Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying statement of assets and liabilities of RiverNorth Specialty Finance Corporation (the Fund), including the summary schedule of investments, as of June 30, 2021, the related statements of operations and cash flows for the year then ended, the statements of changes in net assets for each of the years in the two-year period then ended, and the related notes (collectively, the financial statements) and the financial highlights for each of the years in the four-year period then ended and the period from September 22, 2016 (commencement of operations) through June 30, 2017. In our opinion, the financial statements and financial highlights present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Fund as of June 30, 2021, the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, the changes in its net assets for each of the years in the two year period then ended, and the financial highlights for each of the years in the four year period then ended and the period from September 22, 2016 through June 30, 2017, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

Basis for Opinion

These financial statements and financial highlights are the responsibility of the Fund’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements and financial highlights based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Fund in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements and financial highlights are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements and financial highlights, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements and financial highlights. Such procedures also included confirmation of securities owned as of June 30, 2021, by correspondence with custodians and brokers and other appropriate audit procedures. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements and financial highlights. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

KPMG LLP

We have served as the auditor of the Fund since 2015.

Chicago, Illinois

August 29, 2021

The Fund has a dividend reinvestment plan commonly referred to as an “opt-out” plan. Unless the registered owner (“Shareholder”) of shares of common stock (“Shares”) elects to receive cash by contacting DST Systems, Inc. (the “Plan Administrator”), all dividends declared on Shares will be automatically reinvested in additional Shares by the Plan Administrator for Shareholders in the Fund’s Plan. Such reinvested amounts are included in the Fund’s Managed Assets and, therefore, the fees paid under the Management Fee and will be higher than if such amounts had not been reinvested. Shareholders who elect not to participate in the Plan will receive all dividends and other distributions in cash paid by check mailed directly to the Shareholder of record (or, if the Shares are held in street or other nominee name, then to such nominee) by the Plan Administrator as dividend disbursing agent. Participation in the Plan is completely voluntary and may be terminated or resumed at any time without penalty by notice if received and processed by the Plan Administrator prior to the dividend record date; otherwise such termination or resumption will be effective with respect to any subsequently declared dividend or other distribution. Such notice will be effective with respect to a particular dividend or other distribution (together, a “Dividend”). Some brokers may automatically elect to receive cash on behalf of Shareholders and may re-invest that cash in additional Shares.

The Plan Administrator will open an account for each Shareholder under the Plan in the same name in which such Shareholder’s Shares are registered. Whenever the Fund declares a Distribution payable in cash, non-participants in the Plan will receive cash and participants in the Plan will receive the equivalent in Shares. The Shares will be acquired by the Plan Administrator for the participants’ accounts, depending upon the circumstances described below, either (i) through receipt of additional unissued but authorized Shares from the Fund (“Newly Issued Common Shares”) or (ii) by purchase of outstanding Shares on the open market (“Open-Market Purchases”) on the NYSE or elsewhere. If, on the payment date for any dividend, the closing market price plus estimated brokerage commissions per share is equal to or greater than the NAV per share, the Plan Administrator will invest the dividend amount in newly issued shares. The number of newly issued shares to be credited to each participant’s account will be determined by dividing the dollar amount of the dividend by the Fund’s NAV per share on the payment date. If, on the payment date for any dividend, the NAV per share is greater than the closing market value plus estimated brokerage commissions (i.e., the Fund’s shares are trading at a discount), the Plan Administrator will invest the dividend amount in shares acquired in open-market purchases.

In the event of a market discount on the payment date for any dividend, the Plan Administrator will have until the last business day before the next date on which the shares trade on an “ex-dividend” basis or 30 days after the payment date for such dividend, whichever is sooner, to invest the dividend amount in shares acquired in open-market purchases. If, before the Plan Administrator has completed its open-market purchases, the market price per share exceeds the NAV per share, the average per share purchase price paid by the Plan Administrator may exceed the NAV of the shares, resulting in the acquisition of fewer shares than if the dividend had been paid in newly issued shares on the dividend payment date. Because of the foregoing difficulty with respect to open-market purchases, the Plan provides that if the Plan Administrator is unable to invest the full dividend amount in open-market purchases during the purchase period or if the market discount shifts to a market premium during the purchase period, the Plan Administrator may cease making open-market purchases and may invest the uninvested portion of the dividend amount in newly issued shares at the NAV per share at the close of business on the last purchase date.

The Plan Administrator maintains all Shareholders’ accounts in the Plan and furnishes written confirmation of all transactions in the accounts, including information needed by Shareholders for tax records. Shares in the account of each Plan participant will be held by the Plan Administrator on behalf of the Plan participant, and each Shareholder proxy will include those Shares purchased or received pursuant to the Plan. The Plan Administrator will forward all proxy solicitation materials to participants and vote proxies for Shares held under the Plan in accordance with the instructions of the participants.

