BR Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio
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APRIL 29, 2024
Prospectus
BlackRock Funds V |Class K Shares
BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio
Class K: BPLBX
This Prospectus contains information you should know before investing, including information about risks. Please read it before you invest and keep it for future reference.
The Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
Not FDIC Insured • May Lose Value • No Bank Guarantee


Key facts and details about the Fund, including investment objective,
principal investment strategies, principal risk factors, fee and expense
information and historical performance information
 
 
3
 
3
 
4
 
4
 
9
 
9
 
10
 
10
 
10
 
10
Information about account services, sales charges and waivers,
shareholder transactions, and distributions and other payments
 
 
25
 
26
 
31
 
31
Financial Performance of the Fund
39
 
 
Glossary of Investment Terms
42
 
 


Fund Overview
Key Facts About BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio
Investment Objective
The investment objective of the BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio (the “Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio”or the “Fund”) is to seek to maximize real return, consistent with preservation of real capital and prudent investment management.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell Class K Shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to your financial professional or your selected securities dealer, broker, investment adviser, service provider or industry professional (including BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) and its affiliates) (each a “Financial Intermediary”), which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a
percentage of the value of your investment)
 
Class K
Shares
Management Fee1
 
0.24%
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees
 
None
Other Expenses
 
0.60%
Miscellaneous Other Expenses
0.10%
 
Interest Expense
0.50%
 
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses2
 
0.84%
Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements1,3
 
(0.05)%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements1,3
 
0.79%
1
As described in the “Management of the Fund” section of the Fund’s prospectus beginning on page 33, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets estimated to be attributable to investments in other equity and fixed-income mutual funds and exchange-traded funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates that have a contractual management fee, through June 30, 2025. In addition, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive its management fees by the amount of investment advisory fees the Fund pays to BlackRock indirectly through its investment in money market funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates, through June 30, 2025. The contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested trustees of BlackRock Funds V (the “Trust”) or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.
2
The Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses do not correlate to the ratio of expenses to average net assets given in the Fund’s most recent annual report, which includes extraordinary expenses.
3
As described in the “Management of the Fund” section of the Fund’s prospectus beginning on page 33, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements (excluding Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses) as a percentage of average daily net assets to 0.29% of average daily net assets through June 30, 2025. The contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested trustees of the Trust or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.
Example:
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
 
1 Year
3 Years
5 Years
10 Years
Class K Shares
$81
$263
$461
$1,033
3


Portfolio Turnover:
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 197% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Investment Strategies of the Fund
Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests at least 80% of its assets in inflation-indexed bonds of varying maturities issued by the U.S. and non-U.S. governments, their agencies or instrumentalities, and U.S. and non-U.S. corporations.
The Fund maintains an average portfolio duration that is within ±40% of the duration of the Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities Index (the benchmark).
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its assets in non-investment grade bonds (high yield or junk bonds) or securities of emerging market issuers. The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its assets in non-dollar denominated securities of non-U.S. issuers, and may invest without limit in U.S. dollar denominated securities of non-U.S. issuers.
The Fund may seek to provide exposure to the investment returns of real assets that trade in the commodity markets through investment in commodity-linked derivative instruments and investment vehicles such as exchange-traded funds that exclusively invest in commodities and are designed to provide this exposure without direct investment in physical commodities. The Fund may also gain exposure to commodity markets by investing up to 25% of its total assets in Cayman Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio, Ltd. (the Subsidiary), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Fund formed in the Cayman Islands, which invests primarily in commodity-related instruments.
The Fund also makes investments in residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities and other asset-backed securities.
Non-investment grade bonds acquired by the Fund will generally be in the lower rating categories of the major rating agencies (BB or lower by S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”) or Ba or lower by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”)) or will be determined by the management team to be of similar quality. Split rated bonds will be considered to have the higher credit rating. Split rated bonds are bonds that receive different ratings from two or more rating agencies.
The Fund may buy or sell options or futures, or enter into credit default swaps and interest rate or foreign currency transactions, including swaps (collectively, commonly known as derivatives). The Fund may seek to obtain market exposure to the securities in which it primarily invests by entering into a series of purchase and sale contracts or by using other investment techniques (such as reverse repurchase agreements or dollar rolls).
The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of portfolio securities to achieve its primary investment strategies.
Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund
Risk is inherent in all investing. The value of your investment in the Fund, as well as the amount of return you receive on your investment, may fluctuate significantly from day to day and over time. You may lose part or all of your investment in the Fund or your investment may not perform as well as other similar investments. The following is a summary description of principal risks of investing in the Fund. The relative significance of each risk factor below may change over time and you should review each risk factor carefully.
Inflation-Indexed Bonds Risk — The principal value of an investment is not protected or otherwise guaranteed by virtue of the Fund’s investments in inflation-indexed bonds.
Inflation-indexed bonds are fixed-income securities whose principal value is periodically adjusted according to the rate of inflation. If the index measuring inflation falls, the principal value of inflation-indexed bonds will be adjusted downward, and consequently the interest payable on these securities (calculated with respect to a smaller principal amount) will be reduced.
Repayment of the original bond principal upon maturity (as adjusted for inflation) is guaranteed in the case of U.S. Treasury inflation-indexed bonds. For bonds that do not provide a similar guarantee, the adjusted principal value of the bond repaid at maturity may be less than the original principal value.
The value of inflation-indexed bonds is expected to change in response to changes in real interest rates. Real interest rates are tied to the relationship between nominal interest rates and the rate of inflation. If nominal interest
4


rates increase at a faster rate than inflation, real interest rates may rise, leading to a decrease in value of inflation-indexed bonds. Short-term increases in inflation may lead to a decline in value. Any increase in the principal amount of an inflation-indexed bond will be considered taxable ordinary income, even though investors do not receive their principal until maturity.
Periodic adjustments for inflation to the principal amount of an inflation-indexed bond may give rise to original issue discount, which will be includable in the Fund’s gross income. Due to original issue discount, the Fund may be required to make annual distributions to shareholders that exceed the cash received, which may cause the Fund to liquidate certain investments when it is not advantageous to do so. Also, if the principal value of an inflation-indexed bond is adjusted downward due to deflation, amounts previously distributed in the taxable year may be characterized in some circumstances as a return of capital.
Debt Securities Risk — Debt securities, such as bonds, involve risks, such as credit risk, interest rate risk, extension risk, and prepayment risk, each of which are described in further detail below:
Credit Risk — Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of a debt security (i.e., the borrower) will not be able to make payments of interest and principal when due. Changes in an issuer’s credit rating or the market’s perception of an issuer’s creditworthiness may also affect the value of the Fund’s investment in that issuer. The degree of credit risk depends on both the financial condition of the issuer and the terms of the obligation.
Interest Rate Risk — The market value of bonds and other fixed-income securities changes in response to interest rate changes and other factors. Interest rate risk is the risk that prices of bonds and other fixed-income securities will increase as interest rates fall and decrease as interest rates rise.
The Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates due to the recent period of historically low interest rates. For example, if interest rates increase by 1%, assuming a current portfolio duration of ten years, and all other factors being equal, the value of the Fund’s investments would be expected to decrease by 10%. (Duration is a measure of the price sensitivity of a debt security or portfolio of debt securities to relative changes in interest rates.) The magnitude of these fluctuations in the market price of bonds and other fixed-income securities is generally greater for those securities with longer maturities. Fluctuations in the market price of the Fund’s investments will not affect interest income derived from instruments already owned by the Fund, but will be reflected in the Fund’s net asset value. The Fund may lose money if short-term or long-term interest rates rise sharply in a manner not anticipated by Fund management.
To the extent the Fund invests in debt securities that may be prepaid at the option of the obligor (such as mortgage-backed securities), the sensitivity of such securities to changes in interest rates may increase (to the detriment of the Fund) when interest rates rise. Moreover, because rates on certain floating rate debt securities typically reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause some fluctuations in the net asset value of the Fund to the extent that it invests in floating rate debt securities.
These basic principles of bond prices also apply to U.S. Government securities. A security backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government is guaranteed only as to its stated interest rate and face value at maturity, not its current market price. Just like other fixed-income securities, government-guaranteed securities will fluctuate in value when interest rates change.
A general rise in interest rates has the potential to cause investors to move out of fixed-income securities on a large scale, which may increase redemptions from funds that hold large amounts of fixed-income securities. Heavy redemptions could cause the Fund to sell assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value and could hurt the Fund’s performance.
Extension Risk — When interest rates rise, certain obligations will be paid off by the obligor more slowly than anticipated, causing the value of these obligations to fall.
Prepayment Risk — When interest rates fall, certain obligations will be paid off by the obligor more quickly than originally anticipated, and the Fund may have to invest the proceeds in securities with lower yields.
Non-Investment Grade Securities Risk — Although non-investment grade securities generally pay higher rates of interest than investment grade securities, non-investment grade securities are high risk investments that are considered speculative and may cause income and principal losses for the Fund.
Commodities Related Investments Risk Exposure to the commodities markets may subject the Fund to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities. The value of commodity-linked derivative investments may be affected by changes in overall market movements, commodity index volatility, changes in inflation, interest rates, or factors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as drought, floods, weather, embargoes, tariffs and international economic, political and regulatory developments.
5


Deflation Risk Deflation risk is the possibility that prices throughout the economy decline over time — the opposite of inflation. If inflation is negative, the principal and income of an inflation-protected bond will decline and could result in losses for the Fund.
Derivatives Risk — The Fund’s use of derivatives may increase its costs, reduce the Fund’s returns and/or increase volatility. Derivatives involve significant risks, including:
Leverage Risk — The Fund’s use of derivatives can magnify the Fund’s gains and losses. Relatively small market movements may result in large changes in the value of a derivatives position and can result in losses that greatly exceed the amount originally invested.
Market Risk — Some derivatives are more sensitive to interest rate changes and market price fluctuations than other securities. The Fund could also suffer losses related to its derivatives positions as a result of unanticipated market movements, which losses are potentially unlimited. Finally, BlackRock may not be able to predict correctly the direction of securities prices, interest rates and other economic factors, which could cause the Fund’s derivatives positions to lose value.
Counterparty Risk — Derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party in the transaction will be unable or unwilling to fulfill its contractual obligation, and the related risks of having concentrated exposure to such a counterparty.
Illiquidity Risk — The possible lack of a liquid secondary market for derivatives and the resulting inability of the Fund to sell or otherwise close a derivatives position could expose the Fund to losses and could make derivatives more difficult for the Fund to value accurately.
Operational Risk — The use of derivatives includes the risk of potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, systems failures, inadequate controls and human error.
Legal Risk — The risk of insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract.
Volatility and Correlation Risk — Volatility is defined as the characteristic of a security, an index or a market to fluctuate significantly in price within a short time period. A risk of the Fund’s use of derivatives is that the fluctuations in their values may not correlate with the overall securities markets.
Valuation Risk — Valuation for derivatives may not be readily available in the market. Valuation may be more difficult in times of market turmoil since many investors and market makers may be reluctant to purchase complex instruments or quote prices for them.
Hedging Risk — Hedges are sometimes subject to imperfect matching between the derivative and the underlying security, and there can be no assurance that the Fund’s hedging transactions will be effective. The use of hedging may result in certain adverse tax consequences.
Tax Risk — Certain aspects of the tax treatment of derivative instruments, including swap agreements and commodity-linked derivative instruments, are currently unclear and may be affected by changes in legislation, regulations or other legally binding authority. Such treatment may be less favorable than that given to a direct investment in an underlying asset and may adversely affect the timing, character and amount of income the Fund realizes from its investments.
Dollar Rolls Risk — Dollar rolls involve the risk that the market value of the securities that the Fund is committed to buy may decline below the price of the securities the Fund has sold. These transactions may involve leverage.
Emerging Markets Risk — Emerging markets are riskier than more developed markets because they tend to develop unevenly and may never fully develop. Investments in emerging markets may be considered speculative. Emerging markets are more likely to experience hyperinflation and currency devaluations, which adversely affect returns to U.S. investors. In addition, many emerging securities markets have far lower trading volumes and less liquidity than developed markets.
Foreign Securities Risk — Foreign investments often involve special risks not present in U.S. investments that can increase the chances that the Fund will lose money. These risks include:
The Fund generally holds its foreign securities and cash in foreign banks and securities depositories, which may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business and may be subject to only limited or no regulatory oversight.
Changes in foreign currency exchange rates can affect the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
The economies of certain foreign markets may not compare favorably with the economy of the United States with respect to such issues as growth of gross national product, reinvestment of capital, resources and balance of payments position.
6


The governments of certain countries, or the U.S. Government with respect to certain countries, may prohibit or impose substantial restrictions through capital controls and/or sanctions on foreign investments in the capital markets or certain industries in those countries, which may prohibit or restrict the ability to own or transfer currency, securities, derivatives or other assets.
Many foreign governments do not supervise and regulate stock exchanges, brokers and the sale of securities to the same extent as does the United States and may not have laws to protect investors that are comparable to U.S. securities laws.
Settlement and clearance procedures in certain foreign markets may result in delays in payment for or delivery of securities not typically associated with settlement and clearance of U.S. investments.
The Fund’s claims to recover foreign withholding taxes may not be successful, and if the likelihood of recovery of foreign withholding taxes materially decreases, due to, for example, a change in tax regulation or approach in the foreign country, accruals in the Fund’s net asset value for such refunds may be written down partially or in full, which will adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value.
High Portfolio Turnover Risk — The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of its portfolio securities. High portfolio turnover (more than 100%) may result in increased transaction costs to the Fund, including brokerage commissions, dealer mark-ups and other transaction costs on the sale of the securities and on reinvestment in other securities. The sale of Fund portfolio securities may result in the realization and/or distribution to shareholders of higher capital gains or losses as compared to a fund with less active trading policies. These effects of higher than normal portfolio turnover may adversely affect Fund performance.
Illiquid Investments Risk — The Fund may not acquire any illiquid investment if, immediately after the acquisition, the Fund would have invested more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments. An illiquid investment is any investment that the Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. The Subsidiary will also limit its investment in illiquid investments to 15% of its net assets. In applying the illiquid investments restriction to the Fund, the Fund’s investment in the Subsidiary is considered to be liquid. Liquid investments may become illiquid after purchase by the Fund, particularly during periods of market turmoil. There can be no assurance that a security or instrument that is deemed to be liquid when purchased will continue to be liquid for as long as it is held by the Fund, and any security or instrument held by the Fund may be deemed an illiquid investment pursuant to the Fund’s liquidity risk management program. The Fund’s illiquid investments may reduce the returns of the Fund because it may be difficult to sell the illiquid investments at an advantageous time or price. In addition, if the Fund is limited in its ability to sell illiquid investments during periods when shareholders are redeeming their shares, the Fund will need to sell liquid securities to meet redemption requests and illiquid securities will become a larger portion of the Fund’s holdings. An investment may be illiquid due to, among other things, the reduced number and capacity of traditional market participants to make a market in fixed-income securities or the lack of an active trading market. To the extent that the Fund’s principal investment strategies involve derivatives or securities with substantial market and/or credit risk, the Fund will tend to have the greatest exposure to the risks associated with illiquid investments. Illiquid investments may be harder to value, especially in changing markets, and if the Fund is forced to sell these investments to meet redemption requests or for other cash needs, the Fund may suffer a loss. This may be magnified in a rising interest rate environment or other circumstances where investor redemptions from fixed-income mutual funds may be higher than normal. In addition, when there is illiquidity in the market for certain securities, the Fund, due to limitations on illiquid investments, may be subject to purchase and sale restrictions.
Indexed and Inverse Securities Risk Indexed and inverse securities provide a potential return based on a particular index of value or interest rates. The Fund’s return on these securities will be subject to risk with respect to the value of the particular index. These securities are subject to leverage risk and correlation risk. Certain indexed and inverse securities have greater sensitivity to changes in interest rates or index levels than other securities, and the Fund’s investment in such instruments may decline significantly in value if interest rates or index levels move in a way Fund management does not anticipate.
Leverage Risk — Some transactions may give rise to a form of economic leverage. These transactions may include, among others, derivatives, and may expose the Fund to greater risk and increase its costs. The use of leverage may cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio positions when it may not be advantageous to do so to satisfy its obligations or to meet the applicable requirements of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the Investment Company Act), and the rules thereunder. Increases and decreases in the value of the Fund’s portfolio will be magnified when the Fund uses leverage.
Market Risk and Selection Risk — Market risk is the risk that one or more markets in which the Fund invests will go down in value, including the possibility that the markets will go down sharply and unpredictably. The value of a security or other asset may decline due to changes in general market conditions, economic trends or events that
7


