The information in this Prospectus is not complete and may be changed. The Trust may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This Prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.
Subject to Completion
Preliminary Prospectus dated November 12, 2021
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PROSPECTUS
      [ ], 2021
VANECK®
Biotech ETF    BBH
Pharmaceutical ETF    PPH®
Retail ETF    RTH®
Semiconductor ETF    SMH®









Principal U.S. Listing Exchange for BBH, PPH, RTH and SMH:
The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC.
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 Biotech ETF (BBH)
VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF (PPH)
VanEck Retail ETF (RTH)
VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH)
Summary Information About Purchases and Sales of Fund Shares, Taxes and Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries
Additional Information About the Funds’ Investment Strategies and Risks
Tax Advantaged Product Structure
Portfolio Holdings
Management of the Funds
Portfolio Managers
Shareholder Information
Index Providers
License Agreements and Disclaimers
Financial Highlights
Premium/Discount Information
General Information


SUMMARY INFORMATION
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
VanEck® Biotech ETF1 (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the MVIS® US Listed Biotech 25 Index (the “Biotech 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)(b)
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 February 1, 2023.

(b)    "Other Expenses" have been restated to reflect current fees.
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 40% 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 Fund’s benchmark index. The Biotech Index includes common stocks and depositary receipts of U.S. exchange-listed companies in the biotechnology industry. Such companies may include medium-capitalization companies and foreign companies that are listed on a U.S. exchange. To be initially eligible for the Biotech Index, companies must generate at least 50% of their revenues from biotechnology.
____________
1Prior to September 1, 2021, the Fund's name was VanEck Vectors® Biotech ETF.

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Biotechnology includes companies engaged primarily in research (including research contractors) and development as well as production, marketing and sales of drugs based on genetic analysis and diagnostic equipment (excluding pharmacies). Of the largest 50 stocks in the biotechnology industry by full market capitalization, the top 25 by free-float market capitalization (i.e., includes only shares that are readily available for trading in the market) and three month average daily trading volume are included in the Biotech Index. As of [December 31, 2020], the Biotech Index included 24 securities of companies with a market capitalization range of between approximately $[7.1] billion and $[133.9] billion and a weighted average market capitalization of $[44.9] billion. These amounts are subject to change. The Fund’s 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Biotech Index by investing in a portfolio of securities that generally replicates the Biotech Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try to “beat” the Biotech Index and does not seek temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the Biotech Index.
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. The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Biotech Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. [As of September 30, 2020, the Fund was concentrated in the biotechnology industry and the health care sector.]
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.
Risk of Investing in the Biotechnology Industry. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the biotechnology industry. The success of biotechnology companies is highly dependent on the development, procurement and/or marketing of drugs. The values of biotechnology companies are also dependent on the development, protection and exploitation of intellectual property rights and other proprietary information, and the profitability of biotechnology companies may be affected significantly by such things as the expiration of patents or the loss of, or the inability to enforce, intellectual property rights. The research and development and other costs associated with developing or procuring new drugs, products or technologies and the related intellectual property rights can be significant, and the results of such research and expenditures are unpredictable and may not necessarily lead to commercially successful products. In addition, the potential for an increased amount of required disclosure or proprietary scientific information could negatively impact the competitive position of these companies. Governmental regulation may delay or inhibit the release of new products. The process for obtaining regulatory approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the "FDA") or other governmental regulatory authorities is long and costly and there can be no assurance that the necessary approvals will be obtained or maintained. Companies in the biotechnology industry may also be subject to expenses and losses from expensive insurance costs due to the risk of product liability lawsuits, and extensive litigation based on intellectual property, product liability and similar claims. Companies in the biotechnology industry may be adversely affected by government regulation and changes in reimbursement rates. Health care providers, principally hospitals, that transact with companies in the biotechnology industry often rely on third party payors, such as Medicare, Medicaid and other government sponsored programs, private health insurance plans and health maintenance organizations to reimburse all or a portion of the cost of health care related products or services.
A biotechnology company’s valuation can often be based largely on the potential or actual performance of a limited number of products. A biotechnology company’s valuation can also be greatly affected if one of its products proves unsafe, ineffective, unprofitable or if such product is not approved by the FDA. Such companies may also be characterized by thin capitalization and limited markets, financial resources or personnel. The stock prices of companies in the biotechnology industry have been and will likely continue to be extremely volatile, particularly when their products are up for regulatory approval and/or under regulatory scrutiny. Some of the companies in the biotechnology industry are engaged in other lines of business unrelated to biotechnology, and they may experience problems with these lines of business which could adversely affect their operating results. The operating results of these companies may fluctuate as a result of these additional risks and events in the other lines of business. In addition, a company’s ability to engage in new activities may expose it to business risks with which it has less experience than it has with the business risks associated with its traditional businesses. Despite a company’s possible success in traditional biotechnology activities, there can be no assurance that the other lines of business in which these companies are engaged will not have an adverse effect on a company’s business or financial condition.
Certain companies in which the Fund may invest are non-U.S. issuers whose securities are listed on U.S. exchanges. These securities involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities, including greater market volatility, higher transactional costs, the possibility that the liquidity of such securities could be impaired because of future political and/or economic developments, taxation by foreign governments, political instability, the possibility that foreign governmental restrictions may be adopted which might adversely affect such securities and that the selection of such securities may be more difficult because there may be less publicly available information concerning such non-U.S. issuers or the accounting, auditing and
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financial reporting standards, practices and requirements applicable to non-U.S. issuers may differ from those applicable to U.S. issuers.
Equity Securities Risk. The value of the equity securities held by the Fund may fall due to general market and economic conditions, perceptions regarding the markets in which the issuers of securities held by the Fund participate, or factors relating to specific issuers in which the Fund invests. Equity securities are subordinated to preferred securities and debt in a company’s capital structure with respect to priority in right to a share of corporate income, and therefore will be subject to greater dividend risk than preferred securities or debt instruments. In addition, while broad market measures of equity securities have historically generated higher average returns than fixed income securities, equity securities have generally also experienced significantly more volatility in those returns, although under certain market conditions fixed income securities may have comparable or greater price volatility.
Risk of Investing in the Health Care Sector. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the health care sector. Companies in the health care sector may be affected by extensive government regulation, restrictions on government reimbursement for medical expenses, rising costs of medical products and services, pricing pressure, an increased emphasis on outpatient services, limited number of products, industry innovation, changes in technologies and other market developments. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and are subject to extensive litigation based on product liability and similar claims.
Risk of Investing in Depositary Receipts. The Fund may invest in depositary receipts which involve similar risks to those associated with investments in foreign securities. Depositary receipts are receipts listed on U.S. or foreign exchanges issued by banks or trust companies that entitle the holder to all dividends and capital gains that are paid out on the underlying foreign shares. Investments in depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market and, if not included in the Biotech Index, may negatively affect the Fund’s ability to replicate the performance of the Biotech Index.
Risk of Investing in Medium-Capitalization Companies. The Fund may invest in medium-capitalization companies and, therefore will be subject to certain risks associated with medium-capitalization companies. These companies are often subject to less analyst coverage and may be in early and less predictable periods of their corporate existences, with little or no record of profitability. In addition, these companies often have greater price volatility, lower trading volume and less liquidity than larger, more established companies. These companies tend to have smaller revenues, narrower product lines, less management depth and experience, smaller shares of their product or service markets, fewer financial resources and less competitive strength than large-capitalization companies. Returns on investments in securities of medium-capitalization companies could trail the returns on investments in securities of larger companies.
Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. The value of individual securities or particular types of securities in the Fund’s portfolio can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole, which may have a greater impact if the Fund’s portfolio is concentrated in a country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. The value of securities of smaller issuers can be more volatile than that of larger issuers.
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.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Biotech Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the Biotech 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 Biotech 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 (as defined herein), which are not factored into the return of the Biotech Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s net asset value (“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 Biotech Index. Errors in the Biotech Index data, the Biotech Index computations and/or the construction of the Biotech Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Biotech 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 Biotech Index provider's errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the Biotech Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. The Fund may not be fully invested at times either as a result of cash flows into the Fund (if the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) or reserves of cash held by the Fund to meet redemptions or pay expenses. When the Biotech Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its

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portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Biotech 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 Biotech Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Biotech Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Biotech Index provider or its agents to the Biotech Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. In addition, the Fund may not be able to invest in certain securities included in the Biotech Index, or invest in them in the exact proportions in which they are represented in the Biotech Index. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the Biotech Index due to legal restrictions or limitations imposed by the governments of certain countries, certain listing standards of the Fund’s listing exchange (the “Exchange”), a lack of liquidity on stock exchanges in which such securities trade, potential adverse tax consequences or other regulatory reasons or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying securities and/or underlying currencies based on fair value prices. To the extent the Fund calculates its NAV based on fair value prices and the value of the Biotech Index is based on securities’ closing prices on local foreign markets (i.e., the value of the Biotech Index is not based on fair value prices), the Fund’s ability to track the Biotech Index may be adversely affected. 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. The Fund may also need to rely on borrowings to meet redemptions, which may lead to increased expenses. 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 Biotech Index. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Biotech Index. Changes to the composition of the Biotech Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Biotech 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 equity securities traded on an exchange, 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 Biotech 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 Biotech Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the Biotech 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.
4

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. The Fund may be particularly vulnerable to this risk because the Biotech Index is comprised of securities of a limited number of companies.
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 Biotech 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 (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
[TO BE UPDATED]
chart-e5e19cc74df0482dbd4.jpg
Best Quarter: 27.58% 2Q 2020
Worst Quarter: -18.19% 1Q 2016
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2020
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.

5

[TO BE UPDATED]
Past One Year Past Five Years
Since Inception
(12/20/2011)
VanEck Biotech ETF (return before taxes) 22.05% 6.43% 19.35%
VanEck Biotech ETF (return after taxes on distributions) 21.94% 6.33% 19.26%
VanEck Biotech ETF (return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares) 13.13% 5.02% 16.57%
MVIS US Listed Biotech 25 Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes, except withholding taxes)
22.13% 6.60% 19.55%
S&P 500® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
18.40% 15.22% 15.39%
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Managers. The following individuals are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
Peter H. Liao Portfolio Manager December 2011
Guo Hua (Jason) Jin Portfolio Manager February 2018

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.
6

SUMMARY INFORMATION
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
VanEck® Pharmaceutical ETF1 (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the MVIS® US Listed Pharmaceutical 25 Index (the “Pharmaceutical 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)(b)
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 February 1, 2023.

(b)    "Other Expenses" have been restated to reflect current fees.
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 18% 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 Fund’s benchmark index. The Pharmaceutical Index includes common stocks and depositary receipts of U.S. exchange-listed companies in the pharmaceutical industry. Such companies may include medium-capitalization companies and foreign companies that are listed on a U.S. exchange. To be initially eligible for the Pharmaceutical Index, companies must generate at least 50% of their revenues from pharmaceuticals. Pharmaceuticals include companies engaged primarily in research (including research contractors)
____________
1Prior to September 1, 2021, the Fund's name was VanEck Vectors® Pharmaceutical ETF.

