwise) from your Allocated Account and:
|
|
(a) |
book-entry transfer by a debit by: (i) us instructing credit of such Precious Metal to the account specified by you and maintained by our Sub-Custodian, (ii) credit by us of such Precious Metal to an allocated account maintained by us for
another of our clients (as specified by you), or (iii) where pursuant to a separate agreement with us, credit by us of such Precious Metal to our account record of Precious Metal which we hold on an allocated basis for our own account; or
|
|
(b) |
the collection of such Precious Metal from the vaults specified in the Schedule attached hereto at your expense and risk.
|
4.3 |
Notice requirements: Any notice relating to a withdrawal of Precious Metal must:
|
|
(a) |
if it relates to a withdrawal pursuant to clause 4.2(a), be received by us no later than the time specified in the Schedule attached hereto (and if received
|
|
(b) |
if it relates to a withdrawal pursuant to clause 4.2(b), be received by us no later than the time specified in the Schedule attached hereto (and if received later will be processed on the next Business Day) and specify the name of the
person or carrier that will collect the Precious Metal from us; and
|
|
(c) |
in all cases, specify the serial numbers (or otherwise identify) of the Precious Metal to be withdrawn, the total amount (in the appropriate denomination) of Precious Metal to be delivered to you or to your order, the Withdrawal Date and
any other information which we may from time to time require.
|
4.4 |
Right to amend procedure: We may amend the procedure for the withdrawal of Precious Metal from your Account Balance or impose such additional procedures as we may from time to time consider
appropriate to comply with the Rules. Any such amendments or additional procedures will be promptly notified to you, in accordance with Clause 15 of this Agreement, within a commercially reasonable amount of time before we amend our
procedures, and in so doing we shall consider your needs to communicate any such change to Investors and others.
|
4.5 |
Collection or Delivery of Precious Metals: Any additional terms and conditions (if any) relating to the collection and delivery of Precious Metals are set out
below:
|
|
(a) |
In relation to withdrawals pursuant to Clause 4.2(a), from the time at which your Allocated Account has been debited with the relevant Precious Metal: (i) you accept liability for all costs (including transportation and insurance, if any)
in relation to the delivery of such Precious Metal upon withdrawal; and (ii) you shall bear all risk of loss of such Precious Metal, whether due to theft, destruction or otherwise
|
|
(b) |
In relation to withdrawals pursuant to Clause 4.2(b), from the time at which your designated carrier takes physical delivery of the relevant Precious Metal: (i) you accept liability for all costs of transportation and insurance (if any) in
relation to the delivery of such Precious Metal upon withdrawal; and (ii) you shall bear all risk of loss of such Precious Metal, whether due to theft, destruction or otherwise. For this purpose, your designated carrier shall be deemed to
have taken physical delivery of Precious Metal once such Precious Metal is no longer in our possession or in the possession of our Sub-Custodian or agent.
|
|
(c) |
Unless specifically agreed that sub-clause (d) below applies to a withdrawal, you must collect, or arrange for the collection of, Precious Metals being withdrawn from us or our Sub-Custodian at your expense and risk. We will advise you of
the location from which the Precious Metals may be collected no later than 2 Business Days prior to the Withdrawal Date.
|
|
(d) |
Where we have agreed with you that this sub-clause (d) applies, we shall arrange delivery of the Precious Metal to you, and shall arrange such delivery, including transportation, in accordance with our usual practices. Where specific
requests are made by you regarding the method of delivery, we may
|
|
(e) |
If you do not notify us of the serial numbers of the bars (or otherwise identify) the specific Precious Metals to be withdrawn from your Account Balance, we are entitled to select which bars from those comprising your Account Balance are
to be made available to you.
|
4.6 |
Substitution: If in the future you agree (in writing) that Precious Metals comprising your Account Balance may be substituted by us for other Precious Metals, our right to do so and the terms upon
which this right may be exercised is set out as follows:
|
5. |
INSTRUCTIONS
|
5.1 |
Your representatives: We may assume that instructions have been properly authorised by you if they are given or purport to be given by a person who is, or purports to be, and is reasonably believed
by us to be, a director, employee or other authorised person acting for you.
|
5.2 |
Instructions: All transfers into and out of the Allocated Account(s) shall be made upon receipt of, and in accordance with, instructions given (or appearing to be given) by you to us. Such
instructions may be given either: (i) through eBTS, accessible through the Website by you pursuant to the terms of the Website agreement, or (ii) by SWIFT transmission, by any method of transmission set forth in Clause 15.2, or by such other
means (if any) as are specified in the Schedule or as we may agree from time to time. Unless otherwise agreed, any such instruction or communication shall be effective if given by written means. We may assume that any electronic instructions
have been validly given on your behalf. We reserve the right to obtain further validation of any instructions.
|
5.3 |
AURUM: You acknowledge that instructions relating to a counterparty for whom we do not already provide settlement services will be forwarded by us to AURUM on your behalf. You acknowledge that AURUM
is operated by a third party and that we cannot be responsible for any errors, omissions or malfunctions in the systems operated by AURUM. To the extent that AURUM is not available or suffering a malfunction, you agree that our obligations
under this Agreement shall be postponed during such unavailability or such malfunction and until a reasonable period thereafter.
|
5.4 |
Amendments: Once given, instructions continue in full force and effect until they are cancelled or amended. Any such instructions shall be valid and binding only after actual receipt by us in
accordance with Clause 15 of this Agreement.
|
5.5 |
Unclear or ambiguous instructions: If, in our opinion, any instructions are unclear or ambiguous, we will use reasonable endeavours (taking into account any relevant time constraints) to obtain
clarification of those instructions from you but, failing that, we may in our absolute discretion and without any liability on our part, act upon what we believe in good faith such instructions to be or refuse to take any action or execute
such instructions until any ambiguity or conflict has been resolved to our satisfaction.
|
5.6 |
Refusal to execute: We reserve the right to refuse to execute instructions if in our opinion they are or may be, or require action which is or may be, contrary to the Rules or any applicable law. We
shall in no circumstances have any obligation to act upon any instruction which in our opinion would result in a negative balance in any Allocated Account.
|
6. |
CONFIDENTIALITY
|
6.1 |
Disclosure to others: Subject to Clauses 6.2, 6.3 and 6.4, each Party shall respect the confidentiality of information acquired under this Agreement and neither will, without the consent of the
other, disclose to any other person any information acquired under this Agreement.
|
6.2 |
Permitted disclosures: Each Party accepts that from time to time the other Party may be required by law, or a court order or similar process, or requested by a government department or agency, fiscal
body or regulatory authority, to disclose information acquired under this Agreement. In addition, the disclosure of such information may be required by a Party's auditors, by its legal or other advisors or by a company which is in the same
group of companies as a Party (e.g. a subsidiary, or holding company of a Party). In any such case, and to the extent permitted by applicable law, the disclosing Party will notify the person to whom the disclosure is made that the information
disclosed is confidential and should not be disclosed to any third party. Each Party irrevocably authorises the other to make such disclosures without further reference to such Party.
|
6.3 |
You acknowledge that, as a member of the London Precious Metal Clearing Limited, and that from time to time in carrying out our duties and obligations under this Agreement, it may be necessary for us to disclose to LPMCL and/or other
clearing members, your account details and certain other information in order to act in accordance with your notices hereunder for the purposes of facilitating settlement. You acknowledge and accept that such disclosures may be made by us for
the purposes set out in this Clause 6.3.
|
6.4 |
Notwithstanding Sections 6.1 and 6.2, we acknowledge and agree that (i) you may reference us and summarize the material terms of this Agreement in the Registration Statement and any other offering memorandum, prospectus or marketing
documents related to an offering of the Shares by you to potential investors and (ii) you may disseminate information to Investors that is required to be provided to Investors pursuant to the terms of the Trust Agreement or the Registration
Statement.
|
7. |
CUSTODY SERVICES
|
7.1 |
Appointment: You hereby appoint us to act as custodian of the Precious Metals comprising the Account Balance in accordance with this Agreement and in accordance with any Rules and laws which apply to
us or to any Sub-Custodian.
|
7.2 |
Segregation of Precious Metals: We will segregate the Precious Metals comprising the Account Balance from any Precious Metal which we own or which we hold for our other clients, and we will request
each Sub-Custodian to segregate the Precious Metals comprising the Account Balance from any Precious Metals which it owns or which it holds for its other clients. For the avoidance of doubt, in any circumstance where we have agreed to hold
for you a quantity of Precious Metal which cannot be allocated in a whole number of physical bars, your Allocated Account will record the nearest whole number of physical bars not exceeding such quantity of Precious Metal, and the difference
between the quantity of Precious Metal comprised by such physical bars and the quantity of such Precious Metal which we have agreed to hold for you will be held by us for you as an unallocated amount of Precious Metal pursuant to the
Unallocated Precious Metals Accounts Agreement between you and us documenting the holding of unallocated Precious Metal of even date herewith.
|
7.3 |
Ownership of Precious Metals: We will identify in our books that the Precious Metals comprising the Account Balance belong to you.
|
7.4 |
Location of Precious Metals: The Precious Metals comprising the Account Balance must be held by us at the nominated vault premises detailed in the Schedule attached hereto or at the vaults of a
Sub-Custodian, as specified in the Schedule attached hereto, unless otherwise agreed between you and us.
|
7.5 |
Records: We will maintain adequate records identifying the Precious Metals as belonging to you. Such records shall include, with respect to the Allocated
Account(s), journals or other records of original entry containing an itemised daily record in detail of all receipts and deliveries of Precious Metal (including adequate information to uniquely identify each bar of Precious Metal received in
or delivered from the Allocated Account and the person from whom each bar was delivered).
|
7.6 |
[REDACTED]
|
8. |
SUB-CUSTODIANS
|
8.1 |
Sub-Custodians: We may appoint Sub-Custodians to perform any of our duties under this Agreement including the custody and safekeeping of Precious Metals comprising the Account Balance. We will use
reasonable care in the appointment of any Sub-Custodian. Precious Metal held by a Sub-Custodian shall be kept in our account at such Sub-Custodian, and we will separately identify on our books Precious Metal that is so held on your behalf.
Our account with each such Sub-Custodian will be subject only to our instructions. Any Sub-Custodian will be a member of the LBMA.
|
8.2 |
Notice: We will provide you with the name and address of any Sub-Custodian of Precious Metals comprising the Account Balance along with any other information which you may reasonably require
concerning the appointment of the Sub-Custodian.
|
8.3 |
[REDACTED]
|
8.4 |
[REDACTED]
|
9. |
REPRESENTATIONS
|
9.1 |
Each Party represents and warrants to the other, on a continuing basis that:
|
|
(a) |
it is duly constituted and validly existing under the laws of its jurisdiction of constitution;
|
|
(b) |
it has all necessary authority, powers, consents, licences and authorisations and has taken all necessary action to enable it lawfully to enter into and perform its duties and obligations under this Agreement;
|
|
(c) |
the persons entering into this Agreement on its behalf have been duly authorised to do so; and
|
|
(d) |
this Agreement and the obligations created under it constitute its legal and valid obligations which are binding upon it and enforceable against it in accordance with the terms of this Agreement (subject to applicable principles of equity)
and do not and will not violate the terms of the Rules, any applicable laws, or any order, charge or agreement by which it is bound.
|
9.2 |
In addition to (and without limitation of) the representations and warranties given by you in Clause 9.1, you represent and warrant to us, on a continuing basis, that:
|
|
(a) |
you are the beneficial owner of the Precious Metal held by us hereunder, free and clear from any and all contingent or existing charges, pledges, mortgages, security interests, encumbrances, liens or other right or claim whatsoever
permitted or created by you or any third party;
|
|
(b) |
if you are holding any Precious Metal on behalf of a third party, you have full power and authority from your client to enter into and implement this Agreement in respect of such Precious Metal, and we are entitled to deal only with you as
if you were the ultimate beneficial owner; and
|
|
(c) |
neither the signing, delivery or performance of this Agreement, nor any instruction given hereunder, will contravene, constitute a default under, or cause to be exceeded, any of the following, namely:
|
|
(i) |
any Rules, or any other law or agreement by which you, us or any relevant client for whom you hold Precious Metal are bound or affected; or
|
|
(ii) |
rights of any third parties in relation to you or the Precious Metal held hereunder.
|
10. |
SANCTIONS
|
10.1 |
In addition to (and without limitation of) the representations and warranties given by you in Clause 9.1 and Clause 9.2 above, you represent, warrant and undertake, on a continuing basis, that:
|
|
(a) |
you are not a person or entity that is named on any Sanctions List or directly or indirectly targeted under any Sanctions;
|
|
(b) |
you are not acting in violation of any applicable Sanctions;
|
|
(c) |
you shall comply with all applicable laws, regulations, codes and sanctions relating to your operations, wherever conducted, and in particular relating to human rights, bribery, corruption, money-laundering, accounting and financial
controls and anti-terrorism, including but not limited to the UK Bribery Act 2010;
|
|
(d) |
you have adequate risk management and compliance procedures in place and have taken necessary measures (including screening clients for sanctions, money laundering and anti-bribery and corruption) to ensure continued compliance with the
Rules and with the ongoing requirements of any Sanctioning Body;
|
|
(e) |
you have conducted adequate due diligence on any person that you direct we transfer Precious Metals to or from under the terms of this Agreement; and
|
|
(f) |
you will not cause us to hold any Precious Metals that originate from financial crime or are being or have been used to facilitate the violation of any Sanctions.
