485BPOS

Touchstone Strategic Trust
Statement of Additional Information
April 28, 2023
 
Class A
Class C
Class Y
Institutional
Class
Class R6
Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
TDEAX
TDECX
TDEYX
TDELX
 
Touchstone Dynamic Allocation Fund (formerly,
Touchstone Dynamic Global Allocation Fund)
TSMAX
TSMCX
TSMYX
 
 
Touchstone Sands Capital International Growth Fund
 
 
TCDYX
TCDIX
TCDRX
This Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) is not a prospectus and relates only to the above-referenced funds (each a “Fund” and, together, the “Funds”). It is intended to provide additional information regarding the activities and operations of Touchstone Strategic Trust (the “Trust”) and should be read in conjunction with the Funds’ prospectus dated April 28, 2023, as may be amended. The Trust’s audited financial statements for each Fund for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, including the notes thereto and the report of Ernst & Young LLP thereon, included in the annual report to shareholders (the “Annual Report”), are hereby incorporated into this SAI by reference. A copy of the Trust’s prospectus and the Annual Report may be obtained without charge by writing to the Trust at P.O. Box 534467, Pittsburgh, PA 15253-4467, by calling 1.800.543.0407, or by downloading a copy at TouchstoneInvestments.com.

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THE TRUST
Touchstone Strategic Trust (the “Trust”) is an open-end management investment company that was organized as a Massachusetts business trust on November 18, 1982. This SAI relates to the following separate series of the Trust: Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund, (“Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund”), Touchstone Dynamic Allocation Fund (formerly, Touchstone Dynamic Global Allocation Fund) (“Dynamic Allocation Fund”) and Touchstone Sands Capital International Growth Fund (“Sands Capital International Growth Fund”) (each, a “Fund” and collectively, the “Funds”). The Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund and Dynamic Allocation Fund are diversified, open–end management investment companies. The Sands Capital International Growth Fund is a non-diversified, open-end management investment company.
Touchstone Advisors, Inc. (the “Adviser”) is the investment adviser and administrator for each Fund. The Adviser has selected one or more sub-adviser(s) to manage, on a daily basis, the assets of each Fund. The Adviser has sub-contracted certain of the Trust complex’s administrative and accounting services to The Bank of New York Mellon and the Trust complex’s Transfer Agent services to BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc. (collectively referred to herein as “BNY Mellon”). Touchstone Securities, Inc. (“Touchstone Securities” or the “Distributor”) is the principal distributor of the Funds’ shares. The Distributor is an affiliate of the Adviser.
The Trust offers five separate classes of shares: Classes A, C, Y, R6 and Institutional Class. The shares have the same rights and are identical in all material respects except that (i) each class of shares may bear different (or no) distribution fees; (ii) each class of shares may be subject to different (or no) sales charges; (iii) certain other class specific expenses will be borne solely by the class to which such expenses are attributable, including transfer agent fees attributable to a specific class of shares, printing and postage expenses related to preparing and distributing materials to current shareholders of a specific class, registration fees incurred by a specific class of shares, the expenses of administrative personnel and services required to support the shareholders of a specific class, litigation or other legal expenses relating to a class of shares, Trustees’ fees or expenses incurred as a result of issues relating to a specific class of shares and accounting fees and expenses relating to a specific class of shares; (iv) each class has exclusive voting rights with respect to matters relating to its own distribution arrangements; and (v) certain classes offer different features and services to shareholders and may have different investment minimums. The Board of Trustees of the Trust (the “Board”) may classify and reclassify the shares of a Fund into additional classes of shares at a future date.
Under Massachusetts law, under certain circumstances, shareholders of a Massachusetts business trust could be deemed to have the same type of personal liability for the obligations of the Trust as does a partner of a partnership. However, numerous investment advisory companies registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), have been formed as Massachusetts business trusts and the Trust is not aware of an instance where such result has occurred. In addition, the Trust’s Declaration of Trust disclaims shareholder liability for acts or obligations of the Trust and provides for the indemnification out of the Trust property for all losses and expenses of any shareholder held personally liable for the obligations of the Trust. Moreover, it provides that the Trust will, upon request, assume the defense of any claim made against any shareholder for any act or obligation of the Trust and satisfy any judgment thereon. As a result, and particularly because the Trust assets are readily marketable and ordinarily substantially exceed liabilities, management believes that the risk of shareholder liability is slight and limited to circumstances in which the Trust itself would be unable to meet its obligations. Management believes that, in view of the above, the risk of personal liability is remote. Upon payment of any liability incurred by the Trust, the shareholder paying the liability will be entitled to reimbursement from the general assets of the Trust. The Trustees intend to conduct the operations of the Trust in a manner so as to avoid, as far as possible, ultimate liability of the shareholders for liabilities of the Trust.
History of the Funds
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund. On October 2, 2020, the Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund, a series of Touchstone Funds Group Trust (the “Predecessor Fund”), was reorganized into the Touchstone Dynamic Equity Fund (the “Reorganization”). Effective October 3, 2020, the Fund changed its name from the Touchstone Dynamic Equity Fund (the “Dynamic Equity Fund”) to the Touchstone Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund, and also changed its principal investment strategies and sub-adviser to match those of the Predecessor Fund. As a result of the Reorganization, the Fund assumed the performance and accounting history of the Predecessor Fund. Performance information and certain financial information prior to October 3, 2020 included in the Fund’s prospectus and SAI is that of the Predecessor Fund.
Dynamic Allocation Fund. Effective January 18, 2022, the Fund’s name was changed from the Touchstone Dynamic Global Allocation Fund to the Touchstone Dynamic Allocation Fund. In addition, effective January 18, 2022, the Fund changed its principal investment strategy to invest solely in underlying affiliated Touchstone Funds, have reduced exposure to foreign fixed-income securities, and changed its secondary benchmark from the Bloomberg Global Aggregate Index to the Bloomberg US Universal Index.
Effective November 23, 2015, the Touchstone Moderate Growth Allocation Fund (the “Moderate Growth Fund”) changed its name to the Touchstone Dynamic Global Allocation Fund. At that time, the Dynamic Global Allocation Fund adopted certain changes to its principal investment strategies, and changed its sub-adviser to Wilshire Associates Incorporated. In addition, on November 20, 2015, the Dynamic Global Allocation Fund reclassified its Institutional Class shares as Class Y shares. As of November 23, 2015, the Dynamic Global Allocation Fund no longer offers Institutional Class shares.
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Pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of Reorganization dated as of October 27, 2015, the Moderate Growth Fund acquired the assets of the Touchstone Growth Allocation Fund (the “Growth Fund”). The Moderate Growth Fund was the accounting survivor of the reorganization. Accordingly, performance prior to November 23, 2015 reflects the performance of the Moderate Growth Fund (now, the Dynamic Allocation Fund).
Before each fund identified below commenced operations, all of the assets and liabilities of the corresponding predecessor fund identified below were transferred to the fund in a tax-free reorganization as set forth in an agreement and plan of reorganization (each an “Old Mutual Reorganization”) between the Trust, on behalf of the funds, and Old Mutual Funds I, on behalf of the predecessor funds. Each Old Mutual Reorganization occurred on April 16, 2012. As a result of each Old Mutual Reorganization, the Fund assumed the performance and accounting history of its corresponding predecessor fund. Shareholders of the predecessor funds who owned Class Z shares received Class Y shares of the corresponding Touchstone Fund in the Old Mutual Reorganizations. Financial and performance information prior to April 16, 2012 is that of the predecessor funds.
Old Mutual Predecessor Funds
Touchstone Funds
Old Mutual Asset Allocation Moderate Growth Portfolio
Moderate Growth Fund
Old Mutual Asset Allocation Growth Portfolio
Growth Fund*
Subsequent to the Old Mutual Reorganizations, all of the assets and liabilities of the corresponding Fifth Third predecessor funds identified below were transferred to the applicable Touchstone Fund in a tax-free reorganization as set forth in an agreement and plan of reorganization (each a “Fifth Third Reorganization”) between the Trust, on behalf of the applicable Touchstone Funds, and Fifth Third Funds, on behalf of the Fifth Third predecessor funds. Each Fifth Third Reorganization occurred on September 10, 2012.
Fifth Third Predecessor Funds
Touchstone Funds
Fifth Third LifeModel Aggressive Fund
Growth Fund*
Fifth Third LifeModel Moderately Aggressive Fund
Moderate Growth Fund
*
On November 20, 2015, the Moderate Growth Fund acquired the Growth Fund.
Sands Capital International Growth Fund. The Fund commenced operations on March 8, 2021.
PERMITTED INVESTMENTS AND RISK FACTORS
Each Fund’s principal investment strategies and principal risks are described in the Funds’ prospectus. The following supplements the information contained in the prospectus concerning each Fund’s principal investment strategies and principal risks. In addition, although not principal strategies of the Funds, the Funds may invest in other types of securities and engage in other investment practices as described in the prospectus or in this SAI. Unless otherwise indicated, each Fund is permitted to invest in each of the investments listed below, or engage in each of the investment techniques listed below if such investment or activity is consistent with the Fund’s investment goals, investment limitations, policies and strategies. In addition to the fundamental and non-fundamental investment limitations set forth under the section of this SAI entitled “Investment Limitations,” the investment limitations below are considered to be non-fundamental policies which may be changed at any time by a vote of the Trust’s Board, unless designated as a “fundamental” policy. In addition, any stated percentage limitations are measured at the time of the purchase of a security.
ADRs, ADSs, EDRs, CDRs, and GDRs. American Depositary Receipts (“ADRs”) and American Depositary Shares (“ADSs”) are U.S. dollar-denominated receipts typically issued by domestic banks or trust companies that represent the deposit with those entities of securities of a foreign issuer. They are publicly traded on exchanges or over-the-counter in the United States. European Depositary Receipts (“EDRs”), which are sometimes referred to as Continental Depositary Receipts (“CDRs”), and Global Depositary Receipts (“GDRs”) may also be purchased by the Funds. EDRs, CDRs and GDRs are generally issued by foreign banks and evidence ownership of either foreign or domestic securities. Certain institutions issuing ADRs, ADSs, EDRs or GDRs may not be sponsored by the issuer of the underlying foreign securities. A non-sponsored depositary may not provide the same shareholder information that a sponsored depositary is required to provide under its contractual arrangements with the issuer of the underlying foreign securities. Holders of an unsponsored depositary receipt generally bear all the costs of the unsponsored facility. The depositary of an unsponsored facility frequently is under no obligation to distribute shareholder communications received from the issuer of the deposited security or to pass through to the holders of the receipts voting rights with respect to the deposited securities.
Asset-Backed Securities (“ABS”). ABS are secured by assets such as company receivables, truck and auto loans, leases and credit card receivables. Such securities are generally issued as pass-through certificates, which represent undivided fractional ownership interests in the underlying pools of assets. Such securities also may be debt instruments, which are also known as collateralized obligations and are generally issued as the debt of a special purpose entity, such as a trust, organized solely for the purpose of owning such assets and issuing such debt. Covered bonds are a type of asset backed security that is created from public sector loans or mortgage loans where the security is backed by a separate group of loans. Covered bonds typically carry a 2 to 10 year maturity rate and enjoy relatively high credit ratings, depending on the quality of the pool of loans backing the bond.
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The credit quality of an asset-backed security transaction depends on the performance of the underlying assets. ABS can be structured with various forms of credit enhancement to address the possibility that some borrowers could miss payments or even default on their loans. Some ABS are subject to interest-rate risk and prepayment risk. A change in interest rates can affect the pace of payments on the underlying loans, which in turn, affects total return on the securities. ABS also carry credit or default risk. If many borrowers on the underlying loans default, losses could exceed the credit enhancement level and result in losses to investors in an ABS transaction. Finally, ABS have structure risk due to a unique characteristic known as early amortization, or early payout, risk. Built into the structure of most ABS are triggers for early payout, designed to protect investors from losses. These triggers are unique to each transaction and can include: a big rise in defaults on the underlying loans, a sharp drop in the credit enhancement level, or even the bankruptcy of the originator. Once early amortization begins, all incoming loan payments (after expenses are paid) are used to pay investors as quickly as possible based upon a predetermined priority of payment.
Borrowing and Leveraging. The Funds may borrow money from banks (including their custodian bank) or from lenders to the extent permitted by applicable law. The 1940 Act requires the Fund to maintain asset coverage (total assets, including assets acquired with borrowed funds, less liabilities exclusive of borrowings) of at least 300% for all such borrowings. If at any time the value of the Fund’s assets should fail to meet this 300% coverage test, the Fund, within three days (not including Sundays and holidays), will reduce the amount of its borrowings to the extent necessary to meet this test. A Fund may be required to liquidate portfolio securities at a time when it would be disadvantageous to do so in order to meet the 300% coverage test or make payments with respect to borrowing. The Fund will not make any borrowings or enter into a reverse repurchase agreement that would cause its outstanding borrowings to exceed one-third of the value of its total assets.
Leveraging a Fund through borrowing or other means (e.g., certain uses of derivatives) creates an opportunity for increased net income, but, at the same time, creates special risk considerations. Leveraging creates interest expenses for a Fund which could exceed the income from the assets retained. To the extent the income derived from securities purchased with borrowed funds exceeds the interest that a Fund will have to pay, a Fund’s net income will be greater than if leveraging were not used. Conversely, if the income from the assets retained with borrowed funds is not sufficient to cover the cost of leveraging, the net income of a Fund will be less than if leveraging were not used, and therefore the amount available for distribution to shareholders as dividends will be reduced. As further outlined in the “Derivatives” subsection, the SEC adopted Rule 18f-4 (the “Derivatives Rule”) on October 28, 2020, and in doing so announced it would rescind SEC releases, guidance and no-action letters related to funds’ coverage and asset segregation practices. Funds were required to comply with the Derivatives Rule requirements by August 19, 2022. Interest rate arbitrage transactions, reverse repurchase agreements and dollar roll transactions create leverage and will be entered into in accordance with the regulatory requirements described in the “Derivatives” subsection.
In an interest rate arbitrage transaction, a Fund borrows money at one interest rate and lends the proceeds at another, higher interest rate. These leverage transactions involve a number of risks; including the risk that the borrower will fail or otherwise become insolvent or that there will be a significant change in prevailing interest rates. The Funds may be required to liquidate portfolio securities at a time when it would be disadvantageous to do so in order to make payments with respect to any borrowing. The Funds have adopted fundamental limitations and non-fundamental limitations which restrict circumstances in which and degrees to which the Funds can engage in borrowing. See the section entitled “Investment Limitations,” below.
Business Development Companies (“BDCs”). BDCs are types of closed-end funds that have elected to be regulated as business development companies under the 1940 Act. BDCs are publicly-traded mezzanine/private equity funds that typically invest in and lend to small and medium-sized private companies that may not have access to public equity markets for capital raising. BDCs are unique in that at least 70% of their investments must be made to private U.S. businesses and BDCs are required to make available significant managerial assistance to their portfolio companies. BDCs are not taxed on income distributed to shareholders provided they comply with the applicable requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). BDCs have expenses associated with their operations. Accordingly, a Fund will indirectly bear its proportionate share of any management and other expenses, and of any performance based fees, charged by the BDCs in which it invests.
Investments in BDCs are subject to various risks, including management’s ability to meet the BDC’s investment objective, and to manage the BDC’s portfolio when the underlying securities are redeemed or sold, during periods of market turmoil and as investors’ perceptions regarding a BDC or its underlying investments change. BDC shares are not redeemable at the option of the BDC shareholder and, as with shares of other closed-end funds; they may trade in the secondary market at a discount to their NAV.
Canadian Income Trusts. A Canadian Income Trust is a qualified income trust as designated by the Canada Revenue Agency that operates as a profit-seeking corporation. This type of income trust, which pays out all earnings to unit holders before paying taxes, is usually traded publicly on a securities exchange. Canadian income trusts enjoy special Canadian corporate tax privileges.
Common Stocks. Common stocks are securities that represent units of ownership in a company. Common stocks usually carry voting rights and earn dividends. Unlike preferred stocks, which are described below, dividends on common stocks are not fixed but are declared at the discretion of the board of directors of the issuing company.
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Convertible Securities. Convertible securities are corporate securities that are exchangeable for a set number of another security at a pre-stated price. Convertible securities typically have characteristics of both fixed-income and equity securities. Because of the conversion feature, the market value of a convertible security tends to move with the market value of the underlying stock. The value of a convertible security is also affected by prevailing interest rates, the credit quality of the issuer and any call provisions.
A synthetic convertible security is a combination investment in which a Fund purchases both (i) high-grade cash equivalents or a high grade debt obligation of an issuer or U.S. government securities and (ii) call options or warrants on the common stock of the same or different issuer with some or all of the anticipated interest income from the associated debt obligation that is earned over the holding period of the option or warrant.
While providing a fixed-income stream (generally higher in yield than the income derivable from common stock but lower than that afforded by a similar non-convertible security), a convertible security also affords a shareholder the opportunity, through its conversion feature, to participate in the capital appreciation attendant upon a market price advance in the convertible security’s underlying common stock. A synthetic convertible position has similar investment characteristics, but may differ with respect to credit quality, time to maturity, trading characteristics and other factors. Because a Fund will create synthetic convertible positions only out of high grade fixed-income securities, the credit rating associated with a Fund’s synthetic convertible investments is generally expected to be higher than that of the average convertible security, many of which are rated below high grade. However, because the options used to create synthetic convertible positions will generally have expirations between one month and three years of the time of purchase, the maturity of these positions will generally be shorter than average for convertible securities. Since the option component of a convertible security or synthetic convertible position is a wasting asset (in the sense of losing “time value” as maturity approaches), a synthetic convertible position may lose such value more rapidly than a convertible security of longer maturity; however, the gain in option value due to appreciation of the underlying stock may exceed such time value loss. The market price of the option component generally reflects these differences in maturities, and the Adviser and applicable sub-adviser take such differences into account when evaluating such positions. When a synthetic convertible position “matures” because of the expiration of the associated option, a Fund may extend the maturity by investing in a new option with longer maturity on the common stock of the same or different issuer. If a Fund does not so extend the maturity of a position, it may continue to hold the associated fixed-income security.
Corporate Loan Risk. The corporate loans in which a Fund invests may be rated below investment grade. As a result, even though the corporate loans will typically be secured by a first or second priority lien on the borrower’s assets, such corporate loans will be considered speculative with respect to the borrowers’ ability to make payments of interest and principal and will otherwise generally bear risks similar to those associated with non-investment grade securities. There is a high risk that a Fund could suffer a loss from investments in lower rated corporate loans as a result of a default by the borrower. In addition, there can be no assurance that the liquidation of any collateral securing a corporate loan would satisfy the borrower’s obligation to a Fund in the event of non-payment of interest or principal, whether when due or upon acceleration, or that the collateral could be liquidated, readily or otherwise. In the event of the bankruptcy or insolvency of a borrower, a Fund could experience delays or limitations with respect to its ability to realize the benefits of the collateral, if any, securing a corporate loan, and the collateral securing a corporate loan, if any, may lose all or substantially all of its value in the event of the bankruptcy or insolvency of a borrower. Corporate loans are also subject to a number of risks described elsewhere in this prospectus, including credit risk, interest rate risk and liquidity risk. Each of these risks will be heightened with respect to corporate loans that are subordinated in payment or secured by a second or lower priority lien on the borrower’s assets.
Credit Risk. The fixed-income securities in a Fund’s portfolio are subject to the possibility that a deterioration, whether sudden or gradual, in the financial condition of an issuer, or a deterioration in general economic conditions, could cause an issuer to fail to make timely payments of principal or interest when due. This may cause the issuer’s securities to decline in value. Credit risk is particularly relevant to those portfolios that invest a significant amount of their assets in non-investment grade (or “junk”) bonds or lower-rated securities.
Dynamic Allocation Fund. The following supplements the information contained in the prospectus concerning the Dynamic Allocation Fund’s principal investment strategies and principal risks. In addition, although not principal strategies of the Dynamic Allocation Fund, the Dynamic Allocation Fund may invest in other types of securities and engage in other investment practices as described in the prospectus or in this SAI.
The Dynamic Allocation Fund seeks to achieve its investment goal by primarily investing in a diversified portfolio of underlying funds (although a portion of its assets may be invested in cash, cash equivalents, or in money market funds). These underlying funds, in turn, invest in a variety of U.S. and foreign equity, fixed-income, and alternative investments, as applicable. By owning shares of the underlying funds, the Fund indirectly invests in the securities and instruments held by the underlying funds and bears the same risks of such underlying funds. The underlying funds in which the Fund invests will be affiliated funds. The Dynamic Allocation Fund’s investments are subject to limitations prescribed by the 1940 Act, the rules thereunder, and applicable SEC staff interpretations thereof. These limitations currently provide, in part, that the Dynamic Allocation Fund may not purchase shares of an investment company if (a) such a purchase would cause the Fund to own in the aggregate more than 3% of the total outstanding voting stock of the investment company or (b) such a purchase would cause the Fund to have more than 5% of its total assets invested in the investment company or (c) more than 10% of the Fund’s total assets would be invested in the aggregate in all investment companies. As a shareholder of a Fund that invests in another investment company, a Fund shareholder would bear his or her pro-rata portion of the underlying investment company’s expenses, including advisory fees, in addition to the expenses of the Fund. Although the 1940 Act restricts investments by registered investment
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companies in the securities of other investment companies as noted above, certain fund-of-funds are permitted to invest in investment companies that are part of the same group of investment companies under certain circumstances. Thus, the Dynamic Allocation Fund is not subject to the limitations described above and is able to invest in other Touchstone Funds so long as such investments are consistent with the requirements of Sections 12(d)(1)(F) and 12(d)(1)(G) of the 1940 Act and the rules promulgated thereunder.
A significant percentage of the underlying funds’ shares may be owned or controlled by a large shareholder, such as other funds or accounts, including those of which the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser may have investment discretion. Accordingly, the underlying funds can be subject to the potential for large scale inflows and outflows as a result of purchases and redemptions made by significant shareholders, such as the Dynamic Allocation Fund. These inflows and outflows could be significant and, if frequently occurring, could negatively affect the underlying funds’ net asset value and performance and could cause the underlying fund to sell securities at inopportune times in order to meet redemption requests.
The underlying funds may use a variety of investment techniques as described in the Funds’ prospectus under the headings “The Fund’s Principal Investment Strategies,” “The Fund’s Principal Risks” and “Principal Investment Strategies and Risks”. For a complete description of the underlying funds’ investment strategies and policies, please see the underlying funds’ prospectuses and statements of additional information.
Emerging Markets and Frontier Market Securities. Emerging market countries are generally countries that are included in the Morgan Stanley Capital International (“MSCI”) Emerging Markets Index, or otherwise excluded from the MSCI World Index. As of March 31, 2023, the countries in the MSCI World Index included: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. As of March 31, 2023, the countries in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index included: Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Korea, Kuwait, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey and United Arab Emirates. Frontier market countries, which are those emerging market countries that have the smallest, least mature economies and least developed capital markets, are generally countries that are included in the MSCI Frontier Markets Index. As of March 31, 2023, the countries in the MSCI Frontier Markets Index included: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Croatia, Estonia, Guinea-Bissau, Iceland, Ivory Coast, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Lithuania, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Romania, Senegal, Serbia, Slovenia, Sri Lanka, Togo, Tunisia and Vietnam. The country composition of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index, the MSCI World Index and the MSCI Frontier Markets Index can change over time.
Investments in the securities of issuers domiciled in countries with emerging capital markets involve certain additional risks that do not generally apply to investments in securities of issuers in more developed capital markets, such as (i) low or non-existent trading volume, resulting in a lack of liquidity and increased volatility in prices for such securities, as compared to securities of comparable issuers in more developed capital markets; (ii) uncertain national policies and social, political and economic instability, increasing the potential for expropriation of assets, confiscatory taxation, high rates of inflation or unfavorable diplomatic developments; (iii) possible fluctuations in exchange rates, differing legal systems and the existence or possible imposition of exchange controls, custodial restrictions or other foreign or U.S. governmental laws or restrictions applicable to such investments; (iv) national policies that may limit a Fund’s investment opportunities such as restrictions on investment in issuers or industries deemed sensitive to national interests; and (v) the lack or relatively early development of legal structures governing private and foreign investments and private property. In addition to withholding taxes on investment income, some countries with emerging markets may impose capital gains taxes on foreign investors.
Political and economic structures in emerging market countries may be undergoing significant evolution and rapid development, and these countries may lack the social, political and economic stability characteristic of more developed countries. In such a dynamic environment, there can be no assurance that any or all of these capital markets will continue to present viable investment opportunities for a Fund. Some of these countries may have in the past failed to recognize private property rights and have at times nationalized or expropriated the assets of private companies. There is no assurance that such expropriations will not reoccur. In such an event, it is possible that a Fund could lose the entire value of its investments in the affected market. As a result, the risks described above, including the risks of nationalization or expropriation of assets, may be heightened. In addition, unanticipated political or social developments may affect the value of investments in these countries and the availability to a Fund of additional investments. The small size and inexperience of the securities markets in certain of these countries and the limited volume of trading in securities in these countries may make investments in the countries illiquid and more volatile than investments in Japan or most Western European countries.
Also, there may be less publicly available information about issuers in emerging markets than would be available about issuers in more developed capital markets, and such issuers may not be subject to accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards and requirements comparable to those to which U.S. companies are subject. In certain countries with emerging capital markets, reporting standards vary widely. As a result, traditional investment measurements used in the United States, such as price/earnings ratios, may not be applicable. Emerging market securities may be substantially less liquid and more volatile than those of mature markets, and company shares may be held by a limited number of persons. This may adversely affect the timing and pricing of a Fund’s acquisition or disposal of securities.
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Practices in relation to settlement of securities transactions in emerging markets involve higher risks than those in developed markets, in part because a Fund will need to use brokers and counterparties that are less well capitalized, and custody and registration of assets in some countries may be unreliable. The possibility of fraud, negligence, undue influence being exerted by the issuer or refusal to recognize ownership exists in some emerging markets, and, along with other factors, could result in ownership registration being completely lost. A Fund would absorb any loss resulting from such registration problems and may have no successful claim for compensation.
Some emerging market countries currently prohibit direct foreign investment in the securities of their companies. Certain emerging market countries, however, permit indirect foreign investment in the securities of companies listed and traded on their stock exchanges through investment funds that they have specifically authorized. Investments in these investment funds may be subject to the provisions of the 1940 Act limiting investments in other investment companies. Shareholders of a Fund that invests in such investment funds will bear not only their proportionate share of the expenses of a Fund (including operating expenses and the fees of the adviser), but also will indirectly bear similar expenses of the underlying investment funds. In addition, these investment funds may trade at a discount or premium to the fund’s NAV.
Participatory notes (commonly known as P-notes) are offshore derivative instruments issued to foreign institutional investors and their sub-accounts against underlying Indian securities listed on the Indian bourses. These securities are not registered with the Securities and Exchange Board of India. Participatory notes are similar to ADRs, which are negotiable certificates issued by a U.S. bank and traded on U.S. exchanges. ADRs are denominated in U.S. dollars and represent a specified number of shares in a foreign security held by a U.S. financial institution located in a foreign country. Both P-notes and ADRs are subject to the risks discussed above with respect to securities of foreign issuers in general.
Risk of Investing in China A-shares. The Sands Capital International Growth Fund may invest in China A-shares of certain Chinese companies listed and traded on the Shanghai Stock Exchange (“SSE”) and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange (“SZSE”) through the Shanghai-Hong Kong and the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect Program (“Stock Connect”). Stock Connect is a securities trading and clearing program developed by Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (“HKEX”), the SSE, the SZSE and the China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation Limited. Stock Connect facilitates foreign investment in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”) via brokers in Hong Kong. Investors through Stock Connect are subject to PRC regulations and SSE listing rules, among others. These could include limitations on trading or suspension of trading. There are special considerations and risks associated with investing in A-shares via Stock Connect.
Quota Limitation Risk: Trades through Stock Connect are subject to daily quotas. If the daily quota is reached during continuous trading or the opening call session, new buy orders will be rejected for the remainder of the day. Thus, there is no guarantee that a buy order can be effectively placed through Stock Connect. Such limitations may restrict the Sands Capital International Growth Fund from investing in A-shares at the desired time or for the desired quantity, which could have an effect on the Fund’s capacity to successfully follow its investment strategy.
Block or Manual Trade Not Allowed: All trading must be conducted on SSE and/or SZSE, which means that no over-the-counter or manual trades are permitted. Investment opportunities may be limited because block trades, manual trades, reporting or internalization are not permitted for Stock Connect shares.
Clearing, Settlement and Custody Risks: The Hong Kong Securities Clearing Company Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong Security Clearing Company (“HKSCC”) and ChinaClear, the national central counterparty of China’s securities market that serves as a comprehensive network of clearing, settlement and stock holding infrastructure, establishes the clearing links. Both HKSCC and ChinaClear participate in facilitating the clearing and settlement of the cross-border trades of the other. In the event of ChinaClear defaulting, HKSCC will in good faith seek recovery of stocks and monies from ChinaClear through the accessible legal channels. In such an event, the Sands Capital International Growth Fund may not fully recover its losses. In addition, the Stock Connect program’s trading, clearance and settlement procedures are relatively untested in China, which could pose risks to the Fund, including uncertainty related to “single-sided settlement” procedures in which local sub-custodians receive settlement instructions from the Fund’s executing broker as opposed to the Fund’s custodian.
Overseas investors, such as the Sands Capital International Growth Fund, will not hold physical A-shares, but rather maintain their SSE securities with broker or custodial accounts with the HKSCC. Additionally, all trades of eligible Stock Connect A-shares must be settled in renminbi (RMB). This may require that investors have well-timed access to a reliable source of offshore RMB, which cannot always be guaranteed.
Nominee Arrangements and Legal Rights: Under a nominee structure, HKSCC is the nominee holder of the Stock Connect A-shares acquired by overseas investors, including the Sands Capital International Growth Fund. HKSCC will be the named registrar of the purchased shares. A-shares purchased through the Northbound Trading Link (i.e., non-Mainland investor market access channel) entitles foreign investors to proprietary rights and benefits in accordance with applicable laws. Under the Stock Connect guidelines, overseas investors may exercise their shareholder rights as beneficial owners of SSE securities in accordance with the laws and regulations of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Beneficial owners of SSE Securities may exercise their rights with the HKSCC as the nominee holder, including the right to call, participate in shareholders’ meetings, right to exercise voting rights, the right to receive dividends, amongst other rights.
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Current PRC law does not expressly provide clear guidance for a beneficial owner under a nominee structure to pursue or prevent legal action. However, the HKSCC, as nominee holder of SSE Securities, may exercise shareholder rights and take legal actions for its foreign investors. The courts in China may find that the registrar, as a nominee or custodian, has full ownership of the Stock Connect shares. PRC laws have not distinguished between legal ownership and beneficial ownership, particularly regarding the Sands Capital International Growth Fund and its investors. Furthermore, there have been few cases involving a nominee account structure in the PRC courts. Other considerations regarding the rights and interests of the Fund relate to uncertain enforcement mechanisms under PRC law. Consequently, the Fund is not assured that its ownership of A-shares is in full possession at all times. Furthermore, the Sands Capital International Growth Fund may face delays or difficulties in enforcing its ownership rights in A-shares.
