As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2015.
Registration Nos. 2-99356
811-04367
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, DC 20549
FORM N-1A
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933 | x | |||
Pre-Effective Amendment No. | ¨ | |||
Post-Effective Amendment No. 243 | x |
and/or
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940 | x | |||
Amendment No. 247 | x |
(Check Appropriate Box or Boxes)
COLUMBIA FUNDS SERIES TRUST I
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)
225 Franklin Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02110
(Address of Principal Executive Officers) (Zip Code)
Registrants Telephone Number, Including Area Code: (800) 345-6611
Christopher O. Petersen, Esq.
c/o Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC
225 Franklin Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02110
(Name and Address of Agent for Service)
It is proposed that this filing will become effective immediately upon filing pursuant to Rule 462(d).
This Post-Effective Amendment relates to Active Portfolios ® Multi-Manager Small Cap Equity Fund series of the Registrant.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
This Post-Effective Amendment No. 243 to the Registration Statement on Form N-1A (File No. 2-99356) is being filed pursuant to Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the Securities Act), solely for the purpose of adding exhibits to such Registration Statement. Accordingly, this Post-Effective Amendment No. 243 consists only of a facing page, this explanatory note, and Part C of the Registration Statement on Form N-1A. This Post-Effective Amendment No. 243 does not change the form of any prospectus or Statement of Additional Information including in post-effective amendments previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC). As permitted by Rule 462(d), this Post-Effective Amendment No. 243 shall become effective upon filing with the SEC.
PART C. OTHER INFORMATION
Item 28. Exhibits
(a)(1) |
Second Amended and Restated Agreement and Declaration of Trust, dated August 10, 2005, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 40 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (a)(1)), filed on September 16, 2005. | |
(a)(2) |
Amendment No. 1 to Second Amended and Restated Agreement and Declaration of Trust, effective September 19, 2005, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 40 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (a)(2)), filed on September 16, 2005. | |
(b) |
Amended and Restated By-laws of Registrant are incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 46 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (b)), filed on March 24, 2006. | |
(c) |
Not applicable. | |
(d)(1) |
Investment Management Services Agreement by and between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Registrant, dated as of May 1, 2010 (the Multi-Fund Investment Management Services Agreement), is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 105 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(1)), filed on May 28, 2010. | |
(d)(1)(i) |
Restated Schedule A, effective July 1, 2015, to the Multi-Fund Investment Management Services Agreement, dated May 1, 2010, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(1)(i)), filed on June 29, 2015. | |
(d)(1)(ii) |
Amendment No. 1 to the Multi-Fund Investment Management Services Agreement by and between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Registrant, dated as of February 28, 2011, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 2 to Registration Statement No. 333-170367 of the Registrant on Form N-14 (Exhibit (6)(c)), filed on July 22, 2011. | |
(d)(1)(iii) |
Amendment No. 2 to the Multi-Fund Investment Management Services Agreement by and between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Registrant, dated as of March 14, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective
Amendment No. 143 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A
(Exhibit (d)(2)(iii)), filed on March 14, 2012. |
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(d)(1)(iv) |
Amendment No. 3 to the Multi-Fund Investment Management Services Agreement by and between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Registrant, dated as of June 18, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 153 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(2)(iv)), filed on June 15, 2012. |
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(d)(2) |
Investment Management Services Agreement by and between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Registrant, dated as of May 1, 2010 (for CMG Ultra Short-Term Bond Fund), is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective
Amendment No. 105 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A
(Exhibit (d)(2)), filed on May 28, 2010. |
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(d)(3) |
Management Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Registrant, effective July 1, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(3)), filed on June 29, 2015. |
(d)(3)(i) |
Restated Schedule A and Schedule B, as of October 1, 2015, to the Management Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and the Registrant, effective July 1, 2015, are incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 239 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(3)(i)), filed on September 28, 2015. |
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(d)(4) |
Management Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Registrant, effective June 16, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(4)), filed on June 29, 2015. | |
(d)(4)(i) |
Schedule A, and Schedule B, effective June 16, 2015, to the Management Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Registrant, effective June 16, 2015, are incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(4)(i)), filed on June 29, 2015. | |
(d)(5) |
Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and AQR Capital Management, LLC dated March 7, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(3)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(d)(5)(i) |
Addendum dated March 7, 2012 to the Subadvisory Agreement dated March 7, 2012 between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and AQR Capital Management, LLC on behalf of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Alternatives Strategies Fund, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(3)(1)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(d)(6) |
Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC dated March 7, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(4)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(d)(6)(i) |
Amendment No.1, dated June 10, 2015, to the Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC dated March 7, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(6)(i)), filed on June 29, 2015. |
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(d)(7) |
Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and EAM Investors, LLC dated March 7, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(5)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(d)(8) |
Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Federated Investment Management Company dated March 7, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(6)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(d)(9) |
Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and TCW Investment Management Company dated February 6, 2013, last amended January 24, 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(7)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(d)(9)(i) |
Addendum Authorization to Enter Into Over-The-Counter And/Or Exchange Traded Derivatives between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and TCW Investment Management Company dated March 7, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(7)(1)), filed on May 30, 2014. |
(d)(10) |
Subadvisory Agreement among Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Threadneedle International Limited dated March 5, 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 236 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(10)), filed on August 26, 2015. | |
(d)(10)(i) |
Amendment No. 1, dated December 19, 2014, to the Subadvisory Agreement, between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Threadneedle International Limited, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 236 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(10)(i)), filed on August 26, 2015. | |
(d)(10)(ii) |
Amendment No. 2, dated March 4, 2015, to the Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Threadneedle International Limited, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective
Amendment No. 236 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(10)(ii)), filed on August 26, 2015. |
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(d)(10)(iii) |
Amendment No. 3, dated June 10, 2015, to the Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Threadneedle International Limited, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective
Amendment No. 236 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(10)(iii)), filed on August 26, 2015. |
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(d)(10)(iv) |
Addendum, dated December 19, 2014, to the Subadvisory Agreement, dated March 5, 2014, between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Threadneedle International Limited, pertaining to CDARF1 Offshore Fund Ltd., a subsidiary of Columbia Diversified Absolute Return Fund, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 236 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(10)(iv)), filed on August 26, 2015. | |
(d)(10)(v) |
Addendum, dated December 19, 2014, to the Subadvisory Agreement, dated March 5, 2014, between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Threadneedle International Limited, pertaining to CDARF2 Offshore Fund Ltd., a subsidiary of Columbia Diversified Absolute Return Fund, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 236 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(10)(v)), filed on August 26, 2015. | |
(d)(10)(vi) |
Addendum, dated December 19, 2014, to the Subadvisory Agreement, dated March 5, 2014, between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Threadneedle International Limited, pertaining to CDARF3 Offshore Fund Ltd., a subsidiary of Columbia Diversified Absolute Return Fund, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 236 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(10)(vi)), filed on August 26, 2015. | |
(d)(10)(vii) |
Addendum, dated December 19, 2014, to the Subadvisory Agreement, dated March 5, 2014, between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Threadneedle International Limited, pertaining to CAAF Offshore Fund Ltd., a subsidiary of Columbia Adaptive Alternatives Fund, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 236 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(10)(vii)), filed on August 26, 2015. | |
(d)(11) |
Subadvisory Agreement among Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Wasatch Advisors, Inc. dated March 7, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(8)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(d)(12) |
Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Water Island Capital, LLC dated March 7, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(9)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(d)(13) |
Delegation Agreement dated March 7, 2012 between Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co. LLC, and Real Estate Management Services Group, LLC, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(10)), filed on May 30, 2014. |
(d)(14) |
Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Conestoga Capital Advisors, LLC dated June 11, 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 205 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(11)), filed on August 28, 2014. | |
(d)(15) |
Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and Loomis, Sayles and Company, L.P. dated December 4, 2013, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(12)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(d)(16) |
Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and BMO Asset Management Corp. dated October 20, 2015, is filed herewith as Exhibit (d)(16) to Post-Effective Amendment No. 243 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A. | |
(d)(17) |
Management Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and CAAF Offshore Fund, Ltd., a subsidiary of Columbia Adaptive Alternatives Fund, effective October 1, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 239 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(18)), filed on September 28, 2015. | |
(d)(18) |
Management Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and CDARF1 Offshore Fund, Ltd., a subsidiary of Columbia Diversified Absolute Return Fund, effective October 1, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 239 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(19)), filed on September 28, 2015. | |
(d)(20) |
Management Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and CDARF2 Offshore Fund, Ltd., a subsidiary of Columbia Diversified Absolute Return Fund, effective October 1, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 239 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(20)), filed on September 28, 2015. | |
(d)(21) |
Management Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and CDARF3 Offshore Fund, Ltd., a subsidiary of Columbia Diversified Absolute Return Fund, effective October 1, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 239 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(21)), filed on September 28, 2015. | |
(d)(22) |
Investment Management Services Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and ASGM Offshore Fund, Ltd., a subsidiary of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Alternative Strategies Fund, dated March 12, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(13)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(d)(23) |
Investment Management Services Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and ASMF Offshore Fund, Ltd., a subsidiary of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Alternative Strategies Fund, dated March 12, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (d)(14)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(e)(1) |
Distribution Agreement by and between Registrant and Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc., dated as of September 7, 2010, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 111 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (e)), filed on September 27, 2010. |
(e)(1)(i) |
Restated Schedule I, dated as of June 10, 2015, to the Distribution Agreement by and between the Registrant and Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc., dated as of September 7, 2010, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (e)(2)), filed on June 29, 2015. |
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(e)(2) |
Form of Mutual Fund Sales Agreement is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 63 to Registration Statement No. 2-72174 of RiverSource Bond Series, Inc. on Form N-1A (Exhibit (e)(2)), filed on July 9, 2010. | |
(f) |
Form of Deferred Compensation Agreement is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (f)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(g)(1) |
Second Amended and Restated Master Global Custody Agreement between certain Funds and JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., dated March 7, 2011, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 124 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (g)(2)), filed on April 29, 2011. | |
(g)(2) |
Addendum to Master Global Custody Agreement (related to Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Alternative Strategies Fund, Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Core Plus Bond Fund, Active Portfolios-Multi-Manager Small Cap Equity Fund and Columbia Active Portfolios Select Large Cap Growth Fund, now known as Active Portfolios-Multi-Manager Growth Fund), dated March 9, 2012, Addendum to Master Global Custody Agreement (related to Columbia Risk Allocation Fund), dated June 11, 2012, and Addendum to Master Global Custody Agreement (related to Columbia Diversified Real Return Fund and Columbia Global Inflation Linked-Bond Fund), dated February 25, 2014, are incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (g)(2)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(g)(3) |
Addendum to Master Global Custody Agreement (related to Columbia Adaptive Alternatives Fund, Columbia Intermediary Alternatives Fund and Columbia Diversified Absolute Return Fund), dated January 15, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 221 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (g)(3)), filed on February 27, 2015. | |
(g)(4) |
Addendum to Master Global Custody Agreement (related to Columbia Multi-Asset Income Fund and Columbia U.S. Social Bond Fund), dated March 18, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 223 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (g)(4)), filed on March 24, 2015. | |
(g)(5) |
Side letter (related to the China Connect Service on behalf of Columbia Emerging Markets Fund, Columbia Greater China Fund and Columbia Pacific/Asia Fund), dated December 19, 2014, to the Second Amended and Restated Master Global Custody Agreement with JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., dated March 7, 2011, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 221 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (g)(4)), filed on February 27, 2015. |
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(h)(1) |
Administrative Services Agreement by and between Registrant, the other parties listed on Schedule A and Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, dated as of May 1, 2010 with Schedule A dated May 1, 2010, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 105 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(1)), filed on May 28, 2010. |
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(h)(1)(i) |
Amendment No. 1 to the Administrative Services Agreement by and among Registrant, the other parties listed on Schedule A and Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, dated as of February 28, 2011, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 139 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(1)(i)), filed on January 27, 2012. |
(h)(1)(ii) |
Amendment No. 2 to the Administrative Services Agreement by and among Registrant, the other parties listed on Schedule A thereto and Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, dated as of March 14, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 143 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(1)(iii)), filed on March 14, 2012. |
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(h)(1)(iii) |
Amendment No. 3 to the Administrative Services Agreement by and among Registrant, the other parties listed on Schedule A thereto and Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, dated as of June 18, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 153 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(1)(iv)), filed on June 15, 2012. |
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(h)(1)(iv) |
Amendment No. 4 to the Administrative Services Agreement by and among Registrant, the other parties listed on Schedule A thereto and Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, dated as of April 10, 2013, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 173 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(1)(v)), filed on April 30, 2013. |
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(h)(1)(v) |
Restated Schedule A and Schedule B, effective July 1, 2015, to the Administrative Services Agreement, by and between Registrant, the other parties listed on Schedule A, and Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, dated as of May 1, 2010, are incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(1)(vi)), filed on June 29, 2015. | |
(h)(2) |
Amended and Restated Transfer and Dividend Disbursing Agent Agreement by and between the Registrant and Columbia Management Investment Services Corp., dated as of May 24, 2011 with Schedule A dated as of May 24, 2011, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 2 to Registration Statement No. 333-170426 of the Registrant on Form N-14 (Exhibit (13)(d)(ii)), filed on July 22, 2011. | |
(h)(2)(i) |
Schedule A and Schedule B, effective July 1, 2015, to the Amended and Restated Transfer and Dividend Disbursing Agent Agreement by and between the Registrant and Columbia Management Investment Services Corp., dated as of May 24, 2011, are incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(2)(ii)), filed on June 29, 2015. | |
(h)(3) |
Form of Indemnification Agreement is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 46 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(6)), filed on March 24, 2006. | |
(h)(4) |
Amended and Restated Plan Administration Services Agreement, dated as of September 7, 2010, amended and restated November 1, 2012, by and among the Registrant, Columbia Funds Series Trust and Columbia Management Investment Services Corp, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 165 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(13)), filed on November 7, 2012. | |
(h)(4)(i) |
Exhibit A, Exhibit B and Exhibit C, effective May 1, 2015, to the Amended and Restated Plan Administration Services Agreement among Columbia Management Investment Services Corp., the Registrant and Columbia Funds Series Trust, dated as of September 7, 2010, amended and restated November 1, 2012, relating to Class K shares, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 141 to Registration Statement No. 333-89661 of Columbia Funds Series Trust on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(3)(i)), filed on May 28, 2015. | |
(h)(5) |
Amended and Restated Fee Waiver and Expense Cap Agreement by and among Registrant, Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. and Columbia Management Investment Services Corp., dated June 1, 2011, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 2 to Registration Statement No. 333-170426 of the Registrant on Form N-14 (Exhibit (13)(r)(3)), filed on July 22, 2011. |
(h)(5)(i) |
Restated Schedule A, effective June 10, 2015, to the Amended and Restated Fee Waiver and Expense Cap Agreement by and among Registrant, Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. and Columbia Management Investment Services Corp., is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(5)(ii)), filed on June 29, 2015. | |
(h)(6) |
Administrative Services Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and, ASGM Offshore Fund, Ltd., a subsidiary of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Alternative Strategies Fund, dated March 14, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(6)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(h)(7) |
Administrative Services Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and, ASMF Offshore Fund, Ltd., a subsidiary of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Alternative Strategies Fund, dated March 14, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(7)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(h)(8) |
Agreement and Plan of Reorganization, dated October 9, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 175 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(8)), filed on May 30, 2013. | |