7

and development as well as production, marketing and sales of pharmaceuticals (excluding pharmacies). Of the largest 50 stocks in the pharmaceutical industry by full market capitalization, the top 25 by free-float market capitalization (i.e., includes only shares that are readily available for trading in the market) and three month average daily trading volume are included in the Pharmaceutical Index. As of [December 31, 2020], the Pharmaceutical Index included 25 securities of companies with a market capitalization range of between approximately $[1.9] billion and $[414.3] billion and a weighted average market capitalization of $[113.6] billion. As of September 30, 2020, a significant portion of the Fund's assets was invested in securities of European issuers. These amounts are subject to change. The Fund’s 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Pharmaceutical Index by investing in a portfolio of securities that generally replicates the Pharmaceutical Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try to “beat” the Pharmaceutical Index and does not seek temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the Pharmaceutical Index.
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. The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Pharmaceutical Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. [As of September 30, 2020, the Fund was concentrated in the health care sector and the pharmaceutical industry.]
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.
Risk of Investing in the Pharmaceutical Industry. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the pharmaceutical industry. The success of companies in the pharmaceutical industry is highly dependent on the development, procurement and marketing of drugs. The values of pharmaceutical companies are also dependent on the development, protection and exploitation of intellectual property rights and other proprietary information, and the profitability of pharmaceutical companies may be significantly affected by such things as the limited number of products, expiration of patents or the loss of, or the inability to enforce, intellectual property rights. The research and other costs associated with developing or procuring new drugs and the related intellectual property rights can be significant, and the results of such research and expenditures are unpredictable. In addition, pharmaceutical companies may be susceptible to product obsolescence. Many pharmaceutical companies face intense competition from new products and less costly generic products. Moreover, the process for obtaining regulatory approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) or other governmental regulatory authorities is long and costly and there can be no assurance that the necessary approvals will be obtained or maintained.
Companies in the pharmaceutical industry may also be subject to expenses and losses from extensive litigation based on intellectual property, product liability and similar claims. Companies in the pharmaceutical industry may be adversely affected by government regulation and changes in reimbursement rates. The ability of many pharmaceutical companies to commercialize current and any future products depends in part on the extent to which reimbursement for the cost of such products and related treatments are available from third party payors, such as Medicare, Medicaid and other government sponsored programs, private health insurance plans and health maintenance organizations.
The international operations of many pharmaceutical companies expose them to risks associated with instability and changes in economic and political conditions, foreign currency fluctuations, changes in foreign regulations and other risks inherent to international business. Such companies also may be characterized by thin capitalization and limited markets, financial resources or personnel, as well as dependence on wholesale distributors. A pharmaceutical company’s valuation can be adversely affected if one of its products proves unsafe, ineffective or unprofitable. The stock prices of companies in the pharmaceutical industry have been and will likely continue to be extremely volatile, in part due to the prevalence of merger and acquisition activity in the pharmaceutical industry. Some pharmaceutical companies are engaged in other lines of business unrelated to pharmaceuticals, and they may experience problems with these lines of business which could adversely affect their operating results. The operating results of these companies may fluctuate as a result of these additional risks and events in the other lines of business. In addition, a company’s ability to engage in new activities may expose it to business risks with which it has less experience than it has with the business risks associated with its traditional businesses. Despite a company’s possible success in traditional pharmaceutical activities, there can be no assurance that the other lines of business in which these companies are engaged will not have an adverse effect on a company’s business or financial condition.
Certain companies in which the Fund may invest are non-U.S. issuers whose securities are listed on U.S. exchanges. These securities involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities, including greater market volatility, higher transactional costs, the possibility that the liquidity of such securities could be impaired because of future political and/or
8

economic developments, taxation by foreign governments, political instability, the possibility that foreign governmental restrictions may be adopted which might adversely affect such securities and that the selection of such securities may be more difficult because there may be less publicly available information concerning such non-U.S. issuers or the accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards, practices and requirements applicable to non-U.S. issuers may differ from those applicable to U.S. issuers.
Equity Securities Risk. The value of the equity securities held by the Fund may fall due to general market and economic conditions, perceptions regarding the markets in which the issuers of securities held by the Fund participate, or factors relating to specific issuers in which the Fund invests. Equity securities are subordinated to preferred securities and debt in a company’s capital structure with respect to priority in right to a share of corporate income, and therefore will be subject to greater dividend risk than preferred securities or debt instruments. In addition, while broad market measures of equity securities have historically generated higher average returns than fixed income securities, equity securities have generally also experienced significantly more volatility in those returns, although under certain market conditions fixed income securities may have comparable or greater price volatility.
Risk of Investing in the Health Care Sector. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the health care sector. Companies in the health care sector may be affected by extensive government regulation, restrictions on government reimbursement for medical expenses, rising costs of medical products and services, pricing pressure, an increased emphasis on outpatient services, limited number of products, industry innovation, changes in technologies and other market developments. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection and are subject to extensive litigation based on product liability and similar claims.
Risk of Investing in Depositary Receipts. The Fund may invest in depositary receipts which involve similar risks to those associated with investments in foreign securities. Depositary receipts are receipts listed on U.S. or foreign exchanges issued by banks or trust companies that entitle the holder to all dividends and capital gains that are paid out on the underlying foreign shares. Investments in depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market and, if not included in the Pharmaceutical Index, may negatively affect the Fund’s ability to replicate the performance of the Pharmaceutical Index.
Special Risk Considerations of Investing in European Issuers. Investments in securities of European issuers involve risks and special considerations not typically associated with investments in the U.S. securities markets. The Economic and Monetary Union ("EMU") of the European Union ("EU") requires member countries to comply with restrictions on inflation rates, deficits, interest rates, debt levels and fiscal and monetary controls, each of which may significantly affect every country in Europe. Decreasing imports or exports, changes in governmental or EU regulations on trade, changes in the exchange rate of the euro, the default or threat of default by an EU member country on its sovereign debt, and/or an economic recession in an EU member country may have a significant adverse effect on the economies of EU member countries and on major trading partners outside Europe. The European financial markets have previously experienced, and may continue to experience, volatility and have been adversely affected, and may in the future be affected, by concerns about economic downturns, credit rating downgrades, rising government debt levels and possible default on or restructuring of government debt in several European countries. These events have adversely affected, and may in the future affect, the value and exchange rate of the euro and may continue to significantly affect the economies of every country in Europe, including EU member countries that do not use the euro and non-EU member countries. In a referendum held on June 23, 2016, voters in the UK voted to leave the EU, creating economic and political uncertainty in its wake. On January 31, 2020, the UK officially withdrew from the EU and the UK entered a transition period which ended on December 31, 2020. On December 30, 2020, the EU and UK signed the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement ("TCA"), an agreement on the terms governing certain aspects of the EU's and the UK's relationship following the end of the transition period. Notwithstanding the TCA, following the transition period, there is likely to be considerable uncertainty as to the UK's post-transition framework.
Risk of Investing in Foreign Securities. Investments in the securities of foreign issuers involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities. These additional risks include greater market volatility, the availability of less reliable financial information, higher transactional and custody costs, taxation by foreign governments, decreased market liquidity and political instability. Because certain foreign securities markets may be limited in size, the activity of large traders may have an undue influence on the prices of securities that trade in such markets. The Fund invests in securities of issuers located in countries whose economies are heavily dependent upon trading with key partners. Any reduction in this trading may have an adverse impact on the Fund’s investments.
Foreign Currency Risk. Because all or a portion of the proceeds received by the Fund from its investments and/or the revenues received by the underlying issuer will generally be denominated in foreign currencies, the Fund’s exposure to foreign currencies and changes in the value of foreign currencies versus the U.S. dollar may result in reduced returns for the Fund, and the value of certain foreign currencies may be subject to a high degree of fluctuation. Moreover, the Fund may incur costs in connection with conversions between U.S. dollars and foreign currencies.
Risk of Investing in Small- and Medium-Capitalization Companies. Small- and medium-capitalization companies may be more volatile and more likely than large-capitalization companies to have narrower product lines, fewer financial resources, less

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management depth and experience and less competitive strength. In addition, these companies often have greater price volatility, lower trading volume and less liquidity than larger, more established companies. Returns on investments in securities of small- and medium-capitalization companies could trail the returns on investments in securities of large-capitalization companies.
Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. The value of individual securities or particular types of securities in the Fund’s portfolio can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole, which may have a greater impact if the Fund’s portfolio is concentrated in a country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. The value of securities of smaller issuers can be more volatile than that of larger issuers.
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.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Pharmaceutical Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the Pharmaceutical 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 Pharmaceutical 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 (as defined herein), which are not factored into the return of the Pharmaceutical Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s net asset value (“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 Pharmaceutical Index. Errors in the Pharmaceutical Index data, the Pharmaceutical Index computations and/or the construction of the Pharmaceutical Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Pharmaceutical 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 Pharmaceutical Index provider's errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the Pharmaceutical Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. When the Pharmaceutical Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Pharmaceutical Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. The Fund may not be fully invested at times either as a result of cash flows into the Fund (if the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) or reserves of cash held by the Fund to meet redemptions or pay expenses. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Pharmaceutical Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Pharmaceutical Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Pharmaceutical Index provider or its agents to the Pharmaceutical Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. In addition, the Fund may not be able to invest in certain securities included in the Pharmaceutical Index, or invest in them in the exact proportions in which they are represented in the Pharmaceutical Index. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the Pharmaceutical Index due to legal restrictions or limitations imposed by the governments of certain countries, certain listing standards of the Fund’s listing exchange (the “Exchange”), a lack of liquidity on stock exchanges in which such securities trade, potential adverse tax consequences or other regulatory reasons or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying securities and/or underlying currencies based on fair value prices. To the extent the Fund calculates its NAV based on fair value prices and the value of the Pharmaceutical Index is based on securities’ closing prices on local foreign markets (i.e., the value of the Pharmaceutical Index is not based on fair value prices), the Fund’s ability to track the Pharmaceutical Index may be adversely affected. 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. In addition, any issues the Fund encounters with regard to currency convertibility (including the cost of borrowing funds, if any) and repatriation may also increase the index tracking risk. The Fund may also need to rely on borrowings to meet redemptions, which may lead to increased expenses. 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 Pharmaceutical Index. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Pharmaceutical Index. Changes to the composition of the Pharmaceutical Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Pharmaceutical 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
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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 equity securities traded on an exchange, 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 Pharmaceutical 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 Pharmaceutical Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the Pharmaceutical 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-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. The Fund may be particularly vulnerable to this risk because the Pharmaceutical Index is comprised of securities of a limited number of companies.
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 Pharmaceutical 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 (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.





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Annual Total Returns (%)—Calendar Years
[TO BE UPDATED]
chart-e34cb439630045d79c9.jpg
Best Quarter: 15.01  % 2Q 2020
Worst Quarter: -15.01  % 1Q 2020
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2020
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.
[TO BE UPDATED]
Past One Year Past Five Years
Since Inception
(12/20/2011)
VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF (return before taxes) 5.20% 2.33% 9.26%
VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF (return after taxes on distributions) 4.78% 1.83% 8.69%
VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF (return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares) 3.32% 1.70% 7.42%
MVIS US Listed Pharmaceutical 25 Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes, except withholding taxes)
4.96% 2.26% 9.22%
S&P 500® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
18.40% 15.22% 15.39%
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Managers. The following individuals are jointly and 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 December 2011
Guo Hua (Jason) Jin Portfolio Manager February 2018
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® Retail ETF1 (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the MVIS® US Listed Retail 25 Index (the “Retail 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)(b)
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 February 1, 2023.