|
10.2 |
You agree that neither any Precious Metals nor the proceeds of any Precious Metals will be used by you in any way to fund the activities or business of any person or entity in any country or territory subject to Sanctions or included in
any Sanctions List. You further agree that we shall be under no obligation to comply with a notice of withdrawal delivered pursuant to Clause 4.1 where we have reasonable grounds to suspect that any such withdrawal may in any way be used to
fund the activities or business of any person or entity in any country or territory subject to Sanctions or included in any Sanctions List.
|
10.3 |
If at any time you become aware of any breach by you of Clauses 10.1 or 10.2 above after the date of this Agreement and before the later of (i) termination of this Agreement and (ii) the date that all obligations under this Agreement are
fully and finally discharged, you shall promptly notify us in writing with full details of such breach together with, promptly following any request from us to do so, any other information we may reasonably request in connection with such
breach.
|
10.4 |
In the event that you breach any of Clauses 10.1 to 10.3 above, or if we have reasonable grounds to believe that you have breached any of Clauses 10.1 to 10.3 above, we shall have the right to terminate this Agreement forthwith upon
written notice. In the event of termination of this Agreement pursuant to this Clause 10.4, you agree to indemnify us and hold us harmless against any and all losses, costs and liabilities incurred as a direct consequence of such termination.
|
10.5 |
Nothing in this Agreement shall require a Party to take any action or to refrain from taking any action which may cause that Party any liability to or imposed by a Sanctioning Body.
|
11. |
FEES AND EXPENSES
|
11.1 |
Fees: You will pay us such fees as we from time to time agree with you as set out in the Schedule attached hereto. We reserve the right to amend the fee structure from time to time with your prior
written consent. Details of changes to the charges (including transfer, clearing and storage charges) will be advised to you by us in writing no less than 30 days before becoming effective.
|
11.2 |
Expenses: You must pay us on demand all reasonable costs, charges and expenses (including any relevant taxes, duties, and legal fees) incurred by us in connection with the performance of our duties
and obligations under this Agreement or otherwise in connection with any Allocated Account (including without limitation any delivery, collection or storage costs). You shall be liable for all taxes, assessments, duties and other governmental
charges, including any interest or penalty with respect thereto ("Taxes"), with respect to any Allocated Account maintained by us pursuant to this Agreement or any deposits or withdrawals related
thereto. You shall indemnify us for the amount of any Tax that we are required under applicable laws (whether by assessment or otherwise) to pay in respect of each Allocated Account or any deposits or withdrawals related thereto (including
any payment of Tax required by reason of an earlier failure to withhold); [REDACTED]. In the event that we are required under applicable law to pay any Tax on your behalf, we are hereby authorised,
without prior notice to you, to debit from the credit balance of any or all of the Allocated Accounts an amount equal to the quotient of (x) the principal amount of the relevant Tax payable by us, divided by (y) the Spot Rate. If the
aggregate credit balance of the Allocated Accounts is not sufficient to pay such Tax, we will notify you of an additional amount of cash required and you shall directly deposit such additional amount of cash (in the appropriate currency) to
an account specified by us promptly following the date on which our notice to you that such amount is required becomes effective in accordance with this Agreement.
|
11.3 |
Credit balances: No interest or other amount will be paid by us on any credit balance on an Allocated Account unless otherwise agreed between us.
|
11.4 |
Debit balances: You are not entitled to overdraw an Allocated Account, and we shall not carry out any instruction from you where to do so would in our opinion cause any Allocated Account to have a
negative balance.
|
11.5 |
Default interest: If you fail to pay us any amount when it is due, we reserve the right to charge [REDACTED] on any such unpaid amount. Interest will accrue
on a daily basis, on a compound basis with monthly resets, and will be due and payable by you as a separate debt.
|
12. |
SCOPE OF RESPONSIBILITY
|
12.1 |
Exclusion of liability: We will adhere to the standards of a Reasonable and Prudent Custodian at all times in the performance of our duties under this Agreement, and we will only be responsible for
any loss or damage suffered by you as a direct result of any negligence, fraud or wilful default on our part in the performance of our duties (including as set out in Clause 8.3), and in which case our liability will not exceed the aggregate
market value of the Account Balance at the time of such negligence, fraud or wilful default (calculating the value using the next available prices for Precious Metals of the same type and amount on the relevant London Precious Metals Markets
following the occurrence of such negligence, fraud or wilful default). We shall not in any event be liable for any
|
12.2 |
No duty or obligation: We are under no duty or obligation to make or take, or require any Sub-Custodian to make or take, any special arrangements or precautions beyond those required by the Rules.
|
12.3 |
[REDACTED]
|
12.4 |
Force majeure: We shall not be liable to you for any delay in performance, or for the non-performance of, any of our obligations under this Agreement by reason of any cause beyond our reasonable
control. This includes any breakdown, malfunction or failure of, or in connection with, any communication, computer, transmission, clearing or settlement facilities, industrial action, acts and regulations of any governmental or supra
national bodies or authorities, or the rules of any relevant regulatory or self-regulatory organisation.
|
12.5 |
Indemnity: You shall indemnify and keep us indemnified (on an after tax basis) on demand against all costs and expenses, damages, liabilities and losses which we may suffer or incur, directly or
indirectly in connection with this Agreement except to the extent that such sums are due directly to our negligence, wilful default or fraud.
|
12.6 |
Lien and power of sale: We shall exercise such lien and power of sale rights (if any) in respect of the Precious Metals held for you below. Without prejudice to any lien or power of sale rights which
we may have pursuant to this clause, or which any Sub-Custodian may have pursuant to the terms on which it holds Precious Metals for us, we shall not pledge, or create any security interest over, any Precious Metal held for you unless
otherwise agreed with you in writing.
|
12.7 |
Our interests and affiliates' interests: We have the right, without notifying you, to act upon your instructions even where:
|
|
(a) |
we, directly or indirectly, have an interest in the consequences of such instruction or action;
|
|
(b) |
we process your instructions on an aggregated basis together with similar instructions from other clients; or
|
|
(c) |
we have a relationship with another party which does or may create a conflict with our duty to you, including (without prejudice) circumstances where we or any of our associates may: (i) act as financial adviser, banker or otherwise
provide services to your contract counterparty; (ii) act in the same arrangement as agent for more than one client; or (iii) earn profits from any of the activities listed herein.
|
13. |
TERMINATION
|
13.1 |
Method:
|
|
(a) |
You may terminate this Agreement (i) by giving not less than forty-five (45) Business Days written notice to us, or (ii) immediately by written notice to us in the event of (1) the presentation of a winding up order, bankruptcy or
analogous event in relation to us, or (2) the occurrence of an event specified in Clause 10.4 of this Agreement.
|
|
(b) |
We may terminate this Agreement (i) by giving not less than sixty (60) Business Days written notice to you, or (ii) immediately by written notice in the event of the presentation of a winding up order, bankruptcy or analogous event in
relation to you.
|
13.2 |
Any notice given by you under Clause 13.1 must specify:
|
|
(a) |
the date on which the termination will take effect (the "Termination Date");
|
|
(b) |
the person to whom each Account Balance is to be delivered; and
|
|
(c) |
all other necessary arrangements for the delivery of the Account Balance to you or to your order.
|
13.3 |
Redelivery arrangements: If you do not make arrangements acceptable to us for the delivery of the Account Balance to you or to your order, we may continue to hold the Precious Metals constituting
such Account Balance, in which case we will continue to charge the fees and expenses payable under Clause 10. If you have not made arrangements acceptable to us for the delivery of the Account Balance within 6 months of the Termination Date,
we will be entitled to close each Allocated Account and sell the Precious Metals constituting each Account Balance (at such time and on such markets as we consider appropriate) and account to you for the proceeds after deducting any amounts
due to us under this Agreement.
|
13.4 |
Existing rights: Termination shall not affect rights and obligations then outstanding under this Agreement which shall continue to be governed by this Agreement until all obligations have been fully
performed. [REDACTED]
|
13.5 |
eBTS: Effective the Termination Date the use of the Website will automatically be terminated and no further access to the Website will be permitted.
|
14. |
VALUE ADDED TAX
|
14.1 |
VAT exclusive: All sums payable under this Agreement by you to us shall be deemed to be exclusive of VAT.
|
14.2 |
Supplies: Where pursuant to or in connection with this Agreement, we make a supply to you for VAT purposes and VAT is or becomes chargeable on such supply, you shall on demand pay to us (in addition
to any other consideration for such supply) a sum equal to the amount of such VAT and we shall on receipt of such payment provide you with an invoice or receipt in such form and within such period as may be prescribed by applicable law.
|
14.3 |
Deemed supplies: Where, pursuant to or in connection with this Agreement, we are deemed or treated by applicable law or the practice from time to time of the relevant fiscal authority to make a
supply for VAT purposes to any person by virtue of our or any custodian for us relinquishing physical control of any Precious Metal, and VAT is or becomes chargeable on such supply, you shall on demand pay to us a sum equal to the amount of
such VAT and we shall on receipt of such payment provide an invoice or receipt in such form and within such period as may be prescribed by applicable law to the person to which we are deemed or treated to make such supply.
|
14.4 |
Reimbursement: References to any fee, cost, expense, charge or other liability incurred by us and in respect of which we are to be reimbursed or indemnified by you under the terms of this Agreement
shall include such part of such fee, cost, expense, charge or other liability as represents any VAT. We shall not seek reimbursement of any chargeable VAT incurred by you from the relevant tax authority. If the relevant tax authority does
provide reimbursement to us for VAT incurred by you, we shall notify you within a reasonable time period after we become aware of such reimbursement.
|
15. |
NOTICES
|
15.1 |
Form: Any notice or other communication under or in connection with this Agreement may be given in writing or as otherwise specified in the Schedule. References to writing includes an electronic
transmission in a form permitted by Clause 15.2.
|
15.2 |
Method of transmission: Any notice or other communication shall be delivered personally or sent by first class post, pre-paid recorded delivery (or air mail if overseas), authenticated electronic
transmission (including fax, email and SWIFT) or such other electronic transmission as the Parties may from time to time agree, to the Party due to receive the notice or communication, at its address, number or destination set out below, or
to such other address, number or destination specified by that Party by written notice to the other:
|
15.3 |
Deemed receipt of notice: A notice or other communication under or in connection with this Agreement will be deemed received only if actually received or delivered.
|
15.4 |
Recording of calls: We may record telephone conversations without use of a warning tone. Such recordings will be our sole property and accepted by you as evidence of the orders or instructions given.
In the event of inconsistency between the written notice and oral orders or instructions, the terms of the written notice shall prevail.
|
16. |
GENERAL
|
16.1 |
No advice: Our duties and obligations under this Agreement do not include providing you with investment advice. In asking us to open and maintain the Allocated Accounts, you do so in reliance upon
your own judgement and we shall not owe to you any duty to exercise any judgement on your behalf as to the merits or suitability of any deposits into, or withdrawals from, an Allocated Account.
|
16.2 |
Rights and remedies: Our rights under this Agreement are in addition to, and independent of, any other rights which we may have at any time in relation to the Account Balance and any lien or other
rights we may have to set-off, combine or consolidate any of your accounts.
|
16.3 |
Business Day: If an obligation of a Party would otherwise be due to be performed on a day which is not a Business Day in respect of the relevant Allocated Account, such obligation shall be due to be
performed on the next succeeding Business Day in respect of that Allocated Account.
|
16.4 |
Assignment: This Agreement is for the benefit of and binding upon us both and our respective successors and assigns. You may not assign other than to a successor entity or to any entity under common
control, which we have provided prior written consent of such assignment (not to be unreasonably withheld) and which has completed all required know-your-customer and other onboarding, transfer or encumber, or purport to assign, transfer or
encumber, your right, title or interest in relation to any Allocated Account, Account Balance or Precious Metal delivered to us for deposit in your Allocated Account, or any right or obligation under this Agreement without our prior agreement
in writing.
|
16.5 |
Amendments: Unless otherwise specified in this Agreement, any amendment to this Agreement must be agreed in writing and be signed by us both. Unless otherwise agreed, an amendment will not affect any
legal rights or obligations which may already have arisen.
|
16.6 |
Partial invalidity: If any of the clauses (or part of a clause) of this Agreement becomes invalid or unenforceable in any way under the Rules or any law, the validity of the remaining clauses (or
part of a clause) will not in any way be affected or impaired.
|
16.7 |
Liability: Nothing in this Agreement shall exclude or limit any liability which cannot lawfully be excluded or limited (e.g. liability for personal injury or death caused by negligence).
|
16.8 |
Entire Agreement: This document represents the entire agreement, and supersedes any previous agreements between us relating to the subject matter of this Agreement.
|
16.9 |
Counterparts: This Agreement may be executed in any number of counterparts each of which when executed and delivered is an original, but all the counterparts together constitute the same agreement.
|
16.10 |
Liability of Sponsor. It is expressly understood and agreed by the Parties that:
|
|
(a) |
this Agreement is executed and delivered on behalf of you by the Sponsor, not individually or personally, but solely as your Sponsor in the exercise of the powers and authority conferred and vested in it;
|
|
(b) |
the representations, covenants, undertakings and agreements herein made by you are made and intended not as personal representations, undertakings and agreements by the Sponsor but are made and intended for the purpose of binding only you;
|
|
(c) |
nothing herein contained shall be construed as creating any liability on the Sponsor, individually or personally, to perform any covenant of yours either expressed or implied contained herein, all such liability, if any, being expressly
waived by the parties hereto and by any person claiming by, through or under the parties hereto; and
|
|
(d) |
under no circumstances shall the Sponsor be personally liable for the payment of any your indebtedness or expenses or be liable for the breach or failure of any obligation, duty, representation, warranty or covenant made or undertaken by
you under this Agreement or any other related document.
