STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

February 14, 2011

This Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) is not a prospectus. Much of the information contained in this SAI expands upon subjects discussed in the current prospectus for Virtus Variable Insurance Trust (formerly, The Phoenix Edge Series Fund) (the “Trust” or “VVIT”). Accordingly, the SAI should be read together with the prospectus, which may be obtained free of charge by calling 800/367-5877 or by writing to VP Distributors, Inc. (“VP Distributors) at 100 Pearl Street, Hartford, CT 06103. The financial statements and the notes thereto relating to each Series and the report of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP with respect thereto for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 are contained in the Trust’s annual report and are incorporated herein by reference. Copies of the Trust’s Annual and Semiannual Reports have been delivered to shareholders and are available without charge, upon request, by calling Virtus Mutual Fund Services at 800/367-5877 or visiting Virtus’ website at http://virtus.com. The contents of this SAI are incorporated by reference into the prospectus in their entirety. The Series of the Trust include the following:

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THE TRUST

The Trust is an open-end, management investment company as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), with nine series. It was formed on February 18, 1986 as a Massachusetts business trust and commenced operations on December 5, 1986. Prior to November 5, 2010, the Trust was named The Phoenix Edge Series Fund. All of the Series described in this SAI are classified as diversified under the 1940 Act, except for the Virtus Real Estate Securities Series, which is non-diversified.

Shares in each Series of the Trust are generally available only as underlying investments in a variable accumulation annuity contract or a variable universal life insurance policy issued by a participating insurance company.

PERMITTED INVESTMENTS AND RISK FACTORS

The investment objectives, principal investment strategies and principal risks are set forth in the prospectus. The following supplements that information.

All of the Series described in this SAI may invest in the following investments unless specifically noted otherwise. Additional information detailing investment policies that apply to one or more individual Series is set forth below and is intended to supplement information in the prospectus. Any percentage limitations noted are based on market value at the time of investment.

Unless otherwise stated in the prospectus, many investment techniques are discretionary. That means the advisers or subadvisers may elect to engage or not engage in the various techniques at their sole discretion. Investors should not assume that any particular discretionary investment technique or strategy will be employed at all times, or ever employed.

Bankers’ Acceptances

A banker’s acceptance is a time draft drawn on a commercial bank by a borrower usually in connection with an international commercial transaction (to finance the import, export, transfer or storage of goods). The borrower, as well as the bank, is liable for payment, and the bank unconditionally guarantees to pay the draft at its face amount on the maturity date. Most acceptances have maturities of six months or less and are traded in secondary markets prior to maturity.

Brady Bonds

Brady Bonds are securities created through the exchange of existing commercial bank loans to public and private entities in certain emerging markets for new bonds in connection with debt restructurings under a debt restructuring plan introduced by former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, Nicholas F. Brady (the “Brady Plan”). Brady Plan debt restructurings have been implemented to date in Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Costa Rica, Croatia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Jordan, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, Panama, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Slovenia, Uruguay and Venezuela. Brady Bonds have been issued only recently, and for that reason do not have a long payment history. Brady Bonds may be collateralized or uncollateralized, are issued in various currencies (but primarily the U.S. dollar) and are actively traded in over-the-counter secondary markets. U.S. dollar-denominated, collateralized Brady Bonds, which may be fixed rate bonds or floating-rate bonds, are generally collateralized in full as to principal by U.S. Treasury zero coupon bonds having the same maturity as the bonds. Brady Bonds are often viewed as having three or four valuation components: the collateralized repayment of principal at final maturity; the collateralized interest payments; the uncollateralized interest payments; and any uncollateralized repayment of principal at maturity (these uncollateralized amounts constituting the “residual risk”). In light of the residual risk of Brady Bonds and the history of defaults of countries issuing Brady Bonds with respect to commercial bank loans by public and private entities, investments in Brady Bonds may be viewed as speculative.

Certificates of Deposit

Certificates of deposit are generally short-term, interest-bearing negotiable certificates issued by banks or savings and loan associations against funds deposited in the issuing institution.

Commercial Bank Obligations

For the purposes of each Series’ investment policies with respect to bank obligations, obligations of foreign branches of U.S. banks and of foreign banks are obligations of the issuing bank and may be general obligations of the parent bank. Such obligations, however, may be limited by the terms of a specific obligation and by government regulation. As with investment in non-U.S. securities in general, investments in the obligations of foreign branches of U.S. banks and of foreign banks may subject the Series to investment risks that are different in some respects from those of investments in obligations of domestic issuers. Although a Series typically will acquire obligations issued and supported by the credit of U.S. or foreign banks having total assets at the time of purchase of $1 billion or more, this $1 billion figure is not an investment policy or restriction of any Series. For the purposes of calculation with respect to the $1 billion figure, the assets of a bank will be deemed to include the assets of its U.S. and non-U.S. branches.

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Commercial Paper

Commercial paper refers to short-term, unsecured promissory notes issued by corporations to finance short-term credit needs. Commercial paper is usually sold on a discount basis and has maturity at the time of issuance not exceeding nine months.

Convertible Securities

A convertible security is a bond, debenture, note, preferred stock or other security that may be converted into or exchanged for a prescribed amount of common stock of the same or a different issuer within a particular period of time at a specific price or formula. A convertible security entitles the holder to receive interest generally paid or accrued on debt or the dividend paid on preferred stock until the convertible security matures or is redeemed, converted or exchanged. Convertible securities have several unique investment characteristics such as (1) higher yields than common stocks, but lower yields than comparable nonconvertible securities, (2) a lesser degree of fluctuation in value then the underlying stock since they have fixed income characteristics and (3) the potential for capital appreciation if the market price of the underlying common stock increases. Up to 5% of each Series’ assets may be invested in convertible securities that are rated below investment grade (commonly referred to as “junk” securities). Such securities present greater credit and market risks than investment grade securities. A convertible security might be subject to redemption at the option of the issuer at a price established in the convertible security’s governing instrument. If a convertible security held by a Series is called for redemption, the Series may be required to permit the issuer to redeem the security, convert it into the underlying common stock or sell it to a third party.

Corporate Asset-Backed Securities

Corporate asset-backed securities, issued by trusts and special purpose corporations, are backed by a pool of assets, such as credit card and automobile loan receivables, representing the obligations of a number of different parties. These securities present certain risks. For instance, in the case of credit card receivables, these securities may not have the benefit of any security interest in the related collateral. Credit card receivables are generally unsecured and the debtors are entitled to the protection of a number of state and federal consumer credit laws, many of which give such debtors the right to set off certain amounts owed on the credit cards, thereby reducing the balance due. Most issuers of automobile receivables permit the servicers to retain possession of the underlying obligations. If the servicer were to sell these obligations to another party, there is a risk that the purchaser would acquire an interest superior to that of the holders of the related automobile receivables. In addition, because of the large number of vehicles involved in a typical issuance and technical requirements under state laws, the trustee for the holders of the automobile receivables may not have a proper security interest in all of the obligations backing such receivables. Therefore, there is the possibility that recoveries on repossessed collateral may not, in some cases, be available to support payments on these securities. The underlying assets (e.g., loans) are also subject to prepayments which shorten the securities weighted average life and may lower their return.

Corporate asset-backed securities are backed by a pool of assets representing the obligations of a number of different parties. To lessen the effect of failures by obligors on underlying assets to make payments, the securities may contain elements of credit support which fall into two categories: (i) liquidity protection and (ii) protection against losses resulting from ultimate default by an obligor on the underlying assets. Liquidity protection refers to the provision of advances, generally by the entity administering the pool of assets, to ensure that the receipt of payments on the underlying pool occurs in a timely fashion. Protection against losses resulting from ultimate default ensures payment through insurance policies or letters of credit obtained by the issuer or sponsor from third parties. The Series will not pay any additional or separate fees for credit support. The degree of credit support provided for each issue is generally based on historical information respecting the level of credit risk associated with the underlying assets. Delinquency or loss in excess of that anticipated or failure of the credit support could adversely affect the return on an investment in such a security.

Corporate Securities

The Series may invest in debt securities, such as convertible and non-convertible bonds, notes and debentures, issued by corporations, limited partnerships and other similar entities.

Debt Securities

The value of a Series’ investments in debt securities will change as interest rates fluctuate. When interest rates decline, the values of such securities generally can be expected to increase, and when interest rates rise, the values of such securities generally can be expected to decrease. The lower-rated and comparable unrated debt securities described above are subject to greater risks of loss of income and principal than are higher-rated fixed income securities. The market value of lower-rated securities generally tends to reflect the market’s perception of the creditworthiness of the issuer and short-term market developments to a greater extent than is the case with more highly rated securities, which reflect primarily functions in general levels of interest rates.

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Depositary Receipts

Each Series may hold foreign securities. Such investments may include American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), American Depositary Shares (“ADSs”), Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”) and European Depositary Receipts (“EDRs”). ADRs and ADSs typically are issued by an American bank or trust company and evidence ownership of underlying securities issued by a foreign corporation. EDRs, which are sometimes referred to as Continental Depositary Receipts (“CDRs”), are issued in Europe typically by foreign banks and trust companies and evidence ownership of either foreign or domestic securities. GDRs are similar to EDRs and are designed for use in several international financial markets. Generally, ADRs and ADSs in registered form are designed for use in United States securities markets and EDRs in bearer form are designed for use in European securities markets. For purposes of a Series’ investment policies, its investments in ADRs, ADSs, GDRs and EDRs will be deemed to be investments in the underlying foreign equity securities.

ADR facilities may be established as either “unsponsored” or “sponsored.” While ADRs issued under these two types of facilities are in some respects similar, there are distinctions between them relating to the rights and obligations of ADR holders and the practices of market participants. A depository may establish an unsponsored facility without participation by (or even necessarily the acquiescence of) the issuer of the deposited securities, although typically the depository requests a letter of non-objection from such issuer prior to the establishment of the facility. Holders of unsponsored ADRs generally bear all the costs of such facilities. The depository usually charges fees upon the deposit and withdrawal of the deposited securities, the conversion of dividends into U.S. dollars, the disposition of non-cash distributions and the performance of other services. The depository of an unsponsored facility frequently is under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the issuer of the deposited securities or to pass through voting rights to ADR holders with respect to the deposited securities. Sponsored ADR facilities are created in generally the same manner as unsponsored facilities, except that the issuer of the deposited securities enters into a deposit agreement with the depository. The deposit agreement sets out the rights and responsibilities of the issuer, the depository and the ADR holders. With sponsored facilities, the issuer of the deposited securities generally will bear some of the costs relating to the facility (such as dividend payment fees of the depository), although ADR holders continue to bear certain other costs (such as deposit and withdrawal fees). Under the terms of most sponsored arrangements, depositories agree to distribute notices of shareholder meetings and voting instructions, and to provide shareholder communications and other information to the ADR holders at the request of the issuer of the deposited securities. The Series may invest in both sponsored and unsponsored ADRs.

