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PROSPECTUS
September 1, 2022
VANECK®
CEF Muni Income ETF    XMPT®
High Yield Muni ETF    HYD®
HIP Sustainable Muni ETF    SMI
Intermediate Muni ETF    ITM®
Long Muni ETF    MLN®
Muni Allocation ETF    MAAX
Short High Yield Muni ETF    SHYD®
Short Muni ETF    SMB®
Principal U.S. Listing Exchange for each Fund: Cboe BZX Exchange, Inc.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
800.826.2333    vaneck.com


TABLE OF CONTENTS
Summary Information
VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF
1
VanEck High Yield Muni ETF
8
VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF
15
VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF
21
VanEck Long Muni ETF
27
VanEck Muni Allocation ETF
33
VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF
39
VanEck Short Muni ETF
46
Summary Information about Purchases and Sales of Fund Shares, Taxes and Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries
52
Additional Information About the Funds’ Investment Strategies and Risks
53
Information About Underlying Funds and ETPs
68
Tax Advantaged Product Structure
69
Portfolio Holdings
69
Management of the Funds
69
Portfolio Managers
70
Shareholder Information
70
Index Providers
76
77
ICE Broad High Yield Crossover Municipal Index
78
ICE Intermediate AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index
79
ICE Long AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index
80
ICE 1-12 Year Broad High Yield Crossover Municipal Index
81
ICE Short AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index
82
License Agreements and Disclaimers
83
Financial Highlights
84
Premium/Discount Information
93
General Information
93


SUMMARY INFORMATION
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
VanEck® CEF Muni Income ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the S-Network Municipal Bond Closed-End Fund IndexSM (the “CEFMX Index”).
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fee 0.40  %
Other Expenses(a)
0.00  %
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses(b)
1.41  %
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(a)
1.81  %
(a)    Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses of the Fund, except for the fee payment under the investment management agreement, acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, offering costs, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Adviser has agreed to pay the offering costs until at least September 1, 2023.
(b)    “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses” reflect the Fund’s pro rata portion of the expenses charged by the Underlying Funds (as defined herein). These expenses are based on the total expense ratio disclosed in each Underlying Fund’s most recent shareholder report. Because Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are not borne directly by the Fund, they will not be reflected in the expense information in the Fund’s financial statements and the information presented in the table will differ from that presented in the Fund’s financial highlights included in the Fund’s reports to shareholders.
EXPENSE EXAMPLE
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell or hold all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% annual return 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:
YEAR EXPENSES
1 $184 
3 $569 
5 $980 
10 $2,127 
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund will pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 15% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in investments the income from which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax (other than federal alternative minimum tax (“AMT”)). The Fund is a “fund of funds,” meaning that it invests all or a portion of its assets in other funds (the “Underlying Funds”). The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in securities of issuers that comprise the Fund’s benchmark index. The CEFMX Index is comprised of shares of U.S.-listed closed-end funds.
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The Underlying Funds invest in municipal bonds issued by states or local governments or agencies the income of which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax, but a portion of this income may be subject to the AMT and will generally be subject to state income taxes. The Fund’s investment policy to invest at least 80% of its total assets in investments the income from which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax (other than AMT) requires shareholder approval before it can be changed. The Fund may count investments that generate income subject to the AMT toward the 80% investment requirement.
The Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), places limits on the percentage of the total outstanding stock of an Underlying Fund that may be owned by the Fund.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the CEFMX Index by investing in a portfolio of securities that generally replicates the CEFMX Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try to “beat” the CEFMX Index and does not take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the CEFMX Index.
The Fund may become “non-diversified” as defined under the 1940 Act, solely as a result of a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the CEFMX Index. This means that the Fund may invest a greater percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers than would be the case if the Fund were always managed as a diversified management investment company. The Fund intends to be diversified in approximately the same proportion as the CEFMX Index. Shareholder approval will not be sought when the Fund crosses from diversified to non-diversified status due solely to a change in the relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the CEFMX Index.
The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the CEFMX Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries.
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
Investors in the Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in the Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in the Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in the Fund.
Fund of Funds Risk. The performance of the Fund is dependent on the performance of the Underlying Funds. The Fund is subject to the risks of the Underlying Funds’ investments. In addition, the Fund’s shareholders will indirectly bear the expenses of the Underlying Funds, absorbing duplicative levels of fees with respect to investments in the Underlying Funds. In addition, at times certain segments of the market represented by the Underlying Funds may be out of favor and underperform other segments.
Risks of Investing in Closed-End Funds. The shares of a closed-end fund may trade at a discount or premium to their net asset value (“NAV”). A closed-end fund may be leveraged as part of its investment strategy. As a result, the Fund may be indirectly exposed to the effects of leverage through its investment in the Underlying Funds. Investments in Underlying Funds that use leverage may cause the value of the Fund’s Shares to be more volatile than if the Fund invested in Underlying Funds that do not utilize leverage and may expose the Fund to the possibility that the Fund’s long-term returns on such securities (and, indirectly, the long-term returns on the Shares) will be diminished.
To comply with provisions of the 1940 Act, the Adviser may be required to vote Underlying Fund shares in the same general proportion as shares held by other shareholders of the Underlying Fund.
Underlying Funds Risk. The Fund may be subject to the following risks as a result of its investment in the Underlying Funds:
Market Risk. The prices of the securities in the Underlying Funds are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. An investment in an Underlying Fund may lose money.
Municipal Securities Risk. The Underlying Funds may invest in municipal securities. Municipal securities are subject to the risk that litigation, legislation or other political events, local business or economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, or the bankruptcy of the issuer could have a significant effect on an issuer’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest or otherwise affect the value of such securities. Certain municipalities may have difficulty meeting their obligations due to, among other reasons, changes in underlying demographics. Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to government regulation, taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance similar projects, especially those relating to education, health care, transportation, utilities and water and sewer, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities include
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general obligation bonds, which are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. General obligation bonds generally are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source. Municipal securities also include revenue bonds, which are generally backed by revenue from a specific project or tax. The issuer of a revenue bond makes interest and principal payments from revenues generated from a particular source or facility, such as a tax on particular property or revenues generated from a municipal water or sewer utility or an airport. Revenue bonds generally are not backed by the full faith and credit and general taxing power of the issuer. The market for municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. There may be less information available on the financial condition of issuers of municipal securities than for public corporations. Municipal instruments may be susceptible to periods of economic stress, which could affect the market values and marketability of many or all municipal obligations of issuers in a state, U.S. territory, or possession. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly stressed the financial resources of many municipal issuers, which may impair a municipal issuer’s ability to meet its financial obligations when due and could adversely impact the value of its bonds, which could negatively impact the performance of the Fund.
High Yield Securities Risk. The Underlying Funds may invest in high yield securities. Securities rated below investment                     grade are commonly referred to as high yield securities or “junk bonds.” High yield securities are often issued by issuers that are restructuring, are smaller or less creditworthy than other issuers, or are more highly indebted than other issuers. High yield securities are subject to greater risk of loss of income and principal than higher rated securities and are considered speculative. The prices of high yield securities are likely to be more sensitive to adverse economic changes or individual municipal developments than higher rated securities. During an economic downturn or substantial period of rising interest rates, high yield security issuers may experience financial stress that would adversely affect their ability to service their principal and interest payment obligations, to meet their projected business goals or to obtain additional financing. In the event of a default, the Fund may incur additional expenses to seek recovery. The secondary market for municipal securities that are high yield securities may be less liquid than the markets for higher quality municipal securities or high yield securities issued by corporate issuers and, as such, may have an adverse effect on the market prices of and an Underlying Fund’s ability to arrive at a fair value for certain securities. In addition, periods of economic uncertainty and change may result in an increased volatility of market prices of high yield securities and a corresponding volatility in the Fund’s NAV.
Credit Risk. Bonds are subject to credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer or guarantor of a security         will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt or to otherwise honor its obligations and/or default completely. Bonds are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities, which may be reflected in credit ratings. There is a possibility that the credit rating of a bond may be downgraded after purchase or the perception of an issuer’s credit worthiness may decline, which may adversely affect the value of the security. The Underlying Funds may hold securities that are insured by a bond insurer. A downgrade of the credit rating of such bond insurer may cause the value of the insured security to decline.
Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds, are subject to interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a bond resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most debt securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most debt securities go up. Many factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation rates and general economic conditions. The prevailing historically low interest rate environment increases the risks associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions. In addition, debt securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes, usually making them more volatile than debt securities with shorter durations. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are enacting significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including providing direct capital infusions into companies, creating new monetary programs and lowering interest rates. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could increase if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes.
Call Risk. The Underlying Funds may invest in callable bonds. If interest rates fall, it is possible that issuers of callable securities will “call” (or prepay) their bonds before their maturity date. If a call were exercised by the issuer during or following a period of declining interest rates, the Underlying Fund is likely to have to replace such called security with a lower yielding security or securities with greater risks or other less favorable features. If that were to happen, it would decrease the Underlying Fund’s net investment income, resulting in a decline in the Fund’s income.
Tax Risk. There is no guarantee that an Underlying Fund’s income will be exempt from U.S. federal or state income     taxes. Events occurring after the date of issuance of a municipal bond or after an Underlying Fund’s acquisition of a municipal bond may result in a determination that interest on that bond is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes retroactively to its date of issuance. Such a determination may cause a portion of prior distributions by an Underlying Fund to its shareholders to be taxable to those shareholders in the year of receipt. Federal or state
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changes in income or alternative minimum tax rates or in the tax treatment of municipal bonds may make municipal bonds less attractive as investments and cause them to lose value.
Liquidity Risk. Unlike the Fund, as closed-end funds the Underlying Funds are not limited in their ability to invest in illiquid securities. Securities with reduced liquidity involve greater risk than securities with more liquid markets. Prices of securities not traded on an exchange may vary over time. Secondary trading of a fixed-income security may decline for a period of time if its credit quality unexpectedly declines. An Underlying Fund may not receive full value for assets sold during periods of infrequent trading.
Leverage Risk. Ordinary borrowings by an Underlying Fund or an Underlying Fund’s investment in derivatives may result         in leverage. If the prices of those investments decrease, or if the cost of borrowing exceeds any increase in the prices of investments made with the proceeds of the borrowing, the NAV of the Underlying Fund’s shares will decrease more than if the Underlying Fund had not used leverage. An Underlying Fund may have to sell investments at a time and at a price that is unfavorable to the Underlying Fund to repay borrowings. Interest on borrowings is an expense the Underlying Fund would not otherwise incur. Leverage magnifies the potential for gain and the risk of loss. If an Underlying Fund uses leverage, there can be no assurance that the Underlying Fund’s leverage strategy will be successful.
Anti-Takeover Measures Risk. Certain Underlying Funds may have provisions in their organizational documents intended to limit the ability of third parties to acquire control or change the composition of the Underlying Fund’s board. This may discourage a third party from seeking to obtain control of the Underlying Fund, which could limit the ability of Underlying Fund shareholders to sell their shares at a premium over prevailing market prices.
Non-Diversified Risk. Some of the Underlying Funds may invest a relatively high percentage of their assets in a smaller number of issuers or may invest a larger proportion of their assets in the obligations of a single issuer. Moreover, the gains and losses on an investment in such an Underlying Fund may have a greater impact on the Fund’s NAV and may make the value of the Fund’s investment in such an Underlying Fund more volatile than an investment in more diversified Underlying Funds.
Risk of Investment Restrictions. The Fund and its affiliates are limited in the amount that they, in the aggregate, can invest in the outstanding voting securities of any one Underlying Fund. The Fund and its affiliates may not acquire “control” of an unaffiliated Underlying Fund, which is presumed once ownership of an Underlying Fund’s outstanding voting securities exceeds 25%. This limitation could inhibit the Fund’s ability to purchase one or more Underlying Funds in the CEFMX Index in the proportions represented in the CEFMX Index. In these circumstances, the Fund would be required to use sampling techniques, which could increase the risk of tracking error.
Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or system failures.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the CEFMX Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the CEFMX Index and incurs costs associated with buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the CEFMX Index or (to the extent the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) raising cash to meet redemptions or deploying cash in connection with newly created Creation Units (defined herein), which are not factored into the return of the CEFMX Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s NAV to the extent not offset by the transaction fee payable by an Authorized Participant (“AP”). Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the CEFMX Index. Errors in CEFMX Index data, CEFMX Index computations and/or the construction of the CEFMX Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the CEFMX Index provider for a period of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its shareholders. Shareholders should understand that any gains from the CEFMX Index provider's errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the CEFMX Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. When the CEFMX Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the CEFMX Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the CEFMX Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the CEFMX Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the CEFMX Index provider or its agents to the CEFMX Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the CEFMX Index due to certain listing standards of the Fund's listing exchange (the “Exchange”) or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying securities and/or currencies, and/or other assets based on fair value prices. When markets are volatile, the ability to sell securities at fair value prices may be adversely impacted and may result in additional trading costs and/or increase the index tracking risk. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of the CEFMX Index. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the CEFMX
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Index. Changes to the composition of the CEFMX Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the CEFMX Index may cause the Fund to experience increased volatility, during which time the Fund’s index tracking risk may be heightened.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. The Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as APs, none of which are obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for Shares or Shares may trade like closed-end funds at a greater discount (or premium) to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. The AP concentration risk may be heightened in scenarios where APs have limited or diminished access to the capital required to post collateral.
No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods in times of market stress because market makers and APs may step away from making a market in the Shares and in executing creation and redemption orders, which could cause a material deviation in the Fund’s market price from its NAV.
Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.
Passive Management Risk. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund invested in bonds, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. However, because the Fund is not “actively” managed, unless a specific security is removed from the CEFMX Index, the Fund generally would not sell a security because the security’s issuer was in financial trouble. Additionally, unusual market conditions may cause the CEFMX Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the CEFMX Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. Therefore, the Fund’s performance could be lower than funds that may actively shift their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.
Fund Shares Trading, Premium/Discount Risk and Liquidity of Fund Shares. The market price of the Shares may fluctuate in response to the Fund’s NAV, the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The Adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade above, below, or at their most recent NAV. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares that were bought or sold or the shareholder may be unable to sell his or her Shares. The securities held by the Fund may be traded in markets that close at a different time than the Exchange. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when the Exchange is open but after the applicable market closing, fixing or settlement times, bid-ask spreads on the Exchange and the resulting premium or discount to the Shares’ NAV may widen. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell Shares. Investors should consult their financial intermediaries before purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
Non-Diversification Risk. The Fund may become classified as non-diversified under the 1940 Act, as amended, solely as a result of a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the CEFMX Index. If the Fund becomes non-diversified, it may invest a greater portion of assets in securities of a smaller number of individual issuers than a diversified fund. As a result, changes in the market value of a single investment could cause greater fluctuations in share price than would occur in a more diversified fund.
Concentration Risk. The Fund’s assets may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries to the extent the CEFMX Index concentrates in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. To the extent that the Fund is concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries, the Fund will be subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on those sectors and/or industries may negatively impact the Fund to a greater extent than if the Fund’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
PERFORMANCE
The bar chart that follows shows how the Fund performed for the calendar years shown. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by comparing the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual returns for the one year, five year, ten year and/or since inception periods, as applicable, compared with the Fund’s benchmark index and a broad measure of market performance. All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance
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(before and after taxes) is not necessarily indicative of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.vaneck.com.
Annual Total Returns (%)—Calendar Years
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The year-to-date total return as of June 30, 2022 was -20.77%.
Best Quarter: 10.40% 1Q 2019
Worst Quarter: -9.05% 4Q 2016
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2021
The after-tax returns presented in the table below are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Your actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from those shown below. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Shares of the Fund through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
Past
One Year
Past
Five Years
Past
Ten Years
VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF
(return before taxes)
8.34% 7.35% 6.05%
VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF
(return after taxes on distributions)
8.32% 7.33% 6.03%
VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF
(return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares)
6.70% 6.72% 5.80%
S-Network Municipal Bond Closed-End Fund Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
8.35% 7.64% 6.38%
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.54% 3.57% 2.90%
ICE BofA Broad US Market Index1 (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.58% 3.63% 2.97%
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
1 On September 1, 2022, the ICE BofA Broad US Market Index replaced the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index as the Fund's broad-based benchmark index as the Adviser believes it is more representative of broad bond market exposure.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Manager. The following individual is primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
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Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
Peter H. Liao Portfolio Manager July 2011
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
For important information about the purchase and sale of Fund Shares, tax information and payments to broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries, please turn to the “Summary Information about Purchases and Sales of Fund Shares, Taxes and Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries” section of this Prospectus.
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SUMMARY INFORMATION
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
VanEck® High Yield Muni ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the ICE High Yield Crossover Municipal Bond Transition Index (the “High Yield Index”).
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fee 0.35  %
Other Expenses(a)
0.00  %
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(a)
0.35  %
(a)    Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses of the Fund, except for the fee payment under the investment management agreement, acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, offering costs, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Adviser has agreed to pay the offering costs until at least September 1, 2023.
EXPENSE EXAMPLE
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell or hold all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% annual return 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:
YEAR EXPENSES
1 $36 
3 $113 
5 $197 
10 $443 