(h)(9) |
Agreement and Plan of Reorganization, dated December 20, 2010, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 15 to Registration Statement No. 333-146374 of Columbia Funds Variable Series Trust II on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(9)), filed on April 29, 2011. | |
(h)(10) |
Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, as of December 9, 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 225 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (h)(14)), filed on April 16, 2015. | |
(i)(1) |
Opinion of Counsel of Ropes & Gray LLP is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 40 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (i)), filed on September 16, 2005. | |
(i)(2) |
Opinion of Counsel of Ropes & Gray LLP is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 68 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (i)(2)), filed on January 16, 2008. | |
(i)(3) |
Opinion of Counsel of Ropes & Gray LLP is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 81 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (i)(3)), filed on November 25, 2008. | |
(i)(4) |
Opinion of Counsel of Ropes & Gray LLP is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 95 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (i)(4)), filed on November 20, 2009. | |
(i)(5) |
Opinion of Counsel of Ropes & Gray LLP is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 143 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (i)(5)), filed on March 14, 2012. | |
(i)(6) |
Opinion of Counsel of Ropes & Gray LLP, with respect to Columbia Risk Allocation Fund, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 153 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (I)(6)), filed on June 15, 2012. |
(i)(7) |
Opinion of Counsel of Ropes & Gray LLP, with respect to Columbia Diversified Real Return Fund and Columbia Global Inflation-Linked Plus Bond Fund, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 190 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (i)(7)), filed on March 10, 2014. | |
(i)(8) |
Opinion of Counsel of Ropes & Gray LLP, with respect to Columbia Adaptive Alternatives Fund and Columbia Diversified Absolute Return Fund, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 219 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (j)(8)), filed on January 27, 2015. | |
(i)(9) |
Opinion of Counsel of Ropes & Gray LLP, with respect to Columbia Multi-Asset Income Fund and Columbia U.S. Social Bond Fund is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 223 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (i)(9)), filed on March 24, 2015. | |
(i)(10) |
Opinion of Counsel of Ropes & Gray LLP, with respect to Columbia Global Unconstrained Bond Fund is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (i)(10)), filed on June 29, 2015. |
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(j)(1) |
Consent of Morningstar, Inc., is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 21 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (11)(b)), filed on August 30, 1996. | |
(j)(2) |
Consent of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP: Not Applicable. | |
(k) |
Omitted Financial Statements: Not Applicable. | |
(l) |
Initial Capital Agreement: Not Applicable. | |
(m)(1) |
Amended and Restated Distribution Plan is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 190 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (m)(1)), filed on March 10, 2014. | |
(m)(2) |
Amended and Restated Shareholder Servicing Plan, as of March 4, 2015, for certain Fund share classes of the Registrant, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 223 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (m)(2)), filed on March 24, 2015. | |
(m)(2)(i) |
Exhibit I and Exhibit II, effective June 10, 2015, to Amended and Restated Shareholder Servicing Plan, as of March 4, 2015, for certain Fund share classes of the Registrant, are incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 231 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (m)(2)(i)), filed on June 29, 2015. | |
(m)(3) |
Amended and Restated Shareholder Services Plan for Registrants Class T shares is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 113 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (m)(3)), filed on November 24, 2010. | |
(m)(4) |
Restated Schedule I, effective October 1, 2014, to Shareholder Servicing Plan Implementation Agreement for Registrants Class T shares between the Registrant and Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc., is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 207 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (m)(5)), filed on September 26, 2014. | |
(m)(5) |
Shareholder Servicing Plan Implementation Agreement for certain Fund share classes of the Registrant between the Registrant, Columbia Funds Series Trust, Columbia Funds Series Trust II and Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc., is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 113 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (m)(4)), filed on November 24, 2010. |
(m)(6) |
Restated Schedule I to Shareholder Servicing Plan Implementation Agreement is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 143 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (m)(6)), filed on March 14, 2012. | |
(n) |
Rule 18f 3 Multi-Class Plan, amended and restated as of February 19, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 223 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (n)), filed on March 24, 2015. | |
(o) |
Reserved. | |
(p)(1) |
Columbia Funds Family Code of Ethics effective April 14, 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 196 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(1)), filed on May 30, 2014. | |
(p)(2) |
Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. and Threadneedle International Limited Code of Ethics, effective December 8, 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 120 to Registration Statement No. 333-131683 of Columbia Funds Series Trust II on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(2)), filed on November 25, 2014. | |
(p)(3) |
Code of Ethics of AQR Capital Management, LLC (a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Alternative Strategies Fund), effective September 13, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 228 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(3)), filed on May 28, 2015. | |
(p)(4) |
Code of Ethics of Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC (a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Small Cap Equity Fund), revised April 10, 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 225 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(4)), filed on April 16, 2015. | |
(p)(5) |
Code of Ethics and Standards of Business Conduct of EAM Investors, LLC (a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Small Cap Equity Fund), effective May 27, 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 225 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(5)), filed on April 16, 2015. | |
(p)(6) |
Code of Ethics for Access Persons of Federated Investment Management Company (a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Core Plus Bond Fund), effective September 30, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 187 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(6)), filed on December 23, 2013. | |
(p)(7) |
Code of Ethics of TCW Investment Management Company (a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Core Plus Bond Fund), dated March 9, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 228 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(7)), filed on May 28, 2015. | |
(p)(8) |
Code of Ethics of Wasatch Advisors, Inc. (a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Alternative Strategies Fund), effective August 22, 2012, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 187 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(9)), filed on December 23, 2013. |
(p)(9) |
Code of Ethics of Water Island Capital, LLC (a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Alternative Strategies Fund), effective July 1, 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 211 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(9)), filed on October 24, 2014. | |
(p)(10) |
Code of Ethics of Real Estate Management Services Group, LLC. (provides advisory services as delegated by Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC, a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Small Cap Equity Fund), is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 143 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(12)), filed on March 14, 2012. | |
(p)(11) |
Code of Ethics of Conestoga Capital Advisors, LLC (a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Small Cap Equity Fund), effective October 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 225 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(11)), filed on April 16, 2015. | |
(p)(12) |
Code of Ethics of Loomis, Sayles and Company, L.P. (subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Growth Fund), effective January 14, 2000, last amended December 18, 2014, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 225 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (p)(12)), filed on April 16, 2015. | |
(p)(13) |
Code of Ethics of BMO Asset Management Corp. (a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Small Cap Equity Fund), effective June 4, 2015, is filed herewith as Exhibit (p)(13) to Post-Effective Amendment No. 243 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A. | |
(q)(1) |
Trustees Power of Attorney, dated February 16, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 226 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (q)(1)), filed on April 28, 2015. | |
(q)(2) |
Trustee Power of Attorney for Janet L. Carrig, dated August 19, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 236 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (q)(2)), filed on August 26, 2015. | |
(q)(3) |
Power of Attorney for Michael G. Clarke, dated February 16, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 221 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (q)(3)), filed on February 27, 2015. | |
(q)(4) |
Power of Attorney for Christopher O. Petersen, dated February 16, 2015, is incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 221 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (q)(7)), filed on February 27, 2015. |
Item 29. Persons Controlled by or under Common Control with Registrant
Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC (the investment manager or Columbia Management), as sponsor of the Columbia funds, may make initial capital investments in Columbia funds (seed accounts). Columbia Management also serves as investment manager of certain Columbia funds-of-funds that invest primarily in shares of affiliated funds (the underlying funds). Columbia Management does not make initial capital investments or invest in underlying funds for the purpose of exercising control. However, since these ownership interests may be significant, in excess of 25%, such that Columbia Management may be deemed to control certain Columbia funds, procedures have been put in place to assure that public shareholders determine the outcome of all actions taken at shareholder meetings. Specifically, Columbia Management (which votes proxies for the seed accounts) and the Boards of Trustees of the affiliated funds-of-funds (which votes proxies for the affiliated funds-of-funds) vote on each proposal in the same proportion as the vote of the direct public shareholders vote; provided, however, that if there are no direct public shareholders of an underlying fund or if direct public shareholders represent only a minority interest in an underlying fund, the Fund may cast votes in accordance with instructions from the independent members of the Board.
Item 30. Indemnification
Article Five of the Bylaws of Registrant provides that Registrant shall indemnify each of its trustees and officers (including persons who serve at Registrants request as directors, officers or trustees of another organization in which Registrant has any interest as a shareholder, creditor or otherwise) who are not employees or officers of any investment adviser to Registrant or any affiliated person thereof and its chief compliance officer, regardless of whether such person is an employee or officer of any investment adviser to Registrant or any affiliated person thereof, and may indemnify each of its trustees and officers (including persons who serve at Registrants request as directors, officers or trustees of another organization in which Registrant has any interest as a shareholder, creditor or otherwise) (i.e., those who are employees or officers of any investment adviser to Registrant or any affiliated person thereof) (Covered Persons) under specified circumstances, all as more fully set forth in the Registrants Bylaws, which have been filed as an exhibit to this registration statement.
Section 17(h) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (1940 Act) provides that no instrument pursuant to which Registrant is organized or administered shall contain any provision which protects or purports to protect any trustee or officer of Registrant against any liability to Registrant or its shareholders to which he or she would otherwise be subject by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence, or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of his or her office. In accordance with Section 17(h) of the 1940 Act, no Covered Person is indemnified under the Bylaws against any liability to Registrant or its shareholders by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence, or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of the Covered Persons office.
Pursuant to the Distribution Agreement, Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. agrees to indemnify the Registrant, its officers and trustees against claims, demands, liabilities and expenses under specified circumstances, all as more fully set forth in the Registrants Distribution Agreement, which has been filed as an exhibit to the registration statement. The Registrant may be party to other contracts that include indemnification provisions for the benefit of the Registrants trustees and officers.
The trustees and officers of the Registrant and the personnel of the Registrants investment adviser and principal underwriter are insured under an errors and omissions liability insurance policy. Registrants investment adviser, Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, maintains investment advisory professional liability insurance to insure it, for the benefit of Registrant and its non-interested trustees, against loss arising out of any effort, omission, or breach of any duty owed to Registrant or any series of Registrant by Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC.
Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to trustees, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant by the Registrant pursuant to the Registrants organizational instruments or otherwise, the Registrant is aware that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission, such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act of 1933 and, therefore, is unenforceable.
Item 31. Business and Other Connections of the Investment Adviser
To the knowledge of the Registrant, none of the directors or officers of Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC (the Investment Manager), the Registrants investment adviser, or the subadviser to a series of the Registrant, except as set forth below, are or have been, at any time during the Registrants past two fiscal years, engaged in any other business, profession, vocation or employment of a substantial nature.
(a) |
The Investment Manager, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ameriprise Financial, Inc. performs investment advisory services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of the Investment Manager and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statements of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolios and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of the Investment Manager and the directors and principal executive officers of the Investment Manager is also included in the Form ADV filed by the Investment Manager (formerly, RiverSource Investments, LLC) with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-25943), which is incorporated herein by reference. In |
addition to their position with the Investment Manager, certain directors and officers of the Investment Manager also hold various positions with, and engage in business for, Ameriprise Financial, Inc. or its other subsidiaries. |
(b) | AQR Capital Management, LLC performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of AQR Capital Management, LLC and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by AQR Capital Management, LLC and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of AQR Capital Management, LLC and the directors and principal executive officers of AQR Capital Management, LLC is also included in the Form ADV filed by AQR Capital Management, LLC with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-55543), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
(c) | BMO Asset Management Corp. performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of BMO Asset Management Corp. and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by BMO Asset Management Corp. and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of BMO Asset Management Corp. and the directors and principal executive officers of BMO Asset Management Corp. is also included in the Form ADV filed by BMO Asset Management Corp. with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-35533), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
(d) | Conestoga Capital Advisors, LLC performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of Conestoga Capital Advisors, LLC and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by Conestoga Capital Advisors, LLC and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of Conestoga Capital Advisors, LLC and the directors and principal executive officers of Conestoga Capital Advisors, LLC is also included in the Form ADV filed by Conestoga Capital Advisors, LLC with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-60133), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
(e) | Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC and the directors and principal executive officers of Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC is also included in the Form ADV filed by Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., LLC with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-62895), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
(f) | EAM Investors, LLC performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of EAM Investors, LLC and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by EAM Investors, LLC and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of EAM Investors, LLC and the directors and principal executive officers of EAM Investors, LLC is also included in the Form ADV filed by EAM Investors, LLC with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-70305), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
(g) | Federated Investment Management Company performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of Federated Investment Management Company and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by Federated Investment Management Company and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of Federated Investment Management Company and the directors and principal executive officers of Federated Investment Management Company is also included in the Form ADV filed by Federated Investment Management Company with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-34612), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
(h) | Loomis, Sayles and Company, L.P. performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of Loomis, Sayles and Company, L.P. and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by Loomis, Sayles and Company, L.P. and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of Loomis, Sayles and Company, L.P. and the directors and principal executive officers of Loomis, Sayles and Company, L.P. is also included in the Form ADV filed by Loomis, Sayles and Company, L.P. with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-170), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
(i) | TCW Investment Management Company performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of TCW Investment Management Company and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by TCW Investment Management Company and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of TCW Investment Management Company and the directors and principal executive officers of TCW Investment Management Company is also included in the Form ADV filed by TCW Investment Management Company with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-29075), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
(j) | Threadneedle International Limited performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of Threadneedle International Limited and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by Threadneedle International Limited and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of Threadneedle International Limited and the directors and principal executive officers of Threadneedle International Limited is also included in the Form ADV filed by Threadneedle International Limited with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-63196), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
(k) | Wasatch Advisors, Inc. performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of Wasatch Advisors, Inc. and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by Wasatch Advisors, Inc. and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of Wasatch Advisors, Inc. and the directors and principal executive officers of Wasatch Advisors, Inc. is also included in the Form ADV filed by Wasatch Advisors, Inc. with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-11095), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
(l) | Water Island Capital, LLC performs investment management services for the Registrant and certain other clients. Information regarding the business of Water Island Capital, LLC and certain of its officers is set forth in the Prospectuses and Statement of Additional Information of the Registrants portfolio(s) subadvised by Water Island Capital, LLC and is incorporated herein by reference. Information about the business of Water Island Capital, LLC and the directors and principal executive officers of Water Island Capital, LLC is also included in the Form ADV filed by Water Island Capital, LLC with the SEC pursuant to the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (File No. 801-57341), which is incorporated herein by reference. |
Item 32. Principal Underwriter
(a) | Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. acts as principal underwriter for the following investment companies, including the Registrant: |
Columbia Acorn Trust; Columbia Funds Series Trust; Columbia Funds Series Trust I; Columbia Funds Series Trust II; Columbia Funds Variable Series Trust II; Columbia Funds Variable Insurance Trust; Columbia Funds Variable Insurance Trust I and Wanger Advisors Trust.