Broker/dealers have recently launched another form of depositary receipt which represents an ownership interest in a pro rata portion of a portfolio of debt securities, which may, or may not, include foreign securities. The issuer may be a custodial receipt account held for the benefit of receipt purchasers or a trust. The custodian/ trust passes principal and interest payments received on the underlying portfolio to the receipt holders and also distributes corporate action notices as well. Receipt holders generally pay an annual administrative/trustee fee and may pay a redemption fee. In addition to risks associated with the underlying portfolio of securities, receipt holders also must consider credit standings of the custodians and broker/dealer sponsors. The receipts are not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and qualify as Rule 144A securities which may make them more difficult and costly to sell.

Dollar Denominated Foreign Debt Securities

Investing in dollar-denominated foreign debt represents a greater degree of risk than investing in domestic securities, due to less publicly available information, less securities regulation, war or expropriation. Special considerations may include higher brokerage costs and thinner trading markets. Investments in foreign countries could be affected by other factors including extended settlement periods.

Emerging Market Securities

“Emerging Markets” are those countries or regions with relatively low gross national product per capita compared to the world’s major economies, and those countries or regions with the potential for rapid economic growth (emerging markets). Emerging markets in Asia will include countries: (i) having an “emerging stock market” as defined by the International Finance Corporation; (ii) with low-to middle-income economies according to the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (the “World Bank”); (iii) listed in World Bank publications as developing; or (iv) determined by the adviser to be an emerging market as defined above. The Series may invest in securities of: (i) companies where the principal securities trading market is an emerging market country; (ii) companies organized under the laws of, and with a principal office in, an emerging market country; or (iii) companies whose principal activities are located in emerging market countries.

The risks of investing in foreign securities may be intensified in the case of investments in emerging markets. Securities of many issuers in emerging markets may be less liquid and more volatile than securities of comparable domestic issuers. Emerging markets also have different clearance and settlement procedures, and in certain markets there have been times when settlements have been unable to keep pace with the volume of securities transactions, making it difficult to conduct such transactions. Delays in settlement could result in temporary periods when a portion of the assets of the Series is

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uninvested and no return is earned thereon. The inability of the Series to make intended security purchases due to settlement problems could cause the Series to miss attractive investment opportunities. Inability to dispose of portfolio securities due to settlement problems could result either in losses to the Series due to subsequent declines in value of the portfolio securities or, if the Series has entered into a contract to sell the security, in possible liability to the purchaser. Securities prices in emerging markets can be significantly more volatile than in the more developed nations of the world, reflecting the greater uncertainties of investing in less established markets and economies. In particular, countries with emerging markets may have relatively unstable governments, present the risk of nationalization of businesses, restrictions on foreign ownership or prohibitions of repatriation of assets, and may have less protection of property rights than more developed countries. The economies of countries with emerging markets may be predominantly based on only a few industries, may be highly vulnerable to changes in local or global trade conditions, and may suffer from extreme and volatile debt burdens or inflation rates. Local securities markets may trade a small number of securities and may be unable to respond effectively to increases in trading volume, potentially making prompt liquidation of substantial holdings difficult or impossible at times. Securities of issuers located in countries with emerging markets may have limited marketability and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements.

Certain emerging markets may require governmental approval for the repatriation of investment income, capital or the proceeds of sales of securities by foreign investors. In addition, if deterioration occurs in an emerging market’s balance of payments or for other reasons, a country could impose temporary restrictions on foreign capital remittances. The Series could be adversely affected by delays in, or a refusal to grant, any required governmental approval for repatriation of capital, as well as by the application to the Series of any restrictions on investments. Investments in certain foreign emerging market debt obligations may be restricted or controlled to varying degrees. These restrictions or controls may at times preclude investment in certain foreign emerging market debt obligations and increase the expenses of the Series.

Equity Linked Derivatives

The Series may invest in equity-linked derivative products designed to replicate the composition and performance of particular indices. Examples of such products include Standard & Poor’s Depositary Receipts (“SPDRs”), World Equity Benchmark Series (“WEBs”), NASDAQ 100 tracking shares (“QQQs”), Dow Jones Industrial Average Instruments (“DIAMONDS”) and Optimized Portfolios as Listed Securities (“OPALS”). Investments in equity-linked derivatives involve the same risks associated with a direct investment in the types of securities included in the indices such products are designed to track. There can be no assurance that the trading price of the equity-linked derivatives will equal the underlying value of the basket of securities purchased to replicate a particular index or that such basket will replicate the index. Investments in equity-linked derivatives may constitute investments in other investment companies.

Equity Securities

Equity securities include common stocks, preferred stocks and preference stocks; securities such as bonds, warrants or rights that are convertible into stocks; and depositary receipts for those securities. These securities may be listed on securities exchanges, traded in various over-the-counter markets or have no organized market. Investments in equity securities in general are subject to market risks that may cause their prices to fluctuate over time. The value of convertible equity securities is also affected by prevailing interest rates, the credit quality of the issuer and any call provisions. Fluctuations in the value of equity securities in which a Series invests will cause the net asset value of the Series to fluctuate.

Financial Futures and Related Options

The Series may enter into futures contracts on financial instruments (“financial futures”) for the purchase or sale of debt obligations which are traded on recognized exchanges or boards of trade that are licensed and regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and may purchase or sell options on financial futures contracts.

Financial futures contracts consist of interest rate futures contracts, foreign currency futures contracts and securities index futures contracts. An interest rate futures contract obligates the seller of the contract to deliver, and the purchaser to take delivery of, the interest rate securities called for in the contract at a specified future time and at a specified price. A foreign currency futures contract obligates the seller of the contract to deliver, and the purchaser to take delivery of, the foreign currency called for in the contract at a specified future time and at a specified price. A securities index assigns relative values to the securities included in the index, and the index fluctuates with changes in the market values of the securities so included. A securities index futures contract is a bilateral agreement pursuant to which two parties agree to take or make delivery of an amount of cash equal to a specified dollar amount times the difference between the index value at the close of the last trading day of the contract and the price at which the futures contract is originally struck. An option on a financial futures contract gives the purchaser the right to assume a position in the contract (a long position if the option is a call and a short position if the option is a put) at a specified exercise price at any time during the period of the option.

A public market presently exists in interest rate futures contracts covering long-term U.S. Treasury bonds, U.S. Treasury notes, three-month U.S. Treasury bills and GNMA certificates. Securities index futures contracts are currently traded with

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respect to the S&P 500 and other securities indices. A clearing corporation associated with a board of trade on which a financial futures contract trades assumes responsibility for the completion of transactions and guarantees that open futures contracts will be performed.

A futures contract on a debt obligation is a binding contractual commitment which, if held to maturity, will result in an obligation to make or accept delivery, during a particular month, of obligations having a standard face value and rate of return. By entering into a futures contract for the purchase of a debt obligation, a Series will legally obligate itself to accept delivery of the underlying security and pay the agreed price. Futures contracts are valued at the most recent settlement price, unless such price does not reflect the fair value of the contract, in which case such positions will be valued by or under the direction of the Board of Trustees of the Trust. Positions taken in the futures markets are not normally held to maturity, but are instead liquidated through offsetting transactions which may result in a profit or loss. While futures positions taken by a Series usually would be liquidated in this manner, it may instead make or take delivery of the underlying securities whenever it appears economically advantageous for it to do so.

In contrast to the situation when Series purchase or sell a security, no security is delivered or received by the Series upon the purchase or sale of a financial futures contract. Initially, a Series will be required to deposit in a segregated account with its custodian bank an amount of cash, U.S. Treasury bills or liquid high-grade debt obligations. This amount is known as initial margin and is in the nature of a performance bond or good faith deposit on the contract. The current initial deposit required per contract is approximately 5% of the contract amount. Brokers may establish deposit requirements higher than this minimum. Subsequent payments called variation margin, will be made to and from the account on a daily basis as the price of the futures contract fluctuates. This process is known as marking to market.

The writer of an option on a futures contract is required to deposit margin pursuant to requirements similar to those applicable to futures contracts. Upon exercise of an option on a futures contract, the delivery of the futures position by the writer of the option to the holder of the option will be accompanied by delivery of the accumulated balance in the writer’s margin account. In the case of a call, this amount will be equal to the amount by which the market price of the futures contract at the time of exercise exceeds, or, in the case of a put, is less than the exercise price of the option on the futures contract. For more information regarding options, see below.

Although financial futures contracts by their terms call for actual delivery or acceptance of securities, in most cases the contracts are closed out before the settlement date without the making or taking of delivery. Closing out is accomplished by effecting an offsetting transaction. Effecting a futures contract purchase for the same aggregate amount of securities and the same delivery date closes out a futures contract sale. If the sale price exceeds the offsetting purchase price, the seller immediately would be paid the difference and would realize a gain. If the offsetting purchase price exceeds the sale price, the seller immediately would pay the difference and would realize a loss. Similarly, effecting a futures contract sale for the same securities and the same delivery date closes out a futures contract purchase. If the offsetting sale price exceeds the purchase price, the purchaser would realize a gain, whereas if the purchase price exceeds the offsetting sale price, the purchaser would realize a loss.

A Series may enter into financial futures contracts and related options as a hedge against anticipated changes in the market value of its portfolio securities or securities denominated in a foreign currency. Hedging is the initiation of an offsetting position in the futures market which is intended to minimize the risk associated with a position’s underlying securities in the cash market. Hedging is accomplished when an investor takes a position in the futures market opposite to his cash market position. There are two types of hedges—long (or buying) and short (or selling) hedges. Historically, prices in the futures market have tended to move in concert with cash market prices, and prices in the futures market have maintained a fairly predictable relationship to prices in the cash market. Thus, to a considerable extent, a decline in the market value of securities in a Series’ portfolio may be protected against by gains realized on futures contracts sales. Similarly, it is possible to protect against an increase in the market price of securities that a Series may wish to buy in the future by purchasing futures contracts.

The purpose of hedging in debt obligations is to establish more certainty than otherwise would be possible in the effective rate of return on portfolio securities. A Series might, for example, take a “short” position in the futures markets by entering into contracts for the future delivery of securities held by it in order to hedge against an anticipated rise in interest rates that would adversely affect the value of such securities. When hedging of this type is successful, any depreciation in the value of securities will be substantially offset by appreciation in the value of the futures position. On the other hand, a Series might take a “long” position by entering into contracts for the future purchase of securities. This could be done when the Series anticipates the future purchase of particular debt securities but expects the rate of return then available in the securities market to be less favorable than rates that are currently available in the futures markets.

Transactions in financial futures contracts and related options will be primarily for hedging purposes. In addition, each Series will not purchase or sell any financial futures contract or related option for non-bona fide hedging purposes if,

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immediately thereafter, the sum of the cash or U.S. Treasury bills committed with respect to its existing futures and related options positions and the premiums paid for related options would exceed 5% of the market value of its total assets. At the time of the purchase of a futures contract or a call option on a futures contract, any asset—either including equity securities and non-investment grade debt so long as the asset is liquid, unencumbered and marked to market daily equal to the market value of the futures contract, minus the initial margin deposit with respect thereto—will be specifically designated in the Series accounting records to fully collateralize the position and thereby ensure that it is not leveraged. The extent to which the Series may enter into financial futures contracts and related options also may be limited by requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the “Code”) for qualification as a regulated investment company.