Beneficial owners of Shares who hold their Shares in the name of a broker or nominee should contact the broker or nominee to determine whether and how they may participate in the Plan. In the case of Shareholders such as banks, brokers or nominees which hold shares for others who are the beneficial owners, the Plan Administrator will administer the Plan on the basis of the number of Shares certified from time to time by the record Shareholder’s name and held for the account of beneficial owners who participate in the Plan.

There will be no brokerage charges with respect to Shares issued directly by the Fund. The automatic reinvestment of Dividends will not relieve participants of any federal, state or local income tax that may be payable (or required to be withheld) on such Dividends. Shareholders who receive distributions in the form of Shares generally are subject to the same U.S. federal, state and local tax consequences as Shareholders who elect to receive their distributions in cash and, for this purpose, Shareholders receiving distributions in the form of Shares will generally be treated as receiving distributions equal to the fair market value of the Shares received through the plan; however, since their cash distributions will be reinvested, those Shareholders will not receive cash with which to pay any applicable taxes on reinvested distributions. Participants that request a sale of Shares through the Plan Administrator are subject to brokerage commissions.

The Fund reserves the right to amend or terminate the Plan. There is no direct service charge to participants with regard to purchases in the Plan; however, the Fund reserves the right to amend the Plan to include a service charge payable by the participants. All correspondence or questions concerning the Plan should be directed to the Plan Administrator at (844) 569-4750.

The following information in this annual report is a summary of certain information about the Fund and changes since the Fund’s most recent annual report dated June 30, 2020 (the “prior disclosure date”). This information may not reflect all of the changes that have occurred since you purchased the Fund.

Fund Change – Since the prior disclosure date, the Fund has changed from a non-diversified to a diversified fund. Further details can be found in the Fund’s preliminary Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, each dated June 8, 2021.

Investment Objective

There have been no changes in the Fund’s investment objectives since the prior disclosure date that have not been approved by shareholders.

The investment objective of the Fund is to seek a high level of current income.

Principal Investment Strategies and Policies

Under normal market conditions, the Fund seeks to achieve its investment objectives by investing, directly or indirectly, in credit instruments, including a portfolio of securities of specialty finance and other financial companies that RiverNorth Capital Management, LLC (the “Adviser”) believes offer attractive opportunities for income. These companies may include, but are not limited to, banks, thrifts, finance companies, lending platforms, business development companies (“BDCs”), real estate investment trusts (“REITs”), special purpose acquisition companies (“SPACs”), private investment funds (private funds that are exempt from registration under Sections 3(c)(1) and 3(c)(7) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”)), brokerage and advisory firms, insurance companies and financial holding companies. Together, these types of companies are referred to as “financial institutions.” The Fund’s investments in hedge funds and private equity funds that are exempt from registration under Sections 3(c)(1) and 3(c)(7) of the 1940 Act will be limited to no more than 15% of the Fund’s assets. The Fund may also invest in common equity, preferred equity, convertible securities and warrants of these institutions. “Managed Assets” means the total assets of the Fund, including assets attributable to leverage, minus liabilities (other than debt representing leverage and any preferred stock that may be outstanding).

The Fund may invest in income-producing securities of any maturity and credit quality, including below investment grade, and equity securities, including exchange-traded funds and registered closed-end funds. Below investment grade securities are commonly referred to as “junk” or “high yield” securities and are considered speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal. Such income-producing securities in which the Fund may invest may include, without limitation, corporate debt securities, U.S. government debt securities, short-term debt securities, asset backed securities, exchange-traded notes, loans, including secured and unsecured senior loans, Alternative Credit (as defined below), collateralized loan obligations (“CLOs”) and other structured finance securities, and cash and cash equivalents.

The Fund’s alternative credit investments may be made through a combination of: (i) investing in loans to small and mid-sized companies (“SMEs”); (ii) investing in notes or other pass-through obligations issued by an alternative credit platform (or an affiliate) representing the right to receive the principal and interest payments on an Alternative Credit investment (or fractional portions thereof) originated through the platform (“Pass-Through Notes”); (iii) purchasing asset-backed securities representing ownership in a pool of Alternative Credit; (iv) investing in private investment funds that purchase Alternative Credit, (v) acquiring an equity interest in an alternative credit platform (or an affiliate); and (vi) providing loans, credit lines or other extensions of credit to an alternative credit platform (or an affiliate) (the foregoing listed investments are collectively referred to herein as the “Alternative Credit Instruments”). Subject to the limitations in the Fund’s prospectus and SAI, the Fund may invest without limit in any of the foregoing types of Alternative Credit Instruments and the Fund’s investments in private investment funds will be limited to no more than 10% of the Fund’s Managed Assets. The Alternative Credit in which the Fund typically invests are newly issued and/or current as to interest and principal payments at the time of investment. As a fundamental policy (which cannot be changed without the approval of the holders of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund), the Fund does not invest in Alternative Credit that are of subprime quality at the time of investment. The Fund considers an SME loan to be of “subprime quality” if the likelihood of repayment on such loan is determined by the Adviser based on its due diligence and the credit underwriting policies of the originating platform to be similar to that of consumer loans that are of subprime quality. The Fund does not currently have any intention invest in Alternative Credit originated from lending platforms based outside the United States or made to non-U.S. borrowers. However, the Fund may in the future invest in such Alternative Credit and will provide updated disclosures prior to making such investments. Unless the context suggests otherwise, all references to loans generally in this disclosure refer to Alternative Credit.