Tax & Expense Risks: Additional considerations include different fees, costs and taxes imposed on foreign investors purchasing A-shares through Stock Connect. The Sands Capital International Growth Fund’s investment may be subject to a number of tax rules. Application of these rules may be uncertain. Mainland China implemented tax reforms in recent years, and may amend or revise its existing tax laws in the future. These amendments may have retroactive effects. Changes in applicable Chinese tax law could reduce after-tax profits of the Fund. This could include reducing the after-tax profits of companies in China in which the Fund invests. Chinese taxes that may apply to the Fund's investments include income tax or withholding tax on dividends, interest or gains earned by the Fund. These various uncertainties in Chinese tax rules could result in unexpected tax liabilities for the Fund. Additionally, taxes and related expenses may be higher than comparable expenses and taxes imposed on foreign owners of other securities providing similar investment exposure.
Additional Considerations and Risks: There is a risk that information technology and networking systems will not properly function and that changes may occur as the market develops. Thus, A-shares trading may be disrupted if systems do not function properly. There may also be information technology capabilities and other risk management requirements specified by the relevant exchanges or clearinghouses. See “Emerging Markets and Frontier Market Securities” above for more information on other risks.
Equity-Linked Notes (“ELNs”). A Fund may purchase ELNs. The principal or coupon payment on an ELN is linked to the performance of an underlying security or index. ELNs may be used, among other things, to provide a Fund with exposure to international markets while providing a mechanism to reduce foreign tax or regulatory restrictions imposed on foreign investors. The risks associated with purchasing ELNs include the creditworthiness of the issuer and the risk of counterparty default. Further, a Fund’s ability to dispose of an ELN will depend on the availability of liquid markets in the instruments. The purchase and sale of an ELN is also subject to the risks regarding adverse market movements, possible intervention by governmental authorities, and the effects of other political and economic events.
Equity-Linked Warrants. Equity-linked warrants provide a way for investors to access markets where entry is difficult and time consuming due to regulation. Typically, a broker issues warrants to an investor and then purchases shares in the local market and issues a call warrant hedged on the underlying holding. If the investor exercises his call and closes his position, the shares are sold and the warrant is redeemed with the proceeds.
Each warrant represents one share of the underlying stock. Therefore, the price, performance and liquidity of the warrant are all directly linked to the underlying stock. The warrants can be redeemed for 100% of the value of the underlying stock (less transaction costs). Being American style warrants, they can be exercised at any time. The warrants are U.S. dollar denominated and priced daily on several international stock exchanges.
Equity-Related Securities. A Fund may invest in equity-related securities, including low-exercise-price options (“LEPOs”), low exercise price warrants (“LEPWs”), and participatory notes (“P-notes”) to gain exposure to issuers in certain emerging or frontier market countries. LEPOs, LEPWs, and P-notes are offshore derivative instruments issued to foreign institutional investors and their sub-accounts against underlying securities traded in emerging or frontier markets. These securities may be listed on an exchange or traded over-the-counter, and are similar to ADRs. As a result, the risks of investing in LEPOs, LEPWs, and P-notes are similar to depositary receipts risk and foreign securities risk in general. Specifically these securities entail both counterparty risk—the risk that the issuer of the LEPO, LEPW, or P-Note may not be able to fulfill its obligations or that the holder and counterparty or issuer may disagree as to the meaning or application of contractual terms—and liquidity risk—the risk that a liquid market may not exist for such securities.
Exchange-Traded Funds (“ETFs”). The Funds may invest in ETFs. An ETF is a fund that holds a portfolio of common stocks and is often designed to track the performance of a particular securities index or sector of an index, like the S&P 500® Index or NASDAQ, or a portfolio of bonds that may be designed to track a bond index. Because they may be traded like stocks on a securities exchange (e.g., the New York Stock Exchange; the NYSE MKT or the NASDAQ Stock Market), ETFs may be purchased and sold throughout the trading day based on their market price. Each share of an ETF represents an undivided ownership interest in the portfolio held by an ETF. ETFs that track indices or sectors of indices hold either:
shares of all of the companies (or, for a fixed-income ETF, bonds) that are represented by a particular index in the same proportion that is represented in the index itself; or
shares of a sampling of the companies (or, for a fixed-income ETF, bonds) that are represented by a particular index in a proportion meant to track the performance of the entire index.
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ETFs are generally registered as investment companies and issue large blocks of shares (typically 50,000) called “creation units” in exchange for a specified portfolio of the ETF’s underlying securities, plus a cash payment generally equal to accumulated dividends of the securities (net of expenses) up to the time of deposit. Creation units are redeemed in kind for a portfolio of the underlying securities (based on the ETF’s NAV), together with a cash payment generally equal to accumulated dividends as of the date of redemption. As investment companies, ETFs incur fees and expenses such as advisory fees, trustee fees, operating expenses, licensing fees, registration fees, and marketing expenses, each of which will be reflected in the NAV of ETFs. Accordingly, ETF shareholders pay their proportionate share of these expenses.
Fixed Income Risk. The market value of a Fund’s fixed-income securities responds to economic developments, particularly interest rate changes, as well as to perceptions about the creditworthiness of individual issuers, including governments. Generally, a Fund’s fixed-income securities will decrease in value if interest rates rise and increase in value if interest rates fall. Normally, the longer the maturity or duration of the fixed-income securities a Fund owns, the more sensitive the value of the Fund’s shares will be to changes in interest rates. The fixed-income securities market has been and may continue to be negatively affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. As with other serious economic disruptions, governmental authorities and regulators are responding to this crisis with significant fiscal and monetary policy changes, including considerably lowering interest rates, which, in some cases could result in negative interest rates. These actions, including their possible unexpected or sudden reversal or potential ineffectiveness, could further increase volatility in securities and other financial markets and reduce market liquidity. To the extent a Fund has a bank deposit or holds a debt instrument with a negative interest rate to maturity, a Fund would generate a negative return on that investment. Similarly, negative rates on investments by money market funds and similar cash management products could lead to losses on investments, including on investments of a Fund’s uninvested cash.
Foreign Securities. Except as expressly set forth herein and in the prospectus, the Funds may invest in securities of foreign issuers and in sponsored and unsponsored depositary receipts. Foreign companies are companies that: (i) are organized under the laws of a foreign country or maintain their principal place of business in a foreign country; (ii) the principal trading market for their securities is located in a foreign country; or (iii) derive at least 50% of their revenues or profits from operations in a foreign country or have at least 50% of their assets located in a foreign country. Investing in securities issued by foreign companies and governments involves considerations and potential risks not typically associated with investing in obligations issued by the U.S. government and domestic corporations. Less information may be available about foreign companies than about domestic companies and foreign companies generally are not subject to uniform accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards or to other regulatory practices and requirements comparable to those applicable to domestic companies. The values of foreign investments are affected by changes in currency rates or exchange control regulations, restrictions or prohibitions on the repatriation of foreign currencies, application of foreign tax laws, including withholding taxes, changes in governmental administration or economic or monetary policy (in the United States or abroad) or changed circumstances in dealings between nations. Costs are also incurred in connection with conversions between various currencies. In addition, foreign brokerage commissions and custody fees are generally higher than those charged in the United States, and foreign securities markets may be less liquid, more volatile and less subject to governmental supervision than in the United States. Investments in foreign countries could be affected by other factors not present in the United States, including expropriation, confiscatory taxation, lack of uniform accounting and auditing standards and potential difficulties in enforcing contractual obligations and could be subject to extended clearance and settlement periods.
In addition, there are risks relating to ongoing concerns regarding the economies of certain European countries and their sovereign debt, as well as the potential for one or more countries to leave the European Union (“EU”).
Brexit Risk. Uncertainties surrounding the sovereign debt of a number of EU countries and the viability of the EU have disrupted and may in the future disrupt markets in the United States and around the world. If one or more countries leave the EU or the EU dissolves, the global securities markets likely will be significantly disrupted. In January 2020, the United Kingdom (“UK”) left the EU, commonly referred to as “Brexit”, and the UK ceased to be a member of the EU. Following a transition period during which the EU and the UK Government engaged in a series of negotiations regarding the terms of the UK’s future relationship with the EU, the EU and the UK Government signed an agreement regarding the economic relationship between the UK and the EU. While the full impact of Brexit is unknown, Brexit has already resulted in volatility in European and global markets. There remains significant market uncertainty regarding Brexit’s ramifications, and the range and potential implications of possible political, regulatory, economic, and market outcomes are difficult to predict. The uncertainty resulting from the transition period may affect other countries in the EU and elsewhere, cause volatility within the EU, or trigger prolonged economic downturns in certain European countries. Despite the influence of the lockdowns, and the economic bounce back, Brexit has had a material impact on the UK’s economy. Additionally, trade between the UK and the EU did not benefit from the global rebound in trade in 2021, and remained at the very low levels experienced at the start of the coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic in 2020, highlighting Brexit’s potential long-term effects on the UK economy. In addition, Brexit may create additional and substantial economic stresses for the UK, including a contraction of the UK economy and price volatility in UK stocks, decreased trade, capital outflows, devaluation of the British pound, wider corporate bond spreads due to uncertainty, and declines in business and consumer spending as well as foreign direct investment. Brexit may also adversely affect UK-based financial firms that have counterparties in the EU or participate in market infrastructure (trading venues, clearing houses, settlement facilities) based in the EU. Additionally, the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to continue to stretch the resources and deficits of many countries in the EU and throughout the world, increasing the possibility that countries may be unable to make timely payments on their sovereign debt. These events and the resulting market volatility may have an adverse effect on the performance of a Fund.
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Foreign Market Risk. A Fund is subject to the risk that, because there are generally fewer investors on foreign exchanges and a smaller number of shares traded each day, it may be difficult for a Fund to buy and sell securities on those exchanges. In addition, prices of foreign securities may fluctuate more than prices of securities traded in the United States. Investments in foreign markets may also be adversely affected by governmental actions such as the imposition of punitive taxes. In addition, the governments of certain countries may prohibit or impose substantial restrictions on foreign investing in their capital markets or in certain industries. Any of these actions could severely affect security prices, impair a Fund’s ability to purchase or sell foreign securities or transfer a Fund’s assets or income back into the United States or otherwise adversely affect a Fund’s operations. Other potential foreign market risks include exchange controls, difficulties in pricing securities, defaults on foreign government securities, difficulties in enforcing favorable legal judgments in foreign courts and political and social conditions, such as diplomatic relations, confiscatory taxation, expropriation, limitation on the removal of funds or assets or imposition of (or change in) exchange control regulations. Legal remedies available to investors in certain foreign countries may be less extensive than those available to investors in the United States or other foreign countries. In addition, changes in government administrations or economic or monetary policies in the United States or abroad could result in appreciation or depreciation of portfolio securities and could favorably or adversely affect a Fund’s operations.
Public Availability of Information. In general, less information is publicly available with respect to foreign issuers than is available with respect to U.S. companies. Most foreign companies are also not subject to the uniform accounting and financial reporting requirements applicable to issuers in the United States. A Fund’s foreign investments may be less liquid and their prices may be more volatile than comparable investments in securities in U.S. companies. In addition, there is generally less government supervision and regulation of securities exchanges, brokers and issuers in foreign countries than in the United States.
Settlement Risk. Settlement and clearance procedures in certain foreign markets differ significantly from those in the United States. Foreign settlement procedures and trade regulations also may involve certain risks (such as delays in payment for or delivery of securities) not typically generated by the settlement of U.S. investments. Communications between the United States and certain non-U.S. countries may be unreliable, increasing the risk of delayed settlements or losses of security certificates in markets that still rely on physical settlement. Settlements in certain foreign countries at times have not kept pace with the number of securities transactions; these problems may make it difficult for a Fund to carry out transactions. If a Fund cannot settle or is delayed in settling a purchase of securities, it may miss attractive investment opportunities and certain of its assets may be uninvested with no return earned thereon for some period. If a Fund cannot settle or is delayed in settling a sale of securities, it may lose money if the value of the security then declines or, if it has contracted to sell the security to another party; a Fund could be liable to that party for any losses incurred. Dividends or interest on, or proceeds from the sale of, foreign securities may be subject to foreign taxes on income from sources in such countries.
Governmental Supervision and Regulation/Accounting Standards. Many foreign governments supervise and regulate stock exchanges, brokers and the sale of securities less than does the United States. Some countries may not have laws to protect investors comparable to the U.S. securities laws. For example, some foreign countries may have no laws or rules against insider trading. Insider trading occurs when a person buys or sells a company’s securities based on nonpublic information about that company. In addition, the U.S. government has from time to time in the past imposed restrictions, through penalties and otherwise, on foreign investments by U.S. investors. Accounting standards in other countries are not necessarily the same as in the United States. If the accounting standards in another country do not require as much detail as U.S. accounting standards, it may be harder for a Fund to completely and accurately determine a company’s financial condition. Also, brokerage commissions and other costs of buying or selling securities often are higher in foreign countries than they are in the United States. This reduces the amount a Fund can earn on its investments.
Foreign Currency Risk. While a Fund’s net assets are valued in U.S. dollars, the securities of foreign companies are frequently denominated in foreign currencies. Thus, a change in the value of a foreign currency against the U.S. dollar will result in a corresponding change in value of securities denominated in that currency. Some of the factors that may impair the investments denominated in a foreign currency are: (1) it may be expensive to convert foreign currencies into U.S. dollars and vice versa; (2) complex political and economic factors may significantly affect the values of various currencies, including U.S. dollars, and their exchange rates; (3) government intervention may increase risks involved in purchasing or selling foreign currency options, forward contracts and futures contracts, since exchange rates may not be free to fluctuate in response to other market forces; (4) there may be no systematic reporting of last sale information for foreign currencies or regulatory requirement that quotations available through dealers or other market sources be firm or revised on a timely basis; (5) available quotation information is generally representative of very large round-lot transactions in the inter-bank market and thus may not reflect exchange rates for smaller odd-lot transactions (less than $1 million) where rates may be less favorable; and (6) the inter-bank market in foreign currencies is a global, around-the-clock market. To the extent that a market is closed while the markets for the underlying currencies remain open, certain markets may not always reflect significant price and rate movements.
Restrictions on Investments. There may be unexpected restrictions on investments in companies located in certain foreign countries. For example, on November 12, 2020, the President of the United States signed an Executive Order prohibiting U.S. persons from purchasing or investing in publicly-traded securities of companies identified by the U.S. government as “Communist Chinese military companies,” or in instruments that are derivative of, or are designed to provide investment exposure to, such securities. In addition, to the extent that a Fund holds such a security, one or more Fund intermediaries may decline to process customer orders with respect to such Fund unless and until certain representations are made by the Fund or the prohibited holdings are divested. As a result of forced sales of a security, or inability to participate in an investment the manager otherwise believes is attractive, a Fund may incur losses.
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Forward Foreign Currency Contracts. The Funds may enter into forward foreign currency contracts to manage foreign currency exposure and as a hedge against possible variations in foreign exchange rates. A Fund may enter into forward foreign currency contracts to hedge a specific security transaction or to hedge a portfolio position.
These contracts may be bought or sold to protect a Fund, to some degree, against possible losses resulting from an adverse change in the relationship between foreign currencies and the U.S. dollar. A Fund also may invest in foreign currency futures and in options on currencies. A forward contract involves an obligation to purchase or sell a specific currency amount at a future date, agreed upon by the parties, at a price set at the time of the contract. A Fund may enter into a contract to sell, for a fixed amount of U.S. dollars or other appropriate currency, the amount of foreign currency approximating the value of some or all of a Fund’s securities denominated in such foreign currency.
By entering into forward foreign currency contracts, a Fund will seek to protect the value of its investment securities against a decline in the value of a currency. However, these forward foreign currency contracts will not eliminate fluctuations in the underlying prices of the securities. Rather, they simply establish a rate of exchange which one can obtain at some future point in time. Although such contracts tend to minimize the risk of loss due to a decline in the value of the hedged currency, they also tend to limit any potential gain which might result should the value of such currency increase. At the maturity of a forward contract, a Fund may either sell a portfolio security and make delivery of the foreign currency, or it may retain the security and terminate its contractual obligation to deliver the foreign currency by purchasing an “offsetting” contract with the same currency trader, obligating it to purchase, on the same maturity date, the same amount of the foreign currency. A Fund may realize a gain or loss from currency transactions.
When entering into a contract for the purchase or sale of a security in a foreign currency, a Fund may enter into a forward foreign currency contract for the amount of the purchase or sale price to protect against variations, between the date the security is purchased or sold and the date on which payment is made or received, in the value of the foreign currency relative to the U.S. dollar or other foreign currency.
Also, when a Fund’s portfolio manager anticipates that a particular foreign currency may decline substantially relative to the U.S. dollar or other leading currencies, in order to reduce risk, a Fund may enter into a forward contract to sell, for a fixed amount, the amount of foreign currency approximating the value of its securities denominated in such foreign currency. With respect to any such forward foreign currency contract, it will not generally be possible to match precisely the amount covered by that contract and the value of the securities involved due to changes in the values of such securities resulting from market movements between the date the forward contract is entered into and the date it matures. In addition, while forward foreign currency contracts may offer protection from losses resulting from declines in value of a particular foreign currency, they also limit potential gains which might result from increases in the value of such currency. A Fund will also incur costs in connection with forward foreign currency contracts and conversions of foreign currencies into U.S. dollars. A Fund will only enter into Forward Foreign Currency Contracts subject to the regulatory limitations outlined in the “Derivatives” subsection.
The forecasting of currency market movement is extremely difficult, and whether any hedging strategy will be successful is highly uncertain. Moreover, it is impossible to forecast with precision the market value of portfolio securities at the expiration of a forward foreign currency contract. Accordingly, a Fund may be required to buy or sell additional currency on the spot market (and bear the expense of such transaction) if the Sub-Adviser’s predictions regarding the movement of foreign currency or securities markets prove inaccurate. Because foreign currency forward contracts are privately negotiated transactions, there can be no assurance that a Fund will have flexibility to roll-over a forward foreign currency contract upon its expiration if it desires to do so. Additionally, there can be no assurance that the other party to the contract will perform its services thereunder.
Illiquid Securities. Subject to the limitations in the 1940 Act and the rules thereunder, the Funds may invest in illiquid securities. No Fund may acquire an illiquid security if, immediately after the acquisition, it would have invested more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities. Certain Funds may have additional limitations on investments in illiquid securities. Illiquid securities are securities that a Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the security.
The Trust has implemented a written liquidity risk management program (the “LRM Program”) and related procedures to manage the liquidity risk of each Fund in accordance with Rule 22e-4 under the 1940 Act (“Rule 22e-4”). Rule 22e-4 defines “liquidity risk” as the risk that a fund could not meet requests to redeem shares issued by the fund without significant dilution of the remaining investors’ interests in the fund. The Board has designated Touchstone Advisors to serve as the program administrator (“Program Administrator”) of the LRM Program and the related procedures. As a part of the LRM Program, the Program Administrator is responsible for identifying illiquid investments and categorizing the relative liquidity of each Fund’s investments in accordance with Rule 22e-4. Under the LRM Program, the Program Administrator assesses, manages, and periodically reviews each Fund’s liquidity risk, and is responsible for making periodic reports to the Board and the SEC regarding the liquidity of each Fund’s investments, and for notifying the Board and the SEC of certain liquidity events specified in Rule 22e-4. The liquidity of each Fund’s portfolio investments is determined based on relevant market, trading and investment-specific considerations under the LRM Program.
Illiquid securities include, among others, demand instruments with demand notice periods exceeding seven days, securities for which there is no active secondary market, and repurchase agreements with maturities of over seven days in length. A Fund may invest in securities that are neither listed on a stock exchange nor traded over-the-counter, including privately placed securities. Investing in such unlisted securities, including investments in new and early stage companies, may involve a high degree of business and financial risk that can result
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in substantial losses. As a result of the absence of a public trading market for these securities, they may be less liquid than publicly traded securities. Because these types of securities are thinly traded, if at all, and market prices for these types of securities are generally not readily available, a Fund typically determines the price for these types of securities in good faith in accordance with policies and procedures adopted by the Board. Although these securities may be resold in privately negotiated transactions, the prices realized from these sales could be less than those originally paid by a Fund, or less than what may be considered the fair value of such securities. Further, companies whose securities are not publicly traded may not be subject to the disclosure and other investor protection requirements which might be applicable if their securities were publicly traded. If such securities are required to be registered under the securities laws of one or more jurisdictions before being resold, a Fund may be required to bear the expenses of registration.
In addition, the Funds believe that certain investments in joint ventures, cooperatives, partnerships, private placements, unlisted securities and other similar situations (collectively, “special situations”) could enhance a Fund’s capital appreciation potential. To the extent these investments are deemed illiquid, a Fund’s investment in them will be consistent with their applicable restriction on investment in illiquid securities. Investments in special situations and certain other instruments may be liquid, as determined by the Program Administrator of the Funds’ LRM Program.
Initial Public Offerings (“IPOs”). Due to the typically small size of the IPO allocation available to the Funds and the nature and market capitalization of the companies involved in IPOs, the sub-advisers will often purchase IPO shares that would qualify as a permissible investment for a Fund but will instead decide to allocate those IPO purchases to other funds they advise. Any such allocation will be done in a fair and equitable manner according to a specific and consistent process. Because IPO shares frequently are volatile in price, a Fund may hold IPO shares for a very short period of time. This may increase the turnover of a Fund’s portfolio and may lead to increased expenses to a Fund, such as commissions and transaction costs. By selling shares of an IPO, a Fund may realize taxable capital gains that it will subsequently distribute to shareholders.
Most IPOs involve a high degree of risk not normally associated with offerings of more seasoned companies. Companies involved in IPOs generally have limited operating histories, and their prospects for future profitability are uncertain. These companies often are engaged in new and evolving businesses and are particularly vulnerable to competition and to changes in technology, markets and economic conditions. They may be dependent on certain key managers and third parties, need more personnel and other resources to manage growth and require significant additional capital. They may also be dependent on limited product lines and uncertain property rights and need regulatory approvals. Investors in IPOs can be affected by substantial dilution in the value of their shares, by sales of additional shares and by concentration of control in existing management and principal shareholders. Stock prices of IPOs can also be highly unstable, due to the absence of a prior public market, the small number of shares available for trading and limited investor information.
Interests in Publicly Traded Limited Partnerships. Interests in publicly traded limited partnerships (limited partnership interests or units) represent equity interests in the assets and earnings of the partnership’s trade or business. Unlike common stock in a corporation, limited partnership interests have limited or no voting rights. However, many of the risks of investing in common stocks are still applicable to investments in limited partnership interests. In addition, limited partnership interests are subject to risks not present in common stock. For example, income generated from limited partnerships deemed not to be “publicly traded” may not be considered “qualifying income” for purposes of the regulated investment company requirements under the Code, and may trigger adverse tax consequences (please refer to the “Federal Income Taxes” section of this SAI for a discussion of relevant tax risks). Also, since publicly traded limited partnerships are a less common form of organizational structure than corporations, the limited partnership units may be less liquid than publicly traded common stock. Also, because of the difference in organizational structure, the fair value of limited partnership units in a Fund’s portfolio may be based either upon the current market price of such units, or if there is no current market price, upon the pro rata value of the underlying assets of the partnership. Limited partnership units also have the risk that the limited partnership might, under certain circumstances, be treated as a general partnership giving rise to broader liability exposure to the limited partners for activities of the partnership. Further, the general partners of a limited partnership may be able to significantly change the business or asset structure of a limited partnership without the limited partners having any ability to disapprove any such changes. In certain limited partnerships, limited partners may also be required to return distributions previously made in the event that excess distributions have been made by the partnership, or in the event that the general partners, or their affiliates, are entitled to indemnification.
Interest Rate Risk. The market price of debt securities is generally linked to the prevailing market interest rates. In general, when interest rates rise, the prices of debt securities fall, and when interest rates fall, the prices of debt securities rise. The price volatility of a debt security also depends on its maturity. Longer-term securities are generally more volatile, so the longer the average maturity or duration of these securities, the greater their price risk. Duration is a measure used to determine the sensitivity of a security’s price to changes in interest rates that incorporates a security’s yield, coupon, final maturity, and call features, among other characteristics. The longer a fixed-income security’s duration, the more sensitive it will be to changes in interest rates. Specifically, duration is the change in the value of a fixed-income security that will result from a 1% change in interest rates, and generally is stated in years. For example, as a general rule a 1% rise in interest rates means a 1% fall in value for every year of duration. Maturity, on the other hand, is the date on which a fixed-income security becomes due for payment of principal. There may be less governmental intervention in the securities markets in the near future. An increase in interest rates could negatively impact a Fund’s net asset value. Recent and potential future changes in government monetary policy may affect rates.
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Beginning in March 2022, the Fed began increasing interest rates and has signaled the potential for further increases. It is difficult to accurately predict the pace at which the Fed will increase interest rates any further, or the timing, frequency or magnitude of any such increases, and the evaluation of macro-economic and other conditions could cause a change in approach in the future. Any such increases generally will cause market interest rates to rise and could cause the value of a Fund's investments, and the Fund's NAV, to decline, potentially suddenly and significantly. As a result, the Fund may experience high redemptions and, as a result, increased portfolio turnover, which could increase the costs that the Fund incurs and may negatively impact the Fund's performance.
Interfund Lending. Each Fund’s investment restrictions and an SEC exemptive order permit the Funds to participate in an interfund lending program with other funds in the Touchstone family of funds. This program allows the Touchstone Funds to borrow money from, and lend money to, each other for temporary or emergency purposes, such as to satisfy redemption requests or to cover unanticipated cash shortfalls. A Fund may not borrow through the interfund lending program for leverage purposes. To the extent permitted by its investment objective, strategies, and policies, a Fund may (1) lend uninvested cash to other Touchstone Funds in an amount up to 15% of the lending Fund’s net assets at the time of the loan (including lending up to 5% of its net assets to any single Touchstone Fund) and (2) borrow money from other Touchstone Funds provided that total outstanding borrowings from all sources do not exceed 331/3% of its total assets. A Fund may borrow through the interfund lending program on an unsecured basis (i.e., without posting collateral) if its aggregate borrowings from all sources immediately after the interfund borrowing represent 10% or less of the Fund’s total assets. However, if a Fund’s aggregate borrowings from all sources immediately after the interfund borrowing would exceed 10% of the Fund’s total assets, the Fund may borrow through the interfund lending program on a secured basis only. Any Fund that has outstanding interfund borrowings may not cause its outstanding borrowings, from all sources, to exceed 10% of its total assets without first securing each interfund loan. If a Fund has any outstanding secured borrowings from other sources, including another fund, at the time it requests an interfund loan, the Fund’s interfund borrowing will be secured on at least an equal priority basis with at least an equivalent percentage of collateral to loan value as any outstanding collateralized loan.
Any loan made through the interfund lending program is required to be more beneficial to a borrowing Fund (i.e., at a lower interest rate) than borrowing from a bank and more beneficial to a lending Fund (i.e., at a higher rate of return) than an alternative short-term investment. The term of an interfund loan is limited to the time required to obtain sufficient cash to repay the loan through either the sale of the Fund’s portfolio securities or net sales of Fund shares, but in no event more than seven days. In addition, an interfund loan is callable with one business day’s notice.
The limitations discussed above, other conditions of the SEC exemptive order, and related policies and procedures implemented by Touchstone are designed to minimize the risks associated with interfund lending for both borrowing Funds and lending Funds. However, no borrowing or lending activity is without risk. When a Fund borrows money from another Touchstone Fund, there is a risk that the loan could be called on one business day’s notice or not renewed, in which case the Fund may need to borrow from a bank at higher rates if an interfund loan were not available from another Touchstone Fund. Furthermore, a delay in repayment to a lending Fund could result in a lost investment opportunity or additional lending costs.
Investment-Grade Debt Securities Risk. Investment-grade debt securities may be downgraded by a NRSRO to below-investment-grade status, which would increase the risk of holding these securities. Investment-grade debt securities rated in the lowest rating category by a NRSRO involve a higher degree of risk than fixed-income securities with higher credit ratings. While such securities are considered investment-grade quality and are deemed to have adequate capacity for payment of principal and interest, such securities lack outstanding investment characteristics and may share certain speculative characteristics with non-investment-grade securities.
LIBOR Transition. Many debt securities, derivatives and other financial instruments in which the Funds may invest, as well as any borrowings made by the Funds from banks or from other lenders, may have or may continue to utilize the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) as the reference or benchmark index for interest rate calculations. LIBOR is a measure of the average interest rate at which major global banks can borrow from one another. It is quoted in multiple currencies and tenors using data reported by a panel of private-sector banks. Following allegations of rate manipulation in 2012 and concerns regarding its thin liquidity, the use of LIBOR came under increasing pressure, and in July 2017, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates LIBOR, announced that it would stop encouraging banks to provide the quotations needed to sustain LIBOR. The ICE Benchmark Administration Limited, the administrator of LIBOR, ceased publishing certain LIBOR maturities, including some US LIBOR maturities, on December 31, 2021, and is expected to cease publishing the remaining and most liquid US LIBOR maturities on June 30, 2023. It is expected that market participants have or will transition to the use of different reference or benchmark indices. Additionally, although regulators have encouraged the development and adoption of alternative rates such as the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”), the future utilization of LIBOR or of any particular replacement rate remains uncertain.
Although the transition process away from LIBOR has become increasingly well-defined in advance of the anticipated discontinuation dates, the impact on certain debt securities, derivatives and other financial instruments remains uncertain. While it is expected that market participants will adopt alternative rates such as SOFR or otherwise amend financial instruments referencing LIBOR to include fallback provisions and other measures that contemplate the discontinuation of LIBOR or other similar market disruption events, neither the effect of the transition process nor the viability of such measures is known. Further, uncertainty and risk remain regarding the willingness and ability of issuers and lenders to include alternative rates and revised provisions in new and existing contracts or instruments.