A Series will incur brokerage fees in connection with its financial futures transactions, and will be required to deposit and maintain Trusts with its custodian in its own name as margin to guarantee performance of its future obligations. These commissions may be higher than those that would apply to purchases and sales of securities directly.

While financial futures would be traded to reduce certain risks, futures trading itself entails certain other risks. One risk arises because of the imperfect correlation between movements in the price of the futures contracts and movements in the price of the debt securities that are the subject of such contracts. In addition, the market price of futures contracts may be affected by certain factors, such as the closing out of futures contracts by investors through offsetting transactions, margin, deposit and maintenance requirements, and the participation of speculators in the futures market. Another risk is that there may not be a liquid secondary market on an exchange or board of trade for a given futures contract or at a given time, and in such event it may not be possible for the Series to close a futures position. Finally, successful use of futures contracts by a Series is subject, where applicable, to the adviser’s or subadviser’s ability to correctly predict movements in the direction of interest rates and other factors affecting the market for debt securities. Thus, while a Series may benefit from the use of such contracts, the operation of these risk factors may result in a poorer overall performance for the Series than if it had not entered into any futures contract. The risk in purchasing an option on a financial futures contract is that the Series will lose the premium it paid. Also, there may be circumstances when the purchase of an option on a financial futures contract would result in a loss to the Series while the purchase or sale of the contract would not have resulted in a loss.

Immediately after entering into a futures contract for the receipt or delivery of a security, the value of the securities called for by all of the Series’ futures contracts (both for receipts and delivery) will not exceed 10% of its total assets.

Fixed Income Securities

Fixed income securities are debt obligations issued by corporations, municipalities and other borrowers. The market value of a Series fixed income investments will change in response to interest rate changes and other factors. During periods of falling interest rates, the values of outstanding fixed income securities generally rise. Conversely, during periods of rising interest rates, the values of such securities generally decline. Securities with longer maturities are subject to greater fluctuations in value than securities with shorter maturities. Fixed income securities rated in the fourth highest rating category lack outstanding investment characteristics, and have speculative characteristics as well. Changes by a nationally recognized statistical ratings organization in the rating of a fixed income security and in the ability of an issuer to make payments of interest and principal also affect the value of these investments.

Changes in the value of a Series’ securities will not affect cash income derived from these securities but will affect the Series’ net asset value.

Foreign Currency Transactions

For each Series investing in foreign securities, the value of the assets of such Series as measured in United States dollars may be affected favorably or unfavorably by changes in foreign currency exchange rates and exchange control regulations, and a Series may incur costs in connection with conversions between various currencies. A Series will conduct its foreign currency exchange transactions either on a spot (i.e., cash) basis at the spot rate prevailing in the foreign currency exchange market, or through forward contracts to purchase or sell foreign currencies. A forward foreign currency exchange contract involves an obligation to purchase or sell a specific currency at a future date, which may be any fixed number of days from the date of the contract agreed upon by the parties, at a price set at the time of the contract. These contracts are traded directly between currency traders (usually large commercial banks) and their customers. Unless the Series already owns a security denominated in (or otherwise exposed to) the foreign currency in the same amount as the forward contract, at the time of the purchase of a forward foreign currency exchange contract, any asset, including equity securities and non-investment grade debt so long as the asset is liquid, unencumbered and marked to market daily equal to the market value of the contract, minus the Series’ initial margin deposit with respect thereto, will be specifically designated in the Series accounting records to fully collateralize the position and thereby ensure that it is not leveraged.

When a Series enters into a contract for the purchase or sale of a security denominated in or exposed to a foreign currency, it may want to establish the United States dollar cost or proceeds. By entering into a forward contract in United States dollars for the purchase or sale of the amount of foreign currency involved in the underlying security transaction, a Series may be able

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to protect itself against a possible loss between trade and settlement dates resulting from an adverse change in the relationship between the United States dollar and such foreign currency. However, this tends to limit potential gains that might result from a positive change in such currency relationships.

When the adviser or subadviser believes that the currency of a particular foreign country may suffer a substantial decline against the United States dollar, it may enter into a forward contract to sell an amount of foreign currency approximating the value of some or all of a Series’ portfolio securities denominated in or exposed to such foreign currency. The forecasting of short-term currency market movement is extremely difficult and whether such a short-term hedging strategy will be successful is highly uncertain.

It is impossible to forecast with precision the market value of portfolio securities at the expiration of a contract. Accordingly, it may be necessary for a Series to purchase additional currency on the spot market (and bear the expense of such purchase) if the market value of the security is less than the amount of foreign currency the Series is obligated to deliver when a decision is made to sell the security and make delivery of the foreign currency in settlement of a forward contract. Conversely, it may be necessary to sell on the spot market some of the foreign currency received upon the sale of the portfolio security if its market value exceeds the amount of foreign currency the Series is obligated to deliver.

If the Series retains the portfolio security and engages in an offsetting transaction, it will incur a gain or a loss to the extent that there has been movement in forward contract prices. If the Series engages in an offsetting transaction, it may subsequently enter into a new forward contract to sell the foreign currency. Should forward prices decline during the period between the Series entering into a forward contract for the sale of a foreign currency and the date it enters into an offsetting contract for the purchase of the foreign currency, the Series would realize gain to the extent the price of the currency it has agreed to sell exceeds the price of the currency it has agreed to purchase. Should forward prices increase, the Series would suffer a loss to the extent the price of the currency it has agreed to purchase exceeds the price of the currency it has agreed to sell. Although such contracts tend to minimize the risk of loss due to a decline in the value of the hedged currency, they also tend to limit any potential gain which might result should the value of such currency increase. The Series will have to convert holdings of foreign currencies into United States dollars from time to time. Although foreign exchange dealers do not charge a fee for conversion, they do realize a profit based on the difference (the “spread”) between the prices at which they are buying and selling various currencies.

The Virtus Multi-Sector Fixed Income Series may invest up to 50% of net assets in foreign debt securities. In addition, the Virtus Strategic Allocation Series may invest in foreign securities up to 20%, but under normal circumstances will not invest more than 10% of its total assets in foreign securities.

The Series may invest in government obligations supported by the authority to levy taxes sufficient to ensure the payment of all principal and interest due on such obligations. Because foreign government obligations, like U.S. government obligations, are generally guaranteed for principal and interest by the government issuing the security, the principal risk of investing in foreign government obligations is that the foreign government will not or will be unable to meet its obligations. The Series also may purchase securities of nongovernmental issuers considered creditworthy by the adviser or subadviser, as applicable.

For the Series that may purchase foreign debt securities denominated in foreign currencies (“non-U.S. dollar securities”), the amount invested in such non-U.S. dollar securities may vary depending on the relative yield of such securities, the relative strength of the economies and the financial markets of such countries, the relative interest rates available in such countries and the relationship of such countries’ currencies to the U.S. dollar. Investments in non-U.S. dollar securities and currency will be evaluated on the basis of fundamental economic criteria (e.g., relative inflation levels and trends, growth rate forecasts, balance of payments status, and economic policies) as well as technical and political data.

As a result of its investments in foreign securities, the Series may receive interest or dividend payments, or the proceeds of the sale or redemption of such securities, in the foreign currencies in which such securities are denominated. In that event,

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the Series may convert such currencies into dollars at the then current exchange rate. Under certain circumstances, however, such as where the adviser believes that the applicable rate is unfavorable at the time the currencies are received or the adviser anticipates, for any other reason, that the NYSE rate will improve, the Series may hold such currencies for an indefinite period of time.

In addition, the Series may be required to receive delivery of the foreign currency underlying forward foreign currency contracts into which it has entered. This could occur, for example, if an option written by the Trust is exercised or the Trust is unable to close out a forward contract. The Series may hold foreign currency in anticipation of purchasing foreign securities. The Series also may elect to take delivery of the currencies underlying options or forward contracts if, in the judgment of the adviser, it is in the best interest of the Series to do so. In such instances as well, the Series may convert the foreign currencies to dollars at the then current exchange rate, or may hold such currencies for an indefinite period of time.

Indexed Securities

The Series may purchase securities with principal and/or interest payments whose prices are indexed to the prices of other securities, securities indices, currencies, precious metals or other commodities, credit default swaps or other financial indicators. Indexed securities typically, but not always, are debt securities or deposits whose value at maturity or coupon rate is determined by reference to a specific instrument or statistic. The Series may also purchase indexed deposits with similar characteristics. Gold-indexed securities, for example, typically provide for a maturity value that depends on the price of gold, resulting in a security whose price tends to rise and fall together with gold prices. Currency-indexed securities typically are short-term to intermediate-term debt securities whose maturity values or interest rates are determined by reference to the values of one or more specified foreign currencies, and may offer higher yields than U.S. dollar denominated securities of equivalent issuers. Currency-indexed securities may be positively or negatively indexed; that is, their maturity value may increase when the specified currency value increases, resulting in a security that performs similarly to a foreign-denominated instrument, or their maturity value may decline when foreign currencies increase, resulting in a security whose price characteristics are similar to a put on the underlying currency. Currency-indexed securities may also have prices that depend on the values of a number of different foreign currencies relative to each other. Certain indexed securities may expose the Series to the risk of loss of all or a portion of the principal amount of its investment and/or the interest that might otherwise have been earned on the amount invested.

The performance of indexed securities depends to a great extent on the performance of the security, currency or other instrument to which they are indexed, and may also be influenced by interest rate changes in the U.S. and abroad. At the same time, indexed securities are subject to the credit risks associated with the issuer of the security, and their values may decline substantially if the issuer’s creditworthiness deteriorates. Recent issuers of indexed securities have included banks, corporations and certain U.S. Government-sponsored entities.

Inverse Floating Rate Obligations

The Series may invest in so-called “inverse floating rate obligations” or “residual interest bonds” or other obligations or certificates relating thereto structured to have similar features. In creating such an obligation, a municipality issues a certain amount of debt and pays a fixed interest rate. Half of the debt is issued as variable rate short term obligations, the interest rate of which is reset at short intervals, typically 35 days. The other half of the debt is issued as inverse floating rate obligations, the interest rate of which is calculated based on the difference between a multiple of (approximately two times) the interest paid by the issuer and the interest paid on the short-term obligation. Under usual circumstances, the holder of the inverse floating rate obligation can generally purchase an equal principal amount of the short term obligation and link the two obligations in order to create long-term fixed rate bonds. Because the interest rate on the inverse floating rate obligation is determined by subtracting the short-term rate from a fixed amount, the interest rate will decrease as the short-term rate increases and will increase as the short-term rate decreases. The magnitude of increases and decreases in the market value of inverse floating rate obligations may be approximately twice as large as the comparable change in the market value of an equal principal amount of long-term bonds which bear interest at the rate paid by the issuer and have similar credit quality, redemption and maturity provisions.