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund will pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 11% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in securities that comprise the benchmark index. The High Yield Index is comprised of publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar denominated high yield long-term tax-exempt bond market. By the end of the Fund’s index transition period (as described below), the High Yield Index is expected to track the high yield municipal bond market with an ultimate weight of 70% in non-investment grade municipal bonds, 25% in triple-B rated investment grade municipal bonds and 5% in single-A rated investment grade municipal bonds (in accordance with the High Yield Index provider’s methodology). This 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days' prior written notice to shareholders.
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The Fund has adopted a fundamental investment policy to invest at least 80% of its assets in municipal securities. Such policy cannot be changed without a shareholder vote. For purposes of this policy, the term “assets” means net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes. This percentage limitation applies at the time of the investment.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the High Yield Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try to “beat” the High Yield Index and does not take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the High Yield Index. Because of the practical difficulties and expense of purchasing all of the securities in the High Yield Index, the Fund does not purchase all of the securities in the High Yield Index. Instead, the Adviser utilizes a “sampling” methodology in seeking to achieve the Fund’s objective. As such, the Fund may purchase a subset of the bonds in the High Yield Index in an effort to hold a portfolio of bonds with generally the same risk and return characteristics of the High Yield Index.
The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the High Yield Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. As of April 30, 2022, the High Yield Index had 21,443 component securities and each of the industrial development and special tax (i.e., revenue bonds backed by a special tax) sectors represented a significant portion of the High Yield Index. The High Yield Index is rebalanced on the last calendar day of the month.
Prior to the selection of the High Yield Index, the Fund tracked the Bloomberg Municipal Custom High Yield Composite Index (the “Prior High Yield Index”). The Fund began tracking the High Yield Index on March 1, 2022. The High Yield Index is an interim index that gradually increases exposure to securities based on their weightings in the ICE Broad High Yield Crossover Municipal Index (the "Final High Yield Index") while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Prior High Yield Index. The Fund is expected to begin tracking the Final High Yield Index on December 1, 2022.
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
Investors in the Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in the Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in the Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in the Fund.
Municipal Securities Risk. Municipal securities are subject to the risk that litigation, legislation or other political events, local business or economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, or the bankruptcy of the issuer could have a significant effect on an issuer’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest or otherwise affect the value of such securities. Certain municipalities may have difficulty meeting their obligations due to, among other reasons, changes in underlying demographics. Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to government regulation, taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance similar projects, especially those relating to education, health care, transportation, utilities and water and sewer, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities include general obligation bonds, which are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. General obligation bonds generally are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source. Municipal securities also include revenue bonds, which are generally backed by revenue from a specific project or tax. The issuer of a revenue bond makes interest and principal payments from revenues generated from a particular source or facility, such as a tax on particular property or revenues generated from a municipal water or sewer utility or an airport. Revenue bonds generally are not backed by the full faith and credit and general taxing power of the issuer. The market for municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. There may be less information available on the financial condition of issuers of municipal securities than for public corporations. Municipal instruments may be susceptible to periods of economic stress, which could affect the market values and marketability of many or all municipal obligations of issuers in a state, U.S. territory, or possession. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly stressed the financial resources of many municipal issuers, which may impair a municipal issuer’s ability to meet its financial obligations when due and could adversely impact the value of its bonds, which could negatively impact the performance of the Fund.
High Yield Securities Risk. Securities rated below investment grade are commonly referred to as high yield securities or “junk bonds.” High yield securities are often issued by issuers that are restructuring, are smaller or less creditworthy than other issuers, or are more highly indebted than other issuers. High yield securities are subject to greater risk of loss of income and principal than higher rated securities and are considered speculative. The prices of high yield securities are likely to be more sensitive to adverse economic changes or individual municipal developments than higher rated securities. During an economic downturn or substantial period of rising interest rates, high yield security issuers may experience financial stress that would adversely affect their ability to service their principal and interest payment obligations, to meet their projected business goals or to obtain additional financing. In the event of a default, the Fund may incur additional expenses to seek recovery. The secondary market for municipal securities that are high yield securities may be less liquid than the markets for higher quality municipal securities or high yield securities issued by corporate issuers and, as such, may have an adverse effect on the market prices of and the Fund’s ability to arrive at a fair value for certain securities. The illiquidity of the market also could make it difficult for the Fund to sell certain securities in
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connection with a rebalancing of the High Yield Index. In addition, periods of economic uncertainty and change may result in an increased volatility of market prices of high yield securities and a corresponding volatility in the Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”).
Credit Risk. Bonds are subject to credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer or guarantor of a security will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt or to otherwise honor its obligations and/or default completely. Bonds are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities, which may be reflected in credit ratings. There is a possibility that the credit rating of a bond may be downgraded after purchase or the perception of an issuer’s credit worthiness may decline, which may adversely affect the value of the security.
Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds, are subject to interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a bond resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most debt securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most debt securities go up. Many factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation rates and general economic conditions. The prevailing historically low interest rate environment increases the risks associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions. In addition, debt securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes, usually making them more volatile than debt securities with shorter durations. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are enacting significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including providing direct capital infusions into companies, creating new monetary programs and lowering interest rates. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could increase if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes.
Call Risk. The Fund may invest in callable bonds. If interest rates fall, it is possible that issuers of callable securities will “call” (or prepay) their bonds before their maturity date. If a call were exercised by the issuer during or following a period of declining interest rates, the Fund is likely to have to replace such called security with a lower yielding security or securities with greater risks or other less favorable features. If that were to happen, it would decrease the Fund’s net investment income.
Private Activity Bonds Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of private activity bonds. The issuers of private activity bonds in which the Fund may invest may be negatively impacted by conditions affecting either the general credit of the user of the private activity project or the project itself. The Fund’s private activity bond holdings also may pay interest subject to the alternative minimum tax. See the section of the Prospectus entitled “Shareholder Information—Tax Information” for more details.
Industrial Development Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of industrial development bonds. These revenue bonds are issued by or on behalf of public authorities to obtain funds to finance various public and/or privately operated facilities, including those for business and manufacturing, housing, sports, pollution control, airport, mass transit, port and parking facilities. These bonds are normally secured only by the revenues from the project and not by state or local government tax payments. Consequently, the credit quality of these securities is dependent upon the ability of the user of the facilities financed by the bonds and any guarantor to meet its financial obligations. Payment of interest on and repayment of principal on such bonds are the responsibility of the user and/or any guarantor. These bonds are subject to a wide variety of risks, many of which relate to the nature of the specific project. Generally, the value and credit quality of these bonds are sensitive to the risks related to an economic slowdown.
Special Tax Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of special tax bonds. Special tax bonds are usually backed and payable through a single tax, or series of special taxes such as incremental property taxes. The failure of the tax levy to generate adequate revenue to pay the debt service on the bonds may cause the value of the bonds to decline. Adverse conditions and developments affecting a particular project may result in lower revenues to the issuer of the municipal securities, which may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
California Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of California. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within California and by the financial condition of California’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
Illinois Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of Illinois. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within Illinois and by the financial condition of Illinois’ political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
Market Risk. The prices of the securities in the Fund are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. An investment in the Fund may lose money.
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Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or system failures.
Sampling Risk. The Fund’s use of a representative sampling approach will result in its holding a smaller number of securities than are in the High Yield Index. As a result, an adverse development respecting an issuer of securities held by the Fund could result in a greater decline in NAV than would be the case if the Fund held all of the bonds in the High Yield Index. Conversely, a positive development relating to an issuer of securities in the High Yield Index that is not held by the Fund could cause the Fund to underperform the High Yield Index. To the extent the assets in the Fund are smaller, these risks will be greater.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the High Yield Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the High Yield Index and incurs costs associated with buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the High Yield Index or (to the extent the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) raising cash to meet redemptions or deploying cash in connection with newly created Creation Units (defined herein), which are not factored into the return of the High Yield Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s NAV to the extent not offset by the transaction fee payable by an Authorized Participant (“AP”). Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the High Yield Index. Errors in the High Yield Index data, High Yield Index computations and/or the construction of the High Yield Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the High Yield Index provider for a period of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its shareholders. Shareholders should understand that any gains from the High Yield Index provider's errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the High Yield Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. When the High Yield Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the High Yield Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. In addition, the Fund's use of a representative sampling approach may cause the fund to not be as well correlated with the return of the High Yield Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all of the securities in the High Yield Index in the proportions in which they are represented in the High Yield Index. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the High Yield Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the High Yield Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the High Yield Index provider or its agents to the High Yield Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the High Yield Index due to certain listing standards of the Fund's listing exchange (the “Exchange”) or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying securities and/or currencies, and/or other assets based on fair value prices. When markets are volatile, the ability to sell securities at fair value prices may be adversely impacted and may result in additional trading costs and/or increase the index tracking risk. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of the High Yield Index. In addition, sale of securities may result in the recognition of accrued market discount and/or net realized gains for tax purposes, which may result in taxable distributions to shareholders. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the High Yield Index. Changes to the composition of the High Yield Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the High Yield Index may cause the Fund to experience increased volatility, during which time the Fund’s index tracking risk may be heightened.
The High Yield Index will gradually increase exposure to securities based on their weightings in the Final High Yield Index while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Prior High Yield Index. These adjustments to the Fund's portfolio holdings are expected to increase the Fund's transaction costs and turnover rate.
Tax Risk. There is no guarantee that the Fund’s income will be exempt from U.S. federal or state income taxes. Events occurring after the date of issuance of a municipal bond or after the Fund’s acquisition of a municipal bond may result in a determination that interest on that bond is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes retroactively to its date of issuance. Such a determination may cause a portion of prior distributions by the Fund to its shareholders to be taxable to those shareholders in the year of receipt. Federal or state changes in income or alternative minimum tax rates or in the tax treatment of municipal bonds may make municipal bonds less attractive as investments and cause them to lose value.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. The Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as APs, none of which are obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for Shares or Shares may trade like closed-end funds at a greater discount (or premium) to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. The AP concentration risk may be heightened in scenarios where APs have limited or diminished access to the capital required to post collateral.
No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods in times of market stress because market makers and APs may step
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away from making a market in the Shares and in executing creation and redemption orders, which could cause a material deviation in the Fund’s market price from its NAV.
Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.
Passive Management Risk. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund invested in bonds, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. However, because the Fund is not “actively” managed, unless a specific security is removed from the High Yield Index, the Fund generally would not sell a security because the security’s issuer was in financial trouble. Additionally, unusual market conditions may cause the High Yield Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the High Yield Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. Therefore, the Fund’s performance could be lower than funds that may actively shift their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.
Fund Shares Trading, Premium/Discount Risk and Liquidity of Fund Shares. The market price of the Shares may fluctuate in response to the Fund’s NAV, the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The Adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade above, below, or at their most recent NAV. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares that were bought or sold or the shareholder may be unable to sell his or her Shares. The securities held by the Fund may be traded in markets that close at a different time than the Exchange. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when the Exchange is open but after the applicable market closing, fixing or settlement times, bid-ask spreads on the Exchange and the resulting premium or discount to the Shares’ NAV may widen. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell Shares. Investors should consult their financial intermediaries before purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
Concentration Risk. The Fund’s assets may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries to the extent the High Yield Index concentrates in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. To the extent that the Fund is concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries, the Fund will be subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on those sectors and/or industries may negatively impact the Fund to a greater extent than if the Fund’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
PERFORMANCE
The bar chart that follows shows how the Fund performed for the calendar years shown. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by comparing the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual returns for the one year, five year, ten year and/or since inception periods, as applicable, compared with the Fund’s benchmark index and a broad measure of market performance. Prior to March 1, 2022, the Fund sought to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Prior High Yield Index. Therefore, performance information prior to March 1, 2022 reflects the performance of the Fund tracking the Prior High Yield Index. On December 1, 2022, the Fund is expected to begin tracking the Final High Yield Index. All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past
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performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily indicative of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.vaneck.com.
Annual Total Returns (%)—Calendar Years
ck0001137360-20220430_g15.jpg
The year-to-date total return as of June 30, 2022 was -13.04%.
Best Quarter: 6.39% 1Q 2012
Worst Quarter: -7.55% 1Q 2020
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2021
The after-tax returns presented in the table below are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Your actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from those shown below. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Shares of the Fund through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
Past
One Year
Past
Five Years
Past
Ten Years
(return before taxes)*
5.33% 5.34% 5.24%
VanEck High Yield Muni ETF
(return after taxes on distributions)
5.33% 5.33% 5.22%
VanEck High Yield Muni ETF
(return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares)
4.77% 5.11% 5.13%
Bloomberg Municipal Custom High Yield Composite Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
7.02% 7.30% 6.88%
ICE High Yield Crossover Municipal Bond Transition Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)**
ICE Broad High Yield Crossover Municipal Index
 (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)**
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.54% 3.57% 2.90%
ICE BofA Broad US Market Index1 (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.58% 3.63% 2.97%
* Prior to March 1, 2022, the Fund sought to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Prior High Yield Index. Therefore, performance information prior to March 1, 2022 reflects the performance of the Fund tracking the Prior High Yield Index.
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** The inception date of the High Yield Index and the Final High Yield Index was December 11, 2021.
1 On September 1, 2022, the ICE BofA Broad US Market Index replaced the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index as the Fund's broad-based benchmark index as the Adviser believes it is more representative of broad bond market exposure.
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Manager. The following individual is primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
James T. Colby III Portfolio Manager February 2009
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
For important information about the purchase and sale of Fund Shares, tax information and payments to broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries, please turn to the “Summary Information about Purchases and Sales of Fund Shares, Taxes and Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries” section of this Prospectus.
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SUMMARY INFORMATION
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE 
The investment objective of VanEck® HIP Sustainable Muni ETF (the “Fund”) is to seek current income generally exempt from federal income tax (other than federal alternative minimum tax (“AMT”)).
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fee 0.24  %
Other Expenses(a)
0.00  %
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(a)
0.24  %
(a) Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses of the Fund, except for the fee payment under the investment management agreement, acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, offering costs, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Adviser has agreed to pay the offering costs until at least September 1, 2023.
EXPENSE EXAMPLE
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell or hold all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% annual return 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:
YEAR EXPENSES
1 $25
3 $77
5 $135
10 $306
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund will pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the period from September 8, 2021 (the Fund’s commencement of operations) through April 30, 2022, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 11% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in investments the income from which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax (other than AMT). The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances, in investment grade municipal debt securities that fund issuers with operations or projects helping to promote progress towards sustainable development, in alignment with the goals and metrics defined by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (“SDGs”) 9, 11 and 12. The SDGs were adopted by the United Nations General Assembly to achieve sustainable development for all, and the specific goals of SDGs 9, 11 and 12 are as follows: SDG 9 is to “build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation,” SDG 11 is to “make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable” and SDG 12 is to “ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.” The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in securities that support sustainable development. The Adviser determines which operations or projects of issuers it believes to be supportive of sustainable
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development and that promote beneficial environmental and social outcomes in U.S. communities and cities by utilizing the rules-based investment approach described below. The Fund's policy to normally invest at least 80% of its total assets in securities that support sustainable development is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days' prior written notice to shareholders.
The Adviser primarily uses a rules-based investment approach which utilizes proprietary HIP (Human Impact + Profit) Ratings data for the application of impact criteria to security selection and portfolio management. HIP Ratings are produced and licensed from HIP Investor, Inc. (“HIP” or the “Data Provider”), which provides services to evaluate, rate and rank issuers and their securities based on data-driven, quantitative performance measures that demonstrate positive social, environmental and economic outcomes or mission accomplishment. The Adviser’s investment process begins by using HIP Ratings to screen municipal securities based on their SDGs 9, 11 and 12 ratings by HIP, Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) ratings by HIP and Climate-Threat and Resilience ratings by HIP. HIP Ratings are only assigned to the municipal securities of issuers where at least one qualified opportunity zone is located in the issuer’s region. An “opportunity zone” is an economically-distressed community where new investments, under certain conditions, may be eligible for preferential tax treatment based on certification from the Internal Revenue Service. HIP, as the Data Provider, analyzes multiple data points of municipal securities to determine an estimate of the impact (i.e., net benefit to the community) each municipal security provides. The HIP Ratings used by the Adviser seek to evaluate the impact of municipal securities with respect to the goals and metrics defined by SDGs 9, 11 and 12, climate resilience, and overall net benefit to people, planet, and prosperity. These HIP Ratings are used by the Adviser to narrow the universe of eligible Fund investments to municipal securities that, based on the HIP Ratings, the Adviser believes have been issued to fund operations or projects that support or advance sustainable development, as well as promote positive social and environmental outcomes. Such municipal debt securities may include, but are not limited to, bonds issued in connection with (i) new or revitalized infrastructure (i.e., roads, bridges, tunnels, buildings, transportation of people and freight, affordable and safe housing and redevelopment of urban areas (e.g., green spaces), school or campus upgrades and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (“LEED”) qualified real estate); (ii) information and education systems (i.e., schools, research, financial services, communication services and technologies and information services); (iii) healthier communities (i.e., hospitals, food and nutrition infrastructure, waste systems, air quality and environmental management systems); (iv) cleaner energy (i.e., utilities, resource and material use); (v) inclusive and sustainable industrialization towards increased gross domestic product (“GDP”); (vi) action and resilience planning and projects to mitigate the effects of climate change and other natural disasters and hazards; and (vii) ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns. The Adviser is not required to invest in any issuer rated by the Data Provider and the Data Provider is not acting as a sub-adviser to the Fund.
Municipal securities that the Fund may invest in include securities issued by U.S. states and municipal governments, any of their political subdivisions, agencies, or instrumentalities, or by U.S. territories and possessions, such as Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico, and their political subdivisions and public corporations. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the States of California and New York. The Fund does not expect to invest in non-investment grade (or “junk”) securities. The Fund may invest in debt securities of any maturity or duration and does not have a target maturity or duration. “Duration” is a measure of a debt security’s price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The longer the duration of a debt security, the more sensitive its market price is to changes in interest rates. The Fund seeks to reduce its exposure to credit risk by diversifying its assets among many municipal issuers and among the different types and maturities of municipal securities available.
The Fund’s investment policy to invest at least 80% of its total assets in investments the income from which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax (other than AMT) may not be changed without shareholder approval. The Fund may count investments that generate income subject to the AMT toward its 80% investment policy. For purposes of this policy, the term “assets” means net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes. This percentage limitation applies at the time of the investment.
The Fund is classified as a non-diversified fund under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”) and, therefore, may invest a greater percentage of its assets in a particular issuer.
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
Investors in the Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in the Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in the Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in the Fund.
Sustainable Impact Investing Strategy Risk. The Fund's strategy of investing in municipal debt securities of issuers promoting sustainable development may limit the types and number of investments available to the Fund or cause the Fund to invest in securities that underperform the market as a whole. As a result, the Fund may underperform funds that do not have a sustainable investing strategy or funds with sustainable investing strategies that do not employ HIP Ratings. In addition, the Fund relies on the Data Provider for the identification of issuers that promote sustainable development based on their HIP Ratings; however, there can be no guarantee that the Data Provider's methodology will align with the Fund's investment strategy or desirable issuers can
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be correctly identified. Moreover, SDGs 9, 11 and 12 may be modified or abandoned in the future and there can be no guarantee that the Fund will be able to continue to use HIP Ratings or find an appropriate substitute ratings system.
Municipal Securities Risk. Municipal securities are subject to the risk that litigation, legislation or other political events, local business or economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, or the bankruptcy of the issuer could have a significant effect on an issuer’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest or otherwise affect the value of such securities. Certain municipalities may have difficulty meeting their obligations due to, among other reasons, changes in underlying demographics. Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to government regulation, taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance similar projects, especially those relating to education, health care, transportation, utilities and water and sewer, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities include general obligation bonds, which are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. General obligation bonds generally are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source. Municipal securities also include revenue bonds, which are generally backed by revenue from a specific project or tax. The issuer of a revenue bond makes interest and principal payments from revenues generated from a particular source or facility, such as a tax on particular property or revenues generated from a municipal water or sewer utility or an airport. Revenue bonds generally are not backed by the full faith and credit and general taxing power of the issuer. The market for municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. There may be less information available on the financial condition of issuers of municipal securities than for public corporations. Municipal instruments may be susceptible to periods of economic stress, which could affect the market values and marketability of many or all municipal obligations of issuers in a state, U.S. territory, or possession. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly stressed the financial resources of many municipal issuers, which may impair a municipal issuer’s ability to meet its financial obligations when due and could adversely impact the value of its bonds, which could negatively impact the performance of the Fund.
Credit Risk. Bonds are subject to credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer or guarantor of a security will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt or to otherwise honor its obligations and/or default completely. Bonds are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities, which may be reflected in credit ratings. There is a possibility that the credit rating of a bond may be downgraded after purchase or the perception of an issuer’s credit worthiness may decline, which may adversely affect the value of the security.
Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds, are subject to interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a bond resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most debt securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most debt securities go up. Many factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation rates and general economic conditions. The prevailing historically low interest rate environment increases the risks associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions. In addition, debt securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes, usually making them more volatile than debt securities with shorter durations. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are enacting significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including providing direct capital infusions into companies, creating new monetary programs and lowering interest rates. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could increase if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes.
Call Risk. The Fund may invest in callable bonds. If interest rates fall, it is possible that issuers of callable securities will “call” (or prepay) their bonds before their maturity date. If a call were exercised by the issuer during or following a period of declining interest rates, the Fund is likely to have to replace such called security with a lower yielding security or securities with greater risks or other less favorable features. If that were to happen, it would decrease the Fund’s net investment income.
Data Risk. Given the complexity of the investments and strategies of the Fund, the Adviser relies heavily on quantitative models and information and data (“Data”). Data is used to construct sets of transactions and investments, and to provide risk management insights. When Data proves to be incorrect or incomplete, any decisions made in reliance thereon expose the Fund to potential risks.
California Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of California. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within California and by the financial condition of California’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
New York Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of New York. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within New York and by the financial condition of New York’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
Education Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of education bonds. In general, there are two types of education related bonds: those issued to finance projects for public and private colleges and universities, and those representing pooled interests in student loans. Bonds issued to supply
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educational institutions with funds are subject to the risk of unanticipated revenue decline, primarily the result of decreasing student enrollment or decreasing state and federal funding. Among the factors that may lead to declining or insufficient revenues are restrictions on students’ ability to pay tuition, availability of state and federal funding and general economic conditions. Student loan revenue bonds are generally offered by state (or substate) authorities or commissions and are backed by pools of student loans. Underlying student loans may be guaranteed by state guarantee agencies and may be subject to reimbursement by the United States Department of Education through its guaranteed student loan program. Others may be private, uninsured loans made to parents or students which are supported by reserves or other forms of credit enhancement. Recoveries of principal due to loan defaults may be applied to redemption of bonds or may be used to re-lend, depending on program latitude and demand for loans. Cash flows supporting student loan revenue bonds are impacted by numerous factors, including the rate of student loan defaults, seasoning of the loan portfolio and student repayment deferral periods of forbearance. Other risks associated with student loan revenue bonds include potential changes in federal legislation regarding student loan revenue bonds, state guarantee agency reimbursement and continued federal interest and other program subsidies currently in effect.
Health Care Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of health care bonds. The health care industry is subject to regulatory action by a number of private and governmental agencies, including federal, state and local governmental agencies. A major source of revenues for the health care industry is payments from Medicare and Medicaid programs. As a result, the industry is sensitive to legislative changes and reductions in governmental spending for such programs. Numerous other factors may also affect the industry and the value and credit quality of health care bonds, such as general and local economic conditions, demand for services, expenses (including malpractice insurance premiums) and competition among health care providers. The following elements may adversely affect health care facility operations: the implementation of national and/or state-specific health insurance exchanges; other national, state or local health care reform measures; medical and technological advances which dramatically alter the need for health services or the way in which such services are delivered; changes in medical coverage which alter the traditional fee-for-service revenue stream; efforts by employers, insurers, and governmental agencies to reduce the costs of health insurance and health care services; and increases and decreases in the cost and availability of medical products.
Housing Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of housing revenue bonds. Housing revenue bonds are generally issued by a state, county, city, local housing authority or other public agency. They generally are secured by the revenues derived from mortgages purchased with the proceeds of the bond issue. It is extremely difficult to predict the supply of available mortgages to be purchased with the proceeds of an issue or the future cash flow from the underlying mortgages. Consequently, there are risks that proceeds will exceed supply, resulting in early retirement of bonds, or that homeowner repayments will create an irregular cash flow. Many factors may affect the financing of multi-family housing projects, including acceptable completion of construction, proper management, occupancy and rent levels, economic conditions and changes to current laws and regulations.
Transportation Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of transportation bonds. Transportation debt may be issued to finance the construction of airports, toll roads, highways or other transit facilities. Airport bonds are dependent on the general stability of the airline industry and on the stability of a specific carrier who uses the airport as a hub. Air traffic generally follows broader economic trends and is also affected by the price and availability of fuel. Toll road bonds are also affected by the cost and availability of fuel as well as toll levels, the presence of competing roads and the general economic health of an area. Fuel costs and availability also affect other transportation related securities, as do the presence of alternate forms of transportation, such as public transportation. Municipal securities that are issued to finance a particular transportation project often depend solely on revenues from that project to make principal and interest payments. Adverse conditions and developments affecting a particular project may result in lower revenues to the issuer of the municipal securities.
Active Management Risk. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed ETF. In managing the Fund’s portfolio, the Adviser will apply investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there can be no guarantee that these will produce the desired results.
Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or system failures.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. The Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as Authorized Participants (“APs”), none of which are obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for Shares or Shares may trade like closed-end funds at a greater discount (or premium) to net asset value (“NAV”) and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. The AP concentration risk may be heightened in scenarios where APs have limited or diminished access to the capital required to post collateral.

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No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods in times of market stress because market makers and APs may step away from making a market in the Shares and in executing creation and redemption orders, which could cause a material deviation in the Fund’s market price from its NAV.
Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.
Market Risk. The prices of the securities in the Fund are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. An investment in the Fund may lose money.
Fund Shares Trading, Premium/Discount Risk and Liquidity of Fund Shares. The market price of the Shares may fluctuate in response to the Fund’s NAV, the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The Adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade above, below, or at their most recent NAV. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares that were bought or sold or the shareholder may be unable to sell his or her Shares. The securities held by the Fund may be traded in markets that close at a different time than the Exchange. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when the Exchange is open but after the applicable market closing, fixing or settlement times, bid/ask spreads on the Exchange and the resulting premium or discount to the Shares’ NAV may widen. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell Shares. Investors should consult their financial intermediaries before purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
Non-Diversified Risk. The Fund is classified as a “non-diversified” fund under the 1940 Act. Therefore, the Fund may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a smaller number of issuers or may invest a larger proportion of its assets in a single issuer. Moreover, the gains and losses on a single investment may have a greater impact on the Fund’s NAV and may make the Fund more volatile than more diversified funds.
State Concentration Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in a particular state or states. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within the state or states and by the financial condition of the state's or states' political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
PERFORMANCE
The Fund commenced operations on September 8, 2021 and therefore does not have a performance history for a full calendar year. The Fund’s financial performance for the Fund’s first fiscal period is included in the “Financial Highlights” section of the Prospectus. Visit www.vaneck.com for current performance figures.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Managers. The following individuals are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
James T. Colby III Portfolio Manager August 2021
Stephanie Wang Deputy Portfolio Manager August 2021



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PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
For important information about the purchase and sale of Fund Shares, tax information and payments to broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries, please turn to the “Summary Information About Purchases and Sales of Fund Shares, Taxes and Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries” section of this Prospectus.
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SUMMARY INFORMATION
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
VanEck® Intermediate Muni ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the ICE Intermediate AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index (the “Intermediate Index”).
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fee 0.24  %
Other Expenses(a)
0.00  %
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(a)
0.24  %
(a)    Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses of the Fund, except for the fee payment under the investment management agreement, acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, offering costs, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Adviser has agreed to pay the offering costs until at least September 1, 2023.
EXPENSE EXAMPLE
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell or hold all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% annual return 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:
YEAR EXPENSES
1 $25 
3 $77 
5 $135 
10 $306 
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund will pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 4% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in fixed income securities that comprise the Intermediate Index. The Intermediate Index is comprised of publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar denominated intermediate term tax-exempt bond market. This 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days' prior written notice to shareholders.
The Fund has adopted a fundamental investment policy to invest at least 80% of its assets in municipal securities. Such policy cannot be changed without a shareholder vote. For purposes of this policy, the term “assets” means net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes. This percentage limitation applies at the time of the investment.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Intermediate Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does
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not try to “beat” the Intermediate Index and does not take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the Intermediate Index. Because of the practical difficulties and expense of purchasing all of the securities in the Intermediate Index, the Fund does not purchase all of the securities in the Intermediate Index. Instead, the Adviser utilizes a “sampling” methodology in seeking to achieve the Fund’s objective. As such, the Fund may purchase a subset of the bonds in the Intermediate Index in an effort to hold a portfolio of bonds with generally the same risk and return characteristics of the Intermediate Index.
The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Intermediate Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. As of April 30, 2022, the Intermediate Index had 22,848 component securities and the special tax (i.e., revenue bonds backed by a specific tax) sector represented a significant portion of the Intermediate Index. The Intermediate Index is rebalanced on the last calendar day of the month.
Prior to the selection of the Intermediate Index, the Fund tracked the Bloomberg AMT-Free Intermediate Continuous Municipal Index (the “Prior Intermediate Index”). The Fund began tracking the Intermediate Index on March 1, 2022. The Intermediate Index is an interim index that gradually increases exposure to securities based on their weightings in the ICE Intermediate AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index (the “Final Intermediate Index”) while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Prior Intermediate Index. The Fund is expected to begin tracking the Final Intermediate Index on December 1, 2022.
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
Investors in the Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in the Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in the Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in the Fund.
Municipal Securities Risk. Municipal securities are subject to the risk that litigation, legislation or other political events, local business or economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, or the bankruptcy of the issuer could have a significant effect on an issuer’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest or otherwise affect the value of such securities. Certain municipalities may have difficulty meeting their obligations due to, among other reasons, changes in underlying demographics. Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to government regulation, taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance similar projects, especially those relating to education, health care, transportation, utilities and water and sewer, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities include general obligation bonds, which are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. General obligation bonds generally are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source. Municipal securities also include revenue bonds, which are generally backed by revenue from a specific project or tax. The issuer of a revenue bond makes interest and principal payments from revenues generated from a particular source or facility, such as a tax on particular property or revenues generated from a municipal water or sewer utility or an airport. Revenue bonds generally are not backed by the full faith and credit and general taxing power of the issuer. The market for municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. There may be less information available on the financial condition of issuers of municipal securities than for public corporations. Municipal instruments may be susceptible to periods of economic stress, which could affect the market values and marketability of many or all municipal obligations of issuers in a state, U.S. territory, or possession. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly stressed the financial resources of many municipal issuers, which may impair a municipal issuer’s ability to meet its financial obligations when due and could adversely impact the value of its bonds, which could negatively impact the performance of the Fund.
Credit Risk. Bonds are subject to credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer or guarantor of a security will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt or to otherwise honor its obligations and/or default completely. Bonds are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities, which may be reflected in credit ratings. There is a possibility that the credit rating of a bond may be downgraded after purchase or the perception of an issuer’s credit worthiness may decline, which may adversely affect the value of the security.
Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds, are subject to interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a bond resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most debt securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most debt securities go up. Many factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation rates and general economic conditions. The prevailing historically low interest rate environment increases the risks associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions. In addition, debt securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes, usually making them more volatile than debt securities with shorter durations. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are enacting significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including providing direct capital infusions into companies, creating new
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monetary programs and lowering interest rates. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could increase if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes.
Call Risk. The Fund may invest in callable bonds. If interest rates fall, it is possible that issuers of callable securities will “call” (or prepay) their bonds before their maturity date. If a call were exercised by the issuer during or following a period of declining interest rates, the Fund is likely to have to replace such called security with a lower yielding security or securities with greater risks or other less favorable features. If that were to happen, it would decrease the Fund’s net investment income.
California Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of California. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within California and by the financial condition of California’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
New York Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of New York. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within New York and by the financial condition of New York’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
Special Tax Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of special tax bonds. Special tax bonds are usually backed and payable through a single tax, or series of special taxes such as incremental property taxes. The failure of the tax levy to generate adequate revenue to pay the debt service on the bonds may cause the value of the bonds to decline. Adverse conditions and developments affecting a particular project may result in lower revenues to the issuer of the municipal securities, which may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
Market Risk. The prices of the securities in the Fund are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. An investment in the Fund may lose money.
Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or system failures.
Sampling Risk. The Fund’s use of a representative sampling approach will result in its holding a smaller number of securities than are in the Intermediate Index. As a result, an adverse development respecting an issuer of securities held by the Fund could result in a greater decline in net asset value (“NAV”) than would be the case if the Fund held all of the securities in the Intermediate Index. Conversely, a positive development relating to an issuer of securities in the Intermediate Index that is not held by the Fund could cause the Fund to underperform the Intermediate Index. To the extent the assets in the Fund are smaller, these risks will be greater.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Intermediate Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the Intermediate Index and incurs costs associated with buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Intermediate Index or (to the extent the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) raising cash to meet redemptions or deploying cash in connection with newly created Creation Units (defined herein), which are not factored into the return of the Intermediate Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s NAV to the extent not offset by the transaction fee payable by an Authorized Participant (“AP”). Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Intermediate Index. Errors in the Intermediate Index data, Intermediate Index computations and/or the construction of the Intermediate Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Intermediate Index provider for a period of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its shareholders. Shareholders should understand that any gains from the Intermediate Index provider's errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the Intermediate Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. When the Intermediate Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Intermediate Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. In addition, the Fund's use of a representative sampling approach may cause the fund to not be as well correlated with the return of the Intermediate Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all of the securities in the Intermediate Index in the proportions in which they are represented in the Intermediate Index. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Intermediate Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Intermediate Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Intermediate Index provider or its agents to the Intermediate Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the Intermediate Index due to certain listing standards of the Fund's listing exchange (the “Exchange”) or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying securities and/or currencies, and/
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or other assets based on fair value prices. When markets are volatile, the ability to sell securities at fair value prices may be adversely impacted and may result in additional trading costs and/or increase the index tracking risk. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of the Intermediate Index. In addition, sale of securities may result in the recognition of accrued market discount and/or net realized gains for tax purposes, which may result in taxable distributions to shareholders. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Intermediate Index. Changes to the composition of the Intermediate Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Intermediate Index may cause the Fund to experience increased volatility, during which time the Fund’s index tracking risk may be heightened.
The Intermediate Index will gradually increase exposure to securities based on their weightings in the Final Intermediate Index while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Prior Intermediate Index. These adjustments to the Fund's portfolio holdings are expected to increase the Fund's transaction costs and turnover rate.
Tax Risk. There is no guarantee that the Fund’s income will be exempt from U.S. federal or state income taxes. Events occurring after the date of issuance of a municipal bond or after the Fund’s acquisition of a municipal bond may result in a determination that interest on that bond is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes retroactively to its date of issuance. Such a determination may cause a portion of prior distributions by the Fund to its shareholders to be taxable to those shareholders in the year of receipt. Federal or state changes in income or alternative minimum tax rates or in the tax treatment of municipal bonds may make municipal bonds less attractive as investments and cause them to lose value.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. The Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as APs, none of which are obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for Shares or Shares may trade like closed-end funds at a greater discount (or premium) to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. The AP concentration risk may be heightened in scenarios where APs have limited or diminished access to the capital required to post collateral.
No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods in times of market stress because market makers and APs may step away from making a market in the Shares and in executing creation and redemption orders, which could cause a material deviation in the Fund’s market price from its NAV.
Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.
Passive Management Risk. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund invested in bonds, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. However, because the Fund is not “actively” managed, unless a specific security is removed from the Intermediate Index, the Fund generally would not sell a security because the security’s issuer was in financial trouble. Additionally, unusual market conditions may cause the Intermediate Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the Intermediate Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. Therefore, the Fund’s performance could be lower than funds that may actively shift their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.
Fund Shares Trading, Premium/Discount Risk and Liquidity of Fund Shares. The market price of the Shares may fluctuate in response to the Fund’s NAV, the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The Adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade above, below, or at their most recent NAV. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares that were bought or sold or the shareholder may be unable to sell his or her Shares. The securities held by the Fund may be traded in markets that close at a different time than the Exchange. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when the Exchange is open but after the applicable market closing, fixing or settlement times, bid-ask spreads on the Exchange and the resulting premium or discount to the Shares’ NAV may widen. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell Shares. Investors should consult their financial intermediaries before purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
24

Concentration Risk. The Fund’s assets may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries to the extent the Intermediate Index concentrates in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. To the extent that the Fund is concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries, the Fund will be subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on those sectors and/or industries may negatively impact the Fund to a greater extent than if the Fund’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
PERFORMANCE
The bar chart that follows shows how the Fund performed for the calendar years shown. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by comparing the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual returns for the one year, five year, ten year and/or since inception periods, as applicable, compared with the Fund’s benchmark index and a broad measure of market performance. Prior to March 1, 2022, the Fund sought to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Prior Intermediate Index. Therefore, performance information prior to March 1, 2022 reflects the performance of the Fund tracking the Prior Intermediate Index. On December 1, 2022, the Fund is expected to begin tracking the Final Intermediate Index. All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily indicative of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.vaneck.com.
Annual Total Returns (%)—Calendar Years
ck0001137360-20220430_g16.jpg
The year-to-date total return as of June 30, 2022 was -10.73%.
Best Quarter: 3.56% 1Q 2019
Worst Quarter: -5.13% 4Q 2016
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2021
The after-tax returns presented in the table below are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Your actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from those shown below. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Shares of the Fund through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
25


Past
One Year
Past
Five Years
Past
Ten Years
VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF
(return before taxes)*
0.91% 4.29% 3.56%
VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF
(return after taxes on distributions)
0.88% 4.27% 3.55%
VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF
(return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares)
1.32% 3.82% 3.30%
Bloomberg AMT-Free Intermediate Continuous Municipal Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)

1.28% 4.82% 4.17%
ICE Intermediate AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)**
ICE Intermediate AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)**
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.54% 3.57% 2.90%
ICE BofA Broad US Market Index1 (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.58% 3.63% 2.97%
* Prior to March 1, 2022, the Fund sought to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Prior Intermediate Index. Therefore, performance information prior to March 1, 2022 reflects the performance of the Fund tracking the Prior Intermediate Index.
** The inception date of the Intermediate Index and the Final Intermediate Index was December 11, 2021.
1 On September 1, 2022, the ICE BofA Broad US Market Index replaced the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index as the Fund's broad-based benchmark index as the Adviser believes it is more representative of broad bond market exposure.
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Manager. The following individual is primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
James T. Colby III Portfolio Manager December 2007
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
For important information about the purchase and sale of Fund Shares, tax information, and payments to broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries, please turn to the “Summary Information about Purchases and Sales of Fund Shares, Taxes and Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries” section of this Prospectus.
26

SUMMARY INFORMATION
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
VanEck® Long Muni ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the ICE Long AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index (the “Long Index”).
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fee 0.24  %
Other Expenses(a)
0.00  %
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(a)
0.24  %
(a)    Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses of the Fund, except for the fee payment under the investment management agreement, acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, offering costs, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Adviser has agreed to pay the offering costs until at least September 1, 2023.
EXPENSE EXAMPLE
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell or hold all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% annual return 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:
YEAR EXPENSES
1 $25 
3 $77 
5 $135 
10 $306 
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund will pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 7% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in fixed income securities that comprise the Long Index. The Long Index is comprised of publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar denominated long-term tax-exempt bond market. This 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days' prior written notice to shareholders.
The Fund has adopted a fundamental investment policy to invest at least 80% of its assets in municipal securities. Such policy cannot be changed without a shareholder vote. For purposes of this policy, the term “assets” means net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes. This percentage limitation applies at the time of the investment.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Long Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try to
27


