DESCRIPTIONS AND RISKS OF FUND INVESTMENTS

The following is a description of investment practices in which the Fund may engage and the risks associated with their use. The Fund may invest in other series of the Trust (each series of the Trust, including the Fund, a “GMO Fund,” and collectively, the “GMO Funds”) or other investment companies (collectively with any GMO Funds in which the Fund invests, “underlying Funds”) as noted in the Prospectus or in “Fund Investments” above and is indirectly exposed to the investment practices of the underlying Funds in which it invests, and is therefore subject to all risks associated with the practices of the underlying Funds. UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED HEREIN, THE INVESTMENT PRACTICES AND ASSOCIATED RISKS DETAILED BELOW ALSO INCLUDE THOSE TO WHICH THE FUND INDIRECTLY MAY BE EXPOSED THROUGH ITS INVESTMENT IN THE UNDERLYING FUNDS. ANY REFERENCES TO INVESTMENTS MADE BY THE FUND INCLUDE THOSE THAT MAY BE MADE BOTH DIRECTLY BY THE FUND AND INDIRECTLY BY THE FUND (E.G., THROUGH ITS INVESTMENTS IN THE UNDERLYING FUNDS OR THROUGH ITS INVESTMENTS IN DERIVATIVES OR SYNTHETIC INSTRUMENTS).

Portfolio Turnover

Based on Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo & Co. LLC’s (“GMO”) assessment of market conditions, GMO may trade the Fund’s investments more frequently at some times than at others, resulting in a higher portfolio turnover rate. Increased portfolio turnover involves correspondingly greater brokerage commissions and other transaction costs, which will be borne directly by the Fund, and which may adversely affect the Fund’s performance. It also may give rise to additional taxable income for its shareholders, including through the realization of capital gains or other types of income that are taxable to Fund shareholders when distributed by the Fund to them, unless those shareholders are themselves exempt from taxation or otherwise investing in the Fund through a tax-advantaged account. If portfolio turnover results in the recognition of short-term capital gains, those gains, when distributed to shareholders, typically are taxed to shareholders at ordinary income tax rates. The after-tax impact of portfolio turnover is not considered when making investment decisions for the Fund. See “Distributions and Taxes” in the Prospectus and “Distributions” and “Taxes” in this SAI for more information.

Non-Diversified Portfolio

As stated in the Prospectus, the Fund is a “non-diversified” fund under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), and as such is not required to satisfy the requirements for “diversified” funds. A non-diversified fund is permitted (but is not required) to invest a higher percentage of its assets in the securities of fewer issuers. That concentration could increase the risk of loss to the Fund resulting from a decline in the market value of particular portfolio securities. Investment in a non-diversified fund may entail greater risks than investment in a diversified fund.

Notwithstanding that the Fund is “non-diversified,” the Fund must meet diversification standards to qualify as a “regulated investment company” under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). See “Taxes” below for a description of these diversification standards.

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Accelerated Transactions

For the Fund to take advantage of certain available investment opportunities, GMO may need to make investment decisions on an expedited basis. In such cases, the information available to GMO at the time of an investment decision may be limited. GMO may not, therefore, have access to the detailed information necessary for a full analysis and evaluation of the investment opportunity.

Risks of Non-U.S. Investments

General. Investment in non-U.S. issuers or securities principally traded outside the United States may involve special risks due to non-U.S. economic, political, and legal developments, including favorable or unfavorable changes in currency exchange rates, exchange control regulations (including currency blockage), expropriation, nationalization or confiscatory taxation of assets, and possible difficulty in obtaining and enforcing judgments against non-U.S. entities. The Fund may be subject to foreign taxes on (i) capital gains it realizes or dividends or interest it receives on non-U.S. securities, (ii) transactions in those securities, or (iii) the repatriation of proceeds generated from the sale of those securities. Any taxes or other charges paid or incurred by the Fund in respect of its non-U.S. securities will reduce its yield. The Fund may seek to collect a refund in respect of taxes paid to a foreign country. In those cases, all or a portion of those taxes could ultimately be recovered by the Fund. However, the recovery process could take several years and the Fund will incur expenses in its efforts to collect the refund, which will reduce the benefit of any recovery. The Fund’s efforts to collect a refund may not be successful, in which case the Fund will have incurred additional expenses for no economic benefit. The Fund’s decision to pursue a refund is in its sole discretion, and it may decide not to pursue a refund, even if eligible. The outcome of the Fund’s pursuit of a refund is not predictable, and potential refunds generally are not reflected in the net asset value of the Fund. See “Taxes” below for more information about other special tax considerations applicable to non-U.S. investments.

In addition, the tax laws of some foreign jurisdictions in which the Fund may invest are unclear and interpretations of such laws can change over time, including on a retroactive basis in which case the Fund and/or its shareholders, as applicable, could potentially incur foreign taxes on a retroactive basis. Moreover, in order to comply with guidance related to the accounting and disclosure of uncertain tax positions under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), the Fund may be required to accrue for book purposes certain foreign taxes in respect of its non-U.S. securities or other non-U.S. investments that it may or may not ultimately pay. Such tax accruals will reduce the Fund’s net asset value at the time accrued, even though, in some cases, the Fund ultimately will not pay the related tax liabilities. Conversely, the Fund’s net asset value will be increased by any tax accruals that are ultimately reversed.

Issuers of non-U.S. securities are subject to different, often less comprehensive, accounting, custody, reporting, and disclosure requirements than U.S. issuers. The securities of some foreign governments, companies, and securities markets are less liquid, and at times more volatile, than comparable U.S. securities and securities markets. Non-U.S. brokerage commissions and related fees also are generally higher than in the United States. To the extent that the Fund invests in non-U.S. securities, it also may be affected by different custody and/or settlement practices or delayed settlements in some non-U.S. markets. The laws of some foreign countries may limit the Fund’s ability to invest in securities of certain issuers located in those countries.

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Foreign countries may have reporting requirements with respect to the ownership of securities, and those reporting requirements may be subject to interpretation or change without prior notice to investors. While the Fund makes reasonable efforts to stay informed of foreign reporting requirements relating to its non-U.S. portfolio securities (e.g., through the Fund’s brokerage contacts, publications of the Investment Company Institute, which is the national association of U.S. investment companies, the Fund’s custodial network, and, to the extent deemed appropriate by the Fund under the circumstances, local counsel in the relevant foreign country), no assurance can be given that the Fund will satisfy applicable foreign reporting requirements at all times.

Emerging Countries. The risks described above apply to an even greater extent to investments in emerging countries. The securities markets of emerging countries are generally smaller, less developed, less liquid, and more volatile than the securities markets of the United States and other developed countries, and disclosure and regulatory standards in many respects are less stringent. In addition, the securities markets of emerging countries are typically subject to a lower level of monitoring and regulation. Government enforcement of existing securities regulations is limited, and any such enforcement may be arbitrary and the results may be difficult to predict. In addition, reporting requirements of emerging countries with respect to the ownership of securities are more likely to be subject to interpretation or changes without prior notice to investors than more developed countries.

Many emerging countries have experienced substantial, and in some periods extremely high, rates of inflation for many years. Inflation and rapid fluctuations in inflation rates have had and may continue to have negative effects on such countries’ economies and securities markets.

Economies of emerging countries generally are heavily dependent on international trade and, accordingly, have been and may continue to be affected adversely by trade barriers, exchange controls, managed adjustments in relative currency values, and other protectionist measures imposed or negotiated by the countries with which they trade. Economies of emerging countries also have been and may continue to be adversely affected by economic conditions in the countries with which they trade. The economies of emerging countries may be predominantly based on only a few industries or dependent on revenues from particular commodities. In many cases, governments of emerging countries continue to exercise significant control over their economies, and government actions relative to the economy, as well as economic developments generally, may affect the capacity of creditors in those countries to make payments on their debt obligations, regardless of their financial condition.

Custodial services are often more expensive and other investment-related costs higher in emerging countries than in developed countries, which could reduce the Fund’s income from investments in securities or debt instruments of emerging country issuers.

Emerging countries are more likely than developed countries to experience political uncertainty and instability, including the risk of war, terrorism, nationalization, limitations on the removal of funds or other assets, or diplomatic developments that affect U.S. investments in these countries. No assurance can be given that adverse political changes will not cause the Fund to suffer a loss of any or all of its investments (or, in the case of fixed income securities, interest) in emerging countries.

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Special Risks of Investing in Asian Securities. In addition to the risks of non-U.S. investments and emerging countries investments described above, investments in Asia are subject to other risks. The economies of Asian countries are at varying levels of development. Markets of countries whose economies are in the early stages of development typically exhibit a high concentration of market capitalization and have less trading volume, lower liquidity, and more volatility that more developed markets. Some Asian countries depend heavily on foreign trade. The economies of some Asian countries are not diversified and are based on only a few commodities or industries.

Investments in Asia also are susceptible to social, political, legal, and operational risks. Some countries have authoritarian or relatively unstable governments. Some governments in the region provide less supervision and regulation of their financial markets and in some countries less financial information is available than is typical of more developed markets. Some Asian countries restrict direct foreign investment in securities markets, and investments in securities traded on those markets may be made, if at all, only indirectly (e.g., through Depositary Receipts, as defined below under “Depositary Receipts,” derivatives, etc.).

Asian countries periodically experience increases in market volatility and declines in foreign currency exchange rates. Currency fluctuations affect the value of securities because the prices of these securities are generally denominated or quoted in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Fluctuations in currency exchange rates can also affect a country’s or company’s ability to service its debt.

Investment in particular Asian countries is subject to unique risks, yet the political and economic prospects of one country or group of countries can affect other countries in the region. For example, the economies of some Asian countries are directly affected by Japanese capital investment in the region and by Japanese consumer demands. In addition, a recession, debt crisis, or decline in currency valuation in one Asian country may spread to other Asian countries.

Special Risks of Investing in Russian Securities. The Fund may have direct or indirect exposure to Russian securities. Investment in those securities presents many of the same risks as investing in the securities of emerging country issuers, as described in the preceding sections. The social, political, legal, and operational risks of investing in Russian issuers, and of having assets held in custody within Russia, however, may be particularly pronounced relative to investments in more developed countries. Russia’s system of share registration and custody creates certain risks of loss (including the risk of total loss) that are not normally associated with investments in other securities markets.

A risk of particular note with respect to direct investment in Russian securities results from the way in which ownership of shares of companies is normally recorded. Ownership of shares (except where shares are held through depositories that meet the requirements of the 1940 Act) is defined according to entries in the company’s share register and normally evidenced by “share extracts” from the register or, in certain circumstances, by formal share certificates. However, there is no central registration system for shareholders and these services are carried out by the companies themselves or by registrars located throughout Russia. The share registrars are controlled by the issuer of the security, and investors are provided with few legal rights against such registrars. These registrars are not necessarily subject to effective state supervision nor are they licensed with any governmental entity. It is possible for the Fund to lose its registration through fraud, negligence, or even mere oversight. The Fund will endeavor to ensure that its

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interest is appropriately recorded, which may involve a custodian or other agent inspecting the share register and obtaining extracts of share registers through regular confirmations. However, these extracts have no legal enforceability and it is possible that a subsequent illegal amendment or other fraudulent act may deprive the Fund of its ownership rights or improperly dilute its interests. In addition, while applicable Russian regulations impose liability on registrars for losses resulting from their errors, it may be difficult for the Fund to enforce any rights it may have against the registrar or issuer of the securities in the event of a loss of share registration. Further, significant delays or problems may occur in registering the transfer of securities, which could cause the Fund to incur losses due to a counterparty’s failure to pay for securities the Fund has delivered or the Fund’s inability to complete its contractual obligations because of theft or other reasons.

Also, although a Russian public enterprise having a certain minimum number of shareholders is required by law to contract out the maintenance of its shareholder register to an independent entity that meets certain criteria, this regulation has not always been strictly enforced in practice. Because of this lack of independence, management of a company may be able to exert considerable influence over who can purchase and sell the company’s shares by illegally instructing the registrar to refuse to record transactions in the share register.

In addition, as a result of political and military actions undertaken by Russia, the United States and the European Union have instituted sanctions against certain Russian officials and institutions. These sanctions and any additional sanctions or other intergovernmental actions that may be undertaken against Russia in the future may result in the devaluation of Russian currency, a downgrade in the country’s credit rating, and a decline in the value and liquidity of Russian securities. Such actions could result in a freeze of Russian securities, impairing the ability of a fund to buy, sell, receive, or deliver those securities. Retaliatory action by the Russian government could involve the seizure of U.S. and/or European residents’ assets, and any such actions are likely to impair the value and liquidity of such assets. Any or all of these potential results could have an adverse/recessionary effect on Russia’s economy. All of these factors could have a negative effect on the performance of Fund if the Fund has significant exposure to Russia.

Securities Lending

The Fund may make secured loans of its portfolio securities amounting to not more than one-third of its total assets. For these purposes, total assets include the proceeds of such loans. The risks in lending portfolio securities, as with other extensions of credit, consist of possible delay in recovery of the securities or possible loss of rights in the collateral should the borrower fail financially, including possible impairment of the Fund’s ability to vote the securities. However, securities loans will be made to broker-dealers that GMO believes to be of relatively high credit standing pursuant to agreements requiring that the loans be collateralized by cash, liquid securities, or shares of other investment companies with a value at least equal to the market value of the loaned securities (marked to market daily). If a loan is collateralized by U.S. government or other securities, the Fund receives a fee from the borrower. If a loan is collateralized by cash, the Fund typically invests the cash collateral for its own account in one or more money market funds (in which case the Fund will bear its pro rata share of such money market fund’s fees and expenses), or directly in interest-bearing, short-term securities, and typically pays a fee to the borrower that normally represents a portion of the Fund’s earnings on the collateral. As with other extensions of credit, the Fund bears the risk of delay in the recovery of loaned securities and of loss of rights in the collateral should the borrower fail financially. The Fund also bears the risk that the value of investments made with collateral may decline. The Fund bears the risk of total loss with respect to the investment of collateral.

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Voting rights or rights to consent with respect to the loaned securities pass to the borrower. The Fund has the right to call loans at any time on reasonable notice and will do so if both (i) GMO receives adequate notice of a proposal upon which shareholders are being asked to vote, and (ii) GMO believes that the benefits to the Fund of voting on such proposal outweigh the benefits to the Fund of having the security remain out on loan. However, the Fund bears the risk of delay in the return of the security, impairing the Fund’s ability to vote on such matters. GMO may retain lending agents on behalf of the Fund that are compensated based on a percentage of the Fund’s return on its securities lending. The Fund also may pay various fees in connection with securities loans, including shipping fees and custodian fees.

Depositary Receipts

The Fund may invest in American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”), Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”), and European Depositary Receipts (“EDRs”) or other similar securities representing ownership of non-U.S. securities (collectively, “Depositary Receipts”) if issues of such Depositary Receipts are available that are consistent with the Fund’s investment objective. Depositary Receipts generally evidence an ownership interest in a corresponding non-U.S. security on deposit with a financial institution. Transactions in Depositary Receipts usually do not settle in the same currency as the underlying non-U.S. securities are denominated or traded. Generally, ADRs are designed for use in the U.S. securities markets and EDRs are designed for use in European securities markets. GDRs may be traded in any public or private securities market and may represent securities held by institutions located anywhere in the world. GDRs and other types of Depositary Receipts are typically issued by foreign banks or trust companies, although they may be issued by U.S. financial institutions, and evidence ownership interests in a security or pool of securities issued by either a U.S. or foreign corporation.

Because the value of a Depositary Receipt is dependent upon the market price of an underlying non-U.S. security, Depositary Receipts are subject to most of the risks associated with investing in non-U.S. securities directly. Depositary Receipts may be issued as sponsored or unsponsored programs. See “Risks of Non-U.S. Investments.” Depositary Receipts also may be subject to illiquidity risk.