Investments in Other Investment Companies

Investments in other investment companies may include open-end investment companies, closed-end investment companies and unit investment trusts. Under the 1940 Act, a Series may not own more than 3% of the outstanding voting stock of an investment company, invest more than 5% of its total assets in any one investment company, or invest more than 10% of its total assets in the securities of investment companies. In some instances, a Series may invest in an investment company in excess of these limits; for instance, with respect to investments in money market funds or investments made pursuant to an exemptive order granted by the SEC. Many exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) have obtained exemptive relief from the SEC to permit unaffiliated funds to invest in the ETF’s shares beyond the statutory limitations discussed above, subject to certain conditions. The Series may rely on these exemptive orders to invest in unaffiliated ETFs.

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In certain countries, investments by the Series may only be made through investments in other investment companies that, in turn, are authorized to invest in the securities that are issued in such countries. Investors should recognize that the Series purchase of the securities of such other investment companies results in the layering of expenses such that investors indirectly bear a proportionate part of the expenses for such investment companies including operating costs and investment advisory and administrative fees.

Exchange-Traded Funds . Investment companies in which the Series may invest may include index-based investments such as exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”), which hold substantially all of their assets in securities representing their specific index. Accordingly, the main risk of investing in index-based investments is the same as investing in a portfolio of equity securities comprising the index. As a shareholder of another investment company, a Series would bear its pro rata portion of the other investment company’s expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the expenses a Series bears directly in connection with its own operations. The market prices of index-based investments will fluctuate in accordance with both changes in the market value of their underlying portfolio securities and due to supply and demand for the instruments on the exchanges on which they are traded (which may result in their trading at a discount or premium to their NAVs). Index-based investments may not replicate exactly the performance of their specific index because of transaction costs and because of the temporary unavailability of certain component securities of the index.

Junk Bonds

The chart below sets forth the Series that are permitted to invest in junk bonds and the percentage of net assets each Series may invest in such securities.

Junk bonds are non-investment grade debt securities. The market prices of such lower-rated securities generally fluctuate in response to changes in interest rates and economic conditions more than those of higher-rated securities. Additionally, there is a greater possibility that an adverse change in the financial condition of an issuer, particularly a higher leveraged issuer, may affect its ability to make payments of income and principal and increase the expenses of the Series seeking recovery from the issuer. Lower-rated securities may be thinly traded and less liquid than higher-rated securities and therefore harder to value and more susceptible to adverse publicity concerning the issuer.

Lending of Portfolio Securities

Subject to certain investment restrictions, a Series may, from time to time, subject to the Trustees’ and Trust Treasurer’s approval, lend securities from its portfolio to brokers, dealers and financial institutions deemed creditworthy and receive, as collateral, cash or cash equivalents which at all times while the loan is outstanding will be maintained in amounts equal to at least 100% of the current market value of the loaned securities. Any cash collateral will be invested in short-term securities that will increase the current income of the Series lending its securities. When securities or a letter of credit are used as collateral, a Series will receive a lending fee paid by the borrower of the securities. A Series will have the right to regain record ownership of loaned securities to exercise beneficial rights such as voting rights and subscription rights. While a securities loan is outstanding, the Series is to receive an amount equal to any dividends, interest or other distributions with respect to the loaned securities. A Series may pay reasonable fees to persons unaffiliated with the Trust for services in arranging such loans.

Even though securities lending usually does not impose market risks on the lending Series, a Series would be subject to risk of loss due to an increase in value if the borrower fails to return the borrowed securities for any reason (such as the borrower’s insolvency). In addition, the value of the collateral taken as security for the securities loaned may decline in value or may be difficult to convert to cash in the event that a Series must rely on the collateral to recover the value of the securities. Moreover, if the borrower of the securities is insolvent, under current bankruptcy law, a Series could be ordered by a court not to liquidate the collateral for an indeterminate period of time. If the borrower is the subject of insolvency proceedings and the collateral held might not be liquidated, the result could be a material adverse impact on the liquidity of the lending Series.

Leverage

Each Series may borrow funds to meet redemption requests. Except as set forth below, the Series will borrow only from banks, and only if immediately after such borrowing the value of the assets of the Series (including the amount borrowed), less its liabilities (not including any borrowings) is at least three times the amount borrowed. Each Series may borrow up to an additional 5% of its total assets from banks or other lenders for temporary purposes. The amount of the borrowings will be dependent upon the availability and cost of credit from time to time. If, due to market fluctuations or other reasons, the value of such Series’ assets computed as provided above become less than three times the amount of the borrowings for investment purposes, the Series, within three business days, is required to reduce bank debt to the extent necessary to meet the required

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300% asset coverage. If the value of such Series’ assets decreases and the amount of the loans exceed one-third of the Series’ net assets, the Series must reduce its outstanding loans within three business days so that the amount of the loan does not exceed one-third of the Series’ net assets. In a declining market a Series may have to sell securities under poor market conditions to maintain the required asset coverage.

The Virtus Growth & Income Series may not borrow except from banks for emergency or other extraordinary purposes.

Interest on money borrowed will be an expense of those Series with respect to which the borrowing has been made. Because such expense otherwise would not be incurred, the net investment income of such Series is not expected to be as high as it otherwise would be during periods when borrowings for investment purposes are substantial.

Bank borrowings for investment purposes must be obtained on an unsecured basis. Any such borrowing also must be made subject to an agreement by the lender that any recourse is limited to the assets of such Series with respect to which the borrowing has been made.

Any investment gains made with the additional monies borrowed in excess of interest paid will cause the net assets value of such Series shares to rise faster than otherwise would be the case. On the other hand, if the investment performance of the additional securities purchased fails to cover its cost (including any interest paid on the monies borrowed) to such Series, the net asset value of the Series will decrease faster than otherwise would be the case.

Loans and Other Direct Indebtedness

The Series may purchase loans and other direct indebtedness. In purchasing a loan, the Series acquires some or all of the interest of a bank or other lending institution in a loan to a corporate, governmental or other borrower. Many such loans are secured, although some may be unsecured. Such loans may be in default at the time of purchase. Loans that are fully secured offer the Series more protection than an unsecured loan in the event of non-payment of scheduled interest or principal. However, there is no assurance that the liquidation of collateral from a secured loan would satisfy the corporate borrowers obligation, or that the collateral can be liquidated.

These loans are made generally to finance internal growth, mergers, acquisitions, stock repurchases, leveraged buy-outs and other corporate activities. Such loans are typically made by a syndicate of lending institutions, represented by an agent lending institution which has negotiated and structured the loan and is responsible for collecting interest, principal and other amounts due on its own behalf and on behalf of the others in the syndicate, and for enforcing its and their other rights against the borrower. Alternatively, such loans may be structured as a novation, pursuant to which the Series would assume all of the rights of the lending institution in a loan or as an assignment, pursuant to which the Series would purchase an assignment of a portion of a lenders interest in a loan either directly from the lender or through an intermediary. The Series may also purchase trade or other claims against companies, which generally represent money owned by the company to a supplier of goods or services. These claims may also be purchased at a time when the company is in default.

Certain of the loans and the other direct indebtedness acquired by the Series may involve revolving credit facilities or other standby financing commitments which obligate the Series to pay additional cash on a certain date or on demand. These commitments may have the effect of requiring the Series to increase its investment in a company at a time when the Series might not otherwise decide to do so (including at a time when the company’s financial condition makes it unlikely that such amounts will be repaid). To the extent that the Series is committed to advance additional funds, it will at all times hold and specifically designate in the Series accounting records, cash or other high grade debt obligations in an amount sufficient to meet such commitments.

The Series’ ability to receive payment of principal, interest and other amounts due in connection with these investments will depend primarily on the financial condition of the borrower. In selecting the loans and other direct indebtedness which the Series will purchase, the adviser will rely upon its own (and not the original lending institution’s) credit analysis of the borrower. As the Series may be required to rely upon another lending institution to collect and pass onto the Series amounts payable with respect to the loan and to enforce the Series’ rights under the loan and other direct indebtedness, an insolvency, bankruptcy or reorganization of the lending institution may delay or prevent the Series from receiving such amounts. In such cases, the Series will evaluate as well the creditworthiness of the lending institution and will treat both the borrower and the lending institution as an “issuer” of the loan for purposes of certain investment restrictions pertaining to the diversification of the Series’ portfolio investments. The highly leveraged nature of many such loans and other direct indebtedness may make such loans and other direct indebtedness especially vulnerable to adverse changes in economic or market conditions. Investments in such loans and other direct indebtedness may involve additional risk to the Series.

Mortgage-Backed Securities

Mortgage-backed securities include mortgage pass-through certificates, real estate mortgage investment conduit (“REMIC”) certificates and collateralized mortgage obligations (“CMOs”). CMOs are hybrid instruments with characteristics of both mortgage-backed and mortgage pass-through securities. Similar to a bond, interest and prepaid

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principal on a CMO are paid, in most cases, semiannually. CMOs may be collateralized by whole mortgage loans but are more typically collateralized by portfolios of mortgage pass-through securities guaranteed by Government National Mortgage Association (“GNMA”), for Fannie Mae (formerly Federal National Mortgage Association (“FNMA”)). CMOs are structured into multiple classes, with each class bearing a different stated maturity. Monthly payments of principal, including prepayments, are first returned to investors holding the shortest maturity class; investors holding the longer maturity classes receive principal only after the first class has been retired. REMICs are similar to CMOs and are fixed pools of mortgages with multiple classes of interests held by investors.

Mortgage pass-through securities are securities representing interests in “pools” of mortgage loans. Monthly payments of interest and principal by the individual borrowers on mortgages are passed through to the holders of the securities (net of fees paid to the issuer or guarantor of the securities) as the mortgages in the underlying mortgage pools are paid off. The average lives of mortgage pass-throughs are variable when issued because their average lives depend on prepayment rates. The average life of these securities is likely to be substantially shorter than their stated final maturity as a result of unscheduled principal prepayment. Prepayments on underlying mortgages result in a loss of anticipated interest, and all or part of a premium if any has been paid, and the actual yield (or total return) to the Series may be different than the quoted yield on the securities. Mortgage premiums generally increase with falling interest rates and decrease with rising interest rates. Like other fixed income securities, when interest rates rise the value of mortgage pass-through security generally will decline; however, when interest rates are declining, the value of mortgage pass-through securities with prepayment features may not increase as much as that of other fixed-income securities. In the event of an increase in interest rates which results in a decline in mortgage prepayments, the anticipated maturity of mortgage pass-through securities held by the Series may increase, effectively changing a security which was considered short or intermediate-term at the time of purchase into a long-term security. Long-term securities generally fluctuate more widely in response to changes in interest rates than short or intermediate-term securities.