“beat” the Long Index and does not take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the Long Index. Because of the practical difficulties and expense of purchasing all of the securities in the Long Index, the Fund does not purchase all of the securities in the Long Index. Instead, the Adviser utilizes a “sampling” methodology in seeking to achieve the Fund’s objective. As such, the Fund may purchase a subset of the bonds in the Long Index in an effort to hold a portfolio of bonds with generally the same risk and return characteristics of the Long Index.
The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Long Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. As of April 30, 2022, the Long Index had 10,866 component securities and health care and the special tax (i.e. revenue bonds backed by a special tax) sectors represented a significant portion of the Long Index. The Long Index is rebalanced on the last calendar day of the month.
Prior to the selection of the Long Index, the Fund tracked the Bloomberg AMT-Free Long Continuous Municipal Index (the “Prior Long Index”). The Fund began tracking the Long Index on March 1, 2022. The Long Index is an interim index that gradually increases exposure to securities based on their weightings in the ICE Long AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index (the “Final Long Index”) while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Prior Long Index. The Fund is expected to begin tracking the Final Long Index on December 1, 2022.
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
Investors in the Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in the Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in the Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in the Fund.
Municipal Securities Risk. Municipal securities are subject to the risk that litigation, legislation or other political events, local business or economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, or the bankruptcy of the issuer could have a significant effect on an issuer’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest or otherwise affect the value of such securities. Certain municipalities may have difficulty meeting their obligations due to, among other reasons, changes in underlying demographics. Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to government regulation, taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance similar projects, especially those relating to education, health care, transportation, utilities and water and sewer, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities include general obligation bonds, which are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. General obligation bonds generally are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source. Municipal securities also include revenue bonds, which are generally backed by revenue from a specific project or tax. The issuer of a revenue bond makes interest and principal payments from revenues generated from a particular source or facility, such as a tax on particular property or revenues generated from a municipal water or sewer utility or an airport. Revenue bonds generally are not backed by the full faith and credit and general taxing power of the issuer. The market for municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. There may be less information available on the financial condition of issuers of municipal securities than for public corporations. Municipal instruments may be susceptible to periods of economic stress, which could affect the market values and marketability of many or all municipal obligations of issuers in a state, U.S. territory, or possession. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly stressed the financial resources of many municipal issuers, which may impair a municipal issuer’s ability to meet its financial obligations when due and could adversely impact the value of its bonds, which could negatively impact the performance of the Fund.
Credit Risk. Bonds are subject to credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer or guarantor of a security will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt or to otherwise honor its obligations and/or default completely. Bonds are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities, which may be reflected in credit ratings. There is a possibility that the credit rating of a bond may be downgraded after purchase or the perception of an issuer’s credit worthiness may decline, which may adversely affect the value of the security.
Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds, are subject to interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a bond resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most debt securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most debt securities go up. Many factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation rates and general economic conditions. The prevailing historically low interest rate environment increases the risks associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions. In addition, debt securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes, usually making them more volatile than debt securities with shorter durations. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are enacting significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including providing direct capital infusions into companies, creating new monetary programs and lowering interest rates. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could increase if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes.
28

California Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of California. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within California and by the financial condition of California’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
New York Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of New York. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within New York and by the financial condition of New York’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
Texas Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of Texas. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within Texas and by the financial condition of Texas’ political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
Call Risk. The Fund may invest in callable bonds. If interest rates fall, it is possible that issuers of callable securities will “call” (or prepay) their bonds before their maturity date. If a call were exercised by the issuer during or following a period of declining interest rates, the Fund is likely to have to replace such called security with a lower yielding security or securities with greater risks or other less favorable features. If that were to happen, it would decrease the Fund’s net investment income.
Health Care Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of health care bonds. The health care industry is subject to regulatory action by a number of private and governmental agencies, including federal, state and local governmental agencies. A major source of revenues for the health care industry is payments from Medicare and Medicaid programs. As a result, the industry is sensitive to legislative changes and reductions in governmental spending for such programs. Numerous other factors may also affect the industry and the value and credit quality of health care bonds, such as general and local economic conditions, demand for services, expenses (including malpractice insurance premiums) and competition among health care providers. The following elements may adversely affect health care facility operations: the implementation of national and/or state-specific health insurance exchanges; other national, state or local health care reform measures; medical and technological advances which dramatically alter the need for health services or the way in which such services are delivered; changes in medical coverage which alter the traditional fee-for-service revenue stream; efforts by employers, insurers, and governmental agencies to reduce the costs of health insurance and health care services; and increases and decreases in the cost and availability of medical products.
Special Tax Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of special tax bonds. Special tax bonds are usually backed and payable through a single tax, or series of special taxes such as incremental property taxes. The failure of the tax levy to generate adequate revenue to pay the debt service on the bonds may cause the value of the bonds to decline. Adverse conditions and developments affecting a particular project may result in lower revenues to the issuer of the municipal securities, which may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
Market Risk. The prices of the securities in the Fund are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. An investment in the Fund may lose money.
Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or system failures.
Sampling Risk. The Fund’s use of a representative sampling approach will result in its holding a smaller number of securities than are in the Long Index. As a result, an adverse development respecting an issuer of securities held by the Fund could result in a greater decline in net asset value (“NAV”) than would be the case if the Fund held all of the securities in the Long Index. Conversely, a positive development relating to an issuer of securities in the Long Index that is not held by the Fund could cause the Fund to underperform the Long Index. To the extent the assets in the Fund are smaller, these risks will be greater.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Long Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the Long Index and incurs costs associated with buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Long Index or (to the extent the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) raising cash to meet redemptions or deploying cash in connection with newly created Creation Units (defined herein), which are not factored into the return of the Long Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s NAV to the extent not offset by the transaction fee payable by an Authorized Participant (“AP”). Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Long Index. Errors in the Long Index data, Long Index computations and/or the construction of the Long Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Long Index provider for a period of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its shareholders. Shareholders should understand that any gains from the Long Index provider's errors will
29


be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the Long Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. When the Long Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Long Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. In addition, the Fund's use of a representative sampling approach may cause the fund to not be as well correlated with the return of the Long Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all of the securities in the Long Index in the proportions in which they are represented in the Long Index. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Long Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Long Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Long Index provider or its agents to the Long Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the Long Index due to certain listing standards of the Fund's listing exchange (the “Exchange”) or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying securities and/or currencies, and/or other assets based on fair value prices. When markets are volatile, the ability to sell securities at fair value prices may be adversely impacted and may result in additional trading costs and/or increase the index tracking risk. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of the Long Index. In addition, sale of securities may result in the recognition of accrued market discount and/or net realized gains for tax purposes, which may result in taxable distributions to shareholders. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Long Index. Changes to the composition of the Long Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Long Index may cause the Fund to experience increased volatility, during which time the Fund’s index tracking risk may be heightened.
The Long Index will gradually increase exposure to securities based on their weightings in the Final Long Index while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Prior Long Index. These adjustments to the Fund's portfolio holdings are expected to increase the Fund's transaction costs and turnover rate.
Tax Risk. There is no guarantee that the Fund’s income will be exempt from U.S. federal or state income taxes. Events occurring after the date of issuance of a municipal bond or after the Fund’s acquisition of a municipal bond may result in a determination that interest on that bond is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes retroactively to its date of issuance. Such a determination may cause a portion of prior distributions by the Fund to its shareholders to be taxable to those shareholders in the year of receipt. Federal or state changes in income or alternative minimum tax rates or in the tax treatment of municipal bonds may make municipal bonds less attractive as investments and cause them to lose value.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. The Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as APs, none of which are obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for Shares or Shares may trade like closed-end funds at a greater discount (or premium) to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. The AP concentration risk may be heightened in scenarios where APs have limited or diminished access to the capital required to post collateral.
No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods in times of market stress because market makers and APs may step away from making a market in the Shares and in executing creation and redemption orders, which could cause a material deviation in the Fund’s market price from its NAV.
Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.
Passive Management Risk. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund invested in bonds, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. However, because the Fund is not “actively” managed, unless a specific security is removed from the Long Index, the Fund generally would not sell a security because the security’s issuer was in financial trouble. Additionally, unusual market conditions may cause the Long Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the Long Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. Therefore, the Fund’s performance could be lower than funds that may actively shift their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.
Fund Shares Trading, Premium/Discount Risk and Liquidity of Fund Shares. The market price of the Shares may fluctuate in response to the Fund’s NAV, the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The Adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade above, below, or at their most recent NAV. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells
30

Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares that were bought or sold or the shareholder may be unable to sell his or her Shares. The securities held by the Fund may be traded in markets that close at a different time than the Exchange. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when the Exchange is open but after the applicable market closing, fixing or settlement times, bid-ask spreads on the Exchange and the resulting premium or discount to the Shares’ NAV may widen. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell Shares. Investors should consult their financial intermediaries before purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
Concentration Risk. The Fund’s assets may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries to the extent the Long Index concentrates in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. To the extent that the Fund is concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries, the Fund will be subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on those sectors and/or industries may negatively impact the Fund to a greater extent than if the Fund’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
PERFORMANCE
The bar chart that follows shows how the Fund performed for the calendar years shown. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by comparing the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual returns for the one year, five year, ten year and/or since inception periods, as applicable, compared with the Fund’s benchmark index and a broad measure of market performance. Prior to March 1, 2022, the Fund sought to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Prior Long Index. Therefore, performance information prior to March 1, 2022 reflects the performance of the Fund tracking the Prior Long Index. On December 1, 2022, the Fund is expected to begin tracking the Final Long Index. All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily indicative of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.vaneck.com.
Annual Total Returns (%)—Calendar Years
ck0001137360-20220430_g17.jpg

The year-to-date total return as of June 30, 2022 was -16.56%.
Best Quarter: 6.69% 1Q 2014
Worst Quarter: -6.22% 4Q 2016
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2021
The after-tax returns presented in the table below are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Your actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from those shown below. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Shares of the Fund through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
31


Past
One Year
Past
Five Years
Past
Ten Years
VanEck Long Muni ETF
(return before taxes)*
2.61% 5.30% 4.75%
VanEck Long Muni ETF
(return after taxes on distributions)
2.49% 5.27% 4.74%
VanEck Long Muni ETF
(return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares)
2.62% 4.77% 4.45%
Bloomberg AMT-Free Long Continuous Municipal Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
3.01% 5.87% 5.49%
ICE Long AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)**
ICE Long AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)**
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.54% 3.57% 2.90%
ICE BofA Broad US Market Index1 (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.58% 3.63% 2.97%
* Prior to March 1, 2022, the Fund sought to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Prior Long Index. Therefore, performance information prior to March 1, 2022 reflects the performance of the Fund tracking the Prior Long Index.
** The inception date of the Long Index and the Final Long Index was December 11, 2021.
1 On September 1, 2022, the ICE BofA Broad US Market Index replaced the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index as the Fund's broad-based benchmark index as the Adviser believes it is more representative of broad bond market exposure.
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Manager. The following individual is primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
James T. Colby III Portfolio Manager January 2008
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
For important information about the purchase and sale of Fund Shares, tax information and payments to broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries, please turn to the “Summary Information about Purchases and Sales of Fund Shares, Taxes and Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries” section of this Prospectus.










32

SUMMARY INFORMATION
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE 
The investment objective of VanEck® Muni Allocation ETF (the “Fund”) is maximum long-term after-tax return, consisting of capital appreciation and income generally exempt from federal income tax (other than federal alternative minimum tax (“AMT”)).
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fee 0.08  %
Other Expenses(a)
0.00  %
Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses (b)
0.25  %
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(a)
0.33  %
(a)Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses of the Fund, except for the fee payment under the investment management agreement, acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, offering costs, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Adviser has agreed to pay the offering costs until at least September 1, 2023.
(b)"Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses” reflect the Fund’s pro rata portion of the expenses charged by other investment companies in which the Fund invests, including VanEck exchange-traded funds and funds which invest exclusively in money market instruments. Because Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses are not borne directly by the Fund, they will not be reflected in the expense information in the Fund’s financial statements and the information presented in the table will differ from that presented in the Fund’s financial highlights included in the Fund’s reports to shareholders.
EXPENSE EXAMPLE
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell or hold all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% annual return 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:
YEAR EXPENSES
1 $34 
3 $106 
5 $185 
10 $418 
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund will pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 98% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in investments the income from which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax (other than AMT). The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances, primarily in VanEck ETFs that are registered under the applicable federal securities laws and that invest in publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar-denominated
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investment grade and below investment grade (high yield or "junk" bonds) tax-exempt bond market. While the Adviser currently anticipates that the Fund will invest primarily in other VanEck ETFs, the Fund may also invest in unaffiliated exchange-traded products ("ETPs"), which could include ETFs and closed-end funds, that invest in municipal bonds. The Fund does not have any limits on its investments in below investment grade securities ("junk" bonds), and the Fund will have indirect exposure to below investment grade securities through its investments in ETPs. The Fund’s investment policy to invest at least 80% of its total assets in investments the income from which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax (other than AMT) may not be changed without shareholder approval. The Fund may count investments that generate income subject to the AMT toward its 80% investment policy. For purposes of this policy, the term “assets” means net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes. This percentage limitation applies at the time of the investment.
The Adviser primarily uses a proprietary, rules-based allocation model (the “Municipal Allocation Model”), which considers various inputs to guide asset allocation decisions and select ETPs that provide exposure to tax-exempt investments and that the Adviser believes will offer enhanced risk-adjusted returns. The term “risk-adjusted returns” does not imply that the Adviser employs low-risk strategies or that an investment in the Fund should be considered a low-risk or no risk investment. The Municipal Allocation Model uses various indicators to generate allocation signals among tax-exempt investments. These signals are used as inputs to determine ETP allocation and individual portfolio weights.
The Municipal Allocation Model utilizes various indicators to identify periods of credit and duration risk. These indicators measure various risk metrics, which include but are not limited to, market prices and trends, volatility (i.e., the measure of historic and/or predicted future variation of returns for a given security or market index), yield spreads (i.e., the difference between yields on differing fixed income securities of varying maturities, credit ratings and risk), and relative yield ratios (i.e., the yield on a security relative to the yield on a benchmark security). The Adviser anticipates that the Municipal Allocation Model will evolve over time and may incorporate additional indicators and/or remove or modify existing indicators.
The Adviser allocates the Fund’s assets to those ETPs that it believes will have returns that, in the aggregate, closely correlate (before fees and expenses) to the returns of the Municipal Allocation Model. The Municipal Allocation Model typically adjusts its allocation signals on a monthly basis, and the Adviser may adjust the Fund's portfolio allocation as needed in response to such changes in the Municipal Allocation Model. The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of portfolio securities.
The Fund is classified as a non-diversified fund under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”) and, therefore, may invest a greater percentage of its assets in a particular issuer.
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
Investors in the Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in the Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in the Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in the Fund.
Fund of Funds Risk. The performance of the Fund is dependent on the performance of underlying funds. The Fund is subject to the risks of the underlying funds’ investments. In addition, the Fund’s shareholders will indirectly bear the expenses of the underlying funds, absorbing duplicative levels of fees with respect to investments in the underlying funds. In addition, at times certain segments of the market represented by the underlying funds may be out of favor and underperform other segments.
Risk of ETPs. The Fund may be subject to the following risks as a result of its investments in ETPs:
Municipal Securities Risk. Municipal securities are subject to the risk that litigation, legislation or other political events, local business or economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, or the bankruptcy of the issuer could have a significant effect on an issuer’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest or otherwise affect the value of such securities. Certain municipalities may have difficulty meeting their obligations due to, among other reasons, changes in underlying demographics. Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to government regulation, taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance similar projects, especially those relating to education, health care, transportation, utilities and water and sewer, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. In addition, changes in the financial condition of an individual municipal insurer can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities include general obligation bonds, which are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. General obligation bonds generally are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source. Municipal securities also include revenue bonds, which are generally backed by revenue from a specific project or tax. The issuer of a revenue bond makes interest and principal payments from revenues generated from a particular source or facility, such as a tax on particular property or revenues generated from a municipal water or sewer utility or an airport. Revenue bonds generally are not backed by the full faith and credit and general taxing power of the issuer. The market for municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. The value and liquidity of
34

many municipal securities have decreased as a result of the past financial crises, which has also adversely affected many municipal securities issuers and may continue to do so. There may be less information available on the financial condition of issuers of municipal securities than for public corporations. Municipal instruments may be susceptible to periods of economic stress, which could affect the market values and marketability of many or all municipal obligations of issuers in a state, U.S. territory, or possession. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly stressed the financial resources of many municipal issuers, which may impair a municipal issuer’s ability to meet its financial obligations when due and could adversely impact the value of its bonds, which could negatively impact the performance of the Fund.
Credit Risk. Debt securities are subject to credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer or guarantor of a security will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt or to otherwise honor its obligations and/or default completely on securities. Debt securities are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities, which may be reflected in credit ratings. There is a possibility that the credit rating of a debt security may be downgraded after purchase or the perception of an issuer’s credit worthiness may decline, which may adversely affect the value of the security.
High Yield Securities Risk. Securities rated below investment grade are commonly referred to as high yield securities or “junk bonds.” High yield securities are often issued by issuers that are restructuring, are smaller or less creditworthy than other issuers, or are more highly indebted than other issuers. High yield securities are subject to greater risk of loss of income and principal than higher rated securities and are considered speculative. The prices of high yield securities are likely to be more sensitive to adverse economic changes or individual issuer developments than higher rated securities. During an economic downturn or substantial period of rising interest rates, issuers of high yield securities may experience financial stress that would adversely affect their ability to service their principal and interest payment obligations, to meet their projected business goals or to obtain additional financing. In the event of a default, an ETP may incur additional expenses to seek recovery. The secondary market for securities that are high yield securities may be less liquid than the markets for higher quality securities and high yield securities issued by non-corporate issuers may be less liquid than high yield securities issued by corporate issuers, which, in either instance, may have an adverse effect on the market prices of and an ETP’s ability to arrive at a fair value for certain securities. The illiquidity of the market also could make it difficult for an ETP to sell certain securities in connection with a rebalancing of its index, if applicable. In addition, periods of economic uncertainty and change may result in an increased volatility of market prices of high yield securities and a corresponding volatility in an ETP’s NAV.
Tax Risk. There is no guarantee that an ETP’s income will be exempt from U.S. federal or state income taxes. Events occurring after the date of issuance of a municipal bond or after the ETP’s acquisition of a municipal bond may result in a determination that interest on that bond is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes retroactively to its date of issuance. Such a determination may cause a portion of prior distributions by the ETP to its shareholders to be taxable to those shareholders in the year of receipt. Federal or state changes in income or alternative minimum tax rates or in the tax treatment of municipal bonds may make municipal bonds less attractive as investments and cause them to lose value.
Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds, are subject to interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a bond resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most debt securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most debt securities go up. Many factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation rates and general economic conditions. The prevailing historically low interest rate environment increases the risks associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions. In addition, debt securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes, usually making them more volatile than debt securities with shorter durations. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are enacting significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including providing direct capital infusions into companies, creating new monetary programs and lowering interest rates. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could increase if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes.
Call Risk. An ETP may invest in callable debt securities. If interest rates fall, it is possible that issuers of callable securities will “call” (or prepay) their debt securities before their maturity date. If a call were exercised by the issuer during or following a period of declining interest rates, the ETP is likely to have to replace such called security with a lower yielding security or securities with greater risks or other less favorable features. If that were to happen, it would decrease the ETP’s net investment income.
State Concentration Risk. Certain of the ETPs may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of     issuers located in a particular state or states. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within the state or states and by the financial condition of the state's or states' political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.

35

Concentration Risk. Certain of the ETPs may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. To the extent that an ETP is concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries, the ETP will be subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on those sectors and/or industry or groups of industries may negatively impact the ETP to a greater extent than if the ETP’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
High Portfolio Turnover Risk. The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of its portfolio securities. High portfolio turnover 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. High portfolio turnover may also result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account.
Model and Data Risk. Given the complexity of the investments and strategies of the Fund, the Adviser relies heavily on quantitative models and information and data (“Models and Data”). Models and Data are used to construct sets of transactions and investments, and to provide risk management insights. When Models and Data prove to be incorrect or incomplete, any decisions made in reliance thereon expose the Fund to potential risks.
Active Management Risk. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed ETF. In managing the Fund’s portfolio, the Adviser will apply investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Fund, but there can be no guarantee that these will produce the desired results.
Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or system failures.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. The Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as APs, none of which are obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for Shares or Shares may trade like closed-end funds at a greater discount (or premium) to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. The AP concentration risk may be heightened in scenarios where APs have limited or diminished access to the capital required to post collateral.
No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods in times of market stress because market makers and APs may step away from making a market in the Shares and in executing creation and redemption orders, which could cause a material deviation in the Fund’s market price from its NAV.
Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.
Market Risk. Both the Fund and the ETPs in which the Fund may invest are subject to market risk. The prices of the securities in the Fund or an ETP are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. An investment in the Fund or an ETP may lose money.
Fund Shares Trading, Premium/Discount Risk and Liquidity of Fund Shares. The market price of the Shares may fluctuate in response to the Fund’s NAV, the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The Adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade above, below, or at their most recent NAV. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares that were bought or sold, or the shareholder may be unable to sell his or her Shares. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell Shares. Investors should consult their financial intermediaries before purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
PERFORMANCE
The bar chart that follows shows how the Fund performed for the calendar years shown. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by comparing the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual returns for
36

the one year, five year, ten year and/or since inception periods, as applicable, compared with the Fund’s broad-based benchmark index. All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily indicative of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.vaneck.com.
Annual Total Returns (%)—Calendar Yearsck0001137360-20220430_g18.jpg
The year-to-date total return as of June 30, 2022 was -12.67%.
Best Quarter: 5.57% 2Q 2020
Worst Quarter: -9.03% 1Q 2020
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2021
The after-tax returns presented in the table below are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Your actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from those shown below. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Shares of the Fund through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
Past One Year
Since Inception (05/15/2019)
VanEck Muni Allocation ETF
(return before taxes)
2.30% 2.32%
VanEck Muni Allocation ETF
(return after taxes on distributions)
2.29% 2.28%
VanEck Muni Allocation ETF
(return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares)
2.48% 2.37%
Bloomberg Municipal Bond Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
1.52% 3.75%
ICE BofA Broad Municipal Index1
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
1.56% 3.64%
1 On September 1, 2022, the ICE BofA Broad Municipal Index replaced the Bloomberg Municipal Bond Index as the Fund's primary performance benchmark index as the Adviser believes it is more representative of broad tax-exempt market exposure.
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
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Portfolio Managers. The following individuals are primarily and jointly responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
David Schassler Portfolio Manager May 2019
John Lau Deputy Portfolio Manager September 2020
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
Individual Shares of the Fund may only be purchased and sold in secondary market transactions through a broker or dealer at a market price. Shares of the Fund are listed on the Exchange, and because Shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, Shares of the Fund may trade at a price greater than NAV (i.e., a “premium”) or less than NAV (i.e., a “discount”).
An investor 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 (ask) when buying or selling Shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information, including information about the Fund’s NAV, market price, premiums and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is included on the Fund’s website at www.vaneck.com.
TAX INFORMATION
The Fund expects to distribute net investment income, if any, at least monthly, and any net realized long-term or short-term capital gains annually. The Fund may also pay a special distribution at any time to comply with U.S. federal tax requirements. Dividends paid by the Fund that are properly reported as exempt-interest dividends will not be subject to regular U.S. federal income tax. The Fund intends to invest its assets in a manner such that a significant portion of its dividend distributions to shareholders will generally be exempt from U.S. federal income taxes. Such distributions will generally be subject to state income taxes.
Distributions from the Fund’s net investment income (other than net tax-exempt income), including any net short-term capital gains, if any, are taxable to you as ordinary income.
PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES
The Adviser and its related companies may pay broker-dealers or other financial intermediaries (such as a bank) for the sale of the Fund Shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing your broker-dealer or other intermediary or its employees or associated persons to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your financial adviser or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.