Alternative Credit Instruments are generally not rated by the nationally recognized statistical rating organizations (“NRSROs”). Such unrated instruments, however, are considered to be comparable in quality to securities falling into any of the ratings categories used by such NRSROs to classify “junk” bonds. Accordingly, the Fund’s unrated Alternative Credit Instrument investments constitute highly risky and speculative investments similar to investments in “junk” bonds, notwithstanding that the Fund is not permitted to invest in loans that are of subprime quality at the time of investment. The Alternative Credit Instruments in which the Fund may invest may have varying degrees of credit risk. There can be no assurance that payments due on underlying Alternative Credit investments will be made. At any given time, the Fund’s portfolio may be substantially illiquid and subject to increased credit and default risk. If a borrower is unable to make its payments on a loan, the Fund may be greatly limited in its ability to recover any outstanding principal and interest under such loan. The Shares therefore should be purchased only by investors who could afford the loss of the entire amount of their investment.

Percentage limitations described within this report regarding the Fund’s investment strategies and policies are as of the time of investment by the Fund and may be exceeded on a going-forward basis as a result of market value fluctuations of the Fund’s portfolio investments.

Specialty Finance Companies.

Specialty finance companies and other financial companies invest in a wide range of securities and financial instruments, including but not limited to private debt and equity, secured and unsecured debt, trust preferred securities, subordinated debt, and preferred and common equity as well as other equity-linked securities. These various securities offer distinct risk/reward features which may be more or less attractive during different points in the market cycle. Under normal market conditions, the Adviser will invest the Fund’s Managed Assets in specialty finance companies with exposure to some or all of these kinds of securities.

Specialty finance companies provide capital or financing to businesses within specified market segments. These companies are often distinguished by their market specializations which allow them to focus on the specific financial needs of their clients. Specialty finance companies often engage in asset-based and other forms of non-traditional financing activities. While they generally compete against traditional financial institutions with broad product lines and, often, greater financial resources, specialty finance companies seek competitive advantage by focusing their attention on market niches, which may provide them with deeper knowledge of their target market and its needs. Specialty finance companies include mortgage specialists to certain consumers, equipment leasing specialists to certain industries and equity or debt-capital providers to certain small businesses. Specialty finance companies often utilize tax-efficient or other non-traditional structures, such as BDCs and REITs.

Alternative Credit.

General. Alternative credit is often referred to as “peer-to-peer” lending, which term originally reflected the initial focus of the industry on individual investors and consumer loan borrowers. In addition, the alternative credit platforms may retain on their balance sheets a portion of the loan portfolios they originate. In alternative credit, loans are originated through online platforms that provide a marketplace that matches small- and mid-sized companies and other borrowers seeking loans with investors willing to provide the funding for such loans. Since its inception, the industry has grown to include substantial involvement of institutional investors. These borrowers may seek such loans for a variety of different purposes, ranging, for example, from loans to fund elective medical procedures to loans for franchise financing. The procedures through which borrowers obtain loans can vary between platforms, and between the types of loans (e.g., consumer versus SME). The Fund intends to hold its Alternative Credit investments until maturity.