Convertible Securities

A convertible security is a security (a bond or preferred stock) that may be converted at a stated price within a specified period into a specified number of shares of common stock of the same or a different issuer. Convertible securities are senior to common stock in a corporation’s capital structure, but are usually subordinated to senior debt obligations of the issuer. Convertible securities provide holders, through their conversion feature, an opportunity to participate in increases in the market price of their underlying securities. The price of a convertible security is influenced by the market price of the underlying security, and tends to increase as the market price rises and decrease as the market price declines. GMO regards convertible securities as a form of equity security.

The value of a convertible security is a function of its “investment value” (determined by its yield in comparison with the yields of other securities of comparable maturity and quality that do

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not have a conversion privilege) and its “conversion value” (the security’s worth, at market value, if converted into the underlying common stock). The investment value of a convertible security is influenced by changes in interest rates, with investment value declining as interest rates increase and increasing as interest rates decline. The credit standing of the issuer and other factors also may have an effect on the convertible security’s investment value. The conversion value of a convertible security is determined by the market price of the underlying common stock. If the conversion value is low relative to the investment value, as in the case of “broken” or “busted” convertibles, the price of the convertible security is governed principally by its investment value. To the extent the market price of the underlying common stock approaches or exceeds the conversion price, the price of the convertible security will be increasingly influenced by its conversion value. A convertible security generally will sell at a premium over its conversion value by the extent to which investors place value on the right to acquire the underlying common stock while holding a fixed income security. Generally, the amount of the premium decreases as the convertible security approaches maturity.

A convertible security may 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 the Fund is called for redemption, the Fund will be required to permit the issuer to redeem the security, convert it into the underlying common stock or sell it to a third party.

Preferred Stocks

Preferred stocks include convertible and non-convertible preferred and preference stocks that are senior to common stock. Preferred stocks are equity securities that are senior to common stock with respect to the right to receive dividends and a fixed share of the proceeds resulting from the issuer’s liquidation. Some preferred stocks also entitle their holders to receive additional liquidation proceeds on the same basis as holders of the issuer’s common stock, and thus represent an ownership interest in the issuer. Depending on the features of the particular security, holders of preferred stock may bear the risks disclosed in the Prospectus or this SAI regarding equity or fixed income securities.

Investment in preferred stocks involves certain risks. Certain preferred stocks contain provisions that allow an issuer under certain conditions to skip or defer distributions. If the Fund owns a preferred stock that is deferring its distribution, it may be required to report income for tax purposes despite the fact that it is not receiving current income on this position. Preferred stocks often are subject to legal provisions that allow for redemption in the event of certain tax or legal changes or at the issuer’s call. In the event of redemption, the Fund may not be able to reinvest the proceeds at comparable rates of return. Preferred stocks are subordinated to bonds and other debt securities in an issuer’s capital structure in terms of priority for corporate income and liquidation payments, and therefore will be subject to greater credit risk than those debt securities. Preferred stocks may trade less frequently and in a more limited volume and may be subject to more abrupt or erratic price movements than many other securities, such as common stocks, corporate debt securities and U.S. government securities.

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Warrants and Rights

Warrants and rights generally give the holder the right to receive, upon exercise, a security of the issuer at a stated price. The Fund typically uses warrants and rights in a manner similar to its use of options on securities, as described in “Options and Futures” below. Risks associated with the use of warrants and rights are generally similar to risks associated with the use of options. Unlike most options, however, warrants and rights are issued in specific amounts, and warrants generally have longer terms than options. Warrants and rights are not likely to be as liquid as exchange-traded options backed by a recognized clearing agency. In addition, the terms of warrants or rights may limit the Fund’s ability to exercise the warrants or rights at such time, or in such quantities, as the Fund would otherwise wish.

Options and Futures

The Fund may use options and futures for various purposes, including for investment purposes and as a means to hedge other investments. See “Uses of Derivatives” below for more information regarding the various derivatives strategies the Fund may employ using options and futures. The use of options contracts, futures contracts, and options on futures contracts involves risk. Thus, while the Fund may benefit from the use of options, futures, and options on futures, unanticipated changes in interest rates, securities prices, currency exchange rates, or other underlying assets or reference rates may adversely affect the Fund’s performance.

Options on Securities and Indices. The Fund may purchase and sell put and call options on equity, fixed income, or other securities or indices in standardized exchange-traded contracts. An option on a security or index is a contract that gives the holder of the option, in return for a premium, the right (but not the obligation) to buy from (in the case of a call) or sell to (in the case of a put) the writer of the option the security underlying the option (or the cash value of the index underlying the option) at a specified price. Upon exercise, the writer of an option on a security has the obligation to deliver the underlying security upon payment of the exercise price or to pay the exercise price upon delivery of the underlying security. Upon exercise, the writer of an option on an index is required to pay the difference between the cash value of the index and the exercise price multiplied by the specified multiplier for the index option.

Purchasing Options on Securities and Indices. Among other reasons, the Fund may purchase a put option to hedge against a decline in the value of a portfolio security. If such a decline occurs, the put option will permit the Fund to sell the security at the higher exercise price or to close out the option at a profit. By using put options in this manner, the Fund will reduce any profit it might otherwise have realized in the underlying security by the amount of the premium paid for the put option and by its transaction costs. In order for a put option purchased by the Fund to be profitable, the market price of the underlying security must decline sufficiently below the exercise price to cover the premium paid by the Fund and transaction costs.

Among other reasons, the Fund may purchase call options to hedge against an increase in the price of securities the Fund anticipates purchasing in the future. If such a price increase occurs, a call option will permit the Fund to purchase the securities at the exercise price or to close out the option at a profit. The premium paid for the call option, plus any transaction costs, will reduce the benefit, if any, that the Fund realizes upon exercise of the option and, unless the price of the underlying security rises sufficiently, the option may expire worthless to the Fund. Thus, for a call option purchased by the Fund to be profitable, the market price of the underlying security must rise sufficiently above the exercise price to cover the premium paid by the Fund to the writer and transaction costs.

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In the case of both call and put options, the purchaser of an option risks losing the premium paid for the option plus related transaction costs if the option expires worthless.

Writing Options on Securities and Indices. Because the Fund receives a premium for writing a put or call option, the Fund may seek to increase its return by writing call or put options on securities or indices. The premium the Fund receives for writing an option will increase the Fund’s return in the event the option expires unexercised or is closed out at a profit. The size of the premium the Fund receives reflects, among other things, the relationship of the market price and volatility of the underlying security or index to the exercise price of the option, the remaining term of the option, supply and demand, and interest rates.

The Fund may write a call option on a security or other instrument held by the Fund (commonly known as “writing a covered call option”). In such case, the Fund limits its opportunity to profit from an increase in the market price of the underlying security above the exercise price of the option. Alternatively, the Fund may write a call option on securities in which it may invest but that are not currently held by the Fund (commonly known as “writing a naked call option”). During periods of declining securities prices or when prices are stable, writing these types of call options can be a profitable strategy to increase the Fund’s income with minimal capital risk. However, when securities prices increase, the Fund is exposed to an increased risk of loss, because if the price of the underlying security or instrument exceeds the option’s exercise price, the Fund will suffer a loss equal to the amount by which the market price exceeds the exercise price at the time the call option is exercised, minus the premium received. Calls written on securities that the Fund does not own are riskier than calls written on securities owned by the Fund because there is no underlying security held by the Fund that can act as a partial hedge. When such a call is exercised, the Fund must purchase the underlying security to meet its call obligation or make a payment equal to the value of its obligation in order to close out the option. Calls written on securities that the Fund does not own have speculative characteristics and the potential for loss is theoretically unlimited. There is also a risk, especially with less liquid preferred and debt securities, that the securities may not be available for purchase.

The Fund also may write a put option on a security. In so doing, the Fund assumes the risk that it may be required to purchase the underlying security for an exercise price higher than its then-current market price, resulting in a loss on exercise equal to the amount by which the market price of the security is below the exercise price minus the premium received.

OTC Options . The Fund also may invest in OTC options. OTC options differ from exchange-traded options in that they are two-party contracts, with price and other terms negotiated between the buyer and seller, and generally do not have as much market liquidity as exchange-traded options.

Closing Options Transactions . The holder of an option may terminate its position in a put or call option it has purchased by allowing it to expire or by exercising the option. If an option is American-style, it may be exercised on any day up to its expiration date. In contrast, a European-style option may be exercised only on its expiration date.

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In addition, a holder of an option may terminate its obligation prior to the option’s expiration by effecting an offsetting closing transaction. In the case of exchange-traded options, the Fund, as a holder of an option, may effect an offsetting closing sale transaction by selling an option of the same series as the option previously purchased. The Fund realizes a loss from a closing sale transaction if the premium received from the sale of the option is less than the premium paid to purchase the option (plus transaction costs). Similarly, if the Fund has written an option, it may effect an offsetting closing purchase transaction by buying an option of the same series as the option previously written. The Fund realizes a loss from a closing purchase transaction if the cost of the closing purchase transaction (option premium plus transaction costs) is greater than the premium received from writing the option. If the Fund desires to sell a security on which it has written a call option, it will effect a closing purchase prior to or concurrently with the sale of the security. There can be no assurance, however, that a closing purchase or sale can be effected when the Fund desires to do so.

Risk Factors in Options Transactions. The market price of written options will be affected by many factors, including changes in the market price or dividend rates of underlying securities (or in the case of indices, the securities comprising such indices); changes in interest rates or exchange rates; changes in the actual or perceived volatility of the relevant stock market and underlying securities; and the time remaining before an option’s expiration. The market price of an option also may be adversely affected if the market for the option becomes less liquid. In addition, since an American-style option allows the holder to exercise its rights any time prior to the option’s expiration, the writer of an American-style option has no control over when it may be required to fulfill its obligations as a writer of the option. (This risk is not present when writing a European-style option since the holder may only exercise the option on its expiration date.)

The Fund’s ability to use options as part of its investment program depends on the liquidity of those instruments. In addition, a liquid market may not exist when the Fund seeks to close out an option position. If the Fund were unable to close out an option that it had purchased on a security, it would have to exercise the option in order to realize any profit or the option may expire worthless. As the writer of a call option on a portfolio security, during the option’s life, the Fund foregoes the opportunity to profit from increases in the market value of the security underlying the call option above the sum of the premium and the strike price of the call, but retains the risk of loss (net of premiums received) should the price of the underlying security decline. Similarly, as the writer of a call option on a securities index, the Fund foregoes the opportunity to profit from increases in the index over the strike price of the option, though it retains the risk of loss (net of premiums received) should the price of the Fund’s portfolio securities decline. If the Fund writes a call option and does not hold the underlying security or instrument, the amount of the Fund’s potential loss is theoretically unlimited.

An exchange-traded option may be closed out by means of an offsetting transaction only on a national securities exchange (“Exchange”), which provides a secondary market for an option of the same series. If a liquid secondary market for an exchange-traded option does not exist, the Fund might not be able to effect an offsetting closing transaction for a particular option. Reasons for the absence of a liquid secondary market on an Exchange include the following: (i) insufficient trading interest in some options; (ii) restrictions by an Exchange on opening or closing transactions, or both; (iii) trading halts, suspensions, or other restrictions on particular classes or series of options or underlying securities; (iv) unusual or unforeseen interruptions in normal operations on an Exchange; (v) inability to handle current trading volume; or (vi)

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discontinuance of options trading (or trading in a particular class or series of options) (although outstanding options on an Exchange that were issued by the Options Clearing Corporation should continue to be exercisable in accordance with their terms). In addition, the hours of trading for options on an Exchange may not conform to the hours during which the securities held by the Fund are traded. To the extent that the options markets close before the markets for the underlying securities, significant price and rate movements can take place in the markets for underlying securities that are not immediately reflected in the options markets.

The Exchanges generally have established limits on the maximum number of options an investor or group of investors acting in concert may write. The Fund, GMO, and other funds advised by GMO may constitute such a group. These limits could restrict the Fund’s ability to purchase or write options on a particular security.

An OTC option may be closed only with the counterparty, although either party may engage in an offsetting transaction that puts that party in the same economic position as if it had closed out the option with the counterparty; however, the exposure to counterparty risk may differ. No guarantee exists that the Fund will be able to effect a closing purchase or a closing sale with respect to a specific option at any particular time. See “Swap Contracts and Other Two-Party Contracts – Risk Factors in Swap Contracts, OTC Options, and Other Two-Party Contracts” below for a discussion of counterparty risk and other risks associated with investing in OTC options.

Currency Options. The Fund may purchase and sell options on currencies. Options on currencies possess many of the same characteristics as options on securities and generally operate in a similar manner. The Fund is permitted to invest in securities denominated in foreign currencies and may purchase or sell options on currencies. See “Foreign Currency Transactions” below for more information on the Fund’s use of currency options.

Futures. To the extent consistent with applicable law and its investment restrictions, the Fund is permitted to invest in futures contracts may invest in futures contracts on, among other things, financial instruments (such as a U.S. government security or other fixed income security), individual equity securities (“single stock futures”), securities indices, interest rates, currencies, inflation indices, and (to the extent the Fund is permitted to invest in commodities and commodity-related derivatives (as defined in “Commodity-Related Investments” below)) commodities or commodities indices. Futures contracts on securities indices are referred to herein as “Index Futures.” The purchase of futures contracts can serve as a long hedge, and the sale of futures contracts can serve as a limited short hedge. The purchase and sale of futures contracts also may be used for speculative purposes.

Certain futures contracts are physically settled (i.e., involve the making and taking of delivery of a specified amount of an underlying security or other asset). For instance, the sale of futures contracts on foreign currencies or financial instruments creates an obligation of the seller to deliver a specified quantity of an underlying foreign currency or financial instrument called for in the contract for a stated price at a specified time. Conversely, the purchase of such futures contracts creates an obligation of the purchaser to pay for and take delivery of the underlying foreign currency or financial instrument called for in the contract for a stated price at a specified time. In some cases, the specific instruments delivered or taken, respectively, on the settlement date are not determined until on or near that date. That determination is made in accordance with the rules of the exchange on which the sale or purchase was made.

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Some futures contracts are cash settled (rather than physically settled), which means that the purchase price is subtracted from the current market value of the instrument and the net amount, if positive, is paid to the purchaser by the seller of the futures contract and, if negative, is paid by the purchaser to the seller of the futures contract. In particular, Index Futures are agreements pursuant to which two parties agree to take or make delivery of an amount of cash equal to the difference between the value of a securities index at the close of the last trading day of the contract and the price at which the index contract was originally written. Although the value of a securities index might be a function of the value of certain specified securities, no physical delivery of these securities is made.

The purchase or sale of a futures contract differs from the purchase or sale of a security or option in that no price or premium is paid or received. Instead, an amount of cash, U.S. government securities, or other liquid assets equal in value to a percentage of the face amount of the futures contract must be deposited with the broker. This amount is known as initial margin. The amount of the initial margin is generally set by the market on which the contract is traded (margin requirements on non-U.S. exchanges may be different than those on U.S. exchanges). Subsequent payments to and from the broker, known as variation margin, are made on a daily basis as the price of the underlying futures contract fluctuates, making the long and short positions in the futures contract more or less valuable, a process known as “marking to the market.” Prior to the settlement date of the futures contract, the position may be closed by taking an opposite position. A final determination of variation margin is then made, additional cash is required to be paid to or released by the broker, and the purchaser realizes a loss or gain. In addition, a commission is paid to the broker on each completed purchase and sale.

Although some futures contracts call for making or taking delivery of the underlying securities, currencies, commodities or other underlying instrument, in most cases futures contracts are closed before the settlement date without the making or taking of delivery by offsetting purchases or sales of matching futures contracts (i.e., with the same exchange, underlying financial instrument, currency, commodity, or index, and delivery month). If the price of the initial sale exceeds the price of the offsetting purchase, the seller is paid the difference and realizes a gain. Conversely, if the price of the offsetting purchase exceeds the price of the initial sale, the seller realizes a loss. Similarly, a purchase of a futures contract is closed out by selling a corresponding futures contract. If the offsetting sale price exceeds the original purchase price, the purchaser realizes a gain, and, if the original purchase price exceeds the offsetting sale price, the purchaser realizes a loss. Any transaction costs must also be included in these calculations.