Payment of principal and interest on some mortgage pass-through securities (but not the market value of the securities themselves) may be guaranteed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government (in the case of securities guaranteed by the GNMA); or guaranteed by agencies or instrumentalities of the U.S. Government (such as the Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac (“Freddie Mac”) (formerly the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“FHLMC”)), which are supported only by the discretionary authority of the U.S. Government to purchase the agency’s obligations). Non-governmental issuers (such as commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers) may also issue mortgage pass-through securities. Various forms of insurance or guarantees may support some of these mortgage pass-through securities.

Interests in pools of mortgage-related securities differ from other forms of debt securities, which normally provide for periodic payment of interest in fixed amounts with principal payments at maturity or specified call dates. Instead, these securities provide a monthly payment that consists of both interest and principal payments. In effect, these payments are a “pass-through” of the monthly payments made by the individual borrowers on their mortgage loans, net of any fees paid to the issuer or guarantor of such securities. Additional payments are caused by prepayments of principal resulting from the sale, refinancing or foreclosure of the underlying property, net of fees or costs that may be incurred. Some mortgage pass-through securities (such as securities issued by the GNMA) are described as “modified pass-through.” These securities entitle the holder to receive all interests and principal payments owed on the mortgages in the mortgage pool, net of certain fees, at the scheduled payment dates regardless of whether the mortgagor actually makes the payment.

The principal governmental guarantor of mortgage pass-through securities is GNMA. GNMA is a wholly owned U.S. Government corporation within the Department of Housing and Urban Development. GNMA is authorized to guarantee, with the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, the timely payment of principal and interest on securities issued by institutions approved by GNMA (such as savings and loan institutions, commercial banks and mortgage bankers) and backed by pools of Federal Housing Administration (“FHA”)—insured or Veterans Administration (“VA”)—guaranteed mortgages. These guarantees, however, do not apply to the market value or yield of mortgage pass-through securities. GNMA securities are often purchased at a premium over the maturity value of the underlying mortgages. This premium is not guaranteed and will be lost if prepayment occurs.

Fannie Mae operates in the U.S. secondary mortgage market. Rather than making home loans directly with consumers, it works with mortgage bankers, brokers, and other primary mortgage market partners to help ensure they have funds to lend to home buyers at affordable rates. Fannie Mae finds mortgage investments primarily by issuing debt securities in the domestic and international capital markets.

Fannie Mae was established as a federal agency in 1938, and in 1968 was chartered by Congress as a private shareholder-owner company. On September 6, 2008, Director James Lockhart of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (“FHFA”) appointed FHFA as conservator of Fannie Mae. In addition, the U.S. Department of the Treasury agreed to provide up to $100 billion of capital as needed to ensure the company continues to provide liquidity to the housing and mortgage markets.

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Freddie Mac is also a government-sponsored corporation owned by private stockholders. Freddie Mac issues Participation Certificates (“PCs”) which represent interests in conventional mortgages (i.e., not federally insured or guaranteed) for its national portfolio. Freddie Mac guarantees timely payment of interest and ultimate collection of principal regardless of the status of the underlying mortgage loans.

At December 31, 2008, Freddie Mac’s liabilities exceeded its assets under generally accepting accounting principals by $(30.6) billion, and stockholders’ equity (deficit) totaled $(30.7) billion. On March 31, 2009, pursuant to a request by the Director of FHFA, the U.S. Department of the Treasury provided $30.8 billion in immediately available funds to Freddie Mac and in accordance with the terms of the Senior Preferred Stock Purchase Agreement between Freddie Mac and the U.S. Department of the Treasury, in order to address the $30.7 billion deficit in stockholders’ equity that existed at December 31, 2008. [to be provided by amendment]

Commercial banks, savings and loan institutions, private mortgage insurance companies, mortgage bankers and other secondary market issuers also create pass through pools of mortgage loans. Such issuers may also be the originators and/or servicers of the underlying mortgage-related securities. Pools created by such non-governmental issuers generally offer a higher rate of interest than government and government-related pools because there are no direct or indirect government or agency guarantees of payments in the former pools. However, timely payment of interest and principal of mortgage loans in these pools may be supported by various forms of insurance or guarantees, including individual loan, title, pool and hazard insurance and letters of credit. Governmental entities, private insurers and the mortgage poolers issue the insurance and guarantees. There can be no assurance that the private insurers or guarantors can meet their obligations under the insurance policies or guarantee arrangements. The Series may also buy mortgage-related securities without insurance or guarantees.

A particular risk associated with pass-through securities involves the volatility of prices in response to changes in interest rates or prepayment risk. Prepayment rates are important because of their effect on the yield and price of securities. Prepayments occur when the holder of an individual mortgage prepays the remaining principal before the mortgages’ scheduled maturity date. As a result of the pass-through of prepayments of principal on the underlying securities, mortgage-backed securities are often subject to more rapid prepayment of principal than their stated maturity would indicate. Although the pattern of repayments is estimated and reflected in the price paid for pass-through securities at the time of purchase, the actual prepayment behavior of mortgages cannot be known at that time. Therefore, it is not possible to predict accurately the realized yield or average life of a particular issue of pass-through securities. Prepayments that occur faster than estimated adversely affect yields for pass-throughs purchased at a premium (that is, a price in excess of principal amount) and may cause a loss of principal because the premium may not have been fully amortized at the time the obligation is repaid. The opposite is true for pass-throughs purchased at a discount. Furthermore, the proceeds from prepayments usually are reinvested at current market rates, which may be higher than, but usually are lower than, the rates earned on the original pass-through securities. Prepayments on a pool of mortgage loans are influenced by a variety of economic, geographic, social and other factors, including changes in mortgagors’ housing needs, job transfers, unemployment, mortgagors’ net equity in the mortgaged properties and servicing decisions. Generally, however, prepayments on fixed rate mortgage loans will increase during a period of falling interest rates and decrease during a period of rising interest rates. Mortgage-backed securities may decrease in value as a result of increases in interest rates and may benefit less than other fixed income securities or decline in value from declining interest rates because of risk of prepayment. Pass-through securities are forms of derivatives.

Mortgage “Dollar-Roll” Transactions

A Series may enter into mortgage “dollar roll” transactions pursuant to which it sells mortgage-backed securities for delivery in the future and simultaneously contracts to repurchase substantially similar securities on a specified future date. During the roll period, the Series foregoes principal and interest paid on the mortgage-backed securities. The Series is compensated for the lost interest by the difference between the current sales price and the lower price for the future purchase (often referred to as the “drop”) as well as by the interest earned on, and gains from, the investment of the cash proceeds of the initial sale. The Series may also be compensated by receipt of a commitment fee. If the income and capital gains from the Series’ investment of the cash from the initial sale do not exceed the income, capital appreciation and gain or loss that would have been realized on the securities sold as part of the dollar roll, the use of this technique will diminish the investment performance of the Series compared with what the performance would have been without the use of the dollar rolls. Dollar roll transactions involve the risk that the market value of the securities the Series is required to purchase may decline below the agreed upon repurchase price of those securities. If the broker/dealer to whom the Series sells securities becomes insolvent, the Series’ right to purchase or repurchase securities may be restricted. Successful use of mortgage dollar rolls may depend upon the adviser’s ability to correctly predict interest rates and prepayments. There is no assurance that dollar rolls can be successfully employed.

Options

Buying Call and Put Options. Each of the Series may invest up to an aggregate of 5% of its total assets in exchange-traded or over-the-counter call and put options on securities, securities indices and foreign currencies. Purchases of such options may

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be made for the purpose of hedging against changes in the market value of the underlying securities or foreign currencies. The Series may invest in call and put options whenever, in the opinion of the adviser or subadviser, a hedging transaction is consistent with its investment objectives. The Series may sell a call option or a put option that it has previously purchased prior to the purchase (in the case of a call) or the sale (in the case of a put) of the underlying security or foreign currency. Any such sale would result in a net gain or loss depending on whether the amount received on the sale is more or less than the premium and other transaction costs paid on the call or put which is sold. Purchasing a call or put option involves the risk that the Series may lose the premium it paid plus transaction costs.

The seller of an option receives a cash payment or premium at the time of sale, which is retained by the seller whether or not, the option is exercised. This premium represents consideration to the seller for undertaking the obligation under the option contract. In the case of call options, the premium compensates the seller for the loss of the opportunity to profit from any increase in the value of the security or the index. The premium to a seller of a put option compensates the seller for the risk assumed in connection with a decline in the value of the security or index.

A call option on a security or a foreign currency gives the purchaser of the option, in return for the premium paid to the writer (seller), the right to buy the underlying security or foreign currency at the exercise price at any time during the option period.

A put option on equity or debt securities gives the holder the right to sell such a security at a specified price (the exercise price) for a stated period of time. Prior to the expiration of the option, the seller of the option has an obligation to buy the underlying security from the holder of the option at the original price specified regardless of the market price of the security at the time the option is exercised.

Call and put options on stock market indexes operate the same way as call and put options on equity or debt securities except that they are settled in cash. In effect, the holder of a call option on a stock market index has the right to buy the value represented by the index at a specified price and for a stated period of time. Conversely, the holder of a put option on a stock market index has the right to sell the value represented by the index for a specified price and for a stated period of time. To be settled in cash means that if the option is exercised, the difference in the current value of the stock market index and the exercise value must be paid in cash. For example, if a call option was bought on the XYZ stock market index with an exercise price of $100 (assuming the current value of the index is 110 points, with each point equal to $1.00), the holder of the call option could exercise the option and receive $10 (110 points minus 100 points) from the seller of the option. If the index equals 90 points, the holder of the option receives nothing.

A Series may close an open call or put option position by selling a call option, in the case of an open call position, or a put option, in the case of an open put option, which is the same as the option being closed. The Series will receive a premium for selling such an option. The premium received may be more than, equal to or less than the premium paid by the Series when it bought the option that is being closed.

The premium paid by the Series for the purchase of a call or a put option and the expiration or closing sale transaction with respect to such options are treated in a manner analogous to that described above, except there is no liability created to the Series. The premium paid for any such option is included in assets and marked to the market value on a current basis. If the options expire, the Series will realize a short-term loss on the amount of the cost of the option. If a purchased put or call option is closed out by the Series entering into a closing sale transaction, the Series will realize a short-term gain or loss, depending upon whether the sale proceeds from the closing sale transaction are greater or less than the cost of the put or call option.

Writing (Selling) Call and Put Options. Prior to the expiration of the option, the seller of a call option has an obligation to sell the underlying security to the holder of the option at the original price specified regardless of the market price of the security at the time the option is exercised. The seller of the call option receives a cash payment (premium) at the time of sale, which premium is retained by the seller whether or not the option is exercised. The premium represents consideration to the seller for undertaking the obligations under the option contract and thereby foregoing the opportunity to profit from an increase in the market price of the underlying security above the exercise price (except insofar as the premium represents such a profit).