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SUMMARY INFORMATION
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
VanEck® Short High Yield Muni ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the ICE 1-12 Year High Yield Crossover Municipal Bond Transition Index (the “Short High Yield Index”).
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fee 0.35  %
Other Expenses(a)
0.00  %
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(a)
0.35  %
(a)    Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses of the Fund, except for the fee payment under the investment management agreement, acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, offering costs, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Adviser has agreed to pay the offering costs until at least September 1, 2023.
EXPENSE EXAMPLE
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell or hold all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% annual return 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:
YEAR EXPENSES
1 $36 
3 $113 
5 $197 
10 $443 
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund will pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 16% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in securities that comprise the benchmark index. The Short High Yield Index is composed of publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar denominated high yield short-term tax-exempt bond market. By the end of the Fund’s index transition period (as described below), the Short High Yield Index is expected to track the high yield municipal bond market with an ultimate weight of 70% in non-investment grade municipal bonds, 20% in triple-B rated investment grade municipal bonds and a targeted 10% in single-A rated investment grade municipal bonds (in accordance with the Short High Yield Index provider's methodology). All bonds must have a nominal maturity of 1 to 12 years. This 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days' prior written notice to shareholders.
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The Fund has adopted a fundamental investment policy to invest at least 80% of its assets in municipal securities. Such policy cannot be changed without a shareholder vote. For purposes of this policy, the term “assets” means net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes. This percentage limitation applies at the time of the investment.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Short High Yield Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try to “beat” the Short High Yield Index and does not take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the Short High Yield Index. Because of the practical difficulties and expense of purchasing all of the securities in the Short High Yield Index, the Fund does not purchase all of the securities in the Short High Yield Index. Instead, the Adviser utilizes a “sampling” methodology in seeking to achieve the Fund’s objective. As such, the Fund may purchase a subset of the bonds in the Short High Yield Index in an effort to hold a portfolio of bonds with generally the same risk and return characteristics of the Short High Yield Index.
The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Short High Yield Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. As of April 30, 2022, the Short High Yield Index had 10,727 component securities and each of the industrial development and special tax (i.e. revenue bonds backed by a special tax) sectors represented a significant portion of the Short High Yield Index. The Short High Yield Index is rebalanced on the last calendar day of the month.
Prior to the selection of the Short High Yield Index, the Fund tracked the Bloomberg Municipal High Yield Short Duration Index (the “Prior Short High Yield Index”). The Fund began tracking the Short High Yield Index on March 1, 2022. The Short High Yield Index is an interim index that gradually increases exposure to securities based on their weightings in the ICE 1-12 Year Broad High Yield Crossover Municipal Index (the “Final Short High Yield Index”) while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Prior Short High Yield Index. The Fund is expected to begin tracking the Final Short High Yield Index on December 1, 2022.
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
Investors in the Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in the Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in the Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in the Fund.
Municipal Securities Risk. Municipal securities are subject to the risk that litigation, legislation or other political events, local business or economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, or the bankruptcy of the issuer could have a significant effect on an issuer’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest or otherwise affect the value of such securities. Certain municipalities may have difficulty meeting their obligations due to, among other reasons, changes in underlying demographics. Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to government regulation, taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance similar projects, especially those relating to education, health care, transportation, utilities and water and sewer, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities include general obligation bonds, which are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. General obligation bonds generally are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source. Municipal securities also include revenue bonds, which are generally backed by revenue from a specific project or tax. The issuer of a revenue bond makes interest and principal payments from revenues generated from a particular source or facility, such as a tax on particular property or revenues generated from a municipal water or sewer utility or an airport. Revenue bonds generally are not backed by the full faith and credit and general taxing power of the issuer. The market for municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. There may be less information available on the financial condition of issuers of municipal securities than for public corporations. Municipal instruments may be susceptible to periods of economic stress, which could affect the market values and marketability of many or all municipal obligations of issuers in a state, U.S. territory, or possession. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly stressed the financial resources of many municipal issuers, which may impair a municipal issuer’s ability to meet its financial obligations when due and could adversely impact the value of its bonds, which could negatively impact the performance of the Fund.
Credit Risk. Bonds are subject to credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer or guarantor of a security will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt or to otherwise honor its obligations and/or default completely. Bonds are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities, which may be reflected in credit ratings. There is a possibility that the credit rating of a bond may be downgraded after purchase or the perception of an issuer’s credit worthiness may decline, which may adversely affect the value of the security.
Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds, are subject to interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a bond resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most debt securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most debt securities go up. Many factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation rates and general
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economic conditions. The prevailing historically low interest rate environment increases the risks associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions. In addition, debt securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes, usually making them more volatile than debt securities with shorter durations. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are enacting significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including providing direct capital infusions into companies, creating new monetary programs and lowering interest rates. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could increase if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes.
High Yield Securities Risk. Securities rated below investment grade are commonly referred to as high yield securities or “junk bonds.” High yield securities are often issued by issuers that are restructuring, are smaller or less creditworthy than other issuers, or are more highly indebted than other issuers. High yield securities are subject to greater risk of loss of income and principal than higher rated securities and are considered speculative. The prices of high yield securities are likely to be more sensitive to adverse economic changes or individual municipal developments than higher rated securities. During an economic downturn or substantial period of rising interest rates, high yield security issuers may experience financial stress that would adversely affect their ability to service their principal and interest payment obligations, to meet their projected business goals or to obtain additional financing. In the event of a default, the Fund may incur additional expenses to seek recovery. The secondary market for municipal securities that are high yield securities may be less liquid than the markets for higher quality municipal securities or high yield securities issued by corporate issuers and, as such, may have an adverse effect on the market prices of and the Fund’s ability to arrive at a fair value for certain securities. The illiquidity of the market also could make it difficult for the Fund to sell certain securities in connection with a rebalancing of the Short High Yield Index. In addition, periods of economic uncertainty and change may result in an increased volatility of market prices of high yield securities and a corresponding volatility in the Fund’s net asset value (“NAV”).
Industrial Development Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of industrial development bonds. These revenue bonds are issued by or on behalf of public authorities to obtain funds to finance various public and/or privately operated facilities, including those for business and manufacturing, housing, sports, pollution control, airport, mass transit, port and parking facilities. These bonds are normally secured only by the revenues from the project and not by state or local government tax payments. Consequently, the credit quality of these securities is dependent upon the ability of the user of the facilities financed by the bonds and any guarantor to meet its financial obligations. Payment of interest on and repayment of principal on such bonds are the responsibility of the user and/or any guarantor. These bonds are subject to a wide variety of risks, many of which relate to the nature of the specific project. Generally, the value and credit quality of these bonds are sensitive to the risks related to an economic slowdown.
Special Tax Bond Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of special tax bonds. Special tax bonds are usually backed and payable through a single tax, or series of special taxes such as incremental property taxes. The failure of the tax levy to generate adequate revenue to pay the debt service on the bonds may cause the value of the bonds to decline. Adverse conditions and developments affecting a particular project may result in lower revenues to the issuer of the municipal securities, which may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
Illinois Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of Illinois. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within Illinois and by the financial condition of Illinois’ political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
New York Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of New York. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within New York and by the financial condition of New York’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
Call Risk. The Fund may invest in callable bonds. If interest rates fall, it is possible that issuers of callable securities will “call” (or prepay) their bonds before their maturity date. If a call were exercised by the issuer during or following a period of declining interest rates, the Fund is likely to have to replace such called security with a lower yielding security or securities with greater risks or other less favorable features. If that were to happen, it would decrease the Fund’s net investment income.
Private Activity Bonds Risk. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of private activity bonds. The issuers of private activity bonds in which the Fund may invest may be negatively impacted by conditions affecting either the general credit of the user of the private activity project or the project itself. The Fund’s private activity bond holdings also may pay interest subject to the alternative minimum tax. See the section of the Prospectus entitled “Shareholder Information—Tax Information” for more details.
Market Risk. The prices of the securities in the Fund are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. An investment in the Fund may lose money.
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Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or system failures.
Sampling Risk. The Fund’s use of a representative sampling approach will result in its holding a smaller number of securities than are in the Short High Yield Index. As a result, an adverse development respecting an issuer of securities held by the Fund could result in a greater decline in NAV than would be the case if the Fund held all of the securities in the Short High Yield Index. Conversely, a positive development relating to an issuer of securities in the Short High Yield Index that is not held by the Fund could cause the Fund to underperform the Short High Yield Index. To the extent the assets in the Fund are smaller, these risks will be greater.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Short High Yield Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the Short High Yield Index and incurs costs associated with buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Short High Yield Index or (to the extent the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) raising cash to meet redemptions or deploying cash in connection with newly created Creation Units (defined herein), which are not factored into the return of the Short High Yield Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s NAV to the extent not offset by the transaction fee payable by an Authorized Participant (“AP”). Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Short High Yield Index. Errors in the Short High Yield Index data, Short High Yield Index computations and/or the construction of the Short High Yield Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Short High Yield Index provider for a period of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its shareholders. Shareholders should understand that any gains from the Short High Yield Index provider's errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the Short High Yield Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. When the Short High Yield Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Short High Yield Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. In addition, the Fund's use of a representative sampling approach may cause the fund to not be as well correlated with the return of the Short High Yield Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all of the securities in the Short High Yield Index in the proportions in which they are represented in the Short High Yield Index. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Short High Yield Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Short High Yield Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Short High Yield Index provider or its agents to the Short High Yield Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the Short High Yield Index due to certain listing standards of the Fund's listing exchange (the “Exchange”) or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying securities and/or currencies, and/or other assets based on fair value prices. When markets are volatile, the ability to sell securities at fair value prices may be adversely impacted and may result in additional trading costs and/or increase the index tracking risk. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of the Short High Yield Index. In addition, sale of securities may result in the recognition of accrued market discount and/or net realized gains for tax purposes, which may result in taxable distributions to shareholders. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Short High Yield Index. Changes to the composition of the Short High Yield Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Short High Yield Index may cause the Fund to experience increased volatility, during which time the Fund’s index tracking risk may be heightened.
The Short High Yield Index will gradually increase exposure to securities based on their weightings in the Final Short High Yield Index while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Prior Short High Yield Index. These adjustments to the Fund's portfolio holdings are expected to increase the Fund's transaction costs and turnover rate.
Tax Risk. There is no guarantee that the Fund’s income will be exempt from U.S. federal or state income taxes. Events occurring after the date of issuance of a municipal bond or after the Fund’s acquisition of a municipal bond may result in a determination that interest on that bond is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes retroactively to its date of issuance. Such a determination may cause a portion of prior distributions by the Fund to its shareholders to be taxable to those shareholders in the year of receipt. Federal or state changes in income or alternative minimum tax rates or in the tax treatment of municipal bonds may make municipal bonds less attractive as investments and cause them to lose value.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. The Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as APs, none of which are obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for Shares or Shares may trade like closed-end
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funds at a greater discount (or premium) to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. The AP concentration risk may be heightened in scenarios where APs have limited or diminished access to the capital required to post collateral.
No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods in times of market stress because market makers and APs may step away from making a market in the Shares and in executing creation and redemption orders, which could cause a material deviation in the Fund’s market price from its NAV.
Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.
Passive Management Risk. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund invested in bonds, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. However, because the Fund is not “actively” managed, unless a specific security is removed from the Short High Yield Index, the Fund generally would not sell a security because the security’s issuer was in financial trouble. Additionally, unusual market conditions may cause the Short High Yield Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the Short High Yield Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. Therefore, the Fund’s performance could be lower than funds that may actively shift their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.
Fund Shares Trading, Premium/Discount Risk and Liquidity of Fund Shares. The market price of the Shares may fluctuate in response to the Fund’s NAV, the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The Adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade above, below, or at their most recent NAV. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares that were bought or sold or the shareholder may be unable to sell his or her Shares. The securities held by the Fund may be traded in markets that close at a different time than the Exchange. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when the Exchange is open but after the applicable market closing, fixing or settlement times, bid-ask spreads on the Exchange and the resulting premium or discount to the Shares’ NAV may widen. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell Shares. Investors should consult their financial intermediaries before purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
Concentration Risk. The Fund’s assets may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries to the extent the Short High Yield Index concentrates in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. To the extent that the Fund is concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries, the Fund will be subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on those sectors and/or industries may negatively impact the Fund to a greater extent than if the Fund’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
PERFORMANCE
The bar chart that follows shows how the Fund performed for the calendar years shown. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by comparing the Fund’s performance year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual returns for the one year, five year, ten year and/or since inception periods, as applicable, compared with the Fund’s benchmark index and a broad measure of market performance. Prior to March 1, 2022, the Fund sought to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Prior Short High Yield Index. Therefore, performance information prior to March 1, 2022 reflects the performance of the Fund tracking the Prior Short High Yield Index. On December 1, 2022, the Fund is expected to begin tracking the Final Short High Yield Index. All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The
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Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily indicative of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.vaneck.com.
Annual Total Returns (%)—Calendar Years
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The year-to-date total return as of June 30, 2022 was -8.73%.
Best Quarter: 3.00% 1Q 2019
Worst Quarter: -5.03% 1Q 2020
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2021
The after-tax returns presented in the table below are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Your actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from those shown below. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Shares of the Fund through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
Past
One Year
Past
Five Years
Since Inception
(1/13/2014)
VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF
(return before taxes)*
3.92% 4.17% 3.12%
VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF
(return after taxes on distributions)
3.92% 4.15% 3.11%
VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF
(return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares)
3.50% 3.93% 3.09%
Bloomberg Municipal High Yield Short Duration Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
4.98% 5.43% 4.72%
ICE 1-12 Year High Yield Crossover Municipal Bond Transition Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)**
ICE 1-12 Year Broad High Yield Crossover Municipal Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)**
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.54% 3.57% 3.26%
ICE BofA Broad US Market Index1 (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.58% 3.63% 3.33%
* Prior to March 1, 2022, the Fund sought to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Prior Short High Yield Index. Therefore, performance information prior to March 1, 2022 reflects the performance of the Fund tracking the Prior Short High Yield Index.
** The inception date of the Short High Yield Index and the Final Short High Yield Index was December 11, 2021.
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1 On September 1, 2022, the ICE BofA Broad US Market Index replaced the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index as the Fund's broad-based benchmark index as the Adviser believes it is more representative of broad bond market exposure.
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Manager. The following individual is primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
James T. Colby III Portfolio Manager January 2014
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
For important information about the purchase and sale of Fund Shares, tax information and payments to broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries, please turn to the “Summary Information about Purchases and Sales of Fund Shares, Taxes and Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries” section of this Prospectus.
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SUMMARY INFORMATION
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
VanEck® Short Muni ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the ICE Short AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index (the “Short Index”).
FUND FEES AND EXPENSES
The following tables describe the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund (“Shares”). You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the tables and examples below.
Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
None
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Management Fee 0.20  %
Other Expenses(a)
0.00  %
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses(a)
0.20  %
(a)    Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”) will pay all expenses of the Fund, except for the fee payment under the investment management agreement, acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, offering costs, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Adviser has agreed to pay the offering costs until at least September 1, 2023.
EXPENSE EXAMPLE
This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell or hold all of your Shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% annual return 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:
YEAR EXPENSES
1 $20 
3 $64 
5 $113 
10 $255 
PORTFOLIO TURNOVER
The Fund will pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it purchases and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover will cause the Fund to incur additional transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, may affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 18% of the average value of its portfolio.
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in fixed income securities that comprise the Short Index. The Short Index is comprised of publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar denominated short-term tax-exempt bond market. This 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders.
The Fund has adopted a fundamental investment policy to invest at least 80% of its assets in municipal securities. Such policy cannot be changed without a shareholder vote. For purposes of this policy, the term “assets” means net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes. This percentage limitation applies at the time of the investment.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Short Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try
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to “beat” the Short Index and does not take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the Short Index. Because of the practical difficulties and expense of purchasing all of the securities in the Short Index, the Fund does not purchase all of the securities in the Short Index. Instead, the Adviser utilizes a “sampling” methodology in seeking to achieve the Fund’s objective. As such, the Fund may purchase a subset of the bonds in the Short Index in an effort to hold a portfolio of bonds with generally the same risk and return characteristics of the Short Index.
The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Short Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. As of April 30, 2022, the Short Index had 16,461 component securities. The Short Index is rebalanced on the last calendar day of the month.
Prior to the selection of the Short Index, the Fund tracked the Bloomberg AMT-Free Short Continuous Municipal Index (the “Prior Short Index”). The Fund began tracking the Short Index on March 1, 2022. The Short Index is an interim index that gradually increases exposure to securities based on their weightings in the ICE Short AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index (the “Final Short Index”) while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Prior Short Index. The Fund is expected to begin tracking the Final Short Index on December 1, 2022.
PRINCIPAL RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUND
Investors in the Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in the Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in the Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in the Fund.
Municipal Securities Risk. Municipal securities are subject to the risk that litigation, legislation or other political events, local business or economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, or the bankruptcy of the issuer could have a significant effect on an issuer’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest or otherwise affect the value of such securities. Certain municipalities may have difficulty meeting their obligations due to, among other reasons, changes in underlying demographics. Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to government regulation, taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance similar projects, especially those relating to education, health care, transportation, utilities and water and sewer, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities include general obligation bonds, which are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. General obligation bonds generally are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source. Municipal securities also include revenue bonds, which are generally backed by revenue from a specific project or tax. The issuer of a revenue bond makes interest and principal payments from revenues generated from a particular source or facility, such as a tax on particular property or revenues generated from a municipal water or sewer utility or an airport. Revenue bonds generally are not backed by the full faith and credit and general taxing power of the issuer. The market for municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. There may be less information available on the financial condition of issuers of municipal securities than for public corporations. Municipal instruments may be susceptible to periods of economic stress, which could affect the market values and marketability of many or all municipal obligations of issuers in a state, U.S. territory, or possession. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly stressed the financial resources of many municipal issuers, which may impair a municipal issuer’s ability to meet its financial obligations when due and could adversely impact the value of its bonds, which could negatively impact the performance of the Fund.
Credit Risk. Bonds are subject to credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer or guarantor of a security will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt or to otherwise honor its obligations and/or default completely. Bonds are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities, which may be reflected in credit ratings. There is a possibility that the credit rating of a bond may be downgraded after purchase or the perception of an issuer’s credit worthiness may decline, which may adversely affect the value of the security.
Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds, are subject to interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a bond resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most debt securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most debt securities go up. Many factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation rates and general economic conditions. The prevailing historically low interest rate environment increases the risks associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions. In addition, debt securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes, usually making them more volatile than debt securities with shorter durations. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are enacting significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including providing direct capital infusions into companies, creating new monetary programs and lowering interest rates. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could increase if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes.
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California Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of California. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within California and by the financial condition of California’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
New York Risk. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of New York. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within New York and by the financial condition of New York’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
Call Risk. The Fund may invest in callable bonds. If interest rates fall, it is possible that issuers of callable securities will “call” (or prepay) their bonds before their maturity date. If a call were exercised by the issuer during or following a period of declining interest rates, the Fund is likely to have to replace such called security with a lower yielding security or securities with greater risks or other less favorable features. If that were to happen, it would decrease the Fund’s net investment income.
Market Risk. The prices of the securities in the Fund are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. An investment in the Fund may lose money.
Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or system failures.
Sampling Risk. The Fund’s use of a representative sampling approach will result in its holding a smaller number of securities than are in the Short Index. As a result, an adverse development respecting an issuer of securities held by the Fund could result in a greater decline in net asset value (“NAV”) than would be the case if the Fund held all of the securities in the Short Index. Conversely, a positive development relating to an issuer of securities in the Short Index that is not held by the Fund could cause the Fund to underperform the Short Index. To the extent the assets in the Fund are smaller, these risks will be greater.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Short Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the Short Index and incurs costs associated with buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Short Index or (to the extent the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) raising cash to meet redemptions or deploying cash in connection with newly created Creation Units (defined herein), which are not factored into the return of the Short Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s NAV to the extent not offset by the transaction fee payable by an Authorized Participant (“AP”). Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Short Index. Errors in the Short Index data, Short Index computations and/or the construction of the Short Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Short Index provider for a period of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its shareholders. Shareholders should understand that any gains from the Short Index provider's errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the Short Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. When the Short Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Short Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. In addition, the Fund's use of a representative sampling approach may cause the fund to not be as well correlated with the return of the Short Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all of the securities in the Short Index in the proportions in which they are represented in the Short Index. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Short Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Short Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Short Index provider or its agents to the Short Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the Short Index due to certain listing standards of the Fund's listing exchange (the “Exchange”) or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying securities and/or currencies, and/or other assets based on fair value prices. When markets are volatile, the ability to sell securities at fair value prices may be adversely impacted and may result in additional trading costs and/or increase the index tracking risk. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of the Short Index. In addition, sale of securities may result in the recognition of accrued market discount and/or net realized gains for tax purposes, which may result in taxable distributions to shareholders. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Short Index. Changes to the composition of the Short Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Short Index may cause the Fund to experience increased volatility, during which time the Fund’s index tracking risk may be heightened.
The Short Index will gradually increase exposure to securities based on their weightings in the Final Short Index while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Prior Short Index. These adjustments to the Fund's portfolio holdings are expected to increase the Fund's transaction costs and turnover rate.
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Tax Risk. There is no guarantee that the Fund’s income will be exempt from U.S. federal or state income taxes. Events occurring after the date of issuance of a municipal bond or after the Fund’s acquisition of a municipal bond may result in a determination that interest on that bond is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes retroactively to its date of issuance. Such a determination may cause a portion of prior distributions by the Fund to its shareholders to be taxable to those shareholders in the year of receipt. Federal or state changes in income or alternative minimum tax rates or in the tax treatment of municipal bonds may make municipal bonds less attractive as investments and cause them to lose value.
Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. The Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as APs, none of which are obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for Shares or Shares may trade like closed-end funds at a greater discount (or premium) to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. The AP concentration risk may be heightened in scenarios where APs have limited or diminished access to the capital required to post collateral.
No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on the Exchange, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods in times of market stress because market makers and APs may step away from making a market in the Shares and in executing creation and redemption orders, which could cause a material deviation in the Fund’s market price from its NAV.
Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of the Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.
Passive Management Risk. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund invested in bonds, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. However, because the Fund is not “actively” managed, unless a specific security is removed from the Short Index, the Fund generally would not sell a security because the security’s issuer was in financial trouble. Additionally, unusual market conditions may cause the Short Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the Short Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. Therefore, the Fund’s performance could be lower than funds that may actively shift their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.
Fund Shares Trading, Premium/Discount Risk and Liquidity of Fund Shares. The market price of the Shares may fluctuate in response to the Fund’s NAV, the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings and supply and demand for Shares. The Adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade above, below, or at their most recent NAV. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of the Fund’s holdings. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares that were bought or sold or the shareholder may be unable to sell his or her Shares. The securities held by the Fund may be traded in markets that close at a different time than the Exchange. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when the Exchange is open but after the applicable market closing, fixing or settlement times, bid-ask spreads on the Exchange and the resulting premium or discount to the Shares’ NAV may widen. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell Shares. Investors should consult their financial intermediaries before purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
Concentration Risk. The Fund’s assets may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries to the extent the Short Index concentrates in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. To the extent that the Fund is concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries, the Fund will be subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on those sectors and/or industries may negatively impact the Fund to a greater extent than if the Fund’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
PERFORMANCE
The bar chart that follows shows how the Fund performed for the calendar years shown. The table below the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual returns (before and after taxes). The bar chart and table provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by comparing the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual returns for the one year, five year, ten year and/or since inception periods, as applicable, compared with the Fund’s benchmark index and a broad measure of market performance. Prior to March 1, 2022, the Fund sought to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Prior Short Index. Therefore, performance information prior to March 1, 2022 reflects the performance of the Fund tracking the Prior Short Index. On December 1, 2022, the Fund is expected to begin
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tracking the Final Short Index. All returns assume reinvestment of dividends and distributions. The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily indicative of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.vaneck.com.
Annual Total Returns (%)—Calendar Years
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The year-to-date total return as of June 30, 2022 was -4.30%.
Best Quarter: 2.62% 2Q 2020
Worst Quarter: -1.78% 4Q 2016
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2021
The after-tax returns presented in the table below are calculated using the highest historical individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Your actual after-tax returns will depend on your specific tax situation and may differ from those shown below. After-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold Shares of the Fund through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
Past
One Year
Past
Five Years
Past
Ten Years
VanEck Short Muni ETF
(return before taxes)*
0.25% 2.12% 1.50%
VanEck Short Muni ETF
(return after taxes on distributions)
0.21% 2.11% 1.49%
VanEck Short Muni ETF
(return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares)
0.67% 1.96% 1.46%
Bloomberg AMT-Free Short Continuous Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
0.35% 2.51% 1.95%
ICE Short AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)**
ICE Short AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)**
Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index
(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.54% 3.57% 2.90%
ICE BofA Broad US Market Index1 (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
-1.58% 3.63% 2.97%
* Prior to March 1, 2022, the Fund sought to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Prior Short Index. Therefore, performance information prior to March 1, 2022 reflects the performance of the Fund tracking the Prior Short Index.
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** The inception date of the Short Index and the Final Short Index was December 11, 2021.
1 On September 1, 2022, the ICE BofA Broad US Market Index replaced the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index as the Fund's broad-based benchmark index as the Adviser believes it is more representative of broad bond market exposure.
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Manager. The following individual is primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
James T. Colby III Portfolio Manager February 2008
PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
For important information about the purchase and sale of Fund Shares, tax information and payments to broker-dealers and other financial intermediaries, please turn to the “Summary Information about Purchases and Sales of Fund Shares, Taxes and Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries” section of this Prospectus.
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PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES
Individual Shares of a Fund may only be purchased and sold in secondary market transactions through a broker or dealer at a market price. Shares of the Funds are listed on the Exchange, and because Shares trade at market prices rather than NAV, Shares of the Funds may trade at a price greater than NAV (i.e., a “premium”) or less than NAV (i.e., a “discount”).
An investor may incur costs attributable to the difference between the highest price a buyer is willing to pay to purchase Shares of a Fund (bid) and the lowest price a seller is willing to accept for Shares (ask) when buying or selling Shares in the secondary market (the “bid/ask spread”).
Recent information, including information about each Fund’s NAV, market price, premiums and discounts, and bid/ask spreads, is included on the Fund’s website at www.vaneck.com.
TAX INFORMATION
The Funds expect to distribute net investment income, if any, at least monthly, and any net realized long-term or short-term capital gains annually. The Funds may also pay a special distribution at any time to comply with U.S. federal tax requirements.
Dividends paid by the Funds that are properly reported as exempt-interest dividends will not be subject to regular U.S. federal income tax. The Funds intend to invest its assets in a manner such that a significant portion of their dividend distributions to shareholders will generally be exempt from U.S. federal income taxes, including the federal alternative minimum tax for noncorporate shareholders. Such distributions will generally be subject to state income taxes.
Distributions from a Fund’s net investment income (other than net tax-exempt income), including any net short-term capital gains, if any, are taxable to you as ordinary income.
PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES
The Adviser and its related companies may pay broker-dealers or other financial intermediaries (such as a bank) for the sale of the Fund Shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing your broker-dealer or other intermediary or its employees or associated persons to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your financial adviser or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.