In the United States, futures contracts are traded only on commodity exchanges or boards of trade – known as “contract markets” – approved by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”), and must be executed through a futures commission merchant or brokerage firm that is a member of the relevant market. The Fund also may purchase futures contracts on non-U.S. exchanges or similar entities, which are not regulated by the CFTC and may not be subject to the same degree of regulation as the U.S. contract markets. See “Additional Risks of Options on Securities, Futures Contracts, and Options on Futures Contracts Traded on Non-U.S. Exchanges” below.

Index Futures. To the extent consistent with applicable law and investment restrictions, the Fund may purchase or sell Index Futures. The Fund may close open positions on a contract market on which Index Futures are traded at any time up to and including the expiration day. In

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general, all positions that remain open at the close of business on that day must be settled on the next business day (based on the value of the relevant index on the expiration day). Additional or different margin requirements as well as settlement procedures may apply to non-U.S. stock Index Futures.

Interest Rate Futures. The Fund may engage in transactions involving the use of futures on interest rates. These transactions may be in connection with investments in U.S. government securities and other fixed income securities.

Inflation-Linked Futures. The Fund may engage in transactions involving inflation-linked futures, including Consumer Price Index (“CPI”) futures, which are exchange-traded futures contracts that represent the inflation on a notional value of $1,000,000 for a period of three months, as implied by the CPI. Inflation-linked futures may be used by the Fund to hedge the inflation risk in nominal bonds (i.e., non-inflation-indexed bonds) thereby creating “synthetic” inflation-indexed bonds. The Fund also may combine inflation-linked futures with U.S. Treasury futures contracts to create “synthetic” inflation-indexed bonds issued by the U.S. Treasury. See “Indexed Investments – Inflation-Indexed Bonds” below for a discussion of inflation-indexed bonds.

Currency Futures. The Fund is permitted to invest in securities denominated in foreign currencies and may buy and sell futures contracts on currencies. See “Foreign Currency Transactions” below for a description of the Fund’s use of currency futures.

Options on Futures Contracts. Options on futures contracts give the purchaser the right in return for the premium paid to assume a long position (in the case of a call option) or a short position (in the case of a put option) in a futures contract at the option exercise price at any time during the period of the option (in the case of an American-style option) or on the expiration date (in the case of European-style option). Upon exercise of a call option, the holder acquires a long position in the futures contract and the writer is assigned the opposite short position. In the case of a put option, the holder acquires a short position and the writer is assigned the opposite long position in the futures contract. Accordingly, in the event that an option is exercised, the parties will be subject to all the risks associated with the trading of futures contracts, such as payment of initial and variation margin deposits.

The Fund may use options on futures contracts in lieu of writing or buying options directly on the underlying securities or purchasing and selling the underlying futures contracts. For example, to hedge against a possible decrease in the value of its portfolio securities, the Fund may purchase put options or write call options on futures contracts rather than selling futures contracts. Similarly, the Fund may hedge against a possible increase in the price of securities the Fund expects to purchase by purchasing call options or writing put options on futures contracts rather than purchasing futures contracts. In addition, the Fund may purchase and sell interest rate options on U.S. Treasury or Eurodollar futures to take a long or short position on interest rate fluctuations. Options on futures contracts generally operate in the same manner as options purchased or written directly on the underlying investments. See “Foreign Currency Transactions” below for a description of the Fund’s use of options on currency futures.

The Fund is also required to deposit and maintain margin with respect to put and call options on futures contracts written by it. Such margin deposits may vary depending on the nature of the underlying futures contract (and the related initial margin requirements), the current market value of the option, and other futures positions held by the Fund.

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A position in an option on a futures contract may be terminated by the purchaser or seller prior to expiration by effecting a closing purchase or sale transaction, subject to the availability of a liquid secondary market, which is the purchase or sale of an option of the same type (i.e., the same exercise price and expiration date) as the option previously purchased or sold. The difference between the premiums paid and received represents the Fund’s profit or loss on the transaction.

Commodity Futures and Options on Commodity Futures . The Fund may have exposure to futures contracts on various commodities or commodities indices (“commodity futures”) and options on commodity futures. A futures contract on a commodity is an agreement between two parties in which one party agrees to purchase a commodity, such as an energy, agricultural, or metal commodity, from the other party at a later date at a price and quantity agreed upon when the contract is made. Futures contracts on commodities indices operate in a manner similar to Index Futures. While commodity futures on individual commodities are physically settled, GMO intends to close out those futures contracts before the settlement date without the making or taking of delivery. See also “Commodity-Related Investments” below.

Risk Factors in Futures and Futures Options Transactions . Investment in futures contracts involves risk. A purchase or sale of futures contracts may result in losses in excess of the amount invested in the futures contract. If a futures contract is used for hedging, an imperfect correlation between movements in the price of the futures contract and the price of the security, currency, or other investment being hedged creates risk. Correlation is higher when the investment being hedged underlies the futures contract. Correlation is lower when the investment being hedged is different than the security, currency, or other investment underlying the futures contract, such as when a futures contract on an index of securities or commodities is used to hedge a single security or commodity, a futures contract on one security (e.g., U.S. Treasury bonds) or commodity (e.g., gold) is used to hedge a different security (e.g., a mortgage-backed security) or commodity (e.g., copper), or when a futures contract in one currency is used to hedge a security denominated in another currency. In the case of Index Futures and futures on commodity indices, changes in the price of those futures contracts may not correlate perfectly with price movements in the relevant index due to market distortions. In the event of an imperfect correlation between a futures position and the portfolio position (or anticipated position) intended to be hedged, the Fund may realize a loss on the futures contract at the same time the Fund is realizing a loss on the portfolio position intended to be hedged. To compensate for imperfect correlations, the Fund may purchase or sell futures contracts in a greater amount than the hedged investments if the volatility of the price of the hedged investments is historically greater than the volatility of the futures contracts. Conversely, the Fund may purchase or sell fewer futures contracts if the volatility of the price of the hedged investments is historically less than that of the futures contract. The successful use of transactions in futures and related options for hedging also depends on the direction and extent of exchange rate, interest rate and asset price movements within a given time frame. For example, to the extent equity prices remain stable during the period in which a futures contract or option is held by the Fund investing in equity securities (or such prices move in a direction opposite to that anticipated), the Fund may realize a loss on the futures transaction, which is not fully or partially offset by an increase in the value of its portfolio securities. As a result, the Fund’s total return for such period may be less than if it had not engaged in the hedging transaction.

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All participants in the futures market are subject to margin deposit and maintenance requirements. Instead of meeting margin calls, investors may close futures contracts through offsetting transactions, which could distort normal correlations. The margin deposit requirements in the futures market are less onerous than margin requirements in the securities market, allowing for more speculators who may cause temporary price distortions. Trading hours for non-U.S. stock Index Futures may not correspond perfectly to the trading hours of the non-U.S. exchange to which a particular non-U.S. stock Index Future relates. As a result, the lack of continuous arbitrage may cause a disparity between the price of non-U.S. stock Index Futures and the value of the relevant index.

The Fund may purchase futures contracts (or options on them) as an anticipatory hedge against a possible increase in the price of a currency in which securities the Fund anticipates purchasing is denominated. In such instances, the currency may instead decline. If the Fund does not then invest in those securities, the Fund may realize a loss on the futures contract that is not offset by a reduction in the price of the securities purchased.

The Fund’s ability to engage in the futures and options on futures strategies described above depends on the liquidity of those instruments. Trading interest in various types of futures and options on futures cannot be predicted. Therefore, no assurance can be given that the Fund will be able to utilize these instruments at all or that their use will be effective. In addition, a liquid market may not exist at a time when the Fund seeks to close out a futures or option on a futures contract position, and the Fund would remain obligated to meet margin requirements until the position is closed. The liquidity of a secondary market in a futures contract may be adversely affected by “daily price fluctuation limits” established by commodity exchanges to limit the amount of fluctuation in a futures contract price during a single trading day. Once the daily limit has been reached, no trades of the contract may be entered at a price beyond the limit, thus preventing the liquidation of open futures positions. In the past, prices have exceeded the daily limit on several consecutive trading days. Short (and long) positions in Index Futures or futures on commodities indices may be closed only by purchasing (or selling) a futures contract on the exchange on which the Index Futures or commodity futures, as applicable, are traded.

As discussed above, if the Fund purchases or sells a futures contract, it is only required to deposit initial and variation margin as required by relevant CFTC regulations and the rules of the contract market. The Fund’s net asset value will generally fluctuate with the value of the security or other instrument underlying a futures contract as if it were already in the Fund’s portfolio. Futures transactions can have the effect of investment leverage. Furthermore, if the Fund combines short and long positions, in addition to possible declines in the values of its investment securities, the Fund will incur losses if the index underlying the long futures position underperforms the index underlying the short futures position.

In addition, if the Fund’s futures brokers become bankrupt or insolvent, or otherwise default on their obligations to the Fund, the Fund may not receive all amounts owing to it in respect of its trading, despite the futures clearinghouse fully discharging all of its obligations. Furthermore, in the event of the bankruptcy of a futures broker, the Fund could be limited to recovering only a pro rata share of all available funds segregated on behalf of the futures broker’s combined customer accounts, even though certain property specifically traceable to the Fund was held by the futures broker.

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Additional Risk Associated with Commodity Futures Transactions . Several additional risks are associated with transactions in commodity futures contracts.

Storage Costs . The price of a commodity futures contract reflects the storage costs of purchasing the underlying commodity, including the time value of money invested in the commodity. To the extent that the storage costs change, the value of the futures contracts may change correspondingly.

Reinvestment Risk . In the commodity futures markets, producers of an underlying commodity may sell futures contracts to lock in the price of the commodity at delivery. To induce speculators to purchase the other side (the long side) of the contract, the commodity producer generally must sell the contract at a lower price than the expected futures spot price. Conversely, if most purchasers of the underlying commodity purchase futures contracts to hedge against a rise in commodity prices, then speculators will only sell the contract at a higher price than the expected future spot price of the commodity. The changing nature of the hedgers and speculators in the commodity markets will influence whether futures prices are above or below the expected futures spot price. As a result, when GMO reinvests the proceeds from a maturing contract, it may purchase a new futures contract at a higher or lower price than the expected futures spot prices of the maturing contract or choose to pursue other investments.

Additional Economic Factors . The value of the commodities underlying commodity futures contracts may be subject to additional economic and non-economic factors, such as drought, floods or other weather conditions, livestock disease, trade embargoes, competition from substitute products, transportation bottlenecks or shortages, fluctuations in supply and demand, tariffs, and international economic, political, and regulatory developments.

See also “Commodity-Related Investments” below for more discussion of the special risks of investing in commodity futures, options on commodity futures, and related types of derivatives, including certain tax-related risks.

Additional Risks of Options on Securities, Futures Contracts, and Options on Futures Contracts Traded on Non-U.S. Exchanges. Options on securities, futures contracts, options on futures contracts, and options on currencies may be traded on non-U.S. exchanges. Such transactions may not be regulated as effectively as similar transactions in the United States (which are regulated by the CFTC) and may be subject to greater risks than trading on U.S. exchanges. For example, some non-U.S. exchanges may be principal markets so that no common clearing facility exists and a trader may look only to the broker for performance of the contract. The lack of a common clearing facility creates counterparty risk. If a counterparty defaults, the Fund normally will still have contractual remedies against that counterparty, but may be unsuccessful in enforcing those remedies. When seeking to enforce a contractual remedy, the Fund also is subject to the risk that the parties may interpret contractual terms (e.g., the definition of default) differently. Counterparty risk is greater for derivatives with longer maturities where events may intervene to prevent settlement. Counterparty risk is also greater when the Fund has concentrated its derivatives with a single or small group of counterparties as it sometimes does as a result of its use of swaps and other OTC derivatives. To the extent the Fund has significant exposure to a single counterparty, this risk will be particularly pronounced for the Fund. If a dispute occurs, the cost and unpredictability of the legal proceedings required for the Fund to enforce its contractual rights may lead the Fund to decide not to pursue its claims against the counterparty. The Fund thus assumes the risk that it may be unable to obtain

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payments owed under foreign futures contracts or that those payments may be delayed or made only after the Fund has incurred the costs of litigation. To the extent that GMO’s view with respect to a particular counterparty changes (whether due to external events or otherwise), existing transactions are not required to be terminated or modified. Additionally, new transactions may be entered into with a counterparty that is no longer considered eligible if the transaction is primarily designed to reduce the overall risk of potential exposure to that counterparty (for example, re-establishing the transaction with a lesser notional amount). In addition, unless the Fund hedges against fluctuations in the exchange rate between the currencies in which trading is done on non-U.S. exchanges and other currencies, any profits that the Fund might realize in trading could be offset (or worse) by adverse changes in the exchange rate. The value of non-U.S. options and futures also may be adversely affected by other factors unique to non-U.S. investing (see “Risks of Non-U.S. Investments” above).

Swap Contracts and Other Two-Party Contracts

The Fund may use swap contracts (or “swaps”) and other two-party contracts for the same or similar purposes as options and futures. See “Uses of Derivatives” below for more information regarding the various derivatives strategies the Fund may employ using swap contracts and other two-party contracts.

Swap Contracts. The Fund may directly or indirectly use various different types of swaps, such as swaps on securities and securities indices, total return swaps, interest rate swaps, currency swaps, credit default swaps, variance swaps, commodity swaps, inflation swaps, and other types of available swap agreements, depending on the Fund’s investment objective and policies. Swap contracts are two-party contracts entered into primarily by institutional investors for periods ranging from a few weeks to a number of years. Under a typical swap, one party may agree to pay a fixed rate or a floating rate determined by reference to a specified instrument, rate, or index, multiplied in each case by a specified amount (“notional amount”), while the other party agrees to pay an amount equal to a different floating rate multiplied by the same notional amount. On each payment date, the parties’ obligations are netted, with only the net amount paid by one party to the other.

Swap contracts are typically individually negotiated and structured to provide exposure to a variety of different types of investments or market factors. Swap contracts may be entered into for hedging or non-hedging purposes and therefore may increase or decrease the Fund’s exposure to the underlying instrument, rate, asset or index. Swaps can take many different forms and are known by a variety of names. The Fund is not limited to any particular form or variety of swap agreement if GMO determines it is consistent with the Fund’s investment objective and policies.

The Fund may enter into swaps on securities, baskets of securities or securities indices. For example, the parties to a swap contract may agree to exchange returns calculated on a notional amount of a security, basket of securities, or securities index (e.g., S&P 500 Index). Additionally, the Fund may use total return swaps, which typically involve commitments to pay amounts computed in the same manner as interest in exchange for a market-linked return, both based on notional amounts. The Fund may use such swaps to gain investment exposure to the underlying security or securities where direct ownership is either not legally possible or is economically unattractive. To the extent the total return of the security, basket of securities, or index underlying the transaction exceeds or falls short of the offsetting interest rate obligation, the Fund will receive a payment from or make a payment to the counterparty, respectively.

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In addition, the Fund may enter into an interest rate swap in order to protect against declines in the value of fixed income securities held by the Fund. In such an instance, the Fund may agree with a counterparty to pay a fixed rate (multiplied by a notional amount) and the counterparty pay a floating rate multiplied by the same notional amount. If interest rates rise, resulting in a diminution in the value of the Fund’s portfolio, the Fund would receive payments under the swap that would offset, in whole or in part, such diminution in value. The Fund also may enter into swaps to modify its exposure to particular currencies using currency swaps. For instance, the Fund may enter into a currency swap between the U.S. dollar and the Japanese Yen in order to increase or decrease its exposure to each such currency.

The Fund may use inflation swaps (including inflation swaps tied to the CPI), which involve commitments to pay a regular stream of inflation-indexed cash payments in exchange for receiving a stream of nominal interest payments (or vice versa), where both payment streams are based on a notional amount. The nominal interest payments may be based on either a fixed interest rate or variable interest rate, such as LIBOR. Inflation swaps may be used to hedge the inflation risk in nominal bonds (i.e., non-inflation-indexed bonds), thereby creating synthetic inflation-indexed bonds, or combined with U.S. Treasury futures contracts to create synthetic inflation-indexed bonds issued by the U.S. Treasury. See “Indexed Investments – Inflation-Indexed Bonds” below.

