NYSE Arca Ticker: VEGA

Sub-advised by:

CreativeOne Wealth, LLC

ADVISORSHARES TRUST

4800 Montgomery Lane ● Suite 150

Bethesda, Maryland 20814

www.advisorshares.com

877.843.3831

Prospectus dated November 1, 2022

This Prospectus provides important information about the AdvisorShares STAR Global Buy-Write ETF, a series of AdvisorShares Trust. Before you invest, please read this Prospectus and the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information carefully and keep them for future reference.

The shares of the Fund have not been approved or disapproved by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission nor has the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FUND SUMMARY		1
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE		1
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES		1
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER		2
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES		2
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND		2
FUND PERFORMANCE		6
MANAGEMENT		7
Purchase AND SALE OF FUND SHARES		7
TAX INFORMATION		7
PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES		7
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE TRUST AND THE FUND		8
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUND’S INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE		8
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUND’S PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES		8
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND		9
OVERVIEW OF THE PRINCIPAL RISKS OF ETPs		12
OTHER INVESTMENT PRACTICES AND STRATEGIES		14
PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS		14
MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND		14
SHAREHOLDER INFORMATION		16
DISTRIBUTION PLAN		17
ADDITIONAL TAX INFORMATION		18
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS		21
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION		23

INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE

FUND FEES AND EXPENSES

EXAMPLE

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES

PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND

FUND PERFORMANCE

Calendar Year Total Returns

MANAGEMENT

PORTFOLIO MANAGERS

PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES

The Fund issues and redeems shares on a continuous basis at NAV only in a large specified number of shares called a “Creation Unit.” Only institutional investors that are acting as the Fund’s authorized participants (typically broker-dealers) may purchase or redeem Creation Units. A Creation Unit transaction generally is conducted in exchange for a basket of securities closely approximating the holdings of the Fund along with a specified amount of cash. Individual Fund shares may only be purchased and sold in secondary market transactions through brokers. The shares of the Fund are listed on the Exchange and, because shares trade at market price rather than at NAV, shares may trade at a value greater than (premium) or less than (discount) NAV. When buying or selling shares in the secondary market, you may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase shares of the Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for shares of the Fund (ask) (the “bid-ask spread”). Recent information regarding the Fund’s NAV, market price, premiums and discounts, and bid-ask spreads will be available on the Fund’s website at www.advisorshares.com.

TAX INFORMATION

The Fund intends to make distributions that may be taxed as ordinary income, qualified dividend income or capital gains (or a combination thereof), unless you are investing through a tax-advantaged arrangement such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account (“IRA”), which may be taxed upon withdrawal.

PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES

Investors purchasing shares in the secondary market through a brokerage account or with the assistance of a broker may be subject to brokerage commissions and charges. If you purchase Fund shares through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Advisor or Sub-Advisor may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing broker-dealers or other intermediaries and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE TRUST AND THE FUND

AdvisorShares Trust (the “Trust”) is a Delaware statutory trust offering a number of professionally managed investment portfolios or funds.

Section 12(d)(1) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”) restricts investments by investment companies in the securities of other investment companies, including shares of the Fund or another ETF. However, under certain circumstances and subject to certain terms and conditions, a registered investment company may invest in other investment companies (“underlying investment companies”) beyond the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1). In particular, if an underlying investment company relying on Rule 12d1-4, the Fund may enter into an agreement with the underlying investment company pursuant to which the Fund may invest in the underlying investment company beyond the Section 12(d)(1) limits subject to the terms and conditions of Rule 12d1-4. The Fund also may enter into such agreements with certain other ETFs to permit the Fund to invest in the ETFs to an unlimited extent.

Creation Units of the Fund are issued and redeemed principally in-kind for portfolio securities along with a specified cash payment.

EXCEPT WHEN AGGREGATED IN CREATION UNITS, SHARES OF THE FUND ARE NOT REDEEMABLE SECURITIES.

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUND’S INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE

The Fund seeks consistent repeatable returns across all market cycles. The Fund’s investment objective is non-fundamental and may be changed by the Board without a shareholder vote.

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUND’S PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES

The Fund is an actively managed ETF and, thus, does not seek to replicate the performance of a specified passive index of securities. Instead, it uses an active investment strategy in seeking to meet its investment objective. The Sub-Advisor, subject to the oversight of the Advisor and the Board, has discretion on a daily basis to manage the Fund’s portfolio in accordance with the Fund’s investment objective and investment policies.

The ETFs in which the Fund invests are themselves investment companies registered under the 1940 Act, the shares of which trade on a national securities exchange. The ETFs will primarily track the performance of securities indices the performance of which corresponds generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of specific indices representing countries or regions. However, the Sub-Advisor also may invest in ETFs that are actively managed to achieve similar exposure. The ETFs may be managed by a third-party investment advisor not affiliated with the Advisor or Sub-Advisor or by the Advisor, Sub-Advisor or an affiliated party of either.

Under normal market conditions, the Fund will purchase shares of or interests in ETPs in the secondary market. When the Fund invests in an ETP (except an ETN) in addition to directly bearing the expenses associated with its own operations, it also will bear a pro rata portion of the ETP’s expenses (including operating costs and management fees). Because ETNs are debt securities and not pools of securities, the Fund pays a specific investor fee for its investments in ETNs. Consequently, an investment in the Fund entails more direct and indirect expenses than a direct investment in an ETP.

VEGA. The Sub-Advisor uses VEGA, a proprietary quantitative and qualitative investment process, to determine the optimal equity securities and derivatives for the strategy. The process focuses on the performance of a comprehensive portfolio of assets based on the combination of risk, return and their correlation to each other. Consistent with VEGA, call options are sold on the Fund’s portfolio holdings at a strike price equivalent to targets based on volatility and quantitative criteria. As calls are covered and/or expire, a new strike price is calculated for each security and additional options on the underlying securities are sold. The average time until expiration for the option portfolio is typically one quarter (91 days) or less, so that premiums may be received on each security approximately four times per year. The Sub-Advisor, however, reserves the right to close out or enter into options on a more or less frequent basis in its discretion if it believes it is in the best interest of the Fund. The Sub-Advisor periodically monitors the performance of the Fund’s portfolio and systematically rebalances and initiates tactical shifts in the underlying investments when the strategy indicates it is both optimal and beneficial to do so.

Premium Income Enhancement. VEGA is designed to generate quarterly returns in the form of premiums received from the sale of covered call and/or cash-secured put options. The amount of the premium is typically determined at the start of the quarter, and realized either at expiration or sooner if the strategy determines that conditions warrant covering the short option position beforehand. The risks of covered call writing include the potential for the market to rise sharply. In such instance, the buyer of the call option would likely acquire the security from the Fund and the return on that security would be limited to the premium received and the difference between the strike price and the purchase price until such time as the underlying security is repurchased as applicable. The risks of cash-secured put writing include the potential for the price of the underlying security to decline significantly causing the put writer, the Fund, to have an unrealized loss due to the high stock purchase price.