|
17. |
GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION
|
17.1 |
Governing law: This Agreement and any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in connection with it shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English law.
|
17.2 |
Jurisdiction: The English courts are to have non-exclusive jurisdiction to settle any disputes or claims (each a "Dispute") which may arise out of or in
connection with this Agreement, including any question regarding its existence, validity or termination, and accordingly any legal action or proceedings arising out of or in connection with this Agreement ("Proceedings")
may be brought in such courts. Each of the Parties hereto irrevocably submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of such courts and waives any objection to Proceedings in such courts whether on the grounds of venue or on the grounds that the
Proceedings have been brought in an inconvenient forum.
|
17.3 |
Arbitration: Unless otherwise specified in the Schedule, Disputes may be referred to arbitration in accordance with the terms set out in the Schedule attached hereto.
|
17.4 |
Waiver of immunity: To the extent that you may in any jurisdiction claim for yourself or your assets any immunity from suit, judgement, enforcement or otherwise howsoever, you
|
17.5 |
Third Party Rights: A person who is not a party to this Agreement has no right to enforce any term of this Agreement under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.
|
17.6 |
Service of process: If you are situated outside England and Wales, process by which any proceedings in England are begun may be served on you by being delivered to the address specified below. This
does not affect our right to serve process in another manner permitted by law.
|
Signature
|
............................................................
|
Name
|
............................................................
|
Title
|
............................................................
|
Signature
|
............................................................
|
Name
|
............................................................
|
Title
|
............................................................
|
Clause | Page | |
1.
|
INTERPRETATION
|
3
|
2.
|
UNALLOCATED ACCOUNTS
|
5
|
3.
|
DEPOSITS
|
6
|
4.
|
WITHDRAWALS
|
7
|
5.
|
INSTRUCTIONS
|
9
|
6.
|
CONFIDENTIALITY
|
9
|
7.
|
REPRESENTATIONS
|
10
|
8.
|
SANCTIONS
|
11
|
9.
|
FEES AND EXPENSES
|
12
|
10.
|
SCOPE OF RESPONSIBILITY
|
12
|
11.
|
TERMINATION
|
13
|
12.
|
VALUE ADDED TAX
|
14
|
13.
|
NOTICES
|
14
|
14.
|
GENERAL
|
15
|
15.
|
GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION
|
16
|
(1) |
JPMorgan Chase Bank , N.A., a company incorporated with limited liability as a National Banking Association, whose principal London Office is at 25 Bank Street, Canary Wharf, E14 5JP, London, United
Kingdom (“we” or “us”); and
|
(2) |
Wilshire wShares Enhanced Gold Trust, a Delaware statutory trust organized under the laws of the State of Delaware, whose principal office is at 2 Park Avenue, 20th Floor, New York, New York 10016,
United States of America (“you” or the “Trust”).
|
1. |
INTERPRETATION
|
1.1 |
Definitions: In this Agreement:
|
|
(i) |
the United Nations Security Council;
|
|
(ii) |
the European Union;
|
|
(iii) |
Her Majesty’s Treasury and the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation of the United Kingdom; and
|
|
(iv) |
The Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of Treasury of the United States of America.
|
1.2 |
Headings: The headings in this Agreement do not affect its interpretation.
|
1.3 |
Singular and plural: References to the singular include the plural and vice versa.
|
2. |
UNALLOCATED ACCOUNTS
|
2.1 |
Opening Unallocated Accounts: We shall open and maintain one or more Unallocated Accounts in respect of a quantity of Precious Metal which cannot be allocated in a whole number of physical bars that
are held under the Allocated Precious Metals Accounts Agreement, to hold Precious Metal to facilitate settlement of purchases and sales and any other Precious Metal which you ask us, and we agree, to hold for you on an unallocated basis on
the terms of this Agreement.
|
2.2 |
Denomination of Unallocated Accounts: The Precious Metals recorded in Unallocated Accounts shall be denominated: in the case of Gold, in fine troy ounces of Gold (to three decimal places); in the
case of silver, in troy ounces of silver (to at least one decimal place); and, in the case of any other metal, in such denomination as is provided for in the Rules or if there is no such provision, such denomination as may be agreed between
us.
|
2.3 |
Reports: We will provide reports to you relating to deposits into and withdrawals from the Unallocated Accounts and the Account Balance on each Unallocated Account in such form and with such
frequency as required (but not less than annually), and containing such information, as may be agreed between us, or as otherwise specified in the Schedule. Such reports will also be available to you daily by means of eBTS, however, the paper
record will prevail.
|
2.4 |
Discrepancies: If a material error or discrepancy is noted by you on any report provided pursuant to Clause 2.3 above in relation to any activity or balances, you will promptly notify us in writing
so that we may investigate and resolve any such material error or discrepancy as soon as practicable. For the purposes of this Clause 2.4 only, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, a report shall be deemed received by you on the day
which is 2 Business Days after the date on which such report was sent by us to you in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.
|
2.5 |
Reversal of entries: We at all times reserve the right, without prior notice to you, to reverse any provisional or erroneous entries to an Unallocated Account with effect back- valued to the date
upon which the final or correct entry (or no entry) should have been made (including, without limitation, where we have credited a deposit made pursuant to Clause 3.1(b) and on receipt by us of the Precious Metal we determine that it does not
comply with the Rules or that it is not the weight required by the Rules for the amount of the relevant Precious Metal which you notified to us for deposit), but shall notify you in writing as soon as reasonably practicable of any such
reversals.
|
2.6 |
Records: We will maintain adequate records identifying the Precious Metals as being credited to the Unallocated Account. Such records shall include, with respect to the Unallocated Account(s),
journals or other records of original entry containing an itemised daily record in detail of all receipts and deliveries of Precious Metal.
|
3. |
DEPOSITS
|
3.1 |
Procedure: Deposits to the Unallocated Account shall be made to the extent necessary, in connection with instructions from authorised persons with respect to deposits to the Allocated Account, to the
extent that such Precious Metal cannot be held by us under the Allocated Precious Metals Accounts Agreement and to hold Precious Metal to facilitate settlement of purchases and sales. A deposit may be made (in the manner and accompanied by
such documentation as we may require) by:
|
|
(a) |
procuring a book-entry transfer: (i) to us by arranging that our account with a third party (as notified by us to you) in which we hold Precious Metal of the type which we have agreed to hold for you (and which has the same denomination as
the Precious Metal to which your Unallocated Account relates) is credited with an amount of Precious Metal equal to the amount of Precious Metal to be recorded in your Unallocated Account; or (ii) to your Unallocated Account by you arranging
that a third party for whom we maintain an account holding Precious Metal of the type which we have agreed to hold for you (and which has the same denomination as the Precious Metal to which your Unallocated Account relates) instructs us to
debit from its account with us an amount of Precious Metal and to credit such amount to your Unallocated Account; or
|
|
(b) |
the delivery of Precious Metal to us at our nominated vault premises detailed in the Schedule attached hereto, at your expense and risk. Any Precious Metal delivered to us (or to a third party holding to our order) must be in the form of
bars which comply with the Rules (including the Rules relating to good delivery and fineness) or in such other form as may be agreed between us.
|
3.2 |
Notice requirements: Any notice relating to a deposit of Precious Metal must:
|
|
(a) |
be in writing and be received by us no later than the time specified in the Schedule attached hereto (and if not received on a Business Day or received later will be deemed to be received on the next Business Day) unless otherwise agreed;
|
|
(b) |
in the case of a deposit pursuant to Clause 3.1(a), specify the details of the account from which the Precious Metal will be transferred;
|
|
(c) |
in the case of a deposit pursuant to Clause 3.1(b), specify the name of the person or carrier that will deliver the Precious Metal to us at the vault premises specified in the Schedule attached hereto and the manner in which the Precious
Metal will be packed; and
|
|
(d) |
in any case specify the amount (in the appropriate denomination) of the Precious Metal to be credited to the Unallocated Account, the Availability Date and any other information which we may from time to time require.
|
3.3 |
Timing: A deposit of Precious Metal will not be credited to an Unallocated Account until:
|
|
(a) |
in the case of a deposit pursuant to Clause 3.1(a), an account of ours with any bank, broker or other firm has been credited with an amount equal to the amount of such deposit; and
|
|
(b) |
in the case of a deposit pursuant to Clause 3.1(b), we have received the Precious Metal in accordance with Clauses 3.1 and 3.2, verified its compliance with the Rules and weighed it in accordance with LBMA practice to confirm that it is
the weight required by the Rules for the amount of the relevant Precious Metal which you notified to us for deposit.
|
3.4 |
Right to refuse Precious Metal or amend procedure: We may refuse to accept Precious Metal, and amend the procedure in relation to the deposit of Precious Metal or impose such additional procedures in
relation to the deposit of Precious Metal as we may from time to time consider appropriate to comply with the Rules. Any such amendment or additional procedures will be notified to you in accordance with Clause 13 of this Agreement, within a
commercially reasonable amount of time before we amend our procedures, and in so doing we shall consider your needs to communicate any such change to Investors and others. Any such refusal will be promptly notified to you in accordance with
Clause 13 of this Agreement and will (unless otherwise specified) take effect immediately upon your receipt of such notification.
|
3.5 |
Allocation of Gold: We may, if applicable, at our option convert your entitlement in respect of an Unallocated Account into rights in respect of Precious Metals in an Allocated Account, and
vice-versa, on the terms in the Schedule attached hereto. Unless otherwise notified by the Trustee in writing, the Custodian shall, at the end of each London Business Day, transfer any Gold then standing to the credit of the Unallocated
Account to the Allocated Account. This may not result in a negative balance of the unallocated account unless for any rounded quantity of Precious Metal that may be debited to your Unallocated Account in connection with rounding up your
Allocated Account balance to record the nearest whole number of bars under the Allocated Account agreement.
|
4. |
WITHDRAWALS
|
4.1 |
Release of Precious Metal: Withdrawals from the Unallocated Account and transfers to the Allocated Account shall be made to the extent necessary, in connection with instructions from Authorised
Persons, to the extent that such Gold amounts to a whole number of physical bars and can be held by us under the Allocated Precious Metals Accounts Agreement, provided that such bars are not needed to facilitate settlement of Gold sales. We
will seek to minimise the amount of Gold held in the Unallocated Account by allocating, on each Business Day, bars of Gold to the Allocated Account in substitution for holdings of an equivalent denomination in the Unallocated Account such
that no Gold is held in the Unallocated Account at the close of such Business Day.
|
4.2 |
Procedure: You may at any time notify us in writing of your intention to withdraw Precious Metal standing to the credit of an Unallocated Account. A withdrawal may be made (in the manner and
accompanied by such documentation as we may require) by:
|
|
(a) |
book-entry transfer by a debit by us of an amount of Precious Metals from your Unallocated Account and credit of such amount to an account maintained by us for another client, or instructing credit of such amount to the account specified
by you and maintained by a third party; or
|
|
(b) |
the collection of such Precious Metal from the vaults specified in the Schedule attached hereto at your expense and risk. Any Precious Metal made available to you will be in the form of bars which comply with the Rules (including the Rules
relating to good delivery and fineness) or in such other form as may be agreed between us. We are entitled to select which bars are to be made available to you.
|
4.3 |
Notice requirements: Any notice relating to a withdrawal of Precious Metal must:
|
|
(a) |
if it relates to a withdrawal pursuant to clause 4.2(a), be received by us no later than the time specified in the Schedule attached hereto (and if received later will be processed on the next Business Day) and specify the details of the
account to which the Precious Metal is to be transferred;
|
|
(b) |
if it relates to a withdrawal pursuant to clause 4.2(b), be received by us no later than the time specified in the Schedule attached hereto and specify the name of the person or carrier that will collect the Precious Metal from us; and
|
|
(c) |
specify the amount (in the appropriate denomination) of the Precious Metal to be debited to the Unallocated Account, the Withdrawal Date and any other information which we may from time to time require.
|
4.4 |
Right to amend procedure: We may amend the procedure for the withdrawal of Precious Metal from an Unallocated Account or impose such additional procedures as we may from time to time consider
appropriate to comply with the Rules. Any such amendments or additional procedures will be promptly notified to you, in accordance with Clause 13 of this Agreement, within a commercially reasonable amount of time before we amend our
procedures, and in so doing we shall consider your needs to communicate any such change to Investors and others.
|
4.5 |
Collection or Delivery of Precious Metals: You accept liability for all costs of transportation and insurance (if any) in relation to the delivery of Precious Metal upon withdrawal once your
designated carrier has taken physical delivery of the relevant Precious Metal.
|
|
(a) |
Unless specifically agreed that sub-clause (b) below applies to a withdrawal, you must collect, or arrange for the collection of, Precious Metals being withdrawn from us at your expense and risk. We will advise you of the location from
which the Precious Metals may be collected no later than 3 Business Days prior to the Withdrawal Date.
|
|
(b) |
Where we have agreed with you that this sub-clause (b) applies, we shall arrange delivery of the Precious Metal to you, and shall arrange such delivery, including transportation, in accordance with our usual practices. Where specific
requests are made by you regarding the method of delivery, we may (but shall have no obligation to) make reasonable efforts to comply with such requests. We shall in no circumstances have any obligation to effect any requested delivery, if in
our reasonable opinion (i) such delivery would cause us or any of our agents to be in breach of the Rules or any applicable law, court order or regulation, or (ii) the costs incurred by us or our agents in making such delivery would be
excessive, and we have not had satisfactory confirmation that you will reimburse us for such costs, or (iii) delivery is not reasonably practicable for any reason.