In addition, the Fund may directly or indirectly use credit default swaps to take an active long or short position with respect to the likelihood of default by a corporate or sovereign issuer of fixed income securities (including asset-backed securities). In a credit default swap, one party pays, in effect, an insurance premium through a stream of payments to another party in exchange for the right to receive a specified return in the event of default (or similar events) by one or more third parties on their obligations. For example, in purchasing a credit default swap, the Fund may pay a premium in return for the right to put specified bonds or loans to the counterparty, such as a U.S. or non-U.S. issuer or basket of such issuers, upon issuer default (or similar events) at their par (or other agreed-upon) value. The Fund, as the purchaser in a credit default swap, bears the risk that the investment might expire worthless. It also would be subject to counterparty risk – the risk that the counterparty may fail to satisfy its payment obligations to the Fund in the event of a default (or similar event) (see “Risk Factors in Swap Contracts, OTC Options, and Other Two-Party Contracts” below). In addition, as a purchaser in a credit default swap, the Fund’s investment would only generate income in the event of an actual default (or similar event) by the issuer of the underlying obligation. The Fund also may invest in credit default indices, which are indices that reflect the performance of a basket of credit default swaps.

The Fund also may use credit default swaps for investment purposes by selling a credit default swap, in which case the Fund will receive a premium from its counterparty in return for the Fund’s taking on the obligation to pay the par (or other agreed-upon) value to the counterparty upon issuer default (or similar events). As the seller in a credit default swap, the Fund effectively adds economic leverage to its portfolio because, in addition to its total net assets, the Fund is subject to investment exposure on the notional amount of the swap. If no event of default (or similar event) occurs, the Fund would keep the premium received from the counterparty and generally would have no payment obligations, with the exception of an initial payment made on the credit default swap or any margin requirements with the credit default

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swap counterparty. For credit default swap agreements, trigger events for payment under the agreement vary by the type of underlying investment (e.g., corporate and sovereign debt, asset-backed securities, and credit default swap indices) and by jurisdiction (e.g., United States, Europe and Asia).

The Fund may use volatility swaps. Volatility swaps involve the exchange of forward contracts on the future realized volatility of a given underlying asset, and allow the Fund to take positions on the volatility of that underlying asset. The Fund also may use a particular type of volatility swap, known as a variance swap agreement, which involves an agreement by two parties to exchange cash flows based on the measured variance (volatility squared) of a specified underlying asset. One party agrees to exchange a “fixed rate” or strike price payment for the “floating rate” or realized price variance on the underlying asset with respect to the notional amount. At inception, the strike price chosen is generally fixed at a level such that the fair value of the swap is zero. As a result, no money changes hands at the initiation of the contract. At the expiration date, the amount paid by one party to the other is the difference between the realized price variance of the underlying asset and the strike price multiplied by the notional amount. A receiver of the realized price variance would receive a payment when the realized price variance of the underlying asset is greater than the strike price and would make a payment when that variance is less than the strike price. A payer of the realized price variance would make a payment when the realized price variance of the underlying asset is greater than the strike price and would receive a payment when that variance is less than the strike price. This type of agreement is essentially a forward contract on the future realized price variance of the underlying asset.

The Fund may have indirect exposure to commodity swaps on one or more broad-based commodities indices (e.g., the Dow Jones-UBS Commodity Index), as well as commodity swaps on individual commodities or baskets of commodities. See “Commodity-Related Investments” below for more discussion of the Fund’s use of commodity swap contracts and other related types of derivatives.

Contracts for Differences. Contracts for differences are swap arrangements in which the parties agree that their return (or loss) will be based on the relative performance of two different groups or baskets of securities. Often, one or both baskets will be an established securities index. The Fund’s return will be based on changes in value of theoretical long futures positions in the securities comprising one basket (with an aggregate face value equal to the notional amount of the contract for differences) and theoretical short futures positions in the securities comprising the other basket. The Fund also may use actual long and short futures positions and achieve similar market exposure by netting the payment obligations of the two contracts. The Fund will only enter into contracts for differences (and analogous futures positions) when GMO believes that the basket of securities constituting the long position will outperform the basket constituting the short position. If the short basket outperforms the long basket, the Fund will realize a loss – even in circumstances when the securities in both the long and short baskets appreciate in value.

Interest Rate Caps, Floors, and Collars. The Fund may use interest rate caps, floors, and collars for the same or similar purposes as they use interest rate futures contracts and related options and, as a result, will be subject to similar risks. See “Options and Futures – Risk Factors in Options Transactions” and “– Risk Factors in Futures and Futures Options Transactions” above. Like interest rate swap contracts, interest rate caps, floors, and collars are two-party agreements in which the parties agree to pay or receive interest on a notional principal amount and are

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generally individually negotiated with a specific counterparty. The purchaser of an interest rate cap receives interest payments from the seller to the extent that the return on a specified index exceeds a specified interest rate. The purchaser of an interest rate floor receives interest payments from the seller to the extent that the return on a specified index falls below a specified interest rate. The purchaser of an interest rate collar receives interest payments from the seller to the extent that the return on a specified index falls outside the range of two specified interest rates.

Swaptions . An option on a swap agreement, also called a “swaption,” is an OTC option that gives the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to enter into a swap on a specified future date in exchange for paying a market-based premium. A receiver swaption gives the owner the right to receive the total return of a specified asset, reference rate, or index (such as a call option on a bond). A payer swaption gives the owner the right to pay the total return of a specified asset, reference rate, or index (such as a put option on a bond). Swaptions also include options that allow one of the counterparties to terminate or extend an existing swap.

Risk Factors in Swap Contracts, OTC Options, and Other Two-Party Contracts . The Fund may only close out a swap, contract for differences, cap, floor, collar, or OTC option (including swaption) with its particular counterparty, and may only transfer a position with the consent of that counterparty. If a counterparty fails to meet its contractual obligations, goes bankrupt, or otherwise experiences a business interruption, the Fund could miss investment opportunities or otherwise hold investments it would prefer to sell, resulting in losses for the Fund. If the counterparty defaults, the Fund will have contractual remedies, but there can be no assurance that the counterparty will be able to meet its contractual obligations or that the Fund will be able to enforce its rights. For example, because the contract for each OTC derivatives transaction is individually negotiated with a specific counterparty, the Fund is subject to the risk that a counterparty may interpret contractual terms (e.g., the definition of default) differently than the Fund. The cost and unpredictability of the legal proceedings required for the Fund to enforce its contractual rights may lead it to decide not to pursue its claims against the counterparty. Counterparty risk is greater for derivatives with longer maturities where events may intervene to prevent settlement. Counterparty risk is also greater when the Fund has concentrated its derivatives with a single or small group of counterparties as it sometimes does as a result of its use of swaps and other OTC derivatives. To the extent the Fund has significant exposure to a single counterparty, this risk will be particularly pronounced for the Fund. The Fund, therefore, assumes the risk that it may be unable to obtain payments GMO believes are owed under an OTC derivatives contract or that those payments may be delayed or made only after the Fund has incurred the costs of litigation. In addition, counterparty risk is pronounced during unusually adverse market conditions and is particularly acute in environments (like those of 2008) in which financial services firms are exposed to systemic risks of the type evidenced by the insolvency of Lehman Brothers and subsequent market disruptions.

The credit rating of a counterparty may be adversely affected by greater-than-average volatility in the markets, even if the counterparty’s net market exposure is small relative to its capital.

Counterparty risk with respect to derivatives has been and may continue to be affected by new rules and regulations affecting the derivatives market. Some derivatives transactions are required to be centrally cleared, and a party to a cleared derivatives transaction is subject to the credit risk of the clearing house and the clearing member through which it holds its cleared position, rather than the credit risk of its original counterparty to the derivatives transaction.

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Credit risk of market participants with respect to derivatives that are centrally cleared is concentrated in a few clearing houses, and it is not clear how an insolvency proceeding of a clearing house would be conducted and what impact an insolvency of a clearing house would have on the financial system. A clearing member is obligated by contract and by applicable regulation to segregate all funds received from customers with respect to cleared derivatives positions from the clearing member’s proprietary assets. However, all funds and other property received by a clearing member from its customers with respect to cleared derivatives are generally held by the clearing member on a commingled basis in an omnibus account, and the clearing member may invest those funds in instruments permitted under the applicable regulations. Therefore, the Fund might not be fully protected in the event of the bankruptcy of the Fund’s clearing member because the Fund would be limited to recovering only a pro rata share of the funds held in the omnibus account for the relevant account class. Also, the clearing member is required to transfer to the clearing house the amount of margin required by the clearing house for cleared derivatives, which amounts are generally held in an omnibus account at the clearing house for all customers of the clearing member. Regulations promulgated by the CFTC require that the clearing member notify the clearing house of the initial margin provided by the clearing member to the clearing house that is attributable to each customer. However, if the clearing member does not accurately report the Fund’s initial margin, the Fund is subject to the risk that a clearing house will use the Fund’s assets held in an omnibus account at the clearing house to satisfy payment obligations of a defaulting customer of the clearing member to the clearing house. In addition, clearing members generally provide the clearing house the net amount of variation margin required for cleared swaps for all of its customers in the aggregate, rather than individually for each customer. The Fund is therefore subject to the risk that a clearing house will not make variation margin payments owed to the Fund if another customer of the clearing member has suffered a loss and is in default, and the risk that the Fund will be required to provide additional variation margin to the clearing house before the clearing house will move the Fund’s cleared derivatives positions to another clearing member. In addition, if a clearing member does not comply with the applicable regulations or its agreement with the Fund, or in the event of fraud or misappropriation of customer assets by a clearing member, the Fund could have only an unsecured creditor claim in an insolvency of the clearing member with respect to the margin held by the clearing member.

Additional Risk Factors in OTC Derivatives Transactions. Participants in OTC derivatives markets typically are not subject to the same level of credit evaluation and regulatory oversight as are members of exchange-based markets and, therefore, OTC derivatives generally expose the Fund to greater counterparty risk than exchange-traded derivatives.

Among other trading agreements, the Fund is party to International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. Master Agreements (“ISDA Agreements”) or other similar types of agreements with select counterparties that generally govern OTC derivative transactions entered into by the Fund. The ISDA Agreements typically include representations and warranties as well as contractual terms related to collateral, events of default, termination events, and other provisions. Termination events may include the decline in the net assets of the Fund below a certain level over a specified period of time and entitle a counterparty to elect to terminate early with respect to some or all the transactions under the ISDA Agreement with that counterparty. Such an election by one or more of the counterparties could have a material adverse impact on the Fund’s operations.

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Additional Risk Factors in Cleared Derivatives Transactions. Under recently adopted rules and regulations, transactions in some types of swaps (including interest rate swaps and credit default swaps on North American and European indices) are required to be centrally cleared. In a transaction involving those swaps (“cleared derivatives”), the Fund’s counterparty is a clearing house, rather than a bank or broker. Since the Fund is not a member of clearing houses and only members of a clearing house (“clearing members”) can participate directly in the clearing house, the Fund will hold cleared derivatives through accounts at clearing members. In cleared derivatives positions, the Fund will make payments (including margin payments) to and receive payments from a clearing house through their accounts at clearing members. Clearing members guarantee performance of their clients’ obligations to the clearing house.

In some ways, cleared derivative arrangements are less favorable to mutual funds than bilateral arrangements. For example, the Fund may be required to provide more margin for cleared derivatives positions than for bilateral derivatives positions. Also, in contrast to a bilateral derivatives position, following a period of notice to the Fund, a clearing member generally can require termination of an existing cleared derivatives position at any time or an increase in margin requirements above the margin that the clearing member required at the beginning of a transaction. Clearing houses also have broad rights to increase margin requirements for existing positions or to terminate those positions at any time. Any increase in margin requirements or termination of existing cleared derivatives positions by the clearing member or the clearing house could interfere with the ability of the Fund to pursue its investment strategy. Further, any increase in margin requirements by a clearing member could expose the Fund to greater credit risk to its clearing member because margin for cleared derivatives positions in excess of a clearing house’s margin requirements typically is held by the clearing member. Also, the Fund is subject to risk if it enters into a derivatives transaction that is required to be cleared (or that GMO expects to be cleared), and no clearing member is willing or able to clear the transaction on the Fund’s behalf. While the documentation in place between the Fund and its clearing members generally provides that the clearing members will accept for clearing all cleared derivatives transactions that are within credit limits (specified in advance) for the Fund, the Fund is still subject to the risk that no clearing member will be willing or able to clear a transaction. In those cases, the position might have to be terminated, and the Fund could lose some or all of the benefit of the position, including loss of an increase in the value of the position and/or loss of hedging protection. In addition, the documentation governing the relationship between the Fund and clearing members is drafted by the clearing members and generally is less favorable to the Fund than typical bilateral derivatives documentation. For example, documentation relating to cleared derivatives generally includes a one-way indemnity by the Fund in favor of the clearing member for losses the clearing member incurs as the Fund’s clearing member and typically does not provide the Fund any remedies if the clearing member defaults or becomes insolvent. While futures contracts entail similar risks, the risks likely are more pronounced for cleared swaps due to their more limited liquidity and market history.

Some types of cleared derivatives are required to be executed on an exchange or on a swap execution facility. A swap execution facility is a trading platform where multiple market participants can execute derivatives by accepting bids and offers made by multiple other participants in the platform. While this execution requirement is designed to increase transparency and liquidity in the cleared derivatives market, trading on a swap execution facility can create additional costs and risks for the Fund. For example, swap execution facilities typically charge fees, and if the Fund executes derivatives on a swap execution facility through a broker intermediary, the intermediary may impose fees as well. Also, the Fund may indemnify a swap execution facility, or a broker intermediary who executes cleared derivatives on a swap

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execution facility on the Fund’s behalf, against any losses or costs that may be incurred as a result of the Fund’s transactions on the swap execution facility. If the Fund wishes to execute a package of transactions that include a swap that is required to be executed on a swap execution facility as well as other transactions (for example, a transaction that includes both a security and an interest rate swap that hedges interest rate exposure with respect to such security), it is possible the Fund could not execute all components of the package on the swap execution facility. In that case, the Fund would need to trade certain components of the package on the swap execution facility and other components of the package in another manner, which could subject the Fund to the risk that certain of the components of the package would be executed successfully and others would not, or that the components would be executed at different times, leaving the Fund with an unhedged position for a period of time.

These and other new rules and regulations could, among other things, further restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in, or increase the cost to the Fund of, derivatives transactions, for example, by making some types of derivatives no longer available to the Fund, increasing margin or capital requirements, or otherwise limiting liquidity or increasing transaction costs. These rules and regulations are new and evolving, so their potential impact on the Fund and the financial system are not yet known. While the new rules and regulations and central clearing of some derivatives transactions are designed to reduce systemic risk (i.e., the risk that the interdependence of large derivatives dealers could cause them to suffer liquidity, solvency or other challenges simultaneously), there is no assurance that they will achieve that result, and in the meantime, as noted above, central clearing and related requirements expose the Fund to new kinds of costs and risks.

Use of Futures and Related Options, Interest Rate Floors, Caps and Collars, Certain Types of Swap Contracts and Related Instruments – Commodity Pool Operator Status. The Fund intends to register as a commodity pool under the Commodity Exchange Act (the “CEA”) and GMO intends to register as a “commodity pool operator” under the CEA with respect to the Fund. As a result, additional CFTC-mandated disclosure, reporting and recordkeeping obligations apply to the Fund and compliance with the CFTC’s regulatory requirements could increase the Fund’s expenses, adversely affecting the Fund’s total return.

Foreign Currency Transactions

Currency exchange rates may fluctuate significantly over short periods of time. They generally are determined by the forces of supply and demand in the currency exchange markets, trade balances, the relative merits of investments in different countries, actual or perceived changes in interest rates, differences in relative values of similar assets in different currencies, long-term opportunities for investment and capital appreciation, and other complex factors. Currency exchange rates also can be affected unpredictably as a result of intervention (or the failure to intervene) by the U.S. or foreign governments, central banks, or supranational agencies such as the International Monetary Fund, or by currency or exchange controls or political and economic developments in the United States or abroad. Currencies in which the Fund’s assets are denominated, or in which the Fund has taken a long position, may be devalued against other currencies, resulting in a loss to the Fund. Similarly, currencies in which the Fund has taken a short position may increase in value relative to other currencies, resulting in a loss to the Fund.