Except for premium amounts required for transactional and portfolio management purposes, the Sub-Advisor, in its discretion, may allocate the accumulated premium in “principal protection” and/or “reinvestment strategies.”

Principal Protection. The “principal protection” feature is intended as a means to profit and/or hedge against potential price declines of 20% or greater. The feature may be implemented when volatility declines and/or security prices rise and the Sub-Advisor determines the cost of principal protection to be beneficial. The cost of the protection is expected to be paid from accumulated option premiums but principal may be used. The use of principal protection entails the purchase of put options on a security representing some or all of the Fund’s portfolio holdings. The risk of buying long puts is limited to the loss of the premium paid for the purchase of the put.

Reinvestment Strategies of Option Premium. Option premiums received by the Fund will remain in cash or cash equivalents or may be invested in ETPs that invest primarily in U.S. treasuries or other cash equivalent securities.

The Sub-Advisor also utilizes a “volatility based reinvestment strategy” whereby accumulated option premiums may be reinvested in the Fund’s existing portfolio holdings in certain instances, such as when the level of implied volatility rises and/or securities’ prices decline.

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND

The Fund is subject to a number of risks that may affect the value of its shares. This section provides additional information about the Fund’s principal risks. The degree to which a risk applies to the Fund varies according to its investment allocation. Through its investments in ETPs, the Fund will be subject to the risks associated with the ETPs. Please see “Overview of the Principal Risks of ETPs” for a description of these risks. Each investor should review the complete description of the principal risks before investing in the Fund. An investment in the Fund may not be appropriate for certain investors. As with investing in other securities whose prices increase and decrease in market value, you may lose money by investing in the Fund.

Allocation Risk. The Fund’s particular allocations may have a significant effect on the Fund’s performance. Allocation risk is the risk that the selection of ETPs and the allocation of assets among such ETPs will cause the Fund to underperform other funds with a similar investment objective that seek to achieve their investment objectives by investing directly in the securities or instruments held by ETPs, by investing in a different selection of ETPs, or by pursuing a different allocation of assets among such ETPs. Because the risks and returns of different ETPs can vary widely over any given time period, the Fund’s performance could suffer if a particular ETP does not perform as expected.

Derivatives Risk. The Fund may invest in derivatives to gain market exposure, enhance returns or hedge against market declines. Examples of derivatives are options, futures, options on futures and swaps. The Fund’s use of derivative instruments involves risks different from or possibly greater than, the risks associated with investing directly in securities and other traditional investments. These risks include (i) the risk that the counterparty to a derivative transaction may not fulfill its contractual obligations; (ii) the risk of mispricing or improper valuation; and (iii) the risk that changes in the value of the derivative may not correlate perfectly with the underlying asset, rate or index. These risks could cause the Fund to lose more than the principal amount invested. In addition, investments in derivatives may involve leverage, which means a small percentage of assets invested in derivatives can have a disproportionately larger impact on the Fund.

Options Risk. Selling (writing) and buying options are speculative activities and entail greater than ordinary investment risks. The Fund’s use of put options can lead to losses because of adverse movements in the price or value of the underlying asset, which may be magnified by certain features of the options. When selling a put option, the Fund will receive a premium; however, this premium may not be enough to offset a loss incurred by the Fund if the price of the underlying asset is below the strike price by an amount equal to or greater than the premium. Purchasing of put options involves the payment of premiums, which may adversely affect the Fund’s performance. Purchasing a put option gives the purchaser of the option the right to sell a specified quantity of an underlying asset at a fixed exercise price over a defined period of time. Purchased put options may expire unexercised, resulting in the Fund’s loss of the premium it paid for the option.

The value of an option may be adversely affected if the market for the option becomes less liquid or smaller, and will be affected by changes in the value or yield of the option’s underlying asset, an increase in interest rates, a change in the actual or perceived volatility of the stock market or the underlying asset and the remaining time to expiration. Additionally, the value of an option does not increase or decrease at the same rate as the underlying asset. The Fund’s use of options may reduce the Fund’s ability to profit from increases in the value of the underlying asset. If the price of the underlying asset of an option is above the strike price of a written put option, the value of the option, and consequently of the Fund, may decline significantly more than if the Fund invested directly in the underlying asset instead of using options. While the Fund will segregate liquid assets at least equal in value to the maximum potential loss for the Fund, the Fund could still lose a significant amount or nearly all of its value if the price of an underlying asset changes significantly enough.

When the Fund sells an option, it gains the amount of the premium it receives, but also incurs a liability representing the value of the option it has sold until the option is either exercised and finishes “in the money,” meaning it has value and can be sold, or the option expires unexercised, or the expiration of the option is “rolled,” or extended forward. The value of the options in which the Fund invests is based partly on the volatility used by market participants to price such options (i.e., implied volatility). Accordingly, increases in the implied volatility of such options will cause the value of such options to increase (even if the prices of the options’ underlying stocks do not change), which will result in a corresponding increase in the liabilities of the Fund under such options and thus decrease the Fund’s NAV.

ETF Market Risk. In stressed market conditions, the market for certain ETF shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the ETF’s underlying portfolio holdings. This adverse effect on liquidity for the ETF’s shares in turn can lead to a difference between the market price of the ETF’s shares and the underlying value of those shares. This difference can be reflected as a spread between the bid and ask prices quoted during the day or a premium or discount in the closing price from the Fund’s NAV.

Because the Fund’s shares trade in the secondary market, a broker may charge a commission to execute a transaction in shares and an investor may incur the cost of the spread between the price at which a dealer will buy shares (bid) and the somewhat higher price at which a dealer will sell shares (ask). In addition, not only are there a limited number of institutions that act as authorized participants, direct trading by authorized participants is critical to ensuring that the Fund’s shares trade at or close to NAV. However, market makers are not obligated to make a market in the Fund’s shares nor are authorized participants obligated to execute purchase or redemption orders for Creation Units and, in times of market stress, circumstances could develop that could cause them to refrain from these activities or reduce their role. The absence of an active market could lead to a heightened risk of differences between the market price of the Fund’s shares and the underlying value of those shares.

Exchange-Traded Note Risk. The value of an ETN may be influenced by time to maturity, level of supply and demand for the ETN, volatility and lack of liquidity in the underlying market, changes in the applicable interest rates, and changes in the issuer’s credit rating, and economic, legal, political or geographic events that affect the underlying market. It is expected that the issuer’s credit rating will be investment-grade at the time of investment, however, the credit rating may be revised or withdrawn at any time and there is no assurance that a credit rating will remain in effect for any given time period. If a rating agency lowers the issuer’s credit rating or there is a decline in the perceived creditworthiness of the issuer, the value of the ETN will decline as a lower credit rating reflects a greater risk that the issuer will default on its obligation to ETN investors. The Fund must pay an investor fee when investing in an ETN, which will reduce the amount of return on investment at maturity or upon redemption. There may be restrictions on the Fund’s right to redeem its investment in an ETN, which is meant to be held until maturity. There are no periodic interest payments for ETNs and principal typically is not protected. As is the case with other ETPs, an investor could lose some of or the entire amount invested in ETNs. The Fund’s decision to sell its ETN holdings may be limited by the availability of a secondary market.