|
5. |
INSTRUCTIONS
|
5.1 |
Your representatives: We may assume that instructions have been properly authorised by you if they are given or purport to be given by a person who is, or purports to be, and is reasonably believed
by us to be, a director, employee or other authorised person acting for you.
|
5.2 |
Instructions: All transfers into and out of the Unallocated Account(s) shall be made upon receipt of, and in accordance with, instructions given (or appearing to be given) by you to us. Such
instructions may be given either: (i) through eBTS, accessible through the Website by you pursuant to the terms of the Website agreement, or (ii) by SWIFT transmission, by any method of transmission set forth in Clause 13.2 or by such other
means (if any) as are specified in the Schedule or as we may agree from time to time. Unless otherwise agreed, any such instruction or communication shall be effective if given by written means. We may assume that any electronic instructions
have been validly given on your behalf. We reserve the right to obtain further validation of any instructions.
|
5.3 |
AURUM: You acknowledge that instructions relating to a counterparty for whom we do not already provide settlement services will be forwarded by us to AURUM on your behalf. You acknowledge that AURUM
is operated by a third party and that we cannot be responsible for any errors, omissions or malfunctions in the systems operated by AURUM. To the extent that AURUM is not available or suffering a malfunction, you agree that our obligations
under this Agreement shall be postponed during such unavailability or such malfunction and until a reasonable period thereafter.
|
5.4 |
Amendments: Once given, instructions continue in full force and effect until they are cancelled or amended. Any such instructions shall be valid and binding only after actual receipt by us in
accordance with Clause 13 of this Agreement.
|
5.5 |
Unclear or ambiguous instructions: If, in our opinion, any instructions are unclear or ambiguous, we will use reasonable endeavours (taking into account any relevant time constraints) to obtain
clarification of those instructions from you but, failing that, we may in our absolute discretion and without any liability on our part, act upon what we believe in good faith such instructions to be or refuse to take any action or execute
such instructions until any ambiguity or conflict has been resolved to our satisfaction.
|
5.6 |
Refusal to execute: We reserve the right to refuse to execute instructions if in our opinion they are or may be, or require action which is or may be, contrary to the Rules or any applicable law.
|
6. |
CONFIDENTIALITY
|
6.1 |
Disclosure to others: Subject to Clauses 6.2, 6.3 and 6.4, each Party shall respect the confidentiality of information acquired under this Agreement and neither will, without the consent of the
other, disclose to any other person any information acquired under this Agreement.
|
6.2 |
Permitted disclosures: Each Party accepts that from time to time the other Party may be required by law, or a court order or similar process, or requested by a government department or agency, fiscal
body or regulatory authority, to disclose information acquired under this Agreement. In addition, the disclosure of such information may be required by a Party's auditors, by its legal or other advisors or by a company which is in the same
group of companies as a Party (e.g. a subsidiary, or holding company of a Party). In any such case, and to the extent permitted by applicable law, the disclosing Party will notify the person to whom the disclosure is made that the information
disclosed is confidential and should not be disclosed to any third party. Each Party irrevocably authorises the other to make such disclosures without further reference to such Party.
|
6.3 |
You acknowledge that, as a member of the London Precious Metal Clearing Limited, and that from time to time in carrying out our duties and obligations under this Agreement, it may be necessary for us to disclose to LPMCL and/or other
clearing members, your account details and certain other information in order to act in accordance with your notices hereunder for the purposes of facilitating settlement. You acknowledge and accept that such disclosures may be made by us for
the purposes set out in this Clause 6.3.
|
6.4 |
Notwithstanding Sections 6.1 and 6.2, we acknowledge and agree that (i) you may reference us and summarize the material terms of this Agreement in the Registration Statement and any other offering memorandum, prospectus or marketing
documents related to an offering of the Shares by you to potential investors and (ii) you may disseminate information to Investors that is required to be provided to Investors pursuant to the terms of the Trust Agreement or the Registration
Statement.
|
7. |
REPRESENTATIONS
|
7.1 |
Each Party represents and warrants to the other, on a continuing basis that:
|
|
(a) |
it is duly constituted and validly existing under the laws of its jurisdiction of constitution;
|
|
(b) |
it has all necessary authority, powers, consents, licences and authorisations and has taken all necessary action to enable it lawfully to enter into and perform its duties and obligations under this Agreement;
|
|
(c) |
the persons entering into this Agreement on its behalf have been duly authorised to do so; and
|
|
(d) |
this Agreement and the obligations created under it constitute its legal and valid obligations which are binding upon it and enforceable against it in accordance with the terms of this Agreement (subject to applicable principles of equity)
and do not and will not violate the terms of the Rules, any applicable laws, or any order, charge or agreement by which it is bound.
|
7.2 |
In addition to (and without limitation of) the representations and warranties given by you in Clause 7.1, you represent and warrant to us, on a continuing basis, that:
|
|
(a) |
you are the beneficial owner of the Precious Metal held by us hereunder, free and clear from any and all contingent or existing charges, pledges, mortgages, security interests, encumbrances, liens or other right or claim whatsoever
permitted or created by you or any third party;
|
|
(b) |
if you are holding any Precious Metal on behalf of a third party, you have full power and authority from your client to enter into and implement this Agreement in respect of such Precious Metal, and we are entitled to deal only with you as
if you were the ultimate beneficial owner; and
|
|
(c) |
neither the signing, delivery or performance of this Agreement, nor any instruction given hereunder, will contravene, constitute a default under, or cause to be exceeded, any of the following, namely:
|
|
(i) |
any Rules, or any other law or agreement by which you, us or any relevant client for whom you hold Precious Metal are bound or affected; or
|
|
(ii) |
rights of any third parties in relation to you or the Precious Metal held hereunder.
|
8. |
SANCTIONS
|
8.1 |
In addition to (and without limitation of) the representations and warranties given by you in Clause 7.1 and Clause 7.2 above, you represent, warrant and undertake, on a continuing basis, that:
|
|
(a) |
you are not a person or entity that is named on any Sanctions List or directly or indirectly targeted under any Sanctions;
|
|
(b) |
you are not acting in violation of any applicable Sanctions;
|
|
(c) |
you shall comply with all applicable laws, regulations, codes and sanctions relating to your operations, wherever conducted, and in particular relating to human rights, bribery, corruption, money-laundering, accounting and financial
controls and anti-terrorism, including but not limited to the UK Bribery Act 2010;
|
|
(d) |
you have adequate risk management and compliance procedures in place and have taken necessary measures (including screening clients for sanctions, money laundering and anti-bribery and corruption) to ensure continued compliance with the
Rules and with the ongoing requirements of any Sanctioning Body;
|
|
(e) |
you have conducted adequate due diligence on any person that you direct we transfer Precious Metals to or from under the terms of this Agreement; and
|
|
(f) |
you will not cause us to hold any Precious Metals that originate from financial crime or are being or have been used to facilitate the violation of any Sanctions.
|
8.2 |
You agree that neither any Precious Metals nor the proceeds of any Precious Metals will be used by you in any way to fund the activities or business of any person or entity in any country or territory subject to Sanctions or included in
any Sanctions List. You further agree that we shall be under no obligation to comply with a notice of withdrawal delivered pursuant to Clause 4.1 where we have reasonable grounds to suspect that any such withdrawal may in any way be used to
fund the activities or business of any person or entity in any country or territory subject to Sanctions or included in any Sanctions List.
|
8.3 |
If at any time you become aware of any breach by you of Clauses 8.1 or 8.2 above after the date of this Agreement and before the later of (i) termination of this Agreement and (ii) the date that all obligations under this Agreement are
fully and finally discharged, you shall promptly notify us in writing with full details of such breach together with, promptly following any request from us to do so, any other information we may reasonably request in connection with such
breach.
|
8.4 |
In the event that you breach any of Clauses 8.1 to 8.3 above, or if we have reasonable grounds to believe that you have breached any of Clauses 8.1 to 8.3 above, we shall have the right to terminate this Agreement forthwith upon written
notice. In the event of termination of this Agreement pursuant to this Clause 8.4, you agree to indemnify us and hold us harmless against any and all losses, costs and liabilities incurred as a direct consequence of such termination
|
8.5 |
Nothing in this Agreement shall require a Party to take any action or to refrain from taking any action which may cause that Party any liability to or imposed by a Sanctioning Body.
|
9. |
FEES AND EXPENSES
|
9.1 |
Fees: You will pay us such fees as we from time to time agree with you as set out in the Schedule attached hereto. We reserve the right to amend the fee structure from time to time with your prior
written consent. Details of changes to the charges (including transfer, clearing and storage charges) will be advised to you by us in writing no less than 30 days before becoming effective.
|
9.2 |
Expenses: You must pay us on demand all reasonable costs, charges and expenses (including any relevant taxes, duties and legal fees) incurred by us in connection with the performance of our duties
and obligations under this Agreement or otherwise in connection with any Unallocated Account (including without limitation any delivery, collection or storage costs). You shall be liable for all taxes, assessments, duties and other
governmental charges, including any interest or penalty with respect thereto (“Taxes”), with respect to any Unallocated Account maintained by us pursuant to this Agreement or any deposits or withdrawals
related thereto. You shall indemnify us for the amount of any Tax that we are required under applicable laws (whether by assessment or otherwise) to pay in respect of each Unallocated Account or any deposits or withdrawals related thereto
(including any payment of Tax required by reason of an earlier failure to withhold); [REDACTED]. In the event that we are required under applicable law to pay any Tax on your behalf, we are hereby
authorised, without prior notice to you, to debit from the credit balance of any or all of the Unallocated Accounts an amount equal to the quotient of (x) the principal amount of the relevant Tax payable by us, divided by (y) the Spot Rate.
If the aggregate credit balance of the Unallocated Accounts is not sufficient to pay such Tax, we will notify you of an additional amount of cash required and you shall directly deposit such additional amount of cash (in the appropriate
currency) to an account specified by us promptly following the date on which our notice to you that such amount is required becomes effective in accordance with this Agreement.
|
9.3 |
Credit balances: No interest or other amount will be paid by us on any credit balance on an Unallocated Account unless otherwise agreed between us.
|
9.4 |
Debit balances: You are not entitled to overdraw an Unallocated Account except to the extent that we otherwise agree in writing. In the absence of our written agreement to an overdraft, we shall not
be obliged to carry out any instruction from you where to do so would in our opinion cause any Unallocated Account to have a negative balance. Unless otherwise agreed, if for any reason an Unallocated Account is overdrawn, you will be
required to pay us interest on the debit balance at the rate agreed between us or, if no such agreement exists, at such rate as we determine to be appropriate. The amount of the overdraft and any accrued interest will be repayable by you on
our demand. Your obligation to pay interest to us will continue until the overdraft is repaid by you in full. This clause 9.4 does not apply in relation to any rounded quantity of Precious Metal that may be debited to your Unallocated Account
in connection with rounding up your Allocated Account balance to record the nearest whole number of bars under the Allocated Account agreement.
|
9.5 |
Default interest: If you fail to pay us any amount when it is due, we reserve the right to charge [REDACTED] on any such unpaid amount. Interest will accrue on
a daily basis, on a compound basis with monthly resets, and will be due and payable by you as a separate debt.
|
10. |
SCOPE OF RESPONSIBILITY
|
10.1 |
Exclusion of liability: We will adhere to the standards of a Reasonable and Prudent Custodian at all times in the performance of our duties under this Agreement, and we will only be responsible for
any loss or damage suffered by you as a direct result of any negligence, fraud or wilful default on our part in the performance of our duties, and in which case our liability will not exceed the aggregate market value of the Account Balance
at the time of such negligence, fraud or wilful default (calculating the value using the next available prices for Precious Metals of the same type and amount on the relevant London Precious Metals Markets following the occurrence of such
negligence, fraud or wilful default). We shall not in any event be liable for any consequential loss, or loss of profit or goodwill whether or not resulting from any negligence, fraud or wilful default on our part.
|
10.2 |
No duty or obligation: We are under no duty or obligation to make or take any special arrangements or precautions beyond those required by the Rules.
|
10.3 |
Force majeure: We shall not be liable to you for any delay in performance, or for the non-performance of, any of our obligations under this Agreement by reason of any cause beyond our reasonable
control. This includes any breakdown, malfunction or failure of, or in connection with, any communication, computer, transmission, clearing or settlement facilities, industrial action, acts and regulations of any governmental or supra
national bodies or authorities, or the rules of any relevant regulatory or self-regulatory organisation.
|
10.4 |
Indemnity: You shall indemnify and keep us indemnified (on an after tax basis) on demand against all costs and expenses, damages, liabilities and losses which we may suffer or incur, directly or
indirectly in connection with this Agreement except to the extent that such sums are due directly to our negligence, wilful default or fraud.
|
11. |
TERMINATION
|
11.1 |
Method:
|
|
(a) |
You may terminate this Agreement (i) by giving not less than forty-five (45) Business Days written notice to us, or (ii) immediately by written notice to us in the event of (1) the presentation of a winding up order, bankruptcy or
analogous event in relation to us, or (2) the occurrence of an event specified in Clause 8.4 of this Agreement.
|
|
(b) |
We may terminate this Agreement (i) by giving not less than sixty (60) Business Days written notice to you, or (ii) immediately by written notice in the event of the presentation of a winding up order, bankruptcy or analogous event in
relation to you.
|
11.2 |
Any notice given by you under Clause 11.1 must specify:
|
|
(a) |
the date on which the termination will take effect (the “Termination Date”);
|
|
(b) |
the person to whom each Account Balance is to be delivered;
|
|
(c) |
whether the Precious Metal standing to the credit of each Unallocated Account is to be withdrawn pursuant to Clause 4.2(a) or Clause 4.2(b); and
|
|
(d) |
all other necessary arrangements for the delivery of the Account Balance.