In addition, some currencies are illiquid (e.g., emerging country currencies), and the Fund may not be able to convert these currencies into U.S. dollars, in which case GMO may decide to

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purchase U.S. dollars in a parallel market with an unfavorable exchange rate. Exchange rates for many currencies (e.g., emerging country currencies) are particularly affected by exchange control regulations.

The Fund is permitted to invest in securities denominated in foreign currencies and may buy or sell foreign currencies or deal in forward foreign currency contracts, currency futures contracts and related options, and options on currencies. The Fund may use such currency instruments for hedging, investment, and/or currency risk management. Currency risk management may include taking overweighted or underweighted currency positions relative to both the securities portfolio of the Fund and the Fund’s performance benchmark or index. The Fund also may purchase forward foreign currency contracts in conjunction with U.S. dollar-denominated securities in order to create a synthetic foreign currency-denominated security that approximates desired risk and return characteristics when the non-synthetic securities either are not available in non-U.S. markets or possess undesirable characteristics.

Forward foreign currency contracts are contracts between two parties to purchase and sell a specified quantity of a particular currency at a specified price, with delivery and settlement to take place on a specified future date. A forward foreign currency contract can reduce the Fund’s exposure to changes in the value of the currency it will deliver and can increase its exposure to changes in the value of the currency it will receive for the duration of the contract. The effect on the value of the Fund is similar to the effect of selling securities denominated in one currency and purchasing securities denominated in another currency. Contracts to sell a particular foreign currency would limit any potential gain that might be realized by the Fund if the value of the hedged currency increases. In addition, it is not always possible to hedge fully or perfectly against currency fluctuations affecting the value of the securities denominated in foreign currencies because the value of such securities also is likely to fluctuate because of independent factors not related to currency fluctuations. If a forward foreign currency contract is used for hedging, an imperfect correlation between movements in the price of the forward foreign currency contract and the price of the currency or other investment being hedged creates risk.

Forward foreign currency contracts involve a number of the same characteristics and risks as currency futures contracts (discussed below) but there also are several differences. Forward foreign currency contracts settle only at the pre-determined settlement date. This can result in deviations between forward foreign currency prices and currency futures prices, especially in circumstances where interest rates and currency futures prices are positively correlated. Second, in the absence of exchange trading and involvement of clearing houses, there are no standardized terms for forward currency contracts. Accordingly, the parties are free to establish such settlement times and underlying amounts of a currency as desirable, which may vary from the standardized provisions available through any currency futures contract.

The Fund also may purchase or sell currency futures contracts and related options. Currency futures contracts are contracts to buy or sell a standard quantity of a particular currency at a specified future date and price. However, currency futures can be and often are closed out prior to delivery and settlement. In addition, the Fund may use options on currency futures contracts, which give their holders the right, but not the obligation, to buy (in the case of a call option) or sell (in the case of a put option) a specified currency futures contract at a fixed price during a specified period. See “Options and Futures – Futures” above for more information on futures contracts and options on futures contracts.

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The Fund also may purchase or sell options on currencies. Options on currencies possess many of the same characteristics as options on securities and generally operate in a similar manner. They may be traded on an exchange or in the OTC markets. Options on currencies traded on U.S. or other exchanges may be subject to position limits, which may limit the ability of the Fund to reduce foreign currency risk using options. See “Options and Futures – Currency Options” above for more information on currency options.

Repurchase Agreements

The Fund may enter into repurchase agreements with banks and broker-dealers. A repurchase agreement is a contract under which the Fund acquires a security (usually an obligation of the government in the jurisdiction where the transaction is initiated or in whose currency the agreement is denominated) for a relatively short period (usually less than a week) for cash and subject to the commitment of the seller to repurchase the security for an agreed-upon price on a specified date. The repurchase price exceeds the acquisition price and reflects an agreed-upon market rate unrelated to the coupon rate on the purchased security. Repurchase agreements afford the Fund the opportunity to earn a return on temporarily available cash without market risk, although the Fund bears the risk of a seller’s failure to meet its obligation to pay the repurchase price when it is required to do so. Such a default may subject the Fund to expenses, delays, and risks of loss including: (i) possible declines in the value of the underlying security while the Fund seeks to enforce its rights thereto, (ii) possible reduced levels of income and lack of access to income during this period, and (iii) the inability to enforce its rights and the expenses involved in attempted enforcement. Entering into repurchase agreements entails certain risks, which include the risk that the counterparty to the repurchase agreement may not be able to fulfill its obligations, as discussed above, that the parties may disagree as to the meaning or application of contractual terms, or that the instrument may not perform as expected. See “Description of Principal Risks – Counterparty Risk” in the Prospectus.

Debt and Other Fixed Income Securities Generally

Debt and other fixed income securities include fixed and floating rate securities of any maturity. Fixed rate securities pay a specified rate of interest or dividends. Floating rate securities pay a rate that is adjusted periodically by reference to a specified index or market rate. Fixed and floating rate securities include securities issued by federal, state, local, and foreign governments and related agencies, and by a wide range of private issuers, and generally are referred to in this SAI as “fixed income securities.” Indexed bonds are a type of fixed income security whose principal value and/or interest rate is adjusted periodically according to a specified instrument, index, or other statistic (e.g., another security, inflation index, currency, or commodity). See “Adjustable Rate Securities” and “Indexed Investments” below. In addition, the Fund may create “synthetic” bonds which approximate desired risk and return profiles. This may be done where a “non-synthetic” security having the desired risk/return profile either is unavailable (e.g., short-term securities of certain foreign governments) or possesses undesirable characteristics (e.g., interest payments on the security would be subject to foreign withholding taxes). See, for example, “Options and Futures – Inflation-Linked Futures” above.

Holders of fixed income securities are exposed to both market and credit risk. Market risk (or “interest rate risk”) relates to changes in a security’s value as a result of changes in interest rates. In general, the values of fixed income securities increase when interest rates fall and decrease when interest rates rise. Credit risk relates to the ability of an issuer to make payments of

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principal and interest. Obligations of issuers are subject to bankruptcy, insolvency and other laws that affect the rights and remedies of creditors. Fixed income securities denominated in foreign currencies also are subject to the risk of a decline in the value of the denominating currency.

Because interest rates vary, the future income of the Fund that invests in floating rate fixed income securities cannot be predicted with certainty. To the extent the Fund invests in indexed securities, the future income of the Fund also will be affected by changes in those securities’ indices over time (e.g., changes in inflation rates, currency rates, or commodity prices).

The Fund may invest in a wide range of debt and fixed income instruments, including, but not limited to, Asset-Backed and Mortgage-Backed Securities, Brady Bonds, Euro Bonds, U.S. Government and Foreign Government Securities and Zero Coupon Securities, each of which is described below.

Cash and Other High Quality Investments

The Fund may temporarily invest a portion of its assets in cash or cash items pending other investments or to maintain liquid assets required in connection with some of the Fund’s investments. These cash items and other high quality debt securities may include money market instruments, such as securities issued by the U.S. government and its agencies, bankers’ acceptances, commercial paper, and bank certificates of deposit. If a custodian holds cash on behalf of the Fund, the Fund may be an unsecured creditor in the event of the insolvency of the custodian. In addition, the Fund will be subject to credit risk with respect to such a custodian, which may be heightened to the extent the Fund takes a temporary defensive position.

U.S. Government Securities and Foreign Government Securities

U.S. government securities include securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or its authorities, agencies, or instrumentalities. Foreign government securities include securities issued or guaranteed by foreign governments (including political subdivisions) or their authorities, agencies, or instrumentalities or by supra-national agencies. Different kinds of U.S. and foreign government securities have different kinds of government support. For example, some U.S. government securities (e.g., U.S. Treasury bonds) are supported by the full faith and credit of the United States. Other U.S. government securities are issued or guaranteed by federal agencies or government-chartered or -sponsored enterprises but are neither guaranteed nor insured by the U.S. government (e.g., debt securities issued by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”), Federal National Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”), and Federal Home Loan Banks (“FHLBs”)). Similarly, some foreign government securities are supported by the full faith and credit of a foreign national government or political subdivision and some are not. Foreign government securities of some countries may involve varying degrees of credit risk as a result of financial or political instability in those countries or the possible inability of the Fund to enforce its rights against the foreign government. As with issuers of other fixed income securities, sovereign issuers may be unable or unwilling to satisfy their obligations to pay principal or interest payments.

Supra-national agencies are agencies whose member nations make capital contributions to support the agencies’ activities. Examples include the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (the World Bank), the Asian Development Bank, and the Inter-American Development Bank.

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As with other fixed income securities, U.S. and foreign government securities expose their holders to market risk because their values typically change as interest rates fluctuate. For example, the value of U.S. or foreign government securities may fall during times of rising interest rates. Yields on U.S. and foreign government securities tend to be lower than those of corporate securities of comparable maturities. Generally, when interest rates on short-term U.S. Treasury obligations equal or approach zero, to the extent that the Fund invests a substantial portion of its assets in U.S. Treasury obligations, it will have a negative return unless GMO waives or reduces its management fees.

In addition to investing directly in U.S. and foreign government securities, the Fund may purchase certificates of accrual or similar instruments evidencing undivided ownership interests in interest payments and/or principal payments of U.S. government securities and foreign government securities. The Fund also may invest in Separately Traded Registered Interest and Principal Securities (“STRIPS”), which are interests in separately traded interest and principal component parts of U.S. Treasury obligations that represent future interest payments, principal payments, or both, are direct obligations of the U.S. government, and are transferable through the federal reserve book-entry system. Certificates of accrual and similar instruments may be more volatile than other government securities.

Municipal Securities

Municipal obligations are issued by or on behalf of states, territories and possessions of the United States and their political subdivisions, agencies and instrumentalities and the District of Columbia to obtain funds for various public purposes. Municipal obligations are subject to more credit risk than U.S. government securities that are supported by the full faith and credit of the United States. The ability of municipalities to meet their obligations will depend on the availability of tax and other revenues, economic, political and other conditions within the state and municipality, and the underlying fiscal condition of the state and municipality. As with other fixed income securities, municipal securities also expose their holders to market risk because their values typically change as interest rates fluctuate. The two principal classifications of municipal obligations are “notes” and “bonds.”

Municipal notes are generally used to provide for short-term capital needs, such as to finance working capital needs of municipalities or to provide various interim or construction financing, and generally have maturities of one year or less. They are generally payable from specific revenues expected to be received at a future date or are issued in anticipation of long-term financing to be obtained in the market to provide for the repayment of the note.

Municipal bonds, which meet longer-term capital needs and generally have maturities of more than one year when issued, have two principal classifications: “general obligation” bonds and “revenue” bonds. Issuers of general obligation bonds, the proceeds of which are used to fund a wide range of public projects including the construction or improvement of schools, highways and roads, water and sewer systems and a variety of other public purposes, include states, counties, cities, towns and regional districts. The basic security behind general obligation bonds is the issuer’s pledge of its full faith, credit, and taxing power for the payment of principal and interest.

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Revenue bonds have been issued to fund a wide variety of capital projects including: electric, gas, water and sewer systems; highways, bridges and tunnels; port and airport facilities; colleges and universities; and hospitals. The principal security for a revenue bond is generally the net revenues derived from a particular facility or group of facilities or, in some cases, from the proceeds of a special excise or other specific revenue source. Although the principal security behind these bonds varies widely, many provide additional security in the form of a debt service reserve fund whose monies also may be used to make principal and interest payments on the issuer’s obligations. In addition to a debt service reserve fund, some authorities provide further security in the form of a state’s ability (without obligation) to make up deficiencies in the debt reserve fund.

Securities purchased for the Fund may include variable/floating rate instruments, variable mode instruments, put bonds, and other obligations that have a specified maturity date but also are payable before maturity after notice by the holder. There are, in addition, a variety of hybrid and special types of municipal obligations as well as numerous differences in the security of municipal obligations both within and between the two principal classifications (i.e., notes and bonds). The Fund also may invest in credit default swaps on municipal securities. See “Swap Contracts and Other Two-Party Contracts – Swap Contracts” above.

See “Taxes” below for a discussion of the tax treatment of municipal obligations at the Fund and shareholder level.

Auction Rate Securities

Auction rate securities consist of auction rate municipal securities and auction rate preferred securities sold through an auction process issued by closed-end investment companies, municipalities and governmental agencies. Provided that the auction mechanism is successful, auction rate securities usually permit the holder to sell the securities in an auction at par value at specified intervals. The dividend is reset by “Dutch” auction in which bids are made by broker-dealers and other institutions for a certain amount of securities at a specified minimum yield. The dividend rate set by the auction is the lowest interest or dividend rate that covers all securities offered for sale. While this process is designed to permit auction rate securities to be traded at par value, there is the risk that an auction will fail due to insufficient demand for the securities.

Asset-Backed and Related Securities

An asset-backed security is a fixed income security that predominantly derives its creditworthiness from cash flows relating to a pool of assets. There are a number of different types of asset-backed and related securities, including mortgage-backed securities, securities backed by other pools of collateral (such as automobile loans, student loans, sub-prime mortgages, and credit- card receivables), collateralized mortgage obligations, and collateralized debt obligations, each of which is described in more detail below. Investments in asset-backed securities are subject to all of the market risks for fixed income securities described in the Prospectus under “Description of Principal Risks – Market Risk – Fixed Income Investments” and elsewhere in this SAI.

Mortgage-Backed Securities. Mortgage-backed securities are asset-backed securities backed by pools of residential and commercial mortgages, which may include sub-prime mortgages.

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Mortgage-backed securities may be issued by agencies or instrumentalities of the U.S. government (including those whose securities are neither guaranteed nor insured by the U.S. government, such as Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, and FHLBs), foreign governments (or their agencies or instrumentalities), or non-governmental issuers. Interest and principal payments (including prepayments) on the mortgage loans underlying mortgage-backed securities pass through to the holders of the mortgage-backed securities. Prepayments occur when the mortgagor on an individual mortgage loan prepays the remaining principal before the loan’s scheduled maturity date. Unscheduled prepayments of the underlying mortgage loans may result in early payment of the applicable mortgage-backed securities held by the Fund. The Fund may be unable to invest prepayments in an investment that provides as high a yield as the mortgage-backed securities. Consequently, early payment associated with mortgage-backed securities may cause these securities to experience significantly greater price and yield volatility than traditional fixed income securities. Many factors affect the rate of mortgage loan prepayments, including changes in interest rates, general economic conditions, further deterioration of worldwide economic and liquidity conditions, the location of the property underlying the mortgage, the age of the mortgage loan, governmental action, including legal impairment of underlying home loans, changes in demand for products financed by those loans, the inability of borrowers to refinance existing loans (e.g., sub-prime mortgages), and social and demographic conditions. During periods of falling interest rates, the rate of mortgage loan prepayments usually increases, which tends to decrease the life of mortgage-backed securities. During periods of rising interest rates, the rate of mortgage loan prepayments usually decreases, which tends to increase the life of mortgage-backed securities.

Mortgage-backed securities are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on whether they are issued by agencies or instrumentalities of the U.S. government (including those whose securities are neither guaranteed nor insured by the U.S. government) or by non-governmental issuers. Securities issued by private organizations may not be readily marketable, and since the deterioration of worldwide economic and liquidity conditions that became acute in 2008, mortgage-backed securities have been subject to greater illiquidity risk. These conditions may occur again. Also, government actions and proposals affecting the terms of underlying home loans, changes in demand for products (e.g., automobiles) financed by those loans, and the inability of borrowers to refinance existing loans (e.g., sub-prime mortgages), have had, and may continue to have, adverse valuation and liquidity effects on mortgage-backed securities. Although liquidity of mortgage-backed securities has improved recently, there can be no assurance that in the future the market for mortgage-backed securities will continue to improve and become more liquid. In addition, mortgage-backed securities are subject to the risk of loss of principal if the obligors of the underlying obligations default in their payment obligations, and to certain other risks described in “Other Asset-Backed Securities” below. The risk of defaults associated with mortgage-backed securities is generally higher in the case of mortgage-backed investments that include sub-prime mortgages. See “Description of Principal Risks – Market Risk – Asset-Backed Securities” and “– Credit Risk” in the Prospectus for more information regarding credit and other risks associated with investments in asset-backed securities.