Illiquid Investments Risk. In certain circumstances, it may be difficult for the Fund to purchase and sell particular portfolio investments due to infrequent trading in such investments. The prices of such securities may experience significant volatility, make it more difficult for the Fund to transact significant amounts of such securities without an unfavorable impact on prevailing market prices, or make it difficult for the Sub-Advisor to dispose of such securities at a fair price at the time the Sub-Advisor believes it is desirable to do so. In addition, the Fund’s investments in ETNs and certain other ETPs, if any, may be subject to restrictions on the amount and timing of any redemptions. The Fund’s investments in such securities may restrict the Fund’s ability to take advantage of other market opportunities and adversely affect the value of the Fund’s portfolio holdings. Such investments also may be subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to “circuit breaker” rules.

Management Risk. The Sub-Advisor continuously evaluates the Fund’s holdings, purchases and sales with a view to achieving the Fund’s investment objective. However, achievement of the stated investment objective cannot be guaranteed. The Sub-Advisor’s judgment about the markets, the economy, or companies may not anticipate actual market movements, economic conditions or company performance, and these factors may affect the return on your investment. In fact, no matter how good a job the Sub-Advisor does, you could lose money on your investment in the Fund, just as you could with other investments. If the Sub-Advisor is incorrect in its assessment of the income, growth or price realization potential of the Fund’s holdings or incorrect in its assessment of general market or economic conditions, then the value of the Fund’s shares may decline.

Market Risk. Investments in securities, in general, are subject to market risks that may cause their prices to fluctuate over time. The Fund’s and an ETP’s investments may decline in value due to factors affecting securities or commodities markets generally, such as real or perceived adverse economic conditions or changes in interest or currency rates, or particular countries, segments, economic sectors, industries or companies within those markets. Local, regional, or global events such as war, acts of terrorism, the spread of infectious illness, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, or other public health issues, recessions, uncertainties regarding interest rates, rising inflation, or other events could have a significant impact on the market generally and on specific securities. U.S. and international markets have experienced significant periods of volatility in recent years due to a number of these factors. Changes in market conditions and interest rates generally do not have the same impact on all types of securities and instruments. Fluctuations in the value of securities and financial instruments in which the Fund or an ETP invests will cause the NAV of the Fund and the ETP to fluctuate. Historically, the markets have moved in cycles, and the value of the Fund’s and an ETP’s investments may fluctuate drastically from day to day. Because of its link to the markets, an investment in the Fund may be more suitable for long-term investors who can bear the risk of short-term principal fluctuations, which at times may be significant.

Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the resulting responses by the United States and other countries, and the potential for wider conflict could increase volatility and uncertainty in the financial markets and adversely affect regional and global economies. The United States and other countries have imposed broad-ranging economic sanctions on Russia, certain Russian individuals, banking entities and corporations, and Belarus as a response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and may impose sanctions on other countries that provide military or economic support to Russia. The extent and duration of Russia’s military actions and the repercussions of such actions (including any retaliatory actions or countermeasures that may be taken by those subject to sanctions, including cyber attacks) are impossible to predict, but could result in significant market disruptions, including in certain industries or sectors, such as the oil and natural gas markets, and may negatively affect global supply chains, inflation and global growth. These and any related events could significantly impact the Fund’s performance and the value of an investment in the Fund, even if the Fund does not have direct exposure to Russian issuers or issuers in other countries affected by the invasion.

Tax Risk. If positions held by the Fund pursuant to its covered call strategy were treated as “straddles” for federal income tax purposes, or the Fund’s risk of loss with respect to a position was otherwise diminished as set forth in Treasury Regulations, dividends on stocks that are a part of such positions would not constitute qualified dividend income subject to such favorable income tax treatment in the hands of non-corporate shareholders or be eligible for the dividends received deduction for corporate shareholders. In addition, generally, straddles are subject to certain rules that may affect the amount, character and timing of the Fund’s gains and losses with respect to straddle positions.

Trading Risk. Shares of the Fund may trade above or below their NAV. The NAV of shares will fluctuate with changes in the market value of the Fund’s holdings. The trading prices of shares will fluctuate in accordance with changes in NAV, as well as market supply and demand. When the market price of the Fund’s shares deviates significantly from NAV, you may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Fund’s shares. However, given that shares can be created and redeemed only in Creation Units at NAV, the Advisor and Sub-Advisor do not believe that large discounts or premiums to NAV will exist for extended periods of time. Although the Fund’s shares are currently listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for shares will develop or be maintained. In addition, trading in shares of the Fund may be halted because of market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in shares inadvisable.

OVERVIEW OF THE PRINCIPAL RISKS OF ETPs

The value of your investment in the Fund is based primarily on the value of its investments in ETPs. In turn, the price of each ETP is based on the value of its holdings or, in the case of an ETN, its reference assets/benchmark components. The prices of these investments change daily and each ETP’s performance reflects the risks of investing in a particular asset class or classes. ETFs also may trade below their NAV or at a discount, which may adversely affect the Fund’s performance. An overview of certain of the principal risks of ETPs is provided below. The degree to which the risks described below apply to the Fund varies according to its asset allocation. ETPs also may be subject to certain of the risks described above. A complete list of each ETP in which the Fund invests can be found daily on the Trust’s website. Each investor should review the complete description of the principal risks of ETPs before investing in the Fund.

Commodity Risk. Because certain of the ETPs may have a significant portion of their assets concentrated in or exposed to commodities and commodity-linked securities, developments affecting the commodities market will have a disproportionate impact on such ETPs. An ETP’s investment in commodities or commodity-linked derivative instruments may subject the ETP (and indirectly the Fund) to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities, particularly if the instruments involve leverage. The value of commodities and commodity-linked derivative instruments may be affected by changes in overall market movements, commodity index volatility, changes in interest rates, or factors affecting a particular industry or commodity, such as drought, floods, weather, livestock disease, embargoes, tariffs and international economic, political and regulatory developments. Use of leveraged commodity-linked derivatives creates an opportunity for increased return but, at the same time, creates the possibility for greater loss (including the likelihood of greater volatility of the ETP’s NAV), and there can be no assurance that the ETP’s use of leverage will be successful.

Concentration Risk. An ETP may, at various times, concentrate in the securities or commodities of a particular industry, group of industries, market sector, or geographic region. When an ETP is concentrated in an industry, group of industries, market sector, or geographic region it may be more sensitive to any single economic, business, political, or regulatory occurrence than a fund that is not concentrated in an industry, group of industries, market sector or geographic region.