|
11.3 |
Redelivery arrangements: If you do not make arrangements acceptable to us for the transfer or repayment, as the case may be, of an amount of Precious Metal equal to the Account Balance, we may
continue to maintain that Unallocated Account, in which case we will continue to charge the fees and expenses payable under Clause 9. If you have not made arrangements acceptable to us for the transfer or repayment of Precious Metal equal to
each Account Balance within 6 months of the Termination Date, we will be entitled to close each Unallocated Account and in place of delivery of Precious Metals, account to you for the value of the Account Balance on each such Unallocated
Account (as at the date which is 6 months after the Termination Date, calculating the value using the next available prices for that date for Precious Metals of the same type and amount of the relevant London Precious Metals Markets), after
deducting any amounts due to us under this Agreement.
|
11.4 |
Existing rights: Termination shall not affect rights and obligations then outstanding under this Agreement which shall continue to be governed by this Agreement until all obligations have been fully
performed. [REDACTED]
|
11.5 |
eBTS: Effective the Termination Date the use of the Website will automatically be terminated and no further access to the Website will be permitted.
|
12. |
VALUE ADDED TAX
|
12.1 |
VAT exclusive: All sums payable under this Agreement by you to us shall be deemed to be exclusive of VAT.
|
12.2 |
Supplies: Where pursuant to or in connection with this Agreement, we make a supply to you for VAT purposes and VAT is or becomes chargeable on such supply, you shall on demand pay to us (in addition
to any other consideration for such supply) a sum equal to the amount of such VAT and we shall on receipt of such payment provide you with an invoice or receipt in such form and within such period as may be prescribed by applicable law.
|
12.3 |
Deemed supplies: Where, pursuant to or in connection with this Agreement, we are deemed or treated by applicable law or the practice from time to time of the relevant fiscal authority to make a
supply for VAT purposes to any person by virtue of our or any custodian for us relinquishing physical control of any Precious Metal, and VAT is or becomes chargeable on such supply, you shall on demand pay to us a sum equal to the amount of
such VAT and we shall on receipt of such payment provide an invoice or receipt in such form and within such period as may be prescribed by applicable law to the person to which we are deemed or treated to make such supply.
|
12.4 |
Reimbursement: References to any fee, cost, expense, charge or other liability incurred by us and in respect of which we are to be reimbursed or indemnified by you under the terms of this Agreement
shall include such part of such fee, cost, expense, charge or other liability as represents any VAT. We shall not seek reimbursement of any chargeable VAT incurred by you from the relevant tax authority. If the relevant tax authority does
provide reimbursement to us for VAT incurred by you, we shall notify you within a reasonable time period after we become aware of such reimbursement.
|
13. |
NOTICES
|
13.1 |
Form: Any notice or other communication under or in connection with this Agreement may be given in writing or as otherwise specified in the Schedule. References to writing includes an electronic
transmission in a form permitted by Clause 13.2.
|
13.2 |
Method of transmission: Any notice or other communication shall be delivered personally or sent by first class post, pre-paid recorded delivery (or air mail if overseas), authenticated electronic
transmission (including fax, email and SWIFT) or such other electronic transmission as the Parties may from time to time agree, to the Party due to receive the notice or communication, at its address, number or destination set out below, or
to such other address, number or destination specified by that Party by written notice to the other:
|
13.3 |
Deemed receipt of notice: A notice or other communication under or in connection with this Agreement will be deemed received only if actually received or delivered.
|
13.4 |
Recording of calls: We may record telephone conversations without use of a warning tone. Such recordings will be our sole property and accepted by you as evidence of the orders or instructions given.
In the event of inconsistency between the written notice and oral orders or instructions, the terms of the written notice shall prevail.
|
14. |
GENERAL
|
14.1 |
No advice: Our duties and obligations under this Agreement do not include providing you with investment advice. In asking us to open and maintain the Unallocated Accounts, you do so in reliance upon
your own judgement and we shall not owe to you any duty to exercise any judgement on your behalf as to the merits or suitability of any deposits into, or withdrawals from, an Unallocated Account.
|
14.2 |
Rights and remedies: Our rights under this Agreement are in addition to, and independent of, any other rights which we may have at any time in relation to the Unallocated Accounts and any lien or
other rights we may have to set-off, combine or consolidate any of your accounts.
|
14.3 |
Business Day: If an obligation of a Party would otherwise be due to be performed on a day which is not a Business Day in respect of the relevant Unallocated Account, such obligation shall be due to
be performed on the next succeeding Business Day in respect of that Unallocated Account.
|
14.4 |
Assignment: This Agreement is for the benefit of and binding upon us both and our respective successors and assigns. You may not assign other than to a successor entity or to any entity under common
control, which we have provided prior written consent of such assignment (not to be unreasonably withheld) and which has completed all required know-your-customer and other onboarding, transfer or encumber, or purport to assign, transfer or
encumber, your right, title or interest in relation to any Unallocated Account or any right or obligation under this Agreement without our prior agreement in writing.
|
14.5 |
Amendments: Unless otherwise specified in this Agreement, any amendment to this Agreement must be agreed in writing and be signed by us both. Unless otherwise agreed, an amendment will not affect any
legal rights or obligations which may already have arisen.
|
14.6 |
Partial invalidity: If any of the clauses (or part of a clause) of this Agreement becomes invalid or unenforceable in any way under the Rules or any law, the validity of the remaining clauses (or
part of a clause) will not in any way be affected or impaired.
|
14.7 |
Liability: Nothing in this Agreement shall exclude or limit any liability which cannot lawfully be excluded or limited (e.g. liability for personal injury or death caused by negligence).
|
14.8 |
Entire Agreement: This document represents the entire agreement, and supersedes any previous agreements between us relating to the subject matter of this Agreement.
|
14.9 |
Counterparts: This Agreement may be executed in any number of counterparts each of which when executed and delivered is an original, but all the counterparts together constitute the same agreement.
|
14.10 |
Liability of Sponsor. It is expressly understood and agreed by the Parties that:
|
|
(a) |
this Agreement is executed and delivered on behalf of you by the Sponsor, not individually or personally, but solely as your Sponsor in the exercise of the powers and authority conferred and vested in it;
|
|
(b) |
the representations, covenants, undertakings and agreements herein made by you are made and intended not as personal representations, undertakings and agreements by the Sponsor but are made and intended for the purpose of binding only you;
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(c) |
nothing herein contained shall be construed as creating any liability on the Sponsor, individually or personally, to perform any covenant of yours either expressed or implied contained herein, all such liability, if any, being expressly
waived by the parties hereto and by any person claiming by, through or under the parties hereto; and
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|
(d) |
under no circumstances shall the Sponsor be personally liable for the payment of any your indebtedness or expenses or be liable for the breach or failure of any obligation, duty, representation, warranty or covenant made or undertaken by
you under this Agreement or any other related document.
|
15. |
GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION
|
15.1 |
Governing law: This Agreement and any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in connection with it shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English law.
|
15.2 |
Jurisdiction: The English courts are to have non-exclusive jurisdiction to settle any disputes or claims (each a “Dispute”) which may arise out of or in
connection with this Agreement, including any question regarding its existence, validity or termination, and accordingly any legal action or proceedings arising out of or in connection with this Agreement (“Proceedings”)
may be brought in such courts. Each of the Parties hereto irrevocably submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of such courts and waives any objection to Proceedings in such courts whether on the grounds of venue or on the grounds that the
Proceedings have been brought in an inconvenient forum.
|
15.3 |
Arbitration: Unless otherwise specified in the Schedule, Disputes may be referred to arbitration in accordance with the terms set out in the Schedule attached hereto.
|
15.4 |
Waiver of immunity: To the extent that you may in any jurisdiction claim for yourself or your assets any immunity from suit, judgement, enforcement or otherwise howsoever, you agree not to claim and
irrevocably waive any such immunity to which you would otherwise be entitled (whether on grounds of sovereignty or otherwise) to the full extent permitted by the laws of such jurisdiction.
|
15.5 |
Third Party Rights: A person who is not a party to this Agreement has no right to enforce any term of this Agreement under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.
|
15.6 |
Service of process: If you are situated outside England and Wales, process by which any proceedings in England are begun may be served on you by being delivered to the address specified below. This
does not affect our right to serve process in another manner permitted by law.
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Signature
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||
Name
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||
Title
|
Signature
|
||
Name
|
||
Title
|
Preamble
|
3
|
§ 1 Index Calculation
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4
|
§2 Dissemination of Index
|
5
|
§ 3 Rights in Index and Index Prices
|
6
|
§ 4 Utilisation Right
|
6
|
§ 5 Obligations of Parties regarding calculated Index
|
7
|
§ 6 Issuer’s Statement
|
8
|
§ 7 Trademark Rights
|
8
|
§ 8 Liability of the Parties
|
9
|
§ 9 Limitation of Liability
|
10
|
§ 10 Remuneration
|
10
|
§ 11 Taxes
|
12
|
§ 12 Term of Agreement
|
12
|
§ 13 Termination of Agreement
|
12
|
§ 14 Transfer of Solactive’s Rights and Obligations to a Third Party
|
13
|
§ 15 Transfer of Duties to Third Parties
|
14
|
§ 16 Confidentiality
|
14
|
§ 17 Contact
|
15
|
§ 18 Final Provisions
|
15
|
Addendum 1 Order Schedule
|
19
|
Addendum 2 CUSIP
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20
|
Addendum 3 SEDOL
|
22
|
Addendum 5 Borsa Istanbul
|
24
|
Addendum 6 WM Rates
|
25
|
|
1. |
Subject to the provisions of this Agreement Solactive will continually calculate the Index set out in the relevant Order Schedule and will continually maintain and disseminate them from (and including), in each case, the relevant Index
Calculation Start Date (as set out in the applicable Order Schedule).
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|
2. |
Solactive shall use its best efforts to ensure that the Index is calculated and maintained correctly.
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|
3. |
Details including but not limited to calculation and maintenance of the Index shall be stipulated in the respective Index guidelines or methodology agreed upon between the Parties, as it may be amended in the future (the "Index
Methodology"). For this purpose the Trust shall provide the necessary Index specification pursuant to the relevant Order Schedule.
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|
4. |
The scope of the services provided by Solactive includes continuous calculation and maintenance of the Index in accordance with the Index Methodology. This includes, among other things, establishing the parameters, exchange rates,
calculation days, calculation term, etc. in connection with the Index. Maintaining the Index includes but is not limited to necessary adjustment of the Index according to capital measures such as split of shares or capital increase, or after
dividend payments related to shares, which are elements of the Index, and adjustments to the Index in the framework of extraordinary or ordinary adjustments. For adjustments to the Index in the framework of maintenance, if agreed to by both
Parties, Solactive shall provide one indication and one final adjustment. The indication consists of a hypothetical calculation of the composition of the Index taking account of the adjustment which will only be made in the future; the final
adjustment involves converting the Index calculation taking account of the adjustment to be made.
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5. |
If agreed to by the Trust in writing, on each business day Solactive shall post the current Index composition (Index name, elements and weighting) of the Index on a website maintained by Solactive. In connection with the foregoing, as of the
date of this Agreement, Trust does not desire to have the Index posted on a website maintained by Solactive unless otherwise notified to Solactive in writing by Trust.
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6. |
Solactive shall use the criteria for compiling and calculating the Index, and the weighting and the calculation formula set out in the respective Index Methodology on behalf of the Trust. Solactive shall maintain the Index in accordance with
the Index Methodology.
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|
7. |
If there should be unforeseeable circumstances which necessitate an extraordinary adjustment to an Index, Solactive shall prepare the adjustment taking account the stipulations of the Index Methodology, notify the Trust of such circumstances
as soon as it becomes aware of them and coordinate further procedures with the Trust. If it is not possible to contact the Trust and such circumstance requires an immediate extraordinary adjustment, Solactive may make the extraordinary
adjustment (in accordance with the Index Methodology), in the best interest of the Trust; provided, however, that the notice related to such extraordinary adjustment provided by Solactive to Trust contains details of how such adjustment will be
treated and Trust has the ability to make subsequent modifications so long as these are administratively feasible for Solactive.
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1. |
Solactive is entitled to include and distribute the Index in a market data dissemination to all major vendors and re-vendors. Solactive shall stipulate the technical format of the dissemination and may modify this as reasonably required at
its own discretion without prior coordination with the Trust. In addition, Solactive shall disseminate the Index composition (elements and weighting) and the Index Prices (as defined below) to the Trust and the Administrator (as defined below)
at or around 5:30 pm (New York time) on each Business Day. Dissemination of the Index comprises the prices of the Index (hereinafter "Index Prices") and an ISIN code in a technical format satisfactory to Solactive and the Trust. Solactive shall
calculate and disseminate the intraday indicative value of the Index, using gold prices sourced from the Intercontinental Exchange, at least every 15 seconds during the New York Stock Exchange’s Core Trading Session (9:30 a.m. Eastern Time
—4:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Business Days).
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|
2. |
To the extent that the Index and the Index Prices of the Trust which have been disseminated via a market data dissemination are used by any vendor, re-vendor or third party in breach of the provisions of the market data usage agreements,
this shall not give rise to any claims of the Trust related to such use against Solactive. If Solactive becomes aware of any abuse it will however use its best efforts to prohibit and terminate or procure to terminate this abuse as soon as
possible.
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|
3. |
Any revenue obtained from the market data dissemination of the Index and the Index Prices shall inure solely to Solactive. Notwithstanding the foregoing, and for the avoidance of doubt, this does not include any revenue in connection with
the Index.