are not specifically related to the issuer of the security or other asset, or factors that affect a particular issuer or issuers, exchange, country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. Local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues like pandemics or epidemics, recessions, or other events could have a significant impact on the Fund and its investments. Selection risk is the risk that the securities selected by Fund management will underperform the markets, the relevant indices or the securities selected by other funds with similar investment objectives and investment strategies. This means you may lose money.
An outbreak of an infectious coronavirus (COVID-19) that was first detected in December 2019 developed into a global pandemic that has resulted in numerous disruptions in the market and has had significant economic impact leaving general concern and uncertainty. Although vaccines have been developed and approved for use by various governments, the duration of the pandemic and its effects cannot be predicted with certainty. The impact of this coronavirus, and other epidemics and pandemics that may arise in the future, could affect the economies of many nations, individual companies and the market in general ways that cannot necessarily be foreseen at the present time.
Mortgage- and Asset-Backed Securities Risks — Mortgage- and asset-backed securities represent interests in “pools” of mortgages or other assets, including consumer loans or receivables held in trust. Mortgage- and asset-backed securities are subject to credit, interest rate, prepayment and extension risks. These securities also are subject to risk of default on the underlying mortgage or asset, particularly during periods of economic downturn. Small movements in interest rates (both increases and decreases) may quickly and significantly reduce the value of certain mortgage-backed securities.
Repurchase Agreements and Purchase and Sale Contracts Risk — If the other party to a repurchase agreement or purchase and sale contract defaults on its obligation under the agreement, the Fund may suffer delays and incur costs or lose money in exercising its rights under the agreement. If the seller fails to repurchase the security in either situation and the market value of the security declines, the Fund may lose money.
Reverse Repurchase Agreements Risk — Reverse repurchase agreements involve the sale of securities held by the Fund with an agreement to repurchase the securities at an agreed-upon price, date and interest payment. Reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the other party may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could lose money if it is unable to recover the securities and the value of the collateral held by the Fund, including the value of the investments made with cash collateral, is less than the value of the securities. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund. In addition, reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the interest income earned in the investment of the proceeds will be less than the interest expense.
Risk of Investing in the United States Certain changes in the U.S. economy, such as when the U.S. economy weakens or when its financial markets decline, may have an adverse effect on the securities to which the Fund has exposure.
Subsidiary Risk By investing in the Subsidiary, the Fund is indirectly exposed to the risks associated with the Subsidiary’s investments. The commodity-related instruments held by the Subsidiary are generally similar to those that are permitted to be held by the Fund and are subject to the same risks that apply to similar investments if held directly by the Fund (see “Commodities Related Investments Risk” above). There can be no assurance that the investment objective of the Subsidiary will be achieved. The Subsidiary is not registered under the Investment Company Act and, unless otherwise noted in this prospectus, is not subject to all the investor protections of the Investment Company Act. However, the Fund wholly owns and controls the Subsidiary, and the Fund and the Subsidiary are both managed by BlackRock, making it unlikely that the Subsidiary will take action contrary to the interests of the Fund and its shareholders. The Board has oversight responsibility for the investment activities of the Fund, including its investment in the Subsidiary, and the Fund’s role as sole shareholder of the Subsidiary. The Subsidiary is subject to the same investment restrictions and limitations, and follows the same compliance policies and procedures, as the Fund , except that the Subsidiary may invest without limitation in commodity-related instruments. Changes in the laws of the United States and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of the Fund and/or the Subsidiary to operate as described in this prospectus and the Statement of Additional Information (SAI) and could adversely affect the Fund.
U.S. Government Issuer Risk Treasury obligations may differ in their interest rates, maturities, times of issuance and other characteristics. Obligations of U.S. Government agencies and authorities are supported by varying degrees of credit but generally are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. No assurance can be given that the U.S. Government will provide financial support to its agencies and authorities if it is not obligated by law to do so.
8


Performance Information
The information shows you how the Fund’s performance has varied year by year and provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. The Fund acquired all of the assets, subject to the liabilities, of BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio, a series of BlackRock Funds II (the “Predecessor Fund”), in a reorganization on September 17, 2018 (the Reorganization). The table compares the Fund’s performance to that of the Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities Index. The Fund adopted the performance of the Predecessor Fund as a result of the Reorganization. The performance information below is based on the performance of the Predecessor Fund for periods prior to the date of the Reorganization. The Predecessor Fund had the same investment objective, strategies and policies, portfolio management team and contractual arrangements, including the same contractual fees and expenses, as the Fund as of the date of the Reorganization. The returns for Class K Shares of the Predecessor Fund prior to September 1, 2015, the commencement of operations of Class K Shares of the Predecessor Fund, are based upon performance of the Predecessor Fund’s BlackRock Shares. To the extent that dividends and distributions have been paid by the Fund, the performance information for the Fund in the chart and table assumes reinvestment of the dividends and distributions. As with all such investments, past performance (before and after taxes) is not an indication of future results. The table includes all applicable fees. If the Fund’s investment manager and its affiliates had not waived or reimbursed certain Fund expenses during these periods, the Fund’s returns would have been lower. Updated information on the Fund’s performance, including its current net asset value, can be obtained by visiting http://www.blackrock.com or can be obtained by phone at 800-882-0052.
Class K Shares
ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS
Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio
As of 12/31
During the ten-year period shown in the bar chart, the highest return for a quarter was 5.45% (quarter ended June 30, 2020) and the lowest return for a quarter was -6.21% (quarter ended June 30, 2022).
For the periods ended 12/31/23
Average Annual Total Returns
1 Year
5 Years
10 Years
BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio — Class K Shares
Return Before Taxes
3.67
%
3.32
%
2.27
%
Return After Taxes on Distributions
2.25
%
1.61
%
1.01
%
Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares
2.16
%
1.87
%
1.21
%
Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities Index
(Reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
3.90
%
3.15
%
2.42
%
After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on the investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown, and the after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
Investment Manager
The Fund’s investment manager is BlackRock Advisors, LLC (previously defined as BlackRock). The Fund’s sub-advisers are BlackRock International Limited and BlackRock (Singapore) Limited. Where applicable, the use of the term BlackRock also refers to the Fund’s sub-advisers.
9