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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE FUNDS’ INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RISKS
PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
(All Funds except VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF, VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF and VanEck Muni Allocation ETF)
Each Fund uses a sampling approach in seeking to achieve its investment objective. Sampling means that the Adviser uses quantitative analysis to select a representative sample of securities that the Adviser believes collectively have an investment profile similar to a Fund’s Index. The Adviser seeks to select securities that will have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability, duration, maturity or credit ratings and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of a Fund’s Index. The quantity of holdings in a Fund will be based on a number of factors, including asset size of such Fund. The Adviser generally expects a Fund to hold less than the total number of securities in its Index, but reserves the right to hold as many securities as it believes necessary to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. In addition, from time to time, securities are added to or removed from the applicable Index. Each Fund may sell securities that are represented in its Index, or purchase securities that are not yet represented in its Index, in anticipation of their removal from or addition to such Index. Further, the Adviser may choose to underweight or overweight securities, purchase or sell securities not in an Index, or utilize various combinations of other available investment techniques, in seeking to track a Fund’s Index.
(VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF only)
The Adviser anticipates that, generally, VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF will hold or gain exposure to all of the securities that comprise the CEFMX Index in proportion to their weightings in the CEFMX Index. However, because of limitations imposed by the 1940 Act regarding investments in other investment companies, VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF may purchase a sample of securities in the CEFMX Index. There also may be instances in which the Adviser may choose to underweight or overweight a security in the CEFMX Index, purchase securities not in the CEFMX Index that the Adviser believes are appropriate to substitute for certain securities in the CEFMX Index or utilize various combinations of other available investment techniques in seeking to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the CEFMX Index. VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF may sell securities that are represented in the CEFMX Index in anticipation of their removal from the CEFMX Index or purchase securities not represented in the CEFMX Index in anticipation of their addition to the CEFMX Index. VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF may also, in order to comply with the tax diversification requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended ("Internal Revenue Code"), temporarily invest in securities not included on the CEFMX Index that are expected to be highly correlated with the securities included in the CEFMX Index.
(VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF only)
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in investments the income from which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax (other than AMT). The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances, in investment grade municipal debt securities that fund issuers with operations or projects helping to promote progress towards sustainable development, in alignment with the goals and metrics defined by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (“SDGs”) 9, 11 and 12. The SDGs were adopted by the United Nations General Assembly to achieve sustainable development for all, and the specific goals of SDGs 9, 11 and 12 are as follows: SDG 9 is to "build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation," SDG 11 is to "make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable" and SDG 12 is to "ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns." The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in securities that support sustainable development. The Adviser determines which operations or projects of issuers it believes to be supportive of sustainable development and that promote beneficial environmental and social outcomes in U.S. communities and cities by utilizing the rules-based investment approach described below. The Fund’s policy to normally invest at least 80% of its total assets in securities that support sustainable development is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders.
The Adviser primarily uses a rules-based investment approach which utilizes proprietary HIP (Human Impact + Profit) Ratings data for the application of impact criteria to security selection and portfolio management. HIP Ratings are produced and licensed from HIP Investor, Inc. (“HIP” or the "Data Provider"), which provides services to evaluate, rate and rank issuers and their securities based on data-driven, quantitative performance measures that demonstrate positive social, environmental and economic outcomes or mission accomplishment. The Adviser’s investment process begins by using HIP Ratings to screen municipal securities based on their SDGs 9, 11 and 12 ratings by HIP, Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) ratings by HIP and Climate-Threat and Resilience ratings by HIP. HIP Ratings are only assigned to the municipal securities of issuers where at least one qualified opportunity zone is located in the issuer’s region. An “opportunity zone” is an economically-distressed community where new investments, under certain conditions, may be eligible for preferential tax treatment based on certification from the Internal Revenue Service. HIP, as the Data Provider, analyzes multiple data points of municipal securities to determine an estimate of the impact (i.e., net benefit to the community) each municipal security provides. The HIP Ratings used by the Adviser seek to evaluate the impact of municipal securities with respect to the goals and metrics defined by SDGs 9, 11 and 12, climate resilience, and overall net benefit to people, planet, and prosperity. These HIP Ratings are used by the Adviser to narrow the universe of eligible Fund investments to municipal securities that, based on the HIP Ratings, the Adviser believes have been issued to fund operations or projects that support or advance sustainable development, as well as promote positive social and
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environmental outcomes. Such municipal debt securities may include, but are not limited to, bonds issued in connection with (i) new or revitalized infrastructure (i.e. roads, bridges, tunnels, buildings, transportation of people and freight, affordable and safe housing and redevelopment of urban areas (e.g. green spaces), school or campus upgrades and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design ("LEED") qualified real estate); (ii) information and education systems (i.e. schools, research, financial services, communication services and technologies and information services); (iii) healthier communities (i.e. hospitals, food and nutrition infrastructure, waste systems, air quality and environmental management systems); (iv) cleaner energy (i.e. utilities, resource and material use); (v) inclusive and sustainable industrialization towards increased Gross Domestic Product ("GDP"); (vi) action and resilience planning and projects to mitigate the effects of climate change and other natural disasters and hazards; and (vii) ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns. The Adviser is not required to invest in any issuer rated by the Data Provider and the Data Provider is not acting as a sub-adviser to the Fund.
Municipal securities that the Fund may invest in include securities issued by U.S. states and municipal governments, any of their political subdivisions, agencies, or instrumentalities, or by U.S. territories and possessions, such as Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico, and their political subdivisions and public corporations. The Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the States of California and New York. The Fund does not expect to invest in non-investment grade (or “junk”) securities. The Fund may invest in debt securities of any maturity or duration and does not have a target maturity or duration. “Duration” is a measure of a debt security’s price sensitivity to changes in interest rates. The longer the duration of a debt security, the more sensitive its market price is to changes in interest rates. The Fund seeks to reduce its exposure to credit risk by diversifying its assets among many municipal issuers and among the different types and maturities of municipal securities available.
The Fund’s investment policy to invest at least 80% of its total assets in investments the income from which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax (other than AMT) may not be changed without shareholder approval. The Fund may count investments that generate income subject to the AMT toward its 80% investment policy. For purposes of this policy, the term “assets” means net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes. This percentage limitation applies at the time of the investment.
(VanEck Muni Allocation ETF only)
The Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in investments the income from which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax (other than AMT). The Fund is an actively managed exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) that seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing, under normal circumstances, primarily in VanEck ETFs that are registered under the applicable federal securities laws and that invest in publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar-denominated investment grade and below investment grade (high yield or "junk" bonds) tax-exempt bond market. While the Adviser currently anticipates that the Fund will invest primarily in other VanEck ETFs, the Fund may also invest in unaffiliated exchange-traded products ("ETPs"), which could include ETFs and closed-end funds, that invest in municipal bonds. The Fund does not have any limits on its investments in below investment grade securities ("junk" bonds), and the Fund will have indirect exposure to below investment grade securities through its investments in ETPs. The Fund’s investment policy to invest at least 80% of its total assets in investments the income from which is exempt from U.S. federal income tax (other than AMT) may not be changed without shareholder approval. The Fund may count investments that generate income subject to the AMT toward its 80% investment policy. For purposes of this policy, the term “assets” means net assets plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes. This percentage limitation applies at the time of the investment.
The Adviser primarily uses a proprietary, rules-based allocation model (the “Municipal Allocation Model”), which considers various inputs to guide asset allocation decisions and select ETPs that provide exposure to tax-exempt investments and that the Adviser believes will offer enhanced risk-adjusted returns. The term “risk-adjusted returns” does not imply that the Adviser employs low-risk strategies or that an investment in the Fund should be considered a low-risk or no risk investment. The Municipal Allocation Model uses various indicators to generate allocation signals among tax-exempt investments. These signals are used as inputs to determine ETP allocation and individual portfolio weights.
The Municipal Allocation Model utilizes various indicators to identify periods of credit and duration risk. These indicators measure various risk metrics, which include but are not limited to, market prices and trends, volatility (i.e., the measure of historic and/or predicted future variation of returns for a given security or market index), yield spreads (i.e., the difference between yields on differing fixed income securities of varying maturities, credit ratings and risk), and relative yield ratios (i.e., the yield on a security relative to the yield on a benchmark security). The Adviser anticipates that the Municipal Allocation Model will evolve over time and may incorporate additional indicators and/or remove or modify existing indicators. Any such changes to the Municipal Allocation Model would be made to, in the Adviser's opinion, assist the Fund in achieving its investment objective.
The Adviser allocates the Fund’s assets to those ETPs that it believes will have returns that, in the aggregate, closely correlate (before fees and expenses) to the returns of the Municipal Allocation Model. The Municipal Allocation Model typically adjusts its allocation signals on a monthly basis, and the Adviser may adjust the Fund's portfolio allocation as needed in response to such changes in the Municipal Allocation Model. The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of portfolio securities.
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A portion of the Fund's assets may be held in cash or cash equivalents including, but not limited to, money market instruments, US. Treasury bills, treasury inflation-protected securities, interests in short-term investments funds or shares of money market or short-term bond funds. The Adviser currently anticipates investing in 1- to 3-month U.S. Treasury Bills when a portion of the Fund's assets are allocated to cash or cash equivalents.
FUNDAMENTAL AND NON-FUNDAMENTAL POLICIES
Each Fund’s investment objective and each of its other investment policies are non-fundamental policies that may be changed by the Board of Trustees of the Trust (the "Board of Trustees") without shareholder approval, except as noted in this Prospectus or the Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) under the section entitled “Investment Policies and Restrictions—Investment Restrictions.”
RISKS OF INVESTING IN THE FUNDS
The following section provides additional information regarding the principal risks identified under “Principal Risks of Investing in the Fund” in each Fund’s “Summary Information” section followed by additional risk information. The risks listed below are applicable to each Fund unless otherwise noted.
Investors in a Fund should be willing to accept a high degree of volatility in the price of the Fund’s Shares and the possibility of significant losses. An investment in a Fund involves a substantial degree of risk. An investment in a Fund is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. Therefore, you should consider carefully the following risks before investing in a Fund, each of which could significantly and adversely affect the value of an investment in a Fund.
Credit Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds are subject to credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer or guarantor of a security will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt or to otherwise honor its obligations and/or default completely. Debt securities are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities, which may be reflected in credit ratings. There is a possibility that the credit rating of a debt security may be downgraded after purchase or the perception of an issuer’s credit worthiness may decline, which may adversely affect the value of the security. Lower credit quality may also affect liquidity and make it difficult for a Fund to sell the security.
Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds, are subject to interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a bond resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most debt securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most debt securities go up. Many factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation rates and general economic conditions. The prevailing historically low interest rate environment increases the risks associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions. In addition, debt securities, such as bonds with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes, usually making them more volatile than debt securities with shorter durations. To the extent the Fund invests a substantial portion of its assets in debt securities with longer term maturities, rising interest rates may cause the value of the Fund’s investments to decline significantly.
In addition, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are enacting significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including providing direct capital infusions into companies, creating new monetary programs and lowering interest rates. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could be even further heightened if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes.
Municipal Securities Risk. Municipal securities are subject to the risk that litigation, legislation or other political events, local business or economic conditions, credit rating downgrades or the bankruptcy of an issuer could have a significant effect on the issuer’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest or otherwise affect the value of such securities. In addition, there is a risk that, as a result of the recent economic crisis, the ability of any issuer to pay, when due, the principal or interest on its municipal bonds may be materially affected. Certain municipalities may have difficulty meeting their obligations due to, among other reasons, changes in underlying demographics. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could be even further heightened if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes. Municipal instruments may be susceptible to periods of economic stress, which could affect the market values and marketability of many or all municipal obligations of issuers in a state, U.S. territory, or possession. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly stressed the financial resources of many municipal issuers, which may impair a municipal issuer’s ability to meet its financial obligations when due and could adversely impact the value of its bonds, which could negatively impact the performance of the Funds.
Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market related to taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance similar projects, especially those relating to education, health care, transportation, utilities and water and sewer, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities include general obligation bonds, which are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. General obligation bonds generally
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are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source. Municipal securities also include revenue bonds, which are generally backed by revenue from a specific project or tax. The issuer of a revenue bond makes interest and principal payments from revenues generated from a particular source or facility, such as a tax on particular property or revenues generated from a municipal water or sewer utility or an airport. Revenue bonds generally are not backed by the full faith and credit and general taxing power of the issuer. Municipal securities backed by current or anticipated revenues from a specific project or specific assets can be negatively affected by the discontinuance of the taxation supporting the project or assets or the inability to collect revenues for the project or from the assets.
If the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) determines that an issuer of a municipal security has not complied with applicable tax requirements, interest from the security could become taxable and the security could decline significantly in value.
The market for municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. There may also be less information available on the financial condition of issuers of municipal securities than for public corporations. The reorganization of a municipality’s debts may include extending debt maturities, reducing the amount of principal or interest, refinancing the debt or taking other measures, which may significantly affect the rights of creditors and the value of the securities issued by the municipality and the value of a Fund’s investments. The taxing power of any governmental entity may be limited and an entity’s credit may depend on factors which are beyond the entity’s control.
High Yield Securities Risk. (VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF, VanEck High Yield Muni ETF and VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF only.) Securities rated below investment grade are commonly referred to as high yield securities or “junk bonds.” High yield securities are often issued by issuers that are restructuring, are smaller or less creditworthy than other issuers, or are more highly indebted than other issuers. High yield securities are subject to greater risk of loss of income and principal than higher rated securities and are considered speculative. The prices of high yield securities are likely to be more sensitive to adverse economic changes or individual issuer developments than higher rated securities. During an economic downturn or substantial period of rising interest rates, high yield security issuers may experience financial stress that would adversely affect their ability to service their principal and interest payment obligations, to meet their projected business goals or to obtain additional financing. In the event of a default, a Fund may incur additional expenses to seek recovery. The secondary market for municipal securities that are high yield securities may be less liquid than the markets for higher quality municipal securities or high yield securities issued by corporate issuers and, as such, may have an adverse effect on the market prices of and an underlying Fund’s ability to arrive at a fair value for certain securities. The illiquidity of the market also could make it difficult for a Fund to sell certain securities in connection with a rebalancing of its respective Index. In addition, periods of economic uncertainty and change may result in an increased volatility of market prices of high yield securities and corresponding volatility in a Fund's NAV.
Fund of Funds Risk. (VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF and VanEck Muni Allocation ETF only.) The performance of a Fund is dependent on the performance of an Underlying Fund. A Fund will be subject to the risks of an Underlying Fund’s investments. A Fund will pay indirectly a proportional share of the fees and expenses of an Underlying Fund in which it invests, including their investment advisory and administration fees, while continuing to pay its own management fee. As a result, a Fund’s shareholders will indirectly bear the expenses of an Underlying Fund, absorbing duplicative levels of fees with respect to investments in an Underlying Fund. In addition, at times certain segments of the market represented by an Underlying Fund may be out of favor and underperform other segments.
Risks of Investing in Closed-End Funds. (VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF only.) The shares of a closed-end fund may trade at a discount or premium to its NAV. Certain closed-end funds traded on exchanges may be thinly traded and experience large spreads between the “ask” price quoted by a seller and the “bid” price offered by a buyer. A closed-end fund may be leveraged as part of its investment strategy. As a result, the Fund may be indirectly exposed to the effects of leverage through its investment in an Underlying Fund. Investments in Underlying Funds that use leverage may cause the value of the Fund’s Shares to be more volatile than if the Fund invested in Underlying Funds that do not utilize leverage and may expose the Fund to the possibility that the Fund’s long-term returns on such securities (and, indirectly, the long-term returns on the Shares) will be diminished. To comply with provisions of the 1940 Act, on any matter upon which the Underlying Fund shareholders are solicited to vote, the Adviser will vote Underlying Fund shares held by the Fund in the same general proportion as shares held by other shareholders of an Underlying Fund. In addition, to the extent that a closed-end fund persistently trades at a significant discount to NAV, it may become the target of activist shareholders seeking to narrow the discount, which may increase the expenses of such fund.
Risk of ETPs. (VanEck Muni Allocation ETF only.) The Fund may be subject to the following risks as a result of its investments in ETPs:
Municipal Securities Risk. Municipal securities are subject to the risk that litigation, legislation or other political events, local business or economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, or the bankruptcy of the issuer could have a significant effect on an issuer’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest or otherwise affect the value of such securities. Certain municipalities may have difficulty meeting their obligations due to, among other reasons, changes in underlying demographics. Municipal instruments may be susceptible to periods of economic stress, which could affect the market values and marketability of many or all municipal obligations of issuers in a state, U.S. territory, or possession. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly stressed the financial resources of many
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municipal issuers, which may impair a municipal issuer’s ability to meet its financial obligations when due and could adversely impact the value of its bonds, which could negatively impact the performance of the Fund.
Municipal securities can be significantly affected by political changes as well as uncertainties in the municipal market     related to government regulation, taxation, legislative changes or the rights of municipal security holders. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance similar projects, especially those relating to education, health care, transportation, utilities and water and sewer, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. In addition, changes in the financial condition of an individual municipal insurer can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities include general obligation bonds, which are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base. General obligation bonds generally are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source.
Municipal securities also include revenue bonds, which are generally backed by revenue from a specific project or tax. The issuer of a revenue bond makes interest and principal payments from revenues generated from a particular source or facility, such as a tax on particular property or revenues generated from a municipal water or sewer utility or an airport. Revenue bonds generally are not backed by the full faith and credit and general taxing power of the issuer. The market for municipal bonds may be less liquid than for taxable bonds. The value and liquidity of many municipal securities have decreased as a result of the past financial crises, which has also adversely affected many municipal securities issuers and may continue to do so. There may be less information available on the financial condition of issuers of municipal securities than for public corporations.
Credit Risk. Debt securities are subject to credit risk. Credit risk refers to the possibility that the issuer or guarantor of a security will be unable and/or unwilling to make timely interest payments and/or repay the principal on its debt or to otherwise honor its obligations and/or default completely on securities. Debt securities are subject to varying degrees of credit risk, depending on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities, which may be reflected in credit ratings. There is a possibility that the credit rating of a debt security may be downgraded after purchase or the perception of an issuer’s credit worthiness may decline, which may adversely affect the value of the security.
High Yield Securities Risk. Securities rated below investment grade are commonly referred to as high yield securities or “junk bonds.” High yield securities are often issued by issuers that are restructuring, are smaller or less creditworthy than other issuers, or are more highly indebted than other issuers. High yield securities are subject to greater risk of loss of income and principal than higher rated securities and are considered speculative. The prices of high yield securities are likely to be more sensitive to adverse economic changes or individual issuer developments than higher rated securities. During an economic downturn or substantial period of rising interest rates, high yield security issuers may experience financial stress that would adversely affect their ability to service their principal and interest payment obligations, to meet their projected business goals or to obtain additional financing. In the event of a default, an ETP may incur additional expenses to seek recovery. The secondary market for securities that are high yield securities may be less liquid than the markets for higher quality securities and high yield securities issued by non-corporate issuers may be less liquid than high yield securities issued by corporate issuers, which, in either instance, may have an adverse effect on the market prices of and an ETP’s ability to arrive at a fair value for certain securities. The illiquidity of the market also could make it difficult for an ETP to sell certain securities in connection with a rebalancing of its index, if applicable. In addition, periods of economic uncertainty and change may result in an increased volatility of market prices of high yield securities and a corresponding volatility in an ETP’s NAV. In addition, adverse publicity and investor perceptions may decrease the values and liquidity of high yield securities.
Tax Risk. There is no guarantee that an ETP’s income will be exempt from U.S. federal or state income taxes. Events occurring after the date of issuance of a municipal bond or after the ETP’s acquisition of a municipal bond may result in a determination that interest on that bond is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes retroactively to its date of issuance. Such a determination may cause a portion of prior distributions by the ETP to its shareholders to be taxable to those shareholders in the year of receipt. Federal or state changes in income or alternative minimum tax rates or in the tax treatment of municipal bonds may make municipal bonds less attractive as investments and cause them to lose value.
Additionally, tax reform legislation commonly known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”) was enacted on December 22, 2017 which contained certain provisions that may affect ETPs in which the Fund invests. Under prior law, the tax-exemption for interest from state and local bonds generally applied to refunded bonds with certain limitations on advance refunding bonds. Advance refunding bonds are bonds that are issued more than 90 days before the redemption of the refunded bond. Under the Act, interest income from advance refunding bonds will now be considered to be taxable interest income for any advance refundings that occur after December 31, 2017. Additionally, the applicability of certain provisions of the Act remain unclear as legislative and / or interpretive guidance has not yet been issued by Treasury and the IRS. These provisions could lead to an increase in taxable income distributed to shareholders of the ETPs which would in turn, lead to higher taxable distributions by the Fund.
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Interest Rate Risk. Debt securities, such as bonds, are also subject to interest rate risk. Interest rate risk refers to fluctuations in the value of a security resulting from changes in the general level of interest rates. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most debt securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most debt securities go up. Many factors can cause interest rates to rise, including central bank monetary policy, rising inflation rates and general economic conditions. A low interest rate environment increases the risk associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions.
Measures taken by the Federal Reserve Board may affect the money supply and as a result of these measures, an ETF may face a heightened interest rate risk.
In addition, debt securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to interest rate changes, usually making them more volatile than debt securities with shorter durations. To the extent an ETP invests a substantial portion of its assets in debt securities with longer-term maturities, rising interest rates may cause the value of an ETP’s investments to decline significantly.
In addition, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are enacting significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including providing direct capital infusions into companies, creating new monetary programs and lowering interest rates considerably. These actions present heightened risks to debt instruments, and such risks could be even further heightened if these actions are unexpectedly or suddenly reversed or are ineffective in achieving their desired outcomes.
Call Risk. An ETP may invest in callable debt securities. If interest rates fall, it is possible that issuers of callable securities will “call” (or prepay) their debt securities before their maturity date. If a call were exercised by the issuer during or following a period of declining interest rates, the ETP is likely to have to replace such called security with a lower yielding security or securities with greater risks or other less favorable features. If that were to happen, it would decrease the ETP’s net investment income. An ETP also may fail to recover additional amounts (i.e., premiums) paid for securities with higher interest rates, resulting in an unexpected capital loss.
State Concentration Risk. Certain of the ETPs may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in a particular state or states. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within the state or states and by the financial condition of the state's or states' political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
Concentration Risk. Certain of the ETPs may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. To the extent that an ETP is concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries, the ETP will be subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on those sectors and/or industry or groups of industries may negatively impact the ETP to a greater extent than if the ETP’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
Risk of Investment Restrictions. (VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF only.) The Fund and its affiliates are limited in the amount that they, in the aggregate, can invest in the outstanding voting securities of any one Underlying Fund. The Fund and its affiliates may not acquire “control” of an unaffiliated Underlying Fund, which is presumed once ownership of an Underlying Fund’s outstanding voting securities exceeds 25%. This limitation could inhibit the Fund’s ability to purchase one or more Underlying Funds in the CEFMX Index in the proportions represented in the CEFMX Index. In these circumstances, the Fund would be required to use sampling techniques, which could increase the risk of tracking error.
Sampling Risk. (All Funds except VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF.) A Fund’s use of a representative sampling approach will result in its holding a smaller number of securities than are in its respective Index. As a result, an adverse development respecting an issuer of securities held by a Fund could result in a greater decline in NAV than would be the case if the Fund held all of the securities in its respective Index. Conversely, a positive development relating to an issuer of securities in an Index that is not held by the Fund could cause the Fund to underperform its respective Index. To the extent the assets in a Fund are smaller, these risks will be greater.
Private Activity Bonds Risk. (VanEck High Yield Muni ETF and VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF only.) A Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition and performance of private activity bonds. The issuers of private activity bonds in which the Fund may invest may be negatively impacted by conditions affecting either the general credit of the user of the private activity project or the project itself. Conditions such as regulatory and environmental restrictions and economic downturns may lower the need for these facilities and the ability of users of the project to pay for the facilities. This could cause a decline in the Fund’s value. The Fund’s private activity bond holdings also may pay interest subject to the alternative minimum tax.
Call Risk. Each Fund may invest in callable bonds. If interest rates fall, it is possible that issuers of callable securities will “call” (or prepay) their bonds before their maturity date. If a call were exercised by the issuer during or following a period of declining interest rates, a Fund is likely to have to replace such called security with a lower yielding security or securities with greater risks or other less favorable features. If that were to happen, it would decrease a Fund’s net investment income. A Fund
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also may fail to recover additional amounts (i.e., premiums) paid for securities with higher interest rates, resulting in an unexpected capital loss.
Operational Risk. Each Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third-parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or system failures.
Market Risk. The prices of the securities in the Funds are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. Overall securities values could decline generally or could underperform other investments. An investment in the Funds may lose money.
VanEck High Yield Muni ETF, VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF, VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF, VanEck Long Muni ETF, VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF, VanEck Short Muni ETF and the Underlying Funds, with respect to VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF and VanEck Muni Allocation ETF, may invest in bonds from the following industries/sectors:
Education Bond Risk. In general, there are two types of education related bonds: those issued to finance projects for public and private colleges and universities, and those representing pooled interests in student loans. Bonds issued to supply educational institutions with funds are subject to the risk of unanticipated revenue decline, primarily the result of decreasing student enrollment or decreasing state and federal funding. Among the factors that may lead to declining or insufficient revenues are restrictions on students’ ability to pay tuition, availability of state and federal funding and general economic conditions. Student loan revenue bonds are generally offered by state (or substate) authorities or commissions and are backed by pools of student loans. Underlying student loans may be guaranteed by state guarantee agencies and may be subject to reimbursement by the United States Department of Education through its guaranteed student loan program. Others may be private, uninsured loans made to parents or students which are supported by reserves or other forms of credit enhancement. Recoveries of principal due to loan defaults may be applied to redemption of bonds or may be used to re-lend, depending on program latitude and demand for loans. Cash flows supporting student loan revenue bonds are impacted by numerous factors, including the rate of student loan defaults, seasoning of the loan portfolio and student repayment deferral periods of forbearance. Other risks associated with student loan revenue bonds include potential changes in federal legislation regarding student loan revenue bonds, state guarantee agency reimbursement and continued federal interest and other program subsidies currently in effect.
Electric Utilities Bond Risk. The electric utilities industry has been experiencing, and will continue to experience, increased competitive pressures. Federal legislation may open transmission access to any electricity supplier, although it is not presently known to what extent competition will evolve. Other risks include: (a) the availability and cost of fuel; (b) the availability and cost of capital; (c) the effects of conservation on energy demand; (d) the effects of rapidly changing environmental, safety and licensing requirements, and other federal, state and local regulations; (e) timely and sufficient rate increases and governmental limitations on rates charged to customers; (f) the effects of opposition to nuclear power; (h) increases in operating costs; and (i) obsolescence of existing equipment, facilities and products.
General Obligation Bond Risk. General obligation bonds are not backed by revenues from a specific project or source. Instead, general obligation bonds are backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuer, which has the power to tax residents to pay bondholders. Timely payments depend on the issuer’s credit quality, ability to raise tax revenues and ability to maintain an adequate tax base.
Health Care Bond Risk. The health care industry is subject to regulatory action by a number of private and governmental agencies, including federal, state and local governmental agencies. A major source of revenues for the health care industry is payments from Medicare and Medicaid programs. As a result, the industry is sensitive to legislative changes and reductions in governmental spending for such programs. Numerous other factors may also affect the industry and the value and credit quality of health care bonds, such as general and local economic conditions, demand for services and the ability of the facility to provide the services required, physicians’ confidence in the facility, management capabilities, expenses (including malpractice insurance premiums) and competition among health care providers. The following elements may adversely affect health care facility operations: the implementation of national and/or state-specific health insurance exchanges; other national, state or local health care reform measures; medical and technological advances which dramatically alter the need for health services or the way in which such services are delivered; changes in medical coverage which alter the traditional fee-for-service revenue stream; efforts by employers, insurers, and governmental agencies to reduce the costs of health insurance and health care services; and increases and decreases in the cost and availability of medical products. Hospitals and other health care facilities are additionally subject to claims and legal actions by patients and others in the ordinary course of business. There can be no assurance that a claim will not exceed the insurance coverage of a health care facility or that insurance coverage will be available to a facility.
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Housing Bond Risk. Housing revenue bonds are generally issued by a state, county, city, local housing authority or other public agency. They generally are secured by the revenues derived from mortgages purchased with the proceeds of the bond issue. It is extremely difficult to predict the supply of available mortgages to be purchased with the proceeds of an issue or the future cash flow from the underlying mortgages. Consequently, there are risks that proceeds will exceed supply, resulting in early retirement of bonds, or that homeowner repayments will create an irregular cash flow. Many factors may affect the financing of multi-family housing projects, including acceptable completion of construction, proper management, occupancy and rent levels, economic conditions and changes to current laws and regulations.
Industrial Development Bond Risk. These revenue bonds are issued by or on behalf of public authorities to obtain funds to finance various public and/or privately operated facilities, including those for business and manufacturing, housing, sports, pollution control, airport, mass transit, port and parking facilities. These bonds are normally secured only by the revenues from the project and not by state or local government tax payments. Consequently, the credit quality of these securities is dependent upon the ability of the user of the facilities financed by the bonds and any guarantor to meet its financial obligations. Payment of interest on and repayment of principal of such bonds are the responsibility of the user and/or any guarantor. These bonds are subject to a wide variety of risks, many of which relate to the nature of the specific project. Generally, the value and credit quality of these bonds are sensitive to the risks related to an economic slowdown.
Lease Obligations Risk. Lease obligations may have risks not normally associated with general obligation or other revenue bonds. Leases and installment purchase or conditional sale contracts (which may provide for title to the leased asset to pass eventually to the issuer) have developed as a means for governmental issuers to acquire property and equipment without the necessity of complying with the constitutional statutory requirements generally applicable for the issuance of debt.
Certain lease obligations contain “non appropriation” clauses that provide that the governmental issuer has no obligation to make future payments under the lease or contract unless money is appropriated for that purpose by the appropriate legislative body on an annual or other periodic basis. Consequently, continued lease payments on those lease obligations containing “non appropriation” clauses are dependent on future legislative actions. If these legislative actions do not occur, the holders of the lease obligation may experience difficulty in exercising their rights, including disposition of the property. In such circumstances, the Fund might not recover the full principal amount of the obligation.
Resource Recovery Bond Risk. Resource recovery bonds are a type of revenue bond issued to build facilities such as solid waste incinerators or waste-to-energy plants. Typically, a private corporation is involved, at least during the construction phase, and the revenue stream is secured by fees or rents paid by municipalities for use of the facilities.
These bonds are normally secured only by the revenues from the project and not by state or local government tax receipts. Consequently, the credit quality of these securities is dependent upon the ability of the user of the facilities financed by the bonds and any guarantor to meet its financial obligations. The viability of a resource recovery project, environmental protection regulations, and project operator tax incentives may affect the value and credit quality of resource recovery bonds.
Special Tax Bond Risk. Special tax bonds are usually backed and payable through a single tax, or series of special             taxes such as incremental property taxes. The failure of the tax levy to generate adequate revenue to pay the debt service on the bonds may cause the value of the bonds to decline. Adverse conditions and developments affecting a particular project may result in lower revenues to the issuer of the municipal securities, which may adversely affect the value of the Fund’s portfolio.
Tobacco Bond Risk. Tobacco settlement revenue bonds are generally neither general nor legal obligations of a state or     any of its political subdivisions and neither the full faith and credit nor the taxing power nor any other assets or revenues of a state or of any political subdivision will be pledged to the payment of any such bonds. In addition, tobacco companies’ profits from the sale of tobacco products are inherently variable and difficult to estimate. There can be no guarantee that tobacco companies will earn enough revenues to cover the payments due under tobacco bonds. The revenues of tobacco companies may be adversely affected by the adoption of new legislation and/or by litigation.
Transportation Bond Risk. Transportation bonds are obligations of issuers that own and operate public transit systems, ports, highways, turnpikes, bridges and other transportation systems. The ability of these issuers to make payments on these bonds depends on variations in use, the degree of government subsidization, competition from other forms of transportation and increased costs. Port authorities derive revenues primarily from fees imposed on ships using the port facilities. These fees can fluctuate depending on the local economy and competition from air, rail and truck transportation. Transportation bonds may be issued to finance the construction of airports, toll roads, highways or other transit facilities. Airport bonds are dependent on the general stability of the airline industry and on the stability of a specific carrier who uses the airport as a hub. Air traffic generally follows broader economic trends and is also affected by the price and availability of fuel. Toll road bonds are also affected by the cost and availability of fuel as well as toll levels, the presence of competing roads and the general economic health of an area. Fuel costs and availability also affect other
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transportation related securities, as do the presence of alternate forms of transportation, such as public transportation. Municipal securities that are issued to finance a particular transportation project often depend solely on revenues from that project to make principal and interest payments. Adverse conditions and developments affecting a particular project may result in lower revenues to the issuer of the municipal securities.
Water and Sewer Bond Risk. Water and sewer revenue bonds are often considered to have relatively secure credit as a result of their issuer’s importance, monopoly status and generally unimpeded ability to raise rates. Despite this, lack of water supply due to insufficient rain, run off or snow pack is a concern that has led to past defaults. Further, public resistance to rate increases, costly environmental litigation and federal environmental mandates are challenges faced by issuers of water and sewer bonds.
California Risk. (VanEck High Yield Muni ETF, VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF, VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF, VanEck Long Muni ETF and VanEck Short Muni ETF only.) Each Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in the State of California. Consequently, the Funds may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within California and by the financial condition of California’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities. The following is a summary of certain factors affecting the State’s current financial situation that could, in turn, adversely affect the Funds’ investments in California municipal obligations.
Provisions of the California Constitution and State statutes limit the taxing and spending authority of California governmental entities. Payments of certain municipal obligations may also be structurally subordinated to other obligations as a matter of California law. These provisions may impair the ability of California issuers to pay principal and/or interest on their obligations and the ability of the State and municipalities to address financial downturns, including limitations on the ability of the State or municipalities to raise taxes, fees or charges without voter approval. In addition, California has in the past experienced financial and economic difficulties, which heightened the risks associated with investing in bonds issued by the State of California and its political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities. Risks that threaten the State’s fiscal condition include the significant unfunded liabilities of the State’s two main retirement systems. California has committed to significant increases in annual payments to these systems to reduce the unfunded liabilities, and California also has significant unfunded liability with respect to other post-employment benefits. Moreover, many local government agencies may face budget constraints due to mandated expenditures for health, welfare and public safety, as well as the adverse impact local economic conditions have had on property taxes and sales taxes, two major sources of revenue for local government. In particular, there is an increased risk that payments to bondholders could be interrupted or that an issuer could default on its obligations. A default or credit rating downgrade of a small number of California municipal security issuers could negatively impact the market values and marketability of all California municipal securities held by each Fund.
California’s economy is broad, it does have major concentrations in high technology, trade, entertainment, manufacturing, agriculture, government, tourism, construction and services and may be sensitive to economic problems affecting those industries. In addition, future California political and economic developments, constitutional amendments, legislative measures, executive orders, administrative regulations, litigation and voter initiatives could negatively impact California’s economy. Such developments could adversely affect each Fund’s income, NAV, liquidity and/or ability to preserve or realize appreciation of capital. Furthermore, investments in California municipal securities may be affected by natural disasters, such as earthquakes or wildfires, which could impair an issuer's ability to pay principal and/or interest on its obligations.
Other risks affecting issuers of California municipal securities include, but are not limited to, the ongoing and evolving economic and health-related impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the national, State and local economies; the impact of federal tax law changes; the impact of international events on consumer confidence, oil supplies and oil prices; shifts in monetary policy affecting interest rates and the financial markets; the magnitude of pension and post-retirement health care commitments, and the impact on the funding of such benefits of lower-than-expected returns; the impact of consumer spending on tax collections; increased demand for entitlement-based and claims-based programs such as Medicaid, public assistance and general public health; access to the capital markets in light of disruptions in the market; litigation against the State; and actions taken by the federal government, including audits, disallowances, changes in aid levels, and changes to Medicaid rules.
New York Risk. (VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF, VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF, VanEck Long Muni ETF, VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF and VanEck Short Muni ETF only). Each Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in New York municipal bonds. Consequently, each Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory or other developments within the State of New York, and by the financial condition of its public authorities and political subdivisions. Unfavorable developments in any economic sector may have a substantial impact on the overall New York municipal market. As the nation’s financial capital, New York’s and New York City’s economy is heavily dependent on the financial sector and may be sensitive to economic problems affecting the sector. New York and New York City also face a particularly large degree of uncertainty from interest rate risk and equity market volatility. The New York and New York City economy tends to be more sensitive to monetary policy actions and to movements in the national and world economies than the economies of other states. The economies of New York State and New York City are diversified across the finance, insurance, real estate, entertainment and services sectors. Any downturn in these sectors or related industries may adversely affect the economy of the state. Certain issuers of New York municipal bonds have experienced serious financial difficulties in the past and reoccurrence of these difficulties may impair the
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ability of certain New York issuers to pay principal or interest on their obligations. The economic, financial and social impact from the COVID-19 pandemic has been unprecedented—and New York State was the epicenter of the initial wave; however, the state's general obligation ratings have remained strong. Climate change remains a long term threat to New York State. These threats include rising sea levels, more severe coastal flooding, more intense storms, and greenhouse gas emissions.
Illinois Risk. (VanEck High Yield Muni ETF and VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF only.) Each Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in Illinois municipal bonds. Consequently, the Funds may be affected by negative political, economic, regulatory or other developments within the State of Illinois including the financial condition of its public authorities and political subdivisions.
Unfavorable developments in any economic sector may have a substantial impact on the overall Illinois municipal market. Illinois has experienced significant budgetary challenges in recent years. Certain issuers of Illinois municipal bonds have experienced serious financial difficulties in the past and reoccurrence of these difficulties may impair the ability of certain Illinois issuers to pay principal or interest on their obligations. In 2017, Illinois narrowly avoided becoming the first state to be issued a “junk” credit rating after it passed its first budget in more than two years. However, the state’s recent budget stalemate could still trigger a credit downgrade from one of the other major ratings companies. Any future failures to pass a budget could have an adverse impact on the state’s ability to pay outstanding debt obligations, including with respect to debt owned by a Fund.
In addition, Illinois has been materially adversely impacted by the health-related and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Illinois has also faced increasing levels of debt in recent years. There is no assurance that Illinois can maintain its credit ratings for any given period of time. A downward revision or withdrawal of any such rating may have an adverse effect on the market prices of the securities issued by Illinois, which would in turn negatively impact the performance of a Fund.
Texas Risk. (VanEck Long Muni ETF only.) Each Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in Texas municipal bonds. Consequently, the Funds may be affected by negative political, economic, regulatory or other developments within the State of Texas including the financial condition of its public authorities and political subdivisions.
Index Tracking Risk. (All Funds except VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF and VanEck Muni Allocation ETF.) Each Fund’s return may not match the return of its Index for a number of reasons. For example, a Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to its Index and incurs costs associated with buying and selling securities, especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of its Index or (to the extent the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) raising cash to meet redemptions or deploying cash in connection with newly created Creation Units (defined herein), which are not factored into the return of its Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s NAV to the extent not offset by the transaction fee payable by an AP. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on a Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track its respective Index. There is no assurance that a Fund’s Index Provider (defined herein) or any agents that may act on its behalf will compile the Fund’s Index accurately, or that an Index will be determined, composed or calculated accurately. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile an Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the applicable Index Provider for a period of time or at all, particularly where the indices are less commonly used as benchmarks by funds or managers. Therefore, gains, losses or costs associated with errors of an Index Provider or its agents will generally be borne by the applicable Fund and its shareholders. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Providers or their agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to a Fund's Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Index Providers or their agents to a respective Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Funds. When a Fund’s Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and its respective Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the applicable Fund and its shareholders. For example, during a period where a Fund’s Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively or positively impact a Fund and its shareholders. Any gains due to an Index Provider’s or others’ errors will be kept by a Fund and its shareholders and any losses resulting from an Index Provider’s or others’ errors will be borne by a Fund and its shareholders. In addition, a Fund’s use of a representative sampling approach may cause the Fund’s returns to not be as well correlated with the return of its Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all of the securities in its Index in the proportions represented in such Index and can be expected to result in greater tracking error than if the Fund used a replication indexing strategy.
Each Fund may not be fully invested at times as a result of reserves of cash held by the Fund to pay expenses. In addition, a Fund may not be able to invest in certain securities included in its Index, or invest in them in the exact proportions in which they are represented in its Index, due to legal restrictions or limitations imposed by the governments of certain countries, the Exchange listing requirements, a lack of liquidity on stock exchanges in which such securities trade, potential adverse tax consequences or other regulatory reasons (such as diversification requirements). Moreover, a Fund may be delayed in purchasing or selling securities included in its Index. When markets are volatile, the ability to sell securities at fair value prices may be adversely impacted and may result in additional trading costs and/or increase the index tracking risk. Any issues a Fund encounters with regard to currency convertibility (including the cost of borrowing funds, if any) and repatriation may also increase the Index tracking
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risk. For tax efficiency purposes, a Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of its Index.
Certain Funds are expected to fair value certain of the securities they hold. To the extent a Fund calculates its NAV based on fair value prices or on the prices that differ from those used in calculating a Fund’s respective Index, the Fund’s ability to track its Index may be adversely affected. The need to comply with the tax diversification and other requirements of the Internal Revenue Code may also impact the Fund’s ability to replicate the performance of its Index. In addition, if a Fund utilizes depositary receipts and other derivative instruments, its return may not correlate as well with the return of its Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all the securities in its Index directly. Actions taken in response to proposed corporate actions could result in increased tracking error. In light of the factors discussed above, each Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of its index. Index tracking risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Changes to the composition of a Fund’s Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Index may cause the Fund to experience increased volatility, during which time the Fund’s index tracking risk may be heightened. In addition, sale of securities may result in the recognition of accrued market discount and/or net realized gains for tax purposes, which may result in taxable distributions to shareholders.
Each Fund's Index will gradually increase exposure to securities based on their weightings in the Fund's final index while proportionally reducing exposure to certain component securities of the Fund's prior index. These adjustments to a Fund's portfolio holdings are expected to increase the Fund's transaction costs and turnover rate.
Active Management Risk. (VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF and VanEck Muni Allocation ETF only.) The Funds are subject to management risk because they are actively managed ETFs. In managing the Funds portfolios, the Adviser will apply investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions for the Funds, but there can be no guarantee that these will produce the desired results.
Passive Management Risk. (All Funds except VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF and VanEck Muni Allocation ETF.) Unlike many investment companies, the Funds are not “actively” managed. Therefore, unless a specific security is removed from a Fund’s respective Index, a Fund generally would not sell a security because the security’s issuer is in financial trouble. If a specific security is removed from a Fund’s respective Index, a Fund may be forced to sell such security at an inopportune time or for prices other than at current market values. An investment in the Funds involves risks similar to those of investing in any Fund that invests in bonds, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. A Fund’s respective Index may not contain the appropriate or a diversified mix of securities for any particular economic cycle. The timing of changes in the securities of a Fund’s portfolio in seeking to replicate its Index could have a negative effect on the Fund. Unlike with an actively managed fund, the Adviser does not use techniques or defensive strategies designed to lessen the effects of market volatility or to reduce the impact of periods of market decline. Additionally, unusual market conditions may cause a Fund’s Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause a Fund’s Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. This means that, based on market and economic conditions, a Fund’s performance could be lower than funds that may actively shift their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.
Tax Risk. There is no guarantee that a Fund’s income will be exempt from U.S. federal or state income taxes. Events occurring after the date of issuance of a municipal bond or after a Fund’s acquisition of a municipal bond may result in a determination that interest on that bond is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes retroactively to its date of issuance. Such a determination may cause a portion of prior distributions by a Fund to its shareholders to be taxable to those shareholders in the year of receipt. Federal or state changes in income or alternative minimum tax rates or in the tax treatment of municipal bonds may make municipal bonds less attractive as investments and cause them to lose value.
Liquidity Risk. (VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF only.) Unlike the Fund, as closed-end funds the Underlying Funds are not limited in their ability to invest in illiquid securities. Securities with reduced liquidity involve greater risk than securities with more liquid markets. Prices of securities not traded on an exchange may vary over time. Secondary trading of a fixed-income security may decline for a period of time if its credit quality unexpectedly declines. An Underlying Fund may not receive full value for assets sold during periods of infrequent trading.
Anti-Takeover Measures Risk. (VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF only.) Certain Underlying Funds may have provisions in their organizational documents intended to limit the ability of third parties to acquire control or change the composition of the Underlying Fund’s board. This may discourage a third party from seeking to obtain control of the Underlying Fund, which could limit the ability of Underlying Fund shareholders to sell their shares at a premium over prevailing market prices.
Leverage Risk. (VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF only.) Ordinary borrowings by an Underlying Fund or an Underlying Fund’s investment in derivatives may result in leverage. If the prices of those investments decrease, or if the cost of borrowing exceeds any increase in the prices of investments made with the proceeds of the borrowing, the NAV of the Underlying Fund’s shares will decrease more than if the Underlying Fund had not used leverage. An Underlying Fund may have to sell investments at a time and at a price that is unfavorable to the Underlying Fund to repay borrowings. Interest on borrowings is an expense the Underlying Fund would not otherwise incur. Leverage magnifies the potential for gain and the risk of loss. If an Underlying Fund uses leverage,
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there can be no assurance that the Underlying Fund’s leverage strategy will be successful. Furthermore, the Underlying Funds may pay a management fee to their advisers based on a percentage of “managed assets.” Managed assets for this purpose can include the proceeds realized and managed from the Underlying Fund’s use of leverage. Accordingly, the fact that a decision to increase an Underlying Fund’s leverage will have the effect, all other things being equal, of increasing managed assets and therefore the management fee means that an Underlying Fund’s adviser may have a conflict of interest in determining whether to use or increase leverage with respect to its management of the Underlying Fund’s portfolio.
High Portfolio Turnover Risk. (VanEck Muni Allocation ETF only.) The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of its portfolio securities. High portfolio turnover 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. High portfolio turnover may also result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account.
Model and Data Risk. (VanEck Muni Allocation ETF only.) Given the complexity of the investments and strategies of the Fund, the Adviser relies heavily on quantitative models and information and data (“Models and Data”). Models and Data are used to construct sets of transactions and investments, and to provide risk management insights. When Models and Data prove to be incorrect or incomplete, any decisions made in reliance thereon expose the Fund to potential risks. Some of the models used by the Adviser for the Fund are predictive in nature. The use of predictive models has inherent risks. Because predictive models are usually constructed based on historical data, the success of relying on such models may depend heavily on the accuracy and reliability of the supplied historical data. All models rely on correct market data inputs. If incorrect market data is entered into even a well-founded model, the resulting information will be incorrect. However, even if market data is input correctly, “model prices” will often differ substantially from market prices, especially for instruments with complex characteristics, such as derivative instruments.
Authorized Participant (“AP”) Concentration Risk. A Fund may have a limited number of financial institutions that act as APs, none of which are obligated to engage in creation and/or redemption transactions. To the extent that those APs exit the business, or are unable to or choose not to process creation and/or redemption orders, and no other AP is able to step forward to create and redeem, there may be a significantly diminished trading market for Shares or Shares may trade like closed-end funds at a greater discount (or premium) to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or de-listing. The AP concentration risk may be heightened in scenarios where APs have limited or diminished access to the capital required to post collateral.
No Guarantee of Active Trading Market. While Shares are listed on the Exchange there can be no assurance that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained. Further, secondary markets may be subject to irregular trading activity, wide bid/ask spreads and extended trade settlement periods in times of market stress because market makers and APs may step away from making a market in the Shares and in executing creation and redemption orders, which could cause a material deviation in a Fund’s market price from its NAV. Van Eck Securities Corporation, the distributor of the Shares (the “Distributor”), does not maintain a secondary market in the Shares. Investors purchasing and selling Shares in the secondary market may not experience investment results consistent with those experienced by those APs creating and redeeming directly with a Fund.
Decisions by market makers or APs to reduce their role or “step away” from these activities in times of market stress could inhibit the effectiveness of the arbitrage process in maintaining the relationship between the underlying value of a Fund’s portfolio securities and the Fund’s market price. This reduced effectiveness could result in Fund Shares trading price which differs materially from NAV and also in greater than normal intraday bid/ask spreads for Fund Shares.
Trading Issues. Trading in Shares on the Exchange may be halted due to market conditions or for reasons that, in the view of the Exchange, make trading in Shares inadvisable. In addition, trading in Shares on the Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. If a trading halt or unanticipated early close of the Exchange occurs, a shareholder may be unable to purchase or sell Shares of a Fund. There can be no assurance that the requirements of the Exchange necessary to maintain the listing of a Fund will continue to be met or will remain unchanged.
Fund Shares Trading, Premium/Discount Risk and Liquidity of Fund Shares. Disruptions to creations and redemptions, the existence of market volatility or potential lack of an active trading market for Shares (including through a trading halt), as well as other factors, may result in Shares trading at a significant premium or discount to NAV or to the intraday value of a Fund’s holdings. The NAV of the Shares will fluctuate with changes in the market value of a Fund’s securities holdings. The market price of Shares may fluctuate, in some cases materially, in accordance with changes in NAV and the intraday value of a Fund’s holdings, as well as supply and demand on the Exchange. The Adviser cannot predict whether Shares will trade below, at or above their NAV. Given the fact that Shares can be created and redeemed by APs in Creation Units (defined herein), the Adviser believes that large discounts or premiums to the NAV of Shares should not be sustained in the long-term. While the creation/redemption feature is designed to make it likely that Shares normally will trade close to the value of a Fund’s holdings, market prices are not expected to correlate exactly to the Fund’s NAV due to timing reasons, supply and demand imbalances and other factors. The price differences may be due, in large part, to the fact that supply and demand forces at work in the secondary trading market for Shares may be closely related to, but not necessarily identical to, the same forces influencing the prices of the securities of a Fund’s portfolio of investments trading individually or in the aggregate at any point in time. If a shareholder purchases Shares at a time when the market price is at a premium to the NAV or sells Shares at a time when the market price is
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at a discount to the NAV, the shareholder may pay significantly more or receive significantly less than the underlying value of the Shares that were bought or sold or the shareholder may be unable to sell his or her Shares. Any of these factors, discussed above and further below, may lead to the Shares trading at a premium or discount to a Fund’s NAV. In addition, because certain of a Fund’s underlying securities trade on exchanges that are closed when the Exchange (i.e., the exchange that Shares of the Fund trade on) is open, there are likely to be deviations between the expected value of an underlying security and the closing security’s price (i.e., the last quote from its closed foreign market) resulting in premiums or discounts to NAV that may be greater than those experienced by other ETFs. In addition, the securities held by a Fund may be traded in markets that close at a different time than the Exchange. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when the Exchange is open but after the applicable market closing, fixing or settlement times, bid/ask spreads and the resulting premium or discount to the Shares’ NAV may widen. Additionally, in stressed market conditions, the market for the Fund’s Shares may become less liquid in response to deteriorating liquidity in the markets for the Fund’s underlying portfolio holdings. There are various methods by which investors can purchase and sell Shares. Investors should consult their financial intermediaries before purchasing or selling Shares of the Fund.
When you buy or sell Shares of a Fund through a broker, you will likely incur a brokerage commission or other charges imposed by brokers. In addition, the market price of Shares, like the price of any exchange-traded security, includes a bid/ask spread charged by the market makers or other participants that trade the particular security. The spread of a Fund’s Shares varies over time based on the Fund’s trading volume and market liquidity and may increase if the Fund’s trading volume, the spread of the Fund’s underlying securities, or market liquidity decrease. In times of severe market disruption, including when trading of a Fund’s holdings may be halted, the bid/ask spread may increase significantly. This means that Shares may trade at a discount to the Fund’s NAV, and the discount is likely to be greatest during significant market volatility.
Concentration Risk. A Fund’s assets may be concentrated in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries to the extent that its respective Index concentrates in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries. The securities of many or all of the companies in the same sector or industry may decline in value due to developments adversely affecting such sector or industry. By concentrating its assets in a particular sector or sectors or industry or group of industries, a Fund is subject to the risk that economic, political or other conditions that have a negative effect on that sector or sectors or industry or group of industries may negatively impact the Fund to a greater extent than if the Fund’s assets were invested in a wider variety of sectors or industries.
State Concentration Risk. (VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF only.) A Fund may invest a significant portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in a particular state or states. Consequently, a Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within the state or states and by the financial condition of the state's or states' political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities.
Non-Diversified Risk. (VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF and VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF only.) The Funds are classified as “non-diversified” fund under the 1940 Act. Therefore, the Funds may invest a relatively high percentage of their assets in a smaller number of issuers or may invest a larger proportion of their assets in a single issuer. Moreover, the gains and losses on a single investment may have a greater impact on the Funds NAV and may make the Funds more volatile than more diversified funds.
Non-Diversification Risk. (VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF only.) The Fund may become classified as “non-diversified” under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, solely as a result of a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the its Index. If the Fund becomes non-diversified, it may invest a greater portion of its assets in securities of a smaller number of individual issuers than a diversified fund. As a result, changes in the market value of a single investment could cause greater fluctuations in share price than would occur in a more diversified fund.
ADDITIONAL NON-PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
Each Fund may invest in securities not included in its respective Index, money market instruments, including repurchase agreements or other funds which invest exclusively in money market instruments, convertible securities, structured notes (notes on which the amount of principal repayment and interest payments are based on the movement of one or more specified factors, such as the movement of a particular stock or stock index), and/or certain derivatives, which the Adviser believes will help a Fund track its Index. Depositary receipts not included in a Fund’s Index may be used by certain Funds in seeking performance that corresponds to its respective Index, and in managing cash flows, and may count towards compliance with a Fund’s 80% policy. Each Fund may also invest, to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act and SEC regulations thereunder in other affiliated and unaffiliated funds, such as open-end or closed-end management investment companies, including other ETFs.
With respect to the VanEck Muni Allocation ETF, the Fund may also invest in securities issued by other investment companies, equity securities, fixed income securities and money market instruments, including repurchase agreements or other funds which invest exclusively in money market instruments. For temporary defensive purposes, the Fund may invest without limit in money market instruments, including repurchase agreements or other funds which invest exclusively in money market instruments. The Fund may also pursue temporary defensive positions in anticipation of or in an attempt to respond to adverse market, economic, political or other conditions. Such a position could have the effect of reducing any benefit the Fund may receive from a market increase.
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BORROWING MONEY
Each Fund may borrow money from a bank up to a limit of one-third of the market value of its assets. Each Fund has entered into a credit facility to borrow money for temporary, emergency or other purposes, including the funding of shareholder redemption requests, trade settlements and as necessary to distribute to shareholders any income required to maintain the Fund’s status as a regulated investment company. To the extent that a Fund borrows money, it may be leveraged; at such times, the Fund will appreciate or depreciate in value more rapidly than its Index. Leverage generally has the effect of increasing the amount of loss or gain a Fund might realize, and may increase volatility in the value of a Fund’s investments.
LENDING PORTFOLIO SECURITIES
Each Fund may lend its portfolio securities to brokers, dealers and other financial institutions desiring to borrow securities to complete transactions and for other purposes. In connection with such loans, a Fund receives cash, U.S. government securities and stand-by letters of credit not issued by the Fund’s bank lending agent equal to at least 102% of the value of the portfolio securities being loaned. This collateral is marked-to-market on a daily basis. Although a Fund will receive collateral in connection with all loans of its securities holdings, the Fund would be exposed to a risk of loss should a borrower fail to return the borrowed securities (e.g., the Fund would have to buy replacement securities and the loaned securities may have appreciated beyond the value of the collateral held by the Fund) or become insolvent. A Fund may pay fees to the party arranging the loan of securities. In addition, a Fund will bear the risk that it may lose money because the borrower of the loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. Each Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of any cash collateral or in the value of investments made with the cash collateral. These events could trigger adverse tax consequences for the Funds. Substitute payments for dividends received by a Fund for securities loaned out by a Fund will not be considered qualified dividend income.
ADDITIONAL NON-PRINCIPAL RISKS
Risk of Investing in Derivatives. Derivatives are financial instruments whose values are based on the value of one or more reference assets or indicators, such as a security, currency, interest rate, or index. The Funds’ use of derivatives involves risks different from, and possibly greater than, the risks associated with investing directly in securities and other more traditional investments. Moreover, although the value of a derivative is based on an underlying asset or indicator, a derivative typically does not carry the same rights as would be the case if a Fund invested directly in the underlying securities, currencies or other assets.
Derivatives are subject to a number of risks, such as potential changes in value in response to market developments or, in the case of “over-the-counter” derivatives, as a result of a counterparty’s credit quality and the risk that a derivative transaction may not have the effect the Adviser anticipated. Derivatives also involve the risk of mispricing or improper valuation and the risk that changes in the value of a derivative may not achieve the desired correlation with the underlying asset or indicator. Derivative transactions can create investment leverage and may be highly volatile, and a Fund could lose more than the amount it invests. The use of derivatives may increase the amount and affect the timing and character of taxes payable by shareholders of a Fund.
Many derivative transactions are entered into “over-the-counter” without a central clearinghouse; as a result, the value of such a derivative transaction will depend on, among other factors, the ability and the willingness of a Fund’s counterparty to perform its obligations under the transaction. If a counterparty were to default on its obligations, a Fund’s contractual remedies against such counterparty may be subject to bankruptcy and insolvency laws, which could affect the Fund’s rights as a creditor (e.g., the Fund may not receive the net amount of payments that it is contractually entitled to receive). A liquid secondary market may not always exist for a Fund’s derivative positions at any time, and a Fund may not be able to initiate or liquidate a swap position at an advantageous time or price, which may result in significant losses.
In October 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) adopted a final rule related to the use of derivatives, short sales, reverse repurchase agreements and certain other transactions by registered investment companies (the “derivatives rule”). The derivatives rule requires funds to trade derivatives and other transactions that create future fund payment or delivery obligations subject to a value-at-risk (“VaR”) leverage limit, and certain derivatives risk management program and reporting requirements. Generally, these requirements apply unless a fund qualifies as a “limited derivatives user,” as defined in the final rule. Under the rule, when a fund trades reverse repurchase agreements or similar financing transactions, including certain tender option bonds, it needs to aggregate the amount of indebtedness associated with the reverse repurchase agreements or similar financing transactions with the aggregate amount of any other senior securities representing indebtedness when calculating the fund’s asset coverage ratio or treat all such transactions as derivatives transactions. Reverse repurchase agreements or similar financing transactions aggregated with other indebtedness do not need to be included in the calculation of whether a fund is a limited derivatives user, but for funds subject to the VaR testing, reverse repurchase agreements and similar financing transactions must be included for purposes of such testing whether treated as derivatives transactions or not. The SEC also provided guidance in connection with the rule regarding use of securities lending collateral that may limit a fund's securities lending activities. In addition, under the derivatives rule, a Fund is permitted to invest in a security on a when-issued or forward-settling basis, or with a non-standard settlement cycle, and the transaction will be deemed not to involve a senior security under the 1940 Act, provided that (i) the Fund intends to physically settle the transaction and (ii) the transaction will settle within 35 days of its trade date (the “Delayed-Settlement Securities Provision”). A Fund may otherwise engage in such transactions that do not meet the conditions of the Delayed-Settlement Securities Provision so long as the Fund treats any such transaction as a “derivatives transaction” for purposes of compliance with the derivatives rule. Furthermore, under the derivatives rule, a Fund will be permitted to enter into an
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unfunded commitment agreement, and such unfunded commitment agreement will not be subject to the asset coverage requirements under the 1940 Act, if the Fund reasonably believes, at the time it enters into such agreement, that it will have sufficient cash and cash equivalents to meet its obligations with respect to all such agreements as they come due.
Shareholder Risk. Certain shareholders, including other funds advised by the Adviser, may from time to time own a substantial amount of a Fund’s Shares. In addition, a third party investor, the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser, an AP, a market maker, or another entity may invest in a Fund and hold its investment for a limited period of time. There can be no assurance that any large shareholder would not redeem its investment. Redemptions by shareholders could have a negative impact on a Fund. In addition, transactions by large shareholders may account for a large percentage of the trading volume on an Exchange and may, therefore, have a material effect on the market price of the Shares.
Leverage Risk. (Each Fund except VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF, for which Leverage Risk is a principal risk.) To the extent that a Fund borrows money or utilizes certain derivatives, it may be leveraged. Leveraging generally exaggerates the effect on NAV of any increase or decrease in the market value of a Fund’s portfolio securities. The Funds are required to comply with the derivatives rule when they engage in transactions that create future Fund payment or delivery obligations.
Puerto Rico Risk. (VanEck High Yield Muni ETF and VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF only.) Each Fund may invest a portion of its assets in municipal obligations of issuers located in Puerto Rico. Consequently, the Fund may be affected by political, economic, regulatory and other developments within Puerto Rico and by the financial condition of Puerto Rico’s political subdivisions, agencies, instrumentalities and public authorities. Events, including economic and political policy changes, tax base erosion, territory constitutional limits on tax increases, budget deficits and other financial difficulties and changes in the credit ratings assigned to Puerto Rico’s municipal issuers, are likely to affect the Fund’s performance. The Puerto Rican economy is reliant on manufacturing, services and tourism, and its economic and financial operations parallel the economic cycles of the United States. As a result, a decline in tourism, which is an important component of the Puerto Rico economy, and U.S. recessions have had a negative effect on the overall economy of Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico continues to face significant fiscal challenges, including persistent government deficits, underfunded public pension benefit obligations, underfunded government retirement systems, sizable debt service obligations and a high unemployment rate.
The Puerto Rican government defaulted on nearly $2 billion in debt payments due on July 1, 2016. In May 2017, the newly-created oversight board that oversees Puerto Rico's finance and court-supervised debt restructuring (the “Oversight Board”) initiated a bankruptcy-like process for the general government, general obligation debt, and certain Puerto Rico instrumentalities, including the Puerto Rico Sales Tax Financing Corporation, the Highways and Transportation Authority, and the Employee Retirement System. These municipal obligations are subject to heightened risks that may adversely affect the value of a Fund’s portfolio and the repayment of such bonds may be subject to significant uncertainties if Puerto Rico’s economic downturn continues. The negotiations between Puerto Rico and its instrumentalities and their respective creditors to restructure outstanding debt obligations remain ongoing, and it is not possible to predict whether Puerto Rico and its instrumentalities will be able to come to agreements with their creditors.
In addition, due to the ongoing budget impact from the COVID-19 pandemic on Puerto Rico's finances, the Oversight Board or Puerto Rico could seek to revise or even terminate earlier agreements reached with certain creditors.
Temporary Defensive Strategy. (VanEck Muni Allocation ETF only.) When the Fund utilizes a temporary defensive strategy, it may not achieve its investment objective.