Upon exercise by the purchaser, the writer of a call option has the obligation to sell the underlying security or foreign security, except that the value of the option depends on the weighted value of the group of securities comprising the index and all settlements are made in cash. The writer (seller) may terminate a call option by entering into a closing purchase transaction in which it purchases an option of the same Series as the option previously written.

A put option on a security or foreign currency gives the purchaser of the option, in return for the premium paid to the writer (seller), the right to sell the underlying security or foreign currency at the exercise price at any time during the option period. Upon exercise by the purchaser, the writer of a put option has the obligation to purchase the underlying security or foreign currency at the exercise price. A put option on a securities index is similar to a put option on an individual security, except that the value of the options depends on the weighted value of the group of securities comprising the index and all settlements are made in cash.

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The Series may write exchange-traded call options on their securities. Call options may be written on portfolio securities, securities indices and foreign currencies. The Series may, with respect to securities and foreign currencies, write call and put options on an exchange or over the counter. Call options on portfolio securities will be covered since the Series will own the underlying securities or other securities that are acceptable for escrow at all times during the option period. Call options on securities indices may be written to hedge in an economically appropriate way portfolio securities which are not otherwise hedged with options or financial futures contracts and will be “covered” by identifying the specific portfolio securities being hedged. Call options on foreign currencies and put options on securities and foreign currencies will be covered by securities acceptable for escrow. The Series may not write options on more than 50% of its total assets. Management presently intends to cease writing options if and as long as 25% of such total assets are subject to outstanding options contracts.

The Series will write call and put options in order to obtain a return on its investments from the premiums received and will retain the premiums whether or not the options are exercised. Any decline in the market value of portfolio securities or foreign currencies will be offset to the extent of the premiums received (net of transaction costs). If an option is exercised, the premium received on the option will effectively increase the exercise price or reduce the difference between the exercise price and market value.

During the option period, the writer of a call option gives up the opportunity for appreciation in the market value of the underlying security or currency above the exercise price. It retains the risk of loss should the price of the underlying security or foreign currency decline. Writing call options also involves risks relating to the Series’ ability to close out options it has written.

During the option period, the writer of a put option has assumed the risk that the price of the underlying security or foreign currency will decline below the exercise price. However, the writer of the put option has retained the opportunity for any appreciation above the exercise price should the market price of the underlying security or foreign currency increase. Writing put options also involves risks relating to a portfolio’s ability to close out options it has written.

The Series may cover written call options with any assets, including equity securities and noninvestment grade debt, so long as the assets are liquid, unencumbered and marked to market daily (“liquid assets”), in the accounting records of the Series in amounts sufficient to ensure that it is able to meet its obligations under the written call should it be exercised. This method does not reduce the potential loss to the Series should the value of the underlying security increase and the option be exercised.

A written put option contract may be covered with liquid assets on the accounting records of the Series. While this may help ensure that the Series will have sufficient assets to meet its obligations under the option contract should it be exercised, it will not reduce the potential loss to the Series should the value of the underlying security decrease and the option be exercised.

Writing Covered Call Options. The Series may write (sell) covered call options on securities owned by them, including securities into which convertible securities are convertible, provided that such call options are listed on a national securities exchange.

When a Series writes a covered call option, an amount equal to the premium received by it is included in assets of the Series offset by an equivalent liability. The amount of the liability is subsequently marked to reflect the current market value of the written option. Market value is the last sale price of the options on the NYSE or other market on which it is traded or, in absence of a sale, the mean between last bid and offer prices. If an option which the Series has written either ends or the Series enters into a closing purchase transaction, the Series realizes a gain (or loss if the cost of a closing purchase transaction exceeds the premium received when the option was sold) without regard to any unrealized gain or loss on the underlying security, and the liability related to such option concludes.

Premium income earned with respect to a qualified covered call option which lapses or experiences gain or loss from such an option which is closed out (other than by exercise) generally will be short-term capital gain or loss. Further, gain or loss with respect to the exercise of such an option generally will be short-term or long-term depending upon the actual or deemed holding period of the underlying security. However, any loss realized from writing a “qualified covered call option” which has a strike price less than the applicable security price (defined in Section 1092(C)(4)(G) of the Code) will be treated as a long-term capital loss, if gain from the sale of the underlying security at the time the loss is realized would be long-term capital gain. Also, with respect to such options, the holding period of the underlying security will not include any period during which the Trust has an outstanding written option.

Purchasing Warrants and Stock Rights. Warrants and stock rights are almost identical to call options in their nature, use and effect except that they are issued by the issuer of the underlying security, rather than an option writer, and they generally have longer expiration dates than call options.

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Over-the-Counter (“OTC”) Options. OTC options differ from exchange-traded options in several respects. They are transacted directly with dealers and not with a clearing corporation, and there is a risk of nonperformance by the dealer. However, the premium is paid in advance by the dealer. OTC options are available for a greater variety of securities and foreign currencies and in a wider range of expiration dates and exercise prices than exchange-traded options. Since there is no exchange, pricing is normally done by reference to information from a market maker. This information is carefully monitored or caused to be monitored by the adviser or subadviser and verified in appropriate cases.

A writer or purchaser of a put or call option can terminate it voluntarily only by entering into a closing transaction. In the case of OTC options, there can be no assurance that a continuous liquid secondary market will exist for any particular option at any specific time. Consequently, a Series may be able to realize the value of an OTC option it has purchased only by exercising it or entering into a closing sale transaction with the dealer that issued it. Similarly, when a Series writes an OTC option, it generally can close out that option prior to its expiration only by entering into a closing purchase transaction with the dealer to which it originally wrote the option. If a covered call option writer cannot effect a closing transaction, it cannot sell the underlying security or foreign currency until the option expires or the option is exercised. Therefore, the writer of a covered OTC call option may not be able to sell an underlying security even though it otherwise might be advantageous to do so. Likewise, the writer of a secured OTC put option may be unable to sell the securities pledged to secure the put for other investment purposes while it is obligated as a put writer. Similarly, a purchaser of an OTC put or call option also might find it difficult to terminate its position on a timely basis in the absence of a secondary market.

The Trust understands the position of the SEC staff to be that purchased OTC options and the assets used as “cover” for written OTC options are generally considered illiquid securities. Although the dealers with which a Series will engage in OTC options transactions are generally agreeable to and capable of entering into closing transactions, the Trust has adopted procedures for engaging in OTC options transactions for the purpose of reducing any potential adverse effect of such transactions upon the liquidity of the Series.

A Series will engage in OTC options transactions only with dealers that meet certain credit and other criteria established by the Board of Trustees of the Trust. The Trust and the adviser believe that the approved dealers present minimal credit risks to the Trust and, therefore, should be able to enter into closing transactions if necessary. A Series currently will not engage in OTC options transactions if the amount invested by the Series in OTC options, plus a “liquidity charge” related to OTC options written by the Series in illiquid securities plus any other portfolio securities considered to be illiquid, would exceed 10% of the Series’ total assets. The “liquidity charge” referred to above is computed as described below.

The Series anticipates entering into agreements with dealers to which the Series sell OTC options. Under these agreements a Series would have the absolute right to repurchase the OTC options from the dealer at any time at a price no greater than a price established under the agreements (the “Repurchase Price”). The “liquidity charge” referred to above for a specific OTC option transaction will be the Repurchase Price related to the OTC option less the intrinsic value of the OTC option. The intrinsic value of an OTC call option for such purposes will be the amount by which the current market value of the underlying security exceeds the exercise price. In the case of an OTC put option, intrinsic value will be the amount by which the exercise price exceeds the current market value of the underlying security. If there is no such agreement requiring a dealer to allow a Series to repurchase a specific OTC option written by the Series, the “liquidity charge” will be the current market value of the assets serving as “cover” for such OTC option.

PIK Bonds

Payment-in-kind (PIK) bonds are debt obligations that provide that the issuer may, at its option, pay interest on such bonds in cash or in the form of additional debt obligations. Such investments benefit the issuer by mitigating its need for cash to meet debt service, but also require a higher rate of return to attract investors who are willing to defer receipt of such cash. Such investments may experience greater volatility in market value than debt obligations that make regular payments of interest. The Series will accrue income on such investments for tax and accounting purposes, which is distributable to shareholders and which, because no cash is received at the time of accrual, may require the liquidation of other portfolio securities to satisfy the Series’ distribution obligations.

Private Placements and Rule 144A Securities

Each Series may purchase securities, which have been privately issued and are subject to legal restrictions on resale or which are issued to qualified institutional investors under special rules adopted by the SEC. Such securities may offer higher yields than comparable publicly traded securities. Such securities ordinarily can be sold by the Series in secondary market transactions to certain qualified investors pursuant to rules established by the SEC, in privately negotiated transactions to a limited number of purchasers or in a public offering made pursuant to an effective registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”). Public sales of such securities by a Series may involve significant delays and expense. Private sales often require negotiation with one or more purchasers and may produce less favorable prices than the sale of similar unrestricted securities. Public sales generally involve the time and expense of the preparation and processing of

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a registration statement under the 1933 Act (and the possible decline in value of the securities during such period) and may involve the payment of underwriting commissions. In some instances, the Series may have to bear certain costs of registration in order to sell such shares publicly. Except in the case of securities sold to qualifying institutional investors under special rules adopted by the SEC for which the subadviser, under procedures adopted by the Trustees, determine the secondary market is liquid, Rule 144A Securities will be considered illiquid. Trustees may determine the secondary market is liquid based upon the following factors which will be reviewed periodically as required pursuant to procedures adopted by the Series: the number of dealers willing to purchase or sell the security; the frequency of trades; dealer undertakings to make a market in the security; and the nature of the security and its market. Investing in Rule 144A Securities could have the effect of increasing the level of these Series’ illiquid securities to the extent that qualified institutional buyers become, for a time, uninterested in purchasing these securities. Each Series, other than those listed below, may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities.

Privatizations

The governments of some foreign countries have been engaged in programs of selling part or all of their stakes in government owned or controlled enterprises (“privatizations”). Privatizations may offer opportunities for significant capital appreciation. In certain foreign countries, the ability of foreign entities to participate in privatizations may be limited by local law, or the terms on which a Series may be permitted to participate may be less advantageous than those for local investors. There can be no assurance that foreign governments will continue to sell companies currently owned or controlled by them or that privatization programs will be successful.

Real Estate Investment Trusts

REITs pool investors’ Trusts for investment primarily in income-producing commercial real estate or real estate related loans. A REIT is not taxed on income distributed to shareholders if it complies with several requirements relating to its organization, ownership, assets and income and a requirement that it distribute to its shareholders at least 90% of its taxable income (other than net capital gains) for each taxable year.

REITs generally can be classified as follows:

Selecting REITs requires an evaluation of the merits of each type of asset a particular REIT owns, as well as regional and local economics. Due to the proliferation of REITs in recent years and the relative lack of sophistication of certain REIT managers, the quality of REIT assets has varied significantly.