Mortgage-backed securities may include Adjustable Rate Securities as such term is defined in “Adjustable Rate Securities” below.

Other Asset-Backed Securities. Similar to mortgage-backed securities, other types of asset-backed securities may be issued by agencies or instrumentalities of the U.S. government (including those whose securities are neither guaranteed nor insured by the U.S. government),

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foreign governments (or their agencies or instrumentalities), or non-governmental issuers. These securities include securities backed by pools of automobile loans, educational loans, home equity loans, and credit card receivables. The underlying pools of assets are securitized through the use of trusts and special purpose entities. These securities may be subject to risks associated with changes in interest rates and prepayment of underlying obligations similar to the risks of investment in mortgage-backed securities described immediately above. Similar to mortgage-backed securities, other asset-backed securities face illiquidity risk from worldwide economic and liquidity conditions as described above in “Mortgage-Backed Securities”. The risk of investing in asset-backed securities has increased because performance of the various sectors in which the assets underlying asset-backed securities are concentrated (e.g., auto loans, student loans, sub-prime mortgages, and credit card receivables) has become more highly correlated since the deterioration in worldwide economic and liquidity conditions referred to above.

Payment of interest on asset-backed securities and repayment of principal largely depends on the cash flows generated by the underlying assets backing the securities and, in certain cases, may be supported by letters of credit, surety bonds, or other credit enhancements. The amount of market risk associated with asset-backed securities depends on many factors, including the deal structure (e.g., the amount of underlying assets or other support available to produce the cash flows necessary to service interest and make principal payments), the quality of the underlying assets, the level of credit support, if any, provided for the securities, and the credit quality of the credit-support provider, if any. Asset-backed securities involve risk of loss of principal if obligors of the underlying obligations default in payment of the obligations and the defaulted obligations exceed the securities’ credit support. The obligations of issuers (and obligors of underlying assets) may be subject to bankruptcy, insolvency and other laws affecting the rights and remedies of creditors. In addition, the existence of insurance on an asset-backed security does not guarantee that principal and/or interest will be paid because the insurer could default on its obligations. In recent years, a significant number of asset-backed security insurers have defaulted on their obligations.

The market value of an asset-backed security may be affected by the factors described above and other factors, such as the availability of information concerning the pool and its structure, the creditworthiness of the servicing agent for the pool, the originator of the underlying assets, or the entities providing the credit enhancement. The market value of asset-backed securities also can depend on the ability of their servicers to service the underlying collateral and is, therefore, subject to risks associated with servicers’ performance. In some circumstances, a servicer’s or originator’s mishandling of documentation related to the underlying collateral (e.g., failure to properly document a security interest in the underlying collateral) may affect the rights of the security holders in and to the underlying collateral. In addition, the insolvency of an entity that generated the assets underlying an asset-backed security is likely to result in a decline in the market price of that security as well as costs and delays.

Certain types of asset-backed securities present additional risks that are not presented by mortgage-backed securities. In particular, certain types of asset-backed securities may not have the benefit of a security interest in the related assets. For example, many securities backed by credit card receivables are unsecured. In addition, the Fund may invest in securities backed by pools of corporate or sovereign bonds, bank loans made to corporations, or a combination of these bonds and loans, many of which may be unsecured (commonly referred to as “collateralized debt obligations” or “collateralized loan obligations”) (see “Collateralized Debt Obligations” (“CDOs”) below). Even when security interests are present, the ability of an issuer

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of certain types of asset-backed securities to enforce those interests may be more limited than that of an issuer of mortgage-backed securities. For instance, automobile receivables generally are secured by automobiles rather than by real property. Most issuers of automobile receivables permit loan servicers to retain possession of the underlying assets. In addition, because of the large number of underlying vehicles involved in a typical issue of asset-backed securities and technical requirements under state law, the trustee for the holders of the automobile receivables may not have a proper security interest in all of the automobiles. Therefore, recoveries on repossessed automobiles may not be available to support payments on these securities.

In addition, certain types of asset-backed securities may experience losses on the underlying assets as a result of certain rights provided to consumer debtors under federal and state law. In the case of certain consumer debt, such as credit card debt, 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 their credit cards (or other debt), thereby reducing their balances due. For instance, a debtor may be able to offset certain damages for which a court has determined that the creditor is liable to the debtor against amounts owed to the creditor by the debtor on his or her credit card.

Collateralized Mortgage Obligations (“CMOs”); Residuals and Strips. A CMO is a debt obligation backed by a portfolio of mortgages or mortgage-backed securities held under an indenture. The issuer of a CMO generally pays interest and prepaid principal on a monthly basis. These payments are secured by the underlying portfolio, which typically includes mortgage pass-through securities guaranteed by Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, or the Government National Mortgage Association (“Ginnie Mae”) and their income streams, and which also may include whole mortgage loans and private mortgage bonds.

CMOs are issued in multiple classes, often referred to as “tranches.” Each class has a different maturity and is entitled to a different schedule for payments of principal and interest, including pre-payments.

In a typical CMO transaction, the issuer of the CMO bonds uses proceeds from the CMO offering to buy mortgages or mortgage pass-through certificates (the “Collateral”). The issuer then pledges the Collateral to a third party trustee as security for the CMOs. The issuer uses principal and interest payments from the Collateral to pay principal on the CMOs, paying the tranche with the earliest maturity first. Thus, the issuer pays no principal on a tranche until all other tranches with earlier maturities are paid in full. The early retirement of a particular class or series has the same effect as the prepayment of mortgage loans underlying a mortgage-backed pass-through security.

CMOs may be less liquid and may exhibit greater price volatility than other types of mortgage- or other asset-backed securities.

The Fund also may invest in CMO residuals, which are issued by agencies or instrumentalities of the U.S. government or by private lenders of, or investors in, mortgage loans, including savings and loan associations, homebuilders, mortgage banks, commercial banks, and investment banks. A CMO residual represents excess cash flow generated by the Collateral after the issuer of the CMO makes all required principal and interest payments and after the issuer’s management fees and administrative expenses have been paid. Thus, CMO residuals have value only to the extent income from the Collateral exceeds the amount necessary to satisfy the issuer’s debt obligations

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on all other outstanding CMOs. The amount of residual cash flow resulting from a CMO will depend on, among other things, the characterization of the mortgage assets, the coupon rate of each class of CMO, prevailing interest rates, the amount of administrative expenses, and the pre-payment experience on the mortgage assets.

CMOs also include certificates representing undivided interests in payments of interest-only or principal-only (“IO/PO Strips”) on the underlying mortgages.

IO/PO Strips and CMO residuals tend to be more volatile than other types of securities. If the underlying securities are prepaid, holders of IO/PO Strips and CMO residuals may lose a substantial portion or the entire value of their investment. In addition, if a CMO pays interest at an adjustable rate, the cash flows on the related CMO residual will be extremely sensitive to rate adjustments.

Collateralized Debt Obligations (“CDOs”). The Fund may invest in CDOs, which include collateralized bond obligations (“CBOs”), collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”), and other similarly structured securities. CBOs and CLOs are asset-backed securities. A CBO is an obligation of a trust or other special purpose vehicle backed by a pool of fixed income securities. A CLO is an obligation of a trust or other special purpose vehicle typically collateralized by a pool of loans, which may include U.S. and non-U.S. senior secured and unsecured loans, and subordinate corporate loans, including loans that may be rated below investment grade, or equivalent unrated loans.

For both CBOs and CLOs, the cash flows from the trust are split into two or more portions, called tranches, which vary in risk and yield. The riskier portions are the residual, equity, and subordinate tranches, which bear some or all of the risk of default by the bonds or loans in the trust, and therefore protect the other, more senior tranches from default in all but the most severe circumstances. Since it is partially protected from defaults, a senior tranche from a CBO trust or CLO trust typically has higher ratings and lower yields than its underlying securities, and can be rated investment grade. Despite the protection from the riskier tranches, senior CBO or CLO tranches can experience substantial losses due to actual defaults(including collateral default), the total loss of the riskier tranches due to losses in the collateral, market anticipation of defaults, fraud by the trust, and the illiquidity of CBO or CLO securities.

The risks of an investment in a CDO largely depend on the type of underlying collateral securities and the tranche in which the Fund invests. The Fund may invest in any tranche of a CBO or CLO. Typically, CBOs, CLOs and other CDOs are privately offered and sold, and thus, are not registered under the securities laws. As a result, the Fund may characterize its investments in CDOs as illiquid, unless an active dealer market for a particular CDO allows the CDO to be purchased and sold in Rule 144A transactions. CDOs are subject to the typical risks associated with debt instruments discussed elsewhere in this SAI and the Prospectus, including interest rate risk (which may be exacerbated if the interest rate payable on a structured financing changes based on multiples of changes in interest rates or inversely to changes in interest rates), default risk, prepayment risk, credit risk, illiquidity risk, market risk, structural risk, and legal risk. Additional risks of CDOs include: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral securities will be insufficient to make interest or other payments; (ii) the possibility that the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default, due to factors such as the availability of any credit enhancement, the level and timing of payments and recoveries on and the characteristics of the underlying receivables, loans or other assets that are being securitized,

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remoteness of those assets from the originator or transferor, the adequacy of and ability to realize upon any related collateral, and the capability of the servicer of the securitized assets; (iii) market and illiquidity risks affecting the price of a structured finance investment, if required to be sold, at the time of sale; and (iv) if the particular structured product is invested in a security in which the Fund is also invested, this would tend to increase the Fund’s overall exposure to the credit of the issuer of such securities, at least on an absolute, if not on a relative basis. In addition, due to the complex nature of a CDO, an investment in a CDO may not perform as expected. An investment in a CDO also is subject to the risk that the issuer and the investors may interpret the terms of the instrument differently, giving rise to disputes.

The Fund may invest in covered bonds, which are debt securities issued by banks or other credit institutions that are backed by both the issuing institution and underlying pool of assets that compose the bond (a “cover pool”). The cover pool for a covered bond is typically composed of residential or commercial mortgage loans or loans to public sector institutions. A covered bond may lose value if the credit rating of the issuing bank or credit institution is downgraded or the quality of the assets in the cover pool deteriorates.

Adjustable Rate Securities

Adjustable rate securities are securities that have interest rates that reset at periodic intervals, usually by reference to an interest rate index or market interest rate. Adjustable rate securities include U.S. government securities and securities of other issuers. Some adjustable rate securities are backed by pools of mortgage loans. Although the rate adjustment feature may act as a buffer to reduce sharp changes in the value of adjustable rate securities, changes in market interest rates or changes in the issuer’s creditworthiness may still affect their value. Because the interest rate is reset only periodically, changes in the interest rates on adjustable rate securities may lag changes in prevailing market interest rates. Also, some adjustable rate securities (or, in the case of securities backed by mortgage loans, the underlying mortgages) are subject to caps or floors that limit the maximum change in interest rate during a specified period or over the life of the security. Because of the rate adjustments, adjustable rate securities are less likely than non-adjustable rate securities of comparable quality and maturity to increase significantly in value when market interest rates fall.

Below Investment Grade Securities

The Fund may invest some or all of its assets in securities or instruments rated below investment grade (that is, rated below Baa3/P-2 by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”) or below BBB-/A-2 by Standard & Poor’s (“S&P”) for a particular security/commercial paper, or securities unrated by Moody’s or S&P that are determined by GMO to be of comparable quality to securities so rated) at the time of purchase, including securities in the lowest rating categories and comparable unrated securities (“Below Investment Grade Securities”) (commonly referred to as “junk bonds”). In addition, the Fund may hold securities that are downgraded to below investment grade status after the time of purchase by the Fund. Many issuers of high yield debt are highly leveraged, and their relatively high debt-to-equity ratios create increased risks that their operations might not generate sufficient cash flow to service their debt obligations. In addition, many issuers of high yield debt may be (i) in poor financial condition, (ii) experiencing poor operating results, (iii) having substantial capital needs or negative net worth, or (iv) facing special competitive or product obsolescence problems, and may include companies involved in bankruptcy or other reorganizations or liquidation proceedings. Compared to higher quality

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fixed income securities, Below Investment Grade Securities offer the potential for higher investment returns but subject holders to greater credit and market risk. The ability of an issuer of Below Investment Grade Securities to meet principal and interest payments is considered speculative. The Fund’s investments in Below Investment Grade Securities are more dependent on GMO’s own credit analysis than its investments in higher quality bonds. Certain of these securities may not be publicly traded, and therefore it may be difficult to obtain information as to the true condition of the issuers. The market for Below Investment Grade Securities may be more severely affected than other financial markets by economic recession or substantial interest rate increases, changing public perceptions, or legislation that limits the ability of certain categories of financial institutions to invest in Below Investment Grade Securities. In addition, the market may be less liquid for Below Investment Grade Securities than for other types of securities. Reduced liquidity can affect the values of Below Investment Grade Securities, make their valuation and sale more difficult, and result in greater volatility. Because Below Investment Grade Securities are difficult to value and are more likely to be fair valued (see “Determination of Net Asset Value” in the Prospectus and herein), particularly during erratic markets, the values realized on their sale may differ from the values at which they are carried on the books of the Fund. Some Below Investment Grade Securities in which the Fund invests may be in poor standing or in default.

Securities in the lowest investment grade category (BBB or Baa) also have some speculative characteristics. See “Appendix A – Commercial Paper and Corporate Debt Ratings” for more information concerning commercial paper and corporate debt ratings.

Distressed or Defaulted Instruments

The Fund may invest in securities, claims and obligations of U.S. and non-U.S. issuers which are experiencing significant financial or business difficulties (including companies involved in bankruptcy or other reorganization and liquidation proceedings). The Fund may purchase distressed securities and instruments of all kinds, including equity and debt instruments and, in particular, loans, loan participations, claims held by trade or other creditors, bonds, notes, non-performing and sub-performing mortgage loans, beneficial interests in liquidating trusts or other similar types of trusts, fee interests and financial interests in real estate, partnership interests and similar financial instruments, executory contracts and participations therein, many of which are not publicly traded and which may involve a substantial degree of risk.

Investments in distressed or defaulted instruments generally are considered speculative and may involve substantial risks not normally associated with investments in healthier companies, including adverse business, financial or economic conditions that can lead to defaulted payments and insolvency proceedings.

In particular, defaulted obligations might be repaid, if at all, only after lengthy workout or bankruptcy proceedings, during which the issuer might not make any interest or other payments. The amount of any recovery may be adversely affected by the relative priority of the Fund’s investment in the issuer’s capital structure. The ability to enforce obligations may be adversely affected by actions or omissions of predecessors in interest that give rise to counterclaims or defenses, including causes of action for equitable subordination or debt recharacterization. In addition, such investments, collateral securing such investments, and payments made in respect of such investments may be challenged as fraudulent conveyances or to be subject to avoidance as preferences under certain circumstances.

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Investments in distressed securities inherently have more credit risk than do investments in similar securities and instruments of non-distressed companies, and the degree of risk associated with any particular distressed securities may be difficult or impossible for GMO to determine within reasonable standards of predictability. The level of analytical sophistication, both financial and legal, necessary for successful investment in distressed securities is unusually high.

If GMO’s evaluation of the eventual recovery value of a defaulted instrument should prove incorrect, the Fund may lose a substantial portion or all of its investment or it may be required to accept cash or instruments with a value less than the Fund’s original investment.

Investments in financially distressed companies domiciled outside the United States involve additional risks. Bankruptcy law and creditor reorganization processes may differ substantially from those in the United States, resulting in greater uncertainty as to the rights of creditors, the enforceability of such rights, reorganization timing and the classification, seniority and treatment of claims. In certain developing countries, although bankruptcy laws have been enacted, the process for reorganization remains highly uncertain.