Portfolio Managers
Portfolio Manager
Portfolio Manager
of the Fund Since
Title
David Rogal
2018*
Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc.
Johan Sjogren
2024
Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc.
Harrison Segal
2024
Director of BlackRock, Inc.
*
Includes management of the Predecessor Fund.
Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares
Class K Shares of the Fund are available only to (i) certain employee benefit plans, such as health savings accounts, and certain employer-sponsored retirement plans (not including SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs and SARSEPs) (collectively, “Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans”), (ii) collective trust funds, investment companies and other pooled investment vehicles, each of which may purchase shares of the Fund through a Financial Intermediary that has entered into an agreement with the Fund’s distributor to purchase such shares, (iii) “Institutional Investors,” which include, but are not limited to, endowments, foundations, family offices, banks and bank trusts, local, city, and state governmental institutions, corporations and insurance company separate accounts, each of which may purchase shares of the Fund through a Financial Intermediary that has entered into an agreement with the Fund’s distributor to purchase such shares, (iv) clients of private banks that purchase shares of the Fund through a Financial Intermediary that has entered into an agreement with the Fund’s distributor to sell such shares, (v) fee-based advisory platforms of a Financial Intermediary that (a) has specifically acknowledged in a written agreement with the Fund’s distributor and/or its affiliate(s) that the Financial Intermediary shall offer such shares to fee-based advisory clients through an omnibus account held at the Fund or (b) transacts in the Fund’s shares through another intermediary that has executed such an agreement and (vi) any other investors who met the eligibility criteria for BlackRock Shares or Class K Shares prior to August 15, 2016 and have continually held Class K Shares of the Fund or the Predecessor Fund in the same account since August 15, 2016.
You may purchase or redeem shares of the Fund each day the New York Stock Exchange is open. Purchase orders may also be placed by calling (800) 537-4942, by mail (c/o BlackRock Funds V, P.O. Box 534429, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15253-4429), or online at www.blackrock.com. Institutional Investors are subject to a $5 million minimum initial investment requirement. Other investors, including Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans, have no minimum initial investment requirement. There is no minimum investment amount for additional purchases.
Tax Information
Different income tax rules apply depending on whether you are invested through a qualified tax-exempt plan described in section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. If you are invested through such a plan (and Fund shares are not “debt-financed property” to the plan), then the dividends paid by the Fund and the gain realized from a redemption or exchange of Fund shares will generally not be subject to U.S. federal income taxes until you withdraw or receive distributions from the plan. If you are not invested through such a plan, then the Fund’s dividends and gain from a redemption or exchange may be subject to U.S. federal income taxes and may be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains, unless you are a tax-exempt investor.
Payments to Broker/Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase shares of the Fund through a Financial Intermediary, the Fund and BlackRock Investments, LLC, the Fund’s distributor, or its affiliates may pay the Financial Intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the Financial Intermediary and your individual financial professional to recommend the Fund over another investment.
Class K Shares are only available through a Financial Intermediary if the Financial Intermediary will not receive from Fund assets, or the Fund’s distributor’s or an affiliate’s resources, any commission payments, shareholder servicing fees (including sub-transfer agent and networking fees), or distribution fees (including Rule 12b-1 fees) with respect to assets invested in Class K Shares.
Ask your individual financial professional or visit your Financial Intermediary’s website for more information.
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Details About the Fund
Included in this prospectus are sections that tell you about buying and selling shares, management information, shareholder features of the BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio (the Fund) and your rights as a shareholder.
How the Fund Invests
Investment Objective
The investment objective of the Fund is to seek to maximize real return, consistent with preservation of real capital and prudent investment management. This investment objective is a non-fundamental policy of the Fund and may not be changed without 30 days’ prior notice to shareholders.
Investment Process
BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”) considers a variety of factors when choosing investments, such as:
A security will be sold if, in the opinion of the management team, the risk of continuing to hold the security is unacceptable when compared to its total return potential.
The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of portfolio securities to achieve its primary investment strategies.
The U.S. Treasury uses the Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers as the inflation measure. Inflation-indexed bonds issued by a foreign government are generally adjusted to reflect a comparable inflation index, calculated by that government. “Real return” equals total return less the estimated cost of inflation, which is typically measured by the change in an official inflation measure. BlackRock uses an internal model for calculating duration, which may result in a different value for the duration of a benchmark compared to the duration calculated by the provider of the benchmark or another third party.
Principal Investment Strategies
In pursuit of this objective, the Fund, under normal circumstances, invests at least 80% of its assets in inflation-indexed bonds of varying maturities issued by the U.S. and non-U.S. governments, their agencies or instrumentalities, and U.S. and non-U.S. corporations. This is a non-fundamental policy of the Fund and may be changed upon 60 days’ prior notice to shareholders.
Maturity is the date upon which debt securities are due to be repaid, that is, the date when the issuer generally must pay back the face amount of the security. The value of a bond’s principal or the interest income paid on the bond is adjusted to track changes in an official inflation measure. Inflation-indexed bonds are fixed income securities that are structured to provide protection against inflation. The value of the bond’s principal or the interest income paid on the bond is adjusted to track changes in an official inflation measure.
The Fund maintains an average portfolio duration that is within ±40% of the duration of the Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities Index (the benchmark). Duration is a mathematical calculation of the average life of a bond (or bonds in a bond fund) that serves as a useful measure of its price risk. Each year of duration represents an expected 1% change in the net asset value of a bond fund for every 1% immediate change in interest rates. For example, if a bond fund has an average duration of four years, its net asset value will fall about 4% when interest rates rise by one percentage point. Conversely, the bond fund’s net asset value will rise about 4% when interest rates fall by one percentage point. Duration, which measures price sensitivity to interest rate changes, is not necessarily equal to average maturity. As of December 31, 2023, the duration of the benchmark was 7.59 years, as calculated by BlackRock.
The Fund may invest up to 20% of its assets in non-investment grade bonds (high yield or junk bonds) or securities of emerging market issuers. The Fund may also invest up to 20% of its assets in non-dollar denominated securities of non-U.S. issuers, and may invest without limit in U.S. dollar denominated securities of non-U.S. issuers.
The Fund also makes investments in residential and commercial mortgage-backed securities and other asset-backed securities. Asset-backed securities are bonds that are backed by a pool of assets, usually loans such as installment sale contracts or credit card receivables. Mortgage-backed securities are asset-backed securities based on a particular type of asset, a mortgage. There is a wide variety of mortgage-backed securities involving commercial or residential, fixed rate or adjustable rate mortgages and mortgages issued by banks or government agencies.
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Non-investment grade bonds acquired by the Fund will generally be in the lower rating categories of the major rating agencies (BB or lower by S&P or Ba or lower by Moody’s) or will be determined by the management team to be of similar quality. Split rated bonds will be considered to have the higher credit rating. Split rated bonds are bonds that receive different ratings from two or more rating agencies.
The management team may, when consistent with the Fund’s investment goal, buy or sell options or futures, or enter into credit default swaps and interest rate or foreign currency transactions, including swaps (collectively, commonly known as derivatives). In entering into a credit default swap, one party would pay a counterparty a periodic stream of payments over the term of the contract, provided that no event of default on a specific bond has occurred. In return, upon any event of default on such bond, the first party would receive from the counterparty a payment equal to the par (or other agreed-upon) value of such bond. An option is the right to buy or sell an instrument (which can be a security, an index of securities, a currency, or a basket of currencies) at a specific price on or before a specific date. A future is an agreement to buy or sell instruments of those types at a specific price on a specific date. A swap is an agreement whereby one party exchanges its right to receive or its obligation to pay one type of interest or currency for another party’s obligation to pay or its right to receive another type of interest or currency in the future or for a period of time. The Fund typically uses derivatives as a substitute for taking a position in the underlying asset and/or as part of a strategy designed to reduce exposure to other risks, such as interest rate or currency risk. The Fund may also use derivatives to enhance returns, in which case their use would involve leveraging risk.
The Fund may seek to obtain market exposure to the securities in which it primarily invests by entering into a series of purchase and sale contracts or by using other investment techniques (such as reverse repurchase agreements or dollar rolls). A dollar roll transaction involves a sale by the Fund of a mortgage-backed or other security concurrently with an agreement by the Fund to repurchase a similar security at a later date at an agreed-upon price. The securities that are repurchased will bear the same interest rate and stated maturity as those sold, but pools of mortgages collateralizing those securities may have different prepayment histories than those sold.
The Fund may seek to provide exposure to the investment returns of real assets that trade in the commodity markets through investment in commodity-related instruments and investment vehicles such as exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) that invest exclusively in commodities and are designed to provide this exposure without direct investment in physical commodities. The Fund may also gain exposure to commodity markets by investing in Cayman Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio, Ltd. (the “Subsidiary”). The Subsidiary invests primarily in commodity-related instruments. The Subsidiary may also hold cash and invest in other instruments, including fixed income securities, either as investments or to serve as margin or collateral for the Subsidiary’s derivative positions. BlackRock is the manager of the Subsidiary. The Subsidiary (unlike the Fund) may invest without limitation in commodity-related instruments. However, the Subsidiary is otherwise subject to the same fundamental, non-fundamental and certain other investment restrictions as the Fund. The Fund will limit its investments in the Subsidiary to 25% of its total assets.
The Subsidiary is managed pursuant to compliance policies and procedures that are the same, in all material respects, as the policies and procedures adopted by BlackRock Funds V (the “Trust”). As a result, BlackRock, in managing the Subsidiary’s portfolio, is subject to the same investment policies and restrictions that apply to the management of the Fund, and, in particular, to the requirements relating to portfolio leverage, liquidity, brokerage, and the timing and method of the valuation of the Subsidiary’s portfolio investments and shares of the Subsidiary. These policies and restrictions are described in detail in the Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”). The Chief Compliance Officer of the Trust oversees implementation of the Subsidiary’s policies and procedures, and makes periodic reports to the Board of Trustees (the “Board”) regarding the Subsidiary’s compliance with its policies and procedures. The Fund and Subsidiary test for compliance with certain investment restrictions on a consolidated basis.
BlackRock provides investment management and other services to the Subsidiary. BlackRock does not receive separate compensation from the Subsidiary for providing it with investment management or administrative services. However, the Fund pays BlackRock based on the Fund’s assets, including the assets invested in the Subsidiary. BlackRock has entered into a sub-advisory agreement with each of BlackRock International Limited and BlackRock (Singapore) Limited with respect to the Subsidiary. The Subsidiary will also enter into separate contracts for the provision of advisory, custody, accounting agent and audit services with the same or with affiliates of the same service providers that provide those services to the Fund.
The financial statements of the Subsidiary are consolidated with the Fund’s financial statements in the Fund’s Annual and Semi-Annual Reports. The Fund’s Annual and Semi-Annual Reports are distributed to shareholders, and copies of the reports are provided without charge upon request as indicated on the back cover of this prospectus. Please refer to the SAI for additional information about the organization and management of the Subsidiary.
Other Strategies
In addition to the principal strategies discussed above, the Fund may also invest or engage in the following investments/strategies:
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Investment Companies —The Fund has the ability to invest in other investment companies, such as ETFs, unit investment trusts, and open-end and closed-end funds, subject to the applicable limits under the Investment Company Act and the rules thereunder. The Fund may invest in affiliated investment companies, including affiliated money market funds and affiliated ETFs.
Temporary Defensive Strategies — For temporary defensive purposes, for example, to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions, the Fund may depart from its principal investment strategies and may restrict the markets in which it invests and may invest without limitation in cash, cash equivalents, money market securities, such as U.S. Treasury and agency obligations, other U.S. Government securities, short-term debt obligations of corporate issuers, certificates of deposit, bankers acceptances, commercial paper (short-term, unsecured, negotiable promissory notes of a domestic or foreign issuer) or other high quality fixed-income securities. Temporary defensive positions may affect the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective.
When-Issued and Delayed Delivery Securities and Forward Commitments — The Fund may invest in securities prior to their date of issue. The purchase or sale of securities on a when-issued basis or on a delayed delivery basis or through a forward commitment involves the purchase or sale of securities by the Fund at an established price with payment and delivery taking place in the future. The Fund enters into these transactions to obtain what is considered an advantageous price to the Fund at the time of entering into the transaction.
ABOUT THE PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT TEAM OF THE FUND
The Fund is managed by a team of financial professionals. David Rogal, Johan Sjogren and Harrison Segall are the Fund’s portfolio managers and are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund. Please see “Management of the Fund — Portfolio Manager Information” for additional information about the portfolio management team.
Investment Risks
This section contains a discussion of the general risks of investing in the Fund. The “Investment Objective and Policies” section in the SAI also includes more information about the Fund, its investments and the related risks. As with any fund, there can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objective or that the Fund’s performance will be positive for any period of time. An investment in the Fund is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or by any bank or governmental agency. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.
Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund:
Commodities Related Investments Risk Exposure to the commodities markets may subject the Fund to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities. The value of commodity-linked derivative investments may be affected by changes in overall market movements, commodity index volatility, changes in inflation, interest rates, or factors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as drought, floods, weather, embargoes, tariffs and international economic, political and regulatory developments.
Debt Securities Risk — Debt securities, such as bonds, involve risks, such as credit risk, interest rate risk, extension risk, and prepayment risk, each of which are described in further detail below:
Credit Risk — Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer of a debt security (i.e., the borrower) will not be able to make payments of interest and principal when due. Changes in an issuer’s credit rating or the market’s perception of an issuer’s creditworthiness may also affect the value of the Fund’s investment in that issuer. The degree of credit risk depends on both the financial condition of the issuer and the terms of the obligation.
Interest Rate Risk — The market value of bonds and other fixed-income securities changes in response to interest rate changes and other factors. Interest rate risk is the risk that prices of bonds and other fixed-income securities will increase as interest rates fall and decrease as interest rates rise.
The Fund may be subject to a greater risk of rising interest rates due to the recent period of historically low interest rates. For example, if interest rates increase by 1%, assuming a current portfolio duration of ten years, and all other factors being equal, the value of the Fund’s investments would be expected to decrease by 10%. (Duration is a measure of the price sensitivity of a debt security or portfolio of debt securities to relative changes in interest rates.) The magnitude of these fluctuations in the market price of bonds and other fixed-income securities is generally greater for those securities with longer maturities. Fluctuations in the market price of the Fund’s
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investments will not affect interest income derived from instruments already owned by the Fund, but will be reflected in the Fund’s net asset value. The Fund may lose money if short-term or long-term interest rates rise sharply in a manner not anticipated by Fund management.
To the extent the Fund invests in debt securities that may be prepaid at the option of the obligor (such as mortgage-backed securities), the sensitivity of such securities to changes in interest rates may increase (to the detriment of the Fund) when interest rates rise. Moreover, because rates on certain floating rate debt securities typically reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause some fluctuations in the net asset value of the Fund to the extent that it invests in floating rate debt securities.
These basic principles of bond prices also apply to U.S. Government securities. A security backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government is guaranteed only as to its stated interest rate and face value at maturity, not its current market price. Just like other fixed-income securities, government-guaranteed securities will fluctuate in value when interest rates change.
The Federal Reserve has recently begun to raise the federal funds rate as part of its efforts to address rising inflation. There is a risk that interest rates will continue to rise, which will likely drive down the prices of bonds and other fixed-income securities. A general rise in interest rates has the potential to cause investors to move out of fixed-income securities on a large scale, which may increase redemptions from mutual funds that hold large amounts of fixed-income securities. Heavy redemptions could cause the Fund to sell assets at inopportune times or at a loss or depressed value and could hurt the Fund’s performance.
During periods of very low or negative interest rates, the Fund may be unable to maintain positive returns. Certain countries have recently experienced negative interest rates on certain fixed-income instruments. Very low or negative interest rates may magnify interest rate risk. Changing interest rates, including rates that fall below zero, may have unpredictable effects on markets, may result in heightened market volatility and may detract from Fund performance to the extent the Fund is exposed to such interest rates.
Extension Risk — When interest rates rise, certain obligations will be paid off by the obligor more slowly than anticipated, causing the value of these obligations to fall. Rising interest rates tend to extend the duration of securities, making them more sensitive to changes in interest rates. The value of longer-term securities generally changes more in response to changes in interest rates than shorter-term securities. As a result, in a period of rising interest rates, securities may exhibit additional volatility and may lose value.
Prepayment Risk — When interest rates fall, certain obligations will be paid off by the obligor more quickly than originally anticipated, and the Fund may have to invest the proceeds in securities with lower yields. In periods of falling interest rates, the rate of prepayments tends to increase (as does price fluctuation) as borrowers are motivated to pay off debt and refinance at new lower rates. During such periods, reinvestment of the prepayment proceeds by the management team will generally be at lower rates of return than the return on the assets that were prepaid. Prepayment reduces the yield to maturity and the average life of the security.
Deflation Risk Deflation risk is the possibility that prices throughout the economy decline over time — the opposite of inflation. If inflation is negative, the principal and income of an inflation-protected bond will decline and could result in losses for the Fund.
Derivatives Risk — The Fund’s use of derivatives may increase its costs, reduce the Fund’s returns and/or increase volatility. Derivatives involve significant risks, including:
Leverage Risk — The Fund’s use of derivatives can magnify the Fund’s gains and losses. Relatively small market movements may result in large changes in the value of a derivatives position and can result in losses that greatly exceed the amount originally invested.
Market Risk — Some derivatives are more sensitive to interest rate changes and market price fluctuations than other securities. The Fund could also suffer losses related to its derivatives positions as a result of unanticipated market movements, which losses are potentially unlimited. Finally, BlackRock may not be able to predict correctly the direction of securities prices, interest rates and other economic factors, which could cause the Fund’s derivatives positions to lose value.
Counterparty Risk — Derivatives are also subject to counterparty risk, which is the risk that the other party in the transaction will be unable or unwilling to fulfill its contractual obligation, and the related risks of having concentrated exposure to such a counterparty.
Illiquidity Risk — The possible lack of a liquid secondary market for derivatives and the resulting inability of the Fund to sell or otherwise close a derivatives position could expose the Fund to losses and could make derivatives more difficult for the Fund to value accurately.
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Operational Risk — The use of derivatives includes the risk of potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, systems failures, inadequate controls and human error.
Legal Risk — The risk of insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract.
Volatility and Correlation Risk — The Fund’s use of derivatives may reduce the Fund’s returns and/or increase volatility. Volatility is defined as the characteristic of a security, an index or a market to fluctuate significantly in price within a short time period. A risk of the Fund’s use of derivatives is that the fluctuations in their values may not correlate with the overall securities markets.
Valuation Risk — Valuation for derivatives may not be readily available in the market. Valuation may be more difficult in times of market turmoil since many investors and market makers may be reluctant to purchase complex instruments or quote prices for them. Derivatives may also expose the Fund to greater risk and increase its costs. Certain transactions in derivatives involve substantial leverage risk and may expose the Fund to potential losses that exceed the amount originally invested by the Fund.
Hedging Risk — When a derivative is used as a hedge against a position that the Fund holds, any loss generated by the derivative generally should be substantially offset by gains on the hedged investment, and vice versa. While hedging can reduce or eliminate losses, it can also reduce or eliminate gains. Hedges are sometimes subject to imperfect matching between the derivative and the underlying security, and there can be no assurance that the Fund’s hedging transactions will be effective. The use of hedging may result in certain adverse tax consequences noted below.
Tax Risk — The federal income tax treatment of a derivative may not be as favorable as a direct investment in an underlying asset and may adversely affect the timing, character and amount of income the Fund realizes from its investments. As a result, a larger portion of the Fund’s distributions may be treated as ordinary income rather than capital gains. In addition, certain derivatives are subject to mark-to-market or straddle provisions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Internal Revenue Code”). If such provisions are applicable, there could be an increase (or decrease) in the amount of taxable dividends paid by the Fund. In addition, the tax treatment of certain derivatives, such as swaps, is unsettled and may be subject to future legislation, regulation or administrative pronouncements issued by the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”).
Regulatory Risk — Derivative contracts are subject to regulation under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”) in the United States and under comparable regimes in Europe, Asia and other non-U.S. jurisdictions. Under the Dodd-Frank Act, with respect to uncleared swaps, swap dealers are required to collect variation margin from the Fund and may be required by applicable regulations to collect initial margin from the Fund. Both initial and variation margin may be comprised of cash and/or securities, subject to applicable regulatory haircuts. Shares of investment companies (other than certain money market funds) may not be posted as collateral under applicable regulations. In addition, regulations adopted by global prudential regulators that are now in effect require certain bank-regulated counterparties and certain of their affiliates to include in certain financial contracts, including many derivatives contracts, terms that delay or restrict the rights of counterparties, such as the Fund, to terminate such contracts, foreclose upon collateral, exercise other default rights or restrict transfers of credit support in the event that the counterparty and/or its affiliates are subject to certain types of resolution or insolvency proceedings. The implementation of these requirements with respect to derivatives, as well as regulations under the Dodd-Frank Act regarding clearing, mandatory trading and margining of other derivatives, may increase the costs and risks to the Fund of trading in these instruments and, as a result, may affect returns to investors in the Fund.
Future regulatory developments may impact the Fund’s ability to invest or remain invested in certain derivatives. Legislation or regulation may also change the way in which the Fund itself is regulated. BlackRock cannot predict the effects of any new governmental regulation that may be implemented on the ability of the Fund to use swaps or any other financial derivative product, and there can be no assurance that any new governmental regulation will not adversely affect the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective.
Risks Specific to Certain Derivatives Used by the Fund
Swaps — Swap agreements, including total return swaps that may be referred to as contracts for difference, are two-party contracts entered into for periods ranging from a few days to more than one year. In a standard “swap” transaction, two parties agree to exchange the value(s) or cash flow(s) of one asset for another over a certain period of time. Swap agreements involve the risk that the party with whom the Fund has entered into the swap will default on its obligation to pay the Fund and the risk that the Fund will not be able to meet its obligations to pay the other party to the agreement. Swap agreements may also involve the risk that there is an imperfect correlation between the return on the Fund’s obligation to its counterparty and the return on the referenced asset. In addition, swap agreements are subject to market and illiquidity risk, leverage risk and hedging risk.
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Credit Default Swaps — Credit default swaps may have as reference obligations one or more securities that are not currently held by the Fund. The protection “buyer” may be obligated to pay the protection “seller” an up-front payment or a periodic stream of payments over the term of the contract, provided generally that no credit event on a reference obligation has occurred. Credit default swaps involve special risks in addition to those mentioned above because they are difficult to value, are highly susceptible to illiquid investments risk and credit risk, and generally pay a return to the party that has paid the premium only in the event of an actual default by the issuer of the underlying obligation (as opposed to a credit downgrade or other indication of financial difficulty).
Forward Foreign Currency Exchange Contracts — Forward foreign currency exchange transactions are OTC contracts to purchase or sell a specified amount of a specified currency or multinational currency unit at a price and future date set at the time of the contract. Forward foreign currency exchange contracts do not eliminate fluctuations in the value of non-U.S. securities but rather allow the Fund to establish a fixed rate of exchange for a future point in time. This strategy can have the effect of reducing returns and minimizing opportunities for gain.
Futures — Futures are standardized, exchange-traded contracts that obligate a purchaser to take delivery, and a seller to make delivery, of a specific amount of an asset at a specified future date at a specified price. The primary risks associated with the use of futures contracts and options are: (a) the imperfect correlation between the change in market value of the instruments held by the Fund and the price of the futures contract or option; (b) the possible lack of a liquid secondary market for a futures contract and the resulting inability to close a futures contract when desired; (c) losses caused by unanticipated market movements, which are potentially unlimited; (d) the investment adviser’s inability to predict correctly the direction of securities prices, interest rates, currency exchange rates and other economic factors; and (e) the possibility that the counterparty will default in the performance of its obligations.
Options — An option is an agreement that, for a premium payment or fee, gives the option holder (the purchaser) the right but not the obligation to buy (a “call option”) or sell (a “put option”) the underlying asset (or settle for cash in an amount based on an underlying asset, rate, or index) at a specified price (the “exercise price”) during a period of time or on a specified date. Investments in options are considered speculative. When the Fund purchases an option, it may lose the total premium paid for it if the price of the underlying security or other assets decreased, remained the same or failed to increase to a level at or beyond the exercise price (in the case of a call option) or increased, remained the same or failed to decrease to a level at or below the exercise price (in the case of a put option). If a put or call option purchased by the Fund were permitted to expire without being sold or exercised, its premium would represent a loss to the Fund. To the extent that the Fund writes or sells an option, if the decline or increase in the underlying asset is significantly below or above the exercise price of the written option, the Fund could experience a substantial loss.
Dollar Rolls Risk A dollar roll transaction involves a sale by the Fund of a mortgage-backed, U.S. Treasury or other security (as permitted by the Fund’s investment strategies) concurrently with an agreement by the Fund to repurchase a similar security at a later date at an agreed-upon price. The market value of the securities the Fund is required to purchase may decline below the agreed upon repurchase price of those securities. If the broker/dealer to whom the Fund sells securities becomes insolvent, the Fund’s right to purchase or repurchase securities may be restricted. Successful use of dollar rolls may depend upon the adviser’s ability to correctly predict interest rates and prepayments, depending on the underlying security. There is no assurance that dollar rolls can be successfully employed.
Emerging Markets Risk The risks of foreign investments are usually much greater for emerging markets. Investments in emerging markets may be considered speculative. Emerging markets may include those in countries considered emerging or developing by the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation or the United Nations. Emerging markets are riskier than more developed markets because they tend to develop unevenly and may never fully develop. They are more likely to experience hyperinflation and currency devaluations, which adversely affect returns to U.S. investors. In addition, many emerging markets have far lower trading volumes and less liquidity than developed markets. Since these markets are often small, they may be more likely to suffer sharp and frequent price changes or long-term price depression because of adverse publicity, investor perceptions or the actions of a few large investors. In addition, traditional measures of investment value used in the United States, such as price to earnings ratios, may not apply to certain small markets. Also, there may be less publicly available information about issuers in emerging markets than would be available about issuers in more developed capital markets, and such issuers may not be subject to accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards and requirements comparable to those to which U.S. companies are subject.
Many emerging markets have histories of political instability and abrupt changes in policies. As a result, their governments are more likely to take actions that are hostile or detrimental to private enterprise or foreign investment than those of more developed countries, including expropriation of assets, confiscatory taxation, high rates of inflation or unfavorable diplomatic developments. In the past, governments of such nations have
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expropriated substantial amounts of private property, and most claims of the property owners have never been fully settled. There is no assurance that such expropriations will not reoccur. In such an event, it is possible that the Fund could lose the entire value of its investments in the affected market. Some countries have pervasive corruption and crime that may hinder investments. Certain emerging markets may also face other significant internal or external risks, including the risk of war, and ethnic, religious and racial conflicts. In addition, governments in many emerging market countries participate to a significant degree in their economies and securities markets, which may impair investment and economic growth. National policies that may limit the Fund’s investment opportunities include restrictions on investment in issuers or industries deemed sensitive to national interests.
Emerging markets may also have differing legal systems and the existence or possible imposition of exchange controls, custodial restrictions or other foreign or U.S. governmental laws or restrictions applicable to such investments. Sometimes, they may lack or be in the relatively early development of legal structures governing private and foreign investments and private property. Many emerging markets do not have income tax treaties with the United States, and as a result, investments by the Fund may be subject to higher withholding taxes in such countries. In addition, some countries with emerging markets may impose differential capital gains taxes on foreign investors. Foreign companies with securities listed on U.S. exchanges may be delisted if they do not meet U.S. accounting standards and auditor oversight requirements, which may significantly decrease the liquidity and value of the securities.
Practices in relation to settlement of securities transactions in emerging markets involve higher risks than those in developed markets, in part because the Fund will need to use brokers and counterparties that are less well capitalized, and custody and registration of assets in some countries may be unreliable. The possibility of fraud, negligence, undue influence being exerted by the issuer or refusal to recognize ownership exists in some emerging markets, and, along with other factors, could result in ownership registration being completely lost. The Fund would absorb any loss resulting from such registration problems and may have no successful claim for compensation. In addition, communications between the United States and emerging market countries may be unreliable, increasing the risk of delayed settlements or losses of security certificates.
Foreign Securities Risk — Securities traded in foreign markets have often (though not always) performed differently from securities traded in the United States. However, such investments often involve special risks not present in U.S. investments that can increase the chances that the Fund will lose money. In particular, the Fund is subject to the risk that because there may be fewer investors on foreign exchanges and a smaller number of securities traded each day, it may be more difficult for the Fund to buy and sell securities on those exchanges. In addition, prices of foreign securities may go up and down more than prices of securities traded in the United States.