(b) | As to each director, principal officer or partner of Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. |
Name and Principal Business Address* |
Position and Offices with Principal Underwriter |
Positions and Offices with Registrant |
||
William F. Truscott |
Chief Executive Officer | Board Member, Senior Vice President | ||
Joseph Kringdon |
President and Head of Intermediary Distribution | None | ||
Amy Unckless |
Managing Director, Head of Private Wealth Management and Investment Only | None | ||
Jeffrey F. Peters |
Managing Director and Head of Global Institutional Distribution | None | ||
Dave K. Stewart |
Chief Financial Officer | None | ||
Scott R. Plummer |
Senior Vice President, Head of Global Asset Management Legal and Assistant Secretary | None | ||
Michael E. DeFao |
Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Assistant Secretary | Vice President and Assistant Secretary | ||
Stephen O. Buff |
Vice President, Chief Compliance Officer | None | ||
Paulo Botelho |
Vice President Investor and Intermediary Services | None | ||
Joe Feloney |
Vice President National Sales Manager U.S. Trust/Private Wealth Management | None | ||
Thomas A. Jones |
Vice President and Head of Strategic Relations | None | ||
Gary Rawdon |
Vice President Sales Governance and Administration | None | ||
Leslie A. Walstrom |
Vice President and U.S. Head of Marketing | None | ||
Thomas R. Moore |
Secretary | None | ||
Paul B. Goucher |
Vice President and Assistant Secretary |
Senior Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Assistant Secretary |
||
Tara W. Tilbury |
Vice President and Assistant Secretary | Assistant Secretary | ||
Nancy W. LeDonne |
Vice President and Assistant Secretary | None | ||
Ryan C. Larrenaga |
Vice President and Assistant Secretary | Vice President and Secretary |
Joseph L. DAlessandro |
Vice President and Assistant Secretary | Assistant Secretary | ||
Christopher O. Petersen |
Vice President and Assistant Secretary | President and Principal Executive Officer | ||
Eric T. Brandt |
Vice President and Assistant Secretary | None | ||
James L. Hamalainen |
Treasurer | None | ||
Ken Murphy |
Anti-Money Laundering Officer and Identity Theft Prevention Officer | None | ||
Kevin Wasp |
Ombudsman | None | ||
Kristin Weisser |
Conflicts Officer | None |
* | The principal business address of Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc. is 225 Franklin Street, Boston MA 02110. |
Item 33. Location of Accounts and Records
Person maintaining physical possession of accounts, books and other documents required to be maintained by Section 31(a) of the 1940 Act and the Rules thereunder include:
| Registrant, 225 Franklin Street, Boston, MA 02110; |
| Registrants investment adviser and administrator, Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, 225 Franklin Street, Boston, MA 02110; |
| Registrants subadviser, AQR Capital Management, LLC, Two Greenwich Plaza, 3rd Floor, Greenwich, CT 06830; |
| Registrants subadviser, BMO Asset Management, Corp., 115 South LaSalle Street, 11 th Floor, Chicago, IL, 60603 |
| Registrants subadviser, Conestoga Capital Advisors, LLC, 550 East Swedesford Road, Suite 120, Wayne, PA 19087; |
| Registrants subadviser, Dalton, Greiner, Hartman, Maher & Co., 565 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2101, New York, NY 10017; |
| Registrants subadviser, EAM Investors, LLC, 2533 South Coast Highway 101, Suite 240, Cardiff-by-the-Sea, CA 92007; |
| Registrants former subadviser, Eaton Vance Management, Two International Place, Boston, MA 02110; |
| Registrants subadviser, Federated Investment Management Company, Federated Investors Tower, 1001 Liberty Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222-3779; |
| Registrants subadviser, Loomis, Sayles and Company, L.P., One Financial Center, Boston, MA 02111; |
| Registrants subadviser, TCW Investment Management Company, 865 South Figueroa Street, Suite 1800, Los Angeles, CA 90017; |
| Registrants subadviser, Threadneedle International Limited, Cannon Place, 78 Cannon Street, London EC4N 6AG, United Kingdom; |
| Registrants subadviser, Wasatch Advisors, Inc., 505 Wakara Way, 3 rd Floor, Salt Lake City, UT 84108; |
| Registrants subadviser, Water Island Capital, LLC, 41 Madison Avenue, 42nd floor, New York, NY 10010; |
| Registrants provider of advisory service as delegated by DGHM, Real Estate Management Services Group, LLC, 1100 Fifth Avenue South, Suite 305, Naples, FL 34102; |
| Registrants former subadviser, Nordea Investment Management North America, Inc., 437 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10022; |
| Registrants former subadviser, RS Investment Management Co. LLC, 388 Market Street, Suite 1700, San Francisco, CA 94111; |
| Registrants principal underwriter, Columbia Management Investment Distributors, Inc., 225 Franklin Street, Boston, MA, 02110; |
| Registrants transfer agent, Columbia Management Investment Services Corp., 225 Franklin Street, Boston, MA, 02110; |
| Registrants custodian, JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., 1 Chase Manhattan Plaza 19 th Floor, New York, NY 10005; and |
| Registrants former custodian, State Street Bank and Trust Company, State Street Financial Center, One Lincoln Street, Boston, MA 02111. |
In addition, Iron Mountain Records Management is an off-site storage facility housing historical records that are no longer required to be maintained on-site. Records stored at this facility include various trading and accounting records, as well as other miscellaneous records. The address for Iron Mountain Records Management is 920 & 950 Apollo Road, Eagan, MN 55121.
Item 34. Management Services
Not Applicable.
Item 35. Undertakings
Not Applicable.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Registrant, COLUMBIA FUNDS SERIES TRUST I, has duly caused this Amendment to its Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, duly authorized, in the City of Boston, and The Commonwealth of Massachusetts on the 26 th day of October, 2015.
COLUMBIA FUNDS SERIES TRUST I |
||||
By: |
/s/ Christopher O. Petersen |
|||
Christopher O. Petersen |
||||
President |
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this Amendment to the Registration Statement has been signed below by the following persons in the capacities indicated on the 26 th day of October, 2015.
Signature | Capacity | Signature | Capacity | |||
/s/ Christopher O. Petersen Christopher O. Petersen |
President (Principal Executive Officer) |
/s/ Charles R. Nelson* Charles R. Nelson |
Trustee | |||
/s/ Michael G. Clarke* Michael G. Clarke |
Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial Officer) Chief Accounting Officer (Principal Accounting Officer) |
/s/ John J. Neuhauser* John J. Neuhauser |
Trustee | |||
/s/ Douglas A. Hacker* Douglas A. Hacker |
Chair of the Board |
/s/ Patrick J. Simpson* Patrick J. Simpson |
Trustee | |||
/s/ Janet L. Carrig* Janet L. Carrig |
Trustee |
/s/ William F. Truscott* William F. Truscott |
Trustee | |||
/s/ Nancy T. Lukitsh* Nancy T. Lukitsh |
Trustee |
/s/ Anne-Lee Verville* Anne-Lee Verville |
Trustee | |||
/s/ William E. Mayer* William E. Mayer |
Trustee | |||||
/s/ David M. Moffett* David M. Moffett |
Trustee |
* |
By: |
/s/ Joseph L. D Alessandro |
||
Name: |
Joseph L. D Alessandro** | |||
Attorney-in-fact |
** | Executed by Joseph L. D Alessandro on behalf of Michael G. Clarke pursuant to a Power of Attorney, dated February 16, 2015 and incorporated by reference to Post-Effective Amendment No. 221 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (q)(3)), filed with the Commission on February 27, 2015, on behalf of Janet L. Carrig pursuant to a Trustee Power of Attorney, dated August 19, 2015, and incorporated by reference to Post-effective Amendment No. 236 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (q)(2)), filed with the Commission on August 26, 2015, and on behalf of each of the other Trustees pursuant to a Trustees Power of Attorney, dated February 16, 2015, and incorporated by reference to Post-effective Amendment No. 226 to Registration Statement No. 2-99356 of the Registrant on Form N-1A (Exhibit (q)(1)), filed with the Commission on April 28, 2015. |
Exhibit Index
(d)(16) |
Subadvisory Agreement between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC and BMO Asset Management Corp. dated October 20, 2015. | |
(p)(13) |
Code of Ethics of BMO Asset Management Corp. (a subadviser of Active Portfolios Multi-Manager Small Cap Equity Fund), effective June 4, 2015. |
SUBADVISORY AGREEMENT
Agreement made as of the 20th day of October, 2015 by and between Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, a Minnesota limited liability company (Investment Manager), and BMO Asset Management Corp., a Delaware corporation (Subadviser).
WHEREAS, the fund listed in Schedule A is a series of an investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act).
WHEREAS, Investment Manager entered into an Investment Management Services Agreement (the Advisory Agreement) with the Fund pursuant to which Investment Manager provides investment advisory services to the Fund.
WHEREAS, Investment Manager and the Fund each desire to retain Subadviser to provide investment advisory services to the Fund, and Subadviser is willing to render such investment advisory services.
WHEREAS, the effective date of this Agreement is October 26, 2015.
NOW, THEREFORE, the parties, intending to be legally bound, agree as follows:
1. | Subadvisers Duties . |
(a) | Portfolio Management . Subject to supervision by Investment Manager and the Funds Board of Directors/Trustees (the Board), Subadviser shall manage the investment operations and the composition of that portion of the assets of the Fund which is allocated to Subadviser from time to time by Investment Manager (which portion may include any or all of the Funds assets), including the purchase, retention, and disposition thereof, in accordance with the Funds investment objectives, policies, and restrictions, and subject to the following understandings: |
(i) | Investment Decisions . Subadviser shall determine from time to time what investments and securities will be purchased, retained, or sold with respect to that portion of the Fund allocated to it by Investment Manager, and what portion of such assets will be invested or held uninvested as cash. Subadviser is prohibited from consulting with any other subadviser of the Fund concerning transactions of the Fund in securities or other assets, other than for purposes of complying with the conditions of Rule 12d3-1(a) or (b) of the 1940 Act. Subadviser will not be responsible for voting proxies issued by companies held in the Fund although Investment Manager may consult with Subadviser from time to time regarding the voting of proxies of securities owned by the Fund. Subadviser will not be responsible for filing claims in class action settlements related to securities currently or previously held by that portion of the Fund allocated to it by Investment Manager. |
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(ii) | Investment Limits . In the performance of its duties and obligations under this Agreement, Subadviser shall act in conformity with applicable limits and requirements, as amended from time to time, as set forth in the (a) Funds prospectus (Prospectus) and the Funds Statement of Additional Information (SAI); (b) instructions and directions of Investment Manager and of the Board; and (c) requirements of the 1940 Act, the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the Code), as applicable to the Fund, and all other applicable federal and state laws and regulations. Investment Manager agrees to give Subadviser prompt written notice if Investment Manager believes any recommendations, advice or investments to be in violation of (a), (b) or (c) above. |
(iii) | Portfolio Transactions . |
(A) | Trading . With respect to the securities and other investments to be purchased or sold for the Fund, Subadviser shall place orders with or through such persons, brokers, dealers, or futures commission merchants (including, but not limited to, broker-dealers that are affiliated with Investment Manager or Subadviser) selected by Subadviser; provided, however, that such orders shall be consistent with Subadvisers brokerage policy; conform with federal securities laws; and be consistent with seeking best execution. The Subadviser may consider the research, investment information, and other services provided by, and the financial responsibility of, brokers, dealers, or futures commission merchants who may effect, or be a party to, any such transaction or other transactions to which Subadvisers other clients may be a party in accordance with Section 28(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. To the extent permitted by law, and consistent with its obligation to seek best execution, Subadviser may execute transactions or pay a broker-dealer a commission, spread or markup in excess of that which another broker-dealer might have charged for executing a transaction provided that Subadviser determines, in good faith, that the execution is appropriate or the commission, spread or markup is reasonable in relation to the value of the brokerage and/or research services provided, viewed in terms of either that particular transaction or Subadvisers overall responsibilities with respect to the Fund and other clients for which it acts as subadviser. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, to the extent Subadviser is directed by Investment Manager to use a particular broker or brokers to borrow securities to cover securities sold short, Subadviser shall have no responsibility for setting the rate charged to borrow a security or otherwise ensuring that the rate charged by such broker to borrow a security is favorable. |
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(B) | Aggregation of Trades . Subadviser, to the extent permitted by applicable laws and regulations, may, but shall be under no obligation to, aggregate the securities or other investments to be sold or purchased for the Fund as well as other clients of Subadviser in order to seek best execution. In such event, allocation of the securities or futures contracts so purchased or sold, as well as the expenses incurred in the transaction, will be made by Subadviser in the manner Subadviser considers to be the most equitable and consistent with its fiduciary obligations to the Fund and to such other clients. |
(C) | Subadviser will not arrange purchases or sales of securities or other investments between the Fund and other accounts advised by Subadviser or its affiliates unless (a) such purchases or sales are in accordance with applicable law (including Rule 17a-7 of the 1940 Act) and the Funds policies and procedures as provided in writing to Subadviser along with any amendments, and (b) Subadviser determines the purchase or sale is in the best interests of the Fund. |
(iv) | Records and Reports . Subadviser (a) shall maintain such books and records for such time periods as are required of an SEC-registered investment adviser to an investment company registered under the 1940 Act, (b) shall render to the Board such periodic and special reports as the Board (or a Committee thereof) or Investment Manager may reasonably request in writing, and (c) shall meet with any persons at the request of Investment Manager or the Board for the purpose of reviewing Subadvisers performance under this Agreement at reasonable times and upon reasonable advance notice. |
(v) | Transaction Reports. Subadviser shall provide Investment Manager a daily trade file with information relating to all transactions concerning the allocated portion of the Funds assets for which Subadviser is responsible and shall provide Investment Manager with such other information regarding the Fund upon Investment Managers reasonable request. Subadviser shall affirm or send a trade file of these transactions as instruction to the custodian of the Fund. |
(b) |
Compliance Program and Ongoing Certification(s). As requested, Subadviser shall timely provide to Investment Manager (i) information and commentary for the Funds annual and semi-annual reports, in a format approved by Investment Manager, and shall (a) certify that such information and commentary does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the information and commentary not misleading, in a format |
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reasonably requested by Investment Manager, as it may be amended from time to time, and (b) provide (i) additional certifications related to Subadvisers management of the Fund in order to support the Funds filings on Form N-CSR and Form N-Q, and the Funds Principal Executive Officers and Principal Financial Officers certifications under Rule 30a-2 of the 1940 Act, thereon; in a format reasonably requested by Investment Manager, as it may be amended from time to time, (ii) a quarterly sub-certification with respect to compliance matters related to Subadviser and Subadvisers management of the Fund, in a format reasonably requested by Investment Manager, as it may be amended from time to time; (iii) an annual certification from Subadvisers Chief Compliance Officer, appointed under Rule 206(4)-7 of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the Advisers Act), or his or her designee with respect to the design and operation of Subadvisers compliance program, in a format reasonably requested by Investment Manager, as it may be amended from time to time; and (iv) from time to time Subadviser shall provide such certifications to assist Investment Manager in fulfilling Investment Managers obligations under Rule 38a-1 of the 1940 Act, as are reasonably requested by the Fund or Investment Manager. In addition, Subadviser will, from time to time, provide a written assessment of its compliance program in conformity with current industry standards that is reasonably acceptable to Investment Manager to enable the Fund to fulfill its obligations under Rule 38a-1 of the 1940 Act. |
(c) | Maintenance of Records . Subadviser shall timely furnish to Investment Manager all information relating to Subadvisers services hereunder which Subadviser is required by law or regulation to keep and which are needed by Investment Manager to maintain the books and records of the Fund required under the 1940 Act. Subadviser agrees that all records which it maintains for the Fund are the property of the Fund and Subadviser will surrender promptly to the Fund any of such records upon the Funds request; provided, however, that Subadviser may retain a copy of such records. Subadviser further agrees to preserve for the periods prescribed under the 1940 Act any such records as are required to be maintained by it pursuant to paragraph 1(a) hereof. |
(d) | Insurance and Code of Ethics . Subadviser will provide the Fund with reasonable evidence that, with respect to its activities on behalf of the Fund, Subadviser is maintaining (i) adequate errors and omissions insurance and (ii) an appropriate Code of Ethics and related reporting procedures. |
(e) | Confidentiality . |
Each of the parties hereto agrees that it shall exercise the same standard of care that it uses to protect its own confidential and proprietary information (Confidential Information), but no less than reasonable care, to protect the Confidential Information of the other party. As used herein, Confidential Information, includes, but is not limited, to Fund Portfolio Information, which refers to confidential and proprietary information with regard to (i) the portfolio
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holdings and characteristics of the portion of the Fund allocated to Subadviser that Subadviser manages under the terms of this Agreement, and (ii) any copies of any agreements between the Investment Manager and its various counterparties and all the terms and provisions contained therein, which the Investment Manager (which term shall include the Investment Managers directors, officers, employees, agents, advisors, proposed financing sources, attorneys and accountants) may furnish, disclose or reveal to Subadviser (which term shall include Subadvisers directors, officers, employees, agents, advisors, proposed financing sources, attorneys and accountants). Each party hereby agrees to restrict access to the other partys Confidential Information to its employees who will use it only for the purpose of providing services under this Agreement. The foregoing shall not prevent a party from disclosing Confidential Information (1) that is publicly known or becomes publicly known through no unauthorized act; (2) that is rightfully received from a third party without obligation of confidentiality; (3)(a) that, in the case of Investment Managers Confidential Information, is approved in writing by Investment Manager for disclosure, (3)(b) that, in the case of Subadvisers Confidential Information, is approved in writing by Subadviser for disclosure; (4) that is disclosed in the course of a regulatory examination or that is required to be disclosed pursuant to a requirement of a governmental or regulatory agency or law, so long as the non-disclosing party provides (to the extent permitted under applicable law) the disclosing party (i.e., the party whose Confidential Information would be disclosed) with prompt written notice of such requirement prior to any such disclosure; however, Subadviser is not required to provide such notice if information is provided on an aggregate basis without specific attribution to the Fund; (5) to affiliates that have a reason to know such information; (6) to the custodian of the Fund; (7) to brokers and dealers that are counterparties for trades for the Fund; (8) to futures commission merchants executing or clearing transactions in connection with the Fund, if applicable; and (9) to third party service providers to Subadviser subject to confidentiality agreements or duties. Notwithstanding the foregoing, to the extent Fund Portfolio Information is similar to investments for other clients of Subadviser, Subadviser may disclose such investments without direct reference to the Fund. Investment Manager agrees that Subadviser may identify Investment Manager or the Fund by name in Subadvisers current client list. Such list may be used with third parties.