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INFORMATION ABOUT UNDERLYING FUNDS AND ETPs
Under normal circumstances, the VanEck Muni Allocation ETF intends to invest primarily in VanEck ETPs that are registered under the federal securities laws and that invest in publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar-denominated investment grade and below investment grade (“high yield”) tax-exempt bond market. The following table sets forth (i) the names of the underlying funds that the VanEck Muni Allocation ETF is currently considering for investment, and (ii) brief descriptions of the underlying funds’ investment objectives and principal investment strategies. The list of underlying funds is not exhaustive and subject to change at the discretion of the Adviser without notice to shareholders. In addition, the investment objective(s) and principal investment strategies of each underlying fund are subject to change without notice to shareholders.
Prospectuses for the VanEck ETPs can be obtained at www.vaneck.com.
Fund Name Investment Objective(s) and Principal Investment Strategies
VanEck High Yield Muni ETF VanEck High Yield Muni ETF (the “High Yield Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the ICE High Yield Crossover Municipal Bond Transition Index (the “High Yield Index”). The High Yield Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in securities that comprise the benchmark index. The High Yield Index is comprised of publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar denominated high yield long-term tax-exempt bond market.
VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF (the “Intermediate Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the ICE Intermediate AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index (the “Intermediate Index”). The Intermediate Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in fixed income securities that comprise the Intermediate Index. The Intermediate Index is comprised of publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar denominated intermediate term tax-exempt bond market. 
VanEck Long Muni ETF
VanEck Long Muni ETF (the “Long Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the ICE Long AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index (the “Long Index”). The Long Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in fixed income securities that comprise the Long Index. The Long Index is comprised of publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar denominated long-term tax-exempt bond market.
VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF (the “Short High Yield Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the ICE 1-12 Year High Yield Crossover Municipal Bond Transition Index (the “Short High Yield Index”). The Short High Yield Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in securities that comprise the benchmark index. The Short High Yield Index is composed of publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar denominated high yield short-term tax-exempt bond market.
VanEck Short Muni ETF
VanEck Short Muni ETF (the “Short Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the ICE Short AMT-Free Broad National Municipal Transition Index (the “Short Index”). The Short Fund normally invests at least 80% of its total assets in fixed income securities that comprise the Short Index. The Short Index is comprised of publicly traded municipal bonds that cover the U.S. dollar denominated short-term tax-exempt bond market. 