In addition, investments in distressed or defaulted instruments can present special tax issues for the Fund. See “Taxes” below for more information.

Brady Bonds

Brady Bonds are securities created through the restructuring of commercial bank loans to public and private entities 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 in Mexico, Uruguay, Venezuela, Costa Rica, Argentina, Nigeria, the Philippines, and other emerging countries.

Brady Bonds may be collateralized, are issued in various currencies (but primarily the U.S. dollar), and are traded in OTC 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.

The valuation of a Brady Bond typically depends on an evaluation of: (i) any collateralized repayments of principal at final maturity; (ii) any collateralized interest payments; (iii) the uncollateralized interest payments; and (iv) any uncollateralized repayments of principal at maturity (the uncollateralized amounts constitute the “residual risk”). In light of the history of prior defaults by the issuers of Brady Bonds, investments in Brady Bonds may be viewed as speculative regardless of the current credit rating of the issuer. There are very few remaining Brady Bonds in existence today.

Euro Bonds

Euro bonds are securities denominated in U.S. dollars or another currency and sold to investors outside of the country whose currency is used. Euro bonds may be issued by government or corporate issuers, and are typically underwritten by banks and brokerage firms in numerous countries. While Euro bonds often pay principal and interest in U.S. dollars held in banks outside of the United States (“Eurodollars”), some Euro bonds may pay principal and interest in other currencies. Euro bonds are subject to the same risks as other fixed income securities. See “Debt and Other Fixed Income Securities Generally” above.

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Zero Coupon Securities

To the extent the Fund invests in “zero coupon” fixed income securities, it accrues interest income at a fixed rate based on initial purchase price and length to maturity, but the securities do not pay interest in cash on a current basis. The Fund is required to distribute the accrued income to its shareholders, even though the Fund is not receiving the income in cash on a current basis. Thus, the Fund may have to sell other investments to obtain cash to make income distributions (including at a time when it may not be advantageous to do so). See “Taxes” below. The market value of zero coupon securities is often more volatile than that of non-zero coupon fixed income securities of comparable quality and maturity. Zero coupon securities include IO/PO Strips and STRIPS.

Indexed Investments

The Fund may invest in various transactions and instruments that are designed to track the performance of an index (including, but not limited to, securities indices and credit default indices). Indexed securities are securities the redemption values and/or coupons of which are indexed to a specific instrument, group of instruments, index, or other statistic. Indexed securities typically, but not always, are debt securities or deposits whose value at maturity or coupon rate is determined by reference to other securities, securities or inflation indices, currencies, precious metals or other commodities, or other financial indicators. For example, the maturity value of gold-indexed securities depends on the price of gold and, therefore, their price tends to rise and fall with gold prices.

While investments that track the performance of an index may increase the number, and thus the diversity, of the underlying assets to which the Fund is exposed, such investments are subject to many of the same risks of investing in the underlying assets that comprise the index discussed elsewhere in this section, as well as certain additional risks that are not typically associated with investments in such underlying assets. An investment that is designed to track the performance of an index may not replicate and maintain exactly the same composition and relative weightings of the assets in the index. Additionally, the liquidity of the market for such investments may be subject to the same conditions affecting liquidity in the underlying assets and markets and could be relatively less liquid in certain circumstances. The performance of indexed securities depends on the performance of the security, security index, inflation index, currency, or other instrument to which they are indexed. Interest rate changes in the United States and abroad also may influence performance. Indexed securities also are subject to the credit risks of the issuer, and their values are adversely affected by declines in the issuer’s creditworthiness.

The Fund’s investments in certain indexed securities, including inflation-indexed bonds, may generate taxable income in excess of the interest they pay to the Fund, which may cause the Fund to sell investments to obtain cash to make income distributions to shareholders (including at a time when it may not be advantageous to do so). See “Taxes” below.

Currency-Indexed Securities. Currency-indexed securities have maturity values or interest rates determined by reference to the values of one or more foreign currencies. Currency-indexed securities also may have maturity values or interest rates that depend on the values of a number of different foreign currencies relative to each other.

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Inverse Floating Obligations. Indexed securities in which the Fund may invest include so-called “inverse floating obligations” or “residual interest bonds” on which the interest rates typically decline as the index or reference rates, typically short-term interest rates, increase and increase as index or reference rates decline. An inverse floating obligation may have the effect of investment leverage to the extent that its interest rate varies by a magnitude that exceeds the magnitude of the change in the index or reference rate of interest. Generally, leverage will result in greater price volatility.

Inflation-Indexed Bonds. The Fund may invest in inflation-indexed bonds and in futures contracts on inflation-indexed bonds. See “Options and Futures – Inflation-Linked Futures” above for a discussion of inflation-linked futures. Inflation-indexed bonds are fixed income securities whose principal value is adjusted periodically according to the rate of inflation. Two structures are common. The U.S. Treasury and some other issuers use a structure that accrues inflation into the principal value of the bond. Most other issuers pay out the CPI accruals as part of a semiannual coupon.

Inflation-indexed securities issued by the U.S. Treasury (or “TIPS”) have maturities of approximately three, five, ten, or thirty years, although it is possible that securities that have other maturities will be issued in the future. U.S. Treasury securities pay interest on a semi-annual basis equal to a fixed percentage of the inflation-adjusted principal amount. For example, if the Fund purchased an inflation-indexed bond with a par value of $1,000 and a 3% real rate of return coupon (payable 1.5% semi-annually), and the rate of inflation over the first six months was 1%, the mid-year par value of the bond would be $1,010 and the first semi-annual interest payment would be $15.15 ($1,010 times 1.5%). If inflation during the second half of the year resulted in the whole year’s inflation equaling 3%, the end-of-year par value of the bond would be $1,030 and the second semi-annual interest payment would be $15.45 ($1,030 times 1.5%).

If the periodic adjustment rate measuring inflation falls, the principal value of inflation-indexed bonds will be adjusted downward and, consequently, the interest they pay (calculated with respect to a smaller principal amount) will be reduced. The U.S. government guarantees the repayment of the original bond principal upon maturity (as adjusted for inflation) in the case of a TIPS, even during a period of deflation, although the inflation-adjusted principal received could be less than the inflation-adjusted principal that had accrued to the bond at the time of purchase. However, the current market value of the bonds is not guaranteed and will fluctuate. The Fund also may invest in other inflation-related bonds which may or may not provide a similar guarantee. If a guarantee of principal is not provided, the adjusted principal value of the bond repaid at maturity may be less than the original principal.

The market price of inflation-indexed bonds (including TIPS) normally changes when real interest rates change. Their value typically will decline during periods of rising real interest rates (i.e., nominal interest rate minus inflation) and increase during periods of declining real interest rates. Real interest rates, in turn, are tied to the relationship between nominal interest rates (i.e., stated interest rates) and the rate of inflation. Therefore, if the rate of inflation rises at a faster rate than nominal interest rates, real interest rates (i.e. nominal interest rate minus inflation) might decline, leading to an increase in value of inflation-indexed bonds. In contrast, if nominal interest rates increase at a faster rate than inflation, real interest rates might rise, leading to a

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decrease in value of inflation-indexed bonds. There can be no assurance, however, that the value of inflation-indexed bonds will change in the same proportion as changes in nominal interest rates, and short-term increases in inflation may lead to a decline in their value. In some interest rate environments, such as when real interest rates are rising faster than nominal interest rates, the market price of inflation-indexed bonds may decline more than the price of non-inflation-indexed (or nominal) fixed income bonds with similar maturities. Moreover, if the index measuring inflation falls, the principal value of inflation-indexed bond investments will be adjusted downward, and, consequently, the interest they pay (calculated with respect to a smaller principal amount) will be reduced.

Although inflation-indexed bonds protect their holders from long-term inflationary trends, short-term increases in inflation may result in a decline in value. In addition, inflation-indexed bonds do not protect holders from increases in interest rates due to reasons other than inflation (such as changes in currency exchange rates).

The periodic adjustment of U.S. inflation-indexed bonds is tied to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers (“CPI-U”), which is calculated monthly by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The CPI-U is a measurement of changes in the cost of living, made up of components such as housing, food, transportation, and energy. Inflation-indexed bonds issued by a foreign government are generally adjusted to reflect changes in a comparable inflation index calculated by the foreign government. No assurance can be given that the CPI-U or any foreign inflation index will accurately measure the real rate of inflation in the prices of goods and services. In addition, no assurance can be given that the rate of inflation in a foreign country will correlate to the rate of inflation in the United States.

Coupon payments received by the Fund from inflation-indexed bonds generally are included in the Fund’s gross income for the period in which they accrue. In addition, any increase in the principal amount of an inflation-indexed bond constitutes taxable ordinary income to investors in the Fund, even though principal is not paid until maturity.

Structured Notes

Similar to indexed securities, structured notes are derivative debt securities, the interest rate or principal of which is determined by reference to changes in the value of a specific asset, reference rate, or index (the “reference”) or the relative change in two or more references. The interest rate or the principal amount payable upon maturity or redemption may increase or decrease, depending upon changes in the reference. The terms of a structured note may provide that, in certain circumstances, no principal is due at maturity and, therefore, may result in a loss of invested capital. Structured notes may be indexed positively or negatively, so that appreciation of the reference may produce an increase or decrease in the interest rate or value of the principal at maturity. In addition, changes in the interest rate or the value of the principal at maturity may be fixed at a specified multiple of the change in the value of the reference, making the value of the note particularly volatile.

Structured notes may entail a greater degree of market risk than other types of debt securities because the investor bears the risk of the reference. Structured notes also may be more volatile, less liquid, and more difficult to price accurately than less complex securities or more traditional debt securities.

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Firm Commitments, When-Issued Securities and TBAs

The Fund may enter into firm commitments and similar agreements with banks or broker-dealers for the purchase or sale of securities at an agreed-upon price on a specified future date. For example, to the extent the Fund invests in fixed income securities, it may enter into a firm commitment agreement if GMO anticipates a decline in interest rates and believes it is able to obtain a more advantageous future yield by committing currently to purchase securities to be issued later. The Fund generally does not earn income on the securities it has committed to purchase until after delivery. The Fund may take delivery of the securities or, if deemed advisable as a matter of investment strategy, may sell the securities before the settlement date. When payment is due on when-issued or delayed-delivery securities, the Fund makes payment from then-available cash flow or the sale of securities, or from the sale of the when-issued or delayed-delivery securities themselves (which may have a value greater or less than what the Fund paid for them).

The Fund may purchase or sell securities, including mortgage-backed securities, in the to-be-announced (“TBA”) market. A TBA purchase commitment is a security that is purchased or sold for a fixed price and the underlying securities are announced at a future date. The seller does not specify the particular securities to be delivered. Instead, the Fund agrees to accept any security that meets specified terms. For example, in a TBA mortgage-backed security transaction, the Fund and the seller would agree upon the issuer, interest rate and terms of the underlying mortgages. The seller would not identify the specific underlying mortgages until it issues the security. The purchaser of TBA securities generally is subject to increased market risk and interest rate risk because the delivered securities may be less favorable than anticipated by the purchaser.

Loans (Including Bank Loans), Loan Participations, and Assignments

The Fund may invest in direct debt instruments, which are interests in amounts owed to lenders or lending syndicates, to suppliers of goods or services, or to other parties by a corporate, governmental, or other borrower. Such “loans” may include bank loans, promissory notes, and loan participations, or in the case of suppliers of goods or services, trade claims or other receivables. Investments in direct debt instruments are subject to the Fund’s policies regarding the quality of debt investments generally. Such instruments may include term loans and revolving loans, may pay interest at a fixed or floating rate, and may be senior or subordinated. The Fund may acquire interests in loans either directly (by way of sale or assignment) or indirectly (by way of participation).

Purchases of loans and other forms of direct indebtedness depend primarily upon the creditworthiness of the borrower for payment of principal and interest, and adverse changes in the creditworthiness of the borrower may affect its ability to pay principal and interest. Direct debt instruments may not be rated by any rating agency. In the event of non-payment of interest or principal, loans that are secured offer the Fund more protection than comparable unsecured loans. However, no assurance can be given that the collateral for a secured loan can be liquidated or that the proceeds will satisfy the borrower’s obligation. Investment in the indebtedness of borrowers with low creditworthiness involves substantially greater risks, and may be highly speculative. Borrowers that are in bankruptcy or restructuring may never pay off their indebtedness, or may pay only a small fraction of the amount owed. Investments in sovereign debt similarly involve the risk that the governmental entities responsible for repayment of the debt may be unable or unwilling to pay interest and repay principal when due. The bank loans acquired by the Fund may be below investment grade.

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When investing in a loan participation, the Fund typically purchases participation interests in a portion of a lender’s or participant’s interest in a loan but has no direct contractual relationship with the borrower. Participation interests in a portion of a debt obligation typically result in a contractual relationship only with the institution participating in the interest, not with the borrower. The Fund must rely on the seller of the participation interest not only for the enforcement of the Fund’s rights against the borrower but also for the receipt and processing of principal, interest, or other payments due under the loan. This may subject the Fund to greater delays, expenses, and risks than if the Fund could enforce its rights directly against the borrower. In addition, the Fund generally will have no rights of set-off against the borrower, and the Fund may not directly benefit from the collateral supporting the debt obligation in which it has purchased the participation. A participation agreement also may limit the rights of the Fund to vote on changes that may be made to the underlying loan agreement, such as waiving a breach of a covenant. In addition, under the terms of a participation agreement, the Fund may be treated as a creditor of the seller of the participation interest (rather than of the borrower), thus exposing the Fund to the credit risk of the seller in addition to the credit risk of the borrower. Additional risks include inadequate perfection of a loan’s security interest, the possible invalidation or compromise of an investment transaction as a fraudulent conveyance or preference under relevant creditors’ rights laws, the validity and seniority of bank claims and guarantees, environmental liabilities that may arise with respect to collateral securing the obligations, and adverse consequences resulting from participating in such instruments through other institutions with lower credit quality.

Bank loans and participation interests may not be readily marketable and may be subject to restrictions on resale. There can be no assurance that future levels of supply and demand in loan or loan participation trading will provide an adequate degree of liquidity and no assurance that the market will not experience periods of significant illiquidity in the future.

Investments in loans through direct assignment of a lender’s interests may involve additional risks to the Fund. For example, if a secured loan is foreclosed, the Fund could become part owner of any collateral, and would bear the costs and liabilities associated with owning and disposing of the collateral. In addition, under legal theories of lender liability, the Fund potentially might be held liable as a co-lender.

A loan is often administered by a bank or other financial institution that acts as agent for all holders. The agent administers the terms of the loan, as specified in the loan agreement. Unless, under the terms of the loan or other indebtedness the Fund has direct recourse against the borrower, it may have to rely on the agent to enforce its rights against the borrower.

GMO may, with respect to its management of investments in certain loans for the Fund, seek to remain flexible to purchase and sell other securities in the borrower’s capital structure, by remaining “public.” In such cases, GMO will seek to avoid receiving material, non-public information about the borrowers to which the Fund may lend (through assignments, participations or otherwise). GMO’s decision not to use material, non-public information about borrowers may place GMO at an information disadvantage relative to other lenders. Also, in instances where lenders are asked to grant amendments, waivers or consents in favor of the borrower, GMO’s ability to assess the significance of the amendment, waiver or consent or its desirability from the Fund’s point of view may be materially and adversely affected.

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When GMO’s employees, on-site consultants, partners, members, directors, or officers come into possession of material, non-public information about the issuers of loans that may be held by the Fund or other accounts managed by GMO (either intentionally or inadvertently), or material, non-public information is otherwise attributed to GMO, GMO’s ability to trade in other securities of the issuers of these loans for the account of GMO will be limited pursuant to applicable securities laws. Such limitations on GMO’s ability to trade could have an adverse effect on the Fund. In many instances, these trading restrictions could continue in effect for a substantial period of time.