Certain Risks of Holding Fund Assets Outside the United States — The Fund generally holds its foreign securities and cash in foreign banks and securities depositories. Some foreign banks and securities depositories may be recently organized or new to the foreign custody business. In addition, there may be limited or no regulatory oversight of their operations. Also, the laws of certain countries limit the Fund’s ability to recover its assets if a foreign bank, depository or issuer of a security, or any of their agents, goes bankrupt. In addition, it is often more expensive for the Fund to buy, sell and hold securities in certain foreign markets than in the United States. The increased expense of investing in foreign markets reduces the amount the Fund can earn on its investments and typically results in a higher operating expense ratio for the Fund than for investment companies invested only in the United States.
Currency Risk — Securities and other instruments in which the Fund invests may be denominated or quoted in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. For this reason, changes in foreign currency exchange rates can affect the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
Generally, when the U.S. dollar rises in value against a foreign currency, a security denominated in that currency loses value because the currency is worth fewer U.S. dollars. Conversely, when the U.S. dollar decreases in value against a foreign currency, a security denominated in that currency gains value because the currency is worth more U.S. dollars. This risk, generally known as “currency risk,” means that a strong U.S. dollar will reduce returns for U.S. investors while a weak U.S. dollar will increase those returns.
Should the Fund invest in a debt security denominated in U.S. dollars and issued by an issuer whose functional currency is a currency other than the U.S. dollar, and such currency decreases in value against the U.S. dollar, such issuer’s ability to repay its obligation under the U.S. dollar-denominated security may be negatively impacted.
Foreign Economy Risk — The economies of certain foreign markets may not compare favorably with the economy of the United States with respect to such issues as growth of gross national product, reinvestment of capital, resources and balance of payments position. Certain foreign economies may rely heavily on particular industries or foreign capital and are more vulnerable to diplomatic developments, the imposition of economic sanctions against a particular country or countries, changes in international trading patterns, trade barriers and other protectionist or
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retaliatory measures. Investments in foreign markets may also be adversely affected by governmental actions such as the imposition of capital controls, nationalization of companies or industries, expropriation of assets or the imposition of punitive taxes. In addition, economic conditions, such as volatile currency exchange rates and interest rates, political events, military action and other conditions may, without prior warning, lead to the governments of certain countries, or the U.S. Government with respect to certain countries, prohibiting or imposing substantial restrictions through capital controls and/or sanctions on foreign investments in the capital markets or certain industries in those countries. Capital controls and/or sanctions may include the prohibition of, or restrictions on, the ability to own or transfer currency, securities, derivatives or other assets and may also include retaliatory actions of one government against another government, such as seizure of assets. Any of these actions could severely impair the Fund’s ability to purchase, sell, transfer, receive, deliver or otherwise obtain exposure to foreign securities and assets, including the ability to transfer the Fund’s assets or income back into the United States, and could negatively impact the value and/or liquidity of such assets or otherwise adversely affect the Fund’s operations, causing the Fund to decline in value.
Other potential foreign market risks include foreign exchange controls, difficulties in pricing securities, defaults on foreign government securities, difficulties in enforcing legal judgments in foreign courts and political and social instability. Diplomatic and political developments, including rapid and adverse political changes, social instability, regional conflicts, terrorism and war, could affect the economies, industries and securities and currency markets, and the value of the Fund’s investments, in non-U.S. countries. These factors are extremely difficult, if not impossible, to predict and take into account with respect to the Fund’s investments.
Governmental Supervision and Regulation/Accounting Standards — Many foreign governments do not supervise and regulate stock exchanges, brokers and the sale of securities to the same extent as such regulations exist in the United States. They also may not have laws to protect investors that are comparable to U.S. securities laws. For example, some foreign countries may have no laws or rules against insider trading. Insider trading occurs when a person buys or sells a company’s securities based on material non-public information about that company. In addition, some countries may have legal systems that may make it difficult for the Fund to vote proxies, exercise shareholder rights, and pursue legal remedies with respect to its foreign investments. Accounting standards in other countries are not necessarily the same as in the United States. If the accounting standards in another country do not require as much detail as U.S. accounting standards, it may be harder for Fund management to completely and accurately determine a company’s financial condition.
Settlement Risk — Settlement and clearance procedures in certain foreign markets differ significantly from those in the United States. Foreign settlement and clearance procedures and trade regulations also may involve certain risks (such as delays in payment for or delivery of securities) not typically associated with the settlement of U.S. investments.
At times, settlements in certain foreign countries have not kept pace with the number of securities transactions. These problems may make it difficult for the Fund to carry out transactions. If the Fund cannot settle or is delayed in settling a purchase of securities, it may miss attractive investment opportunities and certain of its assets may be uninvested with no return earned thereon for some period. If the Fund cannot settle or is delayed in settling a sale of securities, it may lose money if the value of the security then declines or, if it has contracted to sell the security to another party, the Fund could be liable for any losses incurred.
Withholding Tax Reclaims Risk — The Fund may file claims to recover foreign withholding taxes on dividend and interest income (if any) received from issuers in certain countries and capital gains on the disposition of stocks or securities where such withholding tax reclaim is possible. Whether or when the Fund will receive a withholding tax refund is within the control of the tax authorities in such countries. Where the Fund expects to recover withholding taxes, the net asset value of the Fund generally includes accruals for such tax refunds. The Fund regularly evaluates the probability of recovery. If the likelihood of recovery materially decreases, due to, for example, a change in tax regulation or approach in the foreign country, accruals in the Fund’s net asset value for such refunds may be written down partially or in full, which will adversely affect the Fund’s net asset value. Shareholders in the Fund at the time an accrual is written down will bear the impact of the resulting reduction in net asset value regardless of whether they were shareholders during the accrual period. Conversely, if the Fund receives a tax refund that has not been previously accrued, shareholders in the Fund at the time of the successful recovery will benefit from the resulting increase in the Fund’s net asset value. Shareholders who sold their shares prior to such time will not benefit from such increase in the Fund’s net asset value.
High Portfolio Turnover Risk — The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of its portfolio securities. High portfolio turnover (more than 100%) may result in increased transaction costs to the Fund, including brokerage commissions, dealer mark-ups and other transaction costs on the sale of the securities and on reinvestment in other securities. The sale of Fund portfolio securities may result in the realization and/or distribution to
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shareholders of higher capital gains or losses as compared to a fund with less active trading policies. These effects of higher than normal portfolio turnover may adversely affect Fund performance.
Illiquid Investments Risk — The Fund may not acquire any illiquid investment if, immediately after the acquisition, the Fund would have invested more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments. An illiquid investment is any investment that the Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. The Subsidiary will also limit its investment in illiquid investments to 15% of its net assets. In applying the illiquid investments restriction to the Fund, the Fund’s investment in the Subsidiary is considered to be liquid. Liquid investments may become illiquid after purchase by the Fund, particularly during periods of market turmoil. There can be no assurance that a security or instrument that is deemed to be liquid when purchased will continue to be liquid for as long as it is held by the Fund, and any security or instrument held by the Fund may be deemed an illiquid investment pursuant to the Fund’s liquidity risk management program. The Fund’s illiquid investments may reduce the returns of the Fund because it may be difficult to sell the illiquid investments at an advantageous time or price. In addition, if the Fund is limited in its ability to sell illiquid investments during periods when shareholders are redeeming their shares, the Fund will need to sell liquid securities to meet redemption requests and illiquid securities will become a larger portion of the Fund’s holdings. An investment may be illiquid due to, among other things, the reduced number and capacity of traditional market participants to make a market in fixed-income securities or the lack of an active trading market. To the extent that the Fund’s principal investment strategies involve derivatives or securities with substantial market and/or credit risk, the Fund will tend to have the greatest exposure to the risks associated with illiquid investments. Illiquid investments may be harder to value, especially in changing markets, and if the Fund is forced to sell these investments to meet redemption requests or for other cash needs, the Fund may suffer a loss. This may be magnified in a rising interest rate environment or other circumstances where investor redemptions from fixed-income mutual funds may be higher than normal. In addition, when there is illiquidity in the market for certain securities, the Fund, due to limitations on illiquid investments, may be subject to purchase and sale restrictions.
Indexed and Inverse Securities Risk Indexed and inverse securities provide a potential return based on a particular index of value or interest rates. The Fund’s return on these securities will be subject to risk with respect to the value of the particular index. These securities are subject to leverage risk and correlation risk. Certain indexed and inverse securities have greater sensitivity to changes in interest rates or index levels than other securities, and the Fund’s investment in such instruments may decline significantly in value if interest rates or index levels move in a way Fund management does not anticipate.
Inflation-Indexed Bonds Risk — The principal value of an investment is not protected or otherwise guaranteed by virtue of the Fund’s investments in inflation-indexed bonds.
Inflation-indexed bonds are fixed-income securities whose principal value is periodically adjusted according to the rate of inflation. If the index measuring inflation falls, the principal value of inflation-indexed bonds will be adjusted downward, and consequently the interest payable on these securities (calculated with respect to a smaller principal amount) will be reduced.
Repayment of the original bond principal upon maturity (as adjusted for inflation) is guaranteed in the case of U.S. Treasury inflation-indexed bonds. For bonds that do not provide a similar guarantee, the adjusted principal value of the bond repaid at maturity may be less than the original principal value.
The value of inflation-indexed bonds is expected to change in response to changes in real interest rates. Real interest rates are tied to the relationship between nominal interest rates and the rate of inflation. If nominal interest rates increase at a faster rate than inflation, real interest rates may rise, leading to a decrease in value of inflation-indexed bonds. Short-term increases in inflation may lead to a decline in value. Any increase in the principal amount of an inflation-indexed bond will be considered taxable ordinary income, even though investors do not receive their principal until maturity.
Periodic adjustments for inflation to the principal amount of an inflation-indexed bond may give rise to original issue discount, which will be includable in the Fund’s gross income. Due to original issue discount, the Fund may be required to make annual distributions to shareholders that exceed the cash received, which may cause the Fund to liquidate certain investments when it is not advantageous to do so. Also, if the principal value of an inflation-indexed bond is adjusted downward due to deflation, amounts previously distributed in the taxable year may be characterized in some circumstances as a return of capital.
Leverage Risk — Some transactions may give rise to a form of economic leverage. These transactions may include, among others, derivatives, and may expose the Fund to greater risk and increase its costs. As an open-end investment company registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC), the Fund is subject to the federal securities laws, including the Investment Company Act and the rules thereunder. Under Rule 18f-4 under the Investment Company Act, among other things, the Fund must either use derivatives in a limited manner or
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comply with an outer limit on fund leverage risk based on value-at-risk. The use of leverage may cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio positions when it may not be advantageous to do so to satisfy its obligations or to meet the applicable requirements of the Investment Company Act and the rules thereunder. Increases and decreases in the value of the Fund’s portfolio will be magnified when the Fund uses leverage.
Market Risk and Selection Risk — Market risk is the risk that one or more markets in which the Fund invests will go down in value, including the possibility that the markets will go down sharply and unpredictably. The value of a security or other asset may decline due to changes in general market conditions, economic trends or events that are not specifically related to the issuer of the security or other asset, or factors that affect a particular issuer or issuers, exchange, country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. Local, regional or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, the spread of infectious illness or other public health issues like pandemics or epidemics, recessions, or other events could have a significant impact on the Fund and its investments. Selection risk is the risk that the securities selected by Fund management will underperform the markets, the relevant indices or the securities selected by other funds with similar investment objectives and investment strategies. This means you may lose money.
An outbreak of an infectious coronavirus (COVID-19) that was first detected in December 2019 developed into a global pandemic that has resulted in numerous disruptions in the market and has had significant economic impact leaving general concern and uncertainty. Although vaccines have been developed and approved for use by various governments, the duration of the pandemic and its effects cannot be predicted with certainty. The impact of this coronavirus, and other epidemics and pandemics that may arise in the future, could affect the economies of many nations, individual companies and the market in general ways that cannot necessarily be foreseen at the present time.
Mortgage- and Asset-Backed Securities Risks — Mortgage-backed securities (residential and commercial) and asset-backed securities represent interests in “pools” of mortgages or other assets, including consumer loans or receivables held in trust. Although asset-backed and commercial mortgage-backed securities (“CMBS”) generally experience less prepayment than residential mortgage-backed securities, mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities, like traditional fixed-income securities, are subject to credit, interest rate, prepayment and extension risks.
Small movements in interest rates (both increases and decreases) may quickly and significantly reduce the value of certain mortgage-backed securities. The Fund’s investments in asset-backed securities are subject to risks similar to those associated with mortgage-related securities, as well as additional risks associated with the nature of the assets and the servicing of those assets. These securities also are subject to the risk of default on the underlying mortgages or assets, particularly during periods of economic downturn. Certain CMBS are issued in several classes with different levels of yield and credit protection. The Fund’s investments in CMBS with several classes may be in the lower classes that have greater risks than the higher classes, including greater interest rate, credit and prepayment risks.
Mortgage-backed securities may be either pass-through securities or collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs). Pass-through securities represent a right to receive principal and interest payments collected on a pool of mortgages, which are passed through to security holders. CMOs are created by dividing the principal and interest payments collected on a pool of mortgages into several revenue streams (“tranches”) with different priority rights to portions of the underlying mortgage payments. Certain CMO tranches may represent a right to receive interest only (“IOs”), principal only (“POs”) or an amount that remains after floating-rate tranches are paid (an “inverse floater”). These securities are frequently referred to as “mortgage derivatives” and may be extremely sensitive to changes in interest rates. Interest rates on inverse floaters, for example, vary inversely with a short-term floating rate (which may be reset periodically). Interest rates on inverse floaters will decrease when short-term rates increase, and will increase when short-term rates decrease. These securities have the effect of providing a degree of investment leverage. In response to changes in market interest rates or other market conditions, the value of an inverse floater may increase or decrease at a multiple of the increase or decrease in the value of the underlying securities. If the Fund invests in CMO tranches (including CMO tranches issued by government agencies) and interest rates move in a manner not anticipated by Fund management, it is possible that the Fund could lose all or substantially all of its investment. Certain mortgage-backed securities in which the Fund may invest may also provide a degree of investment leverage, which could cause the Fund to lose all or substantially all of its investment.
The mortgage market in the United States has experienced difficulties that may adversely affect the performance and market value of certain of the Fund’s mortgage-related investments. Delinquencies and losses on mortgage loans (including subprime and second-lien mortgage loans) and a decline in or flattening of real estate values (in each case as has been experienced and may continue to be experienced in many housing markets) may exacerbate such delinquencies and losses. Also, a number of mortgage loan originators have experienced serious financial difficulties or bankruptcy. Reduced investor demand for mortgage loans and mortgage-related securities and
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increased investor yield requirements have caused limited liquidity in the secondary market for mortgage-related securities, which can adversely affect the market value of mortgage-related securities. It is possible that such limited liquidity in such secondary markets could continue or worsen.
Asset-backed securities entail certain risks not presented by mortgage-backed securities, including the risk that in certain states it may be difficult to perfect the liens securing the collateral backing certain asset-backed securities. In addition, certain asset-backed securities are based on loans that are unsecured, which means that there is no collateral to seize if the underlying borrower defaults.
Non-Investment Grade Securities Risk — Although non-investment grade securities generally pay higher rates of interest than investment grade securities, non-investment grade securities are high risk investments that are considered speculative and may cause income and principal losses for the Fund. The major risks of non-investment grade investments include:
Non-investment grade securities may be issued by less creditworthy issuers. Issuers of non-investment grade securities may have a larger amount of outstanding debt relative to their assets than issuers of investment grade securities. In the event of an issuer’s bankruptcy, claims of other creditors may have priority over the claims of holders of non-investment grade securities, leaving few or no assets available to repay holders of non-investment grade securities.
Prices of non-investment grade securities are subject to extreme price fluctuations. Adverse changes in an issuer’s industry and general economic conditions may have a greater impact on the prices of non-investment grade securities than on other higher rated fixed-income securities.
Issuers of non-investment grade securities may be unable to meet their interest or principal payment obligations because of an economic downturn, specific issuer developments, or the unavailability of additional financing.
Non-investment grade securities frequently have redemption features that permit an issuer to repurchase the security from the Fund before it matures. If the issuer redeems non-investment grade securities, the Fund may have to invest the proceeds in bonds with lower yields and may lose income.
Non-investment grade securities may be less liquid than higher rated fixed-income securities, even under normal economic conditions. There are fewer dealers in the non-investment grade securities market, and there may be significant differences in the prices quoted for junk bonds by the dealers. Because they are less liquid than higher rated fixed-income securities, judgment may play a greater role in valuing non-investment grade securities than is the case with securities trading in a more liquid market.
The Fund may incur expenses to the extent necessary to seek recovery upon default or to negotiate new terms with a defaulting issuer.
Given recent developments in the high-yield market, non-investment grade securities may be subject to weaker or less restrictive covenant protections. Under such weaker or less restrictive covenants, borrowers might be able to exercise more flexibility with respect to certain activities than borrowers who are subject to stronger or more protective covenants. For example, borrowers might be able to incur more debt, including secured debt, return more capital to shareholders, remove or reduce assets that are designated as collateral securing non-investment grade securities, increase the claims against assets that are permitted against collateral securing non-investment grade securities or otherwise manage their business in ways that could impact creditors negatively. Each of these factors might negatively impact the non-investment grade securities held by the Fund.
The credit rating of a high yield security does not necessarily address its market value risk. Ratings and market value may change from time to time, positively or negatively, to reflect new developments regarding the issuer.
Repurchase Agreements and Purchase and Sale Contracts Risk — If the other party to a repurchase agreement or purchase and sale contract defaults on its obligation under the agreement, the Fund may suffer delays and incur costs or lose money in exercising its rights under the agreement. If the seller fails to repurchase the security in either situation and the market value of the security declines, the Fund may lose money.
Reverse Repurchase Agreements Risk — Reverse repurchase agreements involve the sale of securities held by the Fund with an agreement to repurchase the securities at an agreed-upon price, date and interest payment. Reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the other party may fail to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could lose money if it is unable to recover the securities and the value of the collateral held by the Fund, including the value of the investments made with cash collateral, is less than the value of the securities. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund. In addition, reverse repurchase agreements involve the risk that the interest income earned in the investment of the proceeds will be less than the interest expense.
Risk of Investing in the United States A decrease in imports or exports, changes in trade regulations, inflation and/or an economic recession in the United States may have a material adverse effect on the U.S. economy and
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the securities listed on U.S. exchanges. Proposed and adopted policy and legislative changes in the United States are changing many aspects of financial, commercial, public health, environmental, and other regulation and may have a significant effect on U.S. markets generally, as well as on the value of certain securities. Governmental agencies project that the United States will continue to maintain elevated public debt levels for the foreseeable future. Although elevated debt levels do not necessarily indicate or cause economic problems, elevated public debt service costs may constrain future economic growth.
The United States has developed increasingly strained relations with a number of foreign countries. If relations with certain countries deteriorate, it could adversely affect U.S. issuers as well as non-U.S. issuers that rely on the United States for trade. The United States has also experienced increased internal political discord, as well as significant challenges in managing and containing the outbreak of COVID-19. If these trends were to continue, it may have an adverse impact on the U.S. economy and the issuers in which the Fund invests.
Subsidiary Risk By investing in the Subsidiary, the Fund is indirectly exposed to the risks associated with the Subsidiary’s investments. The commodity-related instruments held by the Subsidiary are generally similar to those that are permitted to be held by the Fund and are subject to the same risks that apply to similar investments if held directly by the Fund (see “Commodities Related Investments Risk” above). There can be no assurance that the investment objective of the Subsidiary will be achieved. The Subsidiary is not registered under the Investment Company Act and, unless otherwise noted in this prospectus, is not subject to all the investor protections of the Investment Company Act. However, the Fund wholly owns and controls the Subsidiary, and the Fund and the Subsidiary are both managed by BlackRock, making it unlikely that the Subsidiary will take action contrary to the interests of the Fund and its shareholders. The Board has oversight responsibility for the investment activities of the Fund, including its investment in the Subsidiary, and the Fund’s role as sole shareholder of the Subsidiary. The Subsidiary is subject to the same investment restrictions and limitations, and follows the same compliance policies and procedures, as the Fund, except that the Subsidiary may invest without limitation in commodity-related instruments. Changes in the laws of the United States and/or the Cayman Islands could result in the inability of the Fund and/or the Subsidiary to operate as described in this prospectus and the SAI and could adversely affect the Fund.
U.S. Government Issuer Risk Treasury obligations may differ in their interest rates, maturities, times of issuance and other characteristics. Obligations of U.S. Government agencies and authorities are supported by varying degrees of credit but generally are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government. No assurance can be given that the U.S. Government will provide financial support to its agencies and authorities if it is not obligated by law to do so.
The Fund may also be subject to certain other non-principal risks associated with its investments and investment strategies, including:
Cyber Security Risk — Failures or breaches of the electronic systems of the Fund, the Fund’s adviser, distributor, and other service providers, or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests have the ability to cause disruptions and negatively impact the Fund’s business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses to the Fund and its shareholders. While the Fund has established business continuity plans and risk management systems seeking to address system breaches or failures, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems. Furthermore, the Fund cannot control the cyber security plans and systems of the Fund’s service providers or issuers of securities in which the Fund invests.
Expense Risk — Fund expenses are subject to a variety of factors, including fluctuations in the Fund’s net assets. Accordingly, actual expenses may be greater or less than those indicated. For example, to the extent that the Fund’s net assets decrease due to market declines or redemptions, the Fund’s expenses will increase as a percentage of Fund net assets. During periods of high market volatility, these increases in the Fund’s expense ratio could be significant.
Investment in Other Investment Companies Risk — As with other investments, investments in other investment companies, including ETFs, are subject to market and selection risk. In addition, if the Fund acquires shares of investment companies, including ones affiliated with the Fund, shareholders bear both their proportionate share of expenses in the Fund (including management and advisory fees) and, indirectly, the expenses of the investment companies (to the extent not offset by BlackRock through waivers). To the extent the Fund is held by an affiliated fund, the ability of the Fund itself to hold other investment companies may be limited.
Large Shareholder and Large-Scale Redemption Risk — Certain shareholders, including a third-party investor, the Fund’s adviser or an affiliate of the Fund’s adviser, or another entity, may from time to time own or manage a substantial amount of Fund shares or may invest in the Fund and hold its investment for a limited period of time. There can be no assurance that any large shareholder or large group of shareholders would not redeem their investment or that the size of the Fund would be maintained. Redemptions of a large number of Fund shares by
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these shareholders may adversely affect the Fund’s liquidity and net assets. These redemptions may force the Fund to sell portfolio securities to meet redemption requests when it might not otherwise do so, which may negatively impact the Fund’s net asset value (NAV) and increase the Fund’s brokerage costs and/or accelerate the realization of taxable income and cause the Fund to make taxable distributions to its shareholders earlier than the Fund otherwise would have. In addition, under certain circumstances, non-redeeming shareholders may be treated as receiving a disproportionately large taxable distribution during or with respect to such tax year. The Fund also may be required to sell its more liquid Fund investments to meet a large redemption, in which case the Fund’s remaining assets may be less liquid, more volatile, and more difficult to price. In addition, large redemptions can result in the Fund’s current expenses being allocated over a smaller asset base, which generally results in an increase in the Fund’s expense ratio. Because large redemptions can adversely affect a portfolio manager’s ability to implement a fund’s investment strategy, the Fund also reserves the right to redeem in-kind, subject to certain conditions. In addition, large purchases of Fund shares may adversely affect the Fund’s performance to the extent that the Fund is delayed in investing new cash and is required to maintain a larger cash position than it ordinarily would, diluting its investment returns.
Operational Risk — The Fund is exposed to operational risks arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human errors, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate internal or external processes, and technology or systems failures. The use of certain investment strategies that involve manual or additional processing, such as over-the-counter derivatives, increases these risks. While service providers are required to have appropriate operational risk management policies and procedures, their methods of operational risk management may differ from those of the Fund in the setting of priorities, the personnel and resources available or the effectiveness of relevant controls. The Fund and BlackRock seek to reduce these operational risks through controls, procedures and oversight. However, it is not possible to identify all of the operational risks that may affect the Fund or to develop processes and controls that completely eliminate or mitigate the occurrence or effects of such failures. The Fund, including its performance and continued operation, and its shareholders could be negatively impacted as a result.
Reference Rate Replacement Risk — The Fund may be exposed to financial instruments that recently transitioned from, or continue to be tied to, the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) to determine payment obligations, financing terms, hedging strategies or investment value.
The United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”), which regulates LIBOR, has ceased publishing all LIBOR settings. In April 2023, however, the FCA announced that some USD LIBOR settings will continue to be published under a synthetic methodology until September 30, 2024 for certain legacy contracts. The Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) is a broad measure of the cost of borrowing cash overnight collateralized by U.S. Treasury securities in the repurchase agreement (“repo”) market and has been used increasingly on a voluntary basis in new instruments and transactions. Under U.S. regulations that implement a statutory fallback mechanism to replace LIBOR, benchmark rates based on SOFR have replaced LIBOR in certain financial contracts.
Neither the effect of the LIBOR transition process nor its ultimate success can yet be known. While some existing LIBOR-based instruments may contemplate a scenario where LIBOR is no longer available by providing for an alternative rate-setting methodology, there may be significant uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of any such alternative methodologies to replicate LIBOR. Not all existing LIBOR-based instruments may have alternative rate-setting provisions and there remains uncertainty regarding the willingness and ability of issuers to add alternative rate-setting provisions in certain existing instruments. Parties to contracts, securities or other instruments using LIBOR may disagree on transition rates or the application of transition regulation, potentially resulting in uncertainty of performance and the possibility of litigation. The Fund may have instruments linked to other interbank offered rates that may also cease to be published in the future.
Reliance on Advisor Risk — The Fund is dependent upon services and resources provided by BlackRock, and therefore BlackRock’s parent, BlackRock, Inc. BlackRock is not required to devote its full time to the business of the Fund and there is no guarantee or requirement that any investment professional or other employee of BlackRock will allocate a substantial portion of his or her time to the Fund. The loss of, or changes in, BlackRock’s personnel could have a negative effect on the performance or the continued operation of the Fund.
Valuation Risk The price the Fund could receive upon the sale of any particular portfolio investment may differ from the Fund’s valuation of the investment, particularly for securities that trade in thin or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair valuation methodology or a price provided by an independent pricing service. As a result, the price received upon the sale of an investment may be less than the value ascribed by the Fund, and the Fund could realize a greater than expected loss or lesser than expected gain upon the sale of the investment. Pricing services that value fixed-income securities generally utilize a range of market-based and security-specific inputs and assumptions, as well as considerations about general market conditions, to establish a price. Pricing services generally value fixed-income securities assuming orderly transactions of an institutional round lot size, but may be
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held or transactions may be conducted in such securities in smaller, odd lot sizes. Odd lots may trade at lower prices than institutional round lots. The Fund’s ability to value its investments may also be impacted by technological issues and/or errors by pricing services or other third-party service providers.
When-Issued and Delayed Delivery Securities and Forward Commitments Risk — When-issued and delayed delivery securities and forward commitments involve the risk that the security the Fund buys will lose value prior to its delivery. There also is the risk that the security will not be issued or that the other party to the transaction will not meet its obligation. If this occurs, the Fund may lose both the investment opportunity for the assets it set aside to pay for the security and any gain in the security’s price.
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Account Information
Details About the Share Class
The Fund currently offers multiple share classes (Class K Shares in this prospectus), each with its own sales charge and expense structure, allowing you to invest in the way that best suits your needs. Each share class represents an ownership interest in the same investment portfolio of the Fund. When you choose your class of shares, you should consider the size of your investment and how long you plan to hold your shares. Only certain investors are eligible to buy Class K Shares. Either your financial professional or your selected securities dealer, broker, investment adviser, service provider or industry professional (including BlackRock and its affiliates) (each a “Financial Intermediary”) can help you determine whether you are eligible to buy Class K Shares.
The Fund’s shares are distributed by BlackRock Investments, LLC (the “Distributor”), an affiliate of BlackRock.
The table below summarizes key features of Class K Shares of the Fund.
Class K Shares at a Glance
 