Counterparty Risk. Commodity-linked derivatives, repurchase agreements, swap agreements and other forms of financial instruments that involve counterparties subject an ETP to the risk that the counterparty could default on its obligations under the agreement, either through the counterparty’s bankruptcy or failure to perform its obligations. In the event of default, the ETP could experience lengthy delays in recovering some or all of its assets or no recovery at all.

Credit Risk. Certain ETPs are subject to the risk that a decline in the credit quality of a portfolio investment could cause the ETP’s share price to fall. ETPs could lose money if the issuer or guarantor of a portfolio investment or the counterparty to a derivatives contract fails to make timely principal or interest payments or otherwise honor its obligations. Below investment-grade bonds (junk bonds) involve greater risks of default or downgrade and are more volatile than investment-grade bonds. Below investment-grade bonds also involve greater risk of price declines than investment-grade securities due to actual or perceived changes in an issuer’s creditworthiness. In addition, issuers of below investment-grade bonds may be more susceptible than other issuers to economic downturns. Such bonds are subject to the risk that the issuer may not be able to pay interest or dividends and ultimately to repay principal upon maturity. Discontinuation of these payments could substantially adversely affect the market value of the bonds.

Emerging Markets Risk. An ETP’s investments in or exposure to emerging markets may be more likely to experience political turmoil or rapid changes in market or economic conditions than more developed countries. Emerging market countries often have less uniformity in accounting and reporting requirements and unreliable securities valuation. It is sometimes difficult to obtain and enforce court judgments in such countries and there is often a greater potential for nationalization and/or expropriation of assets by the government of an emerging market country. In addition, the financial stability of issuers (including governments) in emerging market countries may be more precarious than in other countries. As a result, there will tend to be an increased risk of price volatility associated with an ETP’s investments in emerging market countries, which may be magnified by currency fluctuations relative to the U.S. dollar.

Equity Risk. The prices of equity securities in which the ETPs invest rise and fall daily. These price movements may result from factors affecting individual companies, industries or the securities market as a whole. Individual companies may report poor results or be negatively affected by industry and/or economic trends and developments. The prices of securities issued by such companies may suffer a decline in response. In addition, the equity market tends to move in cycles which may cause stock prices to fall over short or extended periods of time.

Foreign Currency Risk. The Fund may invest in ETPs that invest in foreign currencies or securities denominated in a foreign currency. The value of such currencies or securities denominated such currencies can change when foreign currencies strengthen or weaken relative to the value of the U.S. dollar. These currency movements may negatively affect the value of the Fund’s investment in an ETP even when there is no change in the value of the security or currency in the issuer’s home country. Certain ETPs may not hedge against the risk of currency exchange rate fluctuations.

Foreign Securities Risk. An ETP’s investments in or exposure to securities of foreign issuers involve certain risks that are greater than those associated with investments in securities of U.S. issuers. These include risks of adverse changes in foreign economic, political, regulatory and other conditions, or changes in currency exchange rates or exchange control regulations (including limitations on currency movements and exchanges). In certain countries, legal remedies available to investors may be more limited than those available with respect to investments in the United States. The securities of some foreign companies may be less liquid and, at times, more volatile than securities of comparable U.S. companies. An ETP with exposure to foreign investments may also experience more rapid or extreme changes in value than a fund that invests solely in securities of U.S. companies because the securities markets of many foreign countries are relatively small, with a limited number of companies representing a small number of industries. Foreign withholding taxes may be imposed on income earned by an ETP’s investment in or exposure to foreign securities, which may reduce the return on such investments. There also is a risk that the cost of buying, selling, and holding foreign securities, including brokerage, tax, and custody costs, may be higher than those involved in domestic transactions.

Large-Capitalization Risk. An ETP may invest in large-capitalization companies. Large-cap stocks tend to go in and out of favor based on market and economic conditions. During a period when the performance of large-cap stocks falls behind that of other types of investments, such as small-cap stocks or the equity market as a whole, the ETP’s performance could be adversely affected.

Mid-Capitalization Risk. An ETP may invest in mid-capitalization companies. Historically, mid-cap stocks have been riskier than large-cap stocks. Stock prices of mid-cap companies may be based in substantial part on future expectations rather than current achievements and may move sharply, especially during market upturns and downturns. Mid-cap companies themselves may be more vulnerable to adverse business or economic events than larger, more established companies. During a period when the performance of mid-cap stocks falls behind that of other types of investments, such as large-cap stocks or the market as whole, the ETP’s performance could be reduced.

Small-Capitalization Risk. Historically, small-capitalization stocks have been riskier than large- and mid-cap stocks. Accordingly, ETPs that invest in or have exposure to small-cap securities may be more volatile than ETPs that invest in large- and mid-cap securities. Stock prices of small-cap companies may be based in substantial part on future expectations rather than current achievements and may move sharply, especially during market upturns and downturns. Small-cap companies themselves may be more vulnerable to adverse business or economic events than larger, more established companies. In addition, small-cap companies may have limited financial resources, product lines and markets, and their securities may trade less frequently and in more limited volumes than the securities of larger companies. Further, small-cap companies may have less publicly available information and, when available, it may be inaccurate or incomplete. These risks are even greater for the micro-cap companies to which the ETPs may have exposure. Micro-cap companies are followed by relatively few securities analysts and there tends to be less available information about them. Their securities generally have limited trading volumes and are subject to even more abrupt, erratic price movements. Micro-cap companies are even more vulnerable than small-cap companies to adverse business and market developments. During a period when the performance of small-cap stocks falls behind that of other types of investments, such as large-cap stocks or the market as a whole, the ETP’s performance could be reduced.

Tracking Error Risk. Tracking error refers to the disparity in performance between an ETP and its benchmark. Tracking error can arise due to factors such as the effect of transaction fees and expenses incurred by the ETP, changes in composition of the benchmark, and the ability of the ETP manager or sponsor to successfully implement his or her investment strategy.

OTHER INVESTMENT PRACTICES AND STRATEGIES

Temporary Defensive Positions. To respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions, the Fund may invest up to 100% of its total assets, without limitation, in high-quality debt securities and money market instruments. The Fund may be invested in this manner for extended periods depending on the Sub-Advisor’s assessment of market conditions. Debt securities and money market instruments include shares of other mutual funds, commercial paper, certificates of deposit, bankers’ acceptances, U.S. government securities, repurchase agreements, and bonds that are rated BBB or higher. While the Fund is in a defensive position, the Fund may not achieve its investment objective. Furthermore, to the extent that the Fund invests in money market funds, the Fund would bear its pro rata portion of each such money market fund’s advisory fees and operational expenses.