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|
4. |
Solactive is not obliged to ensure that any vendor or re-vendor displays the Index Prices of the Trust. Any additional fee (the "Vendor Fee") payable to any vendor or re-vendor for displaying the Index Data will be paid by the Trust. The
Vendor Fee will only be payable after the prior written consent of the Trust has been obtained. If the Trust does not agree to pay the Vendor Fee, Trust acknowledges that the Index Data might not be displayed by a vendor or re-vendor.
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5. |
Without limitation to Section 3(1), the Trust acknowledges that vendors and re-vendors may display "Source: Solactive AG" to indicate merely the source of the Index Price, not the ownership of the Index or the Index Prices.
|
|
1. |
The Trust owns any and all rights in the Index and the Index Prices — in as far as such rights do not belong to third parties. However, Solactive may use the Index and the Index Prices free of charge solely to the extent necessary to fulfil
its obligations and reasonably exercise its rights under this Agreement.
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2. |
The Trust may disseminate the Index and Index Prices itself or disseminate public information provided to it by Solactive internally or externally or grant third parties access to such information. The Trust is entitled to name the Index and
present Index Prices in any of its materials and on its own website, or in any other location or by any other reasonable method. The Trust shall not disseminate the information referred to in this subparagraph to any third party, in case the
Trust is aware of any such third party being a vendor or re-vendor to which Solactive disseminates such information at the time of dissemination.
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3. |
At the request of Solactive the Trust shall confirm that the afore-mentioned obligations have been fulfilled.
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4. |
Solactive shall not sell, assign, sublicense or license the Index to any other party, without the prior written consent of the Trust.
|
|
1. |
The Trust hereby grants Solactive for the term of this Agreement the non-exclusive and non-transferable right, unrestricted in content, to publish the Index listed in the relevant Order Schedule. Solactive may use the Index for its own
advertising purposes to the extent consented to by the Trust in writing and with any disclaimers, legends or disclosures believed by the Trust to be reasonable.
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2. |
Upon obtaining the prior written consent of the Trust, Solactive may use the Index Data for the dissemination and publication to third parties that are active in the analysis of ETFs and the respective underlying assets.
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|
1. |
As far as is possible and can reasonably be expected each Party shall provide the other on reasonable request with all information available to it on the Index. This obligation to provide information is limited to information and Index Data
which are publicly available. In particular it does not include information and data which are classified as operating or business secrets of the Parties or for which one Party is obliged to observe confidentiality for other reasons.
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2. |
The calculations of the Index are generated automatically and only monitored by an employee of Solactive during the trading hours of the Stuttgart Stock Exchange (Baden-Wurttembergische Wertpapierborse), however
at most between 09:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. CET. At all other times the calculations are generated automatically without being monitored by a Solactive employee. Solactive will provide the Trust with emergency contact details, so that the Trust can
contact Solactive outside of the hours stated herein.
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|
3. |
If Solactive has knowledge of any error in calculating the Index, it shall notify the Trust without undue delay by email detailing the error and any necessary corrections.
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|
4. |
If agreed by the Parties, the Trust shall provide the criteria and data (the "Data") reasonably required by Solactive for compiling and calculating the Index
pursuant to the relevant Order Schedule on an ongoing basis. In relation to the Data, the Trust shall be responsible for the completeness, correctness and sufficiency of the Data to effectively allow Solactive to perform the obligations created
under this Agreement.
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|
5. |
Solactive, in fulfilling its obligations under this Agreement, may, from time to time, rely on certain non-personal data from third parties and in some cases, provide such data to Trust (the "Third Party Data").
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|
6. |
The use of Third Party Data by Trust may, in some cases: (a) be subject to the prior consent of a third party data provider (each a "Third Party Data Provider"); (b) require Solactive to disclose the identity of Trust to a Third Party Data
Provider; (c) require Trust to obtain a separate license with a Third Party Data Provider; and/or (d) any other action as may be required by a Third
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|
7. |
Where a Third Party Data Provider requires Trust to enter into an agreement directly with the Third Party Data Provider in respect of the Third Party Data, Trust shall, upon request of Solactive, supply a copy of such agreement to Solactive
(the "Third Party Data Agreement Request"). If Trust fails to provide the applicable agreement or confirmation by the date specified in the Third Party Data Agreement Request, Solactive shall not be obligated to fulfil its obligations under
this Agreement.
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|
8. |
During the term of the Agreement the Trust may change the criteria for compiling and calculating the Index or including additional index specifications. Solactive shall, to the extent feasible, implement such changes. In case of the
implementation of such changes, Section 2 of the Order Schedule of the Index will be updated. If the changes have an effect on the calculation, maintenance or dissemination of the Index and if this materially increases the work required by
Solactive, Solactive may increase the remuneration, upon first providing written and convincing evidence of such increased work to the Trust. If Solactive proposes to increase the remuneration it shall notify the Trust in writing with 30
calendar days’ prior notice. The remuneration shall not be increased without the prior written consent of the Trust.
|
|
1. |
The Trust warrants that it is the owner of the trademarks specified in the relevant Order Schedule or that is granted sufficient rights of use in such trademarks to implement this Agreement including the right to grant rights to Solactive as
provided for in this Agreement.
|
|
2. |
The Trust hereby grants Solactive for the term of the Agreement the non-exclusive and non-transferable right, unrestricted in content, to use the trademarks listed in the relevant Order Schedule subject to the provisions of this Agreement
and to the extent necessary to fulfil its obligations under this Agreement.
|
|
3. |
Solactive agrees only to use the trademarks listed in the relevant Order Schedule in their registered form.
|
|
4. |
As far as technically possible, Solactive shall post a licence statement of the trademarks listed in the relevant Order Schedule at the beginning of any written or electronic use. Unless specific circumstances make a different procedure more
appropriate the licence statement shall take the form of the ® symbol and a footnote explaining that the trademark is a registered trademark of the Trust or a third party. If a particular Index consists of trademarks which have different owners
it is sufficient for the "®" symbol to be used once only at the end of the full name provided that the footnote makes it clear that there is more than one trademark owner.
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|
5. |
The Trust shall indemnify Solactive for any claims that may be filed against Solactive by third parties with regard to the use of the trademarks listed in the Order Schedule in as far as these are used by Solactive in accordance with the
provisions of this Agreement and to the extent necessary to fulfill its obligations under this Agreement.
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6. |
Where the Trust does not include any trademark or deviating trademarks in relation to the index name in the relevant Order Schedule, Trust hereby represents and warrants that the Index name and its use by Solactive does and will not infringe
or otherwise breach any registered third party trademarks. The Trust will indemnify Solactive from any direct claims asserted against Solactive alleging that Solactive’s use of the Index name infringes or otherwise breaches any registered third
party trademarks.
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|
1. |
Solactive shall be obliged to fulfill its contractual obligations assumed hereunder, in particular the calculation of the Index, with the care of a prudent businessman. Solactive shall be liable to the Trust for direct losses particularly
those arising from incorrect calculation of the Index incurred as a result of the negligence, fraud, willful misconduct or breach of any of the representations or warranties in this Agreement, and any changes to the Index not specifically
authorized by the Trust, in each case subject to the limitations provided for under § 9.
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2. |
The Trust shall be obliged to ensure and hereby represents and warrants that (i) the acceptance, utilisation and processing of the Data (as defined in § 5(4) herein) provided by the Trust to Solactive in accordance with this Agreement and
that (ii) the publication of the processed Data and Index based on the processed Data does and will not infringe or otherwise breach third party rights of any kind. The Trust shall indemnify Solactive from any losses incurred by Solactive as a
result of the foregoing, provided that such losses did not result from the gross negligence, fraud or willful misconduct of Solactive.
|
|
1. |
Solactive has unlimited liability for injury to life, body or health; and losses incurred by the Trust caused by intent or gross negligence.
|
|
2. |
Nothing in this Agreement excludes or limits Solactive’s liability to the extent that any applicable law precludes or prohibits any exclusion or limitation of liability. Neither party shall be liable to the other for any indirect or
consequential damages, including, but not limited to, lost time, lost money, lost profits or good-will, whether in contract, tort, strict liability or otherwise, and whether or not such damages are foreseen or unforeseen.
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3. |
Solactive shall not be liable for losses incurred owing to force majeure, war and natural occurrences or other events for which it is not responsible (e.g. strikes, lock-outs, disruption to transport, orders issued by domestic and foreign
authorities not caused by culpable conduct) or disruptions to technical installations such as the IT system which have not been caused by culpable conduct. Force majeure shall also include computer viruses or attacks on IT systems by hackers
provided that suitable precautionary measures have been taken and Solactive did not act in a grossly negligent manner in making the virus or hacker attack possible. Solactive shall take commercially reasonable actions to remedy such force
majeure events as promptly as practicable.
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4. |
Upon obtaining actual knowledge of any such losses or damages, the Trust shall take reasonable steps to mitigate any losses or damages it incurs in relation to any claim or action which it brings against Solactive, so long as it can in good
faith do so without unreasonable inconvenience or cost. A breach of this duty may lead to a reduction of the claim for damages of Trust against Solactive.
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5. |
Solactive shall not be liable for losses of any type whatsoever caused to the Trust or third parties in connection with the issuance, marketing, quoting, trading or advertising of the financial instruments issued by the Trust. The Trust
indemnifies Solactive for any losses incurred by Solactive in connection with the issuance, marketing, quoting, trading or advertising of the financial instruments issued by the Trust provided that such losses did not result from the gross
negligence, fraud or willful misconduct by Solactive.
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|
1. |
The Trust shall pay remuneration in return for calculation, maintenance and dissemination of the Index from (and including) the Index Calculation Start Date in accordance with the remuneration schedule set out in § 10 in conjunction with the
applicable Order Schedule plus value added tax at the applicable statutory rate as provided for in § 11 below.
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2. |
In case of inflation in Europe, the fixed remuneration may be adjusted annually depending on the 12 months average performance of the Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) – All items of the Euro area, published by Eurostat on a monthly
basis on their website: http://epp.eurostatec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/hicp/data/main_tables; provided, however, that in no event shall any increase be in excess of 2% for any 12 month period. The relevant month will be November which is
published by Eurostat in December of each year.
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|
3. |
If agreed between the Parties, regular reporting to Solactive on the financial instruments issued will be necessary so that the remuneration can be calculated and billed.
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4. |
The agreed fixed remuneration will be charged annually in advance. In case a security has not been outstanding over an entire month, the remuneration is reduced respectively.
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|
5. |
The agreed variable remuneration will be charged per calendar quarter. Remuneration will be due for each calendar month for the Index. This remuneration shall be the product of
|
|
a) |
the average assets under management of a financial instrument issued on the basis of the Index during the month and
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|
b) |
the remuneration per annum shown in the applicable Order Schedule in basis points divided by 12.
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6. |
Solactive shall issue an invoice annually in advance for fixed remunerations due and quarterly in retrospect for variable remunerations due. All undisputed invoices shall be due within 45 calendar days of receipt by the Trust of such
invoice. If the Trust has not rendered payment of an undisputed invoice within 45 calendar days of receiving the invoice, default interest of five percentage points per annum above the respective base interest rate as announced by the Deutsche
Bundesbank in the Federal Gazette shall be due calculated as of delivery of the invoice; provided, however, that the interest payment described in the foregoing sentence shall not apply to any amounts subject to a good faith dispute by the
Trust.
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|
7. |
The Parties agree that there shall be no entitlement to remuneration over and above that set out in the applicable Order Schedule or to reimbursement of expenses or costs
|
|
1. |
The Trust shall pay any applicable value-added, sales, goods and services or similar taxes that Solactive might be required to charge and remit pursuant to applicable law. The Trust shall not be responsible for taxes payable by Solactive, if
and to the extent that tax is imposed on or calculated by reference to the net income received or receivable (but not any sum deemed to be received or receivable) by Solactive.
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2. |
The Trust shall make all payments to be made by it without deduction of any taxes, unless a tax deduction is required by law. If a tax deduction is required by law to be made by the Trust, the amount of the payment due from the Trust shall
be increased to an amount which (after making any tax deduction) leaves an amount equal to the payment which would have been due if no tax deduction had been required.
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3. |
The Parties will reasonably cooperate with each other to determine and minimize their respective tax liabilities. Solactive will cooperate with the Trust’s reasonable requests for tax-related information and documents.
|
|
1. |
This Agreement takes effect when it has been signed by both Parties.
|
|
2. |
This Agreement is concluded for an indefinite term.
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|
1. |
This Agreement may be terminated by Solactive upon at least 90 calendar days’ prior written notice to Trust, and this Agreement may be terminated by Trust upon at least 60 calendar days’ prior written notice to Solactive. However, no such
termination shall be permitted prior to a date that is two years after the date of this Agreement.
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|
2. |
Each party may also terminate this Agreement immediately for good cause subject to the provision of prior written notice. Good cause shall be deemed present if the other party to the Agreement is in breach of material contractual obligations
and if such party does not cure the breach within 10 days after written notice detailing such breach. Inter alia there is a breach of material contractual obligations if a third party successfully asserts a right with regard to a trademark
which falls under the subject of the Agreement.
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3. |
Solactive has a special termination right allowing it to terminate this Agreement in whole or in part with a notice period of 90 calendar days if the costs in one calendar quarter to Solactive for necessary use of the data of the stock
exchanges in connection with calculation of an Index increase to such an extent that they exceed the remuneration received by Solactive pursuant to § 10 in the same period for this Index. Solactive shall only be entitled to termination of this
Agreement in accordance with this subparagraph, in case Solactive has provided the Trust with sufficient proof of such increased costs and the Trust has been offered the option to increase the remuneration, taking into account such increased
costs. Should the Trust offer to increase the remuneration in accordance with this subparagraph, Solactive shall not be entitled to use this special termination right.