(b)    "Other Expenses" have been restated to reflect current fees.
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 12% 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 Fund’s benchmark index. To be initially eligible for the Retail Index, companies must generate at least 50% of their revenues from retail. Retail includes companies engaged primarily in retail distribution; wholesalers; online, direct mail and TV retailers; multi-line retailers; specialty retailers, such as apparel, automotive, computer and electronics, drug, home improvement and home furnishing retailers; and food and other staples retailers. Of the largest 50 stocks in the retail industry by full market capitalization, the top 25 by free-float market
____________
1Prior to September 1, 2021, the Fund's name was VanEck Vectors® Retail ETF.
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capitalization (i.e., includes only shares that are readily available for trading in the market) and three month average daily trading volume are included in the Retail Index. Such companies may include foreign companies that are listed on a U.S. exchange. As of [December 31, 2020], the Retail Index included 25 securities of companies with a market capitalization range of between approximately $[7.6] billion and $[1634.2] billion and a weighted average market capitalization of $[450.4] billion. These amounts are subject to change. The Fund’s 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Retail Index by investing in a portfolio of securities that generally replicates the Retail Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try to “beat” the Retail Index and does not seek temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the Retail Index.
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. The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Retail Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. [As of September 30, 2020, the Fund was concentrated in the consumer discretionary and consumer staples sectors].
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.
Risk of Investing in Retail Companies. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the retail industry. Companies involved in retail may be affected by the performance of the domestic and international economy, interest rates, rates of inflation, exchange rates, competition, consumer confidence and reputational damage. The success of companies involved in retail depends heavily on disposable household income and consumer spending, and changes in demographics and consumer preferences can affect the success of retail companies. Certain retail companies have historically been subject to significant seasonal and quarterly variations. The success of retail companies may be strongly affected by fads, marketing campaigns and other factors affecting supply and demand, and a retail company’s success can be tied to its ability to anticipate changing consumer tastes. These companies may be subject to severe competition, which may have an adverse impact on their profitability.
Certain business segments of retail companies are highly cyclical, which may cause the operating results of such companies to vary significantly. Retail companies may be dependent on outside financing, which may be difficult to obtain. Many of these companies are dependent on third party suppliers and distribution systems. Retail companies may be unable to protect their intellectual property rights and may be liable for infringing the intellectual property rights of others. Changes in labor laws and other labor issues, such as increased labor costs, could adversely affect the financial performance of retail companies. If retail companies do not maintain the security of customer-related information, they could damage their reputations with customers, incur substantial costs and become subject to litigation, all of which could adversely affect the financial performance of such companies. The international operations of certain retail companies in expose them to risks associated with instability and changes in economic and political conditions, foreign currency fluctuations, changes in foreign regulations, tariffs and trade disputes and other risks inherent to international business. Some retail companies are engaged in other lines of business unrelated to retail, and they may experience problems with these lines of business which could adversely affect their operating results. The operating results of these companies may fluctuate as a result of these additional risks and events in the other lines of business. In addition, a company’s ability to engage in new activities may expose it to business risks with which it has less experience than it has with the business risks associated with its traditional businesses. Despite a company’s possible success in traditional retail activities, there can be no assurance that the other lines of business in which these companies are engaged will not have an adverse effect on a company’s business or financial condition.
Retail companies may also be exposed to online retail risk. Companies that operate in the online marketplace are subject to fluctuating consumer demand. Unlike traditional brick and mortar retailers, online marketplaces and retailers must assume shipping costs or pass such costs to consumers. Consumer access to price information for the same or similar products may cause companies that operate in the online marketplace to reduce profit margins in order to compete. Due to the nature of their business models, companies that operate in the online marketplace may also be subject to heightened cybersecurity risk, including the risk of theft or damage to vital hardware, software and information systems. The loss or public dissemination of sensitive customer information or other proprietary data may negatively affect the financial performance of such companies to a greater extent than traditional brick and mortar retailers. As a result of such companies being web-based and the fact that they process, store and transmit large amounts of data, including personal information, for their customers, failure to prevent or mitigate data loss or other security breaches, including breaches of vendors’ technology and systems, could expose companies that operate in the online marketplace or their customers to a risk of loss or misuse of such information, adversely affect their operating results, result in litigation or potential liability and otherwise harm their businesses.

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Certain companies in which the Fund may invest are non-U.S. issuers whose securities are listed on U.S. exchanges. These securities involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities, including greater market volatility, higher transactional costs, the possibility that the liquidity of such securities could be impaired because of future political and/or economic developments, taxation by foreign governments, political instability, the possibility that foreign governmental restrictions may be adopted which might adversely affect such securities and that the selection of such securities may be more difficult because there may be less publicly available information concerning such non-U.S. issuers or the accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards, practices and requirements applicable to non-U.S. issuers may differ from those applicable to U.S. issuers.
Equity Securities Risk. The value of the equity securities held by the Fund may fall due to general market and economic conditions, perceptions regarding the markets in which the issuers of securities held by the Fund participate, or factors relating to specific issuers in which the Fund invests. Equity securities are subordinated to preferred securities and debt in a company’s capital structure with respect to priority in right to a share of corporate income, and therefore will be subject to greater dividend risk than preferred securities or debt instruments. In addition, while broad market measures of equity securities have historically generated higher average returns than fixed income securities, equity securities have generally also experienced significantly more volatility in those returns, although under certain market conditions fixed income securities may have comparable or greater price volatility.
Risk of Investing in the Consumer Discretionary Sector. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the consumer discretionary sector. The consumer discretionary sector comprises companies whose businesses are sensitive to economic cycles, such as manufacturers of high-end apparel and automobile and leisure companies. Companies engaged in the consumer discretionary sector are subject to fluctuations in supply and demand. These companies may also be adversely affected by changes in consumer spending as a result of world events, political and economic conditions, commodity price volatility, changes in exchange rates, imposition of import controls, increased competition, depletion of resources and labor relations.
Risk of Investing in the Consumer Staples Sector. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the consumer staples sector. The consumer staples sector comprises companies whose businesses are less sensitive to economic cycles, such as manufacturers and distributors of food and beverages and producers of non-durable household goods and personal products. Companies in the consumer staples sector may be adversely affected by changes in the worldwide economy, consumer spending, competition, demographics and consumer preferences, exploration and production spending. Companies in this sector are also affected by changes in government regulation, world events and economic conditions.
Risk of Investing in Depositary Receipts. The Fund may invest in depositary receipts which involve similar risks to those associated with investments in foreign securities. Depositary receipts are receipts listed on U.S. or foreign exchanges issued by banks or trust companies that entitle the holder to all dividends and capital gains that are paid out on the underlying foreign shares. Investments in depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market and, if not included in the Retail Index, may negatively affect the Fund’s ability to replicate the performance of the Retail Index.
Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. The value of individual securities or particular types of securities in the Fund’s portfolio can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole, which may have a greater impact if the Fund’s portfolio is concentrated in a country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. The value of securities of smaller issuers can be more volatile than that of larger issuers.
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.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Retail Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the Retail 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 Retail 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 (as defined herein), which are not factored into the return of the Retail Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s net asset value (“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 Retail Index. Errors in the
16

Retail Index data, the Retail Index computations and/or the construction of the Retail Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Retail Index provider for a period of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its shareholders. The Fund may not be fully invested at times either as a result of cash flows into the Fund (if the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) or reserves of cash held by the Fund to meet redemptions or pay expenses. Shareholders should understand that any gains from the Retail Index provider's errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the Retail Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. When the Retail Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Retail 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 Retail Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Retail Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Retail Index provider or its agents to the Retail Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. In addition, the Fund may not be able to invest in certain securities included in the Retail Index, or invest in them in the exact proportions in which they are represented in the Retail Index. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the Retail Index due to legal restrictions or limitations imposed by the governments of certain countries, certain listing standards of the Fund’s listing exchange (the “Exchange”), a lack of liquidity on stock exchanges in which such securities trade, potential adverse tax consequences or other regulatory reasons or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying securities and/or underlying currencies based on fair value prices. To the extent the Fund calculates its NAV based on fair value prices and the value of the Retail Index is based on securities’ closing prices on local foreign markets (i.e., the value of the Retail Index is not based on fair value prices), the Fund’s ability to track the Retail Index may be adversely affected. 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. The Fund may also need to rely on borrowings to meet redemptions, which may lead to increased expenses. 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 Retail Index. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Retail Index. Changes to the composition of the Retail Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Retail 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 equity securities traded on an exchange, 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 Retail 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 Retail Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the Retail 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

17

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. The Fund may be particularly vulnerable to this risk because the Retail Index is comprised of securities of a limited number of companies.
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 Retail 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 (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
[TO BE UPDATED]
chart-5a1d7d6c64ab481fac2.jpg
Best Quarter: 25.61  % 2Q 2020
Worst Quarter: -14.78  % 4Q 2018
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2020
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.
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[TO BE UPDATED]
Past One Year Past Five Years
Since Inception
(12/20/2011)
VanEck Retail ETF (return before taxes) 31.36% 16.47% 18.75%
VanEck Retail ETF (return after taxes on distributions) 31.16% 16.15% 18.37%
VanEck Retail ETF (return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares) 18.71% 13.25% 15.86%
MVIS US Listed Retail 25 Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes, except withholding taxes)
31.23% 16.32% 18.58%
S&P 500® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
18.40% 15.22% 15.39%
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Managers. The following individuals are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
Peter H. Liao Portfolio Manager December 2011
Guo Hua (Jason) Jin Portfolio Manager February 2018

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® Semiconductor ETF1 (the “Fund”) seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the MVIS® US Listed Semiconductor 25 Index (the “Semiconductor 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)(b)
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 February 1, 2023.

(b)    "Other Expenses" have been restated to reflect current fees.
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 14% 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 Fund’s benchmark index. The Semiconductor Index includes common stocks and depositary receipts of U.S. exchange-listed companies in the semiconductor industry. Such companies may include medium-capitalization companies and foreign companies that are listed on a U.S. exchange. To be initially eligible for the Semiconductor Index, companies must generate at least 50% of their revenues from semiconductors. Semiconductors include companies engaged primarily in the production of semiconductors and semiconductor
____________
1Prior to September 1, 2021, the Fund's name was VanEck Vectors® Semiconductor ETF.
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equipment. Of the largest 50 stocks in the semiconductor industry by full market capitalization, the top 25 by free-float market capitalization (i.e., includes only shares that are readily available for trading in the market) and three month average daily trading volume are included in the Semiconductor Index. As of [December 31, 2020], the Semiconductor Index included 25 securities of companies with a market capitalization range of between approximately $[10.8] billion and $[565.5 billion] and a weighted average market capitalization of $[117.1] billion. These amounts are subject to change. The Fund’s 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders.
The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Semiconductor Index by investing in a portfolio of securities that generally replicates the Semiconductor Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try to “beat” the Semiconductor Index and does not seek temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its investment objective of seeking to replicate the Semiconductor Index.
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. The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Semiconductor Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. [As of September 30, 2020, the Fund was concentrated in the semiconductor industry.]
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.
Risk of Investing in the Semiconductor Industry. The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the semiconductor industry. Competitive pressures may have a significant effect on the financial condition of companies in the semiconductor industry. The Fund is subject to the risk that companies that are in the semiconductor industry may be similarly affected by particular economic or market events. As product cycles shorten and manufacturing capacity increases, these companies may become increasingly subject to aggressive pricing, which hampers profitability. Semiconductor companies are vulnerable to wide fluctuations in securities prices due to rapid product obsolescence. Many semiconductor companies may not successfully introduce new products, develop and maintain a loyal customer base or achieve general market acceptance for their products, and failure to do so could have a material adverse effect on their business, results of operations and financial condition. Reduced demand for end-user products, underutilization of manufacturing capacity, and other factors could adversely impact the operating results of companies in the semiconductor industry. Semiconductor companies typically face high capital costs and such companies may need additional financing, which may be difficult to obtain. They also may be subject to risks relating to research and development costs and the availability and price of components. Moreover, they may be heavily dependent on intellectual property rights and may be adversely affected by loss or impairment of those rights. Some of the companies involved in the semiconductor industry are also engaged in other lines of business unrelated to the semiconductor business, and they may experience problems with these lines of business, which could adversely affect their operating results. The international operations of many semiconductor companies expose them to risks associated with instability and changes in economic and political conditions, foreign currency fluctuations, changes in foreign regulations, tariffs and trade disputes, competition from subsidized foreign competitors with lower production costs and other risks inherent to international business. The semiconductor industry is highly cyclical, which may cause the operating results of many semiconductor companies to vary significantly. Companies in the semiconductor industry also may be subject to competition from new market entrants. The stock prices of companies in the semiconductor industry have been and will likely continue to be extremely volatile compared to the overall market.
Certain companies in which the Fund may invest are non-U.S. issuers whose securities are listed on U.S. exchanges. These securities involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities, including greater market volatility, higher transactional costs, the possibility that the liquidity of such securities could be impaired because of future political and/or economic developments, taxation by foreign governments, political instability, the possibility that foreign governmental restrictions may be adopted which might adversely affect such securities and that the selection of such securities may be more difficult because there may be less publicly available information concerning such non-U.S. issuers or the accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards, practices and requirements applicable to non-U.S. issuers may differ from those applicable to U.S. issuers.
Equity Securities Risk. The value of the equity securities held by the Fund may fall due to general market and economic conditions, perceptions regarding the markets in which the issuers of securities held by the Fund participate, or factors relating to specific issuers in which the Fund invests. Equity securities are subordinated to preferred securities and debt in a company’s capital structure with respect to priority in right to a share of corporate income, and therefore will be subject to greater dividend risk than preferred securities or debt instruments. In addition, while broad market measures of equity securities have historically generated higher average returns than fixed income securities, equity securities have generally also experienced significantly more