Lending of Portfolio Securities. The Fund may lend portfolio securities to brokers, dealers and other financial organizations that meet capital and other credit requirements or other criteria established by the Board. These loans, if and when made, may not exceed 33¹/₃% of the total asset value of the Fund (including the loan collateral). Such loans may be terminated at any time. Any such loans must be continuously secured by collateral maintained on a current basis in an amount at least equal to the market value of the securities loaned by the Fund. In a loan transaction, as compensation for lending its securities, the Fund will receive a portion of the dividends or interest accrued on the securities held as collateral or, in the case of cash collateral, a portion of the income from the investment of such cash. In addition, the Fund will receive the amount of all dividends, interest and other distributions on the loaned securities. However, the borrower has the right to vote the loaned securities. The Fund will call loans to vote proxies if a material issue affecting the investment is to be voted upon. Loans are made only to borrowers that are deemed by the securities lending agent to be of good financial standing. Should the borrower of the securities fail financially, the Fund may experience delays in recovering the securities or exercising its rights in the collateral. In a loan transaction, the Fund will also bear the risk of any decline in value of securities acquired with cash collateral. The Fund will attempt to minimize this risk by limiting the investment of cash collateral to high quality instruments of short maturity.

Please see the Fund’s Statement of Additional Information (the ‘SAI”) for a more complete list of portfolio investment strategies, permitted investments and related risks.

PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS

A description of the Fund’s policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of Fund portfolio securities is available (i) in the SAI and (ii) on the Trust’s website at www.advisorshares.com. The Fund’s daily portfolio holdings information also is available on the Trust’s website.

MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND

INVESTMENT ADVISOR

AdvisorShares Investments, LLC, located at 4800 Montgomery Lane, Suite 150, Bethesda, Maryland 20814, serves as investment adviser of the Fund. As of September 30, 2022, the Advisor had approximately $1.3 billion in assets under management.

The Advisor continuously reviews, supervises, and administers the Fund’s investment program. In particular, the Advisor provides investment and operational oversight of the Sub-Advisor. The Board supervises the Advisor and establishes policies that the Advisor must follow in its day-to-day management activities. Pursuant to an investment advisory agreement between the Trust and the Advisor, the Advisor is entitled to receive an annual advisory fee of 0.85% based on the average daily net assets of the Fund. Prior to October 1, 2022, the Advisor was entitled to an annual advisory fee of 1.35% based on the average daily net assets of the Fund. The Advisor pays the Sub-Advisor out of the advisory fee it receives from the Fund. For the most recent fiscal year, the Fund paid the Advisor a fee of 1.38% after recapture of previously waived fees and/or expense reimbursements based on its average daily net assets.

The Advisor bears all of its own costs associated with providing these advisory services and the expenses of the members of the Board who are affiliated with the Advisor. The Advisor may make payments from its own resources to broker-dealers and other financial institutions in connection with the sale of Fund shares.

The Advisor has contractually agreed to waive its fees and/or reimburse expenses in order to keep net expenses (excluding amounts payable pursuant to any plan adopted in accordance with Rule 12b-1, interest expense, taxes, brokerage commissions, acquired fund fees and expenses, other expenditures which are capitalized in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and extraordinary expenses) from exceeding 1.85% of the Fund’s average daily net assets for at least one year from the date of this Prospectus. The expense limitation agreement may be terminated without payment of any penalty (i) by the Trust for any reason and at any time and (ii) by the Advisor, for any reason, upon ninety (90) days’ prior written notice to the Trust, such termination to be effective as of the close of business on the last day of the then-current one-year period. If at any point it becomes unnecessary for the Advisor to waive fees or reimburse expenses, the Board may permit the Advisor to retain the difference between the Fund’s total annual operating expenses and the expense limitation currently in effect, or, if lower, the expense limitation that was in effect at the time of the waiver and/or reimbursement, to recapture all or a portion of its prior fee waivers or expense reimbursements within three years of the date they were waived or reimbursed.

Pursuant to an exemptive order from the SEC, the Advisor, subject to certain conditions, has the right, without shareholder approval, to hire a new unaffiliated sub-adviser or materially amend the terms of a sub-advisory agreement with an unaffiliated sub-adviser when the Board and the Advisor believe that a change would benefit the Fund. The Prospectus will be supplemented when there is a significant change in the Fund’s sub-advisory arrangement.

A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s most recent approval of the Fund’s investment advisory agreement will be available in the Trust’s Semi-Annual Report to Shareholders dated December 31, 2022.

INVESTMENT SUB-ADVISOR

CreativeOne Wealth, LLC, located at 6330 Sprint Parkway, Suite 400, Overland Park, Kansas 66211, serves as investment sub-adviser to the Fund. The Sub-Advisor, which was previously named ChangePath, LLC, was established in 2015 and serves as investment adviser to a variety of investor accounts. As of September 30, 2022, the Sub-Advisor managed approximately $2.6 billion in assets.

The Sub-Advisor is responsible for selecting the Fund’s investments in accordance with the Fund’s investment objective, policies and restrictions.

A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s most recent approval of the Fund’s investment sub-advisory agreement will be available in the Trust’s Semi-Annual Report to Shareholders dated December 31, 2022.

PORTFOLIO MANAGERS

The following portfolio managers are primarily responsible for the day-to-day portfolio management of the Fund.

Kenneth R. Hyman, Executive Vice President (EVP)

Mr. Hyman serves as an EVP, Co-Chairman of the Investment Committee and Portfolio Manager for the Sub-Advisor. Mr. Hyman joined the Sub-Advisor in October 2020 after the Sub-Advisor acquired substantially all of the assets of Partnervest Financial Group LLC and those of its subsidiaries, including Partnervest Advisory Services, LLC, the former sub-adviser to the Fund. Mr. Hyman founded Partnervest Financial Group, LLC in 2001 and was responsible for the direction and oversight of its business affairs and served as a portfolio manager and member of the Investment Management Committee. Established in 2001, Partnervest provided investment management solutions to investors and the advisers that served them. Mr. Hyman also provided consulting services to Elysian Capital Holdings LLC, an equity owner of Partnervest and served as the Chief Compliance Officer of its subsidiaries, Elysian Capital Markets Group, LLC and MIT Associates, LLC. Prior to establishing Partnervest Financial Group, LLC, Mr. Hyman was the Senior Executive and Financial Officer for Integral Securities, Inc. and Integral Securities Europe Ltd. He was also the Founder of a financial services consulting firm that operated under the name “Partnervest” and specialized in operations, e-commerce, financial operations, compliance and regulatory issues, product and service development, and business strategies. Prior to his time at Partnervest and Integral, Mr. Hyman was the Managing Principal and Chief Operating Officer of Mercer Global Securities and the Director of Operations for Mercer Global Advisors, one of the nation’s largest fee-only financial planning and investment management firms. He was also the Vice President of trading for Associated Financial Group, a financial services company providing support to more than 328 representatives in over 179 branch and satellite offices.