The Alternative Credit in which the Fund typically invests are newly issued and/or current as to interest and principal payments at the time of investment. A small number of alternative credit platforms originate a substantial portion of their Alternative Credit investments in the United States. The Adviser intends to continue to build relationships and enter into agreements with additional platforms. However, if there are not sufficient qualified loan requests through any platform, the Fund may be unable to deploy its capital in a timely or efficient manner. In such event, the Fund may be forced to invest in cash, cash equivalents, or other assets that fall within its investment policies that are generally expected to offer lower returns than the Fund’s target returns from investments in Alternative Credit. The Fund enters into purchase agreements with platforms, which outline, among other things, the terms of the loan purchase, loan servicing, the rights of the Fund to assign the loans and the remedies available to the parties. Although the form of these agreements is similar to those typically available to all investors, institutional investors such as the Fund (unlike individual retail investors) have an opportunity to negotiate some of the terms of the agreement. In particular, the Fund has greater negotiating power related to termination provisions and custody of the Fund’s account(s) relative to other investors due to the restrictions placed on the Fund by the 1940 Act, of which the platforms are aware. Pursuant to such agreements, the platform or a third-party servicer will typically service the loans, collecting payments and distributing them to the Fund, less any servicing fees, and the servicing entity, unless directed by the Fund, typically will make all decisions regarding acceleration or enforcement of the loans following any default by a borrower. The Fund seeks to have a backup servicer in case any platform or third-party servicer ceases or fails to perform the servicing functions, which the Fund expects will mitigate some of the risks associated with a reliance on platforms or third-party servicers for servicing of the Alternative Credit.

In the United States, a platform may be subject to extensive regulation, oversight and examination at both the federal and state level, and across multiple jurisdictions if it operates its business nationwide. Accordingly, platforms are generally subject to various securities, lending, licensing and consumer protection laws. In addition, courts have recently considered the regulatory environment applicable to alternative credit platforms and purchasers of Alternative Credit. In light of recent decisions, if upheld and widely applied, certain alternative credit platforms could be required to restructure their operations and certain loans previously made by them through funding banks may not be enforceable, whether in whole or in part, by investors holding such loans or such loans would be subject to diminished returns and/or the platform subject to fines and penalties. As a result, large amounts of Alternative Credit purchased by the Fund (directly or indirectly) could become unenforceable or subject to diminished returns, thereby causing losses for Shareholders.

Alternative Credit and Pass-Through Notes. As noted above, the underlying Alternative Credit origination processes employed by each platform may vary significantly. The principal amount of each loan is advanced to the borrower by a bank (the “funding bank”). The operator of the platform may purchase the loan from the funding bank at par using the funds of multiple lenders and then issues to each such lender at par a Pass-Through Note of the operator (or an affiliate of the operator) representing the right to receive the lender’s proportionate share of all principal and interest payments received by the operator from the borrower on the loan funded by such lender (net of the platform servicing fees). As an alternative, certain operators (including most SME lenders) do not engage funding banks but instead extend their loans directly to the borrowers.

The platform operator typically will service the loans it originates and will maintain a separate segregated deposit account into which it will deposit all payments received from the obligors on the loans. Upon identification of the proceeds received with respect to a loan and deduction of applicable fees, the platform operator forwards the amounts owed to the lenders or the holders of any related Pass-Through Notes, as applicable.

A platform operator is not obligated to make any payments due on Alternative Credit or Pass- Through Notes (except to the extent that the operator actually receives payments from the borrower on the related loan). Accordingly, lenders and investors assume all of the credit risk on the loans they fund through a Pass-Through Note purchased from a platform operator and are not entitled to recover any deficiency of principal or interest from the platform operator if the underlying borrower defaults on its payments due with respect to a loan. In addition, a platform operator is generally not required to repurchase Alternative Credit from a lender or purchaser except under very narrow circumstances, such as in cases of verifiable identity fraud by the borrower. As loan servicer, the platform operator or an affiliated entity typically has the ability to refer any delinquent Alternative Credit to a collection agency (which may impose additional fees and costs that are often as high, or higher in some cases, as 35% of any recovered amounts). The Fund itself will not directly enter into any arrangements or contracts with the collection agencies (and, accordingly, the Fund does not currently anticipate it would have, under current law and existing interpretations, substantial risk of liability for the actions of such collection agencies). At the same time, the relatively low principal amounts of Alternative Credit often make it impracticable for the platform operator to commence legal proceedings against defaulting borrowers. Alternative Credit may be secured (generally in the case of SME loans and real estate-related loans) or unsecured. For example, real estate Alternative Credit may be secured by a deed of trust, mortgage, security agreement or legal title to real estate. There can be no assurance that any collateral pledged to secure Alternative Credit can be liquidated quickly or at all or will generate proceeds sufficient to offset any defaults on such loan.

Generally, the Alternative Credit in which the Fund invests will fully amortize and will not be interest-only. However, in some sectors (e.g., real estate-related loans), the loans may be interest-only with the principal to be paid at the end of the term. An active secondary market for the Alternative Credit does not currently exist and an active market for the Alternative Credit may not develop in the future. Borrowers of Alternative Credit electronically execute each of the loan documents prepared in connection with the applicable loan, binding the borrower to the terms of the loan, which include the provision that the loan may be transferred to another party.