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To facilitate the transition of legacy derivatives contracts referencing LIBOR, the International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. launched a protocol to incorporate fallback provisions. However, while market participants have begun transitioning away from LIBOR, there are obstacles to converting certain longer term securities and transactions to a new benchmark or benchmarks. The effectiveness of multiple alternative reference indices as opposed to one primary reference index has not been determined. Certain proposed replacement rates to LIBOR, such as SOFR, which is a broad measure of secured overnight US Treasury repo rates, are materially different from LIBOR, and changes in the applicable spread for financial instruments transitioning away from LIBOR will need to be made to accommodate the differences. Furthermore, the risks associated with the expected discontinuation of LIBOR and transition to replacement rates may be exacerbated if an orderly transition to an alternative reference rate is not completed in a timely manner. The effectiveness of alternative reference indices used in new or existing financial instruments and products has also not yet been determined.
As market participants transition away from LIBOR, LIBOR’s usefulness may deteriorate, and these effects could be experienced until the permanent cessation of the majority of U.S. LIBOR rates in 2023. The transition process may lead to increased volatility and illiquidity in markets that currently rely on LIBOR to determine interest indices. LIBOR’s deterioration may adversely affect the liquidity and/or market value of securities that use LIBOR as a benchmark interest index, including securities and other financial instruments held by the Funds. Further, the utilization of an alternative reference index, or the transition process to an alternative reference index, may adversely affect the Funds’ performance. Alteration of the terms of a debt instrument or a modification of the terms of other types of contracts to replace LIBOR or another interbank offered rate (“IBOR”) with a new reference rate could result in a taxable exchange and the realization of income and gain/loss for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The IRS has issued final regulations regarding the tax consequences of the transition from IBOR to a new reference rate in debt instruments and non-debt contracts. Under the final regulations, alteration or modification of the terms of a debt instrument to replace an operative rate that uses a discontinued IBOR with a qualified rate (as defined in the final regulations) including true up payments equalizing the fair market value of contracts before and after such IBOR transition, to add a qualified rate as a fallback rate to a contract whose operative rate uses a discontinued IBOR or to replace a fallback rate that uses a discontinued IBOR with a qualified rate would not be taxable. The IRS may provide additional guidance, with potential retroactive effect.
Master Limited Partnerships (“MLPs”). MLPs are limited partnerships in which the ownership units are publicly traded. MLP units are registered with the SEC and are freely traded on a securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market. MLPs often own several properties or businesses (or own interests) that are related to oil and gas industries, but they also may finance research and development and other projects. Generally, an MLP is operated under the supervision of one or more managing general partners. Limited partners (like the Fund that invests in a MLP) are not involved in the day-to-day management of the partnership. They are allocated income and capital gains associated with the partnership project in accordance with the terms established in the partnership agreement. Generally speaking, MLP investment returns are enhanced during periods of declining/low interest rates and tend to be negatively influenced when interest rates are rising. As an income vehicle, the unit price can be influenced by general interest rate trends independent of specific underlying fundamentals. In addition, most MLPs are leveraged and typically carry a portion of “floating” rate debt. As such, a significant upward swing in interest rates would also drive interest expense higher. Furthermore, most MLPs grow by acquisitions partly financed by debt, and higher interest rates could make it more difficult to transact accretive acquisitions. To the extent that an MLP’s interests are all in a particular industry, the MLP will, accordingly, be negatively impacted by economic events impacting that industry. For instance, a decline in commodity prices may negatively affect the business and market value of an MLP that owns assets related to the oil and gas industries. The risks of investing in an MLP typically more closely resemble those involved in investing in a partnership as opposed to a corporation. For example, state law governing partnerships is often less restrictive than state law governing corporations. Accordingly, there may be fewer protections afforded to investors in an MLP than investors in a corporation. In addition, MLPs may be subject to state taxation in certain jurisdictions which will have the effect of reducing the amount of income paid by the MLP to its investors. An MLP may be taxed as a corporation, contrary to its intention to be taxed as a partnership, resulting in decreased returns to the Fund invested in the MLP. A Fund’s investment in an MLP may generate unrelated business taxable income (“UBTI”) to tax-exempt shareholders of the Fund. Tax-exempt shareholders are urged and advised to consult their own tax advisers to determine the impact on them of a Fund’s investment in an MLP.
Micro-Cap Securities. The Funds may invest in companies whose total market capitalization at the time of investment is generally between $30 million and $500 million, referred to as micro-cap companies. Micro-cap companies may not be well-known to the investing public, may not have significant institutional ownership and may have cyclical, static or only moderate growth prospects. Micro-cap companies may have greater risk and volatility than large companies and may lack the management depth of larger, mature issuers. Micro-cap companies may have relatively small revenues and limited product lines, markets, or financial resources, and their securities may trade less frequently and in more limited volume than those of larger, more mature companies. In addition, micro-cap companies may be developing or marketing new products or services for which markets are not yet established and may never become established. As a result, the prices of their securities may fluctuate more than those of larger issuers.
Money Market Instruments. Money market securities are high-quality, dollar-denominated, short-term debt instruments. They include: (i) bankers’ acceptances, certificates of deposits, notes and time deposits of highly-rated U.S. banks and U.S. branches of foreign banks; (ii) U.S. Treasury obligations and obligations issued or guaranteed by the agencies and instrumentalities of the U.S. government; (iii) high-quality commercial paper issued by U.S. and foreign corporations; (iv) debt obligations with a maturity of one year or less issued by corporations with outstanding high-quality commercial paper ratings; and (v) repurchase agreements involving any of the foregoing obligations entered into with highly-rated banks and broker-dealers.
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Mortgage-Backed Securities Risk. Mortgage-backed securities are fixed income securities representing an interest in a pool of underlying mortgage loans. Mortgage-backed securities are sensitive to changes in interest rates, but may respond to these changes differently from other fixed income securities due to the possibility of prepayment of the underlying mortgage loans. As a result, it may not be possible to determine in advance the actual maturity date or average life of a mortgage-backed security. Rising interest rates tend to discourage re-financings, with the result that the average life and volatility of the security will increase, exacerbating its decrease in market price. When interest rates fall, however, mortgage-backed securities may not gain as much in market value because of the expectation of additional mortgage prepayments that must be reinvested at lower interest rates. Prepayment risk may make it difficult to calculate the average duration of the Fund’s mortgage-backed securities and, therefore, to fully assess the interest rate risk of the Fund. An unexpectedly high rate of defaults on the mortgages held by a mortgage pool may adversely affect the value of mortgage-backed securities and could result in losses to the Fund. The risk of such defaults is generally higher in the cases of mortgage pools that include subprime mortgages. Subprime mortgages refer to loans made to borrowers with weakened credit histories or with lower capacity to make timely payments on their mortgages. In addition, mortgage-backed securities may fluctuate in price based on deterioration in the perceived or actual value of the collateral underlying the pool of mortgage loans, typically residential or commercial real estate, which may result in negative amortization or negative equity meaning that the value of the collateral would be worth less than the remaining principal amount owed on the mortgages in the pool. The mortgage-backed securities market has been and may continue to be negatively affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The U.S. government, its agencies or its instrumentalities may implement initiatives in response to the economic impacts of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic applicable to federally backed mortgage loans. These initiatives could involve forbearance of mortgage payments or suspension or restrictions of foreclosures and evictions. The Fund cannot predict with certainty the extent to which such initiatives or the economic effects of the pandemic generally may affect rates of prepayment or default or adversely impact the value of the Fund’s investments in securities in the mortgage industry as a whole.
Natural Disasters, Adverse Weather Conditions and Climate Change. Certain areas of the world may be exposed to adverse weather conditions, such as major natural disasters and other extreme weather events, including hurricanes, earthquakes, typhoons, floods, tidal waves, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, wildfires, droughts, windstorms, coastal storm surges, heat waves, and rising sea levels, among others. Some countries and regions may not have the infrastructure or resources to respond to natural disasters, making them more economically sensitive to environmental events. Such disasters, and the resulting damage, could have a severe and negative impact on a Fund’s investment portfolio and, in the longer term, could impair the ability of issuers in which a Fund invests to conduct their businesses in the manner normally conducted. Adverse weather conditions also may have a particularly significant negative effect on issuers in the agricultural sector and on insurance companies that insure against the impact of natural disasters.
Climate change, which is the result of a change in global or regional climate patterns, may increase the frequency and intensity of such adverse weather conditions, resulting in increased economic impact, and may pose long-term risks to a Fund’s investments. The future impact of climate change is difficult to predict but may include changes in demand for certain goods and services, supply chain disruption, changes in production costs, increased legislation, regulation, international accords and compliance-related costs, changes in property and security values, availability of natural resources and displacement of peoples. Climate change regulation may result in increased operations and capital costs for the companies in which the Fund invests. Voluntary initiatives and mandatory controls have been adopted or are being discussed both in the U.S. and worldwide to reduce emissions of “greenhouse gases” such as carbon dioxide, a by-product of burning fossil fuels, which some scientists and policymakers believe contribute to global climate change. These current and future measures may result in certain companies in which the Fund invests incurring increased costs to generally continue operating its business, to operate and maintain facilities specifically, or to administer and manage a greenhouse gas emissions program. Additionally, the effects of these measures may result in a reduction of the demand for goods or services that produce significant greenhouse gas emissions or are related to carbon-based energy sources.
Non-Investment-Grade Debt Securities Risk. Non-investment-grade debt securities are sometimes referred to as “junk bonds” and are considered speculative with respect to their issuers’ ability to make payments of interest and principal. There is a high risk that a Fund could suffer a loss from investments in non-investment-grade debt securities caused by the default of an issuer of such securities. Part of the reason for this high risk is that non-investment-grade debt securities are generally unsecured and therefore, in the event of a default or bankruptcy, holders of non-investment-grade debt securities generally will not receive payments until the holders of all other debt have been paid. Non-investment-grade debt securities may also be less liquid than investment-grade debt securities.
Obligations of Supranational Entities. Obligations of supranational entities are obligations of entities established through the joint participation of several governments, such as the Asian Development Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (World Bank), African Development Bank, European Economic Community, European Investment Bank and the Nordic Investment Bank.
Operational Risk and Cyber Security. With the increased use of technologies, such as mobile devices and “cloud”-based service offerings and the dependence on the Internet and computer systems to perform necessary business functions, the Funds’ service providers are susceptible to operational and information or cyber security risks that could result in losses to a Fund and its shareholders. Cyber security breaches are either intentional or unintentional events that allow an unauthorized party to gain access to Fund assets, customer data, or proprietary information, or cause a Fund or Fund service provider to suffer data corruption or lose operational functionality. Intentional cyber security incidents include: unauthorized access to systems, networks, or devices (such as through “hacking” activity or “phishing”); infection from computer viruses or other malicious software code; and attacks that shut down, disable, slow, or otherwise disrupt
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operations, business processes, or website access or functionality. Cyber-attacks can also be carried out in a manner that does not require gaining unauthorized access, such as causing denial-of-service attacks on the service providers’ systems or websites rendering them unavailable to intended users or via “ransomware” that renders the systems inoperable until appropriate actions are taken. In addition, unintentional incidents can occur, such as the inadvertent release of confidential information (possibly resulting in the violation of applicable privacy laws).
A cyber security breach could result in the loss or theft of customer data or funds, loss or theft of proprietary information or corporate data, physical damage to a computer or network system, or costs associated with system repairs, any of which could have a substantial impact on a Fund. For example, in a denial of service, Fund shareholders could lose access to their electronic accounts indefinitely, and employees of the Adviser, a Sub-Adviser, or the Funds’ other service providers may not be able to access electronic systems to perform critical duties for the Funds, such as trading, NAV calculation, shareholder accounting, or fulfillment of Fund share purchases and redemptions. Cyber security incidents could cause a Fund, the Adviser, a Sub-Adviser, or other service provider to incur regulatory penalties, reputational damage, compliance costs associated with corrective measures, litigation costs, or financial loss. They may also result in violations of applicable privacy and other laws. In addition, such incidents could affect issuers in which a Fund invests, thereby causing the Fund’s investments to lose value.
Cyber-events have the potential to materially affect the Funds’ and the Adviser’s relationships with accounts, shareholders, clients, customers, employees, products, and service providers. The Funds have established risk management systems reasonably designed to seek to reduce the risks associated with cyber-events. There is no guarantee that the Funds will be able to prevent or mitigate the impact of any or all cyber-events.
The Funds are exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including, but not limited to, human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Funds’ service providers, counterparties, or other third parties, failed or inadequate processes, and technology or system failures.
The Adviser, each Sub-Adviser, and their affiliates have established risk management systems that seek to reduce cybersecurity and operational risks, and business continuity plans in the event of a cybersecurity breach or operational failure. However, there are inherent limitations in such plans, including that certain risks have not been identified, and there is no guarantee that such efforts will succeed, especially since none of the Adviser, each Sub-Adviser, or their affiliates controls the cybersecurity or operations systems of the Funds’ third party service providers (including the Funds’ custodian), or those of the issuers of securities in which the funds invest.
In addition, other disruptive events, including (but not limited to) natural disasters and public health crises (such as the COVID-19 pandemic), may adversely affect a Fund’s ability to conduct business, in particular if the Fund’s employees or the employees of its service providers are unable or unwilling to perform their responsibilities as a result of any such event. Even if the Fund’s employees and the employees of its service providers are able to work remotely, those remote work arrangements could result in the Fund’s business operations being less efficient than under normal circumstances, could lead to delays in its processing of transactions, and could increase the risk of cyber-events.
Options. A put option gives the purchaser of the option the right to sell, and the writer of the option the obligation to buy, the underlying security at any time during the option period. A call option gives the purchaser of the option the right to buy, and the writer of the option the obligation to sell, the underlying security at any time during the option period. The premium paid to the writer is the consideration for undertaking the obligations under the option contract. The initial purchase (sale) of an option contract is an “opening transaction.” In order to close out an option position, a Fund may enter into a “closing transaction,” which is simply the sale (purchase) of an option contract on the same security with the same exercise price and expiration date as the option contract originally opened. If a Fund is unable to effect a closing purchase transaction with respect to an option it has written, it will not be able to sell the underlying security until the option expires or a Fund delivers the security upon exercise.
A Fund may purchase put and call options to protect against a decline in the market value of the securities in its portfolio or to anticipate an increase in the market value of securities that a Fund may seek to purchase in the future. A Fund will pay a premium when purchasing put and call options. If price movements in the underlying securities are such that exercise of the options would not be profitable for a Fund, loss of the premium paid may be offset by an increase in the value of a Fund’s securities or by a decrease in the cost of acquisition of securities by a Fund.
A Fund may write both covered call and put options. A Fund may write covered call options as a means of increasing the yield on its portfolio and as a means of providing limited protection against decreases in its market value. When a Fund sells an option, if the underlying securities do not increase or decrease to a price level that would make the exercise of the option profitable to the holder thereof, the option generally will expire without being exercised and a Fund will realize as profit the premium received for such option. When a call option written by a Fund is exercised, a Fund will be required to sell the underlying securities to the option holder at the strike price, and will not participate in any increase in the price of such securities above the strike price. When a put option written by a Fund is exercised, a Fund will be required to purchase the underlying securities at the strike price, which may be in excess of the market value of such securities.
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A Fund may purchase and write options on an exchange or over-the-counter. Over-the-counter options (“OTC options”) differ from exchange-traded options in several respects. They are transacted directly with dealers and not with a clearing corporation, and therefore entail the risk of non-performance by the dealer. OTC options are available for a greater variety of securities and for a wider range of expiration dates and exercise prices than are available for exchange-traded options. Because OTC options are not traded on an exchange, pricing is done normally by reference to information from a market maker. It is the position of the staff of the SEC that OTC options are generally illiquid.
A Fund may purchase and write put and call options on foreign currencies (traded on U.S. and foreign exchanges or over-the-counter markets) to manage its exposure to exchange rates. Call options on foreign currencies written by a Fund will be “covered,” which means that the Fund will own an equal amount of the underlying foreign currency.
Buyers and sellers of foreign currency options are subject to the same risks that apply to options generally. There are certain additional risks associated with foreign currency options. The markets in foreign currency options are relatively new, and a Fund’s ability to establish and close out positions on such options is subject to the maintenance of a liquid secondary market. There can be no assurance that a liquid secondary market will exist for a particular option at any specific time. In addition, options on foreign currencies are affected by all of those factors that influence foreign exchange rates and investments generally.
The value of a foreign currency option depends upon the value of the underlying currency relative to the U.S. dollar. As a result, the price of the option position may vary with changes in the value of either or both currencies and may have no relationship to the investment merits of a foreign security. Because foreign currency transactions occurring in the interbank market involve substantially larger amounts than those that may be involved in the use of foreign currency options, investors may be disadvantaged by having to deal in an odd lot market (generally consisting of transactions of less than $1 million) for the underlying foreign currencies at prices that are less favorable than for round lots.
There is no systematic reporting of last sale information for foreign currencies or any regulatory requirement that quotations available through dealers or other market sources be firm or revised on a timely basis. Available quotation information is generally representative of very large transactions in the interbank market and thus may not reflect relatively smaller transactions (i.e., less than $1 million) where rates may be less favorable. The interbank market in foreign currencies is a global, around-the-clock market. To the extent that the U.S. option markets are closed while the markets for the underlying currencies remain open, significant price and rate movements may take place in the underlying markets that cannot be reflected in the options markets until they reopen.
A Fund may purchase and write put and call options on indices and enter into related closing transactions. Put and call options on indices are similar to options on securities except that options on an index give the holder the right to receive, upon exercise of the option, an amount of cash if the closing level of the underlying index is greater than (or less than, in the case of puts) the exercise price of the option. This amount of cash is equal to the difference between the closing price of the index and the exercise price of the option, expressed in dollars multiplied by a specified number. Thus, unlike options on individual securities, all settlements are in cash, and gain or loss depends on price movements in the particular market represented by the index generally, rather than the price movements in individual securities. A Fund may choose to terminate an option position by entering into a closing transaction. The ability of a Fund to enter into closing transactions depends upon the existence of a liquid secondary market for such transactions.
Options written on indices may be covered and all options will be entered into in accordance with the regulatory requirements described in the “Derivatives” subsection.
A Fund will not engage in transactions involving interest rate futures contracts for speculation but only as a hedge against changes in the market values of debt securities held or intended to be purchased by a Fund and where the transactions are appropriate to reduce a Fund’s interest rate risks. There can be no assurance that hedging transactions will be successful. A Fund also could be exposed to risks if it cannot close out its futures or options positions because of any illiquid secondary market.
Futures and options have effective durations that, in general, are closely related to the effective duration of the securities that underlie them. Holding purchased futures or call option positions will lengthen the duration of a Fund’s portfolio.
Risks associated with options transactions include: (1) the success of a hedging strategy may depend on an ability to predict movements in the prices of individual securities, fluctuations in markets and movements in interest rates; (2) there may be an imperfect correlation between the movement in prices of options and the securities underlying them; (3) there may not be a liquid secondary market for options; and (4) while a Fund may receive a premium when it writes covered call options, it may not participate fully in a rise in the market value of the underlying security. As further outlined in the “Derivatives” subsection, all options will be entered into in accordance with the regulatory requirements described in the “Derivatives” subsection.
Caps, Collars and Floors. Caps and floors have an effect similar to buying or writing options. In a typical cap or floor agreement, one party agrees to make payments only under specified circumstances, usually in return for payment of a fee by the other party. For example, the buyer of an interest rate cap obtains the right to receive payments to the extent that a specified interest rate exceeds an agreed-upon level. The seller of an interest rate floor is obligated to make payments to the extent that a specified interest rate falls below an agreed-upon level. An interest rate collar combines elements of buying a cap and selling a floor.
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Inverse Floaters. A Fund may invest in inverse floaters. Inverse floaters are derivative securities whose interest rates vary inversely to changes in short-term interest rates and whose values fluctuate inversely to changes in long-term interest rates. The value of certain inverse floaters will fluctuate substantially more in response to a given change in long-term rates than would a traditional debt security. These securities have investment characteristics similar to leverage, in that interest rate changes have a magnified effect on the value of inverse floaters.
Ordinary Shares. Ordinary shares are shares of foreign issuers that are traded abroad and on a United States exchange. Ordinary shares may be purchased with and sold for U.S. dollars. Investing in foreign companies may involve risks not typically associated with investing in United States companies. See “Foreign Securities.”
Other Investment Companies. Investment companies include open- and closed-end funds, exchange-traded funds, and any other pooled investment vehicle that meets the definition of an investment company under the 1940 Act, whether such companies are required to register under the 1940 Act or not. As a shareholder of another investment company, a Fund would be subject to the same risks as any other investor in that investment company. A Fund’s purchase of such investment company securities results in the layering of expenses, such that shareholders would indirectly bear a proportionate share of the operating expenses of such investment companies, including advisory fees, in addition to paying Fund expenses. Investments in registered investment company shares are subject to limitations prescribed by the 1940 Act and its rules, and applicable SEC staff interpretations or applicable exemptive relief granted by the SEC. The 1940 Act currently provides, in part, that a Fund generally may not purchase shares of a registered investment company if (a) such a purchase would cause a Fund to own in the aggregate more than 3% of the total outstanding voting stock of the investment company or (b) such a purchase would cause a Fund to have more than 5% of its total assets invested in the investment company or (c) more than 10% of a Fund’s total assets would be invested in the aggregate in all registered investment companies.
Over-The-Counter Stocks. A Fund may invest in over-the-counter stocks. In contrast to securities exchanges, the over-the-counter market is not a centralized facility that limits trading activity to securities of companies which initially satisfy certain defined standards. Generally, the volume of trading in an unlisted or over-the-counter common stock is less than the volume of trading in a listed stock. This means that the depth of market liquidity of some stocks in which each Fund invests may not be as great as that of other securities and, if a Funds were to dispose of such a stock, they might have to offer the shares at a discount from recent prices, or sell the shares in small lots over an extended period of time.
Preferred Stock. Preferred stock has a preference over common stock in liquidation (and generally for dividend receipt as well) but is subordinated to the liabilities of the issuer in all respects. As a general rule, the market value of preferred stock with a fixed dividend rate and no conversion element varies inversely with interest rates and perceived credit risk, while the market price of convertible preferred stock generally also reflects some element of conversion value. Because preferred stock is junior to debt securities and other obligations of the issuer, deterioration in the credit quality of the issuer will cause greater changes in the value of a preferred stock than in a more senior debt security with similar stated yield characteristics. Unlike interest payments on debt securities, preferred stock dividends generally are payable only if declared by the issuer’s board of directors. Preferred stock also may be subject to optional or mandatory redemption provisions.
Prepayment Risk. Prepayment risk is the risk that a debt security may be paid off and proceeds invested earlier than anticipated. Prepayment risk is more prevalent during periods of falling interest rates. Prepayment impacts both the interest rate sensitivity of the underlying asset, such as an asset-backed or mortgage-backed security, and its cash flow projections. Therefore, prepayment risk may make it difficult to calculate the average duration of a Fund’s asset- or mortgage-backed securities which in turn would make it difficult to assess the interest rate risk of a Fund.
Privatization. Privatizations are foreign government programs for selling all or part of the interests in government owned or controlled enterprises. The ability of a U.S. entity to participate in privatizations in certain foreign countries may be limited by local law, or the terms on which a Fund may be permitted to participate may be less advantageous than those applicable for local investors. There can be no assurance that foreign governments will continue to sell their interests in companies currently owned or controlled by them or that privatization programs will be successful.
Real Estate Investment Trusts (“REITs”). The Funds may invest in REITs, which pool investors’ money for investment in income producing commercial real estate or real estate related loans or interests.
A REIT is not subject to federal income tax on income distributed to its shareholders or unitholders if it complies with regulatory requirements relating to its organization, ownership, assets and income, and with a regulatory requirement that it distribute to its shareholders or unitholders at least 90% of its taxable income for each taxable year. Generally, REITs can be classified as Equity REITs, Mortgage REITs and Hybrid REITs. Equity REITs invest the majority of their assets directly in real property and derive their income primarily from rents and capital gains from appreciation realized through property sales. Mortgage REITs invest the majority of their assets in real estate mortgages and derive their income primarily from interest payments. Hybrid REITs combine the characteristics of both Equity and Mortgage REITs. A shareholder in a Fund should realize that by investing in REITs indirectly through a Fund, he or she will bear not only his or her proportionate share of the expenses of a Fund, but also indirectly, similar expenses of underlying REITs.
A Fund may be subject to certain risks associated with the direct investments of the REITs. REITs may be affected by changes in their underlying properties and by defaults by borrowers or tenants. Mortgage REITs may be affected by the quality of the credit extended. Furthermore, REITs are dependent on specialized management skills. Some REITs may have limited diversification and may be subject to
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risks inherent in financing a limited number of properties. REITs depend generally on their ability to generate cash flow to make distributions to shareholders or unitholders, and may be subject to defaults by borrowers and to self-liquidations. In addition, the performance of a REIT may be affected by its failure to qualify for tax-free pass-through of income under the Code or its failure to maintain exemption from registration under the 1940 Act.
ReFlow Liquidity Program. The Funds may participate in the ReFlow liquidity program, which is designed to provide an alternative liquidity source for mutual funds experiencing redemptions of their shares. In order to pay cash to shareholders who redeem their shares on a given day, a mutual fund typically must hold cash in its portfolio, liquidate portfolio securities, or borrow money, all of which impose certain costs on the fund. ReFlow Fund, LLC (“ReFlow”) provides participating mutual funds with another source of cash by standing ready to purchase shares from a fund up to the amount of the fund’s net redemptions on a given day. ReFlow then generally redeems those shares when the fund experiences net sales. In return for this service, the Fund will pay a fee to ReFlow at a rate determined by a daily auction with other participating mutual funds. The costs to the Fund for participating in ReFlow are expected to be influenced by and comparable to the cost of other sources of liquidity, such as the Fund’s short-term lending arrangements or the costs of selling portfolio securities to meet redemptions. In accordance with federal securities laws, ReFlow is prohibited from acquiring more than 3% of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. There is no assurance that ReFlow will have sufficient funds available to meet the Fund’s liquidity needs on a particular day. Investments in the Fund by ReFlow in connection with the ReFlow liquidity program are not subject to the market timing limitations described in the Funds’ prospectus.
Repurchase Agreements. Repurchase agreements are transactions by which the Funds purchase a security and simultaneously commit to resell that security to the seller at an agreed upon time and price, thereby determining the yield during the term of the agreement. In the event of a bankruptcy or other default of the seller of a repurchase agreement, a Fund could experience both delays in liquidating the underlying security and losses. To minimize these possibilities, the Funds intend to enter into repurchase agreements only with their custodian, with banks having assets in excess of $10 billion and with broker-dealers who are recognized as primary dealers in U.S. government obligations by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Collateral for repurchase agreements is held for safekeeping in the customer-only account of the Fund’s custodian at the Federal Reserve Bank. A Fund will not enter into a repurchase agreement not terminable within seven days if, as a result thereof, more than 15% of the value of its net assets would be invested in such securities and other illiquid securities.
Although the securities subject to a repurchase agreement might bear maturities exceeding one year, settlement for the repurchase would never be more than one year after a Fund’s acquisition of the securities and normally would be within a shorter period of time. The resale price will be in excess of the purchase price, reflecting an agreed upon market rate effective for the period of time that each Fund’s money will be invested in the securities, and will not be related to the coupon rate of the purchased security. At the time a Fund enters into a repurchase agreement, the value of the underlying security, including accrued interest, will equal or exceed the value of the repurchase agreement, and in the case of a repurchase agreement exceeding one day, the seller will agree that the value of the underlying security, including accrued interest, will at all times equal or exceed the value of the repurchase agreement. The collateral securing the seller’s obligation must consist of cash or securities that are issued or guaranteed by the United States government or its agencies. The collateral will be held by the custodian or in the Federal Reserve Book Entry System.
For purposes of the 1940 Act, a repurchase agreement is deemed to be a loan from a Fund to the seller subject to the repurchase agreement and is therefore subject to the applicable Fund’s investment restrictions applicable to loans. It is not clear whether a court would consider the securities purchased by a Fund subject to a repurchase agreement as being owned by that Fund or as being collateral for a loan by a Fund to the seller. In the event of the commencement of bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings with respect to the seller of the securities before repurchase of the security under a repurchase agreement, a Fund may encounter delays and incur costs before being able to sell the security. Delays may involve loss of interest or decline in price of the security. If a court characterized the transaction as a loan and a Fund has not perfected a security interest in the security, that Fund may be required to return the security to the seller’s estate and be treated as an unsecured creditor of the seller. As an unsecured creditor, a Fund would be at risk of losing some or all of the principal and income involved in the transaction. As with any unsecured debt obligation purchased for a Fund, the sub-adviser seeks to minimize the risk of loss through repurchase agreements by analyzing the creditworthiness of the obligor, in this case, the seller. Apart from the risk of bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings, there is also the risk that the seller may fail to repurchase the security, in which case a Fund may incur a loss if the proceeds to the applicable Fund of the sale of the security to a third party are less than the repurchase price. However, if the market value of the securities subject to the repurchase agreement becomes less than the repurchase price (including interest), a Fund involved will direct the seller of the security to deliver additional securities so that the market value of all securities subject to the repurchase agreement will equal or exceed the repurchase price. It is possible that a Fund will be unsuccessful in seeking to enforce the seller’s contractual obligation to deliver additional securities.
Reverse Repurchase Agreement, Dollar Roll, and Reverse Dollar Roll Transactions. A reverse repurchase agreement involves a sale by a Fund of securities that it holds to a bank, broker-dealer or other financial institution concurrently with an agreement by a Fund to repurchase the same securities at an agreed-upon price and date. Reverse repurchase agreements are considered borrowing by a Fund and are subject to the applicable Fund’s limitations on borrowing. A dollar roll transaction involves a sale by a Fund of an eligible security to a financial institution concurrently with an agreement by the applicable Fund to repurchase a similar eligible security from the institution at a later date at an agreed-upon price. A reverse dollar roll transaction involves a purchase by a Fund of an eligible security from a financial
20