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4. |
Any termination declarations associated with this Agreement shall be made in writing.
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|
5. |
Following any termination of this Agreement in accordance with this § 13, Solactive shall cease the calculation of the Index so terminated and corresponding Index Prices and dissemination immediately. Upon request from the Trust, Solactive
shall transfer all Index Data and the Index Methodology and all rights relating thereto to the Trust (whether such rights be intellectual property rights or otherwise).
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|
1. |
Solactive may request the Trust to consent to this Agreement being transferred to a third party, in which case Trust may provide such consent in its sole discretion. Solactive will be entitled to, without consent and upon written notice to
Trust, assign this Agreement or any rights or obligations hereunder in whole or in part: (i) to an affiliate; (ii) as part of a corporate reorganization, amalgamation, consolidation or merger; or (iii) pursuant to a request of a regulatory
authority in the manner and (if applicable) to the person requested by such regulatory authority.
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|
1. |
The Parties shall use all matters, facts and information concerning the Parties in connection with this Agreement (hereinafter "Confidential Information") solely for the purposes described in this Agreement and shall treat such Confidential
Information confidentially unless they are required to disclose it by any applicable statute, law, regulation or written and legally enforceable policy or by legal process or an order or requirement of a court of competent jurisdiction or
government department or agency. This applies in particular to the amount of remuneration due under this Agreement and to the content of this Agreement. The Parties shall impose this confidentiality obligation on any vicarious agents, members
of corporate bodies, employees or advisers who are given access to the Confidential Information. In so doing, the Parties shall ensure, to the extent admissible under employment law, that the confidentiality obligation imposed on the employees
shall continue to apply in the event that employees leave the services of a Party under obligation during the term of this confidentiality obligation. If Confidential Information is disclosed to third parties the other party shall be informed
in writing without undue delay. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Trust shall be entitled to use Solactive’s name for inclusion in any offering documents and marketing materials related to the financial instruments to be issued by the Trust.
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|
2. |
These confidentiality obligations shall apply for the term of this Agreement and for a five-year period after it has ended or after complete fulfilment.
|
|
3. |
This confidentiality obligation shall not apply to such information which can be proved to have been
|
|
a) |
known to the recipient prior to communication,
|
|
b) |
publicly known at the time of communication,
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|
c) |
publicly known after its communication without the recipient being responsible for this,
|
|
d) |
made available to the recipient by a third party by lawful means after communication and without restriction with respect to confidentiality or use,
|
|
e) |
developed by the recipient independently prior to communication, or
|
|
f) |
with the consent of the disclosing party.
|
|
4. |
This Section 16 shall supersede prior confidentiality agreements between Solactive and Trust (or an affiliate) with respect to Confidential Information relating to this Agreement.
|
|
1. |
[REDACTED]
|
|
2. |
The place of performance and fulfilment is the registered office of Solactive.
|
|
3. |
This Agreement shall be subject to the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany. The sole place of jurisdiction shall be Frankfurt am Main.
|
|
4. |
If Trust receives CUSIPs or CGS ISINs as part of this Agreement, Addendum 2 applies. These terms are mandated by CUSIP Global Services and may not be altered by Trust.
|
|
5. |
If Trust receives SEDOL codes as part of this Agreement, Addendum 3 applies. These terms are mandated by London Stock Exchange and may not be altered by Trust.
|
|
6. |
If the Index is comprised of data owned by BM&FBOVESPA S.A. - Bolsa de Valores, Mercadorias e Futuros ("BM&FBOVESPA"), Addendum 4 applies. These terms are mandated by BM&FBOVESPA and may not be altered by Trust.
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|
7. |
If the Index is comprised of data owned by Borsa Istanbul, Addendum 5 applies. These terms are mandated by Borsa Istanbul and may not be altered by Trust.
|
|
8. |
If the Index is comprised of Rates provided by the World Markets Company PLC, Addendum 6 applies. These terms are mandated by the World Markets Company PLC and may not be altered by Trust.
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|
9. |
The terms set out in Addendum 2, Addendum 3, Addendum 4, Addendum 5 and Addendum 6 are collectively referred to as "Third-Party Passthrough Language". Trust shall indemnify and hold harmless Solactive from and against any and all judgments,
damages, expenses, settlements, liabilities, and other out-of-pocket costs (including reasonable attorneys’ and experts’ fees and disbursements) resulting from or arising out of a third-party claim resulting from or in connection with: (i) the
Trust’s non-compliance with the Third-Party Passthrough Language; and/or (ii) consents and/or licenses set out in § 5(6) of this Agreement.
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|
10. |
Amendments to the Agreement and collateral agreements require the consent of both Parties and must be in writing to be valid. This also applies to any agreement waiving or restricting the written form requirement pursuant to sentence 1. No
oral agreements have been made.
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11. |
If an individual provision of this Agreement should be or become invalid this shall not affect the validity of the other provisions. The invalid provision shall be replaced by a valid provision which as far as possible shall reflect the
economic intent of the invalid provision. The same shall apply if this Agreement contains a lacuna. This shall be remedied by a clause which reflects the original intention of the Parties or what they would have intended had they been aware of
the lacuna.
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12. |
This Agreement shall be read and construed, in respect of the Index, in conjunction with the relevant Order Schedule. In the case of any discrepancy between an Order Schedule and this Agreement, the terms of the Order Schedule will prevail.
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13. |
The Addenda named in this Agreement constitute an integral part of it.
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No.:
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Name of Index
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Index Calculation Start Date
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No.:
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Trademarks
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Trade Mark owner
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Trade Mark registered in
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No.:
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Name of Index
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Fixed
remuneration per annum |
Variable
remuneration per annum in basis points |
Bloomberg
Cost / Vendor Fee per annum |
Sign for and on behalf of Solactive AG
|
Sign for and on behalf of
Wilshire wShares Enhanced Gold Trust By: Wilshire Phoenix Funds LLC, its Sponsor |
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Frankfurt am Main,
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, ____________________________
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a) |
Trust agrees and acknowledges that the CUSIP Database and the information contained therein is and shall remain valuable intellectual property owned by, or licensed to, CUSIP Global Services ("CGS") and the American Bankers Association
("ABA"), and that no proprietary rights are being transferred to Trust in such materials or in any of the information contained therein. Any use by Trust outside of the clearing and settlement of transactions requires a license from CGS, along
with an associated fee based on usage. Trust agrees that misappropriation or misuse of such materials will cause serious damage to CGS and ABA and that in such event money damages may not constitute sufficient compensation to CGS and ABA;
consequently, Trust agrees that in the event of any misappropriation or misuse, CGS and ABA shall have the right to obtain injunctive relief in addition to any other legal or financial remedies to which CGS and ABA may be entitled.
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b) |
Trust agrees that Trust shall not publish or distribute in any medium the CUSIP Database or any information contained therein or summaries or subsets thereof to any person or entity except in connection with the normal clearing and
settlement of security transactions. Trust further agrees that the use of CUSIP numbers and descriptions is not intended to create or maintain, and does not serve the purpose of the creation or maintenance of, a master file or database of CUSIP
descriptions or numbers for itself or any third party recipient of such service and is not intended to create and does not serve in any way as a substitute for the CUSIP MASTER TAPE, PRINT, DB, INTERNET, ELECTRONIC, CD-ROM Services and/or any
other future services developed by the CGS.
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c) |
NEITHER CGS, ABA NOR ANY OF THEIR AFFILIATES MAKE ANY WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO THE ACCURACY, ADEQUACY OR COMPLETENESS OF ANY OF THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THE CUSIP DATABASE. ALL SUCH MATERIALS ARE PROVIDED TO PARTNER ON AN
"AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES AS TO MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE NOR WITH RESPECT TO THE RESULTS WHICH MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE USE OF SUCH MATERIALS. NEITHER CGS, ABA NOR THEIR AFFILIATES SHALL HAVE ANY
RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS OR OMISSIONS NOR SHALL THEY BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, WHETHER DIRECT OR INDIRECT, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL EVEN IF THEY HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE
LIABILITY OF CGS, ABA OR ANY OF THEIR AFFILIATES PURSUANT TO ANY CAUSE OF ACTION, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT, OR OTHERWISE EXCEED THE FEE PAID BY PARTNER FOR ACCESS TO SUCH MATERIALS IN THE MONTH IN WHICH SUCH CAUSE OF ACTION IS ALLEGED TO HAVE
ARISEN. FURTHERMORE, CGS AND ABA SHALL HAVE NO RESPONSIBILITY OR LIABILITY FOR DELAYS OR FAILURES DUE TO CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND THEIR CONTROL.
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1. |
Definitions.
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2. |
Duties of Foreside
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3. |
Duties of the Client
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4. |
Representations, Warranties and Covenants of the Client.
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(a) |
it is duly organized and existing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization, with full power to carry on its business as now conducted, to enter into this Agreement and to perform its obligations
hereunder;
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(b) |
this Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by Foreside and, when executed and delivered, will constitute a valid and legally binding obligation of Foreside, enforceable in accordance with its
terms, subject to bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium and other laws of general application affecting the rights and remedies of creditors and secured parties;
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(c) |
it is conducting its business in compliance in all material respects with all applicable laws and regulations, both state and federal, and has obtained all regulatory approvals necessary to carry on its business as
now conducted; and
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(d) |
it is registered as a broker-dealer under the 1934 Act and is a member in good standing of FINRA.
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6. |
Compensation.
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7. |
Indemnification.
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10. |
Duration and Termination.
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(i) To Foreside:
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(ii) If to the Client:
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Foreside Fund Services, LLC
Attn:
Three Canal Plaza, Suite 100
Portland, ME 04101
Telephone:
Facsimile:
Email: legal@foreside.com
With a copy to:
etp-services@foreside.com
|
United States Gold and Treasury Investment Trust
c/o Wilshire Phoenix Funds LLC
Address: 2 Park Avenue, 20th Floor
Address: New York, New York 10016
Attn: William Cai, Partner
Telephone: (212) 485-8922
Email: will@wilshirephoenix.com
|
FORESIDE FUND SERVICES, LLC
By: /s/ Mark A. Fairbanks
Mark A. Fairbanks, Vice President
UNITED STATES GOLD AND TREASURY INVESTMENT TRUST
By: Wilshire Phoenix Funds LLC, not in its individual capacity but solely as Sponsor
By: /s/ William Herrmann
Name/Title William Herrmann, Managing Partner
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(a)
|
The Trust hereby appoints the Representative as the Trust’s agent and attorney-in-fact solely with respect to interacting with the Cash Custodian, the Gold Custodian, the Administrator,
the Trustee, the Index Calculation Agent, and other third-party service providers to the Trust (each, a “Service Provider”) for the purpose of effecting monthly rebalances of the Trust assets on a
Rebalance Date, and effecting Creations, Redemptions, sales and other transactions in Trust Interests and the Representative hereby accepts such appointment, subject to Section 1(b). The Representative shall have the authority, on
behalf of, and in the name of, the Trust, to the extent specified herein and described in the Registration Statement, to make purchases and sales of Physical Gold as needed in order to track the performance of the Index.
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(b)
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The Representative shall, bearing in mind the best interests of the Trust at all times, fully and faithfully discharge all of its obligations, duties and responsibilities pursuant to this
Agreement with the care, skill, prudence, and diligence under the circumstances then prevailing that a prudent person rendering services as an investment manager and familiar with such matters would use (the “Standard of Care”). The Representative shall act in conformity with the Trust Agreement, the Registration Statement, and the instructions and directions of the Trust. The Representative’s directions from the Trust on each
Rebalance Date and on any date on which the Representative is effecting Creation, Redemptions, and other transactions in the Trust interests shall be based on Index calculations and Trust holdings as communicated by the Index Calculation
Agent and the Administrator to the Trust (the “Instructions”). The Representative shall comply in all material respects with applicable laws (the “Laws”) in
discharging its obligations in this Agreement.
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(c)
|
The Assets of the Trust will be held by the Cash Custodian and the Gold Custodian, as the case may be. The Representative is not authorized to have actual or constructive custody of any
Assets of the Trust. In connection with any of the foregoing, the Representative is further authorized to transfer or tender for cash such Assets. In all such purchases, sales or trades, each of the Trust and the Sponsor authorizes the
Representative to act for the Trust, and at its risk, and in its name and on its behalf, in the same manner and with the same force and effect as the Trust might or could do with respect to such purchases, sales or trades without prior
consultation with the Sponsor or the Trust.
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(d)
|
Subject to its obligations under this Agreement, including, but not limited to those in (f) below, the Representative shall not incur any liability for trading profits or losses resulting from any
transactions executed by the Representative on behalf of the Trust, provided the Representative would not otherwise be liable to the Trust under the terms hereof. The Representative (i) agrees to act as the sole party retained by the Trust
to execute transactions in the Trust’s Assets upon the terms and conditions and for the purposes set forth in this Agreement, and (ii) shall have sole authority and responsibility for directing purchases and sales of Physical Gold for the
term of this Agreement pursuant to and in accordance with the Representative’s best judgment on each Rebalance Date and in connection with Creations and Redemptions in order to track the Index as described in the Registration Statement.
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(e)
|
The Representative will place such orders with or through such custodians, brokers or dealers chosen by the Representative in accordance with any instructions as the Trust or the Sponsor may transmit to the
Representative in writing from time to time, in conformity with all federal securities laws and subject to Section 1(f) hereof. In connection with each Rebalance Date and regularly in connection with Creations, Redemptions, the
Representative shall regularly instruct the Gold Custodian in order to ensure that the Trust’s Physical Gold is held, to the maximum extent possible, in allocated form.