Asset-Backed Securities. The Fund also may invest in Alternative Credit, through special purpose vehicles (“SPVs”) established solely for the purpose of holding assets (e.g., commercial loans) and issuing securities (“asset-backed securities”) secured only by such underlying assets (which practice is known as securitization). The Fund may invest, for example, in an SPV that holds a pool of loans originated by a particular platform. The SPV may enter into a service agreement with the operator or a related entity to ensure continued collection of payments, pursuit of delinquent borrowers and general interaction with borrowers in much the same manner as if the securitization had not occurred.

The SPV may issue multiple classes of asset-backed securities with different levels of seniority. The more senior classes will be entitled to receive payment before the subordinate classes if the cash flow generated by the underlying assets is not sufficient to allow the SPV to make payments on all of the classes of the asset-backed securities. Accordingly, the senior classes of asset-backed securities receive higher credit ratings (if rated) whereas the subordinated classes have higher interest rates. In general, the Fund may invest in both rated senior classes of asset-backed securities as well as unrated subordinated (residual) classes of asset-backed securities. The subordinated classes of asset-backed securities in which the Fund may invest are typically considered to be an illiquid and highly speculative investment, as losses on the underlying assets are first absorbed by the subordinated classes.

The value of asset-backed securities, like that of traditional fixed-income securities, typically increases when interest rates fall and decreases when interest rates rise. However, asset-backed securities differ from traditional fixed-income securities because they generally will be subject to prepayment based upon prepayments received by the SPV on the loan pool. The price paid by the Fund for such securities, the yield the Fund expects to receive from such securities and the weighted average life of such securities are based on a number of factors, including the anticipated rate of prepayment of the underlying assets.

Private Investment Funds. The Fund may invest up to 10% of its Managed Assets in private investment funds that invest in Alternative Credit. Under one such fund structure, the platform operator may form (i) an investment fund that offers partnership interests or similar securities to investors on a private placement basis, and (ii) a subsidiary that acts as the investment fund’s general partner and investment manager. The investment fund then applies its investors’ funds to purchase Alternative Credit originated on the platform (or portions thereof) from the operator. As an investor in an investment fund, the Fund would hold an indirect interest in a pool of Alternative Credit and would receive distributions on its interest in accordance with the fund’s governing documents. This structure is intended to create diversification and to reduce operator credit risk for the investors in the investment fund by enabling them to invest indirectly in Alternative Credit through the private investment fund rather than directly from the operator of the platform.

Other Investments in Alternative Credit Instruments. The Fund may invest in the equity securities and/or debt obligations of platform operators (or their affiliates), which may provide these platforms and their related entities with the financing needed to support their lending business. An equity interest in a platform or related entity represents ownership in such company, providing voting rights and entitling the Fund, as a shareholder, to a share in the company’s success through dividends and/or capital appreciation. A debt investment made by the Fund could take the form of a loan, convertible note, credit line or other extension of credit made by the Fund to a platform operator. The Fund would be entitled to receive interest payments on its investment and repayment of the principal at a set maturity date or otherwise in accordance with the governing documents.

The Fund also may wholly-own or otherwise control certain pooled investment vehicles which hold Alternative Credit and/or other Alternative Credit Instruments, which pooled investment vehicle may be formed and managed by the Adviser (a “Subsidiary”). Each Subsidiary may invest in Alternative Credit and other instruments that the Fund may hold directly. As of the date of this report, the Fund did not own any Subsidiaries.

Business Development Companies.

BDCs are a type of closed-end fund regulated under the 1940 Act, whose shares are typically listed for trading on a U.S. securities exchange. BDCs typically invest in and lend to small and medium-sized private and certain public companies that may not have access to public equity markets for capital raising. Oftentimes, financing a BDC includes an equity-like investment such as warrants or conversion rights, creating an opportunity for the BDC to participate in capital appreciation in addition to the interest income earned from its debt investments. The interest earned by a BDC flows through to investors in the form of a dividend, normally without being taxed at the BDC entity level. BDCs invest in such diverse industries as healthcare, chemical and manufacturing, technology and service companies. BDCs are unique in that at least 70% of their investments must be made in private and certain public U.S. businesses, and BDCs are required to make available significant managerial assistance to their portfolio companies. Unlike corporations, BDCs are not taxed on income distributed to their shareholders provided they comply with the applicable requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Internal Revenue Code”). The securities of BDCs, which are required to distribute substantially all of their income on an annual basis to investors in order to not be subject to entity level taxation, often offer a yield advantage over securities of other issuers, such as corporations, that are taxed on income at the entity level and are able to retain all or a portion of their income rather than distributing it to investors. The Fund invests primarily in BDC shares which are trading in the secondary market on a U.S. securities exchange but may, in certain circumstances, invest in an initial public offering of BDC shares or invest in certain debt instruments issued by BDCs. The Fund is not limited with respect to the specific types of BDCs in which it invests. The Fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any management and other expenses, and of any performance based or incentive fees, charged by the BDCs in which it invests, in addition to the expenses paid by the Fund.