institution concurrently with an agreement by the applicable Fund to resell a similar security to the institution at a later date at an agreed-upon price. As further outlined in the “Derivatives” subsection, all reverse repurchase agreement, dollar roll, and reverse dollar roll transactions will be entered into in accordance with the regulatory requirements described in “Derivatives” subsection. Furthermore, a Fund will either treat reverse repurchase agreements and similar financings as derivatives subject to the Derivatives Rule limitations or not as derivatives and treat reverse repurchase agreements and similar financings transactions as senior securities equivalent to bank borrowings subject to asset coverage requirements of Section 18 of the 1940 Act.
Royalty Trusts. Royalty trusts are structured similarly to REITs. A royalty trust generally acquires an interest in natural resource companies or chemical companies and distributes the income it receives to the investors of the royalty trust. A sustained decline in demand for crude oil, natural gas and refined petroleum products could adversely affect income and royalty trust revenues and cash flows. Factors that could lead to a decrease in market demand include a recession or other adverse economic conditions, an increase in the market price of the underlying commodity, higher taxes or other regulatory actions that increase costs, or a shift in consumer demand for such products. A rising interest rate environment could adversely impact the performance of royalty trusts. Rising interest rates could limit the capital appreciation of royalty trusts because of the increased availability of alternative investments at more competitive yields.
Rule 144A Securities. Rule 144A securities are securities exempt from registration on resale pursuant to Rule 144A under the 1933 Act. Rule 144A securities are traded in the institutional market pursuant to this registration exemption, and, as a result, may not be as liquid as exchange-traded securities since they may only be resold to certain qualified institutional investors. Due to the relatively limited size of this institutional market, these securities may affect the liquidity of Rule 144A securities to the extent that qualified institutional buyers become, for a time, uninterested in purchasing such securities. Nevertheless, Rule 144A securities may be treated as liquid securities pursuant to the Funds’ LRM Program.
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies. The Funds may invest in stock, warrants, and other securities of SPACs or similar special purpose entities that pool funds to seek potential acquisition opportunities. SPACs are collective investment structures that allow public stock market investors to invest in private equity type transactions (“PIPE”). Until an acquisition is completed, a SPAC generally invests its assets in US government securities, money market securities and cash. The Funds may enter into a contingent commitment with a SPAC to purchase PIPE shares if and when the SPAC completes its merger or acquisition.
Because SPACs and similar entities do not have an operating history or ongoing business other than seeking acquisitions, the value of their securities is particularly dependent on the ability of the SPAC’s management to identify and complete a profitable acquisition. Some SPACs may pursue acquisitions only within certain industries or regions, which may increase the volatility of their prices. An investment in a SPAC is subject to a variety of risks, including that (i) a significant portion of the monies raised by the SPAC for the purpose of identifying and effecting an acquisition or merger may be expended during the search for a target transaction; (ii) an attractive acquisition or merger target may not be identified at all and the SPAC will be required to return any remaining monies to shareholders; (iii) any proposed merger or acquisition may be unable to obtain the requisite approval, if any, of shareholders; (iv) an acquisition or merger once effected may prove unsuccessful and an investment in the SPAC may lose value; (v) the warrants or other rights with respect to the SPAC held by a Fund may expire worthless or may be repurchased or retired by the SPAC at an unfavorable price; (vi) a Fund may be delayed in receiving any redemption or liquidation proceeds from a SPAC to which it is entitled; (vii) an investment in a SPAC may be diluted by additional later offerings of interests in the SPAC or by other investors exercising existing rights to purchase shares of the SPAC; (viii) no or only a thinly traded market for shares of or interests in a SPAC may develop, leaving a Fund unable to sell its interest in a SPAC or to sell its interest only at a price below what the Fund believes is the SPAC interest’s intrinsic value; and (ix) the values of investments in SPACs may be highly volatile and may depreciate significantly over time.
Purchased PIPE shares will be restricted from trading until the registration statement for the shares is declared effective. Upon registration, the shares can be freely sold; however, in certain circumstances, the issuer may have the right to temporarily suspend trading of the shares in the first year after the merger. The securities issued by a SPAC, which are typically traded either in the over-the-counter market or on an exchange, may be considered illiquid, more difficult to value, and/or be subject to restrictions on resale.
Sector Focus. If a Fund’s portfolio is overweighted in a certain sector or related sectors, any negative development affecting that sector will have a greater impact on a Fund than a fund that is not overweighted in that sector.
Communication Services Sector Risk. The communication services sector is subject to extensive government regulation. The costs of complying with governmental regulations, delays or failure to receive required regulatory approvals, or the enactment of new regulatory requirements may negatively affect the business of communications services companies. Government actions around the world, specifically in the area of pre-marketing clearance of products and prices, can be arbitrary and unpredictable. The domestic communications services market is characterized by increasing competition and regulation by various state and federal regulatory authorities. Companies in the communication services sector may encounter distressed cash flows due to the need to commit substantial capital to meet increasing competition, particularly in formulating new products and services using new technology. Technological innovations may make the products and services of certain communications services companies obsolete.
21