21

volatility in those returns, although under certain market conditions fixed income securities may have comparable or greater price volatility.
Risk of Investing in Foreign Securities. Investments in the securities of foreign issuers involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities. These additional risks include greater market volatility, the availability of less reliable financial information, higher transactional and custody costs, taxation by foreign governments, decreased market liquidity and political instability. Because certain foreign securities markets may be limited in size, the activity of large traders may have an undue influence on the prices of securities that trade in such markets. The Fund invests in securities of issuers located in countries whose economies are heavily dependent upon trading with key partners. Any reduction in this trading may have an adverse impact on the Fund’s investments.
Foreign Currency Risk. Because all or a portion of the proceeds received by the Fund from its investments and/or the revenues received by the underlying issuer will generally be denominated in foreign currencies, the Fund’s exposure to foreign currencies and changes in the value of foreign currencies versus the U.S. dollar may result in reduced returns for the Fund, and the value of certain foreign currencies may be subject to a high degree of fluctuation. Moreover, the Fund may incur costs in connection with conversions between U.S. dollars and foreign currencies.
Risk of Investing in Depositary Receipts. The Fund may invest in depositary receipts which involve similar risks to those associated with investments in foreign securities. Depositary receipts are receipts listed on U.S. or foreign exchanges issued by banks or trust companies that entitle the holder to all dividends and capital gains that are paid out on the underlying foreign shares. Investments in depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market and, if not included in the Semiconductor Index, may negatively affect the Fund’s ability to replicate the performance of the Semiconductor Index.
Risk of Investing in Medium-Capitalization Companies. Medium-capitalization companies may be more volatile and more likely than large-capitalization companies to have narrower product lines, fewer financial resources, less management depth and experience and less competitive strength. In addition, these companies often have greater price volatility, lower trading volume and less liquidity than larger more established companies. Returns on investments in securities of medium-capitalization companies could trail the returns on investments in securities of large-capitalization companies.
Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. The value of individual securities or particular types of securities in the Fund’s portfolio can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole, which may have a greater impact if the Fund’s portfolio is concentrated in a country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. The value of securities of smaller issuers can be more volatile than that of larger issuers.
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.
Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Semiconductor Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs a number of operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the Semiconductor 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 Semiconductor 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 (as defined herein), which are not factored into the return of the Semiconductor Index. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, will decrease the Fund’s net asset value (“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 Semiconductor Index. Errors in the Semiconductor Index data, the Semiconductor Index computations and/or the construction of the Semiconductor Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Semiconductor 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 Semiconductor Index provider's errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the Semiconductor Index provider's errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. When the Semiconductor Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Semiconductor Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. The Fund may not be fully invested at times either as a result of cash flows into the Fund (if the Fund effects creations and redemptions for cash) or reserves of cash held by the Fund to meet redemptions or pay expenses. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Semiconductor Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Semiconductor Index. Therefore, errors and
22

additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Semiconductor Index provider or its agents to the Semiconductor Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund. In addition, the Fund may not be able to invest in certain securities included in the Semiconductor Index, or invest in them in the exact proportions in which they are represented in the Semiconductor Index. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the Semiconductor Index due to legal restrictions or limitations imposed by the governments of certain countries, certain listing standards of the Fund’s listing exchange (the “Exchange”), a lack of liquidity on stock exchanges in which such securities trade, potential adverse tax consequences or other regulatory reasons or legal restrictions or limitations (such as diversification requirements). The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying securities and/or underlying currencies based on fair value prices. To the extent the Fund calculates its net asset value NAV based on fair value prices and the value of the Semiconductor Index is based on securities’ closing prices on local foreign markets (i.e., the value of the Semiconductor Index is not based on fair value prices), the Fund’s ability to track the Semiconductor Index may be adversely affected. In addition, any issues the Fund encounters with regard to currency convertibility (including the cost of borrowing funds, if any) and repatriation may also increase the index tracking risk. 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. The Fund may also need to rely on borrowings to meet redemptions, which may lead to increased expenses. 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 Semiconductor Index. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Semiconductor Index. Changes to the composition of the Semiconductor Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Semiconductor 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 equity securities traded on an exchange, 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 Semiconductor 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 Semiconductor Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the Semiconductor 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.

23

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. The Fund may be particularly vulnerable to this risk because the Semiconductor Index is comprised of securities of a very limited number of issuers.
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 Semiconductor 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 (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
[TO BE UPDATED]
chart-6678f999346b49d2b84.jpg
Best Quarter: 30.65  % 2Q 2020
Worst Quarter: -17.27  % 1Q 2020
Average Annual Total Returns for the Periods Ended December 31, 2020
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.
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[TO BE UPDATED]
Past One Year Past Five Years
Since Inception
(12/20/2011)
VanEck Semiconductor ETF (return before taxes) 55.30% 34.21% 26.43%
VanEck Semiconductor ETF (return after taxes on distributions) 55.03% 33.69% 25.86%
VanEck Semiconductor ETF (return after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund Shares) 32.90% 28.58% 22.78%
MVIS US Listed Semiconductor 25 Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes, except withholding taxes)
55.24% 34.21% 26.37%
S&P 500® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
18.40% 15.22% 15.39%
See “License Agreements and Disclaimers” for important information.
PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT
Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation.
Portfolio Managers. The following individuals are jointly and primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio:
Name Title with Adviser Date Began Managing the Fund
Peter H. Liao Portfolio Manager December 2011
Guo Hua (Jason) Jin Portfolio Manager February 2018

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
Each Fund’s distributions are taxable and will generally be taxed as ordinary income or capital gains.
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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PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES
The Adviser anticipates that, generally, each Fund will hold or gain exposure to all of the securities that comprise its Index in proportion to their weightings in such Index. However, under various circumstances, it may not be possible or practicable to purchase all of those securities in those weightings. In these circumstances, a Fund may purchase a sample of securities in its Index. There also may be instances in which the Adviser may choose to underweight or overweight a security in a Fund’s Index, purchase securities not in the Fund’s Index that the Adviser believes are appropriate to substitute for certain securities in such 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 Fund’s Index. Each Fund may sell securities that are represented in its Index in anticipation of their removal from its Index or purchase securities not represented in its Index in anticipation of their addition to such Index. Each Fund may also, in order to comply with the tax diversification requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Internal Revenue Code”), temporarily invest in securities not included in its Index that are expected to be highly correlated with the securities included in its Index.
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 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.
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.

Risk of Investing in the Biotechnology Industry. (VanEck Biotech ETF only.) The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the biotechnology industry. The success of biotechnology companies is highly dependent on the development, procurement and/or marketing of drugs. The values of biotechnology companies are also dependent on the development, protection and exploitation of intellectual property rights and other proprietary information, and the profitability of biotechnology companies may be affected significantly by such things as the expiration of patents or the loss of, or the inability to enforce, intellectual property rights.
The research and development and other costs associated with developing or procuring new drugs, products or technologies and the related intellectual property rights can be significant, and the results of such research and expenditures are unpredictable and may not necessarily lead to commercially successful products. In addition, the potential for an increased amount of required disclosure of proprietary scientific information could negatively impact the competitive position of these companies. Governmental regulation may delay or inhibit the release of new products. There can be no assurance that those efforts or costs will result in the development of a profitable drug, product or technology. Moreover, the process for obtaining regulatory approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) or other governmental regulatory authorities is long and costly and there can be no assurance that the necessary approvals will be obtained or maintained.