Direct indebtedness purchased by the Fund may include letters of credit, revolving credit facilities, or other standby financing commitments obligating the Fund to pay additional cash on demand. These commitments may have the effect of requiring the Fund to increase its investment in a borrower at a time when it would not otherwise have done so. The Fund is required to maintain liquid assets to cover the Fund’s potential obligations under standby financing commitments.

Trade Claims. The Fund may purchase trade claims against companies, including companies in bankruptcy or reorganization proceedings. Trade claims generally include claims of suppliers for goods delivered and not paid, claims for unpaid services rendered, claims for contract rejection damages and claims related to litigation. An investment in trade claims is very speculative and carries a high degree of risk. Trade claims are illiquid instruments which generally do not pay interest and there can be no guarantee that the debtor will ever be able to satisfy the obligation on the trade claim. Additionally, there can be restrictions on the purchase, sale, and/or transferability of trade claims during all or part of a bankruptcy proceeding. The markets in trade claims generally are not regulated by U.S. federal securities laws or the SEC.

Trade claims are typically unsecured and may be subordinated to other unsecured obligations of a debtor, and generally are subject to defenses of the debtor with respect to the underlying transaction giving rise to the trade claim. Although GMO endeavors to protect against such risks in connection with the evaluation and purchase of claims, trade claims are subject to risks not generally associated with standardized securities and instruments due to the idiosyncratic nature of the claims purchased. These risks include the risk that the debtor may contest the allowance of the claim due to disputes the debtor has with the original claimant or the inequitable conduct of the original claimant, or due to administrative errors in connection with the transfer of the claim. Recovery on allowed trade claims also may be impaired if the anticipated dividend payable on unsecured claims in the bankruptcy is not realized or if the timing of the bankruptcy distribution is delayed. As a result of the foregoing factors, trade claims are also subject to the risk that if the Fund does receive payment, it may be in an amount less than what the Fund paid for or otherwise expects to receive in respect of the claim.

In addition, because they are not negotiable instruments, trade claims are typically less liquid than negotiable instruments. Given these factors, trade claims often trade at a discount to other pari passu instruments.

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Reverse Repurchase Agreements and Dollar Roll Agreements

The Fund may enter into reverse repurchase agreements and dollar roll agreements with banks and brokers to enhance return. Reverse repurchase agreements involve sales by the Fund of portfolio securities concurrently with an agreement by the Fund to repurchase the same securities at a later date at a fixed price. During the reverse repurchase agreement period, the Fund continues to receive principal and interest payments on the securities and also has the opportunity to earn a return on the collateral furnished by the counterparty to secure its obligation to redeliver the securities.

Dollar rolls are transactions in which the Fund sells securities for delivery in the current month and simultaneously contracts to repurchase substantially similar (same type and coupon) securities on a specified future date. During the roll period, the Fund foregoes principal and interest paid on the securities. The Fund is compensated by the difference between the current sales price and the forward price for the future purchase (often referred to as the “drop”) as well as by the interest earned on the cash proceeds of the initial sale.

If the buyer in a reverse repurchase agreement or dollar roll agreement files for bankruptcy or becomes insolvent, the Fund’s use of proceeds from the sale of its securities may be restricted while the other party or its trustee or receiver determines whether to honor the Fund’s right to repurchase the securities. Furthermore, in that situation the Fund may be unable to recover the securities it sold in connection with a reverse repurchase agreement and as a result would realize a loss equal to the difference between the value of the securities and the payment it received for them. This loss would be greater to the extent the buyer paid less than the value of the securities the Fund sold to it (e.g., a buyer may only be willing to pay $95 for a bond with a market value of $100). The Fund’s use of reverse repurchase agreements also subjects the Fund to interest costs based on the difference between the sale and repurchase price of a security involved in such a transaction. Additionally, reverse repurchase agreements entail the same risks OTC derivatives. These include the risk that the counterparty to the reverse repurchase agreement may not be able to fulfill its obligations, as discussed above, that the parties may disagree as to the meaning or application of contractual terms, or that the instrument may not perform as expected. See “Description of Principal Risks – Derivatives Risk” and “ – Counterparty Risk” in the Prospectus and “Uses of Derivatives” below. Reverse repurchase agreements and dollar rolls are not considered borrowings by the Fund for purposes of the Fund’s fundamental investment restriction on borrowings.

Commodity-Related Investments

The Fund may gain exposure to commodity markets by investing in commodities or commodity-related instruments, directly or indirectly, through investments in other GMO Funds.

Commodity prices can be extremely volatile and may be directly or indirectly affected by many factors, including changes in overall market movements, real or perceived inflationary trends, commodity index volatility, changes in interest rates or currency exchange rates, population growth and changing demographics, and factors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as drought, floods, or other weather conditions, livestock disease, trade embargoes, competition from substitute products, transportation bottlenecks or shortages, fluctuations in supply and demand, tariffs, and international regulatory, political, and economic developments (e.g., regime changes and changes in economic activity levels). In addition, some commodities

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are subject to limited pricing flexibility because of supply and demand factors, and others are subject to broad price fluctuations as a result of the volatility of prices for certain raw materials and the instability of supplies of other materials.

Actions of and changes in governments, and political and economic instability, in commodity-producing and -exporting countries may affect the production and marketing of commodities. In addition, commodity-related industries throughout the world are subject to greater political, environmental, and other governmental regulation than many other industries. Changes in government policies and the need for regulatory approvals may adversely affect the products and services of companies in the commodities industries. For example, the exploration, development, and distribution of coal, oil, and gas in the United States are subject to significant federal and state regulation, which may affect rates of return on coal, oil, and gas and the kinds of services that the federal and state governments may offer to companies in those industries. In addition, compliance with environmental and other safety regulations has caused many companies in commodity-related industries to incur production delays and significant costs. Government regulation also may impede the development of new technologies. The effect of future regulations affecting commodity-related industries cannot be predicted.

The value of commodity-related derivatives fluctuates based on changes in the values of the underlying commodity, commodity index, futures contract, or other economic variable to which they are related. Additionally, economic leverage will increase the volatility of these instruments as they may increase or decrease in value more quickly than the underlying commodity or other relevant economic variable. See “Options and Futures,” “Structured Notes,” “Swap Contracts and Other Two-Party Contracts,” and “Uses of Derivatives” herein for more information on the Fund’s investments in derivatives, including commodity-related derivatives such as swap agreements, commodity futures contracts, and options on commodity futures contracts.

The Fund’s direct investments in certain commodity-related instruments may be limited by the Fund’s intention to qualify as a regulated investment company under the Code, and may limit the Fund’s ability to so qualify. See “Taxes” below for more information.

Illiquid Securities, Private Placements, Restricted Securities, and IPOs and Other Limited Opportunities

At the time of purchase, the Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities. For this purpose, “illiquid securities” are securities that the Fund may not sell or dispose of within seven days in the ordinary course of business at approximately the amount at which the Fund has valued the securities.

A repurchase agreement maturing in more than seven days is considered illiquid, unless it can be terminated after a notice period of seven days or less.

Private Placements and Restricted Investments. Illiquid securities include securities of private issuers, securities traded in unregulated or shallow markets, securities issued by entities deemed to be affiliates of the Fund, and securities that are purchased in private placements and are subject to legal or contractual restrictions on resale. Because relatively few purchasers of these securities may exist, especially in the event of adverse economic and liquidity conditions or adverse changes in the issuer’s financial condition, the Fund may not be able to initiate a transaction or liquidate a position in such investments at a desirable price. Disposing of illiquid securities may involve time-consuming negotiation and legal expenses, and selling them promptly at an acceptable price may be difficult or impossible.

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While private placements may offer attractive opportunities not otherwise available in the open market, the securities purchased are usually “restricted securities” or are “not readily marketable.” Restricted securities cannot be sold without being registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”), unless they are sold pursuant to an exemption from registration (such as Rules 144 or 144A). Securities that are not readily marketable are subject to other legal or contractual restrictions on resale. The Fund may have to bear the expense of registering restricted securities for resale and the risk of substantial delay in effecting registration. The Fund selling its securities in a registered offering may be deemed to be an “underwriter” for purposes of Section 11 of the 1933 Act. In such event, the Fund may be liable to purchasers of the securities under Section 11 if the registration statement prepared by the issuer, or the prospectus forming a part of it, is materially inaccurate or misleading, although the Fund may have a due diligence defense.

At times, the inability to sell illiquid securities can make it more difficult to determine their fair value for purposes of computing the Fund’s net asset value. The judgment of GMO normally plays a greater role in valuing these securities than in valuing publicly traded securities.

IPOs and Other Limited Opportunities . The Fund may purchase securities of companies that are offered pursuant to an initial public offering (“IPO”) or other similar limited opportunities. Although companies can be any age or size at the time of their IPO, they are often smaller and have a limited operating history, which involves a greater potential for the value of their securities to be impaired following the IPO. The price of a company’s securities may be highly unstable at the time of its IPO and for a period thereafter due to factors such as market psychology prevailing at the time of the IPO, the absence of a prior public market, the small number of shares available, and limited availability of investor information. Securities purchased in IPOs have a tendency to fluctuate in value significantly shortly after the IPO relative to the price at which they were purchased. These fluctuations could impact the net asset value and return earned on the Fund’s shares. Investors in IPOs can be adversely affected by substantial dilution in the value of their shares, by sales of additional shares, and by concentration of control in existing management and principal shareholders. In addition, all of the factors that affect the performance of an economy or equity markets may have a greater impact on the shares of IPO companies. IPO securities tend to involve greater risk due, in part, to public perception and the lack of publicly available information and trading history.

Investments in Other Investment Companies or Other Pooled Investments

Subject to applicable regulatory requirements, the Fund may invest in shares of both open- and closed-end investment companies (including other GMO Funds, money market funds, and ETFs). Investing in another investment company exposes the Fund to all the risks of that investment company and, in general, subjects it to a pro rata portion of the other investment company’s fees and expenses. The Fund also may invest in private investment funds, vehicles, or structures.

The Fund’s investment in other investment companies or private investment funds, vehicles or structures could affect the amount, timing and character of distributions to shareholders, and in certain circumstances could cause the Fund to recognize taxable income in excess of the cash

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generated by such investments, which could require the Fund in turn to liquidate investments, including when it is not advantageous to do so, in order to make required distributions. See the “Taxes” section below.

ETFs are hybrid investment companies that are registered as open-end investment companies or unit investment trusts (“UITs”) but possess some of the characteristics of closed-end funds. ETFs in which the Fund may invest typically hold a portfolio of common stocks that is intended to track the price and dividend performance of a particular index. Unlike the index, an ETF incurs administrative expenses and transaction costs in trading securities. In addition, the timing and magnitude of cash inflows and outflows from and to investors buying and redeeming shares in the ETF could create cash balances that cause the ETF’s performance to deviate from the index (which remains “fully invested” at all times). Performance of an ETF and the index it is designed to track also may diverge because the composition of the index and the securities held by the ETF may occasionally differ. The Fund also may invest in actively-managed ETFs. Common examples of ETFs include S&P Depositary Receipts (“SPDRs”), Vanguard ETFs, and iShares, which may be purchased from the UIT or investment company issuing the securities or in the secondary market (SPDRs, Vanguard ETFs, and iShares are predominantly listed on the NYSE Arca). The market price for ETF shares may be higher or lower than the ETF’s net asset value. The sale and redemption prices of ETF shares purchased from the issuer are based on the issuer’s net asset value.

Because ETFs are investment companies, investments in ETFs would, absent exemptive relief, be limited under applicable statutory limitations. Those limitations restrict the Fund’s investment in the shares of an ETF or other investment company to up to 5% of the Fund’s assets (which may represent no more than 3% of the securities of such ETF or other investment company) and limit aggregate investments in all ETFs and other investment companies to 10% of the Fund’s assets.

Legal and Regulatory Risk

Legal, tax, and regulatory changes could occur during the term of the Fund that may adversely affect the Fund. New (or revised) laws or regulations or interpretations of existing law may be issued by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) or Treasury Department, the CFTC, the SEC, the U.S. Federal Reserve or other banking regulators, or other governmental regulatory authorities or self-regulatory organizations that supervise the financial markets that could adversely affect the Fund. In particular, these agencies are empowered to promulgate a variety of new rules pursuant to recently enacted financial reform legislation in the United States. The Fund also may be adversely affected by changes in the enforcement or interpretation of existing statutes and rules by these governmental regulatory authorities, or self-regulatory organizations. In addition, the securities and futures markets are subject to comprehensive statutes, regulations and margin requirements. The CFTC, the SEC, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, other regulators and self-regulatory organizations and exchanges are authorized to take extraordinary actions in the event of market emergencies. The regulation of derivatives transactions and funds that engage in such transactions is an evolving area of law and is subject to modification by government and judicial action.

The U.S. government recently enacted legislation that provides for new regulation of the derivatives market, including clearing, margin, reporting and registration requirements. The CFTC, SEC and other federal regulators have been tasked with developing the rules and

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regulations enacting the provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. While certain of the rules are not effective, other rules are not yet final, so its ultimate impact remains unclear. New regulations could, among other things, restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in derivatives transactions (for example, by making certain types of derivatives transactions no longer available to the Fund) and/or increase the costs of such derivatives transactions (for example, by increasing margin or capital requirements), and the Fund may be unable to execute its investment strategy as a result.

The CFTC and certain futures exchanges have established limits, referred to as “position limits,” on the maximum net long or net short positions which any person may hold or control in particular options and futures contracts (and certain related swaps positions). All positions owned or controlled by the same person or entity, even if in different accounts, may be aggregated for purposes of determining whether the applicable position limits have been exceeded. Thus, even if the Fund does not intend to exceed applicable position limits, it is possible that different clients managed by GMO and its affiliates may be aggregated for this purpose. Although it is possible that the trading decisions of GMO may have to be modified and that positions held by the Fund may have to be liquidated in order to avoid exceeding such limits, GMO believes that this is unlikely. The modification of investment decisions or the elimination of open positions, if it occurs, may adversely affect the profitability of the Fund.

The SEC has in the past adopted interim rules requiring reporting of all short positions above a certain de minimis threshold and may adopt rules requiring monthly public disclosure in the future. In addition, other non-U.S. jurisdictions where the Fund may trade have adopted reporting requirements. If the Fund’s short positions or its strategy become generally known, it could have a significant effect on GMO’s ability to implement its investment strategy. In particular, it would make it more likely that other investors could cause a “short squeeze” in the securities held short by the Fund forcing the Fund to cover its positions at a loss. Such reporting requirements also may limit GMO’s ability to access management and other personnel at certain companies where GMO seeks to take a short position. In addition, if other investors engage in copycat behavior by taking positions in the same issuers as the Fund, the cost of borrowing securities to sell short could increase drastically and the availability of such securities to the Fund could decrease drastically. Such events could make the Fund unable to execute its investment strategy. Short sales are also subject to certain SEC regulations. If the SEC were to adopt additional restrictions regarding short sales, they could restrict the Fund’s ability to engage in short sales in certain circumstances, and the Fund may be unable to execute its investment strategy as a result.

The SEC and regulatory authorities in other jurisdictions may adopt (and in certain cases, have adopted) bans on short sales of certain securities in response to market events. Bans on short selling may make it impossible for the Fund to execute certain investment strategies and may have a material adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to generate returns.

Pending regulations would require any creditor that makes a loan and any securitizer of a loan to retain at least 5% of the credit risk on any loan that is transferred, sold or conveyed by such creditor or securitizer. It is currently unclear how these requirements would apply to loan participations, syndicated loans, and loan assignments. To the extent the Fund invests in loans, it could be adversely affected by the regulation. The effect of any future regulatory change on the Fund could be substantial and adverse.

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Lack of Operating History

As of the date of this SAI, the Fund has no operating history. Therefore, there is no operating history to evaluate the Fund’s future performance. The past performance of other investment funds managed by GMO cannot be relied upon as an indicator of the Fund’s success, in part because of the unique nature of the Fund’s investment strategy. An investor in Fund must rely upon the ability of GMO in identifying and implementing investments. There can be no assurance that such personnel will be successful in identifying and implementing investment opportunities for the Fund.