Consumer Discretionary Sector Risk. Because companies in the consumer discretionary sector manufacture products and provide discretionary services directly to the consumer, the success of these companies is tied closely to the performance of the overall domestic and international economy, interest rates, competition and consumer confidence. Success depends heavily on disposable household income and consumer spending. Changes in demographics and consumer tastes also can affect the demand for, and success of, consumer discretionary products in the marketplace.
Consumer Staples Sector Risk. The consumer staples sector may be affected by food and drug regulations and production methods, fads, marketing campaigns and other factors affecting consumer demand. In particular, tobacco companies may be adversely affected by new laws, regulations and litigation. The consumer staples sector may also be adversely affected by changes or trends in commodity prices, which may be influenced or characterized by unpredictable factors.
Energy Sector Risk. The profitability of companies in the energy sector is related to worldwide energy prices, exploration, and production spending. Such companies also are subject to risks of changes in exchange rates, government regulation, world events, depletion of resources and economic conditions, as well as market, economic and political risks of the countries where energy companies are located or do business. Oil and gas exploration and production can be significantly affected by natural disasters. Oil exploration and production companies may be adversely affected by changes in exchange rates, interest rates, government regulation, world events, and economic conditions. Oil exploration and production companies may be at risk for environmental damage claims.
Financial Sector Risk. The financial services industries are subject to extensive government regulation, can be subject to relatively rapid change due to increasingly blurred distinctions between service segments, and can be significantly affected by availability and cost of capital funds, changes in interest rates, the rate of corporate and consumer debt defaults, and price competition. Numerous financial services companies have experienced substantial declines in the valuations of their assets, taken action to raise capital (such as the issuance of debt or equity securities), or even ceased operations. These actions have caused the securities of many financial services companies to experience a dramatic decline in value. Issuers that have exposure to the real estate, mortgage and credit markets have been particularly affected by the foregoing events and the general market turmoil, and it is uncertain whether or for how long these conditions will continue.
Healthcare Sector Risk. The profitability of companies in the healthcare 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 healthcare companies are heavily dependent on patent protection. The expiration of patents may adversely affect the profitability of these companies. Many healthcare companies are subject to extensive litigation based on product liability and similar claims. Healthcare 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 healthcare sector may be subject to regulatory approvals. The process of obtaining such approvals may be long and costly.
Industrials Sector Risk. The stock prices of companies in the industrials sector are affected by supply and demand both for their specific product or service, industrials sector products in general, and the costs of materials and other commodities. The products of manufacturing companies may face product obsolescence due to rapid technological developments and frequent new product introduction. Government regulation, world events and economic conditions may affect the performance of companies in the industrials sector. Companies in the industrials sector may be at risk for environmental damage and product liability claims.
Information Technology Sector Risk. Information technology companies face intense competition, both domestically and internationally, which may have an adverse effect on profit margins. Like other technology companies, information technology companies may have limited product lines, markets, financial resources or personnel. The products of information technology companies may face product obsolescence due to rapid technological developments and frequent new product introduction, unpredictable changes in growth rates and competition for the services of qualified personnel. Technology companies and companies that rely heavily on technology, especially those of smaller, less-seasoned companies, tend to be more volatile than the overall market. Companies in the information technology sector are heavily dependent on patent and intellectual property rights. The loss or impairment of these rights may adversely affect the profitability of these companies. Finally, while all companies may be susceptible to network security breaches, certain companies in the information technology sector may be particular targets of hacking and potential theft of proprietary or consumer information or disruptions in service, which could have a material adverse effect on their businesses. These risks are heightened for information technology companies in foreign markets.
Materials Sector Risk. Companies in the materials sector could be adversely affected by commodity price volatility, exchange rates, import controls and increased competition. Production of industrial materials often exceeds demand as a result of overbuilding or economic downturns, leading to poor investment returns. Companies in the materials sector are at risk for environmental damage and product liability claims. Companies in the materials sector may be adversely affected by depletion of resources, technical progress, labor relations, and government regulations.
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Real Estate Sector Risk. An investment in a real property company may be subject to risks similar to those associated with direct ownership of real estate, including, by way of example, the possibility of declines in the value of real estate, losses from casualty or condemnation, and changes in local and general economic conditions, supply and demand, interest rates, environmental liability, zoning laws, regulatory limitations on rents, property taxes, and operating expenses. Some real property companies have limited diversification because they invest in a limited number of properties, a narrow geographic area, or a single type of property.
Securities Lending. In order to generate additional income, a Fund may lend its securities pursuant to agreements requiring that the loan be continuously secured by collateral consisting of: (1) cash in U.S. dollars; (2) securities issued or fully guaranteed by the United States government or issued and unconditionally guaranteed by any agencies thereof; or (3) irrevocable performance letters of credit issued by banks approved by each Fund. All collateral must equal at least 100% of the market value of the loaned securities. A Fund continues to receive interest on the loaned securities while simultaneously earning interest on the investment of cash collateral. Collateral is marked to market daily. There may be risks of delay in recovery of the securities or even loss of rights in the collateral should the borrower of the securities fail financially or become insolvent. In addition, cash collateral invested by the lending Fund is subject to investment risk and the Fund may experience losses with respect to its collateral investments. The SEC currently requires that the following conditions must be met whenever a Fund’s portfolio securities are loaned: (1) the Fund must receive at least 100% cash collateral from the borrower; (2) the borrower must increase such collateral whenever the market value of the securities rises above the level of such collateral; (3) the Fund must be able to terminate the loan at any time; (4) the Fund must receive reasonable interest on the loan, as well as any dividends, interest or other distributions on the loaned securities, and any increase in market value; (5) the Fund may pay only reasonable custodian fees approved by the Board in connection with the loan; (6) while voting rights on the loaned securities may pass to the borrower, the Fund must have the ability to terminate the loan and regain the right to vote the securities if a material event adversely affecting the investment occurs, and (7) the Fund may not loan its portfolio securities so that the value of the loaned securities is more than one-third of its total asset value, including collateral received from such loans. The lending of securities is considered a form of leverage that is included in a lending Fund’s investment limitation related to borrowings. See “Investment Limitations” below.
The Trust has appointed Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. (“BBH”) as its lending agent in connection with the Funds’ securities lending program. BBH administers the securities lending program in accordance with operational procedures it has established in conjunction with the Funds. As the securities lending agent, BBH lends certain securities, which are held in custody accounts maintained with BBH, to borrowers that have been approved by the Funds. As securities lending agent, BBH is authorized to execute certain agreements and documents and take such actions as may be necessary or appropriate to carry out the securities lending program. The dollar amounts of income and fees and compensation paid to all service providers related to the Funds that participated in securities lending activities during the fiscal year (or period) ended December 31, 2022 were as follows:
 