The biotechnology industry is also subject to rapid and significant technological change and competitive forces that may make drugs, products or technologies obsolete or make it difficult to raise prices and, in fact, may result in price discounting. Companies in the biotechnology industry may also be subject to expenses and losses from expensive insurance costs due to the risk of product liability lawsuits, and extensive litigation based on intellectual property, product liability and similar claims. Failure of biotechnology companies to comply with applicable laws and regulations can result in the imposition of civil and/or criminal fines, penalties and, in some instances, exclusion of participation in government sponsored programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.
Companies in the biotechnology industry may be adversely affected by government regulation and changes in reimbursement rates. Health care providers, principally hospitals, that transact with companies in the biotechnology industry, often rely on third party payors, such as Medicare, Medicaid and other government sponsored programs, private health insurance plans and health maintenance organizations to reimburse all or a portion of the cost of health care related products or services. Biotechnology companies will continue to be affected by the efforts of governments and third party payors to contain or reduce health care costs. For example, certain foreign markets control pricing or profitability of biotechnology products and technologies. In the United States, there have been, and there will likely to continue to be, a number of federal and state proposals to implement similar controls.
A biotechnology company’s valuation can often be based largely on the potential or actual performance of a limited number of products. A biotechnology company’s valuation can also be greatly affected if one of its products proves unsafe, ineffective or unprofitable. Such companies may also be characterized by thin capitalization and limited markets, financial resources or personnel. The stock prices of companies involved in the biotechnology industry, especially those of smaller, less-seasoned
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companies, have been and will likely continue to be extremely volatile, particularly when their products are up for regulatory approval and/or under regulatory scrutiny. Some of the companies in the biotechnology industry are engaged in other lines of business unrelated to biotechnology, and they may experience problems with these lines of business which could adversely affect their operating results. The operating results of these companies may fluctuate as a result of these additional risks and events in the other lines of business. In addition, a company’s ability to engage in new activities may expose it to business risks with which it has less experience than it has with the business risks associated with its traditional businesses. Despite a company’s possible success in traditional biotechnology activities, there can be no assurance that the other lines of business in which these companies are engaged will not have an adverse effect on a company’s business or financial condition.
Certain companies in which a Fund may invest are non-U.S. issuers whose securities are listed on U.S. exchanges. These securities involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities, including greater market volatility, higher transactional costs, the possibility that the liquidity of such securities could be impaired because of future political and/or economic developments, taxation by foreign governments, political instability, the possibility that foreign governmental restrictions may be adopted which might adversely affect such securities and that the selection of such securities may be more difficult because there may be less publicly available information concerning such non-U.S. issuers or the accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards, practices and requirements applicable to non-U.S. issuers may differ from those applicable to U.S. issuers.
Risk of Investing in the Pharmaceutical Industry. (VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF only.) The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the pharmaceutical industry. The success of companies in the pharmaceutical industry is highly dependent on the development, procurement and marketing of drugs. The values of pharmaceutical companies are also dependent on the development, protection and exploitation of intellectual property rights and other proprietary information, and the profitability of pharmaceutical companies may be significantly affected by such things as the expiration of patents or the loss of, or the inability to enforce, intellectual property rights. There can be no assurance that the steps taken by pharmaceutical companies to protect their proprietary rights will be adequate to prevent misappropriation of their proprietary rights or that competitors will not independently develop products that are substantially equivalent or superior to such companies’ products. Pharmaceutical companies also rely on trade secrets, know-how and technology, which are not protected by patents, to maintain their competitive position. If any trade secret, know-how or other technology not protected by a patent were disclosed to, or independently developed by, a competitor, that company’s business and financial condition could be materially adversely affected.
The research and other costs associated with developing or procuring new drugs and the related intellectual property rights can be significant, and the results of such research and expenditures are unpredictable. There can be no assurance that those efforts or costs will result in the development of a profitable drug. Pharmaceutical companies may be susceptible to product obsolescence. Many pharmaceutical companies face intense competition from new products and less costly generic products.
Pharmaceutical products are subject to approval of the FDA. The research, design, testing, manufacturing, labeling, marketing, distribution and advertising of pharmaceutical products are subject to extensive regulation by governmental authorities in the United States and other countries. The process for obtaining regulatory approval by the FDA or other governmental regulatory authorities is long and costly and may require extensive preclinical and clinical trials. There can be no assurance that the necessary approvals will be obtained or maintained. In addition, the potential for an increased amount of required disclosure of proprietary scientific information could negatively impact the position of pharmaceutical companies. The pharmaceutical industry is also subject to laws and regulations governing the protection of the environment and occupational health and safety, including laws regulating air emissions, wastewater discharges, the management and disposal of hazardous materials and wastes, and the health and safety of employees. Failure to comply with applicable domestic and/or foreign requirements can result in civil and criminal fines or other enforcement actions, recall or seizure of products, total or partial suspension of production, withdrawal of existing product approvals or clearances, refusal to approve or clear new applications or notifications, increased quality control costs, criminal prosecution, other penalties and, in some instances, exclusion of participation in government sponsored programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and other government sponsored programs.
The pharmaceutical industry is also subject to rapid and significant technological change and competitive forces that may make drugs obsolete or make it difficult to raise prices and, in fact, may result in price discounting. Companies in the pharmaceutical industry may also be subject to expenses and losses from extensive litigation based on intellectual property, product liability and similar claims that are inherent in the development, manufacturing and marketing of human therapeutic products. Product liability claims could delay or prevent completion of companies’ clinical development programs as well as result in FDA investigations of the safety and effectiveness of companies’ products, manufacturing processes and facilities, and marketing programs.
Companies in the pharmaceutical industry may be adversely affected by government regulation and changes in reimbursement rates. The ability of many pharmaceutical companies to commercialize current and any future products depends in part on the extent to which reimbursement for the cost of such products and related treatments are available from third party payors, such as Medicare, Medicaid and other government sponsored programs, private health insurance plans and health maintenance organizations. Third party payors are increasingly challenging the price and cost-effectiveness of medical products. Significant
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uncertainty exists as to the reimbursement status of health care products, and there can be no assurance that adequate third party coverage will be available for pharmaceutical companies to obtain satisfactory price levels for their products.
The international operations of many pharmaceutical companies expose them to risks associated with instability and changes in economic and political conditions, foreign currency fluctuations, changes in foreign regulations and other risks inherent to international business. Additionally, a pharmaceutical company’s valuation can often be based largely on the potential or actual performance of a limited number of products. A pharmaceutical company’s valuation can also be greatly affected if one of its products proves unsafe, ineffective or unprofitable. Such companies also may be characterized by thin capitalization and limited markets, financial resources or personnel, as well as dependence on wholesale distributors. The stock prices of companies in the pharmaceutical industry have been and will likely continue to be extremely volatile, in part due to the prevalence of merger and acquisition activity in the pharmaceutical industry. Some pharmaceutical companies are engaged in other lines of business unrelated to pharmaceuticals, and they may experience problems with these lines of business which could adversely affect their operating results. The operating results of these companies may fluctuate as a result of these additional risks and events in the other lines of business. In addition, a company’s ability to engage in new activities may expose it to business risks with which it has less experience than it has with the business risks associated with its traditional businesses. Despite a company’s possible success in traditional pharmaceutical activities, there can be no assurance that the other lines of business in which these companies are engaged will not have an adverse effect on a company’s business or financial condition.
Certain companies in which the Fund may invest are non-U.S. issuers whose securities are listed on U.S. exchanges. Investing in non-U.S. issuers involves risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities, including greater market volatility, higher transactional costs, the possibility that the liquidity of such securities could be impaired because of future political and/or economic developments, taxation by foreign governments, political instability, the possibility that foreign governmental restrictions may be adopted which might adversely affect such securities and that the selection of such securities may be more difficult because there may be less publicly available information concerning such non-U.S. issuers or the accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards, practices and requirements applicable to non-U.S. issuers may differ from those applicable to U.S. issuers.
Risk of Investing in Retail Companies. (VanEck Retail ETF only.) The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the retail industry. Companies involved in retail may be affected by the performance of the domestic and international economy, interest rates, rates of inflation, exchange rates, competition, consumer confidence and reputational damage. The success of companies involved in retail depends heavily on disposable household income and consumer spending, and changes in demographics and consumer preferences can affect the success of retail companies. Certain retail companies have historically been subject to significant seasonal and quarterly variations. The success of retail companies may be strongly affected by fads, marketing campaigns and other factors affecting supply and demand and a retail company’s success can be tied to its ability to anticipate changing consumer tastes. These companies may be subject to severe competition, which may have an adverse impact on their profitability. Certain business segments of retail companies are highly cyclical, which may cause the operating results of certain retail companies to vary significantly.
Retail companies may be dependent on outside financing, which may be difficult to obtain. Many of these companies are dependent on third party suppliers and distribution systems and purchase merchandise both directly from brand owners and indirectly from retailers and third party suppliers. Such companies may also be dependent upon suppliers for the products used for their own brand name merchandise. Reliance on third party suppliers subjects retail companies to risks of delivery delays, price increases and receipt of nonconforming or poor quality merchandise. Retail companies may be unable to protect their intellectual property rights and may be liable for infringing the intellectual property rights of others. Changes in labor laws and other labor issues, such as increased labor costs, could adversely affect the financial performance of retail companies. If retail companies do not maintain the security of customer-related information, they could damage their reputations with customers, incur substantial costs and become subject to litigation, all of which could adversely affect the financial performance of such companies. The international operations of certain retail companies expose them to risks associated with instability and changes in economic and political conditions, foreign currency fluctuations, changes in foreign regulations, tariffs and trade disputes and other risks inherent to international business. Some of the companies in the Retail Index are engaged in other lines of business unrelated to retail, and they may experience problems with these lines of business which could adversely affect their operating results. The operating results of these companies may fluctuate as a result of these additional risks and events in the other lines of business. In addition, a company’s ability to engage in new activities may expose it to business risks with which it has less experience than it has with the business risks associated with its traditional businesses. Despite a company’s possible success in traditional retail activities, there can be no assurance that the other lines of business in which these companies are engaged will not have an adverse effect on a company’s business or financial condition.
Retail companies may also be exposed to online retail risk. Companies that operate in the online marketplace are subject to fluctuating consumer demand. Unlike traditional brick and mortar retailers, online marketplaces and retailers must assume shipping costs or pass such costs to consumers. Consumer access to price information for the same or similar products may cause companies that operate in the online marketplace to reduce profit margins in order to compete. Due to the nature of their business models, companies that operate in the online marketplace may also be subject to heightened cybersecurity risk, including the risk of theft or damage to vital hardware, software and information systems. The loss or public dissemination of