(f) | Cooperation . As reasonably requested by Investment Manager or the Board and in accordance with the scope of Subadvisers obligations and responsibilities contained in this Agreement, Subadviser will cooperate with, and provide reasonable assistance to, Investment Manager or the Fund as needed in order for Investment Manager and the Fund to comply with applicable laws, rules and regulations, including, but not limited to, compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the rules and regulations promulgated by the SEC thereunder and the evaluation of any actions under U.S. or foreign securities laws pursuant to which the Fund may be able to assert a potential claim. |
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2. | Investment Managers Duties . Investment Manager shall continue to have responsibility for all other services to be provided to the Fund pursuant to the Advisory Agreement and shall oversee and review Subadvisers performance of its duties under this Agreement. Investment Manager shall also retain direct portfolio management responsibility with respect to any assets of the Fund which are not allocated by it to the portfolio management of Subadviser as provided in paragraph 1(a) hereof or to any other subadviser. Investment Manager will periodically provide to Subadviser a list of the affiliates of Investment Manager or the Fund to which investment restrictions apply, and will specifically identify in writing (a) all publicly traded companies that issue securities in which the Fund may not invest, together with ticker symbols for all such companies, and (b) any affiliated brokers and any restrictions that apply to the use of those brokers by Subadviser. Neither Subadviser nor any of its directors, officers, partners, principals, employees or agents shall have responsibility whatsoever for, and shall incur no liability on account of (i) diversification, selection or establishment of such investment objectives, policies and restrictions of the Fund, (ii) advice on, or management of, any assets for the Fund other than the assets for which Investment Manager has delegated investment discretion to Subadviser, (iii) filing of any tax or information returns or forms, withholding or paying any taxes, or seeking any exemption or refund, (iv) registration of the Fund with any government or agency, (v) administration of the plans and trusts investing in the Fund, or (vi) overall Fund compliance with requirements of the 1940 Act and Subchapter M of the Code, relating to percentage limitations applicable to the Funds assets that would require knowledge of the Funds holdings other than the assets subject to this Agreement. |
3. | Documents Provided to Subadviser . Investment Manager has delivered or will deliver to Subadviser current copies and supplements thereto of each of the Prospectus and SAI pertaining to the Fund, and will promptly deliver to it all future amendments and supplements, if any. |
4. | Compensation of Subadviser . For the services provided and the expenses assumed pursuant to this Agreement, Investment Manager will pay to Subadviser, effective from the date of this Agreement, a fee which shall be accrued daily and paid monthly, on or before the last business day of the next succeeding calendar month, at the annual rates as a percentage of the Funds average daily net assets or the average daily net assets of the portion of the Funds assets that is managed by Subadviser, as applicable, set forth in the attached Schedule A which Schedule can be modified from time to time upon mutual agreement of the parties to reflect changes in annual rates, subject to appropriate approvals required by the 1940 Act, if any. If this Agreement becomes effective or terminates before the end of any month, the fee for the period from the effective date to the end of the month or from the beginning of such month to the date of termination, as the case may be, shall be prorated according to the proportion that such portion of the month bears to the full month in which such effectiveness or termination occurs. During the term of this Agreement, Subadviser will pay all expenses incurred by it in connection with its activities under this Agreement other than costs in connection with the purchase or sale of securities and other assets (including brokerage commissions, if any) for the Fund. |
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5. | Expenses . Subadviser shall bear all expenses incurred by it and its staff with respect to all activities in connection with the performance of Subadvisers services under this Agreement, including but not limited to salaries, overhead, travel, preparation of Board materials, review of marketing materials relating to Subadviser or other information provided by Subadviser to Investment Manager and/or the Funds distributor, and marketing support. Subadviser agrees to pay to Investment Manager the cost of generating a prospectus supplement, which includes preparation, filing, printing, and distribution (including mailing) of the supplement, if the Subadviser makes any changes that require immediate disclosure in the prospectus or any required regulatory documents that may be caused by changes to its structure or ownership, to investment personnel, to investment style or management, or otherwise (Changes), and at the time of notification to the Fund or Investment Manager by the Subadviser of such Changes, the Fund is not generating a supplement for other purposes or the Fund or the Investment Manager does not wish to add such Changes to a pending supplement. In the event two or more subadvisers, if applicable, each require a supplement simultaneously, the expense (other than the costs of printing and mailing) of a combined supplement will be shared pro rata with such other subadviser(s) based upon the number of pages required by each such subadviser, and each such subadviser shall pay its pro rata share of printing and mailing costs and expenses based upon the number of supplements required to be printed and mailed. All other expenses not specifically assumed by Subadviser hereunder or by Investment Manager under the Advisory Agreement are borne by the applicable Fund. |
In the event that there is a proposed change in control of Subadviser that would act to terminate this Agreement, if a vote of shareholders to approve continuation of this Agreement is at that time deemed by counsel to the Fund to be required by the 1940 Act or any rule or regulation thereunder, Subadviser agrees to assume all reasonable costs associated with soliciting shareholders of the appropriate Fund(s), to approve continuation of this Agreement. Such expenses include the reasonable costs of preparation, filing and mailing of a proxy statement, and of soliciting proxies.
In the event that such proposed change in control of Subadviser shall occur and the Fund is operating under an exemptive order issued by the SEC to Investment Manager with respect to the appointment of subadvisers absent shareholder approval, Subadviser agrees to assume all reasonable costs and expenses (including the costs of preparation, mailing and filing) associated with the preparation of an information statement, required by the exemptive order containing all information that would be included in a proxy statement.
6. | Representations of Subadviser . Subadviser represents and warrants as follows: |
(a) |
Subadviser (i) is registered as an investment adviser under the Advisers Act and will continue to be so registered for so long as this Agreement remains in effect; (ii) is not an affiliated person of the Investment Manager or of the Fund within the meaning of Section 2(a)(3) of the 1940 Act (other than by virtue of serving as a Subadviser to the Fund); (iii) is not prohibited by the 1940 Act or the Advisers |
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Act from performing the services contemplated by this Agreement; (iv) has appointed a Chief Compliance Officer under Rule 206(4)-7 of the Advisers Act; (v) has adopted written policies and procedures that are reasonably designed to prevent violations of the Advisers Act from occurring, detect violations that have occurred, correct promptly any violations that have occurred, and will provide prompt notice of any material violations relating to the Fund to Investment Manager; (vi) has met and will seek to continue to meet for so long as this Agreement remains in effect, any other applicable federal or state requirements, or the applicable requirements of any regulatory or industry self-regulatory agency necessary to be met in order to perform the services contemplated by this Agreement; (vii) has the authority to enter into and perform the services contemplated by this Agreement; and (viii) will promptly notify Investment Manager (1) in the event that Subadviser becomes an affiliated person of the Investment Manager or of the Fund within the meaning of Section 2(a)(3) of the 1940 Act; (2) of the occurrence of any event that would disqualify Subadviser from serving as an investment adviser of an investment company pursuant to Section 9(a) of the 1940 Act, (3) in the event the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) or other governmental authority has: censured Subadviser; placed limitations upon the activities, functions or operations of Subadviser; or has commenced proceedings or an investigation that may result in any of these actions, (4) upon having a reasonable basis for believing that the Fund has ceased to qualify or might not qualify as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Code and (5) of any material fact known to Subadviser respecting or relating to Subadviser that is not contained in the Prospectus, and is required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, or of any statement relating to Subadviser contained therein that becomes untrue in any material respect. |
(b) | Subadviser has adopted a written code of ethics complying with the requirements of Rule 17j-1 under the 1940 Act and will provide Investment Manager with a copy of the code of ethics. Within 60 days of the end of the last calendar quarter of each year that this Agreement is in effect, a duly authorized officer of Subadviser shall certify to Investment Manager that there has been no material violation of Subadvisers code of ethics or, if such a violation has occurred, that appropriate action was taken in response to such violation. To the extent Subadviser has approved any material changes to its code of ethics, such revised code together with an explanation of such amendments shall be promptly (but in no event later than 60 days) provided to Investment Manager. |
(c) | Subadviser has provided Investment Manager with a copy of a document intended to address the disclosures specified in Form ADV Part 2A, and promptly will furnish a copy of any amendments to such document to Investment Manager (at least annually). Investment Manager acknowledges that, under Rule 204-3 under the Advisers Act, as amended, to the extent Subadvisers only clients are registered investment companies, Subadviser is not required to file a Form ADV, Part 2A, with the SEC. |
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(d) | Subadviser will promptly notify Investment Manager of any changes in the controlling shareholder, in the key personnel who are either the portfolio manager(s) responsible for the Fund or the Chief Executive Officer of Subadviser, or if there is otherwise an actual change in control or management of Subadviser. |
7. | Representations of Investment Manager . Investment Manager represents and warrants as follows: |
(a) | Investment Manager (i) is registered as an investment adviser under the Advisers Act and will continue to be so registered for so long as this Agreement remains in effect; (ii) is not prohibited by the 1940 Act or the Advisers Act from performing the services contemplated by this Agreement; (iii) has appointed a Chief Compliance Officer under Rule 206(4)-7 of the Advisers Act; (iv) has adopted written policies and procedures that are reasonably designed to prevent violations of the Advisers Act from occurring, detect violations that have occurred, correct promptly any violations that have occurred, and will provide prompt notice of any material violations relating to the Fund to the Subadviser; (v) has met and will seek to continue to meet for so long as this Agreement remains in effect, any other applicable federal or state requirements, or the applicable requirements of any regulatory or industry self-regulatory agency necessary to be met in order to perform the services contemplated by this Agreement; (vi) has the authority to enter into and perform the services contemplated by this Agreement; and (vii) will promptly notify Subadviser (1) of the occurrence of any event that would disqualify Investment Manager from serving as an investment adviser of an investment company pursuant to Section 9(a) of the 1940 Act or otherwise, (2) in the event the SEC or other governmental authority has: censured Investment Manager; placed limitations upon its activities, functions or operations; or has commenced proceedings or an investigation that may result in any of these actions or (3) upon having a reasonable basis for believing that the Fund has ceased to qualify or might not qualify as a regulated investment company under Subchapter M of the Code. |
(b) | Investment Manager agrees that neither it nor any of its affiliates will in any way refer directly or indirectly to its relationship with Subadviser, or any of its affiliates in offering, marketing, or other promotional materials without the prior written consent of Subadviser; provided that Investment Manager shall not be required to obtain Subadvisers prior written consent to make factual statements regarding the fact that Subadviser serves as subadviser to the Fund, in responding to requests for information, in required disclosures or in responding to regulatory inquiries. |
(c) | The Fund is and will continue to be the owner of all assets for which Investment Manager delegates investment discretion to Subadviser from time to time, and there are and will continue to be no restrictions on the pledge, hypothecation, transfer, sale or public distribution of such assets. |
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(d) | Investment Manager is establishing and will be maintaining the Funds account with Subadviser solely for the purpose of investing the relevant assets and not with a view to obtaining information regarding portfolio holdings or investment decisions in order to effect securities transactions based upon such information or to provide such information to another party, and that Investment Manager and its employees, officers and directors shall not use account holdings information for any of the foregoing purposes. |
(e) | The Board has approved the appointment of Subadviser pursuant to this Agreement. |
8. | Liability and Indemnification . |
(a) |
Except as may otherwise be provided by the 1940 Act or any other federal securities law, Subadviser, any of its affiliates and any of the officers, partners, employees, consultants, or agents thereof shall not be liable for any losses, claims, damages, liabilities, or litigation (including legal and other expenses) incurred or suffered by the Fund, Investment Manager, or any affiliated persons thereof (within the meaning of Section 2(a)(3) of the 1940 Act) or controlling persons thereof (as described in Section 15 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the 1933 Act) ) (collectively, Fund and Investment Manager Indemnitees) as a result of any error of judgment or mistake of law by Subadviser with respect to the Fund, except that nothing in this Agreement shall operate or purport to operate in any way to exculpate, waive, or limit the liability of Subadviser for, and Subadviser shall indemnify and hold harmless the Fund and Investment Manager Indemnitees against any and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities, or litigation (including reasonable legal and other expenses) to which any of the Fund and Investment Manager Indemnitees may become subject under the 1933 Act, the 1940 Act, the Advisers Act, or under any other statute, at common law, or otherwise arising out of or based on (i) any willful misconduct, bad faith, reckless disregard, or negligence of Subadviser in the performance of any of its duties or obligations hereunder; (ii) any untrue statement of a material fact regarding Subadviser contained in the Prospectus and SAI, proxy materials, reports, advertisements, sales literature, or other materials pertaining to the Fund or the omission to state therein a material fact regarding Subadviser known to Subadviser which was required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, if such statement or omission was made in reliance upon written information furnished to Investment Manager or the Fund by Subadviser Indemnitees (as defined below) for use therein; provided, however, that Subadviser has had a reasonable opportunity to review information regarding Subadviser contained in the Prospectus and SAI, proxy materials, reports, advertisements, sales literature or other materials pertaining to the Fund as set forth in section 11; or (iii) any violation of federal or state statutes or regulations by Subadviser. It is further understood and agreed that Subadviser may rely upon information furnished to it by Investment Manager that it reasonably believes to be accurate and reliable. Subadviser shall be liable for any loss incurred by the |
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Fund, the Investment Manager or their respective affiliates to the extent such losses arise out of any act or omission directly attributable to Subadviser which results, directly or indirectly, in an error in the net asset value of the Fund. The federal securities laws impose liabilities in certain circumstances on persons who act in good faith, and therefore nothing herein shall in any way constitute a waiver or limitation of any rights which Investment Manager may have under any securities laws. Neither Subadviser nor any Subadviser Indemnitees (as defined below) shall be liable for any loss or damage arising or resulting from the acts or omissions of the custodian of the Fund, any broker, financial institution or any other third party with or through whom Subadviser arranges or enters into a transaction in respect of the Fund, except to the extent that Subadviser or its affiliate instructed such broker, financial institution or third party to take such action or omission. Investment Manager understands and acknowledges that Subadviser does not warrant that the portion of the assets of the Fund managed by Subadviser will achieve any particular rate of return or that its performance will match any benchmark index or other standard or objective. |