 
Availability
Available only to (i) certain employee benefit plans, such as health savings accounts,
and certain employer-sponsored retirement plans (not including SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs
and SARSEPs) (collectively, “Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans”), (ii) collective trust
funds, investment companies and other pooled investment vehicles, each of which may
purchase shares of the Fund through a Financial Intermediary that has entered into an
agreement with the Distributor to purchase such shares, (iii) Institutional Investors,
which include, but are not limited to, endowments, foundations, family offices, banks
and bank trusts, local, city, and state governmental institutions, corporations and
insurance company separate accounts, each of which may purchase shares of the Fund
through a Financial Intermediary that has entered into an agreement with the Distributor
to purchase such shares, (iv) clients of private banks that purchase shares of the Fund
through a Financial Intermediary that has entered into an agreement with the Distributor
to sell such shares, (v) fee-based advisory platforms of a Financial Intermediary that
(a) has specifically acknowledged in a written agreement with the Distributor and/or its
affiliate(s) that the Financial Intermediary shall offer such shares to fee-based advisory
clients through an omnibus account held at the Fund or (b) transacts in the Fund’s
shares through another intermediary that has executed such an agreement and (vi) any
other investors who met the eligibility criteria for BlackRock Shares or Class K Shares
prior to August 15, 2016 and have continually held Class K Shares of the Fund or the
Predecessor Fund (as defined below) in the same account since August 15, 2016.
Minimum Investment
$5 million minimum initial investment for Institutional Investors.
There is no minimum initial investment requirement for any Employer-Sponsored
Retirement Plans or any other eligible investors other than Institutional Investors.
There is no minimum investment amount for additional purchases.
Initial Sales Charge?
No. Entire purchase price is invested in shares of the Fund.
Deferred Sales Charge?
No.
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees?
No.
Redemption Fees?
No.
The Fund reserves the right to modify or waive the above-stated policies at any time.
When Class K Shares are purchased through a customer’s account in an Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan through procedures established by the Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan, confirmation of share purchases and redemptions will be sent to the Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan. A customer’s ownership of shares will be recorded by the Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan and reflected in the account statements provided by the Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan to its participants.
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If you purchased your shares through an Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan and you transfer your investment from an Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan to a type of account, such as an individual retirement account, that is not an eligible Class K Share investor in the Fund, you must liquidate your investment in Class K Shares of the Fund and purchase a share class of the Fund or another fund advised by BlackRock or its affiliates that is available for purchase by that type of account.
For investors not purchasing shares through an Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan, please see below for information on how to buy, sell, exchange and transfer shares.
Right of Accumulation
Investors have a “right of accumulation” under which any of the following may be combined with the amount of the current purchase in determining whether an investor qualifies for a breakpoint and a reduced front-end sales charge:
i.
The current value of an investor’s existing Investor A and A1, Investor C, Investor P, Institutional, Class K and Premier Shares in most mutual funds sponsored and advised by BlackRock or its affiliates (“BlackRock Funds”),
ii.
The current value of an investor’s existing shares of certain unlisted closed-end management investment companies sponsored and advised by BlackRock or its affiliates and
iii.
The investment in the BlackRock CollegeAdvantage 529 Program by the investor or by or on behalf of the investor’s spouse and children.
Financial Intermediaries may value current holdings of their customers differently for purposes of determining whether an investor qualifies for a breakpoint and a reduced front-end sales charge, although customers of the same Financial Intermediary will be treated similarly. In order to use this right, the investor must alert BlackRock to the existence of any previously purchased shares.
How to Buy, Sell, Exchange and Transfer Shares
The chart on the following pages summarizes how to buy, sell, exchange and transfer shares through your Financial Intermediary. If you are not purchasing shares through an Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan, you may also buy, sell, exchange and transfer shares through BlackRock if your account is held directly with BlackRock. To learn more about buying, selling, exchanging or transferring shares through BlackRock, call (800) 537-4942. Because the selection of a mutual fund involves many considerations, your Financial Intermediary may help you with this decision.
With certain limited exceptions, the Fund is generally available only to investors residing in the United States and may not be distributed by a foreign Financial Intermediary. Under this policy, in order to accept new accounts or additional investments (including by way of exchange from another BlackRock Fund) into existing accounts, the Fund generally requires that (i) a shareholder that is a natural person be a U.S. citizen or resident alien, in each case residing within the United States or a U.S. territory (including APO/FPO/DPO addresses), and have a valid U.S. taxpayer identification number, and (ii) a Financial Intermediary or a shareholder that is an entity be domiciled in the United States and have a valid U.S. taxpayer identification number or be domiciled in a U.S. territory and have a valid U.S. taxpayer identification number or IRS Form W-8. Any existing account that is updated to reflect a non-U.S. address will also be restricted from making additional investments.
The Fund may reject any purchase order, modify or waive the minimum initial or subsequent investment requirements for any shareholders and suspend and resume the sale of any share class of the Fund at any time for any reason. In addition, the Fund may waive certain requirements regarding the purchase, sale, exchange or transfer of shares described below.
Under certain circumstances, if no activity occurs in an account within a time period specified by state law, a shareholder’s shares in the Fund may be transferred to that state.
How to Buy Shares
 