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sensitive customer information or other proprietary data may negatively affect the financial performance of such companies to a greater extent than traditional brick and mortar retailers. As a result of such companies being web-based and the fact that they process, store and transmit large amounts of data, including personal information, for their customers, failure to prevent or mitigate data loss or other security breaches, including breaches of vendors’ technology and systems, could expose companies that operate in the online marketplace or their customers to a risk of loss or misuse of such information, adversely affect their operating results, result in litigation or potential liability and otherwise harm their businesses.
Certain companies in which the Fund may invest are non-U.S. issuers whose securities are listed on U.S. exchanges. These securities involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities, including greater market volatility, higher transactional costs, the possibility that the liquidity of such securities could be impaired because of future political and/or economic developments, taxation by foreign governments, political instability, the possibility that foreign governmental restrictions may be adopted which might adversely affect such securities and that the selection of such securities may be more difficult because there may be less publicly available information concerning such non-U.S. issuers or the accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards, practices and requirements applicable to non-U.S. issuers may differ from those applicable to U.S. issuers.
Risk of Investing in the Semiconductor Industry. (VanEck Semiconductor ETF only.) The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the semiconductor industry. Competitive pressures may have a significant effect on the financial condition of companies in the semiconductor industry. The Fund is subject to the risk that companies that are in the semiconductor industry may be similarly affected by particular economic or market events, which may, in certain circumstances, cause the value of securities of all companies in the semiconductor industry of the market to decrease. As product cycles shorten and manufacturing capacity increases, these companies may become increasingly subject to aggressive pricing, which hampers profitability. The Fund is also subject to the risk that the securities of such issuers will underperform the market as a whole due to legislative or regulatory changes. Additionally, semiconductor companies are vulnerable to wide fluctuations in securities prices due to rapid product obsolescence. Many semiconductor companies may not successfully introduce new products, develop and maintain a loyal customer base or achieve general market acceptance for their products, and failure to do so could have a material adverse effect on their business, results of operations and financial condition. Reduced demand for end-user products, underutilization of manufacturing capacity, limited personnel, periods of production shortages, significant price erosion, a limited number of products, wide fluctuations in securities prices due to risks of rapid obsolescence of products, economic performance of the customers of semiconductor companies and other factors could adversely impact the operating results of companies in the semiconductor industry. Semiconductor companies typically face high capital costs and such companies may need additional financing, which may be difficult to obtain. In addition, their capital equipment could suffer from rapid obsolescence. Some of the companies involved in the semiconductor industry are also engaged in other lines of business unrelated to the semiconductor business, and they may experience problems with these lines of business, which could adversely affect their operating results. The international operations of many semiconductor companies expose them to risks associated with instability and changes in economic and political conditions, foreign currency fluctuations, changes in foreign regulations, competition from subsidized foreign competitors with lower production costs, tariffs and trade disputes and other risks inherent to international business. The semiconductor industry is highly cyclical, which may cause the operating results of many semiconductor companies to vary significantly. Companies in the semiconductor industry also may be subject to competition from new market entrants, both domestically and internationally, including competition from foreign competitors with lower production costs. The stock prices of companies in the semiconductor industry have been and will likely continue to be extremely volatile compared to the overall market.
Semiconductor manufacturing processes are highly complex, costly and potentially vulnerable to impurities and other disruptions that can significantly increase costs and delay product shipments to customers. Many semiconductor companies rely on a single supplier or a limited number of suppliers for the parts and raw materials used in their products, and if quality parts and materials are not delivered by the suppliers on a timely basis, these companies will not be able to manufacture and deliver their products on a timely schedule which could adversely affect their financial condition.
Semiconductor design and process methodologies are subject to rapid technological change requiring large expenditures for research and development in order to improve product performance and increase manufacturing yields. Semiconductor companies also may be subject to risks relating to research and development costs and the availability and price of components. Many semiconductor companies have created new technologies for the semiconductor sector and currently rely on a limited number of customers as purchasers of their products and services. Semiconductor companies rely on a combination of patents, trade secret laws and contractual provisions to protect their technologies. Inability to adequately protect proprietary rights may harm the competitive positions of many semiconductor companies. Additionally, semiconductor companies may be subject to claims of infringement of third party intellectual property rights, which could adversely affect their business. Many semiconductor companies are dependent on their ability to continue to attract and retain highly skilled technical and managerial personnel to develop and generate their business.
Certain companies in which the Fund may invest are non-U.S. issuers whose securities are listed on U.S. exchanges. These securities involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities, including greater market volatility, higher transactional costs, the possibility that the liquidity of such securities could be impaired because of future political and/or
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economic developments, taxation by foreign governments, political instability, the possibility that foreign governmental restrictions may be adopted which might adversely affect such securities and that the selection of such securities may be more difficult because there may be less publicly available information concerning such non-U.S. issuers or the accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards, practices and requirements applicable to non-U.S. issuers may differ from those applicable to U.S. issuers.
Risk of Investing in the Consumer Discretionary Sector. (VanEck Retail ETF only.) The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the consumer discretionary sector. The consumer discretionary sector comprises companies whose businesses are sensitive to economic cycles, such as manufacturers of high-end apparel and automobile and leisure companies. Companies in the consumer discretionary sector are subject to fluctuations in supply and demand. These companies may also be adversely affected by changes in consumer spending as a result of world events, political and economic conditions, commodity price volatility, changes in exchange rates, imposition of import controls, increased competition, depletion of resources and labor relations.
Risk of Investing in the Consumer Staples Sector. (VanEck Retail ETF only.) The Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the consumer staples sector. The consumer staples sector comprises companies whose businesses are less sensitive to economic cycles, such as manufacturers and distributors of food and beverages and producers of non-durable household goods and personal products. Companies in the consumer staples sector may be adversely affected by changes in the worldwide economy, consumer spending, competition, demographics and consumer preferences, exploration and production spending. Companies in this sector are also affected by changes in government regulation, world events and economic conditions.
Risk of Investing in the Health Care Sector. (VanEck Biotech ETF and VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF only.) A Fund will be sensitive to, and its performance will depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the health care sector. Companies in the health care sector may be affected by extensive government regulation, restrictions on government reimbursement for medical expenses, rising costs of medical products and services, pricing pressure, an increased emphasis on outpatient services, limited number of products, industry innovation, changes in technologies and other market developments. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection. The expiration of patents may adversely affect the profitability of these companies. Many health care companies are subject to extensive litigation based on product liability and similar claims. Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may make it difficult to raise prices and, in fact, may result in price discounting. Many new products in the health care sector may be subject to regulatory approvals. The process of obtaining such approvals may be long and costly. Companies in the health care sector may be thinly capitalized and may be susceptible to product obsolescence.
Risk of Investing in Foreign Securities. (VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF and VanEck Semiconductor ETF only.) Investments in the securities of foreign issuers involve risks beyond those associated with investments in U.S. securities. These additional risks include greater market volatility, the availability of less reliable financial information, higher transactional and custody costs, taxation by foreign governments, decreased market liquidity and political instability. Because certain foreign securities markets may be limited in size, the activity of large traders may have an undue influence on the prices of securities that trade in such markets. Certain foreign markets that have historically been considered relatively stable may become volatile in response to changed conditions or new developments. Increased interconnectivity of world economies and financial markets increases the possibility that adverse developments and conditions in one country or region will affect the stability of economies and financial markets in other countries or regions. Each Fund invests in securities of issuers located in countries whose economies are heavily dependent upon trading with key partners. Any reduction in this trading may have an adverse impact on a Fund’s investments. Because each Fund may invest in securities denominated in foreign currencies and some of the income received by each Fund may be in foreign currency, changes in currency exchange rates may negatively impact the Funds’ return. The risks of investing in emerging market countries are greater than risks associated with investments in foreign developed countries.
Foreign issuers are often subject to less stringent requirements regarding accounting, auditing, financial reporting and record keeping than are U.S. issuers, and, therefore, not all material information may be available or reliable. Securities exchanges or foreign governments may adopt rules or regulations that may negatively impact a Fund’s ability to invest in foreign securities or may prevent each Fund from repatriating its investments. Each Fund may also invest in depositary receipts which involve similar risks to those associated with investments in foreign securities. In addition, each Fund may not receive shareholder communications or be permitted to vote the securities that it holds, as the issuers may be under no legal obligation to distribute shareholder communications.
Certain foreign markets may rely heavily on particular industries or foreign capital and are more vulnerable to diplomatic developments, the imposition of economic sanctions against a particular country or countries, organizations, entities and/or individuals, changes in international trade patterns, trade barriers and other protectionist or retaliatory measures. The United States and other nations or international organizations may impose economic sanctions or take other actions that may adversely affect issuers of specific countries. Economic sanctions could, among other things, effectively restrict or eliminate the Fund’s ability to purchase or sell securities or groups of securities for a substantial period of time, and may make the Fund’s investments in such securities harder to value. These sanctions, any future sanctions or other actions, or even the threat of future sanctions or other actions, may negatively affect the value and liquidity of the Fund.

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Also, certain issuers located in foreign countries in which a Fund invests may operate in, or have dealings with, countries subject to sanctions and/or embargoes imposed by the U.S. Government and the United Nations and/or countries identified by the U.S. Government as state sponsors of terrorism. As a result, an issuer may sustain damage to its reputation if it is identified as an issuer which operates in, or has dealings with, such countries. A Fund, as an investor in such issuers, may be indirectly subject to those risks.
Foreign Currency Risk. (VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF and VanEck Semiconductor ETF only.) Because a Fund’s assets that are invested in equity securities of issuers in foreign countries may be denominated in foreign currencies, the proceeds received by the Fund from these investments will generally be in foreign currencies. A Fund’s exposure to foreign currencies and changes in the value of foreign currencies versus the U.S. dollar may result in reduced returns for the Fund, and the value of certain foreign currencies may be subject to a high degree of fluctuation. Moreover, a Fund may incur costs in connection with conversions between U.S. dollars and foreign currencies. The value of certain emerging market countries' currencies may be subject to a high degree of fluctuation. This fluctuation may be due to changes in interest rates, investors’ expectations concerning inflation and interest rates, the emerging market country’s debt levels and trade deficit, the effects of monetary policies issued by the United States, foreign governments, central banks or supranational entities, the imposition of currency controls or other national or global political or economic developments. For example, certain emerging market countries have experienced economic challenges and liquidity issues with respect to their currency. The economies of certain emerging market countries can be significantly affected by currency devaluations. Certain emerging market countries may also have managed currencies which are maintained at artificial levels relative to the U.S. dollar rather than at levels determined by the market. This type of system could lead to sudden and large adjustments in the currency, which in turn, may have a negative effect on a Fund and its investments.
Risk of Investing in Depositary Receipts. A Fund may invest in depositary receipts (including ADRs) which involve similar risks to those associated with investments in foreign securities. Depositary receipts are receipts listed on U.S. or foreign exchanges issued by banks or trust companies that entitle the holder to all dividends and capital gains that are paid out on the underlying foreign shares. The issuers of certain depositary receipts are under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications to the holders of such receipts, or to pass through to them any voting rights with respect to the deposited securities. Investments in depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying shares in their primary trading market and, if not included in a Fund’s Index, may negatively affect a Fund’s ability to replicate the performance of its Index. In addition, investments in depositary receipts that are not included in a Fund’s Index may increase tracking error.
Risk of Investing in Small- and Medium-Capitalization Companies. A Fund may invest in small- and medium-capitalization companies and, therefore, will be subject to certain risks associated with small- and medium-capitalization companies. These companies are often subject to less analyst coverage and may be in early and less predictable periods of their corporate existences, with little or no record of profitability. In addition, these companies often have greater price volatility, lower trading volume and less liquidity than larger more established companies. These companies tend to have smaller revenues, narrower product lines, less management depth and experience, smaller shares of their product or service markets, fewer financial resources and less competitive strength than large-capitalization companies. Returns on investments in securities of small- and medium-capitalization companies could trail the returns on investments in securities of larger companies.
Issuer-Specific Changes Risk. (VanEck Biotech ETF, VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF, VanEck Retail ETF and VanEck Semiconductor ETF only.) The value of individual securities or particular types of securities in a Fund’s portfolio can be more volatile than the market as a whole and can perform differently from the value of the market as a whole, which may have a greater impact if the Fund’s portfolio is concentrated in a country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. The value of securities of smaller issuers can be more volatile than that of larger issuers. A change in the financial condition, market perception or the credit rating of an issuer of securities included in a Fund’s Index may cause the value of its securities to decline.
Special Risk Considerations of Investing in European Issuers. (VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF only.) Investments in securities of European issuers involve risks and special considerations not typically associated with investments in the U.S. securities markets. The EMU of the EU requires member countries to comply with restrictions on inflation rates, deficits, interest rates, debt levels and fiscal and monetary controls, each of which may significantly affect every country in Europe. Decreasing imports or exports, changes in governmental or EU regulations on trade, changes in the exchange rate of the euro, the default or threat of default by an EU member country on its sovereign debt, and/or an economic recession in an EU member country may have a significant adverse effect on the economies of other EU countries and on major trading partners outside Europe. The European financial markets have previously experienced, and may continue to experience, volatility and have been adversely affected, and may in the future be affected, by concerns about economic downturns, credit rating downgrades, rising government debt levels and possible default on or restructuring of government debt in several European countries. These events have adversely affected, and may in the future affect, the value and exchange rate of the euro and may continue to significantly affect the economies of every country in Europe, including EU member countries that do not use the euro and non-EU member countries. In a referendum held on June 23, 2016, voters in the UK voted to leave the EU, creating economic and political uncertainty in its wake. On January 31, 2020, the UK officially withdrew from the EU and the UK entered a transition period which ended on December 31, 2020. On December 30, 2020, the EU and UK signed the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement ("TCA"), an agreement on the terms
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governing certain aspects of the EU's and the UK's relationship following the end of the transition period. Notwithstanding the TCA, following the transition period, there is likely to be considerable uncertainty as to the UK's post-transition framework.
Responses to the financial problems by European governments, central banks and others, including austerity measures and reforms, may not work, may result in social unrest and may limit future growth and economic recovery or have other unintended consequences. Further defaults or restructurings by governments and other entities of their debt could have additional adverse effects on economies, financial markets and asset valuations around the world. In addition, one or more countries may abandon the euro and/or withdraw from the EU. The impact of these actions, especially if they occur in a disorderly fashion, is not clear but could be significant and far-reaching.
Special Risk Considerations of Investing in United Kingdom Issuers. (VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF only.) Investments in securities of UK issuers, including issuers located outside of the UK that generate significant revenues from the UK, involve risks and special considerations not typically associated with investments in the U.S. securities markets. Investments in UK issuers may subject a Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security and economic risks specific to the UK. The British economy relies heavily on the export of financials to the United States and other European countries. A prolonged slowdown in the financials sector may have a negative impact on the British economy. In the past, the UK has been a target of terrorism. Acts of terrorism in the UK or against British interests abroad may cause uncertainty in the British financial markets and adversely affect the performance of the issuers to which the Fund has exposure. The British economy, along with the United States and certain other EU economies, experienced a significant economic slowdown during the recent financial crisis.
In a referendum held on June 23, 2016, voters in the UK voted to leave the EU, creating economic and political uncertainty in its wake. On January 31, 2020, the UK officially withdrew from the EU. On December 30, 2020, the EU and UK signed the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement ("TCA"), an agreement on the terms governing certain aspects of the EU's and the UK's relationship following the end of the transition period. Notwithstanding the TCA, following the transition period, there is likely to be considerable uncertainty as to the UK's post-transition framework.
Special Risk Considerations of Investing in Taiwanese Issuers. (VanEck Semiconductor ETF only.) Investments in securities of Taiwanese issuers, including issuers located outside of Taiwan that generate significant revenues from Taiwan, involve risks and special considerations not typically associated with investments in the U.S. securities markets. To the extent the Fund continues to invest in securities issued by Taiwanese issuers, the Fund may be subject to the risk of investing in such issuers. Investments in Taiwanese issuers may subject the Fund to legal, regulatory, political, currency and economic risks that are specific to Taiwan. Specifically, Taiwan’s geographic proximity and history of political contention with China have resulted in ongoing tensions between the two countries. These tensions may materially affect the Taiwanese economy and its securities market. Taiwan’s economy is export-oriented, so it depends on an open world trade regime and remains vulnerable to fluctuations in the world economy.
Equity Securities Risk. The value of the equity securities held by each Fund may fall due to general market and economic conditions, perceptions regarding the markets in which the issuers of securities held by a Fund participate, or factors relating to specific issuers in which a Fund invests. For example, an adverse event, such as an unfavorable earnings report, may result in a decline in the value of equity securities of an issuer held by a Fund; the price of the equity securities of an issuer may be particularly sensitive to general movements in the securities markets; or a drop in the securities markets may depress the price of most or all of the equities securities held by a Fund. In addition, the equity securities of an issuer in a Fund’s portfolio may decline in price if the issuer fails to make anticipated dividend payments. Equity securities are subordinated to preferred securities and debt in a company’s capital structure with respect to priority in right to a share of corporate income, and therefore will be subject to greater dividend risk than preferred securities or debt instruments. In addition, while broad market measures of equity securities have historically generated higher average returns than fixed income securities, equity securities have generally also experienced significantly more volatility in those returns, although under certain market conditions fixed income securities may have comparable or greater price volatility. A change in the financial condition, market perception or the credit rating of an issuer of securities included in a Fund’s Index may cause the value of its securities to decline.
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 underperform other investments. An investment in the Funds may lose money.
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.
Index Tracking Risk. Each Fund’s return may not match the return of its Index for a number of reasons. For example, each 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