(b) | Except as may otherwise be provided by the 1940 Act or any other federal securities law, Investment Manager and the Fund shall not be liable for any losses, claims, damages, liabilities, or litigation (including legal and other expenses) incurred or suffered by Subadviser or any of its affiliated persons thereof (within the meaning of Section 2(a)(3) of the 1940 Act) or controlling persons (as described in Section 15 of the 1933 Act) (collectively, Subadviser Indemnitees) as a result of any error of judgment or mistake of law by Investment Manager with respect to the Fund, except that nothing in this Agreement shall operate or purport to operate in any way to exculpate, waive, or limit the liability of Investment Manager for, and Investment Manager shall indemnify and hold harmless Subadviser Indemnitees against any and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities, or litigation (including reasonable legal and other expenses) to which any of Subadviser Indemnitees may become subject under the 1933 Act, the 1940 Act, the Advisers Act, or under any other statute, at common law, or otherwise arising out of or based on (i) any willful misconduct, bad faith, reckless disregard, or negligence of Investment Manager in the performance of any of its duties or obligations hereunder; (ii) any untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Prospectus and SAI, proxy materials, reports, advertisements, sales literature, or other materials pertaining to the Fund or the omission to state therein a material fact known to Investment Manager which was required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, unless such statement or omission concerned Subadviser and was made in reliance upon written information furnished to Investment Manager or the Fund by a Subadviser Indemnitee for use therein, or (iii) any violation of federal or state statutes or regulations by Investment Manager or the Fund. |
(c) |
After receipt by Investment Manager or Subadviser, its affiliates, or any officer, director, employee, or agent of any of the foregoing, entitled to indemnification as stated in (a) or (b) above (Indemnified Party) of notice of the commencement of |
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any action, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against any person obligated to provide indemnification under this section (Indemnifying Party), such Indemnified Party shall notify the Indemnifying Party in writing of the commencement thereof as soon as practicable after the summons or other first written notification giving information of the nature of the claim that has been served upon the Indemnified Party; provided that the failure to so notify the Indemnifying Party will not relieve the Indemnifying Party from any liability under this section, except to the extent that the omission results in damages to the Indemnifying Party caused solely as a result of the failure to give such notice. The Indemnifying Party, upon the request of the Indemnified Party, shall retain counsel satisfactory to the Indemnified Party to represent the Indemnified Party in the proceeding, and shall pay the fees and disbursements of such counsel related to such proceeding. In any such proceeding, any Indemnified Party shall have the right to retain its own counsel, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such Indemnified Party unless (1) the Indemnifying Party and the Indemnified Party shall have mutually agreed to the retention of such counsel, or (2) the named parties to any such proceeding (including any impleaded parties) include both the Indemnifying Party and the Indemnified Party and representation by both parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between them. The Indemnifying Party shall not be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent, which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld, but if settled with such consent or if there be a final judgment for the plaintiff, the Indemnifying Party agrees to indemnify the Indemnified Party from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement or judgment. |
9. | Duration and Termination . |
(a) | Unless sooner terminated as provided herein, this Agreement shall continue for two years from the date written above. Thereafter, if not terminated, this Agreement shall continue automatically for successive periods of 12 months each, provided that such continuance is specifically approved at least annually (i) by a vote of a majority of the Board members who are not parties to this Agreement or interested persons (as defined in the 1940 Act) of any such party, and (ii) by the Board or by a vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund. |
(b) |
Notwithstanding the foregoing, this Agreement may be terminated at any time, without the payment of any penalty, by the Board or by vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities (as defined in the 1940 Act) of the Fund on 60 days written notice to Subadviser. This Agreement may also be terminated, without the payment of any penalty, by Investment Manager (i) upon 60 days written notice to Subadviser; (ii) upon material breach by Subadviser of any representations and warranties set forth in this Agreement, if such breach has not been cured within 20 days after written notice of such breach; or (iii) immediately if, in the reasonable judgment of Investment Manager, Subadviser becomes |
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unable to discharge its duties and obligations under this Agreement, including circumstances such as the insolvency of Subadviser or other circumstances that could adversely affect the Fund. Subadviser may terminate this Agreement at any time, without payment of any penalty, (1) upon 60 days written notice to Investment Manager; or (2) upon material breach by Investment Manager of any representations and warranties set forth in the Agreement, if such breach has not been cured within 20 days after written notice of such breach. This Agreement shall terminate automatically in the event of its assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act) or upon the termination of the Advisory Agreement. |
(c) | In the event of termination of the Agreement, those paragraphs of the Agreement which govern conduct of the parties future interactions with respect to Subadviser having provided investment management services to the Fund(s) for the duration of the Agreement, including, but not limited to, paragraphs 1(a)(iv)(a), 1(c), 1(d), 1(e), 1(f), 8(a), 8(b), 8(c), 15, 17, 18 and 20 shall survive such termination of the Agreement. |
10. | Subadvisers Services Are Not Exclusive . Nothing in this Agreement shall limit or restrict the right of Subadviser or any of its partners, officers, or employees to engage in any other business or to devote his or her time and attention in part to the management or other aspects of any business, whether of a similar or a dissimilar nature, or limit or restrict Subadvisers right to engage in any other business or to render services of any kind to any other mutual fund, corporation, firm, individual, or association or other entity. Subadviser acts as adviser to other clients and may, subject to compliance with its fiduciary obligations, give advice, and take action, with respect to any of those which may differ from the advice given, or the timing or nature of action taken, with respect to the Fund. Subject to its fiduciary obligation to the Fund, Subadviser shall have no obligation to purchase or sell for the Fund, or to recommend for purchase or sale by the Fund, any security which Subadviser, its principals, affiliates or employees may purchase or sell for themselves or for any other clients. |
11. | References to Subadviser . Subadviser hereby grants to Investment Manager during the term of this Agreement, the right to use Subadvisers name as required for public filings and marketing materials in accordance with the terms described herein. Investment Manager agrees to furnish to Subadviser at its principal office all prospectuses, SAIs, proxy statements, reports to shareholders, sales literature, or other material prepared for distribution to sales personnel, shareholders of the Fund or the public, that refer to Subadviser prior to the use thereof, and not to use such material if Subadviser reasonably objects in writing five (5) business days (or such other time as may be mutually agreed upon) after receipt thereof. Such materials may be furnished to Subadviser hereunder by first-class or overnight mail, electronic or facsimile transmission, or hand delivery. |
13 | Page
12. | Notices . Any notice, statement, consent or approval required or permitted to be given in connection with this Agreement (Notice) shall be in writing and shall be sufficiently given if delivered (whether in person, by post, by courier service or other personal method of delivery), or if transmitted by facsimile or other electronic means of communication: |
In the case of Subadviser:
Steven J. Arquilla
BMO Asset Management Corp.
115 South LaSalle Street
11th Floor
Chicago, IL 60603
Fax: 312-293-4888
In the case of Investment Manager:
Paul Mikelson
Vice President, Subadvised Strategies
435 Ameriprise Financial Center
Routing H13/435
Minneapolis, MN 55474
Tel: (612) 671-4452
Fax: (612) 671-0618
with a copy to:
Christopher O. Petersen
Vice President and Lead Chief Counsel
Ameriprise Financial
50606 Ameriprise Financial Center
Minneapolis, MN 55474
Tel: (612) 671-4321
Fax: (612) 671-2680
Any Notice delivered or transmitted to a party as provided above shall be deemed to have been given and received on the day it is delivered or transmitted, provided that it is delivered or transmitted on any day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or statutory holiday in the jurisdiction where the Notice is received (Business Day) prior to 5:00 p.m. local time in the place of delivery or receipt. However, if the Notice is delivered or transmitted after 5:00 p.m. local time or if such day is not a Business Day then the Notice shall be deemed to have been given and received on the next Business Day.
Any party may, from time to time, change its address by giving Notice to the other party in accordance with the provisions of this section.
14 | Page
13. | Amendments . This Agreement may be amended by mutual consent, subject to approval by the Board and the Funds shareholders to the extent required by the 1940 Act. |
14. | Assignment . No assignment (as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended) of this Agreement shall be made by Investment Manager or Subadviser without the prior written consent of the Fund, and, if required by law, the Funds shareholders, and Investment Manager or Subadviser (as applicable). Notwithstanding the foregoing, no assignment shall be deemed to result from any changes in the directors, officers, or employees of Investment Manager or Subadviser except as may be provided to the contrary in the 1940 Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. |
15. | Governing Law . This Agreement, and, in the event of termination of the Agreement, those paragraphs that survive such termination of the Agreement under paragraph 9(c), shall be governed by the laws of the commonwealth of Massachusetts, without giving effect to the conflicts of laws principles thereof, or any applicable provisions of the 1940 Act. To the extent that the laws of the commonwealth of Massachusetts, or any of the provision of this Agreement, conflict with applicable provisions of the 1940 Act, the latter shall control. |
16. | Entire Agreement . This Agreement embodies the entire agreement and understanding among the parties hereto, and supersedes all prior agreements and understandings relating to the subject matter hereof. |
17. | Severability . Should any part of this Agreement be held invalid by a court decision, statute, rule, or otherwise, the remainder of this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. This Agreement and, in the event of termination of the Agreement, those paragraphs that survive such termination of the Agreement under paragraph 9(c), shall be binding upon and shall inure to the benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors. |
18. | Interpretation . Any questions of interpretation of any term or provision of this Agreement having a counterpart in or otherwise derived from a term or provision of the 1940 Act shall be resolved by reference to such term or provision in the 1940 Act and to interpretation thereof, if any, by the federal courts or, in the absence of any controlling decision of any such court, by rules, regulations, or orders of the SEC validly issued pursuant to the 1940 Act. Where the effect of a requirement of the 1940 Act reflected in any provision of this Agreement is altered by a rule, regulation, or order of the SEC, whether of special or general application, such provision shall be deemed to incorporate the effect of such rule, regulation, or order. |
19. | Headings . The headings in this Agreement are intended solely as a convenience and are not intended to modify any other provision herein. |
20. | Authorization . Each of the parties represents and warrants that the execution and delivery of this Agreement and the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement have been duly authorized by all necessary corporate action by such party and when so executed and delivered, this Agreement will be the valid and binding obligation of such party in accordance with its terms. |
15 | Page
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this instrument to be executed by their officers designated below as of the day and year first above written.
Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC | BMO Asset Management Corp. | |||||||
By: |
/s/ Christopher O. Petersen |
By: |
/s/ Todd Healy |
|||||
Signature | Signature | |||||||
Name: |
Christopher O. Petersen |
Name: |
Todd Healy |
|||||
Printed | Printed | |||||||
Title: | Vice President and Assistant Secretary | Title: | Vice President and Head of Investment Operations |
16 | Page
SUBADVISORY AGREEMENT
[REDACTED DATA]
17 | Page
STANDARDS OF BUSINESS CONDUCT AND CODE OF ETHICS
BMO Harris Bank N.A.
BMO Asset Management Corp.
BMO Investment Distributors, LLC
Monegy, Inc.
BMO Funds, Inc.
BMO LGM Frontier Markets Equity Fund
Stoker Ostler Wealth Advisors, Inc.
Taplin, Canida & Habacht, LLC
BMO Delaware Trust Company
June 4, 2015
STANDARDS OF BUSINESS CONDUCT AND CODE OF ETHICS
Table of Contents
I. | INTRODUCTION | 4 | ||||
II. | DEFINITIONS | 4 | ||||
A. |
A CCESS P ERSON | 4 | ||||
B. |
A DVISERS | 5 | ||||
C. |
A DVISORY P ERSON | 5 | ||||
D. |
A PPROVED T HIRD P ARTY M ANAGER A CCOUNT | 5 | ||||
E. |
A FFILIATE | 5 | ||||
F. |
A SSOCIATED P ROCEDURES | 5 | ||||
G. |
A UTOMATIC I NVESTMENT P LAN | 5 | ||||
H. |
B ANK E MPLOYEE M EMBER | 5 | ||||
I. |
B ENEFICIAL O WNERSHIP | 5 | ||||
J. |
BMO E NTITIES | 6 | ||||
K. |
BMO F UNDS | 6 | ||||
L. |
C LIENT | 6 | ||||
M. |
C OMPLIANCE C OMMITTEE | 6 | ||||
N. |
C ONFIDENTIAL I NFORMATION | 6 | ||||
O. |
C ONTROL | 6 | ||||
P. |
C OVERED P ERSON | 6 | ||||
Q. |
D ESIGNATED R EPORTING P ERSON | 6 | ||||
R. |
D ISINTERESTED D IRECTOR | 7 | ||||
S. |
F EDERAL S ECURITIES L AWS | 7 | ||||
T. |
I NITIAL P UBLIC O FFERING OR IPO | 7 | ||||
U. |
I NVESTMENT P ERSONNEL | 7 | ||||
V. |
L IMITED O FFERING | 7 | ||||
W. |
P UBLIC C OMPANY | 7 | ||||
X. |
P URCHASE OR SALE OF A S ECURITY | 7 | ||||
Y. |
R EPORTABLE A CCOUNT | 7 | ||||
Z. |
R EPORTABLE F UND | 8 | ||||
AA. |
R EPORTABLE S ECURITY | 8 | ||||
BB. |
S ECURITY | 8 | ||||
CC. |
S UPERVISED P ERSON | 8 | ||||
III. | STANDARDS OF CONDUCT AND COMPLIANCE WITH LAWS | 9 | ||||
IV. | INSIDER TRADING AND THE PROTECTION OF MATERIAL NON-PUBLIC INFORMATION | 10 | ||||
V. | MARKET MANIPULATION | 12 | ||||
VI. | PERSONAL SECURITIES TRADING AND REPORTING | 13 | ||||
VII. | GIFTS AND ENTERTAINMENT POLICY | 22 |
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A. |
G IFTS | 22 | ||||
B. |
E NTERTAINMENT | 23 | ||||
C. |
S PECIAL C ONSIDERATIONS FOR C ERTAIN C LIENT T YPES | 23 | ||||
VIII. | SERVICE AS BOARD DIRECTOR OR MEMBER | 23 | ||||
IX. | CERTIFICATION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF THE CODE AND ITS PROVISIONS | 23 | ||||
X. | DISINTERESTED DIRECTORS OF BMO FUNDS | 24 | ||||
A. |
P ROHIBITED S ECURITIES T RANSACTIONS | 24 | ||||
B. |
E XEMPTED T RANSACTIONS | 24 | ||||
C. |
R EPORTING S ECURITIES T RANSACTIONS | 25 | ||||
D. |
T RANSACTIONS WITH A BMO F UND | 25 | ||||
XI. | WAIVERS BY THE DESIGNATED REPORTING PERSON | 25 | ||||
XII. | REVIEWING AND MONITORING | 26 | ||||
XIII. | REPORTING VIOLATIONS AND SANCTIONS | 26 | ||||
XIV. | ANNUAL REPORT TO AND REVIEW BY BMO FUNDS BOARD OF DIRECTORS | 26 | ||||
XV. | RECORDKEEPING | 27 | ||||
XVI. | FORM ADV | 27 | ||||
XVII. | CONFIDENTIALITY | 27 |
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STANDARDS OF BUSINESS CONDUCT AND CODE OF ETHICS
I. | I NTRODUCTION |
This Code of Ethics (the Code) establishes standards for both business conduct and personal investments by Covered Persons of BMO Entities, defined herein. This Code has been adopted by the Advisers to comply with Rule 204A-1 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the Advisers Act), and Rule 17j-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the Investment Company Act). This Code also contains provisions regarding the reporting of personal securities by certain bank persons (Bank Employee Member) pursuant to 12 CFR §12.7(a)(4) or FDIC Rule 344.9, as applicable. The BMO Entities believe that the provisions of this Code and any Associated Procedures contain procedures reasonably necessary to prevent Covered Persons from violating the Code.
Each Covered Person is to read, understand and follow this Code and is to certify as to having done so. See Section IX-Certification and Acknowledgement of the Code and Its Provisions.
In addition to the specific requirements of the Code, Covered Persons are required to comply with all applicable BMO Financial Group corporate policies, directives and procedures (e.g. First Principles and Code of Business Conduct) and all applicable Federal Securities Laws. Such laws include laws regulating privacy, anti-money laundering, insider trading, offerings and sales of securities, and fraud.
This Code is not intended to deal with every possible situation Covered Persons may encounter. If a situation arises that is not covered in the Code, or if a Covered Person is uncertain about any aspect of the Code, he/she is asked to consult with their Designated Reporting Person.