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(f)
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In executing Trust transactions and selecting brokers or dealers, the Representative shall act in accordance with the Standard of Care and the policies and procedures set forth in the Registration Statement.
In effecting any transaction, the Representative shall consider all factors that it deems relevant, including the ability to effect prompt and reliable executions at favorable prices; the operational efficiency with which transactions are
effected; the financial strength, integrity and stability of the broker; and the competitiveness of commission rates in comparison with other brokers satisfying the Representative’s other selection criteria. It is understood that the costs
of such services will not necessarily represent the lowest costs available and that the Representative is under no obligation to combine or arrange orders so as to obtain reduced charges.
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(g)
|
The Representative shall keep the books and records relating to the Trust required to be maintained by the Representative under this Agreement and shall timely furnish to the Trustee and the Sponsor all
information relating to the Representative and its key investment personnel providing services with respect to the Trust and the investment and the reinvestment of the Assets of the Trust. The Representative will submit periodic reports to
the Trust and the Sponsor regarding the Representative’s activities under this agreement, no less than monthly, and as the Trustee and the Sponsor may otherwise reasonably request. The Representative agrees that all records that it
maintains on behalf of the Trust are property of the Trust and the Representative will surrender promptly to the Trust any of such records upon the Trustee’s request; provided, however, that the Representative may retain a copy of such
records.
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(h)
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The Trust and the Sponsor hereby authorizes the Representative to open accounts and execute documents in the name of, binding against and on behalf of the Trust for all purposes necessary or desirable in the
Representative’s view to effectuate the Representative’s obligations under this Agreement and the Trust Agreement. The Representative has authorized its employees identified on Schedule A to this Agreement (“Authorized Persons”) to act on the Representative’s behalf for this purpose. The list of Authorized Persons may be amended from time to time by such Authorized Persons upon notice to the Trust and the Sponsor.
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(a)
|
The Representative will furnish, at its expense, all necessary facilities and personnel, including salaries, expenses and fees of any personnel required for the Representative to perform its duties under this
Agreement and administrative facilities, including bookkeeping, and all equipment necessary for the efficient conduct of the Representative’s duties under this Agreement.
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(b)
|
The Trust shall bear full responsibility for all of its costs and expenses related to its investments and operations as described in the Trust Agreement and the Registration Statement and, to the extent such
expenses are paid initially by the Representative, shall reimburse the Representative for the same.
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(a)
|
The Representative and the Representative’s members, managers, employees, agents, advisors, affiliates, and certain other persons (the “Indemnified Parties”) shall not
be liable to the Trust or the Sponsor for any Losses (defined below) arising out of (i) any trade errors, acts or omissions, or alleged acts or omissions, including, without limitation, any action or omission arising out of, related to or
in connection with the Trust or any entity in which the Trust has an interest, any transaction or activity relating to the Trust or any entity in which it has an interest, any investment or proposed investment made or held, or to be made or
held by the Trust, or arising out of this Agreement or any similar matter, in each case, unless such action or inaction has been ultimately determined by a court or governmental body of competent jurisdiction to constitute fraud, bad faith,
gross negligence, willful default, or a violation of a material provision of this Agreement, including the Standard of Care, or (ii) any trade errors, acts or omission, or alleged acts or omissions of any broker or agent of any Indemnified
Party, provided that the selection, engagement or retention of such broker or agent was made in accordance with the Standard of Care. Each of the Indemnified Parties may consult with counsel and accountants in respect of the Trust’s affairs
and be fully protected and justified in any action or inaction that is taken in accordance with the advice or opinion of such counsel or accountants, provided that they shall have been selected with reasonable care.
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(b)
|
The Trust shall indemnify and hold harmless each Indemnified Party from and against any loss, cost, damage or expense including, without limitation, any judgment, award, settlement, reasonable attorneys’ fees
and other costs or expenses incurred in connection with the defense of any actual or threatened action, proceeding, investigation or claim (“Losses”) suffered or sustained by an Indemnified Party by
reason of (i) trade errors or any acts or omissions, alleged acts or omissions, including, without limitation, any action or omission or trade errors, arising out of, related to, or in connection with the Trust or any entity in which it has
an interest, any investment or proposed investment made or held, or to be made or held by the Trust, or this Agreement or any similar matter, provided that such acts or omissions, alleged acts or omissions or trade errors upon which such
actual or threatened action, proceeding or claim (a “Proceeding”) is based are not ultimately determined by a court or governmental body of competent jurisdiction to constitute fraud, bad faith, gross
negligence, willful default, or a violation of a material provision of this Agreement, including the Standard of Care, or a material violation of the Trust Agreement by any Indemnified Party, or
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|
(ii) any trade errors, acts or omissions, or alleged acts or omissions, of any broker or agent of any Indemnified Party, provided that the selection, engagement or retention of such broker or agent was made
with reasonable care. The Trust shall promptly reimburse any Indemnified Party reasonable attorneys’ fees and other costs and expenses as they are incurred and in advance of the final disposition of any Proceeding in connection with the
defense of any such Proceeding that arises out of the foregoing whether or not the provisos of (i) or (ii) apply. In the event that such an advancement and/or expense reimbursement is made by the Trust, the Indemnified Party shall agree
(or if a party hereto, hereby agrees) to reimburse the Trust for such fees, costs and expenses to the extent that it shall be finally determined by non-appealable order of a court of competent jurisdiction that it was not entitled to
indemnification under this Section 6(b). The rights of indemnification provided in this Section 6(b) will be in addition to any rights to which such Indemnified Party may otherwise be entitled by contract or as a matter of law and
shall extend to its successors and assigns.
|
(c)
|
The Sponsor shall indemnify and hold harmless the Indemnified Parties against any and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities or litigation (including reasonable legal and other expenses) by reason of or
arising out of the Sponsor’s willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence generally in the performance of its duties hereunder or its reckless disregard of its obligations and duties under this Agreement.
|
(d)
|
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, Sections 6(a), 6(b) and 6(c) of this Agreement will not be construed so as to provide for the indemnification of an Indemnified Party for any
liability (including liability under ERISA or U.S. federal securities laws which, under certain circumstances, impose liability even on persons that act in good faith), or the advancement to an Indemnified Party of fees and expenses, to the
extent (but only to the extent) that such indemnification would be in violation of applicable law, but will be construed so as to effectuate the foregoing provisions to the fullest extent permitted by law.
|
(a)
|
The Representative has all licenses and registrations necessary to perform the services contemplated by this Agreement;
|
(b)
|
The Representative will immediately notify the Trust of the occurrence of any event that would substantially impair the Representative’s ability to fulfill its commitment under this Agreement or disqualify
the Representative from serving as Representative of the Trust;
|
(c)
|
The Representative will notify the Trust immediately upon detection of (i) any material failure to manage the Trust in accordance with the Trust’s stated investment objectives and policies or any applicable
law; or (ii) any material breach of any of the Trust’s guidelines or procedures;
|
(d)
|
The Representative is fully authorized under all applicable law to enter into this Agreement and to perform the services described under this Agreement;
|
(e)
|
The Representative is a limited liability company duly organized and validly existing under the laws of the state of Oklahoma with the power to own and possess its assets and carry on its business as it is
now being conducted; and
|
(f)
|
The Representative agrees to maintain an appropriate level of errors and omissions and professional liability insurance coverage.
|
(a)
|
Will immediately notify the Representative of the occurrence of any event that would substantially impair its ability to fulfill its commitment under this Agreement or the Trust Agreement;
|
(b)
|
Will notify the Representative immediately upon detection of any material breach of any of the Trust’s or the Sponsor’s policies, guidelines or procedures;
|
(c)
|
Is fully authorized under all applicable law to enter into this Agreement;
|
(d)
|
The Trust is a Delaware statutory trust duly organized and validly existing under the laws of the state of Delaware with the power to own and possess its assets and carry on its business as it is now being
conducted;
|
(e)
|
The Sponsor is a Delaware limited liability company duly organized and validly existing under the laws of the state of Delaware with the power to own and possess its assets and carry on its business as it is
now being conducted;
|
(f)
|
The execution, delivery and performance by the Trust of this Agreement are within the Trust’s powers and have been duly authorized by all necessary action on the part of the Trust and the execution, delivery
and performance by the Trust of this Agreement do not contravene or constitute a default under (i) any provision of applicable law, rule or regulation, (ii) the Trust Agreement, or (iii) any agreement, judgment, injunction, order, decree or
other instrument binding upon the Trust;
|
(g)
|
This Agreement is a valid and binding agreement of the Trust and the Sponsor;
|
(h)
|
Within ninety (90) days after the Effective Date (as defined below) of this Agreement, the Sponsor agrees to use commercially reasonable efforts to obtain and maintain an appropriate level of errors and
omissions and professional liability insurance coverage and shall provide the Representative with proof of such insurance coverage;
|
(i)
|
Reserved.
|
(j)
|
The Trust or the Sponsor, as applicable, shall promptly advise the Representative in writing of any investigation, examination (other than routine examinations provided, however, that all findings letters
that identify material issues or compliance infractions shall be promptly disclosed to the Representative), complaint, disciplinary action or other proceeding involving the Trust or the Sponsor or any of its respective affiliates or any
executive or professional employed by the Sub-Adviser, any Sub-Adviser or any of their respective affiliates relating to or affecting the Trust or the Sponsor’s ability to perform its respective duties, and operate and manage the Trust,
which is commenced by the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission, or any other federal or state governmental, regulatory or self-regulatory or agency or organization, or any state Attorney General, or any foreign governmental, regulatory or
self-regulatory agency or organization of any state in the United States or any international regulatory agency;
|
(k)
|
The Trust represents that it has and shall maintain anti-money laundering policies and procedures in compliance with applicable anti-money laundering legislation and regulations, including the anti-
|
|
money laundering laws and regulations of the U.S. and international laws and regulations, as applicable, as amended from time to time;
|
(l)
|
The Trust and the Sponsor agree to comply with the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and applicable federal securities laws and the respective rules
and regulations thereunder, as applicable, as well as with all other applicable federal and state laws, rules, regulations and case law that relate to the services and relationships described hereunder and to the conduct of each of the
Trust and Sponsor’s business (“Laws”);
|
(m)
|
The Trust is and will be excluded from the definition of “investment company” under the 1940 Act;
|
(n)
|
The Trust does not intend to accept investments that would cause the assets of the Trust that constitute “plan assets” within the meaning of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended,
without the Trust notifying the Representative in advance that it intends to accept investments that will cause the Trust to exceed the 25% threshold of Plan Assets.
|
(a)
|
has fully disclosed to potential investors the fee provisions and other arrangements relating to the Trust’s account with the Representative and is satisfied that the potential investors have received
sufficient information from the Representative to enable them to evaluate the terms of this Agreement;
|
(b)
|
fully understands the method of compensation provided herein and its associated risks; and
|
(c)
|
the Registration Statement, considered as a whole, and the Registration Statement considered on a stand-alone basis — but in each case excluding information provided by the Representative, if any— as provided
to the Representative do not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading
and are otherwise in compliance with applicable Laws.
|
(a)
|
Duration. This Agreement shall become effective when the Trust commences operations (the “Effective Date”) and will continue in full force so long as the Trust exists, unless sooner terminated in
accordance with Section 11(b) below.
|
(b)
|
Termination. Notwithstanding whatever may be provided herein to the contrary, this Agreement may be terminated at any time, without payment of any penalty:
|
(i)
|
By the Trust upon 60 days’ written notice to the Representative;
|
(ii)
|
By the Representative upon 60 days’ written notice to the Trust; or
|
(iii)
|
By the Representative or the Trust immediately, if for any reason other than a valid assignment under Section 13, the Sponsor is no longer the Sponsor of the Trust.
|
To the Representative at:
|
Exchange Traded Concepts, LLC
10900 Hefner Pointe Drive
Suite 401
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73120
Attention: J. Garrett Stevens, CEO
|
To the Trust at:
|
Delaware Trust Company
251 Little Falls Drive
Wilmington, DE 19808
Attention: Corporate Trust Administration
|
With a copy to the Sponsor at:
|
Wilshire Phoenix Funds LLC
2 Park Avenue, 20th Floor
New York, NY 10016
Attention: William Cai, Partner
|
(a)
|
this Agreement is executed and delivered on behalf of the Trust by the Sponsor, not individually or personally, but solely as the Sponsor in the exercise of the powers and authority
conferred and vested in it;
|
(b)
|
the representations, covenants, undertakings and agreements made by the Trust in this Agreement are made and intended not as personal representations, undertakings and agreements by the
Sponsor but are made and intended for the purpose of binding only the Trust;
|
(c)
|
nothing herein contained shall be construed as creating any liability on the Sponsor, individually or personally, to perform any covenant of the Trust either expressed or implied
contained herein, all such liability, if any, being expressly waived by the parties hereto and by any person claiming by, through or under the parties hereto; and
|
(d)
|
under no circumstances shall the Sponsor be personally liable for the payment of any of the Trust’s indebtedness or expenses or be liable for the breach or failure of any obligation,
duty, representation, warranty or covenant made or undertaken by the Trust under this Agreement.
|
|
|
TRUST:
|
REPRESENTATIVE: |
WILSHIRE wSHARES ENHANCED GOLD TRUST |
EXCHANGE TRADED CONCEPTS, LLC
|
By: Wilshire Phoenix Funds LLC, its Sponsor
|
|
By: _______________________________
|
By: ________________________________
|
Name: William Herrmann
|
Name: J. Garrett Stevens
|
Title: Managing Partner
|
Title: Chief Executive Officer
|
By: _______________________________
|