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(to the extent a Fund effects creations and redemptions are effected in 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 each Fund's 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 the Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track its Index. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index Provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition.There is no assurance that the Index Providers (defined herein) or any agents that may act on their behalf will compile each Fund’s Index accurately, or that each 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 Index Providers 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 the Index Providers or their agents will generally be borne 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 an Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively or positively impact a Fund and its shareholders. Any gains due to the Index Provider's or others’ errors will be kept by the applicable Fund and its shareholders and any losses resulting from an Index Providers’ or others’ errors will be borne by the applicable Fund and its shareholders. 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. A Fund may not be fully invested at times, either as a result of cash flows into the Fund or reserves of cash held by the Fund to pay expenses and (to the extent creations and redemptions are effected in cash) to meet redemptions. In addition, a Fund may not be able to invest in certain securities and/or other assets 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, certain Exchange listing standards, a lack of liquidity in markets in which such securities trade, potential adverse tax consequences or other regulatory reasons (such as diversification requirements). A lack of liquidity may be due to various events, including market events, economic conditions or investor perceptions. Illiquid securities may be difficult to value and their value may be lower than the market price of comparable liquid securities, which would negatively affect a Fund's performance. 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 risk. Certain Funds may also need to rely on borrowings to meet redemptions, which may lead to increased expenses. 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 may accept cash in connection with a purchase of Creation Units or effect their redemptions in cash rather than in-kind and, as a result, a Fund’s ability to match the return of its respective Index will be affected.
Certain Funds may fair value certain of the securities, underlying currencies and/or other assets it holds, except those securities primarily traded on exchanges that close at the same time the Fund calculates its NAV. To the extent a Fund calculates its NAV based on fair value prices and the value of its Index is based on securities’ closing prices on local foreign markets (i.e., the value of its Index is not based on fair value prices) or if a Fund otherwise calculates its NAV based on prices that differ from those used in calculating its 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 a 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 returns 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.
Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index Provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents. When the Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Index Provider to the Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund.
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.
Passive Management Risk. Unlike many investment companies, the Funds are not “actively” managed. Therefore, unless a specific security is removed from its 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 Index, the Fund may be forced to sell such security at an inopportune time or for prices other than at current market values. An investment in a Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund that invests in bonds or equity securities traded on an exchange, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. Each Fund’s Index may not contain
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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.
Authorized Participant 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. The Distributor (defined herein), 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 at a 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 an 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 an Exchange is subject to trading halts caused by extraordinary market volatility pursuant to the relevant Exchange’s “circuit breaker” rules. If a trading halt or unanticipated early close of an Exchange occurs, a shareholder may be unable to purchase or sell Shares of a Fund. There can be no assurance that the requirements of an 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 an 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, 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 a 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 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 an 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 an Exchange. Liquidity in those securities may be reduced after the applicable closing times. Accordingly, during the time when an 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 a 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 Funds.

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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 a Fund’s trading volume and market liquidity and may increase if a Fund’s trading volume, the spread of a 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 a Fund’s NAV, and the discount is likely to be greatest during significant market volatility.
Non-Diversified Risk. Each Fund is a separate investment portfolio of VanEck ETF Trust (the “Trust”), which is an open-end investment company registered under the 1940 Act. Each Fund is classified as a “non-diversified” fund under the 1940 Act. Moreover, each Fund is subject to the risk that it will be more volatile than a diversified fund because 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 a Fund’s NAV and may make the Fund more volatile than more diversified funds. Certain Funds may be particularly vulnerable to this risk because their respective Index is comprised of securities of a limited number of companies.
Concentration Risk. Each 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 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.
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 an Index may be used by a Fund in seeking performance that corresponds to its Index and in managing cash flows, and may count towards compliance with the Fund’s 80% policy. Each Fund may also invest, to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act, in other affiliated and unaffiliated funds, such as open-end or closed-end management investment companies, including other ETFs. None of the Funds employs a temporary defensive strategy to protect against potential stock market declines.
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 or intends to enter 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 such 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 such 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 Funds’ 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 a Fund. 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. A Fund’s 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.
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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 that will rescind and withdraw the guidance of the SEC and its staff regarding asset segregation and cover transactions. The final rule requires funds to trade derivatives and other transactions that create future payment or delivery obligations (except reverse repurchase agreements and similar financing transactions) subject to a value-at-risk (“VaR”) leverage limit, 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 final 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 new rule regarding use of securities lending collateral that may limit a fund's securities lending activities. Compliance with these new requirements will be required after an eighteen-month transition period.
Leverage 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. To manage the risk associated with leveraging, a Fund may segregate liquid assets, or otherwise “cover” its derivatives position in a manner consistent with the 1940 Act and the rules and SEC interpretations thereunder. A Fund may modify its asset segregation policies at any time to comply with any changes in the SEC’s positions regarding asset segregation.
Shareholder Risk. Certain shareholders, including other funds advised by the Adviser, may from time to time own a substantial amount of the Funds’ 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.
Unlike many conventional mutual funds which are only bought and sold at closing NAVs, the Shares of the Funds 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 certain Funds, to the extent used, generally is not expected to lead to a tax event for shareholders whose Shares are not being redeemed.

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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.

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 each Fund (the “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-to-day investment management of the Funds. As of December 31, 2020, the Adviser managed approximately $68.11 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 will be available in the Trust’s annual report for the period ended September 30, 2021.
Pursuant to the Investment Management Agreement, the Adviser is responsible for all expenses of the Funds including the costs of transfer agency, custody, fund administration, legal, audit and other services, 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. For its services to the Funds, each Fund has agreed to pay the Adviser an annual unitary management fee equal to 0.35% 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 February 1, 2023 with respect to each Fund.
Prior to October 1, 2021, for the services provided to each Fund under the Investment Management Agreement, each Fund paid the Adviser monthly fees based on a percentage of each Fund’s average daily net assets at the annual rate of 0.35%.
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.
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The portfolio managers who currently share joint responsibility for the day-to-day management of each Fund’s portfolio are Peter H. Liao, CFA and Guo Hua (Jason) Jin. 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. Jin has been employed by the Adviser as an analyst since January 2007 and has been a portfolio manager since 2018. Mr. Jin graduated from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 2004 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Financial Analysis. Messrs. Liao and Jin also serve as portfolio managers for certain other investment companies and pooled investment vehicles advised by the Adviser. 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.
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

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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 an 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 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, 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 the an Exchange is closed (other than customary weekend and holiday closings); (2) for any period during which trading on the 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 interest from debt securities. These amounts, net of expenses, are typically passed along to Fund shareholders as dividends from net investment income. Each Fund realizes capital gains or losses
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whenever it sells securities. Net capital gains are distributed to shareholders as “capital gain distributions.” Distributions from the Fund’s net investment income, including net short-term capital gains, if any, are taxable to you as ordinary income. Any long-term capital gains distributions you receive from the Fund are taxable as long-term capital gain.
Net investment income, if any, is typically distributed to shareholders quarterly for VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF. Net investment income, if any, is typically distributed to shareholders at least annually for all other Funds while net realized capital gains, if any, are also 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 a Fund acquires investment securities after the beginning of a dividend period, a 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 Fund owned the underlying investment securities for the entire dividend period. If a Fund so elects, some portion of each distribution may result 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 a 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 a Fund, 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) the 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, at least annually (except for VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF, which expects to distribute net investment income, if any, at least quarterly), 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.
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 a Fund. Distributions of net investment income, including net short-term gains, if any, are generally taxable as ordinary income. Whether distributions of capital gains represent long-term or short-term capital gains is determined by how long a 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 may receive dividends, the distribution of which a Fund may report as qualified dividends. In the event that a Fund receives such a dividend and reports the distribution of such dividend as a qualified dividend, the dividend may be taxed at the maximum capital gains rates of 15% or 20%, provided holding period and other requirements are met at both the shareholder and the Fund level. There can be no assurance that any significant portion of a Fund’s distributions will be eligible for qualified dividend treatment.
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.
Dividends, interest and gains from non-U.S. investments of a Fund may give rise to withholding and other taxes imposed by foreign countries. Tax conventions between certain countries and the United States may, in some cases, reduce or eliminate such taxes.
If more than 50% of a Fund’s total assets at the end of its taxable year consist of foreign securities, the Fund may elect to “pass through” to its investors certain foreign income taxes paid by the Fund, with the result that each investor will (i) include in gross income, even though not actually received, the investor’s pro rata share of the Fund’s foreign income taxes, and (ii) either deduct (in calculating U.S. taxable income) or credit (in calculating U.S. federal income), subject to certain holding period and other limitations, the investor’s pro rata share of the Fund’s foreign income taxes.
Backup Withholding. Each 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 Internal Revenue Service.