Closed-End Funds.

Closed-end funds are investment companies that typically issue a fixed number of shares that trade on a securities exchange or over-the-counter. The risks of investment in closed-end funds typically reflect the risk of the types of securities in which the funds invest. Investments in closed-end funds are subject to the additional risk that shares of the fund may trade at a premium or discount to their NAV per share. Closed-end funds come in many varieties and can have different investment objectives, strategies and investment portfolios. They also can be subject to different risks, volatility and fees and expenses. Although closed-end funds are generally listed and traded on an exchange, the degree of liquidity, or ability to be bought and sold, will vary significantly from one closed-end fund to another based on various factors including, but not limited to, demand in the marketplace. The Fund may also invest in shares of closed-end funds that are not listed on an exchange. Such non-listed closed-end funds are subject to certain restrictions on redemptions and no secondary market exists. As a result, such investments should be considered illiquid. When the Fund invests in shares of a closed-end fund, shareholders of the Fund bear their proportionate share of the closed-end fund’s fees and expenses, as well as their share of the Fund’s fees and expenses.

REITs and Other Mortgage-Related Securities.

REITs are financial vehicles that pool investors’ capital to invest primarily in income-producing real estate or real estate-related loans or interests. REIT shares are typically listed for trading in the secondary market on a U.S. securities exchange. REITs can generally be classified as “Mortgage REITs,” “Equity REITs” and “Hybrid REITs.” Mortgage REITs, which invest the majority of their assets in real estate mortgages, derive their income primarily from interest payments. The Fund focuses its Mortgage REIT investments in companies that invest primarily in U.S. Agency, prime-rated and commercial mortgage securities. U.S. Agency securities include securities issued by the Government National Mortgage Association, the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation. Equity REITs, which invest the majority of their assets directly in real property, derive their income primarily from rents, royalties and lease payments. Equity REITs can also realize capital gains by selling properties that have appreciated in value. Some REITs which are classified as Equity REITs provide specialized financing solutions to their clients in the form of sale-lease back transactions and triple net lease financing. Hybrid REITs combine the characteristics of both Equity REITs and Mortgage REITs.

Debt securities issued by REITs are, for the most part, general and unsecured obligations and are subject generally to risks associated with REITs. Distributions received by the Fund from REITs may consist of dividends, capital gains and/or return of capital. REITs are not taxed on income distributed to their shareholders provided they comply with the applicable requirements of the Internal Revenue Code. Similar to BDCs, the securities of REITs, which are required to distribute substantially all of their income to investors in order to not be subject to entity level taxation, often offer a yield advantage over securities of other issuers, such as corporations, that are taxed on income at the entity level and are able to retain all or a portion of their income rather than distributing it to investors. Many of these distributions, however, will not generally qualify for favorable treatment as qualified dividend income. To the extent, however, the Fund designates dividends it pays to its shareholders as “section 199A dividends” such shareholder may be eligible for a 20% deduction with respect to such dividends. The amount of section 199A dividends that the Fund may pay and report to its shareholders is limited to the excess of the ordinary REIT dividends, other than capital gain dividends and portions of REIT dividends designated as qualified dividend income, that the Fund receives from REITs for a taxable year over the Fund’s expenses allocable to such dividends.

The Fund invests primarily in REIT shares which are trading in the secondary market on a U.S. securities exchange but may, in certain circumstances, invest in an initial public offering of REIT shares or invest in certain debt instruments issued by REITs. The Fund is not limited with respect to the specific types of REITs in which it invests. The Fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any management and other operating expenses charged by the REITs in which it invests, in addition to the expenses paid by the Fund.

Other mortgage-related securities in which the Fund may invest include debt instruments which provide periodic payments consisting of interest and/or principal that are derived from or related to payments of interest and/or principal on underlying mortgages. Additional payments on mortgage-related securities may be made out of unscheduled prepayments of principal resulting from the sale of the underlying property or from refinancing or foreclosure, net of fees or costs that may be incurred.

The Fund may invest in commercial mortgage-related securities issued by corporations. These are securities that represent an interest in, or are secured by, mortgage loans secured by commercial property, such as industrial and warehouse properties, office buildings, retail space and shopping malls, multifamily properties and cooperative apartments, hotels and motels, nursing homes, hospitals and senior living centers. They may pay fixed or adjustable rates of interest. The commercial mortgage loans that underlie commercial mortgage-related securities have certain distinct risk characteristics. Commercial mortgage loans generally lack standardized terms, which may complicate their structure. Commercial properties themselves tend to be unique and difficult to value. Commercial mortgage loans tend to have shorter maturities than residential mortgage loans and may not be fully amortizing, meaning that they may have a significant principal balance, or “balloon” payment, due on maturity. In addition, commercial properties, particularly industrial and warehouse properties, are subject to environmental risks and the burdens and costs of compliance with environmental laws and regulations.