Anti-Benchmark®
US Core
Equity Fund
Dynamic
Allocation
Fund
Sands Capital
International
Growth Fund
Gross Income from securities lending activities
$22,029
$2,129
$1,192
Fees and/or compensation for securities lending activities and related services
 
 
 
Fees paid to securities lending agent from a revenue split
$3,164
$320
$84
Fees paid for any cash collateral management service (including fees deducted from a pooled cash collateral
reinvestment vehicle) that are not included in the revenue split
$510
$588
$112
Administrative fees not included in revenue split
$
$
$
Indemnification fee not included in revenue split
$
$
$
Rebate (paid to borrower)
$927
$
$630
Other fees not included in revenue split (specify)
$
$
$
Aggregate fees/compensation for securities lending activities
$4,601
$908
$826
Net Income from securities lending activities
$17,428
$1,221
$366
Senior Securities. Senior securities may include any obligation or instrument issued by a Fund evidencing indebtedness. The 1940 Act generally prohibits funds from issuing senior securities, although it does not treat certain transactions as senior securities, such as certain borrowings, and firm commitment agreements and standby commitments, with appropriate earmarking or segregation of assets to cover such obligation. As further outlined in the “Derivatives” subsection, the SEC adopted the “Derivatives Rule” on October 28, 2020, and in doing so announced it would rescind SEC releases, guidance and no-action letters related to funds’ coverage and asset segregation practices. Funds were required to comply with the Derivatives Rule requirements by August 19, 2022.
Short Sales. In a short sale, a Fund sells a security, which it does not own, in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the security. To complete the sale, the Fund must borrow the security (generally from the broker through which the short sale is made) in order to make delivery to the buyer. The Fund must replace the security borrowed by purchasing it at the market price at the time of replacement. The Fund is said to have a “short position” in the securities sold until it delivers them to the broker. The period during which the Fund has a short position can range from one day to more than a year. Until the Fund replaces the security, the proceeds of the short sale are retained by the broker, and the Fund must pay to the broker a negotiated portion of any dividends or interest, which accrue during the period of
23

the loan. A short sale is “against the box” if at all times during which the short position is open, a Fund owns at least an equal amount of the securities or securities convertible into, or exchangeable without further consideration for, securities of the same issue as the securities that are sold short. A short sale against the box is a taxable transaction to the Fund with respect to the securities that are sold short.
To the extent a Fund engages in short sales, such transactions will comply with the Derivatives Rule requirements set forth in the “Derivatives” subsection. Further, if other short positions of the same security are closed out at the same time, a “short squeeze” can occur where demand exceeds the supply for the security sold short. A short squeeze makes it more likely that the Fund will need to replace the borrowed security at an unfavorable price.
Stressed and Distressed Securities Risk. Distressed securities are speculative and involve significant risks in addition to the risks generally applicable to non-investment grade debt securities. Distressed securities bear a substantial risk of default, and may be in default at the time of investment. A Fund will generally not receive interest payments on distressed securities, and there is a significant risk that principal will not be repaid, in full or at all. A Fund may incur costs to protect its investment in distressed securities, which may include seeking recovery from the issuer in bankruptcy. In any reorganization or liquidation proceeding relating to the issuer of distressed securities, a Fund may lose its entire investment or may be required to accept cash or securities with a value less than its original investment. Distressed securities, and any securities received in exchange for distressed securities, will likely be illiquid and may be subject to restrictions on resale.
Time Deposits. Time deposits are non-negotiable receipts issued by a bank in exchange for the deposit of funds. Like a certificate of deposit, it earns a specified rate of interest over a definite period of time; however, it cannot be traded in the secondary market. Time deposits with a withdrawal penalty are considered to be illiquid securities.
Temporary Defensive Investments. A Fund may, for temporary defensive purposes, invest up to 100% of its total assets in money market instruments (including U.S. government securities, bank obligations, commercial paper rated in the highest rating category by an NRSRO and repurchase agreements involving the foregoing securities), shares of money market investment companies (to the extent permitted by applicable law and subject to certain restrictions) and cash. When a Fund invests in defensive investments, it may not achieve its investment goal.
U.S. Government Securities. U.S. government securities are obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies, authorities or instrumentalities. Some U.S. government securities, such as U.S. Treasury bills, U.S. Treasury notes, U.S. Treasury bonds and securities of Ginnie Mae, which differ only in their interest rates, maturities and times of issuance, are supported by the full faith and credit of the United States. Others are supported by: (i) the right of the issuer to borrow from the U.S. Treasury, such as securities of the Federal Home Loan Banks; (ii) the discretionary authority of the U.S. government to purchase the agency’s obligations, such as securities of Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac; or (iii) only the credit of the issuer, such as securities of the Student Loan Marketing Association. No assurance can be given that the U.S. government will provide financial support in the future to U.S. government agencies, authorities or instrumentalities that are not supported by the full faith and credit of the United States.
Securities guaranteed as to principal and interest by the U.S. government, its agencies, authorities or instrumentalities include: (i) securities for which the payment of principal and interest is backed by an irrevocable letter of credit issued by the U.S. government or any of its agencies, authorities or instrumentalities; and (ii) participation interests in loans made to foreign governments or other entities that are so guaranteed. The secondary market for certain of these participation interests is limited and, therefore, may be regarded as illiquid.
Warrants and Rights. Warrants are instruments giving holders the right, but not the obligation, to buy equity or fixed income securities of a company at a given price during a specified period. Rights are similar to warrants but normally have a short life span to expiration. The purchase of warrants or rights involves the risk that a Fund could lose the purchase value of a warrant or right if the right to subscribe to additional shares is not exercised prior to the warrants’ and rights’ expiration. Also, the purchase of warrants and/or rights involves the risk that the effective price paid for the warrants and/or rights added to the subscription price of the related security may exceed the value of the subscribed security’s market price such as when there is no movement in the level of the underlying security. Buying a warrant does not make a Fund a shareholder of the underlying stock. The warrant holder has no voting or dividend rights with respect to the underlying stock. A warrant does not carry any right to assets of the issuer, and for this reason investment in warrants may be more speculative than other equity-based investments.
When-Issued, Delayed Delivery Securities, and Forward Commitment Transactions. A Fund may purchase securities on a when-issued or delayed-delivery basis, in which case delivery of the securities occurs beyond the normal settlement period; payment for or delivery of the securities would be made prior to the reciprocal delivery or payment by the other party to the transaction. When-issued or delayed delivery securities are subject to market fluctuations due to changes in market interest rates and it is possible that the market value at the time of settlement could be higher or lower than the purchase price if the general level of interest rates has changed. Although a Fund generally purchases securities on a when-issued or forward commitment basis with the intention of actually acquiring the securities for its investment portfolio, a Fund may dispose of a when-issued security or forward commitment prior to settlement if it deems appropriate. When-issued or forward settling securities transactions physically settling within 35-days are deemed not to involve a senior security. When-issued or forward settling securities transactions that do not physically settle within 35-days are required to be treated as derivatives transactions in compliance with the Derivatives Rule as outlined in the “Derivatives” subsection.
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INVESTMENT LIMITATIONS
Fundamental Investment Limitations (FOR ALL FUNDS)
The Trust has adopted certain fundamental investment limitations (or policies) designed to reduce the risk of an investment in the Funds. These limitations may not be changed with respect to any Fund without the affirmative vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of that Fund. The vote of a majority of the outstanding shares of a Fund means the vote of the lesser of (1) 67% or more of the shares of the Fund present at a meeting at which the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding shares are present or represented by proxy, or (2) more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Fund. Except for the limitations on borrowings, if a percentage restriction on investment or use of assets set forth below is adhered to at the time a transaction is effected, later changes in percentages resulting from changing market values or other circumstances will not be considered a deviation from these policies.
Several of these fundamental investment limitations include the defined term “1940 Act Laws, Interpretations and Exemptions.” This term means the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, as such statutes, rules and regulations are amended from time to time or are interpreted from time to time by the staff of the SEC and any exemptive order or similar relief applicable to a Fund.
The following fundamental investment limitations apply to each Fund:
1.
Each Fund (with the exception of the Sands Capital International Growth Fund) is a “diversified company” as defined in the 1940 Act. This means that a Fund will not purchase the securities of any issuer if, as a result, the Fund would fail to be a diversified company within the meaning of the 1940 Act Laws, Interpretations and Exemptions. This restriction does not prevent a Fund from purchasing the securities of other investment companies to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act Laws, Interpretations and Exemptions.
Please refer to number 1 of the “Non-Fundamental Investment Limitations” section for further information.
2.
A Fund may not borrow money or issue senior securities, except as permitted by the 1940 Act Laws, Interpretations and Exemptions.
Please refer to number 2 of the “Non-Fundamental Investment Limitations” section for further information.
3.
A Fund may not underwrite the securities of other issuers. This restriction does not prevent a Fund from engaging in transactions involving the acquisition, disposition or resale of its portfolio securities, regardless of whether the Fund may be considered to be an underwriter under the 1933 Act.
4.
A Fund will not make investments that will result in the concentration (as that term may be defined or interpreted by the 1940 Act, Laws, Interpretations and Exemptions) of its investments in the securities of issuers primarily engaged in the same industry. This restriction does not limit a Fund’s investments in (i) obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities, (ii) tax-exempt obligations issued by governments or political subdivisions of governments or (iii) repurchase agreements collateralized by such obligations.
5.
A Fund may not purchase or sell real estate unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments. This restriction does not prevent a Fund from investing in issuers that invest, deal or otherwise engage in transactions in real estate or interests therein, or investing in securities that are secured by real estate or interests therein.
6.
A Fund may not purchase or sell physical commodities unless acquired as a result of ownership of securities or other instruments. This restriction does not prevent a Fund from engaging in transactions involving futures contracts and options thereon or investing in securities that are secured by physical commodities.
7.
A Fund may not make personal loans or loans of its assets to persons who control or are under common control with the Fund, except to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act Laws, Interpretations and Exemptions. This restriction does not prevent a Fund from, among other things, purchasing debt obligations, entering repurchase agreements, lending portfolio securities or investing in loans, including assignments and participation interests.
Please refer to number 3 of the “Non-Fundamental Investment Limitations” section for further information.
Non-Fundamental Investment Limitations (FOR ALL FUNDS)
Each Fund also has adopted certain non-fundamental investment limitations. A non-fundamental investment limitation may be amended by the Board without a vote of shareholders upon 60 day’s notice to shareholders. The non-fundamental investment limitations listed below are in addition to other non-fundamental investment limitations disclosed elsewhere in this SAI and in the prospectus.
The following non-fundamental investment limitations apply to each Fund except the first non-fundamental investment limitations, which does not apply to the Sands Capital International Growth Fund:
1.
In complying with the fundamental investment restriction regarding issuer diversification, a Fund will not, with respect to 75% of
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its total assets, purchase securities of any issuer (other than securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government or any of its agencies or instrumentalities), if, as a result, (i) more than 5% of the Fund’s total assets would be invested in the securities of that issuer, or (ii) the Fund would hold more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of that issuer.
2.
In complying with the fundamental investment restriction regarding borrowing and issuing senior securities, a Fund may borrow money in an amount not exceeding 331/3% of its total assets (including the amount borrowed) less liabilities (other than borrowings).
3.
In complying with the fundamental investment restriction with regard to making loans, a Fund may not make loans if, as a result, more than 331/3% of its total assets would be lent to other parties, except that the Fund may: (i) purchase or hold debt instruments in accordance with its investment objective and policies; (ii) enter into repurchase agreements; and (iii) engage in securities lending as described in this SAI.
4.
The Funds will not invest in any illiquid investment if, immediately after such acquisition, the Fund would have invested more than 15% of its net assets in illiquid investments that are assets.
A Fund will determine compliance with the fundamental and non-fundamental investment restriction percentages above (with the exception of the restriction relating to borrowing) and other investment restrictions in this SAI immediately after and as a result of its acquisition of such security or other asset. Accordingly, a Fund will not consider changes in values, net assets, or other circumstances when determining whether the investment complies with its investment restrictions.
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TRUSTEES AND OFFICERS OF THE TRUST
The following is a list of the Trustees and executive officers of the Trust, the length of time served, principal occupations for the past five years, and, for the Trustees, number of funds overseen in the Touchstone Fund Complex and other directorships held. All funds managed by the Adviser, the “Touchstone Funds”, are part of the “Touchstone Fund Complex.” The Touchstone Fund Complex consists of the Trust, Touchstone Variable Series Trust, Touchstone ETF Trust and Touchstone Funds Group Trust. The Trustees who are not interested persons of the Trust, as defined in the 1940 Act, are referred to as “Independent Trustees.”
Interested Trustees(1):
Name
Address
Year of Birth
Position Held
with Trust
Term of Office
And Length of
Time Served
Principal Occupation(s)
During Past 5 Years
Number
of Funds
Overseen
in the
Touchstone
Fund
Complex(2)
Other
Directorships
Held During the
Past 5 Years(3)
Jill T. McGruder
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1955
Trustee
Until retirement at age
75 or until she resigns or
is removed
Trustee since 1999
President of Touchstone
Funds from 1999 to 2020;
Director and CEO of IFS
Financial Services, Inc. (a
holding company) since
1999; and Senior Vice
President and Chief
Marketing Officer of
Western & Southern
Financial Group, Inc. (a
financial services
company) since 2016.
40
Director, Integrity Life
Insurance Co. and
National Integrity Life
Insurance Co. since 2005;
Director, Touchstone
Securities (the
Distributor) since 1999;
Director, Touchstone
Advisors (the Adviser)
since 1999; Director, W&S
Brokerage Services, Inc.
since 1999; Director, W&S
Financial Group
Distributors, Inc. since
1999; Director, Insurance
Profillment Solutions LLC
since 2014; Director,
Columbus Life Insurance
Co. since 2016; Director,
The Lafayette Life
Insurance Co. since 2016;
Director, Gerber Life
Insurance Company
since 2019; Director,
Western & Southern
Agency, Inc. since 2018;
and Director, LL Global,
Inc. (not-for-profit trade
organization with
operating divisions
LIMRA and LOMA) since
2016.
27