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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 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 a 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 the Funds 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 the Funds 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 the Funds' “qualified net interest income” (generally, the Funds' U.S. source interest income, other than certain contingent interest and interest from obligations of a corporation or partnership in which the Fund is at least a 10% shareholder, reduced by expenses that are allocable to such income); or (ii) are paid in respect of the Funds' “qualified short-term capital gains” (generally, the excess of the Fund’s net short-term capital gain over the Funds' long-term capital loss for such taxable year). However, depending on its circumstances, the Funds 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.
The Biotech Index, Pharmaceutical Index, Retail Index and Semiconductor Index are published by MV Index Solutions GmbH (“MVIS”), which is an indirectly wholly owned subsidiary of the Adviser.
MVIS does not sponsor, endorse, or promote the Funds and bears no liability with respect to the Funds or any security.


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The Biotech Index is a rules based, modified capitalization weighted, float adjusted index intended to give investors a means of tracking the overall performance of companies involved in the biotech industry. Biotechnology includes research (including research contractors), development as well as production, marketing and sales of drugs based on genetic analysis and diagnostic equipment (excluding pharmacies).
To be initially eligible for the Biotech Index, (i) companies must generate at least 50% of their revenues from biotechnology (as defined above) and (ii) stocks must have a market capitalization of greater than $150 million as of the end of the month prior to the month in which a rebalancing date occurs. The Biotech Index includes common stocks and depositary receipts of U.S.-listed companies that meet the eligibility requirements described above.
The Biotech Index is the exclusive property of MVIS, which has contracted with Solactive AG to maintain and calculate the Biotech Index. Solactive AG uses its best efforts to ensure that the Biotech Index is calculated correctly. Irrespective of its obligations towards MVIS, Solactive AG has no obligation to point out errors in the Biotech Index to third parties. VanEck Biotech ETF is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by MVIS and MVIS makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in the VanEck Biotech ETF.
The Biotech Index is reconstituted semi-annually and rebalanced quarterly. MVIS may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Biotech Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.



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The Pharmaceutical Index is a rules based, modified capitalization weighted, float adjusted index intended to give investors a means of tracking the overall performance of companies involved in the pharmaceutical industry. Pharmaceuticals include companies engaged primarily in research (including research contractors) and development as well as production, marketing and sales of pharmaceuticals (excluding pharmacies).
To be initially eligible for the Pharmaceutical Index, (i) companies must generate at least 50% of their revenues from pharmaceuticals (as defined above) and (ii) stocks must have a market capitalization of greater than $150 million as of the end of the month prior to the month in which a rebalancing date occurs. The Pharmaceutical Index includes common stocks and depositary receipts of U.S.-listed companies that meet the eligibility requirements described above.
The Pharmaceutical Index is the exclusive property of MVIS, which has contracted with Solactive AG to maintain and calculate the Pharmaceutical Index. Solactive AG uses its best efforts to ensure that the Pharmaceutical Index is calculated correctly. Irrespective of its obligations towards MVIS, Solactive AG has no obligation to point out errors in the Pharmaceutical Index to third parties. VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by MVIS and MVIS makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in the VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF.
The Pharmaceutical Index is reconstituted semi-annually and rebalanced quarterly. MVIS may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Pharmaceutical Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.



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The Retail Index is a rules based, modified capitalization weighted, float adjusted index intended to give investors a means of tracking the overall performance of companies involved in the retail industry. Retail includes companies engaged primarily in retail distribution; wholesalers; online, direct mail retailers; multi-line retailers; specialty retailers, such as apparel, automotive, computer and electronics, drug, home improvement and home furnishing retailers; and food and other staples retailers.
To be initially eligible for the Retail Index, (i) companies must generate at least 50% of their revenues from retail (as defined above) and (ii) stocks must have a market capitalization of greater than $150 million as of the end of the month prior to the month in which a rebalancing date occurs. The Retail Index includes common stocks and depositary receipts of U.S.-listed companies that meet the eligibility requirements described above.
The Retail Index is the exclusive property of MVIS, which has contracted with Solactive AG to maintain and calculate the Retail Index. Solactive AG uses its best efforts to ensure that the Retail Index is calculated correctly. Irrespective of its obligations towards MVIS, Solactive AG has no obligation to point out errors in the Retail Index to third parties. VanEck Retail ETF is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by MVIS and MVIS makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in the VanEck Retail ETF.
The Retail Index is reconstituted semi-annually and rebalanced quarterly. MVIS may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Retail Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.


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The Semiconductor Index is a rules based, modified capitalization weighted, float adjusted index intended to give investors a means of tracking the overall performance of companies involved in the semiconductor industry. Semiconductors include companies engaged primarily in the production of semiconductors and semiconductor equipment.
To be initially eligible for the Semiconductor Index, (i) companies must generate at least 50% of their revenues from semiconductors (as defined above) and (ii) stocks must have a market capitalization of greater than $150 million as of the end of the month prior to the month in which a rebalancing date occurs. The Semiconductor Index includes common stocks and depositary receipts of U.S.-listed companies that meet the eligibility requirements described above.
The Semiconductor Index is the exclusive property of MVIS, which has contracted with Solactive AG to maintain and calculate the Semiconductor Index. Solactive AG uses its best efforts to ensure that the Semiconductor Index is calculated correctly. Irrespective of its obligations towards MVIS, Solactive AG has no obligation to point out errors in the Semiconductor Index to third parties. VanEck Semiconductor ETF is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by MVIS and MVIS makes no representation regarding the advisability of investing in the VanEck Semiconductor ETF.
The Semiconductor Index is reconstituted semi-annually and rebalanced quarterly. MVIS may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Semiconductor Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.



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The Adviser has entered into a licensing agreement with MVIS to use each of the Biotech Index, Pharmaceutical Index, Retail Index and Semiconductor Index (each an "MVIS Index," and together, the "MVIS Indices"). The Index Provider is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Adviser. Each of VanEck Biotech ETF, VanEck Pharmaceutical ETF, VanEck Retail ETF and VanEck Semiconductor ETF (each an "MVIS Index ETF," and together, the "MVIS Index ETFs") is entitled to use its Index pursuant to a sublicensing arrangement with the Adviser.
Shares of the MVIS Index ETFs are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by MVIS. MVIS makes no representation or warranty, express or implied, to the owners of the Shares of the MVIS Index ETFs or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in the Shares of the MVIS Index ETFs particularly or the ability of the MVIS Indices to track the performance of its respective securities markets. Each of the MVIS Indices is determined and composed by MVIS without regard to the Adviser or the Shares of the MVIS Index ETFs. MVIS has no obligation to take the needs of the Adviser or the owners of the Shares of the MVIS Index ETFs into consideration in determining or composing the respective Index. MVIS is not responsible for and has not participated in the determination of the timing of, prices at, or quantities of the Shares of the MVIS Index ETFs to be issued or in the determination or calculation of the equation by which the Shares of the MVIS Index ETFs are to be converted into cash. MVIS has no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of the Shares of the MVIS Index ETFs.
The MVIS Indices are the exclusive property of MVIS, which has contracted with Solactive AG to maintain and calculate the MVIS Indices. Solactive AG uses its best efforts to ensure that the MVIS Indices are calculated correctly. Irrespective of its obligations towards the MVIS, Solactive AG has no obligation to point out errors in the MVIS Indices to third parties including but not limited to investors and/or financial intermediaries of the financial instrument.
Solactive AG nor does Solactive AG offer any express or implicit guarantee or assurance either with regard to the results of using the MVIS Indices and/or its trade mark or its price at any time or in any other respect. The MVIS Indices are calculated and maintained by Solactive AG. Solactive AG uses its best efforts to ensure that the MVIS Indices are calculated correctly. Irrespective of its obligations towards MVIS, Solactive AG has no obligation to point out errors in the MVIS Indices to third parties including but not limited to investors and/or financial intermediaries of the MVIS Index ETFs. Neither publication of the MVIS Indices by Solactive AG nor the licensing of the MVIS Indices or its trade mark for the purpose of use in connection with the MVIS Index ETFs constitutes a recommendation by Solactive AG to invest capital in the MVIS Index ETFs nor does it in any way represent an assurance or opinion of Solactive AG with regard to any investment in the MVIS Index ETFs. Solactive AG is not responsible for fulfilling the legal requirements concerning the accuracy and completeness of the prospectus of the MVIS Index ETFs.
MVIS DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY AND/OR THE COMPLETENESS OF THE MVIS INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN AND MVIS SHALL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS, OMISSIONS, OR INTERRUPTIONS THEREIN. MVIS MAKES NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY THE ADVISER, OWNERS OF SHARES OF THE MVIS INDEX ETFS OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE MVIS INDICES, OR MVIS INDEX ETFS OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. MVIS 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 MVIS INDICES OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT SHALL MVIS HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING LOST PROFITS), EVEN IF NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
The S&P 500® Index included in certain Funds’ performance tables is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and/or its affiliates and has been licensed for use by the Adviser. Copyright © 2021 S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, a division of S&P Global, Inc., and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Redistribution or reproduction in whole or in part are prohibited without written permission of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC. For more information on any of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC’s indices please visit www.spdji.com. S&P® is a registered trademark of S&P Global and Dow Jones® is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. Neither S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC, their affiliates nor their third party licensors make any representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the ability of any index to accurately represent the asset class or market sector that it purports to represent and neither S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC, their affiliates nor their third party licensors shall have any liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions of any index or the data included therein.
S&P DOW JONES INDICES DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ADEQUACY, ACCURACY, TIMELINESS AND/OR THE COMPLETENESS OF EACH INDEX OR ANY DATA RELATED THERETO, OR ANY COMMUNICATION INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ORAL OR WRITTEN COMMUNICATION (INCLUDING ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS) WITH RESPECT THERETO. S&P DOW JONES INDICES SHALL NOT BE SUBJECT TO ANY DAMAGES OR LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS, OMISSIONS, OR DELAYS THEREIN. S&P DOW JONES INDICES MAKES NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE OR AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY THE ADVISER, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF EACH INDEX, OR WITH RESPECT TO ANY DATA RELATED THERETO. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT WHATSOEVER SHALL S&P DOW JONES INDICES BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, LOSS OF PROFITS, TRADING LOSSES, LOST TIME, OR
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GOODWILL, EVEN IF THEY HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR OTHERWISE. THERE ARE NO THIRD PARTY BENEFICIARIES OF ANY AGREEMENTS OR ARRANGEMENTS BETWEEN S&P DOW JONES INDICES AND THE ADVISER, OTHER THAN THE LICENSORS OF S&P DOW JONES INDICES.


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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 [ ], the Trust’s independent registered public accounting firm, whose report, along with the Funds’ financial statements, are included in the Funds’ Annual Report, which is available upon request.
[TO BE UPDATED]
                        
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For a share outstanding throughout each year:

[TO BE UPDATED]




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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.
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 an Exchange is satisfied by the fact that the prospectus is available at an 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 beyond the limits set forth in Section 12(d)(1) subject to certain terms and conditions set forth in an SEC exemptive order or SEC regulations, including that such investment companies enter into an agreement with the Funds.
The Prospectus, SAI and any other Fund communication do not create any contractual obligations between the Fund’s shareholders and the Trust, the Funds, 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. [ ] serves as the Trust’s independent registered public accounting firm and will audit the Fund’s financial statements annually.
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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)

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For more detailed information about the Funds, see the SAI dated [ ], as may be supplemented from time to time. Additional information about each of 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 each 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].
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Transfer Agent: State Street Bank and Trust Company
SEC Registration Number: 333-123257
1940 Act Registration Number: 811-10325
800.826.2333
vaneck.com
INDUSPRO