The Fund also may invest in mortgage pass-through securities, collateralized mortgage obligations (“CMOs”), mortgage dollar rolls, CMO residuals (other than residual interests in real estate mortgage investment conduits), stripped mortgage-backed securities and other securities that directly or indirectly represent a participation in, or are secured by and payable from, mortgage loans on real property.

In addition, the Fund may invest in other types of asset-backed securities that are offered in the marketplace. Other asset-backed securities may be collateralized by the fees earned by service providers. The value of asset-backed securities may be substantially dependent on the servicing of the underlying asset pools and are therefore subject to risks associated with the negligence of, or defalcation by, their servicers. In certain circumstances, the mishandling of related documentation may also affect the rights of the security holders in and to the underlying collateral. The insolvency of entities that generate receivables or that utilize the underlying assets may result in added costs and delays in addition to losses associated with a decline in the value of the underlying assets.

Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs).

SPACs are collective investment structures that pool funds in order to seek potential acquisition opportunities. Unless and until an acquisition is completed, a SPAC generally invests its assets (less an amount to cover expenses) in U.S. government securities, money market fund securities and cash. SPACs and similar entities may be blank check companies with no operating history or ongoing business other than to seek a potential acquisition. Accordingly, the value of their securities is particularly dependent on the ability of the entity’s management to identify and complete a profitable acquisition. Certain SPACs may seek acquisitions only in limited industries or regions, which may increase the volatility of their prices. If an acquisition that meets the requirements for the SPAC is not completed within a predetermined period of time, the invested funds are returned to the entity’s shareholders. Investments in SPACs may be illiquid and/or be subject to restrictions on resale. To the extent the SPAC is invested in cash or similar securities, this may impact a Fund’s ability to meet its investment objective.

Private Investment Funds.

Private Investment Funds may require large minimum investments and impose stringent investor qualification criteria that are intended to limit their direct investors mainly to institutions such as endowments and pension funds. By investing in private investment funds, the Fund can offer shareholders access to certain asset managers that may not be otherwise available to them. The Fund seeks to leverage the relationships of the Adviser to gain access to private investment funds on terms consistent with those offered to similarly-sized institutional investors. Furthermore, the Fund believes that investments in private investment funds offer opportunities for moderate income and growth as well as lower correlation to equity markets but will also be less liquid.

Collateralized Loan Obligations.

CLOs are securitization vehicles that pool a diverse portfolio of primarily below investment grade U.S. senior secured loans. Such pools of underlying assets are often referred to as a CLO’s “collateral.” While the vast majority of the portfolio of most CLOs consists of senior secured loans, many CLOs enable the CLO collateral manager to invest up to 10% of the portfolio in assets that are not first lien senior secured loans, including second lien loans, unsecured loans, senior secured bonds and senior unsecured bonds.

CLOs are generally required to hold a portfolio of assets that is highly diversified by underlying borrower and industry, and is subject to a variety of asset concentration limitations. Most CLOs are revolving structures that generally allow for reinvestment over a specific period of time (typically 3 to 5 years). In cash flow CLOs, the terms and covenants of the structure are, with certain exceptions, based primarily on the cash flow generated by, and the par value (as opposed to the market price) of, the collateral. These covenants include collateral coverage tests, interest coverage tests and collateral quality tests.

CLOs fund the purchase of a portfolio of primarily senior secured loans via the issuance of CLO equity and debt in the form of multiple, primarily floating-rate debt, tranches. The CLO debt tranches typically are rated “AAA” (or its equivalent) at the most senior level down to “BB” or “B” (or its equivalent), which is below investment grade, at the most junior level by Moody’s Investor Service, Inc., or “Moody’s,” Standard & Poor’s Rating Group, or “S&P,” and/or Fitch, Inc., or “Fitch.” The CLO equity tranche is unrated and typically represents approximately 8% to 11% of a CLO’s capital structure. A CLO’s equity tranche represents the first loss position in the CLO.

Since a CLO’s indenture requires that the maturity dates of a CLO’s assets (typically 5 to 8 years from the date of issuance of a senior secured loan) be shorter than the maturity date of the CLO’s liabilities (typically 11 to 12 years from the date of issuance), CLOs generally do not face refinancing risk on the CLO debt.

Other Financial Companies.