Name
Address
Year of Birth
Position Held
with Trust
Term of Office
And Length of
Time Served
Principal Occupation(s)
During Past 5 Years
Number
of Funds
Overseen
in the
Touchstone
Fund
Complex(2)
Other
Directorships
Held During the
Past 5 Years(3)
E. Blake Moore, Jr.
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1958
President and Trustee
Until retirement at age
75 or until he resigns or
is removed
Trustee since 2021
President, Touchstone
Funds since 2021; Chief
Executive Officer of
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
and Touchstone
Securities, Inc. since
2020; President, Foresters
Investment
Management Company,
Inc. from 2018 to 2020;
President, North
American Asset
Management at
Foresters Financial from
2018 to 2020; Managing
Director, Head of
Americas at UBS Asset
Management from 2015
to 2017; and Executive
Vice President, Head of
Distribution at
Mackenzie Investments
from 2011 to 2014.
40
Trustee, College of
Wooster since 2008; and
Director, UBS Funds from
2015 to 2017.
Independent Trustees:
Name
Address
Year of Birth
Position Held
with Trust
Term of Office
And Length of
Time Served
Principal
Occupation(s)
During Past 5 Years
Number
of Funds
Overseen
in the
Touchstone
Fund Complex(2)
Other
Directorships
Held During the
Past 5 Years(3)
Karen Carnahan
c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1954
Trustee
Until retirement at age
75 or until she resigns
or is removed
Trustee since 2019
Retired; formerly Chief
Operating Officer of
Shred-it (a business
services company)
from 2014 to 2015;
formerly President &
Chief Operating Officer
of the document
management division
of Cintas Corporation
(a business services
company) from 2008
to 2014.
40
Director, Cintas
Corporation since
2019; Director, Boys &
Girls Club of West
Chester/Liberty since
2016; and Board of
Advisors, Best Upon
Request from 2020 to
2021.
William C. Gale
c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1952
Trustee
Until retirement at age
75 or until he resigns
or is removed
Trustee since 2013
Retired; formerly
Senior Vice President
and Chief Financial
Officer of Cintas
Corporation (a
business services
company) from 1995
to 2015.
40
None.
28

Name
Address
Year of Birth
Position Held
with Trust
Term of Office
And Length of
Time Served
Principal
Occupation(s)
During Past 5 Years
Number
of Funds
Overseen
in the
Touchstone
Fund Complex(2)
Other
Directorships
Held During the
Past 5 Years(3)
Susan M. King
c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1963
Trustee
Until retirement at age
75 or until she resigns
or is removed
Trustee since 2021
Formerly, Partner of ID
Fund LLC (2020 to
2021); formerly, Senior
Vice President, Head of
Product and Marketing
Strategy of Foresters
Financial (2018 to
2020); formerly,
Managing Director,
Head of Sales Strategy
and Marketing,
Americas of UBS Asset
Management (2015 to
2017); formerly,
Director, Allianz Funds,
Allianz Funds
Multi-Strategy Trust
and AllianzGI
Institutional
Multi-Series Trust
(2014 to 2015); and
formerly, Director,
Alliance Capital Cash
Management Offshore
Funds (2003 to 2005).
40
Trustee, Claremont
McKenna College
since 2017; Trustee,
Israel Cancer Research
Fund since 2019; and
Board Member of
WHAM! (Women’s
Health Access Matters)
since 2021.
Kevin A. Robie
c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1956
Trustee
Until retirement at age
75 or until he resigns
or is removed
Trustee since 2013
Retired; formerly Vice
President of Portfolio
Management at Soin
LLC (private
multinational holding
company and family
office) from 2004 to
2020.
40
Director, SaverSystems,
Inc. since 2015;
Director, Buckeye
EcoCare, Inc. from
2013 to 2018; Director,
Turner Property
Services Group, Inc.
since 2017; Trustee,
Dayton Region New
Market Fund, LLC
(private fund) since
2010; and Trustee,
Entrepreneurs Center,
Inc. (business
incubator) since 2006.
Sally J. Staley(4)
c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1956
Trustee
Until retirement at age
75 or until she resigns
or is removed
Trustee since 2023
Independent
Consultant to
Institutional Asset
Owners since 2017;
formerly Chief
Investment Officer and
Corporate Officer for
Case Western Reserve
University from 2006
to 2017; formerly
Adviser to Fairport
Asset Management
LLC/Luma Wealth
Advisors from 2011 to
2019.
40
Trustee, College of
Wooster since 2006
(Chair since 2021);
Trustee, Great Lakes
Theater Festival since
2005; and Member of
Advisory Committee,
Certified Investment
Fund Director Institute
from 2015 to 2020.
29

Name
Address
Year of Birth
Position Held
with Trust
Term of Office
And Length of
Time Served
Principal
Occupation(s)
During Past 5 Years
Number
of Funds
Overseen
in the
Touchstone
Fund Complex(2)
Other
Directorships
Held During the
Past 5 Years(3)
William H. Zimmer III
c/o Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1953
Trustee
Until retirement at age
75 or until he resigns
or is removed
Trustee since 2019
Independent Treasury
Consultant since 2014.
40
Director, Deaconess
Associations, Inc.
(healthcare) since
2001; Trustee,
Huntington Funds
(mutual funds) from
2006 to 2015; and
Director, National
Association of
Corporate Treasurers
from 2011 to 2015.
(1)
Ms. McGruder, as a director of the Adviser and the Distributor, and an officer of affiliates of the Adviser and the Distributor, is an “interested person” of the Trust within the meaning of Section 2(a)(19) of the 1940 Act. Mr. Moore, as an officer of the Adviser and the Distributor, is an “interested person” of the Trust within the meaning of Section 2(a)(19) of the 1940 Act.
(2)
As of April 28, 2023, the Touchstone Fund Complex consisted of 19 series of the Trust, 5 series of Touchstone ETF Trust, 12 series of Touchstone Funds Group Trust and 4 variable annuity series of Touchstone Variable Series Trust.
(3)
Each Trustee is also a Trustee of Touchstone ETF Trust, Touchstone Funds Group Trust and Touchstone Variable Series Trust.
(4)
Ms. Staley was elected as a Trustee, effective as of January 1, 2023.
Principal Officers:
Name
Address
Year of Birth
Position Held
with Trust(1)
Term of Office and
Length of Time
Served
Principal Occupation(s)
During Past 5 Years
E. Blake Moore, Jr.
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway,
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1958
President and Trustee
Until resignation, removal or disquali-
fication
President since January 2021
See biography above.
Timothy D. Paulin
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1963
Vice President
Until resignation, removal or disquali-
fication Vice
President since 2010
Senior Vice President of Investment
Research and Product Management of
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
Timothy S. Stearns
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1963
Chief Compliance Officer
Until resignation, removal or disquali-
fication
Chief Compliance Officer since 2013
Chief Compliance Officer of
Touchstone Advisors, Inc. and
Touchstone Securities, Inc.
Terrie A. Wiedenheft
Touchstone Advisors, Inc.
303 Broadway
Suite 1100
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1962
Controller and Treasurer
Until resignation, removal or disquali-
fication
Controller and Treasurer since 2006
Senior Vice President and Chief
Administration Officer within the
Office of the Chief Marketing Officer of
Western & Southern Financial Group
(since 2021); and Senior Vice President,
Chief Financial Officer, and Chief
Operations Officer of IFS Financial
Services, Inc. (a holding company).
30

Name
Address
Year of Birth
Position Held
with Trust(1)
Term of Office and
Length of Time
Served
Principal Occupation(s)
During Past 5 Years
Meredyth A. Whitford-Schultz
Western & Southern Financial Group
400 Broadway
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Year of Birth: 1981
Secretary
Until resignation, removal or disquali-
fication
Secretary since 2018
Senior Counsel - Securities/Registered
Funds of Western & Southern Financial
Group (2015 to present); Associate at
Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP (law firm)
(2014 to 2015); Associate at Bingham
McCutchen LLP (law firm) (2008 to
2014).
(1)Each officer also holds the same office with Touchstone ETF Trust, Touchstone Funds Group Trust and Touchstone Variable Series Trust.
Additional Information about the Trustees
The Board believes that each Trustee’s experience, qualifications, attributes, or skills on an individual basis and in combination with those of the other Trustees lead to the conclusion that the Trustees possess the requisite experience, qualifications, attributes, and skills to serve on the Board. The Board believes that the Trustees’ ability to review critically, evaluate, question, and discuss information provided to them; to interact effectively with the Adviser, sub-advisers, other service providers, counsel and independent auditors; and to exercise effective business judgment in the performance of their duties, support this conclusion. The Board has also considered the contributions that each Trustee can make to the Board and the Funds.
In addition, the following specific experience, qualifications, attributes and skills apply as to the Trustees: Ms. McGruder has experience as a chief executive officer of a financial services company and director of various other businesses, as well as executive and leadership roles within the Adviser; Mr. Moore has experience as a managing director and president of global financial services firms, as well as executive and leadership roles within the Adviser; Ms. Carnahan has experience as a president and chief operating officer of a division of a global company and as treasurer of a global company; Mr. Gale has experience as a chief financial officer, an internal auditor of various global companies, and has accounting experience as a manager at a major accounting firm; Ms. King has experience as a senior sales and marketing executive at global financial services firms; Mr. Robie has portfolio management experience at a private multinational holding company; Ms. Staley has investment experience from positions at various entities, including as chief investment officer for Case Western Reserve University; and Mr. Zimmer has experience as a chief executive officer, chief financial officer, and treasurer of various financial services, telecommunications and technology companies.
In its periodic self-assessment of its effectiveness, the Board considers the complementary individual skills and experience of the individual Trustees primarily in the broader context of the Board’s overall composition so that the Board, as a body, possesses the appropriate (and appropriately diverse) skills and experience to oversee the business of the Funds. References to the qualifications, attributes and skills of Trustees are pursuant to requirements of the SEC, do not constitute holding out the Board or any Trustee as having any special expertise or experience, and shall not impose any greater responsibility on any Trustee or on the Board by reason thereof.
Board Structure
The Board is composed of six Independent Trustees and two Interested Trustees: Jill T. McGruder, who is Chairperson of the Board, and E. Blake Moore, Jr. The Independent Trustees have appointed William C. Gale to serve as the Lead Independent Trustee. Ms. McGruder oversees the day-to-day business affairs of the Trust and communicates with Mr. Gale regularly on various Trust issues, as appropriate. Mr. Gale, among other things, chairs meetings of the Independent Trustees, serves as a spokesperson for the Independent Trustees, and serves as a liaison between the Independent Trustees and the Trust’s management between Board meetings. Except for any duties specified, the designation of Lead Independent Trustee does not impose on such Independent Trustee any duties, obligations, or liability that is greater than the duties, obligations, or liability imposed on such person as a member of the Board, generally. The Independent Trustees are advised at these meetings, as well as at other times, by separate, independent legal counsel.
The Board holds four regular meetings each year to consider and address matters involving the Trust and its Funds. The Board also may hold special meetings to address matters arising between regular meetings. The Independent Trustees also regularly meet outside the presence of management and are advised by independent legal counsel. These meetings may take place in-person or by telephone.
The Board has established a committee structure that includes an Audit Committee and a Governance Committee (discussed in more detail below). The Board conducts much of its work through these Committees. Each Committee is comprised entirely of Independent Trustees, which ensures that the Funds have effective and independent governance and oversight.
The Board reviews its structure regularly and believes that its leadership structure, including having a super-majority of Independent Trustees, coupled with an Interested Chairperson and a Lead Independent Trustee, is appropriate and in the best interests of the Trust because it allows the Board to exercise informed and independent judgment over matters under its purview, and it allocates areas of responsibility among the Committees and the full Board in a manner that enhances effective oversight. The Board believes that having an Interested Chairperson is appropriate and in the best interests of the Trust given: (1) the extensive oversight provided by the Trust’s Adviser
31

over the affiliated and unaffiliated sub-advisers that conduct the day-to-day management of the Funds of the Trust; (2) the extent to which the work of the Board is conducted through the standing Committees; (3) the extent to which the Independent Trustees meet regularly, together with independent legal counsel, in the absence of the Interested Chairperson; and (4) the Interested Chairperson’s additional roles as a director of the Adviser and the Distributor and senior executive of IFS Financial Services, Inc., the Adviser’s parent company, and of other affiliates of the Adviser, which enhance the Board’s understanding of the operations of the Adviser and the role of the Trust and the Adviser within Western & Southern Financial Group, Inc. The Board also believes that the role of the Lead Independent Trustee within the leadership structure is integral to promoting independent oversight of the Funds’ operations and meaningful representation of the shareholders’ interests. In addition, the Board believes its leadership structure facilitates the orderly and efficient flow of information to the Independent Trustees from the Trust’s management.
Board Oversight of Risk
Consistent with its responsibilities for oversight of the Trust and its Funds, the Board, among other things, oversees risk management of each Fund’s investment program and business affairs directly and through the committee structure that it has established. Risks to the Funds include, among others, investment risk, credit risk, liquidity risk, valuation risk and operational risk, as well as the overall business risk relating to the Funds. The Board has adopted, and periodically reviews, policies and procedures designed to address these risks. Under the overall oversight of the Board, the Adviser, sub-advisers, and other key service providers to the Funds, including the administrator, the distributor, the transfer agent, the custodian, and the independent auditors, have also implemented a variety of processes, procedures and controls to address these risks. Different processes, procedures and controls are employed with respect to different types of risks. These processes include those that are embedded in the conduct of regular business by the Board and in the responsibilities of officers of the Trust and other service providers.
The Board requires senior officers of the Trust, including the Chief Compliance Officer (“CCO”), to report to the Board on a variety of matters at regular and special meetings of the Board, including matters relating to risk management. The Board and the Audit Committee receive regular reports from the Trust’s independent auditors on internal control and financial reporting matters. On at least a quarterly basis, the Board meets with the Trust’s CCO, including meetings in executive sessions, to discuss issues related to portfolio compliance and, on at least an annual basis, receives a report from the CCO regarding the effectiveness of the Trust’s compliance program. In addition, the Board also receives reports from the Adviser on the investments and securities trading of the Funds, including their investment performance and asset weightings compared to appropriate benchmarks, as well as reports regarding the valuation of those investments. The Board also receives reports from the Trust’s primary service providers on a periodic or regular basis, including the sub-advisers to the Funds.
Standing Committees of the Board
The Board is responsible for overseeing the operations of the Trust in accordance with the provisions of the 1940 Act and other applicable laws and the Trust’s Declaration of Trust. The Board has established the following Committees to assist in its oversight functions. Each Committee is composed entirely of Independent Trustees.
Audit Committee. All of the Independent Trustees are members of the Audit Committee. The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing the Trust’s accounting and financial reporting policies, practices and internal controls; overseeing the quality and integrity of the Trust’s financial statement and the independent audits thereof; overseeing, or, as appropriate, assisting the Board’s oversight of the Trust’s compliance with legal and regulatory requirements that relate to the Trust’s accounting and financial reporting, internal control over financial reporting and independent audits; approving prior to appointment the engagement of the Trust’s independent auditors and, in connection therewith, to review and evaluate the qualifications, independence and performance of the Trust’s independent auditors; and acting as a liaison between the Trust’s independent auditors and the full Board. Ms. Carnahan is the Chair of the Audit Committee. During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022. the Audit Committee held four meetings.
Governance Committee. All of the Independent Trustees are members of the Governance Committee. The Governance Committee is responsible for overseeing the Trust’s compliance program and compliance issues, procedures for valuing securities and responding to any pricing issues. Mr. Zimmer is the Chair of the Governance Committee. The Governance Committee held four meetings during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022.
In addition, the Governance Committee is responsible for recommending candidates to serve on the Board. The Governance Committee will consider shareholder recommendations for nomination to the Board only in the event that there is a vacancy on the Board. Shareholders who wish to submit recommendations for nominations to the Board to fill the vacancy must submit their recommendations in writing to Mr. William H. Zimmer III, Chair of the Governance Committee, c/o Touchstone Funds, 303 Broadway, Suite 1100, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. Shareholders should include appropriate information on the background and qualifications of any person recommended to the Governance Committee (e.g., a resume), as well as the candidate’s contact information and a written consent from the candidate to serve if nominated and elected. Shareholder recommendations for nominations to the Board will be accepted on an ongoing basis and such recommendations will be kept on file for consideration in the event of a future vacancy on the Board.
32

Trustee Ownership in the Touchstone Fund Complex
The following table reflects the Trustees’ beneficial ownership in the Funds (i.e. dollar range of securities in each Fund) and the Touchstone Fund Complex as of December 31, 2022.
 