Your Choices
Important Information for You to Know
Initial Purchase
Determine the amount of
your investment
There is no minimum initial investment for any Employer-Sponsored
Retirement Plans or any other investors other than Institutional
Investors.
For Institutional Investors, there is a $5 million minimum initial
investment for all accounts.
26


 
Your Choices
Important Information for You to Know
Initial Purchase
(continued)
Have your Financial
Intermediary submit
your purchase order
The price of your shares is based on the next calculation of the Fund’s
net asset value after your order is placed. Any purchase orders placed
prior to the close of business on the New York Stock Exchange (the
“NYSE”) (generally 4:00 p.m. Eastern time) will be priced at the net
asset value determined that day. Certain Financial Intermediaries,
however, may require submission of orders prior to that time. Purchase
orders placed after that time will be priced at the net asset value
determined on the next business day. A broker-dealer or financial
institution maintaining the account in which you hold shares may
charge a separate account, service or transaction fee on the purchase
or sale of Fund shares that would be in addition to the fees and
expenses shown in the Fund’s “Fees and Expenses” table.
The Fund may reject any order to buy shares and may suspend the sale
of shares at any time. Certain Financial Intermediaries may charge a
processing fee to confirm a purchase.
 
Or contact BlackRock
(for accounts held
directly with BlackRock)
For investors not purchasing shares through an Employer-Sponsored
Retirement Plan, to purchase shares directly from BlackRock, call
(800) 537-4942 and request a new account application.
Add to Your
Investment
Purchase additional shares
There is no minimum investment amount for additional purchases.
 
Have your Financial
Intermediary submit
your purchase order for
additional shares
To purchase additional shares, you may contact your Financial
Intermediary or Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan.
 
Or contact BlackRock
(for accounts held
directly with BlackRock)
For investors not purchasing shares through an Employer-Sponsored
Retirement Plan:
Purchase by Telephone: Call the Fund at (800) 537-4942 and speak
with one of our representatives. The Fund has the right to reject any
telephone request for any reason.
Purchase by Internet: You may purchase your shares, and view activity
in your account, by logging onto the BlackRock website at
www.blackrock.com. Purchases made on the Internet using the
Automated Clearing House (ACH) will have a trade date that is the
day after the purchase is made. Certain institutional clients’ purchase
orders placed by wire prior to the close of business on the NYSE will be
priced at the net asset value determined that day. Contact your
Financial Intermediary or BlackRock for further information. Limits on
amounts that may be purchased via Internet may vary. For additional
information call BlackRock at (800) 537-4942.
Please read the On-Line Services Disclosure Statement and User
Agreement, the Terms and Conditions page and the Consent to
Electronic Delivery Agreement (if you consent to electronic delivery),
before attempting to transact online.
The Fund employs reasonable procedures to confirm that transactions
entered over the Internet are genuine. By entering into the User
Agreement with the Fund in order to open an account through the
website, the shareholder waives any right to reclaim any losses from
the Fund or any of its affiliates incurred through fraudulent activity.
 
Acquire additional shares by
reinvesting dividends and
capital gains
All dividends and capital gains distributions are automatically
reinvested in shares of the Fund at net asset value. To make any
changes to your dividend and/or capital gains distributions options,
please call BlackRock at (800) 537-4942 (for investors who are not
purchasing shares through an Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan) or
contact your Financial Intermediary.
27


 
Your Choices
Important Information for You to Know
How to Pay for
Shares
Making payment for purchases
If you are purchasing shares through an Employer-Sponsored
Retirement Plan, payment for an order must be made in Federal funds
or other immediately available funds by the time specified by your
Financial Intermediary, but in no event later than 4:00 p.m. (Eastern
time) on the first business day following the receipt of the order. If
payment is not received by this time, the order will be canceled and
you and your Financial Intermediary will be responsible for any loss to
the Fund.
If you are not purchasing shares through an Employer-Sponsored
Retirement Plan, payment for shares must normally be made in Federal
funds or other immediately available funds by the time specified by your
Financial Intermediary but in no event later than 4:00 p.m. (Eastern
time) on the first business day following the receipt of the order.
Payment may also, at the discretion of the Fund, be made in the form
of securities that are permissible investments for the respective fund. If
payment is not received by this time, the order will be canceled and you
and your Financial Intermediary will be responsible for any loss to the
Fund.
How to Sell Shares
 
Your Choices
Important Information for You to Know
Full or Partial
Redemption of
Shares
Have your Financial
Intermediary submit
your sales order
If you purchased shares through an Employer-Sponsored Retirement
Plan, you can make redemption requests through your Financial
Intermediary in accordance with the procedures applicable to your
accounts. These procedures may vary according to the type of account
and the Financial Intermediary involved, and customers should consult
their Financial Intermediary in this regard. Financial Intermediaries are
responsible for transmitting redemption orders and crediting their
customers’ accounts with redemption proceeds on a timely basis.
Information relating to such redemption services and charges to
process a redemption of shares, if any, should be obtained by
customers from their Financial Intermediaries.
If you did not purchase your shares through an Employer-Sponsored
Retirement Plan, you can make redemption requests through your
Financial Intermediary.
The price of Class K Shares is based on the next calculation of the
Fund’s net asset value after your order is placed. For your redemption
request to be priced at the net asset value on the day of your request,
you must submit your request to your Financial Intermediary prior to
that day’s close of business on the NYSE (generally, 4:00 p.m. Eastern
time). Certain Financial Intermediaries, however, may require
submission of orders prior to that time. Any redemption request placed
after that time will be priced at the net asset value at the close of
business on the next business day.
Regardless of the method the Fund uses to make payment of your
redemption proceeds (check or wire), your redemption proceeds
typically will be sent one to two business days after your request is
submitted, but in any event, within seven days.
Certain Financial Intermediaries may charge a fee to process a
redemption of shares.
The Fund may reject an order to sell shares under certain
circumstances.
 
Selling shares held
directly with BlackRock
Methods of Redeeming if You Did Not Purchase Your Shares Through
an Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan
Redeem by Telephone: You may sell shares held at BlackRock by
telephone request. Call (800) 537-4942 for details.
The Fund, its administrators and the Distributor will employ reasonable
procedures to confirm that instructions communicated by telephone are
genuine. The Fund and its service providers will not be liable for any
loss, liability, cost or expense for acting upon telephone instructions
28


 
Your Choices
Important Information for You to Know
Full or Partial
Redemption of
Shares (continued)
Selling shares held
directly with BlackRock
(continued)
that are reasonably believed to be genuine in accordance with such
procedures. The Fund may refuse a telephone redemption request if it
believes it is advisable to do so.
During periods of substantial economic or market change, telephone
redemptions may be difficult to complete. Please find below alternative
redemption methods.
Redeem by Internet: You may redeem in your account, by logging onto
the BlackRock website at www.blackrock.com. Proceeds from Internet
redemptions will be sent via wire to the bank account of record.
Redeem in Writing: Redemption requests may be sent in proper form
to BlackRock, P.O. Box 534429, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15253-4429
or for overnight delivery, Attention: 534429, 500 Ross Street 154-
0520, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15262. Under certain circumstances, a
medallion signature guarantee will be required.
Payment of Redemption Proceeds
Redemption proceeds may be paid by check or, if the Fund has verified
banking information on file, by wire transfer.
Payment by Check: BlackRock will normally mail redemption proceeds
within three business days following receipt of a properly completed
request, but in any event within seven days. Shares can be redeemed
by telephone and the proceeds sent by check to the shareholder at the
address on record. Shareholders will pay $15 for redemption proceeds
sent by check via overnight mail. You are responsible for any additional
charges imposed by your bank for this service.
The Fund reserves the right to reinvest any dividend or distribution
amounts (e.g., income dividends or capital gains) which you have
elected to receive by check should your check be returned as
undeliverable or remain uncashed for more than 6 months. No interest
will accrue on amounts represented by uncashed checks. Your check
will be reinvested in your account at the net asset value next
calculated, on the day of the investment. When reinvested, those
amounts are subject to the risk of loss like any fund investment. If you
elect to receive distributions in cash and a check remains undeliverable
or uncashed for more than 6 months, your cash election may also be
changed automatically to reinvest and your future dividend and capital
gains distributions will be reinvested in the Fund at the net asset value
as of the date of payment of the distribution.
Payment by Wire Transfer: Payment for redeemed shares for which a
redemption order is received before 4:00 p.m. (Eastern time) on a
business day is normally made in Federal funds wired to the redeeming
shareholder on the next business day, provided that the Fund’s
custodian is also open for business. Payment for redemption orders
received after 4:00 p.m. (Eastern time) or on a day when the Fund’s
custodian is closed is normally wired in Federal funds on the next
business day following redemption on which the Fund’s custodian is
open for business. The Fund reserves the right to wire redemption
proceeds within seven days after receiving a redemption order if, in the
judgment of the Fund, an earlier payment could adversely affect the
Fund. Shares can be redeemed by Federal wire transfer to a single
previously designated bank account. No charge for wiring redemption
payments with respect to Class K Shares is imposed by the Fund. You
are responsible for any additional charges imposed by your bank for
wire transfers.
The Fund is not responsible for the efficiency of the Federal wire
system or the shareholder’s firm or bank. To change the name of the
single, designated bank account to receive wire redemption proceeds, it
is necessary to send a written request to the Fund at the address on
the back cover of this prospectus.
***
29


 
Your Choices
Important Information for You to Know
Full or Partial
Redemption of
Shares (continued)
Selling shares held
directly with BlackRock
(continued)
If you make a redemption request before the Fund has collected
payment for the purchase of shares, the Fund may delay mailing your
proceeds. This delay will usually not exceed ten days.
Redemption
Proceeds
 
Under normal circumstances, the Fund expects to meet redemption
requests by using cash or cash equivalents in its portfolio or by selling
portfolio assets to generate cash. During periods of stressed market
conditions, when a significant portion of the Fund’s portfolio may be
comprised of less-liquid investments, the Fund may be more likely to
limit cash redemptions and may determine to pay redemption proceeds
by (i) borrowing under a line of credit it has entered into with a group of
lenders, (ii) borrowing from another BlackRock Fund pursuant to an
interfund lending program, to the extent permitted by the Fund’s
investment policies and restrictions as set forth in the SAI, and/or
(iii) transferring portfolio securities in-kind to you. The SAI includes
more information about the Fund’s line of credit and interfund lending
program, to the extent applicable.
If the Fund pays redemption proceeds by transferring portfolio
securities in-kind to you, you may pay transaction costs to dispose of
the securities, and you may receive less for them than the price at
which they were valued for purposes of redemption.
How to Exchange Shares or Transfer Your Account
 
Your Choices
Important Information for You to Know
Exchange Privilege
Selling shares of one BlackRock
Fund to purchase shares of
another BlackRock Fund
(“exchanging”)
Class K Shares of the Fund are generally exchangeable for shares of
the same class of another BlackRock Fund, to the extent such shares
are offered by your Financial Intermediary. Investors who currently own
Class K Shares of the Fund may make exchanges into Class K Shares
of other BlackRock Funds except for investors holding shares through
certain client accounts at Financial Intermediaries that are omnibus
with the Fund and do not meet applicable minimums. There is no
required minimum amount with respect to exchanges of Class K
Shares. You may only exchange into Class K Shares of a BlackRock
Fund that is open to new investors or in which you have a current
account, if the BlackRock Fund is closed to new investors.
To exercise the exchange privilege, you may contact your Financial
Intermediary. Alternatively, if your account is held directly with
BlackRock, you may: (i) call (800) 537-4942 and speak with one of our
representatives, (ii) make the exchange via the Internet by accessing
your account online at www.blackrock.com or (iii) send a written request
to the Fund at the address on the back cover of this prospectus. Please
note, if you indicated on your new account application that you did not
want the Telephone Exchange Privilege, you will not be able to place
exchanges via the telephone until you update this option either in
writing or by calling (800) 537-4942. The Fund has the right to reject
any telephone request for any reason.
Although there is currently no limit on the number of exchanges that
you can make, the exchange privilege may be modified or terminated at
any time in the future. The Fund may suspend or terminate your
exchange privilege at any time for any reason, including if the Fund
believes, in its sole discretion, that you are engaging in market timing
activities. See “Short-Term Trading Policy” below. For U.S. federal
income tax purposes a share exchange is a taxable event and a capital
gain or loss may be realized. Please consult your tax adviser or other
Financial Intermediary before making an exchange request.
Transfer Shares to
Another Financial
Intermediary
Transfer to a participating
Financial Intermediary
You may transfer your Class K Shares of the Fund only to another
Financial Intermediary that has entered into an agreement with the
Distributor. Certain shareholder services may not be available for the
transferred shares. All future trading of these assets must be
coordinated by the receiving firm. Please contact your Financial
Intermediary to accomplish the transfer of your Class K Shares.
30


 
Your Choices
Important Information for You to Know
Transfer Shares to
Another Financial
Intermediary
(continued)
Transfer to a non-participating
Financial Intermediary
You must either:
Transfer your Class K Shares to an account with the Fund; or
Sell your Class K Shares.
Please contact your Financial Intermediary to accomplish the transfer of
your Class K Shares.
Additional Purchase and Redemption Information Applicable to the Fund if You Are Not Purchasing Shares Through an Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan
If you are not purchasing shares through an Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan, the Fund may authorize one or more banks, savings and loan associations and other financial institutions (each a “Service Organization”) to accept purchase and redemption orders on its behalf. Such Service Organizations may be authorized to designate other intermediaries to accept purchase and redemption orders on the Fund’s behalf. If you purchase or redeem shares through a Service Organization or its designee, that entity may have its own deadlines for the receipt of the purchase or redemption order that may be earlier than those stated in the prospectus. The Fund will be deemed to have received a purchase or redemption order when a Service Organization or, if applicable, that Service Organization’s authorized designee, accepts the order. These orders will be priced at the Fund’s net asset value per share next calculated after they are so accepted.
Fund’s Rights
The Fund may:
Suspend the right of redemption if trading is halted or restricted on the NYSE or under other emergency conditions described in the Investment Company Act;
Postpone the date of payment upon redemption if trading is halted or restricted on the NYSE or under other emergency conditions described in the Investment Company Act or if a redemption request is made before the Fund has collected payment for the purchase of shares;
Redeem shares for property other than cash as may be permitted under the Investment Company Act; and
Redeem shares involuntarily in certain cases, such as when the value of a shareholder account falls below a specified level.
Note on Low Balance Accounts. Because of the high cost of maintaining smaller shareholder accounts, BlackRock has set a minimum balance of $500 in each Fund position you hold within your account (“Fund Minimum”), and may redeem the shares in your account if the net asset value of those shares in your account falls below $500 for any reason, including market fluctuation.
You will be notified that the value of your account is less than the Fund Minimum before the Fund makes any involuntary redemption. This notification will provide you with a 90 calendar day period to make an additional investment in order to bring the value of your account to at least $500 before the Fund makes an involuntary redemption. This involuntary redemption will not charge any deferred sales charge, and may not apply to accounts of certain employer-sponsored retirement plans (not including IRAs), qualified state tuition plan (529 Plan) accounts, and select fee-based programs at your Financial Intermediary.
Short-Term Trading Policy
The Board has determined that the interests of long-term shareholders and the Fund’s ability to manage its investments may be adversely affected when shares are repeatedly bought, sold or exchanged in response to short-term market fluctuations — also known as “market timing.” The Fund is not designed for market timing organizations or other entities using programmed or frequent purchases and sales or exchanges. The exchange privilege is not intended as a vehicle for short-term trading. Excessive purchase and sale or exchange activity may interfere with portfolio management, increase expenses and taxes and may have an adverse effect on the performance of the Fund and its returns to shareholders. For example, large flows of cash into and out of the Fund may require the management team to allocate a significant amount of assets to cash or other short-term investments or sell securities, rather than maintaining such assets in securities selected to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. Frequent trading may cause the Fund to sell securities at less favorable prices, and transaction costs, such as brokerage commissions, can reduce the Fund’s performance.
31