II. | D EFINITIONS |
A. | Access Person means |
i. | Any Advisory Person of the Advisers; |
ii. | Any Supervised Person of the Advisers who has access to nonpublic information regarding any Clients purchase or sale of securities, or nonpublic information regarding the portfolio holdings of any Reportable Fund; |
iii. | Any Supervised Person of the Advisers who is involved in making securities recommendations to Clients of the Advisers, or who has access to such recommendations that are nonpublic; |
iv. | Any director or officer of BMO Investment Distributors, the principal underwriter of BMO Funds, who, in the ordinary course of business, makes, participates in, or obtains information regarding, the purchase or sale of Reportable Securities by BMO Funds, or whose functions or duties in the ordinary course of business relate to the making of any recommendations to BMO Funds regarding the purchase or sale of Reportable Securities; and |
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v. | Any director or officer of the Advisers or BMO Funds, who is not a Disinterested Director. |
B. | Advisers means the BMO Entities that are investment advisers registered under the Advisers Act including, BMO Asset Management Corp., Monegy, Inc., Stoker Ostler Wealth Advisors, Inc. and Taplin, Canida & Habacht, LLC. |
C. | Advisory Person means |
i. | Any director, officer, or employee of the BMO Entities (or of any company in a Control relationship to the Advisers or the BMO Funds), who, in connection with his or her regular functions or duties, makes, participates in, or obtains information regarding the current purchases or sales of a Reportable Security by a Client, or whose functions relate to the making of any recommendations with respect to such purchases or sales; and |
ii. | Any natural person in a Control relationship to the Advisers or the BMO Funds who normally obtains information concerning current recommendations made to a Reportable Fund with regard to the purchases or sales of a Reportable Security. |
D. | Approved Third Party Manager Account means any Reportable Account over which the Covered Person has no direct or indirect influence or control, other than the right to terminate the account, such as an account where the Covered Person has granted full discretionary authority to a registered broker-dealer, a registered investment adviser, or other investment manager acting in a similar fiduciary capacity, that has been approved by the Covered Persons Designated Reporting Person. |
E. | Affiliate with respect to any referenced entity, means an entity that is Controlled by, Controls or is under common Control with such entity. |
F. | Associated Procedures means those policies, procedures and/or statements that have been adopted by the BMO Entities, and which are designed to supplement this Code and its provisions. |
G. | Automatic Investment Plan means a program in which regular periodic purchases (or withdrawals) are made automatically in (or from) investment accounts in accordance with a predetermined schedule and allocation. An automatic investment plan includes a dividend reinvestment plan. |
H. | Bank Employee Member means certain employees of BMO Harris Bank N.A. and BMO Delaware Trust Company who: |
i. | Make investment recommendations or decisions for the accounts of clients; |
ii. | Participate in the determination of the recommendations or decisions; or |
iii. | In connection with their duties, obtain information concerning which securities are being purchased, sold, or recommended for purchase or sale by the bank. |
I. |
Beneficial Ownership shall be interpreted in the same manner as it would be in determining whether a person is subject to the provisions of Section 16 of the Securities |
5
Exchange Act of 1934, and the rules and regulations thereunder, except that the determination of direct or indirect beneficial ownership shall apply to all Securities which an Covered Person has or acquires. Beneficial Ownership will be attributed to an Covered Person in all instances where the Covered Person (i) possesses the ability to purchase or sell the Securities (or the ability to direct the disposition of the Securities); (ii) possesses voting power (including the power to vote or to direct the voting) over such Securities; or (iii) receives any benefits substantially equivalent to those of ownership. |
A person is presumed to be the Beneficial Owner of Securities held by immediate family members or held by other persons, by reason of any contract, arrangement, understanding, or relationship that provides the Covered Person with direct or indirect pecuniary interest in the Securities, sharing the Covered Persons household (immediate family means any child, stepchild, grandchild, parent, stepparent, grandparent, spouse or equivalent domestic partner, sibling, mother-in-law, father-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law, including adoptive relationships).
J. | BMO Entities covered by this Code of Ethics include BMO Asset Management Corp., BMO Investment Distributors, Monegy, BMO Funds, Stoker Ostler Wealth Advisors, Inc., Taplin, Canida & Habacht, LLC and certain divisions of BMO Harris Bank N.A., and BMO Delaware Trust Company. |
K. | BMO Funds means BMO Funds, Inc., and BMO LGM Frontier Markets Equity Fund. |
L. | Client means anyone for whom investment management or advice is provided by the BMO Entities, and it includes registered and unregistered investment companies and other pooled investment vehicles, advisers for whom a BMO Entity acts as sub-adviser, and, unless the context requires otherwise, prospective clients. |
M. | Compliance Committee comprises all Designated Reporting Persons and as appointed by the Wealth Management Risk Committee representatives from senior management of the BMO Entities and Wealth Management Legal Department. |
N. | Confidential Information means information not publicly available and includes, but is not limited to: the composition of Client holdings and transactions, Clients financial information, corporate financial activity, lists of Clients, Working List Securities, investment models, methods, processes, and formulae and other proprietary information such as certain records, procedures, systems, pending research recommendations and software. |
O. | Control shall have the same meaning as that set forth in Section 2(a)(9) of the Investment Company Act. |
P. | Covered Person means any Access Person of the Advisers and BMO Funds, any Bank Employee Member of certain divisions of BMO Harris Bank N.A., BMO Delaware Trust Company and any other Supervised Person. |
Q. | Designated Reporting Person means the chief compliance officer (or his or her designee) of the respective BMO Entities. A Covered Persons Designated Reporting Person is the Designated Reporting Person for which the Covered Person primarily performs duties. |
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R. | Disinterested Director means a director or trustee of the BMO Funds who is not an interested person of the BMO Funds within the meaning of Section 2(a)(19) of the Investment Company Act. |
S. | Federal Securities Laws include the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, Title V of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, and the Bank Secrecy Act as it applies to funds and investment advisers, all as amended from time to time, and the rules and regulations thereunder. |
T. | Initial Public Offering or IPO means an offering of securities registered under the Securities Act of 1933, the issuer of which, immediately before the registrations, was not subject to the reporting requirements of sections 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. |
U. | Investment Personnel include: Covered Persons with direct responsibility and authority to make investment decisions affecting a Clients portfolio (such as fund or portfolio managers); Covered Persons who provide information and advice to such managers (such as securities analysts); Covered Persons who assist in executing investment decisions for a Client (such as traders); and any natural person who Controls the Advisers or the BMO Funds and who obtains information concerning recommendations made to a Client regarding the purchase or sale of securities by a Client. As the context requires, Investment Personnel may refer to one or more Covered Persons. |
V. | Limited Offering means an offering that is exempt from registration under the Securities Act of 1933 pursuant to section 4(2) or section 4(6) or pursuant to Rule 504, Rule 505, or Rule 506 under the Securities Act of 1933. |
W. | Public Company means any entity subject to the reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. |
X. | Purchase or sale of a Security includes the purchase, sale or writing of an option to purchase or sell a Security. A Security is being considered for purchase or sale when a recommendation to purchase or sell a Security has been made and communicated and, with respect to the person making the recommendation, when such person seriously considers making such a recommendation. |
Y. | Reportable Account means any account in which any securities are held for the Covered Persons direct or indirect benefit. This includes but is not limited to broker-dealer accounts, trust accounts, pension accounts, deferred compensation plans, employee stock purchase plans, accounts managed by third party managers, and any other account that may hold a Security such as 401(k), 403(b), directly held Reportable Fund accounts, and 529 Plans. |
7
Z. | Reportable Fund means each investment company (and any series or portfolios of such company) registered under the Investment Company Act that is advised or sub-advised by the Advisers or its Affiliates. Reportable Funds include common and collective funds, private funds, and any other pooled vehicle advised or sub-advised by the BMO Entities. Reportable Funds do not include money market funds. |
AA. | Reportable Security shall have the same meaning as Security defined below, except that Reportable Securities include Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) but do not include: |
i. | Direct obligations of the Government of the United States; |
ii. | Bankers acceptances, bank certificates of deposit, commercial paper and high quality short-term debt instruments, including repurchase agreements; |
iii. | Shares issued by non-affiliated open-end U.S. registered investment companies and non-affiliated common and collective trusts ; and |
iv. | Shares issued by money market funds, including BMO. |
As circumstances warrant for the equitable administration of this Code, the Compliance Department may construe the definition of Reportable Security on a case-by-case basis as matters are presented to it, to take into account the exemptions and exclusions from the definition of Security adopted under the Federal Securities Laws.
BB. | Security shall have the meaning set forth in Section 2(a)(36) of the Investment Company Act or Section 202(a)(18) of the Advisers Act. Security means any note, stock, treasury stock, security future, bond, debenture, evidence of indebtedness, certificate of interest or participation in any profit-sharing agreement, collateral-trust certificate, reorganization certificate or subscription, transferable share, investment contract, voting-trust certificate, certificate of deposit for a security, fractional undivided interest in oil, gas, or other mineral rights, any put, call, straddle, option, or privilege on any security (including a certificate of deposit) or on any group or index of securities (including any interest therein or based on the value thereof), or any put, call, straddle, option, or privilege entered into on a national securities exchange relating to foreign currency, or, in general, any interest or instrument commonly known as a security, or any certificate of interest or participation in, temporary or interim certificate for, receipt for, guarantee of, or warrant or right to subscribe to or purchase, any of the foregoing. |
CC. | Supervised Person means any partner, officer, director (or other person occupying a similar status or performing similar functions), or employee of a BMO Entity, or other person who provides investment advice on behalf of the BMO Entity and is subject to the supervision and Control of the BMO Entity. In addition, any employee of an Affiliate who is licensed as, or considered, an investment adviser representative of one of the Advisers and certain members of their staff are considered Supervised Persons of such Adviser. Additionally, based on circumstance, the Designated Reporting Persons or his or her designee may consider non-employees of the BMO Entities to be Supervised Persons and subject to this Code. The Designated Reporting Persons (or his or her designee) will maintain a list of all Supervised Persons and provide each Supervised Person with notification of his or her status as such, this Code and any amendments. |
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III. | S TANDARDS OF C ONDUCT AND C OMPLIANCE WITH L AWS |
As a fiduciary to our clients, the BMO Entities strive to act in the best interest of our clients and Fund shareholders and to place their interests ahead of our own. We believe over the long run the BMO Entities interests will be best served by this philosophy. This Code of Ethics is based on concepts of fiduciary duty, securities and other applicable laws and regulations and internal policies adopted by the BMO Entities. It is intended to promote the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct.
Covered Persons must not disclose, directly or indirectly, any Confidential Information, except that confidential information may be disclosed (i) to the Client, (ii) to authorized persons of the BMO Entities, (iii) to authorized agents so that they may discharge their professional duties, (iv) to other persons as the Client authorizes and, (v) when such information is legally required to be disclosed, (e.g., when duly requested by regulatory authorities or a court). Covered Persons also must not use, directly or indirectly, any Confidential Information for their personal benefit, (e.g., front-running Client transactions).
Furthermore, Covered Persons shall not (directly or indirectly) in connection with securities-related and advisory-related activities:
| Employ any device, scheme or artifice to defraud; |
| Make any untrue statement of a material fact or to omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements made, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; |
| Engage in any transaction, practice or course of business which operates or would operate as a fraud or deceit upon any person; or |
| Engage in any act, practice or course of business which is fraudulent, deceptive or manipulative. |
Section VI of this Code deals with personal securities trading by Covered Persons. The general fiduciary principles that govern personal investment activities are:
| The duty at all times to place the interests of Clients, and Fund shareholders first; |
| The requirement that all personal securities transactions be conducted in such a manner as to be consistent with this Code and to avoid any actual or potential conflict of interest or any abuse of a Covered Persons position of trust and responsibility; and |
| The principle that the BMO Entities personnel should not take inappropriate advantage of their positions. |
We recognize that independence in the investment decision-making process is vital. Causing a portfolio to take action or to fail to take action for the purpose of achieving a personal benefit rather than to benefit the portfolio is a violation of this Code. Investment Personnel have an affirmative duty to bring suitable securities to the attention of those making investment decisions. Consequently, the failure to recommend or buy a suitable security for a Client or Fund in order to avoid the appearance of conflict from a personal transaction in that security will be considered a violation of this Code.
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Inducing or causing a Client to take action, or to fail to take action, for the purpose of achieving a personal benefit, rather than a benefit for a Client is a violation of this Code. Examples of this would include causing a Client to purchase a Security owned by the Covered Person for the purpose of supporting or driving up the price of the Security, and causing the Client to refrain from selling a Security in an attempt to protect the value of the Covered Persons investment, such as an outstanding option.
Using knowledge of Client portfolio transactions to profit by the market effect of such transactions is a violation of this Code. This could be a single, series or pattern of Securities transactions by Covered Persons. However, it is important to note that a violation could result from a single, series or pattern of transactions if the circumstances warranted a finding that the provisions of this Code have been violated.
IV. | I NSIDER T RADING AND THE P ROTECTION OF M ATERIAL N ON -P UBLIC I NFORMATION |
Insider Trading is generally understood as the purchase or sale of securities while in possession of inside information i.e., material, non-public information (information not available to the general public but important in making a decision to buy or sell a security). Insider trading includes making such information available (tipping), directly or indirectly, to others who may trade based on that information.
A Covered Person who becomes aware of material information that has not been disclosed to the marketplace generally should not, without first discussing the matter with your Designated Reporting Person or a member of the BMO Entities Legal Department,
| Engage in any act, practice or course of business which is fraudulent, deceptive or manipulative; |
| Trade in (purchase or sell) the securities of the company to which the information relates, either on behalf of a Client or for his or her own or a related account; |
| Recommend transactions in such securities; or |
| Disclose that information (tip) to others. |
These restrictions apply if such information has been acquired improperly or, though acquired properly, has been obtained in circumstances in which there is a reasonable expectation that it will not be used for trading purposes, or where the information relates to a tender offer and came from a tender offer participant.
In particular, no employee should trade, tip, or recommend the securities of any issuer having obtained material nonpublic information on a confidential basis, from an insider in breach of his or her duty, or through misappropriation. On the other hand, there is no prohibition against using information obtained legitimately through ones own analyses or appropriate investigative efforts.
Any Covered Person who acquires material nonpublic information may not discuss that information with others, other than to report such fact to your Designated Reporting Person and/or a member of the
10
BMO Entities Legal Department. Once material nonpublic information has been disclosed to a person, he or she is precluded from trading in the security to which that information relates, making any comment which could be viewed as a recommendation, or otherwise further disclosing the information, as long as he or she possesses material nonpublic information. In this regard, particular restraint should be exercised to avoid the transmission of information which is not likely to become public in the short term.
Materiality. Information is material if it has market significance, that is, if its public dissemination is likely to affect the market value of securities, or if it is otherwise information that a reasonable investor would want to know before making an investment decision.
While it is impossible to list all types of information which might be deemed material under particular circumstances, information dealing with the following subjects is often found to be material:
| Earnings estimates and other financial projections |
| Dividends |
| IPOs |
| Major new discoveries or advances in research |
| Acquisitions, including mergers and tender offers |
| Sales of substantial assets |
| Changes in debt ratings |
| Significant write-downs of assets or additions to reserves for bad debts or contingent liabilities |
On the other hand, information is generally not material if its public dissemination would not have a market impact, or if the information would not likely influence a reasonable investor making an investment decision. Since such judgments may ultimately be challenged with the benefit of hindsight, and the consequences of a wrong decision are potentially severe, an employee should contact their Designated Reporting Person for advice as to whether particular information is material
Nonpublic. Information that has not been disclosed to the public generally is nonpublic. To demonstrate that certain information is public, the Covered Person should be able to point to some fact showing that it is widely available. Information would generally be deemed widely available if it has been disclosed, for example, in the broad tape, Wall Street Journal, or widely circulated public disclosure documents, such as prospectuses, annual reports, or proxy statements.
Nonpublic information may include, but is not limited to;
| Information available to a select group of analysts or brokers or institutional investors |
| Undisclosed facts which are the subject of rumors, even if the rumors are widely circulated |
| Information that has been imparted on a confidential basis, unless and until the information is made public and enough time has elapsed for the market to respond to a public announcement of the information. |
Information from Affiliates. Because the BMO Entities are under common control with affiliate banks and other financial institutions, all of which could be a source of nonpublic information, the BMO Entities employees must be particularly careful to consider the nature of the information they receive before using it. Use of insider information obtained from an Affiliate of Bank of Montreal is prohibited and could subject both the BMO Entities and the Affiliate to penalties for insider trading.
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Information Obtained on a Confidential Basis. When the BMO Entities employee obtains information from a source with the expectation that he or she will keep such information confidential, the BMO Entities and its employees are prohibited from using that information to trade, tip, or recommend securities and such confidential information may not be given to affiliates of the BMO Entities. The expectation of confidentiality may be either explicitly set forth or implied by the nature of the BMO Entities relationship with the source of the information.