Jason Scott, Director of Asset Management

Mr. Scott is responsible for asset analyses and due diligence for the Sub-Advisor. He serves as Chairman of the Investment Committee, Co-Portfolio Manager and advises on investment management solutions. Mr. Scott is experienced in portfolio management, including investment analysis, option-based strategies, trading and managing client relationships. Prior to joining the Sub-Advisor, Mr. Scott oversaw portfolio management for Northwestern Mutual Investment Services located in the Kansas City area from 2019 to 2021. While there, he was responsible for choosing investments and analyzing and building portfolios for clients, including those with high net worth. Prior to that, he was with American Century Investments, providing investment management solutions from 2014 to 2019. Mr. Scott is a Chartered Market Technician (CMT^®) and incorporates technical, quantitative, and qualitative methodologies into his approach to managing investments. An educator at heart, Mr. Scott received his M.S. in Education from Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Missouri and holds his Series 7, 65, and 63 licenses.

Additional information about the portfolio managers’ compensation, other accounts managed by the portfolio managers, and the portfolio managers’ ownership of securities in the Fund is available in the SAI.

OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS

Foreside Fund Services, LLC (the “Distributor”) is the principal underwriter and distributor of the Fund’s shares. The Distributor’s principal address is Three Canal Plaza, Suite 100, Portland, Maine 04101. The Distributor will not distribute shares in less than whole Creation Units, and it does not maintain a secondary market in the shares. The Distributor is a broker-dealer registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc.   The Distributor is not affiliated with the Advisor, Sub-Advisor, The Bank of New York Mellon or any of their respective affiliates.

The Bank of New York Mellon, located at 240 Greenwich Street, New York, New York 10286, serves as the administrator, custodian, transfer agent and fund accounting agent for the Fund.

Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP, located at 1111 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20004, serves as legal counsel to the Trust.

Tait, Weller & Baker LLP, located at Two Liberty Place, 50 South 16^th Street, Suite 2900, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19102, serves as the Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm. The independent registered public accounting firm is responsible for auditing the annual financial statements of the Fund.

SHAREHOLDER INFORMATION

CALCULATING NET ASSET VALUE

The Fund calculates NAV by (i) taking the current market value of its total assets, (ii) subtracting any liabilities, and (iii) dividing that amount by the total number of shares owned by shareholders.

The Fund calculates NAV once each business day as of the regularly scheduled close of normal trading on the New York Stock Exchange, LLC (the “NYSE”) (normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time). The NYSE is typically closed on weekends and most national holidays.

In calculating NAV, the Fund generally values its portfolio investments at their current market value as reflected by readily available market quotations. When market quotations are not readily available, the Advisor will determine their fair value as described below and such fair valuations will be used in calculating the Fund’s NAV.

FAIR VALUE PRICING

The Board has adopted valuation policies and procedures pursuant to which it has designated the Advisor to determine the fair value of the Fund’s investments, subject to the Board’s oversight, when market prices for those investments are not readily available, including when they are determined by the Advisor to be unreliable. Such circumstances may arise when: (i) a security has been de-listed or its trading is halted or suspended; (ii) a security’s primary pricing source is unable or unwilling to provide a price; (iii) a security’s primary trading market is closed during regular market hours; or (iv) a security’s value has been materially affected by events occurring after the close of the security’s primary trading market and before the Fund calculates its NAV. Generally, when determining the fair value of the Fund investment, the Advisor will take into account all reasonably available information that may be relevant to a particular valuation including, but not limited to, fundamental analytical data regarding the issuer, information relating to the issuer’s business, recent trades or offers of the security, general and/or specific market conditions and the specific facts giving rise to the need to fair value the security. Fair value determinations are made in good faith and in accordance with the fair value methodologies established by the Advisor. Due to the subjective and variable nature of determining the fair value of a security or other investment, there can be no assurance that the Advisor’s determined fair value will match or closely correlate to any market quotation that subsequently becomes available or the price quoted or published by other sources. In addition, the Fund may not be able to obtain the fair value assigned to an investment if the Fund were to sell such investment at or near the time its fair value is determined.

PREMIUM/DISCOUNT AND BID-ASK SPREAD INFORMATION

The price of the Fund’s shares is based on market price, which may differ from the Fund’s daily NAV per share and can be affected by market forces of supply and demand, economic conditions and other factors. Information showing the number of days that the market price of the Fund’s shares was greater than the Fund’s NAV per share (i.e., at a premium) and the number of days it was less than the Fund’s NAV per share (i.e., at a discount) for various time periods is available by visiting the Fund’s website at www.advisorshares.com. Also available on the Fund’s website is information about bid-ask spreads.

DIVIDENDS AND DISTRIBUTIONS

The Fund pays out dividends and distributes its net capital gains, if any, to shareholders at least annually.

ACTIVE INVESTORS AND Market timing

Shares of the Fund are listed for trading on the Exchange, which allows retail investors to purchase and sell individual shares at market prices throughout the trading day similar to other publicly traded securities. Because these secondary market trades do not involve the Fund directly, it is unlikely that secondary market trading would cause any harmful effects of market timing, such as dilution, disruption of portfolio management, increases in the Fund’s trading costs or realization of capital gains. The Board has determined not to adopt policies and procedures designed to prevent or monitor for frequent purchases and redemptions of the Fund’s shares because the Fund sells and redeems its shares at NAV only in Creation Units pursuant to the terms of a participant agreement between the Distributor and an authorized participant, principally in exchange for a basket of securities that mirrors the composition of the Fund’s portfolio and a specified amount of cash. The Fund also imposes transaction fees on such Creation Unit transactions that are designed to offset the Fund’s transfer and other transaction costs associated with the issuance and redemption of the Creation Unit shares.

book-entry

Shares of the Fund are held in book-entry form, which means that no stock certificates are issued. Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) or its nominee is the record owner of all outstanding shares of the Fund and is recognized as the owner of all shares.

Investors owning shares of the Fund are beneficial owners as shown on the records of DTC or its participants. DTC serves as the securities depository for all shares. Participants in DTC include securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies, clearing corporations and other institutions that directly or indirectly maintain a custodial relationship with DTC. As a beneficial owner of shares, you are not entitled to receive physical delivery of stock certificates or to have shares registered in your name, and you are not considered a registered owner of shares. Therefore, to exercise any right as an owner of shares, you must rely upon the procedures of DTC and its participants (e.g., broker-dealers, banks, trust companies, or clearing companies). These procedures are the same as those that apply to any stocks that you hold in book-entry or “street name” through your brokerage account.

INVESTING IN THE FUND

For more information on how to buy and sell shares of the Fund, call the Trust at 877.843.3831 or visit the Fund’s website at www.advisorshares.com.

DISTRIBUTION PLAN

The Fund has adopted a Distribution Plan pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act that allows the Fund to pay distribution fees to the Distributor and other firms that provide distribution services. The Fund will pay distribution fees to the Distributor at an annual rate not to exceed 0.25% of its average daily net assets. If a service provider provides distribution services, the Distributor will pay the service provider out of its distribution fees.