A fund’s investment in non-U.S. securities is subject to the risk that an investor may seek to take advantage of a delay between the change in value of the fund’s portfolio securities and the determination of the fund’s net asset value as a result of different closing times of U.S. and non-U.S. markets by buying or selling fund shares at a price that does not reflect their true value. A similar risk exists for funds that invest in securities of small capitalization companies, securities of issuers located in emerging markets or high yield securities (junk bonds) that are thinly traded and therefore may have actual values that differ from their market prices. This short-term arbitrage activity can reduce the return received by long-term shareholders. The Fund will seek to eliminate these opportunities by using fair value pricing, as described in “Management of the Fund — Valuation of Fund Investments” below.
The Fund discourages market timing and seeks to prevent frequent purchases and sales or exchanges of Fund shares that it determines may be detrimental to the Fund or long-term shareholders. The Board has approved the policies discussed below to seek to deter market timing activity. The Board has not adopted any specific numerical restrictions on purchases, sales and exchanges of Fund shares because certain legitimate strategies will not result in harm to the Fund or its shareholders.
If as a result of its own investigation, information provided by a Financial Intermediary or other third party, or otherwise, the Fund believes, in its sole discretion, that your short-term trading is excessive or that you are engaging in market timing activity, it reserves the right to reject any specific purchase or exchange order. If the Fund rejects your purchase or exchange order, you will not be able to execute that transaction, and the Fund will not be responsible for any losses you therefore may suffer. For transactions placed directly with the Fund, the Fund may consider the trading history of accounts under common ownership or control for the purpose of enforcing these policies. Transactions placed through the same Financial Intermediary on an omnibus basis may be deemed part of a group for the purpose of this policy and may be rejected in whole or in part by the Fund. Certain accounts, such as omnibus accounts and accounts at Financial Intermediaries, however, include multiple investors and such accounts typically provide the Fund with net purchase or redemption and exchange requests on any given day where purchases, redemptions and exchanges of shares are netted against one another and the identity of individual purchasers, redeemers and exchangers whose orders are aggregated may not be known by the Fund. While the Fund monitors for market timing activity, the Fund may be unable to identify such activities because the netting effect in omnibus accounts often makes it more difficult to locate and eliminate market timers from the Fund. The Distributor has entered into agreements with respect to Financial Intermediaries that maintain omnibus accounts with the Transfer Agent pursuant to which such Financial Intermediaries undertake to cooperate with the Distributor in monitoring purchase, exchange and redemption orders by their customers in order to detect and prevent short-term or excessive trading in the Fund’s shares through such accounts. Identification of market timers may also be limited by operational systems and technical limitations. In the event that a Financial Intermediary is determined by the Fund to be engaged in market timing or other improper trading activity, the Fund’s Distributor may terminate such Financial Intermediary’s agreement with the Distributor, suspend such Financial Intermediary’s trading privileges or take other appropriate actions.
There is no assurance that the methods described above will prevent market timing or other trading that may be deemed abusive.
The Fund may from time to time use other methods that it believes are appropriate to deter market timing or other trading activity that may be detrimental to the Fund or long-term shareholders.
32


Management of the Fund
BlackRock
BlackRock, the Fund’s investment adviser, manages the Fund’s investments and its business operations subject to the oversight of the Board of the Trust. While BlackRock is ultimately responsible for the management of the Fund, it is able to draw upon the trading, research and expertise of its asset management affiliates for portfolio decisions and management with respect to certain portfolio securities. BlackRock is an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of BlackRock, Inc.
BlackRock, a registered investment adviser, was organized in 1994 to perform advisory services for investment companies. BlackRock International Limited (“BIL”) and BlackRock (Singapore) Limited (“BSL”), sub-advisers to the Fund (the “Sub-Advisers”), are registered investment advisers organized in 1995 and 2000, respectively. BlackRock and its affiliates had approximately $10.472 trillion in investment company and other portfolio assets under management as of March 31, 2024.
The Fund has entered into a management agreement (the “Management Agreement”) with BlackRock. Under the Management Agreement, BlackRock receives for its services to the Fund a fee as a percentage of the Fund’s average daily net assets.
Total Annual Management Fees (Before Waivers)
The annual management fees payable to BlackRock (as a percentage of average daily net assets) are calculated as follows:
Average Daily Net Assets
Rate of
Management Fee
First $1 billion
0.250
%
$1 billion – $3 billion
0.240
%
$3 billion – $5 billion
0.230
%
$5 billion – $10 billion
0.220
%
Greater than $10 billion
0.210
%
BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets estimated to be attributable to investments in other equity and fixed-income mutual funds and ETFs managed by BlackRock or its affiliates that have a contractual management fee, through June 30, 2025. In addition, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive its management fees by the amount of advisory fees the Fund pays to BlackRock indirectly through its investment in money market funds managed by BlackRock or its affiliates (the “affiliated money market fund waiver”), through June 30, 2025. The contractual agreements may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested trustees of the Trust or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.
BlackRock has entered into sub-advisory agreements with the Sub-Advisers, affiliates of BlackRock (the “Sub-Advisory Agreements”), with respect to the Fund. Under the Sub-Advisory Agreements, BlackRock pays each Sub-Adviser for services it provides for that portion of the Fund for which the Sub-Adviser acts as sub-adviser a fee equal to a percentage of the management fee paid to BlackRock under the Management Agreement.
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, BlackRock received management fees, net of any applicable waivers and/or reimbursements, at the annual rate of 0.22% of the Fund’s average daily net assets.
BlackRock has agreed to cap net expenses (excluding (i) interest, taxes, dividends tied to short sales, brokerage commissions, and other expenditures which are capitalized in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles; (ii) the Fund’s pro rata share of the fees and expenses indirectly by the Fund as a result of investing in other investment companies; (iii) other expenses attributable to, and incurred as a result of, the Fund’s investments; and (iv) extraordinary expenses (including litigation expenses) not incurred in the ordinary course of the Fund’s business, if any) of Class K Shares of the Fund at the levels shown below and in the Fund’s fees and expenses table in the Fund Overview section of this prospectus. Items (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv) in the preceding sentence are referred to
33


in this prospectus as “Dividend Expense, Interest Expense, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and certain other Fund expenses.” To achieve this expense cap, BlackRock has agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses if these operating expenses exceed a certain limit.
With respect to the Fund, BlackRock has contractually agreed to waive and/or reimburse fees or expenses in order to limit Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses as a percentage of average daily net assets to the amounts noted in the table below.
 
Contractual Cap1 on
Total Annual Fund
Operating Expenses2
(excluding Dividend Expense,
Interest Expense, Acquired Fund
Fees and Expenses and
certain other Fund expenses)
Class K Shares
0.29
%
1
The contractual cap is in effect through June 30, 2025. The contractual agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the non-interested trustees of the Trust or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund.
2
As a percentage of average daily net assets.
The amount of the contractual waivers and/or reimbursements of fees and expenses made pursuant to the contractual cap on net expenses will be reduced by the amount of the affiliated money market fund waiver.
As stated above, the waivers and reimbursements made pursuant to the contractual expense cap and described in the table above do not include Interest Expense. The Fund’s Interest Expense is required to be reported as part of operating expenses in such Fund’s expense table for accounting purposes. The Fund incurs Interest Expense when making certain investments (e.g., tender option bonds) to seek to enhance the yield and total return of the portfolio. The amount of Interest Expense (if any) will fluctuate with the Fund’s use of those investments.
A discussion of the basis for the Board’s approval of the Management Agreement with BlackRock and the Sub-Advisory Agreement between BlackRock and the BIL is included in the Fund’s semi-annual shareholder report for the fiscal period ended June 30, 2023. A discussion of the basis for the Board’s approval of the Sub-Advisory Agreement between BlackRock and BSL with respect to the Fund is included in the Fund’s annual shareholder report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023.
From time to time, a manager, analyst, or other employee of BlackRock or its affiliates may express views regarding a particular asset class, company, security, industry, or market sector. The views expressed by any such person are the views of only that individual as of the time expressed and do not necessarily represent the views of BlackRock or any other person within the BlackRock organization. Any such views are subject to change at any time based upon market or other conditions and BlackRock disclaims any responsibility to update such views. These views may not be relied on as investment advice and, because investment decisions for the Fund are based on numerous factors, may not be relied on as an indication of trading intent on behalf of the Fund.
As discussed above, the Fund intends to gain exposure to commodities markets by investing in the Subsidiary. BlackRock provides investment management and other services to the Subsidiary. BlackRock does not receive separate compensation from the Subsidiary for providing it with investment management or administrative services. However, the Fund pays BlackRock based on the Fund’s assets, including the assets in the Subsidiary.
Portfolio Manager Information
Information regarding the portfolio managers of the Fund is set forth below. Further information regarding the portfolio managers, including other accounts managed, compensation, ownership of Fund shares, and possible conflicts of interest, is available in the Fund’s SAI.
The Fund is managed by a team of financial professionals. Chris Allen and David Rogal are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund.
Portfolio Manager
Primary Role
Since
Title and Recent Biography
David Rogal
Jointly and primarily responsible for
the day-to-day management of the
Fund’s portfolio, including setting the
Fund’s overall investment strategy
and overseeing the management of
the Fund.
2018*
Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since
2019.
34


Portfolio Manager
Primary Role
Since
Title and Recent Biography
Johan Sjogren
Jointly and primarily responsible for
the day-to-day management of the
Fund’s portfolio, including setting the
Fund’s overall investment strategy
and overseeing the management of
the Fund.
2024
Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since
2020; Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2016.
Harrison Segall
Jointly and primarily responsible for
the day-to-day management of the
Fund’s portfolio, including setting the
Fund’s overall investment strategy
and overseeing the management of
the Fund.
2024
Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2018.
*
Includes management of the BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio, a series of BlackRock Funds II (the “Predecessor Fund”).
Conflicts of Interest
The investment activities of BlackRock and its affiliates (including BlackRock, Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Affiliates”)), and their respective directors, officers or employees, in the management of, or their interest in, their own accounts and other accounts they manage, may present conflicts of interest that could disadvantage the Fund and its shareholders.
BlackRock and its Affiliates provide investment management services to other funds and discretionary managed accounts that may follow investment programs similar to that of the Fund. BlackRock and its Affiliates are involved worldwide with a broad spectrum of financial services and asset management activities and may engage in the ordinary course of business in activities in which their interests or the interests of their clients may conflict with those of the Fund. BlackRock or one or more Affiliates act or may act as an investor, research provider, investment manager, commodity pool operator, commodity trading advisor, financier, underwriter, adviser, trader, lender, index provider, agent and/or principal, and have other direct and indirect interests in securities, currencies, commodities, derivatives and other instruments in which the Fund may directly or indirectly invest. The Fund may invest in securities of, or engage in other transactions with, companies with which an Affiliate has significant debt or equity investments or other interests. The Fund may also invest in issuances (such as structured notes) by entities for which an Affiliate provides and is compensated for cash management services relating to the proceeds from the sale of such issuances. The Fund also may invest in securities of, or engage in other transactions with, companies for which an Affiliate provides or may in the future provide research coverage. An Affiliate may have business relationships with, and purchase, or distribute or sell services or products from or to, distributors, consultants or others who recommend the Fund or who engage in transactions with or for the Fund, and may receive compensation for such services. BlackRock or one or more Affiliates may engage in proprietary trading and advise accounts and funds that have investment objectives similar to those of the Fund and/or that engage in and compete for transactions in the same types of securities, currencies and other instruments as the Fund. This may include transactions in securities issued by other open-end and closed-end investment companies (which may include investment companies that are affiliated with the Fund and BlackRock, to the extent permitted under the Investment Company Act). The trading activities of BlackRock and these Affiliates are carried out without reference to positions held directly or indirectly by the Fund and may result in BlackRock or an Affiliate having positions in certain securities that are senior or junior to, or have interests different from or adverse to, the securities that are owned by the Fund.
Neither BlackRock nor any Affiliate is under any obligation to share any investment opportunity, idea or strategy with the Fund. As a result, an Affiliate may compete with the Fund for appropriate investment opportunities. The results of the Fund’s investment activities, therefore, may differ from those of an Affiliate and of other accounts managed by BlackRock or an Affiliate, and it is possible that the Fund could sustain losses during periods in which one or more Affiliates and other accounts achieve profits on their trading for proprietary or other accounts. The opposite result is also possible.
In addition, the Fund may, from time to time, enter into transactions in which BlackRock or an Affiliate or their directors, officers or employees or other clients have an adverse interest. Furthermore, transactions undertaken by clients advised or managed by BlackRock or its Affiliates may adversely impact the Fund. Transactions by one or more clients or BlackRock or its Affiliates or their directors, officers or employees, may have the effect of diluting or otherwise disadvantaging the values, prices or investment strategies of the Fund. The Fund’s activities may be limited because of regulatory restrictions applicable to BlackRock or one or more Affiliates and/or their internal policies designed to comply with such restrictions.
35


Under a securities lending program approved by the Board, the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, has retained BlackRock Investment Management, LLC, an Affiliate of BlackRock, to serve as the securities lending agent for the Fund to the extent that the Fund participates in the securities lending program. For these services, the securities lending agent will receive a fee from the Fund based on the returns earned on the Fund’s lending activities, including investment of the cash received as collateral for the loaned securities. In addition, one or more Affiliates may be among the entities to which the Fund may lend its portfolio securities under the securities lending program.
The activities of BlackRock and its Affiliates and their respective directors, officers or employees, may give rise to other conflicts of interest that could disadvantage the Fund and its shareholders. BlackRock has adopted policies and procedures designed to address these potential conflicts of interest. See the SAI for further information.
Valuation of Fund Investments
When you buy shares, you pay the net asset value. This is the offering price. Shares are also redeemed at their net asset value, minus any applicable redemption fee. The net asset value used in determining your share price is the next one calculated after your purchase or redemption order is received. The net asset value of each class of shares normally is determined once daily Monday through Friday, generally as of the close of regular trading hours of the NYSE (normally 4:00 p.m., Eastern time), on each day that the NYSE is open for trading, based on prices at the time of closing, provided that any Fund assets or liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar are translated into U.S. dollars at the prevailing market rates on the date of valuation as quoted by one or more data service providers. The net asset value of shares is calculated by dividing the value of the net assets of each class of shares (i.e., the value of its total assets less total liabilities) by the total number of outstanding shares of the class, generally rounded to the nearest cent.
The value of the securities and other assets and liabilities held by the Fund are determined pursuant to BlackRock’s valuation policies and procedures. BlackRock has been designated by the Board as the valuation designee for the Fund pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the Investment Company Act.
Equity securities and other equity instruments for which market quotations are readily available are valued at market value, which is generally determined using the last reported official closing price or, if a reported closing price is not available, the last traded price on the exchange or market on which the security or instrument is primarily traded at the time of valuation. Shares of underlying open-end funds (including money market funds) are valued at net asset value. Shares of underlying exchange-traded closed-end funds or other ETFs are valued at their most recent closing price.
The Fund values fixed-income portfolio securities using last available bid prices or current market quotations provided by dealers or prices (including evaluated prices) supplied by the Fund’s approved independent third-party pricing services, each in accordance with BlackRock’s valuation policies and procedures. Pricing services may use matrix pricing or valuation models that utilize certain inputs and assumptions to derive values. Pricing services generally value fixed-income securities assuming orderly transactions of an institutional round lot size, but the Fund may hold or transact in such securities in smaller odd lot sizes. Odd lots may trade at lower prices than institutional round lots. An amortized cost method of valuation may be used with respect to debt obligations with 60 days or less remaining to maturity unless BlackRock determines in good faith that such method does not represent fair value.
Generally, trading in non-U.S. securities, U.S. government securities, money market instruments and certain fixed-income securities is substantially completed each day at various times prior to the close of business on the NYSE. The values of such securities used in computing the net asset value of the Fund’s shares are determined as of such times.
When market quotations are not readily available or are believed by BlackRock to be unreliable, BlackRock will fair value the Fund’s investments in accordance with its policies and procedures. BlackRock may conclude that a market quotation is not readily available or is unreliable if a security or other asset or liability does not have a price source due to its lack of trading or other reasons, if a market quotation differs significantly from recent price quotations or otherwise no longer appears to reflect fair value, where the security or other asset or liability is thinly traded, when there is a significant event subsequent to the most recent market quotation, or if the trading market on which a security is listed is suspended or closed and no appropriate alternative trading market is available. A “significant event” is deemed to occur if BlackRock determines, in its reasonable business judgment prior to or at the time of pricing the Fund’s assets or liabilities, that the event is likely to cause a material change to the closing market price of one or more assets held by, or liabilities of, the Fund.
For certain foreign assets, a third-party vendor supplies evaluated, systematic fair value pricing based upon the movement of a proprietary multi-factor model after the relevant foreign markets have closed. This systematic fair value
36