Information Obtained through a Breach of Fiduciary Duty. Even in the absence of an expectation of confidentiality, the BMO Entities employees are prohibited from trading, tipping, or recommending securities on the basis of material nonpublic information disclosed by an insider in breach of a fiduciary or similar duty.
Information Obtained Through Misappropriation. Misappropriated information is information that has been improperly obtained or, though obtained properly, is being used improperly for a purpose contrary to the purpose for which it was given. For example, if a printer, a commercial banker, or a lawyer passes along to others material nonpublic information entrusted to him or her by a Client, misappropriation may have occurred. Thus, if such a person divulges the information to a person who knows of that relationship, and the person trades, tips, or recommends the Clients securities, liability as a tippee with respect to the misappropriated information may be found. For this reason, absent approval by your Designated Reporting Person on the basis of a full exploration of the facts, no employee may trade, tip, or make recommendations regarding affected securities where he or she has reason to believe the information has been misappropriated.
Any violation of the procedures in this Section, or any other disclosure or use of material nonpublic information, should be reported to your Designated Reporting Person immediately. Violations may result in disciplinary action taken by the Compliance Committee with potential further SEC or regulatory sanctions.
Any question as to the applicability or interpretation of these guidelines or the propriety of any desired action must be discussed with your Designated Reporting Person prior to trading or disclosure of the information.
V. | M ARKET M ANIPULATION |
The BMO Entities prohibit any member, officer, director, employee or other Covered Person from engaging in rumor creation or dissemination that involves knowingly putting false information into the market in order to artificially change the stock price of any publicly-traded security, or from engaging in fraud and manipulation with the intent to profit. This conduct is frequently referred to as market manipulation. This policy applies to all Covered Persons and extends to activities within and outside their duties at the BMO Entities.
The term market manipulation is not specifically delineated in the federal securities laws, however, the laws refer to the prohibition against creating and disseminating false or misleading statements, or to the prohibition against fraud and manipulation. Market manipulation is viewed as an emerging area of the law. The Securities and Exchange Commission has not pursued many such cases in the past because of the difficulty of tracing where a false rumor originates and of proving it was knowingly false. But now the increased use of technologies, such as emails, instant messages, and other electronic communications, which enable the quick spread of rumors, are enabling law enforcement officials to track down the origin of false rumors and prove that they were knowingly false.
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While the laws concerning market manipulation are not static, it is generally understood that the laws prohibit:
| Knowingly creating and/or disseminating information that is nonpublic, false, or speculative without factual support. |
| Disseminating information from unknown or unidentified sources. |
Market manipulation involves knowingly putting false information into the market in order to artificially change the stock price of any publicly-traded security, or engaging in fraud and manipulation with the intent to profit. This becomes particularly important when a firm owns the securities in question. A rumor can be disseminated through all forms of communication, including, but not limited to, emails, instant messages, blogs, chat rooms, telephones, faxes, messages, letters, and memos. It can entail creating a false rumor, but can also occur through the omission of a material fact. It can be in the form of a statement or a question. The materiality of the rumor is considered, i.e. it must be reasonably likely to affect the stock price or the value of the target toward which the rumor is directed.
The BMO Entities prohibit any Covered Person from knowingly creating and/or disseminating information that is nonpublic, false, or speculative without factual support. Because an intent to manipulate is presumed if a rumor originates with an individual or firm that is later found to have profited from the rumor, members, officers, directors and employees are prohibited from entering any securities-related chat rooms or posting on securities-related blogs to avoid inadvertent manipulation.
The BMO Entities also prohibit any Covered Person from disseminating information from unknown or unidentified sources. Even if it is not clear that a rumor is false at the time, you can still be charged if you assisted in disseminating the rumor. As such, dissemination must be limited to information that is derived from known and/or reliable sources.
Employees who believe they may have inadvertently (or consciously) manipulated the market or employees who believe they may have been pressured into such actions are expected to immediately report such actions to their Designated Reporting Person.
VI. | P ERSONAL S ECURITIES T RADING AND R EPORTING |
This Code requires Covered Persons to conduct any personal securities trading activities in accordance with the provisions of this Code and to periodically report their personal securities transactions and holdings to the Compliance Department in the manner specified in this code. Personal trading activities of a Covered Person include transactions in accounts in which the Covered Person has any direct or indirect Beneficial Ownership, which includes immediate family members sharing the Covered Persons household (See definition of Beneficial Ownership, on page 5).
Covered Persons must submit holdings and transaction reports for Reportable Securities in which the Covered Person has, or acquires, any direct or indirect Beneficial Ownership. Reporting obligations may be met by submitting the necessary reports on the Sungard Protegent PTA (Protegent PTA) web-based personal trade monitoring system located on the intranet via the following address; https://mi.ptaconnect.com/pta/pages/logon.jsp .
Certain Supervised Persons of the Advisers who are not considered Access Persons are not subject to the pre-clearance requirements detailed in Section VI.A.i below except related to Limited Offerings and IPOs. Such Supervised Persons will be notified if they are not subject to the pre-clearance requirements. Covered Persons who are considered Bank Member Employees, who are not also considered Access Persons, are not subject to pre-clearance requirements in Section VI.A.i below.
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A. | Personal Trading Procedures |
Personal transactions by a Covered Person, or immediate family member sharing the Covered Persons household, whether a transaction is a purchase or sale, in any Reportable Security that the Covered Person has direct or indirect Beneficial Ownership shall be prohibited if the Covered Person knows, or should have known, at the time the personal transaction was contemplated that such a purchase or sale; (i) is being considered for purchase or sale by a Client or (ii) is being purchased or sold by a Client, including but not limited to, portfolio re-optimizations, unless the personal transaction meets a pre-clearance exception listed below in Section VI.A.ii below.
i. | Trading Guidelines and Restrictions |
1. Pre-Clearance Requirements Covered Persons must pre-clear every purchase or sale of a Reportable Security in which the Covered Person has a Beneficial Ownership in a Reportable Account, unless a personal transaction meets a pre-clearance exception listed under Section VI.A.ii. Equity-related and Fixed Income securities must be pre-cleared using Protegent PTA. Pre-clearance approval and the receipt of express pre-clearance approval does not exempt you from the prohibitions outlined in this Code.
| Pre-clearance approval may be granted between 8:30a.m. CT and 3p.m. CT. |
| Pre-clearance approval remains in effect until the end of the trading day on which it was granted. |
| When trading options, the Covered Person must pre-clear the underlying security, unless the underlying security meets a pre-clearance exemptions listed below, before entering into the option contract. |
| When entering limit orders for transactions that do not meet the de minimis exemption, Covered Persons must obtain pre-clearance approval each day the order is outstanding. |
2. Limited Offerings Covered Persons may not acquire Securities for their personal accounts in a Limited Offering unless:
| such transaction otherwise comply with all other provisions of this Code; |
| the Covered Person submits the full details of the proposed transaction to their Designated Reporting Person, including written certification that the investment opportunity did not arise by virtue of the Covered Persons position with BMO, the BMO Entities or an Affiliate; |
| The Designated Reporting Person has (i) concluded (after reviewing the details supplied by the Covered Person, receiving the written certification, and consulting with other BMO investment advisory personnel) that no Client accounts have a foreseeable interest in purchasing such securities and (ii) granted pre-clearance approval. |
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The Covered Person, after purchasing an approved Limited Offering, may not participate in any investment decision regarding that Limited Offering for any Client. As such, a recommendation to a Client of the BMO Entities to purchase or sell Securities of such an issuer (following a purchase by a Covered Person in an approved personal transaction) will be subject to an independent review by the President of the Adviser (or his or her designee), so long as the person conducting such review has no personal interest in the issuer. The Covered Person will affirmatively disclose to the Chief Compliance Officer any such independent review.
3. Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) Covered Persons are prohibited from acquiring any Security distributed in an initial public offering (IPO), until trading of the Security commences in the secondary market. This restriction also applies to transactions in IPOs in an account where the Covered Person has granted full discretionary authority to an Approved Third Party Manager. The Compliance Department reserves the right to contact your Approved Third Party Manager to verify they are not participating in IPOs in your account.
4. Blackout Periods
a. | Covered Persons are prohibited from executing a personal transaction in any Reportable Security on a day during which a Client has a pending buy or sell order for that Reportable Security, and for seven (7) calendar days after a Client purchases or sells the same Reportable Security. Any purchases or sales of any Reportable Security by a Covered Person within seven (7) days before a Client purchases or sells the same Reportable Security are subject to review on a case-by-case basis for purposes of determining whether a violation of this Code has or may have occurred, unless a personal transaction meets a pre-clearance exception listed under Section VI.A.ii. |
b. | Covered Persons, with knowledge of a reoptimization, are prohibited from executing a personal transaction in any Reportable Security, unless a personal transaction meets a pre-clearance exception listed under Section VI.A.ii, from; |
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(i) | the time of dissemination of the output of any investment model until the time of publication of the final list of pending transactions based upon the investment model; or |
(ii) | the time of publication of the final list of pending transactions based upon the investment model until seven (7) calendar days after a Client account has completed its transactions in that security. |
5. When purchasing, exchanging, or redeeming shares of a Reportable Fund, Covered Persons must comply in all respects with the policies and standards set forth in the then current prospectus, including restrictions on short-term trading.
6. Short-Term Trading Covered Persons are generally discouraged from engaging in short-term speculative trading, excessive trading and trading which interferes the Covered Persons job responsibilities.
7. BMO Securities Covered Persons are prohibited from engaging in transactions in Bank of Montreal Securities or related financial instruments that are:
a. | call or put options or short selling (selling, directly or indirectly, Bank of Montreal Securities or related financial instruments that you do not own); or |
b. | transactions (e.g., monetization transactions, forward sale contracts, equity swaps, collars, purchases of units of exchange funds, entering into exchange contracts or limited recourse loans secured primarily by Bank of Montreal Securities, etc.) if those transactions are designed to hedge or offset the economic risk of holding Bank of Montreal Securities or related financial instruments. |
ii. | Exceptions from Pre-Clearance Requirements |
The following exceptions are from pre-clearance only ; please see Section B for applicable reporting requirements.
1. | Covered Persons are not required to pre-clear the following: |
a. | Purchases or sales of 2,000 common shares or less (or the purchase, sale, writing of, the right to or voluntary exercise of 20 options contracts or less) in a public company whose market capitalization is greater than $5 billion at the time of the purchase or sale; |
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b. | Transactions over which the Covered Person has no control, such as the expiration of an option contract or option exercise thresholds that trigger an automatic exercise of options; |
c. | Purchases or sales in Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and closed end funds, including options on such funds; |
d. | Transactions in a Reportable Fund, except that a Covered Person of the Adviser or sub-Adviser to the Reportable Fund must pre-clear such transactions in excess of $100,000; |
e. | Transactions in a Bank of Montreal (BMO) 401(k) plans, except for transactions in Reportable Funds as described above; |
f. | Purchases or sales in foreign currency futures or forwards; |
g. | Purchases or sales of options, futures, or forwards on broad-based indices, defined as indices consisting of 100 names or more; |
h. | The execution of options of BMO securities acquired as the result of employment at BMO or its Affiliates, subject to any applicable BMO trading windows; |
i. | Purchases which are made through an Automatic Investment Plan; |
j. | Purchases made through the ESPP or 401(k) that are a part of an automatic payroll deduction plan whereby an employee purchases securities issued by an employer or a Reportable Fund; however, any sale or other purchase of a Reportable Fund or employer securities in a 401(k) or the sale of securities purchased through the ESPP are subject to the pre-clearance requirements described herein. |
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k. | Purchases effected upon the exercise of rights issued by an issuer pro rata to all holders of a class of its Securities, to the extent such rights were acquired from such issuer, and any sales of such rights so acquired; |
l. | The acquisition of Reportable Securities through stock dividends, dividend reinvestments, stock splits, reverse stock splits, mergers, consolidations, spin-offs, and other similar corporate reorganizations or distributions generally applicable to all holders of the same class of securities; |
m. | Purchases which (upon advance notification and approval from your Designated Reporting Person or his or her designee) are part of an offering(s) made available to a member of the Covered Persons household solely by virtue of that persons employment; |
n. | Purchases or sales effected in any account over which the Covered Person has no direct or indirect influence or control with an Approved Third Party Manager(s). However, in order to advise any such Approved Third Party Manager to enter into or refrain from entering into a specific transaction or class of transactions, you must first consult your Designated Reporting Person and obtain approval; or |
o. | Any transaction in which your Designated Reporting Person or his or her designee determines that the nature of the Security traded or the facts surrounding the transaction are sufficient enough to make pre-clearance unwarranted. |
B. | Reporting Requirements |
Failure to complete the reports described in this Section of the Code in the specified timeframe is a violation of Rule 17j-1 and Rule 204A-1 under the Investment Company Act and the Advisers Act, respectively, and all of the other applicable law, rule or regulation, as well as this Code. Covered Persons reporting obligations may be met by submitting the necessary reports on Protegent PTA. The Compliance Department generally maintains these reports within Protegent PTA.
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Any report submitted pursuant to this Section may contain a statement that the report shall not be construed as an admission by the Covered Person that such person has in fact any direct or indirect Beneficial Ownership in the securities to which the report relates.
i. | Initial and Annual Holdings Reports |
Within ten calendar days of becoming a Covered Person, Covered Persons must submit an Initial Report listing all Reportable Accounts along with any in which they are a Beneficial Owner and all holdings within these accounts. Furthermore, annually, Covered Persons must report all Reportable Accounts along with any in which they are a Beneficial Owner and all transactions within these accounts unless the transaction is an Exempt Transaction.
1. | Every Covered Person shall report the information described below to their Designated Reporting Person (or his or her designee): |
a. | The full name (title), description (type and exchange ticker symbol or CUSIP number), number of shares and principal amount of each Reportable Security in which the Covered Person or any immediate family member sharing the same household had any direct or indirect Beneficial Ownership when the person became a Covered Person; |
b. | The name of any broker, dealer or bank maintaining an account in which any Securities that the Covered Person has any indirect or direct Beneficial Ownership are held; and |
c. | Date the report is submitted and signature. |
2. | Every Covered Person is required to submit a Holdings Report: |
a. | No later than 10 calendar days after the person becomes a Covered Person, an initial holdings report listing all of the information described above which must be current as of a date no more than 45 days prior to the date the person becomes a Covered Person; and |
b. | By February 14 of each year, an annual holdings report listing all of the information described above as of December 31 of the prior year. |
3. | Covered Persons are not required to report holdings in any account over which the Covered Person has no direct or indirect influence or control, other than the right to terminate the account (i.e., Approved Third Party Manager Accounts). |
ii. | Quarterly Transaction Reports |
1. Within 30 calendar days after the end of each quarter, each Covered Person will provide their Designated Reporting Person (or his or her designee) with a transaction report covering, at a minimum, all transactions during the most recent quarter in which
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the Covered Person had any direct or indirect Beneficial Ownership (the Quarterly Transaction Report) containing the following information:
a. | The date of the transaction, the title, and as applicable the exchange ticker symbol or CUSIP number, interest rate and maturity date, the number of shares and the principal amount of each Reportable Security involved; |
b. | The nature of the transaction (i.e., purchase, sale or any other type of acquisition or disposition such as a gift or charitable contribution); |
c. | The price at which the transaction was effected; |
d. | The name of the broker, dealer or bank with or through which the transaction was effected; |
e. | Going forward on a quarterly basis you must certify that any personal investments effected during the quarter were done in compliance with this Code. |
f. | Date the report is submitted and signature; and |
g. | If there were no personal transactions in Reportable Securities during the period, either a statement to that effect or the word None (or some similar designation). |
2. Covered Persons are not required to report:
a. | Purchases which are made through automatic investment plans; |
b. | Purchases made through the ESPP or 401(k) plan that are part of an automatic payroll deduction plan whereby an employee purchases securities issued by an employer; However, any transaction that overrides the pre-set schedule or allocations of the automatic investment plan must be pre-cleared, as appropriate, and reported. If a Covered Person makes a change that will remain in effect for the following periods, such change will not be considered to be an override. For example, if a Covered Person decides to increase his automatic contribution into a Reportable Security from $1,000 to $2,000, and this change will remain in effect for the foreseeable future, he does not need to pre-clear or report this. However, if a Covered Person is increasing his automatic contribution from $1,000 to $2,000 as a one-time occurrence, and the immediately following automatic investment will revert back to $1,000, then this transaction must be reported and possibly pre-cleared depending on the type of security (please refer to Section VI.A); |
c. | Purchases effected upon the exercise of rights issued by an issuer pro rata to all holders of a class of its Securities, to the extent such rights were acquired from such issuer, and any sales of such rights so acquired; |
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d. | The acquisition of Reportable Securities through stock dividends, dividend reinvestments, stock splits, reverse stock splits, mergers, consolidations, spin-offs, and other similar corporate reorganizations or distributions generally applicable to all holders of the same class of securities; or |
e. | Purchases or sales effected in any account over which the Covered Person has no direct or indirect influence or control, other than the right to terminate the account. |
iii. | New Reportable Accounts Reports |
Covered Persons will be required to disclose to their Designated Reporting Person (or his or her designee) any new broker, dealer or bank accounts established during the previous quarter in which any Securities that the Covered Person has any indirect or direct Beneficial Ownership were held during the quarter. Ideally, Covered Persons should report new brokerage accounts when they are opened. The report shall include:
| The name of the broker, dealer or bank with whom the Covered Person established the account, |
| The date the account was established, and |
| The date the report was submitted. |
C. | Duplicate Statements and Use of Approved Broker for Reportable Accounts |
The Compliance Department may request duplicate copies of trade confirmations and periodic account statements for Reportable Accounts from brokers. Such confirmations and statements may be received through Protegent PTA.