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TAX ADVANTAGED PRODUCT STRUCTURE
Unlike many conventional mutual funds which are only bought and sold at closing NAVs, the Shares of each Fund have been designed to be tradable in a secondary market on an intra-day basis and to be created and redeemed principally in-kind in Creation Units at each day’s market close. These in-kind arrangements are designed to mitigate the adverse effects on a Fund’s portfolio that could arise from frequent cash purchase and redemption transactions that affect the NAV of the Fund. Moreover, in contrast to conventional mutual funds, where frequent redemptions can have an adverse tax impact on taxable shareholders because of the need to sell portfolio securities which, in turn, may generate taxable gain, the in-kind redemption mechanism of each Fund, to the extent used, generally is not expected to lead to a tax event for shareholders whose Shares are not being redeemed.
A description of each Fund’s policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Fund’s portfolio securities is available in the Funds’ SAI.
MANAGEMENT OF THE FUNDS
Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees of the Trust has responsibility for the general oversight of the management of the Funds, including general supervision of the Adviser and other service providers, but is not involved in the day-to-day management of the Trust. A list of the Trustees and the Trust officers, and their present positions and principal occupations, is provided in the Funds’ SAI.
Investment Adviser. Under the terms of an investment management agreement between the Trust and Van Eck Associates Corporation with respect to VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF, VanEck High Yield Muni ETF, VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF, VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF, VanEck Long Muni ETF, VanEck Muni Allocation ETF, VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF, and VanEck Short Muni ETF (the “Municipal Investment Management Agreement”), Van Eck Associates Corporation serves as the adviser to each Fund and, subject to the supervision of the Board of Trustees, is responsible for the day-today investment management of each Fund. As of July 31, 2022, the Adviser managed approximately $70.83 billion in assets. The Adviser has been an investment adviser since 1955 and also acts as adviser or sub-adviser to mutual funds, other ETFs, other pooled investment vehicles and separate accounts. The Adviser’s principal business address is 666 Third Avenue, 9th Floor, New York, New York 10017. A discussion regarding the Board of Trustees’ approval of the Investment Management Agreement for each Fund will be available in the Trust’s semi-annual report for the period ended October 31, 2022.
Pursuant to the Municipal Investment Management Agreement, the Adviser is responsible for all expenses of VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF, VanEck High Yield Muni ETF, VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF, VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF, VanEck Long Muni ETF, VanEck Muni Allocation ETF, VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF and VanEck Short Muni ETF, including the costs of transfer agency, custody, fund administration, legal, audit and other services, except for the fee payment under the Municipal Investment Management Agreement, acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, offering costs, trading expenses, taxes and extraordinary expenses. For its services to each Fund, each Fund has agreed to pay the Adviser an annual unitary management fee equal to 0.40% (with respect to VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF), 0.35% (with respect to VanEck High Yield Muni ETF and VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF), 0.24% (with respect to VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF, VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF and VanEck Long Muni ETF), ) 0.08% (with respect to VanEck Muni Allocation ETF) and 0.20% (with respect to VanEck Short Muni ETF) of its average daily net assets. Offering costs excluded from the annual unitary management fee are: (a) legal fees pertaining to a Fund’s Shares offered for sale; (b) SEC and state registration fees; and (c) initial fees paid for Shares of a Fund to be listed on an exchange. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Adviser has agreed to pay all such offering costs until at least September 1, 2023.
Manager of Managers Structure. With respect to VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF and VanEck Muni Allocation ETF, the Adviser and the Trust may rely on an exemptive order (the “Order”) from the SEC that permits the Adviser to enter into investment sub-advisory agreements with unaffiliated sub-advisers without obtaining shareholder approval. The Adviser, subject to the review and approval of the Board of Trustees, may select one or more sub-advisers for the Fund and supervise, monitor and evaluate the performance of each sub-adviser.
The Order also permits the Adviser, subject to the approval of the Board of Trustees, to replace sub-advisers and amend investment sub-advisory agreements, including applicable fee arrangements, without shareholder approval whenever the Adviser and the Board of Trustees believe such action will benefit the Fund and its shareholders. The Adviser thus would have the responsibility (subject to the oversight of the Board of Trustees) to recommend the hiring and replacement of sub-advisers as well as the discretion to terminate any sub-adviser and reallocate the Fund’s assets for management among any other sub-adviser(s)
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MANAGEMENT OF THE FUNDS
and itself. This means that the Adviser would be able to reduce the sub-advisory fees and retain a larger portion of the management fee, or increase the sub-advisory fees and retain a smaller portion of the management fee. The Adviser would compensate each sub-adviser out of its management fee.
Administrator, Custodian and Transfer Agent. Van Eck Associates Corporation is the administrator for the Funds (the “Administrator”), and State Street Bank and Trust Company is the custodian of the Funds’ assets and provides transfer agency and fund accounting services to the Funds. The Administrator is responsible for certain clerical, recordkeeping and/or bookkeeping services which are required to be provided pursuant to the Investment Management Agreement.
Distributor. Van Eck Securities Corporation is the distributor of the Shares (the “Distributor”). The Distributor will not distribute Shares in less than a specified number of Shares, each called a “Creation Unit,” and does not maintain a secondary market in the Shares. The Shares are traded in the secondary market.

PORTFOLIO MANAGERS
The portfolio manager who is currently responsible for the day-to-day management of the VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF’s portfolio is Peter H. Liao.
Mr. Liao has been employed by the Adviser as an analyst since the summer of 2004 and has been a portfolio manager since 2006. Mr. Liao graduated from New York University in 2004 with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Mathematics.
Mr. Liao serves as a portfolio manager of other funds of the Trust. Mr. Liao also serves as portfolio manager for certain other investment companies and pooled investment vehicles advised by the Adviser. See the Funds’ SAI for additional information about the portfolio manager’s compensation, other accounts managed by the portfolio manager and his respective ownership of Shares.
The portfolio manager who is currently responsible for the day-to-day management of the VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF’s, VanEck Long Muni ETF’s, VanEck Short Muni ETF’s, VanEck High Yield Muni ETF’s and VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF’s portfolios is James T. Colby III. Mr. Colby shares joint responsibility for the day-to-day management of the VanEck HIP Sustainable Muni ETF’s portfolio with Stephanie Wang.
Mr. Colby has been employed by the Adviser as a portfolio manager since September 2007. Mr. Colby graduated from Brown University in 1972 with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and International Relations; and from Hofstra University in 1979 with a Masters of Business Administration in Finance.
Ms. Wang has been employed with the Adviser since 2016. Ms. Wang graduated from Baruch College in 2013 with a Bachelor of Science in Finance and in 2016 with a Master's in Financial Engineering. She is a CFA® charter holder and a member of the CFA Institute. See the Funds’ SAI for additional information about the portfolio managers’ compensation, other accounts managed by the portfolio managers and their respective ownership of Shares.
The portfolio managers who currently share joint responsibility for the day-to-day management of the VanEck Muni Allocation ETF’s portfolio are David Schassler and John Lau.
Mr. Schassler has been employed by the Adviser as a portfolio manager since May 2016, a deputy portfolio manager from 2015 to 2016 and a director of manager research from 2012 to 2015. Mr. Schassler graduated from the State University of New York College at Cortland in 2003 with a Bachelor of Arts and from the NYU Stern School of Business in 2012 with a Master’s of Business Administration.
Mr. Lau is deputy portfolio manager of the Fund. He has been employed with the Adviser since 2007 and has over 10 years of experience in the financial markets. Mr. Lau received his Bacherlor of Science in Business Administration, with a concentration in Financial Analysis from the State University of New York at Buffalo. See the Funds’ SAI for additional information about the portfolio managers’ compensation, other accounts managed by the portfolio managers and their respective ownership of Shares.





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DETERMINATION OF NAV
The NAV per Share for each Fund is computed by dividing the value of the net assets of the Fund (i.e., the value of its total assets less total liabilities) by the total number of Shares outstanding. Expenses and fees, including the management fee, are accrued daily and taken into account for purposes of determining NAV. The NAV of each Fund is determined each business day as of the close of trading (ordinarily 4:00 p.m., Eastern time) on the New York Stock Exchange.
The values of each Fund’s portfolio securities are based on the securities’ closing prices on the markets on which the securities trade, when available. Due to the time differences between the United States and certain countries in which certain Funds invest, securities on these exchanges may not trade at times when Shares of the Fund will trade. In the absence of a last reported sales price, or if no sales were reported, and for other assets for which market quotes are not readily available, values may be based on quotes obtained from a quotation reporting system, established market makers or by an outside independent pricing service. Debt instruments with remaining maturities of more than 60 days are valued at the evaluated mean price provided by an outside independent pricing service. If an outside independent pricing service is unable to provide a valuation, the instrument is valued at the mean of the highest bid and the lowest asked quotes obtained from one or more brokers or dealers selected by the Adviser. Prices obtained by an outside independent pricing service may use information provided by market makers or estimates of market values obtained from yield data related to investments or securities with similar characteristics and may use a computerized grid matrix of securities and its evaluations in determining what it believes is the fair value of the portfolio securities. Short-term debt instruments having a maturity of 60 days or less are valued at amortized cost. Any assets or liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar are converted into U.S. dollars at the current market rates on the date of valuation as quoted by one or more sources. If a market quotation for a security or other asset is not readily available or the Adviser believes it does not otherwise accurately reflect the market value of the security or asset at the time a Fund calculates its NAV, the security or asset will be fair valued by the Adviser in accordance with the Trust’s valuation policies and procedures approved by the Board of Trustees. Each Fund may also use fair value pricing in a variety of circumstances, including but not limited to, situations when the value of a security in the Fund’s portfolio has been materially affected by events occurring after the close of the market on which the security is principally traded (such as a corporate action or other news that may materially affect the price of a security) or trading in a security has been suspended or halted. In addition, each Fund that holds foreign equity securities currently expects that it will fair value certain of the foreign equity securities held by the Fund, if any, each day the Fund calculates its NAV, except those securities principally traded on exchanges that close at the same time the Fund calculates its NAV.
Accordingly, a Fund’s NAV may reflect certain portfolio securities’ fair values rather than their market prices at the time the exchanges on which they principally trade close. Fair value pricing involves subjective judgments and it is possible that a fair value determination for a security or other asset is materially different than the value that could be realized upon the sale of such security or asset. In addition, fair value pricing could result in a difference between the prices used to calculate a Fund’s NAV and the prices used by such Fund’s respective Index. This may adversely affect a Fund’s ability to track its Index. With respect to securities that are principally traded on foreign exchanges, the value of a Fund’s portfolio securities may change on days when you will not be able to purchase or sell your Shares.
INTRADAY VALUE
The trading prices of the Funds’ Shares in the secondary market generally differ from the Funds’ daily NAV and are affected by market forces such as the supply of and demand for Fund Shares and underlying securities held by each Fund, economic conditions and other factors. Information regarding the intraday value of the Funds’ Shares (“IIV”) may be disseminated throughout each trading day by an Exchange or by market data vendors or other information providers. The IIV is based on the current market value of the securities and/or cash required to be deposited in exchange for a Creation Unit. The IIV does not necessarily reflect the precise composition of the current portfolio of securities held by each Fund at a particular point in time or the best possible valuation of the current portfolio. Therefore, the IIV should not be viewed as a “real-time” update of the Funds’ NAV, which is computed only once a day. The IIV is generally determined by using current market quotations and/or price quotations obtained from broker-dealers and other market intermediaries that may trade in the portfolio securities held by each Fund and valuations based on current market rates. The quotations and/or valuations of certain Fund holdings may not be updated during U.S. trading hours if such holdings do not trade in the United States. Each Fund is not involved in, or responsible for, the calculation or dissemination of the IIV and makes no warranty as to its accuracy.
RULE 144A AND OTHER UNREGISTERED SECURITIES
An AP (i.e., a person eligible to place orders with the Distributor to create or redeem Creation Units of a Fund) that is not a “qualified institutional buyer,” as such term is defined under Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), will not be able to receive, as part of a redemption, restricted securities eligible for resale under Rule 144A or other unregistered securities.
BUYING AND SELLING EXCHANGE-TRADED SHARES
The Shares of the Funds are listed on the Exchange. If you buy or sell Shares in the secondary market, you will incur customary brokerage commissions and charges and may pay some or all of the “spread,” which is any difference between the bid price and the ask price. The spread varies over time for a Fund’s Shares based on the Fund’s trading volume and market liquidity, and is generally lower if the Funds have high trading volume and market liquidity, and generally higher if the Funds have little
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trading volume and market liquidity (which is often the case for funds that are newly launched or small in size). In times of severe market disruption or low trading volume in a Fund’s Shares, this spread can increase significantly. It is anticipated that the Shares will trade in the secondary market at prices that may differ to varying degrees from the NAV of the Shares. During periods of disruptions to creations and redemptions or the existence of extreme market volatility, the market prices of Shares are more likely to differ significantly from the Shares’ NAV.
The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) serves as securities depository for the Shares. (The Shares may be held only in book- entry form; stock certificates will not be issued.) DTC, or its nominee, is the record or registered owner of all outstanding Shares. Beneficial ownership of Shares will be shown on the records of DTC or its participants (described below). Beneficial owners of Shares are not entitled to have Shares registered in their names, will not receive or be entitled to receive physical delivery of certificates in definitive form and are not considered the registered holder thereof. Accordingly, to exercise any rights of a holder of Shares, each beneficial owner must rely on the procedures of: (i) DTC; (ii) “DTC Participants,” i.e., securities brokers and dealers, banks, trust companies, clearing corporations and certain other organizations, some of whom (and/or their representatives) own DTC; and (iii) “Indirect Participants,” i.e., brokers, dealers, banks and trust companies that clear through or maintain a custodial relationship with a DTC Participant, either directly or indirectly, through which such beneficial owner holds its interests. The Trust understands that under existing industry practice, in the event the Trust requests any action of holders of Shares, or a beneficial owner desires to take any action that DTC, as the record owner of all outstanding Shares, is entitled to take, DTC would authorize the DTC Participants to take such action and that the DTC Participants would authorize the Indirect Participants and beneficial owners acting through such DTC Participants to take such action and would otherwise act upon the instructions of beneficial owners owning through them. As described above, the Trust recognizes DTC or its nominee as the owner of all Shares for all purposes. For more information, see the section entitled “Book Entry Only System” in the Funds’ SAI.
Each Exchange is open for trading Monday through Friday and is closed on weekends and the following holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth National Independence Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Because non-U.S. exchanges may be open on days when a Fund does not price its Shares, the value of the securities in the Fund’s portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell a Fund’s Shares.
The right of redemption by an AP may be suspended or the date of payment postponed (1) for any period during which an Exchange is closed (other than customary weekend and holiday closings); (2) for any period during which trading on an Exchange is suspended or restricted; (3) for any period during which an emergency exists as a result of which disposal of the Shares of a Fund or determination of its NAV is not reasonably practicable; or (4) in such other circumstance as is permitted by the SEC.
Market Timing and Related Matters. The Funds impose no restrictions on the frequency of purchases and redemptions. Frequent purchases and redemptions of Fund Shares may attempt to take advantage of a potential arbitrage opportunity presented by a lag between a change in the value of a Fund’s portfolio securities after the close of the primary markets for a Fund’s portfolio securities and the reflection of that change in a Fund’s NAV (“market timing”). The Board of Trustees considered the nature of each Fund (i.e., a fund whose Shares are expected to trade intraday), that the Adviser monitors the trading activity of APs for patterns of abusive trading, that the Funds reserve the right to reject orders that may be disruptive to the management of or otherwise not in the Funds’ best interests, and that each Fund may fair value certain of its securities. Given this structure, the Board of Trustees determined that it is not necessary to impose restrictions on the frequency of purchases and redemptions for the Funds at the present time.
DISTRIBUTIONS
Net Investment Income and Capital Gains. As a shareholder of a Fund, you are entitled to your share of such Fund’s distributions of net investment income and net realized capital gains on its investments. Each Fund pays out substantially all of its net earnings to its shareholders as “distributions.”
Each Fund typically earns income dividends from stocks and/or interest on municipal securities. These amounts, net of expenses, are typically passed along to Fund shareholders as dividends from net investment income. Each Fund generally realizes capital gains or losses whenever it sells securities. Net capital gains are distributed to shareholders as “capital gain distributions.” Dividends paid by the Funds that are properly reported as exempt-interest dividends will not be subject to regular federal income tax. Distributions from a Fund’s net investment income (other than net tax-exempt income), including any net short term capital gains, if any, are taxable to you as ordinary income. Any long-term capital gains distributions you receive from a Fund are taxable as long-term capital gains.
Net investment income, if any, is typically distributed to shareholders at least monthly and net realized capital gains, if any, are typically distributed to shareholders at least annually. Dividends may be declared and paid more frequently to improve index tracking or to comply with the distribution requirements of the Internal Revenue Code. In addition, in situations where the Fund acquires investment securities after the beginning of a dividend period, the Fund may elect to distribute at least annually amounts representing the full dividend yield net of expenses on the underlying investment securities, as if the Funds owned the underlying investment securities for the entire dividend period. If the Fund so elects, some portion of each distribution may result
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in a return of capital, which, for tax purposes, is treated as a return of your investment in Shares. You will be notified regarding the portion of the distribution which represents a return of capital.
Distributions in cash may be reinvested automatically in additional Shares of your Fund only if the broker through which you purchased Shares makes such option available.
TAX INFORMATION
As with any investment, you should consider how your Fund investment will be taxed. The tax information in this Prospectus is provided as general information. You should consult your own tax professional about the tax consequences of an investment in the Funds, including the possible application of foreign, state and local taxes. Unless your investment in a Fund is through a tax-exempt entity or tax-deferred retirement account, such as a 401(k) plan, you need to be aware of the possible tax consequences when: (i) a Fund makes distributions; (ii) you sell Shares in the secondary market or (iii) you create or redeem Creation Units.
Taxes on Distributions. As noted above, each Fund expects to distribute net investment income, if any, monthly, and any net realized long-term or short-term capital gains, if any, annually. Each Fund may also pay a special distribution at any time to comply with U.S. federal tax requirements.
Dividends paid by the Funds that are properly reported as exempt-interest dividends will not be subject to regular U.S. federal income tax. The Funds intend to invest their assets in a manner such that a significant portion of their dividend distributions to shareholders will generally be exempt from U.S. federal income taxes, including the federal alternative minimum tax for noncorporate shareholders. The VanEck High Yield Muni ETF, VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF and the Underlying Funds in which the VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF invests may invest a portion of their assets in certain “private activity bonds,” and as a result, a portion of the exempt-interest dividends paid by them will be an item of tax preference to shareholders subject to the alternative minimum tax. Depending on a shareholder’s state of residence, exempt-interest dividends from interest earned on municipal securities of a state or its political subdivisions may be exempt in the hands of such shareholder from income tax in that state. However, income from municipal securities of states other than the shareholder’s state of residence generally will not qualify for tax-free treatment for such shareholder.
Distributions from a Fund’s net investment income other than net tax-exempt income, including any net short-term gains, if any, are taxable to you as ordinary income.
In general, your distributions are subject to U.S. federal income tax when they are paid, whether you take them in cash or reinvest them in the Fund. Whether distributions of capital gains represent long-term or short-term capital gains is determined by how long the Fund owned the investments that generated them, rather than how long you have owned your Shares. Distributions of net short-term capital gains in excess of net long–term capital losses, if any, are generally taxable as ordinary income. Distributions of net long-term capital gains in excess of net short-term capital losses, if any, that are properly reported as capital gain dividends are generally taxable as long-term capital gains. Long-term capital gains of a non-corporate shareholder are generally taxable at a maximum rate of 15% or 20%, depending on whether the shareholder’s income exceeds certain threshold amounts. The Funds do not expect that any of their distributions will be qualified dividends eligible for lower tax rates or for the corporate dividends received deduction.
Exempt-interest dividends from a Fund are taken into account in determining the taxable portion of any Social Security or railroad retirement benefits that you receive.
Distributions in excess of a Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits are treated as a tax-free return of your investment to the extent of your basis in the Shares, and generally as capital gain thereafter. A return of capital, which for tax purposes is treated as a return of your investment, reduces your basis in Shares, thus reducing any loss or increasing any gain on a subsequent taxable disposition of Shares. A distribution will reduce a Fund’s NAV per Share and may be taxable to you as ordinary income or capital gain even though, from an economic standpoint, the distribution may constitute a return of capital.
The VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF will not be able to offset gains realized by one Underlying Fund in which the VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF invests against losses realized by another Underlying Fund in which the VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF invests. Short-term capital gains earned by an Underlying Fund when distributed will be ordinary income to the VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF and will not be offset by its capital losses, if any. Redemptions of Shares in an Underlying Fund could also result in a gain and/or income to the VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF and realized losses from such redemptions may be deferred indefinitely as wash sales. The VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF’s use of the fund-of-funds structure could therefore affect the amount, timing and character of distributions to shareholders. Redemptions of Shares in an Underlying Fund could also cause additional distributable gains to shareholders.
Backup Withholding. A Fund may be required to withhold a percentage of your distributions and proceeds if you have not provided a taxpayer identification number or social security number or otherwise established a basis for exemption from backup withholding. The backup withholding rate for individuals is currently 24%. This is not an additional tax and may be refunded, or credited against your U.S. federal income tax liability, provided certain required information is furnished to the IRS.
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Taxes on the Sale or Cash Redemption of Exchange Listed Shares. Currently, any capital gain or loss realized upon a sale of Shares is generally treated as long term-capital gain or loss if the Shares have been held for more than one year and as a short-term capital gain or loss if held for one year or less. However, any capital loss on a sale of Shares held for six months or less is treated as long-term capital loss to the extent that capital gain dividends were paid with respect to such Shares. The ability to deduct capital losses may be limited. To the extent that a Fund’s shareholder’s Shares are redeemed for cash, this is normally treated as a sale for tax purposes.
Taxes on Creations and Redemptions of Creation Units. A person who exchanges securities for Creation Units generally will recognize a gain or loss. The gain or loss will be equal to the difference between the market value of the Creation Units at the time of exchange and the sum of the exchanger’s aggregate basis in the securities surrendered and the amount of any cash paid for such Creation Units. A person who exchanges Creation Units for securities will generally recognize a gain or loss equal to the difference between the exchanger’s basis in the Creation Units and the sum of the aggregate market value of the securities received. The IRS, however, may assert that a loss realized upon an exchange of primarily securities for Creation Units cannot be deducted currently under the rules governing “wash sales,” or on the basis that there has been no significant change in economic position. Persons exchanging securities for Creation Units or redeeming Creation Units should consult their own tax adviser with respect to whether wash sale rules apply and when a loss might be deductible and the tax treatment of any creation or redemption transaction.
Under current U.S. federal income tax laws, any capital gain or loss realized upon a redemption (or creation) of Creation Units held as capital assets is generally treated as long-term capital gain or loss if the Shares (or securities surrendered) have been held for more than one year and as a short-term capital gain or loss if the Shares (or securities surrendered) have been held for one year or less.
If you create or redeem Creation Units, you will be sent a confirmation statement showing how many Shares you created or sold and at what price.
Medicare Tax. An additional 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on certain net investment income (including ordinary dividends and capital gain distributions received from a Fund and net gains from redemptions or other taxable dispositions of Fund Shares) of U.S. individuals, estates and trusts to the extent that such person’s “modified adjusted gross income” (in the case of an individual) or “adjusted gross income” (in the case of an estate or trust) exceeds certain threshold amounts.
Non-U.S. Shareholders. Dividends paid by a Fund to non-U.S. shareholders are generally subject to withholding tax at a 30% rate or a reduced rate specified by an applicable income tax treaty to the extent derived from investment income and short-term capital gains. Dividends paid by a Fund from net tax-exempt income or long-term capital gains are generally not subject to such withholding tax. Properly-reported dividends are generally exempt from U.S. federal withholding tax where they (i) are paid in respect of a Fund’s “qualified net interest income” (generally, a Fund’s U.S. source interest income, other than certain contingent interest and interest from obligations of a corporation or partnership in which a Fund is at least a 10% shareholder, reduced by expenses that are allocable to such income); or (ii) are paid in respect of a Fund’s “qualified short-term capital gains” (generally, the excess of a Fund’s net short-term capital gain over a Fund’s long-term capital loss for such taxable year). However, depending on its circumstances, a Fund may report all, some or none of its potentially eligible dividends as such qualified net interest income or as qualified short-term capital gains and/or treat such dividends, in whole or in part, as ineligible for this exemption from withholding.
Any capital gain realized by a non-U.S. shareholder upon a sale of Shares of a Fund will generally not be subject to U.S. federal income or withholding tax unless (i) the gain is effectively connected with the shareholder’s trade or business in the United States, or in the case of a shareholder who is a nonresident alien individual, the shareholder is present in the United States for 183 days or more during the taxable year and certain other conditions are met or (ii) the Fund is or has been a U.S. real property holding corporation, as defined below, at any time within the five-year period preceding the date of disposition of the Fund’s Shares or, if shorter, within the period during which the non-U.S. shareholder has held the Shares. Generally, a corporation is a U.S. real property holding corporation if the fair market value of its U.S. real property interests, as defined in the Internal Revenue Code and applicable regulations, equals or exceeds 50% of the aggregate fair market value of its worldwide real property interests and its other assets used or held for use in a trade or business. A Fund may be, or may prior to a non-U.S. shareholder’s disposition of Shares become, a U.S. real property holding corporation. If a Fund is or becomes a U.S. real property holding corporation, so long as the Fund’s Shares are regularly traded on an established securities market, only a non-U.S. shareholder who holds or held (at any time during the shorter of the five-year period preceding the date of disposition or the holder’s holding period) more than 5% (directly or indirectly as determined under applicable attribution rules of the Internal Revenue Code) of the Fund’s Shares will be subject to United States federal income tax on the disposition of Shares.
As part of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, (“FATCA”), a Fund may be required to withhold 30% tax on certain types of U.S. sourced income (e.g., dividends, interest, and other types of passive income) paid to (i) foreign financial institutions (“FFIs”), including non-U.S. investment funds, unless they agree to collect and disclose to the IRS information regarding their direct and indirect U.S. account holders and (ii) certain nonfinancial foreign entities (“NFFEs”), unless they certify certain information regarding their direct and indirect U.S. owners. To avoid possible withholding, FFIs will need to enter into agreements with the IRS which state that they will provide the IRS information, including the names, account numbers and balances, addresses and taxpayer
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identification numbers of U.S. account holders and comply with due diligence procedures with respect to the identification of U.S. accounts as well as agree to withhold tax on certain types of withholdable payments made to non-compliant foreign financial institutions or to applicable foreign account holders who fail to provide the required information to the IRS, or similar account information and required documentation to a local revenue authority, should an applicable intergovernmental agreement be implemented. NFFEs will need to provide certain information regarding each substantial U.S. owner or certifications of no substantial U.S. ownership, unless certain exceptions apply, or agree to provide certain information to the IRS.
A Fund may be subject to the FATCA withholding obligation, and also will be required to perform due diligence reviews to classify foreign entity investors for FATCA purposes. Investors are required to agree to provide information necessary to allow a Fund to comply with the FATCA rules. If a Fund is required to withhold amounts from payments pursuant to FATCA, investors will receive distributions that are reduced by such withholding amounts.
Non-U.S. shareholders are advised to consult their tax advisors with respect to the particular tax consequences to them of an investment in the Funds, including the possible applicability of the U.S. estate tax.
The foregoing discussion summarizes some of the consequences under current U.S. federal income tax law of an investment in a Fund. It is not a substitute for personal tax advice. Consult your own tax advisor about the potential tax consequences of an investment in a Fund under all applicable tax laws. Changes in applicable tax authority could materially affect the conclusions discussed above and could adversely affect the Funds, and such changes often occur.
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The CEFMX Index is published by S-Network Global Indexes, LLC (“S-Network”). The High Yield Index, Intermediate Index, Long Index, Short High Yield Index and Short Index are published by ICE Data Indices, LLC (“ICE Data”) and its affiliates. ICE Data is referred to herein as the “Index Provider.” The Index Provider does not sponsor, endorse, or promote the Funds and bear no liability with respect to the Funds or any security.
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The CEFMX Index is a rules based index intended to serve as a benchmark for closed-end funds listed in the U.S. that are principally engaged in asset management processes designed to produce federally tax-exempt annual yield. The CEFMX Index employs a modified total net assets weighting methodology designed to provide investment exposure across the various business segments that together comprise the federally tax-exempt annual yield sector of the closed-end fund market. The CEFMX Index is divided into four main closed-end fund segments including: leveraged municipal fixed income closed-end funds; unleveraged municipal fixed income closed-end funds; leveraged high yield municipal fixed income closed-end funds; and unleveraged high yield municipal fixed income closed-end funds.
The CEFMX Index will reconstitute at the conclusion of trading on the last business day of the last month of each calendar half (March/September) and rebalance at the conclusion of trading on the last business day of the last month of each calendar quarter. The CEFMX Index is calculated and maintained by ICE Data Indices on behalf of S-Network. The CEFMX Index is reviewed on an ongoing basis. S-Network may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the CEFMX Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.