In addition to these risks, equity REITs may be affected by changes in the value of the underlying properties owned by the trusts, while mortgage REITs may be affected by the quality of any credit extended. Further, equity and mortgage REITs are dependent upon management skills and generally are not diversified. Equity and mortgage REITs also are subject to potential defaults by borrowers, self-liquidation and the possibility of failing to qualify for tax-free status of income under the Code and failing to maintain exemption from the Investment Company Act of 1940. In the event of default by a borrower or lessee, the REIT may experience delays in enforcing its rights as a mortgagee or lessor and may incur substantial costs associated with protecting its investments. In addition, investment in REITs could cause the Series to possibly fail to qualify as a regulated investment company.

REITs are like closed-end investment companies in that they are essentially holding companies that rely on professional managers to supervise their investments.

Repurchase Agreements

Repurchase Agreements are agreements by which a Series purchases a security and obtains a simultaneous commitment from the seller (a member bank of the Federal Reserve System or, to the extent permitted 1940 Act, a recognized securities dealer) that the seller will repurchase the security at an agreed upon price and date. The resale price is in excess of the purchase price and reflects an agreed upon market rate unrelated to the coupon rate on the purchased security. In fact, such a transaction is a loan of money to the seller of the securities.

A repurchase transaction is usually accomplished either by crediting the amount of securities purchased to the accounts of the custodian of the Trust maintained in a central depository or book-entry system or by physical delivery of the securities to the Trust’s custodian in return for delivery of the purchase price to the seller. Repurchase transactions are intended to be short-term transactions with the seller repurchasing the securities, usually within 7 days.

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Even though repurchase transactions usually do not impose market risks on the purchasing Series, if the seller of the repurchase agreement defaults and does not repurchase the underlying securities, the Series might incur a loss if the value of the underlying securities declines, and disposition costs may be incurred in connection with liquidating the underlying securities. In addition, if bankruptcy proceedings are commenced regarding the seller, realization upon the underlying securities may be delayed or limited, and a loss may be incurred if the underlying securities decline in value.

Each Series may invest in repurchase agreements. However, no more than 15% of a Series’ net assets will be invested in repurchase agreements having maturities of more than 7 days. Repurchase agreements will be entered into with commercial banks, brokers and dealers considered by the Board of Trustees and the adviser or subadviser, as applicable, acting at the Board’s direction, to be creditworthy. In addition, the repurchase agreements are fully collateralized by the underlying instrument and are marked to market every business day. However, the use of repurchase agreements involves certain risks such as default by, or insolvency of, the other party to the transaction.

Reset Options

In certain instances, the Series may purchase or write options on U.S. Treasury securities, which provide for periodic adjustment of the strike price and may also provide for the periodic adjustment of the premium during the term of each such option. Like other types of options, these transactions, which may be referred to as “reset” options or “adjustable strike” options grant the purchaser the right to purchase (in the case of a call) or sell (in the case of a put), a specified type of U.S. Treasury security at any time up to a stated expiration date (or, in certain instances, on such date). In contrast to other types of options, however, the price at which the underlying security may be purchased or sold under a “reset” option is determined at various intervals during the term of the option, and such price fluctuates from interval to interval based on changes in the market value of the underlying security. As a result, the strike price of a “reset” option, at the time of exercise, may be less advantageous than if the strike price had been fixed at the initiation of the option. In addition, the premium paid for the purchase of the option may be determined at the termination, rather than the initiation, of the option. If the premium for a reset option written by the Series is paid at termination, the Series assumes the risk that (i) the premium may be less than the premium which would otherwise have been received at the initiation of the option because of such factors as the volatility in yield of the underlying Treasury security over the term of the option and adjustments made to the strike price of the option, and (ii) the option purchaser may default on its obligation to pay the premium at the termination of the option. Conversely, where the Series purchases a reset option, it could be required to pay a higher premium than would have been the case at the initiation of the option.

Reverse Repurchase Agreements

A reverse repurchase agreement is a borrowing transaction in which the Series transfers possession of a security to another party, such as a bank or broker/dealer in return for cash, and agrees to repurchase the security in the future at an agreed upon price, which includes an interest component. A Series will specifically designate in its accounting records the liquid assets in an amount sufficient to cover its obligations under reverse repurchase agreements with broker/dealers. A Series may borrow through reverse repurchase agreements in connection with meeting requests for the redemption of a Series shares. Transactions involving reverse repurchase agreements may increase fluctuations in the market value of a Series’ assets and may be viewed as a form of leverage. Reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the market value of the securities sold by a Series may decline below the price at which the Series is obligated to repurchase the securities.

Short Sales

The Series may seek to hedge investments or realize additional gains through short sales. The Series may make short sales, which are transactions in which a Series sells a security it does not own, in anticipation of a decline in the market value of that security. To complete such a transaction, the Series must borrow the security to make delivery to the buyer. The Series then is obligated to replace the security borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement. The price at such time may be more or less than the price at which the security was sold by the Series. Until the security is replaced, the Series is required to repay the lender any dividends or interest which accrue during the period of the loan. To borrow the security, the Series also may be required to pay a premium, which would increase the cost of the security sold. The broker, to the extent necessary to meet margin requirements until the short position is closed out will retain the net proceeds of the short sale. The Series also will incur transaction costs in effecting short sales.

The Series will incur a loss as a result of the short sale if the price of the security increases between the date of the short sale and the date on which the Series replaces the borrowed security. The Series will realize a gain if the price of the security declines between those dates. The amount of any gain will be decreased, and the amount of any loss increased, by the amount of the premium, dividends or interest the Series may be required to pay in connection with a short sale.

Whenever the Series engages in short sales, it identifies liquid and unencumbered assets in an amount that, when combined with the amount of collateral deposited with the broker connection with the short sale, equals the current market value of the security sold short.

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Short Sales Against the Box

The Series may make short sales “against the box,” i.e., when a security identical to one owned by the Series is borrowed and sold short. If the Series enters into a short sale against the box, it is required to segregate securities equivalent in kind and amount to the securities sold short (or securities convertible or exchangeable into such securities) and is required to hold such securities while the short sale is outstanding. The Series will incur transaction costs, including interest, in connection with opening, maintaining, and closing short sales against the box.

Small and Mid Capitalization Securities

Investments in small or mid capitalization companies involve greater risk than is generally associated with larger, more established companies. The securities of smaller companies may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than larger companies. The securities of small or medium-sized companies are often traded over-the-counter, and may not be traded in volumes typical of securities traded on a national securities exchange. Consequently, the securities of small or medium-sized companies may have limited market stability and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic market movements than securities of larger, more established companies or the market averages in general.

Speculative Bonds

The Series may invest in fixed income and convertible securities rated Baa by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”) or BBB by Standard & Poor’s Corporation (“Standard & Poor’s”), Fitch or Duff & Phelps Credit Rating Company (“Duff & Phelps”) and comparable unrated securities. These securities, while normally exhibiting adequate protection parameters, have speculative characteristics and changes in economic conditions or other circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity to make principal and interest payments than in the case of higher grade securities.

Stripped Mortgage-Backed Securities

Stripped mortgage-backed securities (“SMBS”) are derivative multi-class mortgage securities issued by agencies or instrumentalities of the U.S. Government, or by private originators of, or investors in, mortgage loans, including savings and loan institutions, mortgage banks, commercial banks and investment banks. SMBS are usually structured with two classes that receive different proportions of the interest and principal distributions from a pool of mortgage assets. A common type of SMBS will have one class receiving some of the interest and most of the principal from the mortgage assets, while the other class will receive most of the interest and the remainder of the principal. In the most extreme case, one class will receive all of the interest (the interest-only or “IO” class) while the other class will receive all of the principal (the principal-only or “PO” class). The yield to maturity on an IO is extremely sensitive to the rate of principal payments, including prepayments on the related underlying mortgage assets, and a rapid rate of principal payments may have a material adverse effect on such security’s yield to maturity. If the underlying mortgage assets experience greater than anticipated prepayments of principal, the Series may fail to fully recoup its initial investment in these securities. The market value of the class consisting primarily or entirely of principal payments generally is unusually volatile in response to changes in interest rates. Because SMBS were only recently introduced, established trading markets for these securities have not yet developed, although the securities are traded among institutional investors and investment banking firms.

Swap Agreements

Swap agreements are two party contracts entered into primarily by institutional investors for periods ranging from a few weeks to more than one year. In a standard “swap” transaction, two parties agree to exchange the returns (or differentials in rates of return) earned or realized on particular predetermined investments or instruments. The gross returns to be exchanged or “swapped” between the parties are calculated with respect to a “notional amount,” i.e., the return on or increase in value of a particular dollar amount invested at a particular interest rate, in a particular foreign currency, or in a “basket” of securities representing a particular index. Commonly used swap agreements include (i) interest rate caps, under which, in return for a premium, one party agrees to make payments to the other to the extent that interest rates exceed a specified rate, or “cap,” (ii) interest rate floors, under which, in return for a premium, one party agrees to make payments to the other to the extent that interest rates fall below a specified level, or “floor,” and (iii) interest rate collars, under which a party sells a cap and purchases a floor or vice versa in an attempt to protect itself against interest rate movements exceeding given minimum or maximum levels. The “notional amount” of the swap agreement is only a fictive basis on which to calculate the obligations that the parties to a swap agreement have agreed to exchange. The Series’ obligations (or rights) under a swap agreement will generally be equal only to the net amount to be paid or received under the agreement based on the relative values of the positions held by each party to the agreement (the “net amount”). The Series’ obligations under a swap agreement will be accrued daily (offset against any amounts owing to the Series) and any accrued but unpaid net amounts owed to a swap counterparty will be covered by specifically designating in the Series accounting records the liquid assets to avoid any potential leveraging of the Series’ holdings. The Series will not enter into a swap agreement with any single party if the net amount owed or to be received under existing contracts with that party would exceed 5% of the Series’ assets.

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Whether the Series’ use of swap agreements will be successful in furthering its investment objective will depend on an adviser or subadviser’s ability to correctly predict whether certain types of investments are likely to produce greater returns than other investments. Because they are two party contracts and because they may have terms of greater than seven days, swap agreements may be considered to be illiquid. Moreover, the Series bears the risk of loss of the amount expected to be received under a swap agreement in the event of the default or bankruptcy of swap agreement counterparty. The adviser or subadviser will cause the Series to enter into swap agreements only with counterparties that would be eligible for consideration as repurchase agreement counterparties under the Series’ repurchase agreement guidelines. Certain restrictions imposed on the Series by the Internal Revenue Code may limit a Series’ ability to use swap agreements. The swaps market is largely unregulated. Swaps agreements generally are exempt or excluded from most provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act (“CEA”) and, therefore, are not regulated as futures or commodity option transactions under the CEA. It is possible that developments in the swaps market, including potential government regulation, could adversely affect a Series’ ability to terminate existing swap agreements or to realize amounts to be received under such agreements.

Temporary Borrowing

The Series may borrow money for temporary purposes (e.g., to meet redemption requests or settle outstanding purchases of portfolio securities).