No distribution fees are currently charged to the Fund; there are no plans to impose distribution fees, and no distribution fees will be charged for at least one year from the date of this Prospectus. However, to the extent distribution fees are charged in the future, because the Fund would pay these fees out of assets on an ongoing basis, over time these fees may cost you more than other types of sales charges and would increase the cost of your investment. At such time as distribution fees are charged, the Fund will notify investors by adding disclosure to the Fund’s website and in the Fund’s Prospectus. Any distribution fees will be approved by the Board.

ADDITIONAL TAX INFORMATION

The following is a summary of some important tax issues that affect the Fund and its shareholders. The summary is based on current tax law, which may be changed by legislative, judicial or administrative action. The summary is very general, and does not address investors subject to special rules, such as investors who hold shares through an IRA, 401(k) or other tax-advantaged accounts. More information about taxes is located in the SAI.

You are urged to consult your tax advisor regarding specific questions as to U.S. federal, state and local income taxes.

Tax Status of the Fund

The Fund has elected and intends to qualify each year for the special tax treatment afforded to a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the “Internal Revenue Code”). As long as the Fund qualifies for treatment as a RIC, it pays no federal income tax on the earnings it timely distributes to shareholders. However, the Fund’s failure to qualify as a RIC or to meet minimum distribution requirements would result (if certain relief provisions were not available) in fund-level taxation and, consequently, a reduction in income available for distribution to shareholders.

Unless you are a tax-exempt entity or your investment in Fund shares is made through a tax-deferred retirement account, such as an IRA, you need to be aware of the possible tax consequences when:

Tax Status of Distributions

The Fund intends to distribute, at least annually, substantially all of its net investment income and net capital gains income.

The Fund’s distributions from income and net short-term capital gains will generally be taxed to you as ordinary income. For non-corporate shareholders, dividends reported by the Fund as qualified dividend income are generally eligible for reduced tax rates applicable to long-term capital gains, provided holding period and other requirements are met. Qualified dividend income generally is income derived from dividends paid by U.S. corporations or certain foreign corporations that are either incorporated in a U.S. possession or eligible for tax benefits under certain U.S. income tax treaties. In addition, dividends that the Fund receives in respect of stock of certain foreign corporations may be qualified dividend income if that stock is readily tradable on an established U.S. securities market. For such dividends to be taxed as qualified dividend income to a non-corporate shareholder, the Fund must satisfy certain holding period requirements with respect to the underlying stock and the non-corporate shareholder must satisfy holding period requirements with respect to his or her ownership of the Fund’s shares. Holding periods may be suspended for these purposes for stock that is hedged. In general, dividends received by the Fund from an ETP taxable as a RIC may be distributed and reported as qualified dividend income by the Fund to the extent the dividend distributions are distributed and reported as qualified dividend income by the ETP. The Fund’s investment strategies may limit its ability to distribute dividends eligible for treatment as qualified dividend income.

Corporate shareholders may be entitled to a dividends received deduction for the portion of dividends they receive that are attributable to dividends received by the Fund from U.S. corporations, subject to certain limitations. The Fund’s investment strategies may limit its ability to distribute dividends eligible to for the dividends received deduction for corporate shareholders.

Taxes on distributions of capital gains (if any) are determined by how long the Fund owned the investments that generated them, rather than how long a shareholder has owned their shares. Sales of assets held by the Fund for more than one year generally result in long-term capital gains and losses, and sales of assets held by the Fund for one year or less generally result in short-term capital gains and losses. Distributions from the Fund’s short-term capital gains are generally taxable as ordinary income. Any distributions of net capital gain (the excess of the Fund’s net long-term capital gains over its net short-term capital losses) that you receive from the Fund generally are taxable as long-term capital gains regardless of how long you have owned your shares. Long-term capital gains are taxed to non-corporate shareholders at reduced tax rates.

Dividends and distributions are generally taxable to you whether you receive them in cash or reinvest them in additional shares.

In general, your distributions are subject to federal income tax for the year in which they are paid. However, distributions paid in January but declared by the Fund in October, November or December of the previous year may be taxable to you in the previous year.

Shortly after the close of each calendar year, the Fund (or your broker) will inform you of the amount of your ordinary income dividends, qualified dividend income, foreign tax credits, and net capital gain distributions received from the Fund.

You may wish to avoid investing in the Fund shortly before a dividend or other distribution, because such a distribution will generally be taxable even though it may economically represent a return of a portion of your investment.

Taxes on Exchange-Listed Share Sales

Any capital gain or loss realized upon a sale of shares held by a shareholder as a capital asset is generally treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the shares have been held for more than one year and as short-term capital gain or loss if the shares have been held for one year or less, except that any capital loss on the sale of shares held for six months or less is treated as long-term capital loss to the extent of amounts treated as distributions of long-term capital gains to the shareholder with respect to such shares. Any loss realized on a sale will be disallowed to the extent shares of the Fund are acquired, including through reinvestment of dividends, within a 61-day period beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the disposition of Fund shares. The ability to deduct capital losses may be limited.

Derivatives and Complex Securities

The Fund and the ETPs in which the Fund invests may invest in complex securities such as equity options, index options, repurchase agreements, foreign currency contracts, hedges and swaps, transactions treated as straddles for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and futures contracts. These investments may be subject to numerous special and complex tax rules. These rules could affect the Fund’s or the ETPs in which the Fund invests that are taxed as RICs ability to qualify as a RIC, affect whether gains and losses recognized by the Fund or the ETPs are treated as ordinary income or loss or capital gain or loss, accelerate the recognition of income to the Fund or the ETPs, cause income or gain to be recognized even though corresponding cash is not received by the Fund or the ETPs and/or defer the Fund’s or the ETPs’ ability to recognize losses. In turn, those rules may affect the amount, timing or character of the income distributed by the Fund. Additional information regarding the Fund’s and the ETPs’ investments in complex securities can be found in the Fund’s SAI.

Net Investment Income Tax

U.S. individuals with income exceeding certain thresholds are subject to a 3.8% tax on all or a portion of their “net investment income,” including interest, dividends, and certain capital gains (generally including capital gain distributions and capital gains realized on the sale or exchange of shares). This 3.8% tax also applies to all or a portion of the undistributed net investment income of certain shareholders that are estates and trusts.

Non-U.S. Investors

If you are not a citizen or permanent resident of the United States, the Fund’s ordinary income dividends will generally be subject to a 30% U.S. withholding tax, unless a lower treaty rate applies or unless such income is effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business. The 30% withholding tax generally will not apply to distributions of net capital gain. The Fund may, under certain circumstances, report all or a portion of a dividend as an “interest-related dividend” or a “short-term capital gain dividend,” which would generally be exempt from this 30% U.S. withholding tax, provided certain other requirements are met. Short-term capital gain dividends received by a nonresident alien individual who is present in the U.S. for a period or periods aggregating 183 days or more during the taxable year are not exempt from this 30% withholding tax. Different tax consequences may result if you are a foreign shareholder engaged in a trade or business within the United States or if you are a foreign shareholder entitled to claim the benefits of a tax treaty.