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The Final High Yield Index tracks the performance of lower-rated and unrated U.S. dollar denominated tax-exempt debt publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market by U.S. states and territories as well as their political subdivisions.
The Final High Yield Index is a modified blend of the following indices, with additional constraints placed on certain exposure concentrations:
70% ICE Core High Yield & Unrated Municipal Index;
25% ICE Core BBB Municipal Index;
5% ICE Core Single-A Municipal Index.
The Final High Yield Index is rebalanced on the last calendar day of the month, based on the rebalanced constituencies of the three component indices. ICE Data may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Final High Yield Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.
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The Final Intermediate Index tracks the performance of intermediate maturity U.S. dollar denominated investment grade tax-exempt debt publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market by U.S. states and territories as well as their political subdivisions. Qualifying securities must be exempt from Federal taxes and must not be subject to alternative minimum tax. In addition, qualifying securities must have at least six years but less than 17 years remaining term to final maturity, a fixed coupon schedule (including zero coupon and step up or stepdown bonds) and an investment grade rating (based on the middle rating of Moody’s, S&P and Fitch).
The Final Intermediate Index is rebalanced on the last calendar day of the month. ICE Data may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Final Intermediate Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.
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The Final Long Index tracks the performance of long maturity U.S. dollar denominated investment grade tax-exempt debt publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market by U.S. states and territories as well as their political subdivisions. Qualifying securities must be exempt from Federal taxes and must not be subject to alternative minimum tax. In addition, qualifying securities must have at least 17 years remaining term to final maturity, a fixed coupon schedule (including zero coupon and step up or stepdown bonds) and an investment grade rating (based on the middle rating of Moody’s, S&P and Fitch).
The Final Long Index is rebalanced on the last calendar day of the month. ICE Data may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Final Long Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.
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The Final Short High Yield Index tracks the performance of lower-rated and unrated U.S. dollar denominated tax-exempt debt publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market by U.S. states and territories as well as their political subdivisions.
The Final Short High Yield Index is a modified blend of the following indices, with additional constraints placed on certain exposure concentrations:
70% ICE 1-12 Year Core High Yield & Unrated Municipal Index;
20% ICE 1-12 Year Core BBB Municipal Index;
10% ICE 1-12 Year Core Single-A Municipal Index.
The Final Short High Yield Index is rebalanced on the last calendar day of the month, based on the rebalanced constituencies of the three component indices. ICE Data may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Final Short High Yield Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.
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The Final Short Index tracks the performance of short maturity U.S. dollar denominated investment grade tax-exempt debt publicly issued in the U.S. domestic market by U.S. states and territories as well as their political subdivisions. Qualifying securities must be exempt from Federal taxes and must not be subject to alternative minimum tax. In addition, qualifying securities must have less than six years remaining term to final maturity, a fixed coupon schedule (including zero coupon and step up or stepdown bonds) and an investment grade rating (based on the middle rating of Moody’s, S&P and Fitch).
Qualifying securities included in the Final Short Index must have at least one year but less than six years remaining term to final maturity.
The Final Short Index is rebalanced on the last calendar day of the month. ICE Data may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Final Short Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.
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The Adviser has entered into a licensing agreement with each Index Provider to use each Fund’s respective Index. Each Fund is entitled to use its respective Index pursuant to a sublicensing arrangement with the Adviser.
VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by S-Network. S-Network makes no representation or warranty, express or implied, to the owners of VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF, or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF particularly or the ability of the CEFMX Index to track the performance of the federally tax-exempt annual yield sector of the closed-end fund market. S-Network’s only relationship to the Adviser is the licensing of certain service marks and trade names of S-Network and of the CEFMX Index that is determined, composed and calculated by the S-Network without regard to the Adviser or VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF. S-Network has no obligation to take the needs of the Adviser or the owners of VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF, into consideration in determining, composing or calculating the CEFMX Index. S-Network is not responsible for and has not participated in the determination of the timing of, prices at, or quantities of VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF to be issued or in the determination or calculation of the equation by which VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF is to be converted into cash. S-Network has no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF.
S-NETWORK DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY AND/OR THE COMPLETENESS OF THE CEFMX INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN AND THE INDEX PROVIDER SHALL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS, OMISSIONS, OR INTERRUPTIONS THEREIN. S-NETWORK MAKES NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY THE ADVISER, OWNERS OF VANECK CEF MUNI INCOME ETF, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE CEFMX INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. S-NETWORK MAKES NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE WITH RESPECT TO THE CEFMX INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT SHALL THE CEFMX INDEX PROVIDER HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING LOST PROFITS), EVEN IF NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
The information contained herein regarding the High Yield Index, the Final High Yield Index, the Intermediate Index, the Final Intermediate Index, the Long Index, the Final Long Index, the Short High Yield Index, the Final Short High Yield Index, the Short Index and the Final Short Index (collectively, the “ICE Indices”) was provided by ICE Data and its affiliates.
The Adviser has entered into a licensing agreement with ICE Data to use the ICE Indices. Each of VanEck High Yield Muni ETF, VanEck Intermediate Muni ETF, VanEck Long Muni ETF, VanEck Short High Yield Muni ETF and VanEck Short Muni ETF (collectively, the “Products”) is entitled to use its respective Index pursuant to a sub-licensing arrangement with the Adviser.
Source ICE Data is used with permission. ICE and NYSE are service/trademarks of ICE Data or its affiliates. Such trademarks have been licensed, along with the ICE Indices for use by the Adviser in connection with the Products. Neither Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Licensee”) nor the Products, as applicable, are sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by ICE Data, its affiliates or its Third Party Suppliers (“ICE Data and its Suppliers”). ICE Data and its Suppliers make no representations or warranties regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally, in the Products particularly, the Licensee or the ability of the ICE Indices to track general bond market performance.
ICE Data’s only relationship to the Adviser is the licensing of certain trademarks and trade names and the ICE Indices or components thereof. The ICE Indices are determined, composed and calculated by ICE Data without regard to the Adviser or the Products or their holders. ICE Data has no obligation to take the needs of the Adviser or the holders of the Products into consideration in determining, composing or calculating the ICE Indices. ICE Data is not responsible for and has not participated in the determination of the timing of, prices of, or quantities of the Products to be issued or in the determination or calculation of the equation by which the Products are to be priced, sold, purchased, or redeemed. Except for certain custom index calculation services, all information provided by ICE Data is general in nature and not tailored to the needs of the Adviser or any other person, entity or group of persons. ICE Data has no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing, or trading of the Products. ICE Data is not an investment advisor. Inclusion of a security within an index is not a recommendation by ICE Data to buy, sell, or hold such security, nor is it considered to be investment advice.
ICE DATA DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY AND/OR THE COMPLETENESS OF THE ICE INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN AND ICE DATA SHALL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS, OMISSIONS, UNAVAILABILITY, OR INTERRUPTIONS THEREIN. ICE DATA MAKES NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY THE ADVISER, SHAREHOLDERS OF THE PRODUCTS OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE ICE INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. ICE DATA MAKES NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE, WITH RESPECT TO THE ICE INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT SHALL ICE DATA HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OR LOST PROFITS, EVEN IF NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
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The financial highlights tables which follow are intended to help you understand the Funds’ financial performance for the past five years or as indicated. 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 a Fund (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and distributions). This information has been audited by another independent registered public accounting firm for the periods reflected in the financial highlights below, whose report, along with the Funds’ financial statements, are included in the Funds’ annual report, which is available upon request.
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FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
For a share outstanding throughout each year:
CEF Muni Income ETF
Year Ended April 30,
2022 2021 2020 2019 2018
Net asset value, beginning of year $29.07  $24.34  $26.18  $24.97  $26.58 
Net investment income (a) 1.14  1.14  1.09  1.16  1.27 
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments (5.56) 4.71  (1.83) 1.21  (1.61)
Total from investment operations (4.42) 5.85  (0.74) 2.37  (0.34)
Distributions from:
Net investment income (1.12) (1.12) (1.10) (1.16) (1.27)
Net asset value, end of year $23.53  $29.07  $24.34  $26.18  $24.97 
Total return (b) (15.82) % 24.38  % (3.17) % 9.83  % (1.45) %
Ratios to average net assets
Gross expenses (c)(d) 0.40  % 0.40  % 0.45  % 0.48  % 0.50  %
Net expenses (c)(d) 0.40  % 0.40  % 0.40  % 0.40  % 0.40  %
Net investment income (c) 4.01  % 4.17  % 4.02  % 4.67  % 4.78  %
Supplemental data
Net assets, end of year (in millions) $169  $177  $142  $144  $95 
Portfolio turnover rate (e) 15  % 11  % 10  % 13  % %
(a)    Calculated based upon average shares outstanding
(b)    Returns include adjustments in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Net asset values and returns for financial reporting purposes may differ from those for shareholder transactions.
(c)    The ratios presented do not reflect the Fund’s proportionate share of income and expenses from the Fund’s investment in underlying funds.
(d)    Periods after November 1, 2019 reflect a unitary management fee structure.
(e)    Portfolio turnover rate excludes in-kind transactions.

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For a share outstanding throughout each year:
High Yield Muni ETF (a)
Year Ended April 30,
2022 2021 2020 2019 2018
Net asset value, beginning of year $62.48  $56.13  $62.79  $62.16  $61.52 
Net investment income (b) 2.09  2.36  2.69  2.67  2.72 
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments (7.27) 6.38  (6.73) 0.64  0.60 
Total from investment operations (5.18) 8.74  (4.04) 3.31  3.32 
Distributions from:
Net investment income (2.12) (2.39) (2.62) (2.68) (2.68)
Net asset value, end of year $55.18  $62.48  $56.13  $62.79  $62.16 
Total return (c) (8.62) % 15.84  % (6.86) % 5.46  % 5.48  %
Ratios to average net assets
Expenses 0.35  % 0.35  % 0.35  % 0.35  % 0.35  %
Net Investment Income 3.38  % 3.91  % 4.26  % 4.31  % 4.37  %
Supplemental data
Net assets, end of year (in millions) $3,018  $3,461  $2,570  $2,656  $2,437 
Portfolio turnover rate (d) 11  % % 12  % 10  % 14  %
(a)    On October 26, 2018, the Fund effected a 1 for 2 reverse share split. Per share data has been adjusted to reflect the reverse share split.
(b)    Calculated based upon average shares outstanding
(c)    Returns include adjustments in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Net asset values and returns for financial reporting purposes may differ from those for shareholder transactions.
(d)    Portfolio turnover rate excludes in-kind transactions.

86

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
For a share outstanding throughout each period:
HIP
Sustainable
Muni ETF
Period
Ended
April 30,
2022(a)
Net asset value, beginning of period $50.00 
Net investment income (b) 0.10 
Net realized and unrealized loss on investments (4.22)
Total from investment operations (4.12)
Distributions from:
Net investment income (0.22)
Net asset value, end of period $45.66 
Total return (c) (8.26) %(d)
Ratios to average net assets
Expenses 0.24  %(e)
Net Investment Income 0.33  %(e)
Supplemental data
Net assets, end of period (in millions) $14 
Portfolio turnover rate (f) 11  %(d)
(a)    For the period September 9, 2021 (commencement of operations) through April 30, 2022.
(b)    Calculated based upon average shares outstanding
(c)    Returns include adjustments in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Net asset values and returns for financial reporting purposes may differ from those for shareholder transactions.
(d)    Not Annualized
(e)    Annualized
(f)    Portfolio turnover rate excludes in-kind transactions.

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For a share outstanding throughout each year:
Intermediate Muni ETF (a)
Year Ended April 30,
2022 2021 2020 2019 2018
Net asset value, beginning of year $51.62  $48.97  $48.94  $46.83  $47.40 
Net investment income (b) 0.83  0.98  1.09  1.12  1.08 
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments (5.92) 2.72  0.10  2.11  (0.59)
Total from investment operations (5.09) 3.70  1.19  3.23  0.49 
Distributions from:
Net investment income (0.84) (0.98) (1.10) (1.12) (1.06)
Net realized capital gains —  (c) (0.07) (0.06) —  — 
Total distributions (0.84) (1.05) (1.16) (1.12) (1.06)
Net asset value, end of year $45.69  $51.62  $48.97  $48.94  $46.83 
Total return (d) (9.99) % 7.59  % 2.40  % 6.98  % 1.04  %
Ratios to average net assets
Expenses 0.24  % 0.24  % 0.24  % 0.24  % 0.24  %
Net investment income 1.64  % 1.90  % 2.17  % 2.37  % 2.24  %
Supplemental data
Net assets, end of year (in millions) $1,695  $1,801  $1,582  $1,720  $1,698 
Portfolio turnover rate (e) % % % % %
(a)On October 26, 2018, the Fund effected a 1 for 2 reverse share split. Per share data has been adjusted to reflect the reverse share split.
(b)Calculated based upon average shares outstanding
(c)Amount represents less than $0.005 per share.
(d)Returns include adjustments in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Net asset values and returns for financial reporting purposes may differ from those for shareholder transactions.
(e)Portfolio turnover rate excludes in-kind transactions.

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FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
For a share outstanding throughout each year:
Long Muni ETF
Year Ended April 30,
2022 2021 2020 2019 2018
Net asset value, beginning of year $21.68  $20.18  $20.40  $19.63  $19.63 
Net investment income (a) 0.46  0.52  0.57  0.60  0.59 
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments (3.26) 1.54  (0.20) 0.77  0.01 
Total from investment operations (2.80) 2.06  0.37  1.37  0.60 
Distributions from:
Net investment income (0.46) (0.52) (0.57) (0.60) (0.60)
Net realized capital gains (0.07) (0.04) (0.02) —  — 
Total distributions (0.53) (0.56) (0.59) (0.60) (0.60)
Net asset value, end of year $18.35  $21.68  $20.18  $20.40  $19.63 
Total return (b) (13.26) % 10.31  % 1.75  % 7.15  % 3.02  %
Ratios to average net assets
Expenses 0.24  % 0.24  % 0.24  % 0.24  % 0.24  %
Net investment income 2.15  % 2.45  % 2.72  % 3.06  % 2.96  %
Supplemental data
Net assets, end of year (in millions) $216  $228  $200  $153  $154 
Portfolio turnover rate (c) % 23  % 22  % 22  % 33  %
(a)    Calculated based upon average shares outstanding
(b)    Returns include adjustments in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Net asset values and returns for financial reporting purposes may differ from those for shareholder transactions.
(c)    Portfolio turnover rate excludes in-kind transactions.

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For a share outstanding throughout each period:
Muni Allocation ETF
Year Ended April 30,
2022 2021 Period Ended April 30,
2020 (a)
Net asset value, beginning of period $24.95  $22.96  $25.05 
Net investment income (b) 0.62  0.62  0.72 
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments (3.31) 2.05  (2.20)
Total from investment operations (2.69) 2.67  (1.48)
Distributions from:
Net investment income (0.58) (0.68) (0.61)
Net asset value, end of period $21.68  $24.95  $22.96 
Total return (c) (11.03) % 11.70  % (6.13) %(d)
Ratios to average net assets
Gross expenses (e)(f) 0.08  % 0.08  % 1.28  %(g)
Net expenses (e)(f) 0.08  % 0.08  % 0.08  %(g)
Net investment income (e) 2.54  % 2.54  % 3.02  %(g)
Supplemental data
Net assets, end of period (in millions) $4  $5  $5 
Portfolio turnover rate (h) 98  % 169  % 162  %(d)
(a)    For the period May 15, 2019 (commencement of operations) through April 30, 2020.
(b)    Calculated based upon average shares outstanding
(c)    Returns include adjustments in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Net asset values and returns for financial reporting purposes may differ from those for shareholder transactions.
(d)    Not Annualized
(e)    The ratios presented do not reflect the Fund’s proportionate share of income and expenses from the Fund’s investment in underlying funds.
(f)    Periods after November 1, 2019 reflect a unitary management fee structure.
(g)    Annualized
(h)    Portfolio turnover rate excludes in-kind transactions.

90

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
For a share outstanding throughout each year:
Short High Yield Muni ETF
Year Ended April 30,
2022 2021 2020 2019 2018
Net asset value, beginning of year $25.06  $23.09  $24.70  $24.24  $24.26 
Net investment income (a) 0.58  0.73  0.84  0.80  0.80  0.76 
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments (2.18) 1.99  (1.64) 0.43  (0.02)
Total from investment operations (1.60) 2.72  (0.80) 1.23  0.74 
Distributions from:
Net investment income (0.60) (0.75) (0.81) (0.77) (0.76)
Net asset value, end of year $22.86  $25.06  $23.09  $24.70  $24.24 
Total return (b) (6.58) % 11.89  % (3.44) % 5.16  % 3.07  %
Ratios to average net assets
Expenses 0.35  % 0.35  % 0.35  % 0.35  % 0.35  %
Net investment income 2.34  % 2.98  % 3.37  % 3.28  % 3.11  %
Supplemental data
Net assets, end of year (in millions) $418  $306  $263  $203  $135 
Portfolio turnover rate (c) 16  % 14  % 17  % 22  % 27  %
(a)    Calculated based upon average shares outstanding
(b)    Returns include adjustments in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Net asset values and returns for financial reporting purposes may differ from those for shareholder transactions.
(c)    Portfolio turnover rate excludes in-kind transactions.

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For a share outstanding throughout each year:
Short Muni ETF
Year Ended April 30,
2022 2021 2020 2019 2018
Net asset value, beginning of year $18.04  $17.55  $17.54  $17.18  $17.52 
Net investment income (a) 0.15  0.23  0.27  0.80  0.27  0.22 
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on investments (1.09) 0.51  0.02  0.36  (0.34)
Total from investment operations (0.94) 0.74  0.29  0.63  (0.12)
Distributions from:
Net investment income (0.19) (0.25) (0.28) (0.27) (0.22)
Net realized capital gains (0.02) —  —  —  — 
Total distributions (0.21) (0.25) (0.28) (0.27) (0.22)
Net asset value, end of year $16.89  $18.04  $17.55  $17.54  $17.18 
Total return (b) (5.27) % 4.27  % 1.66  % 3.70  % (0.70) %
Ratios to average net assets
Expenses 0.20  % 0.20  % 0.20  % 0.20  % 0.20  %
Net investment income 0.86  % 1.26  % 1.54  % 1.57  % 1.26  %
Supplemental data
Net assets, end of year (in millions) $328  $297  $204  $201  $220 
Portfolio turnover rate (c) 18  % 30  % 34  % 33  % 41  %
(a)    Calculated based upon average shares outstanding
(b)    Returns include adjustments in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Net asset values and returns for financial reporting purposes may differ from those for shareholder transactions.
(c)    Portfolio turnover rate excludes in-kind transactions.

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Information regarding how often the closing trading price of the Shares of each Fund was above (i.e., at a premium) or below (i.e., at a discount) the NAV of the Fund for the most recently completed calendar year and the most recently completed calendar quarter(s) since that year (or the life of the Fund, if shorter) can be found at www.vaneck.com.
GENERAL INFORMATION
CONTINUOUS OFFERING
The method by which Creation Units are created and traded may raise certain issues under applicable securities laws. Because new Creation Units are issued and sold by the Trust on an ongoing basis, a “distribution,” as such term is used in the Securities Act, may occur at any point. Broker dealers and other persons are cautioned that some activities on their part may, depending on the circumstances, result in their being deemed participants in a distribution in a manner which could render them statutory underwriters and subject them to the prospectus delivery and liability provisions of the Securities Act.
For example, a broker dealer firm or its client may be deemed a statutory underwriter if it takes Creation Units after placing an order with the Distributor, breaks them down into constituent Shares, and sells such Shares directly to customers, or if it chooses to couple the creation of a supply of new Shares with an active selling effort involving solicitation of secondary market demand for Shares. A determination of whether one is an underwriter for purposes of the Securities Act must take into account all the facts and circumstances pertaining to the activities of the broker dealer or its client in the particular case, and the examples mentioned above should not be considered a complete description of all the activities that could lead to a categorization as an underwriter.
Broker dealers who are not “underwriters” but are participating in a distribution (as contrasted to ordinary secondary trading transactions), and thus dealing with Shares that are part of an “unsold allotment” within the meaning of Section 4(a)(3)(C) of the Securities Act, would be unable to take advantage of the prospectus delivery exemption provided by Section 4(a)(3) of the Securities Act. This is because the prospectus delivery exemption in Section 4(a)(3) of the Securities Act is not available in respect of such transactions as a result of Section 24(d) of the 1940 Act. As a result, broker dealer firms should note that dealers who are not underwriters but are participating in a distribution (as contrasted with ordinary secondary market transactions) and thus dealing with the Shares that are part of an overallotment within the meaning of Section 4(a)(3)(A) of the Securities Act would be unable to take advantage of the prospectus delivery exemption provided by Section 4(a)(3) of the Securities Act. Firms that incur a prospectus delivery obligation with respect to Shares are reminded that, under Rule 153 of the Securities Act, a prospectus delivery obligation under Section 5(b)(2) of the Securities Act owed to an exchange member in connection with a sale on the Exchange is satisfied by the fact that the prospectus is available at the Exchange upon request. The prospectus delivery mechanism provided in Rule 153 is only available with respect to transactions on an exchange.
In addition, certain affiliates of the Funds and the Adviser may purchase and resell Fund shares pursuant to this Prospectus.
OTHER INFORMATION
The Trust was organized as a Delaware statutory trust on March 15, 2001. Its Declaration of Trust currently permits the Trust to issue an unlimited number of Shares of beneficial interest. If shareholders are required to vote on any matters, each Share outstanding would be entitled to one vote. Annual meetings of shareholders will not be held except as required by the 1940 Act and other applicable law. See the Funds’ SAI for more information concerning the Trust’s form of organization. Section 12(d)(1) of the 1940 Act restricts investments by investment companies in the securities of other investment companies, including Shares of a Fund. Registered investment companies are permitted to invest in the Funds (except VanEck CEF Muni Income ETF and VanEck Muni Allocation ETF) beyond the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1) subject to certain terms and conditions set forth in SEC regulations, including that such investment companies enter into an agreement with such Fund.
The Prospectus, SAI and any other Fund communication do not create any contractual obligations between the Fund’s shareholders and the Trust, the Fund, the Adviser and/or the Trustees. Further, shareholders are not intended third-party beneficiaries of any contracts entered into by (or on behalf of) any Fund, including contracts with the Adviser or other parties who provide services to the Fund.
Dechert LLP serves as counsel to the Trust, including the Funds. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP serves as the Trust’s independent registered public accounting firm and will audit the Fund’s financial statements annually.

93


ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
This Prospectus does not contain all the information included in the Registration Statement filed with the SEC with respect to the Funds’ Shares. The Funds’ Registration Statement, including this Prospectus, the Funds’ SAI and the exhibits are available on the EDGAR database at the SEC’s website (http://www.sec.gov), and copies may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following email address: [email protected].
The SAI for the Funds, which has been filed with the SEC, provides more information about the Funds. The SAI for the Funds is incorporated herein by reference and is legally part of this Prospectus. Additional information about the Funds’ investments is available in each Fund’s annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders. In each Fund’s annual report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance during its last fiscal year. The SAI and the Funds’ annual and semi-annual reports may be obtained without charge by writing to the Funds at Van Eck Securities Corporation, the Funds’ Distributor, at 666 Third Avenue, 9th Floor, New York, New York 10017 or by calling the distributor at the following number: Investor Information: 800.826.2333.
Shareholder inquiries may be directed to the Funds in writing to 666 Third Avenue, 9th Floor, New York, New York 10017 or by calling 800.826.2333.
The Funds’ SAI is available at www.vaneck.com.
(Investment Company Act file no. 811-10325)

94


For more detailed information about the Funds, see the SAI dated September 1, 2022, as may be supplemented from time to time. Additional information about the Funds’ investments is or will be available in each Fund’s annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders. In each Fund’s annual report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance during its last fiscal year.
Call VanEck at 800.826.2333 to request, free of charge, the annual or semi-annual reports, the SAI, or other information about the Funds or to make shareholder inquiries. You may also obtain the SAI or a Fund’s annual or semi-annual reports, by visiting the VanEck website at www.vaneck.com.
Reports and other information about the Funds are available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s internet site at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, copies of this information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following email address: [email protected].











































ck0001137360-20220430_g13.jpg
Transfer Agent: State Street Bank and Trust Company
SEC Registration Number: 333-123257
1940 Act Registration Number: 811-10325
800.826.2333
vaneck.com
MUNIPRO