pricing methodology is designed to correlate the prices of foreign assets following the close of the local markets to the price that might have prevailed as of the Fund’s pricing time.
Fair value represents a good faith approximation of the value of an asset or liability. The fair value of an asset or liability held by the Fund is the amount the Fund might reasonably expect to receive from the current sale of that asset or the cost to extinguish that liability in an arm’s-length transaction. Valuing the Fund’s investments using fair value pricing will result in prices that may differ from current market valuations and that may not be the prices at which those investments could have been sold during the period in which the particular fair values were used.
The Fund may accept orders from certain authorized Financial Intermediaries or their designees. The Fund will be deemed to receive an order when accepted by the Financial Intermediary or designee, and the order will receive the net asset value next computed by the Fund after such acceptance. If the payment for a purchase order is not made by a designated later time, the order will be canceled and the Financial Intermediary could be held liable for any losses.
Dividends, Distributions and Taxes
BUYING A DIVIDEND
Unless your investment is in a tax-deferred account, you may want to avoid buying shares shortly before the Fund pays a dividend. The reason? If you buy shares when the Fund has declared but not yet distributed ordinary income or capital gains, you will pay the full price for the shares and then receive a portion of the price back in the form of a taxable dividend. Before investing you may want to consult your tax adviser.
The Fund will distribute net investment income, if any, monthly and net realized capital gain, if any, at least annually. The Fund may also pay a special distribution at the end of the calendar year to comply with federal tax requirements. Dividends may be reinvested automatically in shares of the Fund at net asset value or may be taken in cash. If you would like to receive dividends in cash, contact your Financial Intermediary or the Fund.
Your tax consequences from an investment in the Fund will depend on whether you have invested through a qualified tax-exempt plan described in section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code (a “Qualified Plan”).
Investments Through a Qualified Plan
Special tax rules apply to investments made through Qualified Plans. If you are invested through a Qualified Plan (and Fund shares are not “debt-financed property” to the plan), then you will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on the dividends paid by the Fund or the gain realized from a redemption or exchange of Fund shares until you withdraw or receive distributions from the plan. Distributions you receive from the Qualified Plan may be subject to U.S. federal withholding tax depending on the kind of payment you receive.
Investments Not Made Through Qualified Plans
If you are not invested through a Qualified Plan, you will generally pay tax on dividends from the Fund whether you receive them in cash or additional shares. If you redeem Fund shares or exchange them for shares of another fund, you generally will be treated as having sold your shares and any gain on the transaction may be subject to tax. Fund distributions derived from qualified dividend income, which consists of dividends received from U.S. corporations and qualifying foreign corporations, and from long-term capital gains are eligible for taxation at a maximum rate of 15% or 20% for individuals, depending on whether their income exceeds certain threshold amounts, which are adjusted annually for inflation.
A 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on the net investment income (which includes, but is not limited to, interest, dividends and net gain from investments) of U.S. individuals with income exceeding $200,000, or $250,000 if married filing jointly, and of trusts and estates.
Your dividends and redemption proceeds will be subject to backup withholding tax if you have not provided a taxpayer identification number or social security number or the number you have provided is incorrect.
Special Considerations for Non-U.S. Persons
If you are not invested through a Qualified Plan and you are neither a tax resident nor a citizen of the United States or if you are a foreign entity (other than a pass-through entity to the extent owned by U.S. persons), the Fund’s ordinary income dividends will generally be subject to a 30% U.S. withholding tax, unless a lower treaty rate applies. However, certain distributions paid to a foreign shareholder and reported by the Fund as capital gain dividends, interest-related dividends or short-term capital gain dividends may be eligible for an exemption from U.S. withholding tax.
37


Separately, a 30% withholding tax is currently imposed on U.S.-source dividends, interest and other income items paid to (i) certain foreign financial institutions and investment funds, and (ii) certain other foreign entities. To avoid withholding, foreign financial institutions and investment funds will generally either need to (a) collect and report to the IRS detailed information identifying their U.S. accounts and U.S. account holders, comply with due diligence procedures for identifying U.S. accounts and withhold tax on certain payments made to noncomplying foreign entities and account holders or (b) if an intergovernmental agreement is entered into and implementing legislation is adopted, comply with the agreement and legislation. Other foreign entities will generally either need to provide detailed information identifying each substantial U.S. owner or certify there are no such owners.
This section summarizes some of the consequences under current federal tax law of an investment in the Fund. It is not a substitute for individualized tax advice. Consult your tax adviser about the potential tax consequences of an investment in the Fund under all applicable tax laws.
38


Financial Highlights
The Financial Highlights information presented for the Fund prior to the date of the Reorganization is the financial history of the Predecessor Fund. The Financial Highlights table is intended to help you understand the Fund’s financial performance for the periods shown. Certain information reflects the financial results for a single Fund share. The total returns in the table represent the rate that an investor would have earned or lost on an investment in the Fund (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and/or distributions). The information has been audited by Deloitte & Touche LLP, whose report, along with the Fund’s financial statements, is included in the Fund’s Annual Report, which is available upon request.
 
BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio
 
Class K
(For a share outstanding throughout each period)
Year Ended
12/31/23
Year Ended
12/31/22
Year Ended
12/31/21
Year Ended
12/31/20
Year Ended
12/31/19
Net asset value, beginning of year
$9.61
$11.64
$11.73
$10.65
$10.07
Net investment income(a)
0.33
0.73
0.59
0.17
0.22
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)
0.02
(2.01
)
0.08
1.09
0.61
Net increase (decrease) from investment operations
0.35
(1.28
)
0.67
1.26
0.83
Distributions(b)
From net investment income
(0.33
)
(0.65
)
(0.58
)
(0.18
)
(0.25
)
From net realized gain
(0.10
)
(0.18
)
Return of capital
(0.01
)
Total distributions
(0.34
)
(0.75
)
(0.76
)
(0.18
)
(0.25
)
Net asset value, end of year
$9.62
$9.61
$11.64
$11.73
$10.65
Total Return(c)
Based on net asset value
3.67
%
(11.38
)%
5.80
%
11.85
%
8.28
%
Ratios to Average Net Assets(d)
Total expenses
0.85
%
0.61
%(e)
0.38
%(f)
0.43
%
0.65
%
Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed
0.80
%
0.56
%(e)
0.33
%(f)
0.38
%
0.60
%
Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and
excluding interest expense
0.30
%
0.35
%(e)
0.33
%(f)
0.29
%
0.29
%
Net investment income
3.43
%
7.06
%
5.03
%
1.48
%
2.14
%
Supplemental Data
Net assets, end of year (000)
$579,140
$677,942
$717,937
$460,370
$340,162
Portfolio turnover rate(g)
197
%
293
%
246
%
330
%
252
%
(a)
Based on average shares outstanding.
(b)
Distributions for annual periods determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations.
(c)
Where applicable, assumes the reinvestment of distributions.
(d)
Excludes fees and expenses incurred indirectly as a result of investments in underlying funds.
(e)
Includes non-recurring expenses of proxy costs. Without these costs, total expenses, total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed, and total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and excluding interest expense would have been 0.55%, 0.50% and 0.29%, respectively.
(f)
Includes non-recurring expenses of proxy costs. Without these costs, total expenses, total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed, and total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and excluding interest expense would have been 0.34%, 0.29% and 0.29%, respectively.
(g)
Includes mortgage dollar roll transactions (MDRs). Additional information regarding portfolio turnover rate is as follows:
 
Year Ended
12/31/23
Year Ended
12/31/22
Year Ended
12/31/21
Year Ended
12/31/20
Year Ended
12/31/19
Portfolio turnover rate (excluding MDRs)
145
%
235
%
246
%
319
%
220
%
39


General Information
Shareholder Documents
Electronic Access to Annual Reports, Semi-Annual Reports and Prospectuses
Electronic copies of most financial reports and prospectuses are available on BlackRock’s website. Shareholders can sign up for e-mail notifications of annual and semi-annual reports and prospectuses by enrolling in the Fund’s electronic delivery program. To enroll:
Shareholders Who Hold Accounts with Investment Advisers, Banks or Brokerages: Please contact your Financial Intermediary. Please note that not all investment advisers, banks or brokerages may offer this service.
Shareholders Who Hold Accounts Directly With BlackRock:
Access the BlackRock website at http://www.blackrock.com/edelivery; and
Log into your account.
Delivery of Shareholder Documents
The Fund delivers only one copy of shareholder documents, including prospectuses, shareholder reports and proxy statements, to shareholders with multiple accounts at the same address. This practice is known as “householding” and is intended to eliminate duplicate mailings and reduce expenses. Mailings of your shareholder documents may be householded indefinitely unless you instruct us otherwise. If you do not want the mailing of these documents to be combined with those for other members of your household, please contact the Fund at (800) 537-4942.
Certain Fund Policies
Anti-Money Laundering Requirements
The Fund is subject to the USA PATRIOT Act (the “Patriot Act”). The Patriot Act is intended to prevent the use of the U.S. financial system in furtherance of money laundering, terrorism or other illicit activities. Pursuant to requirements under the Patriot Act, the Fund is required to obtain sufficient information from shareholders to enable it to form a reasonable belief that it knows the true identity of its shareholders. This information will be used to verify the identity of investors or, in some cases, the status of Financial Intermediaries. Such information may be verified using third-party sources. This information will be used only for compliance with the Patriot Act or other applicable laws, regulations and rules in connection with money laundering, terrorism or economic sanctions.
The Fund reserves the right to reject purchase orders from persons who have not submitted information sufficient to allow the Fund to verify their identity. The Fund also reserves the right to redeem any amounts in the Fund from persons whose identity it is unable to verify on a timely basis. It is the Fund’s policy to cooperate fully with appropriate regulators in any investigations conducted with respect to potential money laundering, terrorism or other illicit activities.
BlackRock Privacy Principles
BlackRock is committed to maintaining the privacy of its current and former fund investors and individual clients (collectively, “Clients”) and to safeguarding their non-public personal information. The following information is provided to help you understand what personal information BlackRock collects, how we protect that information and why in certain cases we share such information with select parties.
If you are located in a jurisdiction where specific laws, rules or regulations require BlackRock to provide you with additional or different privacy-related rights beyond what is set forth below, then BlackRock will comply with those specific laws, rules or regulations.
BlackRock obtains or verifies personal non-public information from and about you from different sources, including the following: (i) information we receive from you or, if applicable, your Financial Intermediary, on applications, forms or other documents; (ii) information about your transactions with us, our affiliates, or others; (iii) information we receive from a consumer reporting agency; and (iv) from visits to our website.
40


BlackRock does not sell or disclose to non-affiliated third parties any non-public personal information about its Clients, except as permitted by law, or as is necessary to respond to regulatory requests or to service Client accounts. These non-affiliated third parties are required to protect the confidentiality and security of this information and to use it only for its intended purpose.
We may share information with our affiliates to service your account or to provide you with information about other BlackRock products or services that may be of interest to you. In addition, BlackRock restricts access to non-public personal information about its Clients to those BlackRock employees with a legitimate business need for the information. BlackRock maintains physical, electronic and procedural safeguards that are designed to protect the non-public personal information of its Clients, including procedures relating to the proper storage and disposal of such information.
Statement of Additional Information
If you would like further information about the Fund, including how it invests, please see the SAI.
For a discussion of the Fund’s policies and procedures regarding the selective disclosure of its portfolio holdings, please see the SAI. The Fund makes its top ten holdings available on a monthly basis at www.blackrock.com generally within 5 business days after the end of the month to which the information applies.
41


Glossary
This glossary contains an explanation of some of the common terms used in this prospectus. For additional information about the Fund, please see the SAI.
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses — the Fund’s pro rata share of the fees and expenses incurred indirectly by the Fund as a result of investing in other investment companies.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses — expenses that cover the costs of operating the Fund.
Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation Protected Securities Index — an unmanaged index that measures the performance of the inflation-protected public obligations of the U.S. Treasury.
Distribution Fees — fees used to support the Fund’s marketing and distribution efforts, such as compensating Financial Intermediaries, advertising and promotion.
Management Fee — a fee paid to BlackRock for managing the Fund.
Other Expenses — include accounting, transfer agency, custody, professional fees and registration fees.
Service Fees — fees used to compensate Financial Intermediaries for certain shareholder servicing activities.
Shareholder Fees — fees paid directly by a shareholder, including sales charges that you may pay when you buy or sell shares of the Fund.
42


For More Information
Fund and Service Providers
FUND
BlackRock Funds V
BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio
100 Bellevue Parkway
Wilmington, Delaware 19809
Written Correspondence:
P.O. Box 534429
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15253-4429
Overnight Mail:
Attention: 534429
500 Ross Street 154-0520
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15262
(800) 537-4942
MANAGER
BlackRock Advisors, LLC
100 Bellevue Parkway
Wilmington, Delaware 19809
SUB-ADVISER
BlackRock International Limited
Exchange Place One
1 Semple Street
Edinburgh, EH3 8BL, United Kingdom
BlackRock (Singapore) Limited
20 Anson Road #18-01
079912 Singapore
TRANSFER AGENT
BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc.
301 Bellevue Parkway
Wilmington, Delaware 19809
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
Deloitte & Touche LLP
200 Berkeley Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02116
ACCOUNTING SERVICES PROVIDER
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.
383 Madison Avenue, Floor 11
New York, New York 10179
DISTRIBUTOR
BlackRock Investments, LLC
50 Hudson Yards
New York, New York 10001
CUSTODIAN
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.
383 Madison Avenue, Floor 11
New York, New York 10179
COUNSEL
Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP
787 Seventh Avenue
New York, New York 10019-6099


Additional Information
For more information:
This prospectus contains important information you should know before investing, including information about risks. Please read it before you invest and keep it for future reference. More information about the Fund is available at no charge upon request. This information includes:
Annual/Semi-Annual Reports
These reports contain additional information about each of the Fund’s investments. The annual report describes the Fund’s performance, lists portfolio holdings, and discusses recent market conditions, economic trends and Fund investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance for the last fiscal year.
Statement of Additional Information
A Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”), dated April 29, 2024, has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). The SAI, which includes additional information about the Fund, may be obtained free of charge, along with the Fund’s annual and semi-annual reports, by calling (800) 537-4942. The SAI, as amended and/or supplemented from time to time, is incorporated by reference into this prospectus.
BlackRock Investor Services
Representatives are available to discuss account balance information, mutual fund prospectuses, literature, programs and services available. Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (Eastern time), on any business day. Call: (800) 537-4942.
Purchases and Redemptions
Call your Financial Intermediary or BlackRock Investor Services at (800) 537-4942.
World Wide Web
General Fund information and specific Fund performance, including the SAI and annual/semi-annual reports, can be accessed free of charge at www.blackrock.com/prospectus. Mutual fund prospectuses and literature can also be requested via this website.
Written Correspondence
BlackRock Funds V
BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio
P.O. Box 534429
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15253-4429
Overnight Mail
BlackRock Funds V
BlackRock Inflation Protected Bond Portfolio
Attention: 534429
500 Ross Street 154-0520
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15262
Internal Wholesalers/Broker Dealer Support
Available on any business day to support investment professionals. Call: (800) 882-0052.
Portfolio Characteristics and Holdings
A description of the Fund’s policies and procedures related to disclosure of portfolio characteristics and holdings is available in the SAI.
For information about portfolio holdings and characteristics, BlackRock fund shareholders and prospective investors may call (800) 882-0052.
Securities and Exchange Commission
You may also view and copy public information about the Fund, including the SAI, by visiting the EDGAR database on the SEC’s website (http://www.sec.gov). Copies of this information can be obtained, for a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following e-mail address: [email protected].
You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus. No one is authorized to provide you with information that is different from information contained in this prospectus.
The SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT FILE # 811-23339
© BlackRock Advisors, LLC
PROV-IPB-K-0424