Foreign Taxes

Dividends, interest, and other income received by the Fund and the ETFs in which the Fund invests with respect to foreign securities may give rise to withholding and other taxes imposed by foreign countries. Tax conventions between certain countries and the United States may reduce or eliminate such taxes. The Fund may need to file special claims for refunds to secure the benefits of a reduced rate.

If as of the close of a taxable year more than 50% of the value of the Fund’s assets consists of certain foreign stock or securities, the Fund will be eligible to elect to “pass through” to investors the amount of foreign income and similar taxes (including withholding taxes) paid by the Fund during that taxable year. This means that investors will be considered to have received as additional income their respective shares of such foreign taxes, but may be entitled to either a corresponding tax deduction in calculating taxable income, or, subject to certain limitations, a credit in calculating federal income tax. If the Fund does not so elect, it will be entitled to claim a deduction for certain foreign taxes incurred by the Fund. The Fund (or a financial intermediary, such as a broker, through which a shareholder owns shares) will notify you if it makes such an election and provide you with the information necessary to reflect foreign taxes paid on your income tax return.

Foreign tax credits, if any, received by the Fund as a result of an investment in another RIC (including an ETF which is taxable as a RIC) will not be passed through to you unless the Fund qualifies as a “qualified fund-of-funds” under the Internal Revenue Code. If the Fund is a “qualified fund-of-funds” it will be eligible to file an election with the IRS that will enable the Fund to pass along these foreign tax credits to its shareholders. The Fund will be treated as a “qualified fund-of-funds” under the Internal Revenue Code if at least 50% of the value of the Fund’s total assets (at the close of each quarter of the Fund’s taxable year) is represented by interests in other RICs.

Backup Withholding

The Fund (or financial intermediaries, such as brokers, through which shareholders own Fund shares) will be required in certain cases to withhold (as “backup withholding”) on amounts payable to any shareholder who (1) has provided the Fund either an incorrect tax identification number or no number at all, (2) is subject to backup withholding by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) for failure to properly report payments of interest or dividends, (3) has failed to certify to the Fund that such shareholder is not subject to backup withholding, or (4) has not certified that such shareholder is a U.S. person (including a U.S. resident alien). The backup withholding rate is 24%. Backup withholding will not, however, be applied to payments that have been subject to the 30% withholding tax applicable to shareholders who are neither citizens nor residents of the United States.

Taxes on Creation and Redemption of Creation Units

An authorized participant who purchases a Creation Unit by exchanging securities in-kind generally will recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between (a) the sum of the market value of the Creation Units at the time and any net cash received, and (b) the sum of the purchaser’s aggregate basis in the securities surrendered and any net cash paid for the Creation Units. An authorized participant who redeems Creation Units will generally recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between (x) the sum of the redeemer’s basis in the Creation Units and any net cash paid, and (y) the sum of the aggregate market value of the securities received and any net cash received. The IRS, however, may assert that a loss that is realized upon an exchange of securities for Creation Units may not be currently deducted under the rules governing “wash sales” by an authorized participant that does not mark-to-market its holdings, or on the basis that there has been no significant change in economic position. Authorized participants should consult their own tax advisor with respect to whether wash sales rules apply and when a loss might be deductible.

The Fund has the right to reject an order for Creation Units if the purchaser (or a group of purchasers) would, upon obtaining the shares so ordered, own 80% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund and if, pursuant to section 351 of the Internal Revenue Code, the Fund would have a basis in the deposit securities different from the market value of such securities on the date of deposit. The Fund also has the right to require information necessary to determine beneficial share ownership for purposes of the 80% determination. If the Fund does issue Creation Units to a purchaser (or a group of purchasers) that would, upon obtaining the Creation Units so ordered, own 80% or more of the outstanding shares of the Fund, the purchaser (or a group of purchasers) will not recognize gain or loss upon the exchange of securities for Creation Units.

The Fund may include cash when paying the redemption price for Creation Units in addition to, or in place of, the delivery of a basket of securities. The Fund may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. This may cause the Fund to recognize investment income and/or capital gains or losses that it might not have recognized if it had completely satisfied the redemption in-kind. As a result, the Fund may be less tax efficient if it includes such a cash payment than if the in-kind redemption process was used.

Persons exchanging securities or non-U.S. currency for Creation Units should consult their own tax advisors with respect to the tax treatment of any creation or redemption transaction. If you purchase or redeem Creation Units, you will be sent a confirmation statement showing how many Fund shares you purchased or redeemed and at what price.

The foregoing discussion summarizes some of the consequences under current federal tax law of an investment in the Fund. It is not a substitute for personal tax advice. Consult your personal tax advisor about the potential tax consequences to you of an investment in the Fund under all tax laws applicable to you.

More information about taxes is in the SAI.

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

The financial highlights table is intended to help you understand the Fund’s financial performance for the past five years. The financial highlights for the periods prior to November 25, 2020 represent the periods during which the Fund was sub-advised by Partnervest Advisory Services, LLC, which was acquired by the Sub-Advisor on October 1, 2020. Certain information reflects 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 distributions). This information has been derived from the financial statements audited by Tait, Weller & Baker LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, whose report, along with the Fund’s financial statements, are included in the Fund’s Annual Report, which is available upon request.

ADVISORSHARES TRUST — Financial Highlights

ADVISORSHARES STAR GLOBAL Buy-Write ETF

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Additional and more detailed information about the Fund is included in the Fund’s SAI. The SAI has been filed with the SEC and is incorporated by reference into this Prospectus and, therefore, legally forms a part of this Prospectus. The SEC maintains the EDGAR database on its website (http://www.sec.gov), which contains the SAI, material incorporated by reference, and other information about the Fund. You may request documents from the SEC, upon payment of a duplication fee, by emailing the SEC at [email protected].

You may obtain a copy of the SAI and the Annual and Semi-Annual Reports without charge by calling 877.843.3831, visiting the website at www.advisorshares.com, or writing to the Trust at 4800 Montgomery Lane, Suite 150, Bethesda, Maryland 20814. Additional information about the Fund’s investments is available in the Fund’s Annual and Semi-Annual Reports. Also in the Fund’s Annual Report is a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance during the last fiscal year.

No one has been authorized to give any information or to make any representations not contained in this Prospectus or in the SAI in connection with the offering of Fund shares. Do not rely on any such information or representations as having been authorized by the Fund. This Prospectus does not constitute an offering by the Fund in any jurisdiction where such an offering is not lawful.

The Trust’s SEC Investment Company Act File Number is 811-22110.