D. | Third Party Managers Account Approval |
As described above, Covered Persons are not required to provide initial or annual holdings or quarterly transaction reports on any Reportable Account over which the Covered Person has no direct or indirect influence or control, other than the right to terminate the account, such as an account where the Covered Person has granted full discretionary authority to a registered broker-dealer, a registered investment adviser, or other investment manager acting in a similar fiduciary capacity. In these situations, the Covered Person must provide to its Designated Reporting Person:
| the terms of each account relationship (Agreement and any amendment to the Agreement) in writing; and |
| a certification to its Designated Reporting Person at the time such account relationship commences, and annually thereafter, that such Covered Person does not have direct or indirect influence or control over the account, other than the right to terminate the account. |
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The Compliance Department reserves the right to request confirmations and statements on such Third Party Manager Account.
VII. | G IFTS AND E NTERTAINMENT P OLICY |
A. | Gifts |
No Covered Person shall accept or provide a gift worth more than $100, in aggregate within any 12-month period, from or to any outside person or entity that does business, or seeks to do business, with the BMO Entities for which the Covered Person performs duties or over which the Covered Person exercises managerial influence, without prior approval from the Designated Reporting Person. The affiliates and agents of an outside person or entity shall be considered a single person. Under no circumstances should cash or cash equivalent gifts be given to or accepted from any outside person or entity, including gift cards.
Notwithstanding the above, the aggregate gift limit only (i.e., such gifts must be still reported as described below) does not apply to the following items:
i. | The offer or acceptance of gifts, meals, refreshments, or entertainment of reasonable value, which is generally $100 or less, that are related to commonly recognized major events related to employment, such as a promotion, new job, etc.; or |
ii. | The offer or acceptance of personal gifts such as a wedding gift or a congratulatory gift for the birth of a child, provided that these gifts are not given as a result of the business relationship 1 and the individual giving the gift bears the cost of the gift and not the employer (e.g., the gift is not paid for by the BMO Entity, or its affiliates, or any entity with which they transact business). |
Any gifts offered or received, unless exempted from the definition of gift below, must be reported by the Covered Person no less frequently than quarterly. The report must include a description of the gift given or received, the name of the person receiving or giving the gift and the estimated value of the gift. This reporting obligation can be met by submitting a gift disclosure through PTA.
Furthermore, the following items are exempted from the definition of gift under this policy:
| Salaries, wages, fees or other compensation paid, or expenses paid or reimbursed, in the usual scope of an Covered Persons employment responsibilities for the Covered Persons employer; |
| The offer or acceptance of meals, refreshments or entertainment of reasonable value in the course of a meeting or other occasion, the purpose of which is to hold bona fide business discussions; |
1 | For example, in situations where there is a pre-existing personal or family relationship between the person giving the gift and the recipient. |
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| The offer or acceptance of advertising or promotional material of nominal value, which is generally $50 or less, such as pens, pencils, note pads, key chains, calendars and similar items; and |
| The offer or acceptance of awards, from an employer to an employee, for recognition of service and accomplishment. |
B. | Business Entertainment |
No Covered Person shall provide or accept any business entertainment to or from any outside person or entity unless the business entertainment is considered to be a customary business practice, is reasonable under the circumstances, and is not so excessive, frequent, lavish, or extravagant as to raise questions of propriety.
Moreover, any such business entertainment shall only be permitted if;
| The Covered Person shall be in attendance; |
| The business entertainment is for business purposes; and |
| The Covered Persons travel and lodging related to the business entertainment is paid for by a BMO line of Business. |
C. | Special Considerations for Certain Client Types |
Regulations related to the investment management of state or municipal pension funds and other retirement plans often severely restrict or prohibit the offer of gifts or entertainment of any value to government officials (elected officials and employees of elected officials) who have involvement or influence over the selection of an investment manager. Prior to providing any gift or entertainment, the Covered Person will generally consult with such individuals.
Keep in mind your specific department may have additional policies and procedures that you need to adhere and may restrict any gifts or entertainment to government officials or agents of retirement plans.
VIII. | S ERVICE AS B OARD D IRECTOR OR M EMBER |
All Covered Persons are prohibited from serving on the boards of directors of any Public Company, absent express prior authorization from the Compliance Committee. Authorization to serve on the board of a Public Company may be granted in instances where the Compliance Committee determines that such board service would be consistent with the interests of a Client, including shareholders of the Company. If prior approval to serve as a director of a Public Company is granted, a Covered Person has an affirmative duty to excuse himself from participating in any deliberations by the BMO Entities regarding possible investments in the securities issued by the Public Company on whose board the Covered Person sits.
IX. | C ERTIFICATION AND A CKNOWLEDGEMENT OF THE C ODE AND I TS P ROVISIONS |
The Designated Reporting Person (or his or her designee) is responsible for notifying Covered Persons of their status and obligations under this Code and for providing to each of those individuals a copy of this Code and copies of amendments from time to time.
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Upon becoming a Covered Person and annually by February 14 of each year, every Covered Person will provide their Designated Reporting Person (or his or her designee) with certification that he or she has received, read, and understands the provisions of this Code, and that they recognize that they are subject to its provisions. The annual certification shall also include a statement that, during the prior year, the Covered Person has complied with the requirements of this Code and that the Covered Person has disclosed or reported all personal transactions in Reportable Securities that are required to be disclosed or reported pursuant to the requirements of this Code.
In addition, should there be any material amendments to the Code, as determined by your Designated Reporting Person, each Covered Persons will be asked to certify that he or she has received, read and understands the provisions of this Code.
X. | D ISINTERESTED D IRECTORS OF BMO F UNDS |
A. | Prohibited Securities Transactions |
No Disinterested Director shall purchase or sell, directly or indirectly, any security in which he or she has, or by reason of such transaction acquires, any direct or indirect Beneficial Ownership or interest when the Disinterested Director knows or has reason to believe that securities of the same class are being purchased or sold or considered for purchase or sale by BMO Funds or any series thereof, until those transactions have been completed or consideration of such transactions is abandoned.
This prohibition does not apply to any transaction in an investment advisory account of any Disinterested Director (either alone or with others) if an investment adviser has discretion and the Disinterested Director does not have knowledge of the transaction until after the transaction has been executed.
B. | Exempted Transactions |
The provisions of this Code are not intended to restrict unnecessarily the personal investment activities of Disinterested Directors. Therefore, the provisions of Section X.A of this Code shall not apply to:
1. | Purchases or sales over which a Disinterested Director has no direct or indirect influence or control; |
2. | Purchases or sales of securities that are not eligible for purchase or sale by a BMO Fund; |
3. | Purchases or sales that are non-volitional on the part of either the Disinterested Director or a BMO Fund; |
4. | Purchases that are part of an automatic investment or dividend reinvestment plan; |
5. | Purchases effected upon the exercise of rights issued by an issuer pro rata to all holders of a class of its securities to the extent such rights were acquired from such issuer, and sales of such rights so acquired; and |
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6. | Purchases or sales that receive the prior approval of the BMO Funds Chief Compliance Officer on the ground that they are not inconsistent with this Code or the provisions of Rule 17-j-l(a). |
C. | Reporting Securities Transactions |
1. | Duty to Report - If any Disinterested Director has a Beneficial Ownership in a transaction in a Security and at the time of the transaction knew, or in the ordinary course of fulfilling his or her official duties as a director should have known, that on the day of the transaction or within 15 days before or after that day a purchase or sale of that class of Security was made or being considered for a BMO Fund, he or she shall report the transaction to the BMO Funds Chief Compliance Officer within 30 days after the end of the calendar quarter in which the transaction occurred. |
2. | Form of Report - A report pursuant to Section X.C.i may be in any form, such as that in Exhibit A, (including a copy of a confirmation or monthly brokerage statement) but must include: |
a. | The date of the transaction; |
b. | The title, interest rate and maturity date (if applicable), number of shares, and the principal amount (if applicable) of the security; |
c. | The nature of the transaction (i.e., purchase, sale, gift, or other type of acquisition or disposition); |
d. | The price at which the transaction was effected; |
e. | The name of the broker, dealer or bank with or through whom the transaction was effected; |
f. | The name of the reporting person; and |
g. | The date on which the report is submitted. |
3. | Initial and Annual Holdings Reports - Disinterested Directors shall not be required to complete and submit Initial and Annual Holdings Reports. |
D. | Transactions with a BMO Fund |
No Disinterested Director will knowingly sell to or purchase from a BMO Fund any security or other property except securities issued by a BMO Fund.
XI. | W AIVERS BY THE D ESIGNATED R EPORTING P ERSON |
The Designated Reporting Person or his or her designee may, in his or her discretion, waive compliance by a Covered Person with the provisions of the Code, if he or she finds that such a waiver:
| is necessary to alleviate undue hardship or in view of unforeseen circumstances or is otherwise appropriate under all the relevant facts and circumstances; |
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| will not be inconsistent with the purposes and objectives of the Code; |
| will not adversely affect the interests of any Client of the Advisers or the interests of the Adviser or its affiliates; and |
| will not result in a transaction or conduct that would violate provisions of applicable laws or regulations. Any waiver shall be in writing and shall contain a statement of the basis for the waiver. |
XII. | R EVIEWING AND M ONITORING |
The Compliance Department will review all reports required under this Code, and personal trading activity and trading records to identify improper trades or patterns of trading or possible violations of the provisions or spirit of this Code. The Designated Reporting Person may designate one or more individuals to assist with the review of these items.
The Compliance Department shall institute and periodically review procedures (a) reasonably necessary to prevent violations of this Code and (b) pursuant to which appropriate management or compliance personnel review all reports required by this Code.
XIII. | R EPORTING V IOLATIONS AND S ANCTIONS |
Covered Persons who are aware of any possible violations of this Code must promptly report them to their Designated Reporting Person. Upon discovering that a Covered Person has not complied with the requirements or with the spirit of this Code, a Designated Reporting Person shall submit the findings to the Compliance Committee. The Compliance Committee may impose on that Covered Person sanctions the Compliance Committee deems appropriate, including, among other things, the unwinding of the transaction, and the disgorgement of profits, suspension or termination of employment, or removal from office. These sanctions may be assessed individually or in combination. Prior violations by the Covered Person and the degree of responsibility exercised by the Covered Person will be taken into consideration in the assessment of sanctions. In instances where a member of the Covered Persons household commits the violation, any sanction will be imposed on the Covered Person.
XIV. | A NNUAL R EPORT TO AND R EVIEW BY BMO F UNDS B OARD OF D IRECTORS |
No less frequently than annually, the Adviser, the sub-adviser to any Fund, the Companys distributor and the Company are each required to furnish to the Companys Board of Directors a written report that:
(a) | describes any issues arising under the Code of Ethics since the last report to the Board of Directors, including, but not limited to, information about material violations of the Code or procedures and sanctions imposed in response to the material violations; and |
(b) | certifies that the Adviser and the Company have adopted procedures reasonably necessary to prevent access persons from violating the Code. |
In addition, each Adviser to an investment company registered under the Investment Company Act will, no less frequently than annually, also furnish to the respective investment companys board of directors, the written report described above.
At least annually and, in any case, within months of adopting any material change to this Code, the each Adviser to a registered investment company under the Investment Company Act shall submit to such investment companys Board of Directors for approval any recommended or previously adopted changes to this Code.
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XV. | R ECORDKEEPING |
The Compliance Department will maintain copies of the Code, records of persons subject to reporting under the Code, copies of Covered Persons written acknowledgement of receipt of the Code, records of personal securities transactions and holdings reports and the Compliance Departments review of the same, records of decisions relating to approvals of investments in limited offerings or private placements, records of violations of the Code and actions taken as a result of the violations, and records of the annual reports provided to the BMO Funds Board of Directors. These records will be maintained (generally for five full fiscal years) in accordance with applicable laws and rules there under.
XVI. | F ORM ADV |
The Advisers will describe its Code of Ethics in Form ADV Part 2A and, upon request, furnish the clients with a copy of the Code.
XVII. | C ONFIDENTIALITY |
All reports and records monitored, prepared or maintained pursuant to this Code shall be considered confidential and proprietary to the BMO Entities and shall be maintained and protected accordingly; however, such reports and records may be made available, to the BMO Entities Board of Directors, the Board of Directors of investment companies for whom an Adviser provides services, BMO Corporate Audit, regulators, or other appropriate persons as may be reasonable and necessary to accomplish the purpose of this Code.
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EXHIBIT A
BMO F UNDS
T RANSACTION R EPORTING F ORM FOR D ISINTERESTED D IRECTORS
Background. BMO Funds, Inc. (the BMO Funds or Funds) has adopted a code of ethics (the Code of Ethics) to comply with Rule 17j-1 of the Investment Company Act. The Code of Ethics requires access persons to report their personal securities transactions. While the definition of access person includes directors of BMO Funds, a director who is not an interested person of the Funds (i.e. a Disinterested Director) and who would be required to make a report solely by reason of being a Fund director, is not required to submit initial or annual holdings reports and is only required to report transactions in Securities (as defined by the Code of Ethics) on a quarterly basis if the director knew or, in the ordinary course of fulfilling his or her official duties as a Fund director, should have known that during the 15-day period immediately before or after the directors transaction in a Security, a Fund purchased or sold the Security, or the Fund or its investment adviser considered purchasing or selling the Security.
Transaction Reporting. Each Disinterested Director shall submit to the Chief Compliance Officer of BMO Funds, the Funds investment adviser, a list of any applicable transactions, as described above, within 30 days of each calendar quarter end on this Form. To the extent the Disinterested Director does not have any applicable transactions, this Form need not be submitted. The Disinterested Directors will be reminded periodically of their reporting responsibilities. The reporting of any transaction below shall not be construed as an admission of any direct or indirect beneficial ownership in the subject security.
T RANSACTION R ECORD FOR ( Print Name ) | F OR THE Q UARTER E NDED |
I am reporting below all transactions required to be reported for the quarter pursuant to the Code of Ethics.
Date of
Transaction |
Name of Security
and Ticker |
Interest
Rate |
Maturity
Date |
Principal
Amount |
Number of
Shares or Par |
Type of Transaction (B) (S) (Other) |
Price | Broker/Bank/Other |
Name of Account (if other than yourself) |
|||||||||
|
|
|||||
Disinterested Director Signature | Date |
REVIEWED: | ||
Date Compliance Review Signature | ||
FOLLOW-UP ACTION (if any): |
Exhibit A - 1