Time Deposits

Time deposits are deposits in a bank or other financial institution for a specified period of time at a fixed interest rate for which negotiable certificates are not received.

U.S. Government Obligations

Securities issued or guaranteed as to principal and interest by the United States Government include a variety of Treasury securities, which differ only in their interest rates, maturities and times of issuance. Treasury bills have a maturity of one year or less. Treasury notes have maturities of one to seven years, and Treasury bonds generally have maturity of greater than five years.

Agencies of the United States Government which issue or guarantee obligations include, among others, Export-Import Bank of the United States, Farmers Home Administration, Federal Housing Administration, Government National Mortgage Association, Maritime Administration, Small Business Administration and The Tennessee Valley Authority. Obligations of instrumentalities of the United States Government include securities issued or guaranteed by, among others, the Federal National Mortgage Association, Federal Home Loan Banks, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, Federal Intermediate Credit Banks, Banks for Cooperatives and the U.S. Postal Service. Securities issued or guaranteed by the Export-Import Bank of the United States, Farmers Home Administration, Federal Housing Administration, Government National Mortgage Association, Maritime Administration and Small Business Administration are supported by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Treasury. Securities issued or guaranteed by Federal National Mortgage Association and Federal Home Loan Banks are supported by the right of the issuer to borrow from the Treasury. Securities issued or guaranteed by the other agencies or instrumentalities listed above are supported only by the credit of the issuing agency.

Variable and Floating Rate Obligations

Investments in variable or floating rate securities normally will involve industrial development or revenue bonds which provide that the rate of interest is set as a specific percentage of a designated base rate, such as rates on Treasury Bonds or Bills or the prime rate at a major commercial bank, and that a bondholder can demand payment of the obligations on behalf of the Series on short notice at par plus accrued interest, which amount may be more or less than the amount the bondholder paid for them. The maturity of floating or variable rate obligations (including participation interests therein) is deemed to be the longer of (i) the notice period required before the Series is entitled to receive payment of the obligation upon demand or (ii) the period remaining until the obligation’s next interest rate adjustment. If not redeemed by the Series through the demand feature, the obligations mature on a specified date that may range up to thirty years from the date of issuance.

When-Issued Securities

The Series may purchase securities on a when-issued basis. New issues of certain securities are offered on a when-issued basis, that is, delivery and payment for the securities normally takes place 15 to 45 days or more after the date of the commitment to purchase. The payment obligation and the interest rate if any, that will be received on the securities are each fixed at the time the buyer enters into the commitment. The Series will generally make a commitment to purchase such securities with the intention of actually acquiring the securities. However, the Series may sell these securities before the settlement date if it is deemed advisable as a matter of investment strategy. When the Series purchases securities on a when-issued basis, cash or liquid securities equal in value to commitments for the when-issued securities will be specifically designated in the Series accounting records. Such segregated securities either will mature or, if necessary, be sold on or before the settlement date.

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Securities purchased on a when-issued basis are subject to changes in market value. Therefore, to the extent the Series remains substantially fully invested at the same time that they have purchased securities on a when-issued basis, there will be greater fluctuations in the net asset values than if the Series merely set aside cash to pay for when-issued securities. In addition, there will be a greater potential for the realization of capital gains. When the time comes to pay for when-issued securities, the Series will meet its obligations from then available cash flow, the sales of securities or, although it would not normally expect to do so, from the sale of the when-issued securities themselves (which may have a value greater or less than the payment obligation). Lastly, investing in when-issued securities includes the risk that the securities may never be issued, in which event the Series may incur expenses associated with unwinding such transactions.

“Yield Curve” Options

The Series may enter into options on the “spread,” or yield differential, between two fixed income securities, in transactions referred to as “yield curve” options. In contrast to other types of options, a yield curve option is based on the difference between the yields of designated securities, rather than the prices of the individual securities, and is settled through cash payments. Accordingly, a yield curve option is profitable to the holder if this differential widens (in the case of a call) or narrows (in the case of a put), regardless of whether the yields of the underlying securities increase or decrease.

Yield curve options may be used for the same purposes as other options on securities. Specifically, the Series may purchase or write such options for hedging purposes. For example, the Series may purchase a call option on the yield spread between two securities, if it owns one of the securities and anticipates purchasing the other security and wants to hedge against an adverse change in the yield spread between the two securities. The Series may also purchase or write yield curve options for other than hedging purposes (i.e., in an effort to increase its current income) if, in the judgment of the adviser, the Series will be able to profit from movements in the spread between the yields of the underlying securities. The trading of yield curve options is subject to all of the risks associated with the trading of other types of options. In addition, however, such options present risk of loss even if the yield of one of the underlying securities remains constant, if the spread moves in a direction or to an extent which was not anticipated. Yield curve options written by the Series will be “covered.” A call (or put) option is covered if the Series holds another call (or put) option on the spread between the same two securities and owns liquid and unencumbered assets sufficient to cover the Series’ net liability under the two options. Therefore, the Series’ liability for such a covered option is generally limited to the difference between the amount of the Series’ liability under the option written by the Series less the value of the option held by the Series. Yield curve options may also be covered in such other manner as may be in accordance with the requirements of the counterparty with which the option is traded and applicable laws and regulations. Yield curve options are traded over-the-counter and because they have been only recently introduced, established trading markets for these securities have not yet developed.

Zero and Deferred Coupon Debt Securities

The Series may invest in debt obligations that do not make any interest payments for a specified period of time prior to maturity (“deferred coupon” obligations) or until maturity (“zero coupon” obligations). Because deferred and zero coupon bonds do not make interest payments for a certain period of time, they are purchased by the Series at a deep discount and their value fluctuates more in response to interest rate changes than does the value of debt obligations that make current interest payments. The degree of fluctuation with interest rate changes is greater when the deferred period is longer. Therefore, there is a risk that the value of the Series’ shares may decline more as a result of an increase in interest rates than would be the case if the Series did not invest in deferred or zero coupon bonds.

ADDITIONAL INVESTMENT POLICIES OF CERTAIN SERIES

The following policies are non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder vote.

Virtus Growth & Income Series

The Virtus Growth & Income Series may invest up to 5% of its net assets in warrants and stock rights, but no more than 2% of its net assets in warrants and stock rights not listed on the NYSE.

Virtus International Series

The Virtus International Series may invest up to 5% of its net assets in warrants and stock rights, but no more than 2% of its net assets in warrants and stock rights not listed on the NYSE.

This Series also may hedge its foreign currency exchange rate risk by engaging in currency financial futures and options transactions.

The Series may invest in nonconvertible fixed income securities of non-U.S. issuers when the adviser believes that such securities are appropriate for the achievement of the Series’ investment objective. The nonconvertible fixed income securities may consist of: corporate notes, bonds, debentures and other securities (such as Euro-currency instruments) of non-U.S. issuers that are rated within the three highest rating categories of rating services or, if unrated, are deemed by the adviser to

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be of comparable credit quality; and securities issued by foreign governments and supranational agencies (such as the World Bank).

Virtus Multi-Sector Fixed Income Series

The Virtus Multi-Sector Fixed Income Series may only purchase a call option to terminate a previously written call option. (See “Writing Covered Call Options.”)

Virtus Real Estate Securities Series

As the Virtus Real Estate Securities Series invests in REITs, investors will bear not only the proportionate share of the expenses of the Series but also, the similar expenses of the underlying REITs.

The Virtus Real Estate Securities Series will not invest in real estate directly, but only in securities issued by real estate companies. However, the portfolio may be subject to risks similar to those associated with the direct ownership of real estate because of its policy of concentrating in the securities of companies in the real estate industry. These include declines in the value of real estate, risks related to general and local economic conditions, dependence on management skill, cash flow dependence, possible lack of availability of long-term mortgage trusts, overbuilding, extended vacancies of properties, decreased occupancy rates and increased competition, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, changes in neighborhood values and the appeal of the properties to tenants and changes in interest rates.

The Virtus Real Estate Securities Series may invest in debt securities rated BBB or better by Standard & Poor’s or Baa or better by Moody’s or, if not rated, are judged to be of comparable quality as determined by Duff & Phelps. In choosing debt securities for purchase by the Series, Duff & Phelps will employ the same analytical and valuation techniques utilized in managing the equity portion of the Virtus Real Estate Securities Series holdings and will invest in debt securities only of companies that satisfy Duff & Phelps’ investment criteria.

Virtus Strategic Allocation Series

Immediately after entering into an opening option position, the total value of all open option positions based on exercise price will not exceed 10% of the Virtus Strategic Allocation Series’ total assets.

Market Segment Investments. The Virtus Strategic Allocation Series seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing in the three market segments of stocks, bonds and money market instruments described below.

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Trading . The adviser will engage in trading when it believes that the trade, net of transaction costs, will improve interest income or capital appreciation potential, or will lessen capital loss potential. Whether these goals will be achieved through trading depends on the adviser’s ability to evaluate particular securities and anticipate relevant market factors, including interest rate trends and variations. If the adviser’s evaluations and expectations prove to be incorrect, the Series’ income or capital appreciation may be reduced and its capital losses may be increased. Portfolio trading involves transaction costs. Purchases and sales of securities will be made, whenever necessary, in the adviser’s view, to achieve the total return investment objective of the Series without regard to the resulting brokerage costs.

In addition to the traditional investment techniques for purchasing and selling and engaging in trading, the Virtus Strategic Allocation Series may enter into financial futures and options contracts.

INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS

The Trust’s fundamental policies as they affect any Series cannot be changed without the approval of a vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of such Series, which is the lesser of (i) 67% or more of the voting securities of such Series present at a meeting if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities of such Series are present or represented by proxy or (ii) more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities of such Series. A proposed change in fundamental policy or investment objective will be deemed to have been effectively acted upon by any Series if a majority of the outstanding voting securities of that Series votes for the approval of the proposal as provided above, notwithstanding (1) that such matter has not been approved by a majority of the outstanding securities of any other Series affected by such matter and (2) that such matter has not been approved by a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Trust. Compliance with applicable percentage thresholds is measured as of the time of initial investment.

Fundamental Investment Restrictions

The following investment restrictions are fundamental policies of the Series described in this SAI and may not be changed except as described above.

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PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

The portfolio turnover rate of each Series is calculated by dividing the lesser of purchases or sales of portfolio securities during the fiscal year by the monthly average of the value of the Series’ securities (excluding all securities, including options, with maturities at the time of acquisition of one year or less). All long-term securities, including long-term U.S. Government securities, are included. A high rate of portfolio turnover generally involves correspondingly greater brokerage commission expenses, which must be borne directly by the Series. Turnover rates may vary greatly from year to year as well as within a particular year and also may be affected by cash requirements for redemptions of each Series’ shares by requirements that enable the Trust to receive certain favorable tax treatments. The portfolio turnover rates for each Series are set forth under “Financial Highlights” in the prospectus. The portfolio turnover rates for Virtus Small-Cap Value Series may have been a higher than average portfolio turnover rate for 2009 since a new subadviser was appointed to manage the Series.

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