The principal industry groups of financial companies include banks, savings institutions, brokerage firms, investment management companies, insurance companies, holding companies of the foregoing and companies that provide related services to such companies. Banks and savings institutions provide services to customers such as demand, savings and time deposit accounts and a variety of lending and related services. Brokerage firms provide services to customers in connection with the purchase and sale of securities. Investment management companies provide investment advisory and related services to retail customers, high net-worth individuals and institutions. Insurance companies provide a wide range of commercial, life, health, disability, personal property and casualty insurance products and services to businesses, governmental units, associations and individuals.

Equity Securities.

Equity securities may include common stocks that either are required to and/or customarily distribute a large percentage of their current earnings as dividends. Common stock represents an equity ownership interest in a company, providing voting rights and entitling the holder to a share of the company’s success through dividends and/or capital appreciation. In the event of liquidation, common stockholders have rights to a company’s remaining assets after bond holders, other debt holders and preferred stockholders have been paid in full. Typically, common stockholders are entitled to one vote per share to elect the company’s board of directors (although the number of votes is not always directly proportional to the number of shares owned). Common stockholders also receive voting rights regarding other company matters such as mergers and certain important company policies such as issuing securities to management. Common stocks fluctuate in price in response to many factors, including historical and prospective earnings of the issuer, the value of its assets, general economic conditions, interest rates, investor perceptions and market liquidity.

Investment Grade Debt Securities.

Investment grade bonds of varying maturities issued by governments, corporations and other business entities are fixed or variable rate debt obligations, including bills, notes, debentures, money market instruments and similar instruments and securities. Bonds generally are used by corporations as well as by governments and other issuers to borrow money from investors. The issuer pays the investor a fixed or variable rate of interest and normally must repay the amount borrowed on or before maturity. Certain bonds are “perpetual” in that they have no maturity date.

Non-Investment Grade Debt Securities.

Fixed income securities of below-investment grade quality are commonly referred to as “high-yield” or “junk” bonds. Generally, such lower quality debt securities offer a higher current yield than is offered by higher quality debt securities, but also (i) will likely have some quality and protective characteristics that, in the judgment of the rating agencies, are outweighed by large uncertainties or major risk exposures to adverse conditions and (ii) are predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal in accordance with the terms of the obligation. Below-investment grade debt securities are rated below “Baa” by Moody’s Investors Services, Inc., below “BBB” by Standard & Poor’s Ratings Group, a division of The McGraw Hill Companies, Inc., comparably rated by another nationally recognized statistical rating organization or, if unrated, determined to be of comparable quality by the Advisor.

Mortgage-Back Securities.

Mortgage-backed securities represent direct or indirect participations in, or are secured by and payable from, mortgage loans secured by real property and include single- and multi-class pass-through securities and collateralized mortgage obligations. U.S. government mortgage-backed securities include mortgage-backed securities issued or guaranteed as to the payment of principal and interest (but not as to market value) by the Government National Mortgage Association (also known as Ginnie Mae), the Federal National Mortgage Association (also known as Fannie Mae), the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (also known as Freddie Mac) or other government-sponsored enterprises. Other mortgage-backed securities are issued by private issuers. Private issuers are generally originators of and investors in mortgage loans, including savings associations, mortgage bankers, commercial banks, investment bankers and special purpose entities. Payments of principal and interest (but not the market value) of such private mortgage-backed securities may be supported by pools of mortgage loans or other mortgage-backed securities that are guaranteed, directly or indirectly, by the U.S. government or one of its agencies or instrumentalities, or they may be issued without any government guarantee of the underlying mortgage assets but with some form of non-government credit enhancement. Non-governmental mortgage-backed securities may offer higher yields than those issued by government entities, but may also be subject to greater price changes than governmental issues.

Some mortgage-backed securities, such as collateralized mortgage obligations, make payments of both principal and interest at a variety of intervals; others make semi-annual interest payments at a predetermined rate and repay principal at maturity (like a typical bond). Stripped mortgage-backed securities are created when the interest and principal components of a mortgage-backed security are separated and sold as individual securities. In the case of a stripped mortgage-backed security, the holder of the principal-only, or “PO,” security receives the principal payments made by the underlying mortgage, while the holder of the interest-only, or “IO,” security receives interest payments from the same underlying mortgage.

Mortgage-backed securities are based on different types of mortgages including those on commercial real estate or residential properties. These securities often have stated maturities of up to thirty years when they are issued, depending upon the length of the mortgages underlying the securities. In practice, however, unscheduled or early payments of principal and interest on the underlying mortgages may make the securities’ effective maturity shorter than this, and the prevailing interest rates may be higher or lower than the current yield of the Fund’s portfolio at the time the Fund receives the prepayments for reinvestment.

Residential mortgage-backed securities represent direct or indirect participations in, or are secured by and payable from, pools of assets which include all types of residential mortgage products.

Asset-Backed Securities.