 
 
 
Interested Trustees
 
Independent Trustees
Fund
Jill T.
McGruder
E. Blake
Moore, Jr.
 
Karen
Carnahan
Susan M.
King
William C.
Gale
Sally J. Staley(2)
Kevin A.
Robie
William H.
Zimmer III
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
None
None
 
None
None
None
None
None
None
Dynamic Allocation Fund (formerly, Dynamic Global Allocation Fund)
None
None
 
None
None
None
None
None
None
Sands Capital International Growth Fund
None
None
 
None
None
None
None
None
None
Aggregate Dollar Range of Securities in the Touchstone Fund
Complex(1)
Over
$100,000
Over
$100,000
 
$50,001
-$100,000
Over
$100,000
$50,001
-$100,000
$1-$10,000
Over
$100,000
Over
$100,000
(1)
As of April 28, 2023, the Touchstone Fund Complex consisted of 19 series of the Trust, 5 series of Touchstone ETF Trust, 12 series of Touchstone Funds Group Trust and 4 variable annuity series of Touchstone Variable Series Trust.
(2)
Ms. Staley was elected as a Trustee of the Trust effective January 1, 2023.
Trustee Compensation
The following table shows the compensation paid to the Trustees by the Trust and the aggregate compensation paid by the Touchstone Fund Complex during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022.
Name
Compensation from the Trust(1)
Aggregate Compensation from the
Touchstone Fund Complex
Interested Trustees
 
 
Jill T. McGruder
$
$
E. Blake Moore, Jr.
$
$
Independent Trustees(2)
 
 
Karen Carnahan
$90,567
$176,000
William C. Gale
$96,742
$188,000
Susan J. Hickenlooper(3)
$90,567
$176,000
Susan M. King
$82,848
$161,000
Kevin A. Robie
$82,848
$161,000
Sally J. Staley(4)
$
$
William H. Zimmer III
$82,848
$161,000
(1)
As of April 28, 2023, the Touchstone Fund Complex consists of 19 series of the Trust, 5 series of the Touchstone ETF Trust, 4 variable annuity series of Touchstone Variable Series Trust and 12 series of Touchstone Funds Group Trust.
(2)
The Independent Trustees are eligible to participate in the Touchstone Trustee Deferred Compensation Plan, which allows them to defer payment of a specific amount of their Trustee compensation, subject to a minimum quarterly reduction of $1,000. The total amount of deferred compensation accrued by the Independent Trustees from the Touchstone Fund Complex during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 was $60,000.
(3)
Ms.Hickenlooper retired as a Trustee of the Trust effective at the close of business on December 31, 2022.
(4)
As of December 31, 2022, Ms. Staley did not receive any compensation from each Trust, nor any aggregate compensation paid by the Touchstone Fund Complex. Ms. Staley was elected as a Trustee of the Trust effective January 1, 2023.
The following table shows the Trustee quarterly compensation schedule:
 
Retainer
Governance
Committee
Meeting
Attendance
Fees
Audit
Committee
Meeting
Attendance
Fees
Board
Meeting
Attendance
Fees
Retainer and Meeting Attendance Fees
$23,250
$5,500
$5,500
$6,000
Lead Independent Trustee Fees
$6,750
 
 
 
Committee Chair Fees
$1,250
$2,500
$2,500
 
33

 
Retainer
Governance
Committee
Meeting
Attendance
Fees
Audit
Committee
Meeting
Attendance
Fees
Board
Meeting
Attendance
Fees
Telephonic/Virtual Meeting Attendance Fee = $2,500
 
 
 
 
Limited items in-person meeting = $3,500
 
 
 
 
Independent Trustee compensation and Trustee and officer expenses are typically divided equally among the series comprising the Touchstone Fund Complex.
34

THE ADVISER
Touchstone Advisors, Inc. (previously defined as the “Adviser” or “Touchstone Advisors”), is the Funds’ investment adviser under the terms of an advisory agreement (the “Advisory Agreement”) dated March 1, 2006, as amended. Under the Advisory Agreement, the Adviser reviews, supervises, and administers the Funds’ investment program, subject to the oversight of, and policies established by, the Board. The Adviser determines the appropriate allocation of assets to each Fund’s sub-adviser(s).
The Advisory Agreement provides that the Advisor shall not be liable for any error of judgment or mistake of law or for any loss arising out of any investment or for any act or omission in carrying out its duties, but shall not be protected against any liability to the Trust or its shareholders by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, or gross negligence on its part in the performance of its duties or from reckless disregard of its obligations or duties.
The continuance of the Advisory Agreement as to the Funds after the first two years must be specifically approved at least annually (i) by the vote of the Board or by a vote of the shareholders of the Fund, and, in either case, (ii) by the vote of a majority of the Board who are not parties to the Advisory Agreement or “interested persons” (as defined in the 1940 Act) of any party thereto, cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval. The Advisory Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment, and is terminable at any time with respect to any Fund(s), without payment of any penalty, by the Trust’s Board of Trustees or by a vote of the majority of the outstanding voting securities of the affected Fund(s) upon 60 days’ prior written notice to the Adviser and by the Adviser upon 60 days’ prior written notice to the Trust.
The Adviser is a wholly-owned subsidiary of IFS Financial Services, Inc., which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Western-Southern Life Assurance Company. Western-Southern Life Assurance Company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Western & Southern Financial Group, Inc. Western & Southern Financial Group Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Western & Southern Mutual Holding Company (“Western & Southern”). Western & Southern is located at 400 Broadway, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. Ms. Jill T. McGruder may be deemed to be an affiliate of the Adviser because she is a Director of the Adviser and an officer of affiliates of the Adviser. Mr. E. Blake Moore Jr. may be deemed an affiliate of the Adviser because he is an officer of the Adviser. Ms. McGruder and Mr. Moore, by reason of these affiliations, may directly or indirectly receive benefits from the advisory fees paid to the Adviser.
Manager-of-Managers Structure
The SEC has granted an exemptive order that permits the Trust or the Adviser, under certain circumstances, to select or change unaffiliated sub-advisers, enter into new sub-advisory agreements or amend existing sub-advisory agreements without first obtaining shareholder approval (a “manager-of-managers structure”). The Trust, on behalf of each Fund, seeks to achieve its investment goal by using a “manager-of-managers” structure. Under a manager-of-managers structure, the Adviser acts as investment adviser, subject to direction from and oversight by the Board, to allocate and reallocate the Fund’s assets among sub-advisers, and to recommend that the Trustees hire, terminate or replace unaffiliated sub-advisers without shareholder approval. By reducing the number of shareholder meetings that may have to be held to approve new or additional sub-advisers for the Fund, the Trust anticipates that there will be substantial potential cost savings, as well as the opportunity to achieve certain management efficiencies, with respect to any Fund in which the manager-of-managers approach is chosen. Shareholders of a Fund will be notified of a change in its sub-adviser.
Fees Paid to the Adviser
For its services, the Adviser is entitled to receive an investment advisory fee from each Fund at an annualized rate, based on the average daily net assets of the Fund, as set forth below. Each Fund’s advisory fee is accrued daily and paid monthly, based on the Fund’s average net assets during the current month.
Fund
Investment Advisory Fee
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
0.35% on the first $1 billion of average daily net assets;
0.30% on the assets over $1 billion.
Dynamic Allocation Fund (formerly, Dynamic Global Allocation
Fund)
0.25% on the first $1 billion of average daily net assets;
0.225% on the next $1 billion of assets;
0.20% on the next $1 billion of assets; and
0.175% on the assets over $3 billion.
Sands Capital International Growth Fund
0.80% on all assets.
Each Fund shall pay the expenses of its operation, including but not limited to (i) charges and expenses of outside pricing services, (ii) the charges and expenses of auditors; (iii) the charges and expenses of its custodian, transfer agent and administrative agent appointed by the Trust with respect to a Fund; (iv) brokers’ commissions, and issue and transfer taxes chargeable to a Fund in connection with securities transactions to which a Fund is a party; (v) insurance premiums, interest charges, dues and fees for membership in trade associations and all taxes and fees payable to federal, state or other governmental agencies; (vi) fees and expenses involved in registering and maintaining
35

registrations of the Funds with the SEC, state or blue sky securities agencies and foreign countries; (vii) all expenses of meetings of Trustees and of shareholders of the Trust and of preparing, printing and distributing prospectuses, notices, proxy statements and all reports to shareholders and to governmental agencies; (viii) charges and expenses of legal counsel to the Trust and the Independent Trustees; (ix) compensation of the Independent Trustees of the Trust; (x) compliance fees and expenses; and (xi) interest on borrowed money, if any. The compensation and expenses of any officer, Trustee or employee of the Trust who is an affiliated person of the Adviser is paid by the Adviser, except with respect to certain compensation of the Trust's Chief Compliance Officer, which is paid by the Funds. Each class of shares of a Fund pays its pro rata portion of the advisory fee payable by the Fund.
Expense Limitation Agreement. Touchstone Advisors has contractually agreed to waive fees and reimburse expenses to the extent necessary to ensure each Fund’s total annual operating expenses do not exceed the contractual limits set forth in the Fund’s Fees and Expenses table in the Summary section of the Prospectus. Expenses that are not waived or reimbursed by the Adviser include dividend and interest expenses relating to short sales; interest; taxes; brokerage commissions and other transaction costs; portfolio transaction and investment related expenses, including expenses associated with the Fund's liquidity providers; other expenditures which are capitalized in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles; the cost of “Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses,” if any, and other extraordinary expenses not incurred in the ordinary course of business (“Excluded Expenses”). Each Fund bears the costs of these Excluded Expenses. The contractual limits set forth in each Fund's Fees and Expenses table in the Summary section of the Prospectus have been adjusted to include the effect of Rule 12b-1 fees, shareholder servicing fees and other anticipated class specific expenses, if applicable. Fee waivers or expense reimbursements are calculated and applied monthly, based on the Fund’s average net assets during the month. The terms of Touchstone Advisors’ expense limitation agreement provide that Touchstone Advisors is entitled to recoup, subject to approval by the Fund’s Board, such amounts waived or reimbursed for a period of up to three years from the date on which Touchstone Advisors reduced its compensation or assumed expenses for the Fund. No recoupment will occur unless the Fund’s operating expenses are below the expense limitation amount in effect at the time of the waiver or reimbursement. The Fund will make repayments to the Adviser only if such repayment does not cause the annual Fund operating expenses (after the repayment is taken into account) to exceed both (1) the expense cap in place when such amounts were waived or reimbursed and (2) the Fund’s current expense limitation.
Advisory Fees and Fee Waivers or Reimbursements. For the fiscal years ended 2020, 2021 and 2022, the Funds paid advisory fees and received waivers or reimbursements as shown in the following table:
Fund
Date of Fiscal
Period End
Gross Advisory Fee Paid
Fees Waived/Recouped
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund(1)
12/31/2020
$218,882
$183,386
12/31/2021
$176,449
$170,980
12/31/2022
$86,461
$160,279
Dynamic Allocation Fund
12/31/2020
$203,607
$367,610
12/31/2021
$221,461
$373,151
12/31/2022
$176,178
$385,701
Sands Capital International Growth Fund(2)
12/31/2020
N/A
N/A
12/31/2021
$287,571
$165,985
12/31/2022
$223,094
$207,863
(1)
The Fund reduced its advisory fee rate and expense limits on September 12, 2020.
(2)
The Fund commenced operations on March 8, 2021.
36

THE SUB-ADVISERS AND PORTFOLIO MANAGERS
The Adviser has selected sub-advisers (each a “Sub-Adviser” or collectively, the “Sub-Advisers”) to manage all or a portion of a Fund’s assets, as allocated by the Adviser. The Sub-Advisers make the investment decisions for the Fund assets allocated to it, and continuously reviews, supervises and administers a separate investment program, subject to the oversight of, and policies established by, the Board.
Each sub-advisory agreement provides that a Sub-Adviser shall not be protected against any liability to the Trust or its shareholders by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence on its part in the performance of its duties, or from reckless disregard of its obligations or duties thereunder.
For their respective services, each Sub-Adviser receives fees from the Adviser with respect to each Fund that it sub-advises. As described in the prospectus, each Sub-Adviser receives sub-advisory fees with respect to each Fund that it sub-advises. Each Sub-Adviser’s fee with respect to each Fund is accrued daily and paid monthly, based on the Fund’s average net assets allocated to that Sub-Adviser during the current month.
The Adviser pays sub-advisory fees to the Sub-Adviser from its advisory fee. The compensation of any officer, director or employee of each Sub-Adviser who is rendering services to a Fund is paid by each Sub-Adviser. For the fiscal years ended 2020, 2021 and 2022, the Adviser paid the following sub-advisory fees with respect to each Fund:
Fund
Date of Fiscal
Period End
Sub-Advisory Fees Paid
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
12/31/2020
$121,564
12/31/2021
$100,828
12/31/2022
$49,407
Dynamic Allocation Fund
12/31/2020
$65,154
12/31/2021
$70,867
12/31/2022
$56,377
Sands Capital International Growth Fund(1)
12/31/2020
N/A
12/31/2021
$80,880
12/31/2022
$62,745
(1)
The Fund commenced operations on March 8, 2021. The Fund's sub-adviser has agreed to waive certain sub-advisory fees received until Fund assets reach a certain threshold. Amounts shown are net of sub-advisory fee waivers.
The following charts list for each of the Funds’ portfolio managers (i) the number of their other managed accounts per investment category; (ii) the number of and total assets of such other investment accounts managed where the advisory fee is based in the performance of the account; and (iii) their beneficial ownership in their managed Fund(s) at the end of the December 31, 2022 fiscal year. Listed below the charts applicable to each Sub-Adviser’s group of portfolio managers is (i) a description of the portfolio managers’ compensation structure as of December 31, 2022, and (ii) a description of any material conflicts that may arise in connection with the portfolio manager’s management of the Fund’s investments and the investments of the other accounts included in the chart and any material conflicts in allocation of investment opportunities between the Fund and other accounts managed by the portfolio manager as of December 31, 2022.
Sub-Adviser Control. This section presents each Sub-Adviser’s control persons.
Sands Capital Management, LLC (“Sands Capital”) is an SEC registered investment adviser. The firm is controlled by Frank M. Sands.
The employees of TOBAM S.A.S (“TOBAM”) own a majority stake in the company. TOBAM is controlled by its employees.
Wilshire Advisors, LLC (“Wilshire”) is a privately held Subchapter S corporation that is owned by Monica Holdco, Inc.
37

Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
Sub-Adviser: TOBAM
Portfolio Manager/Types of Accounts
Total
Number of
Other
Accounts
Managed
Total Other
Assets (million)
Number of
Other Accounts
Managed subject
to a Performance
Based Advisory Fee
Total Other Assets
Managed subject
to a Performance
Based Advisory
Fee (million)
Ayaaz Allymun
 
 
 
 
Registered Investment Companies
2
$101
0
$0.0
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles
17
$2,447
3
$258.0
Other Accounts
7
$1,083
2
$316.0
Patrick Chedid
 
 
 
 
Registered Investment Companies
2
$101
0
$0.0
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles
17
$2,447
3
$258.0
Other Accounts
7
$1,083
2
$316.0
Mara Maccagnan
 
 
 
 
Registered Investment Companies
2
$101
0
$0.0
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles
17
$2,447
3
$258.0
Other Accounts
7
$1,083
2
$316.0
Guillaume Toison
 
 
 
 
Registered Investment Companies
2
$101
0
$0.0
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles
17
$2,447
3
$258.0
Other Accounts
7
$1,083
2
$316.0
Ownership of Shares of the Fund. The following table indicates for the Fund, the dollar range of shares beneficially owned by the portfolio managers as of December 31, 2022:
 
Dollar Range of Beneficial Ownership
Portfolio Manager
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
Ayaaz Allymun
None
Patrick Chedid
None
Mara Maccagnan
None
Guillaume Toison
None
Compensation. The salary of each employee is determined by his or her background and seniority in the firm. Bonuses are based on the contribution of the employee to the firm’s annual results. Once a year, after an individual performance review, the monthly salary is revised, and bonuses are decided by the executive committee. All employees with at least six months of seniority may have the opportunity to become shareholders of the firm and, as such, are directly concerned with the profits of the firm and the dividends distributed.
Material Conflicts of Interest. As an independent asset management company, TOBAM has no broker/dealer affiliates, and is structurally less likely to encounter conflicts of interest in the course of its business. TOBAM’s investment philosophy is based on providing broad, unbiased exposure to the equity market risk premium, without any style, industry or security-specific preferences or aversions whatsoever. Investment universes are determined and agreed upon with the client, for separately managed accounts, and the universe is completely objective for pooled funds, such as the Funds, and the investment methodology applied to these universes is quantitative. As a result, TOBAM portfolio managers are neither allowed nor incentivized to favor a particular security over another. TOBAM’s conflict of interest policy states that employees are expected to devote 100% of working hours to company business, and also avoid any outside employment, position, association or investment that could interfere or appear to interfere with the employee’s judgment regarding the company’s and its clients’ best interests.
38

Dynamic Allocation Fund
Sub-Adviser: Wilshire
Portfolio Manager/Types of Accounts
Total
Number of
Other
Accounts
Managed
Total Other
Assets (million)
Number of
Other Accounts
Managed subject
to a Performance
Based Advisory Fee
Total Other Assets
Managed subject
to a Performance
Based Advisory
Fee (million)
Nathan Palmer, CFA
 
 
 
 
Registered Investment Companies
19
$2,082,372,654
0
$0.0
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles
5
$873,120,545
0
$0.0
Other Accounts
0
$0
0
$0.0
Anthony Wicklund, CFA, CAIA
 
 
 
 
Registered Investment Companies
19
$2,164,401,962
0
$0.0
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles
1
$82,029,308
0
$0.0
Other Accounts
0
$0
0
$0.0
Ownership of Shares of the Funds. The following table indicates for the Funds, the dollar range of shares beneficially owned by the portfolio managers as of December 31, 2022:
 
Dollar Range of Beneficial Ownership
Portfolio Manager
Dynamic Allocation Fund
Nathan Palmer, CFA
None
Anthony Wicklund, CFA, CAIA
$1 - $10,000
Compensation. Wilshire compensates its portfolio managers for their management of the Funds. The portfolio managers’ compensation consists of salary plus bonus based on established management goals and overall company results.
Material Conflicts of Interest. The portfolio managers’ management of “other accounts” may give rise to potential conflicts of interest in connection with their management of the Funds’ investments, on the one hand, and the investments of the other account, on the other. The other account may have the same investment objective as a Fund. Therefore, a potential conflict of interest may arise as a result of the identical investment objectives, whereby the portfolio managers could favor one account over another. Another potential conflict could include the portfolio managers’ knowledge about the size, timing, and possible market impact of Fund trades, whereby the portfolio managers could use this information to the advantage of another account and to the disadvantage of the Fund.
Sands Capital International Growth Fund
Sub-Adviser: Sands Capital
Portfolio Manager/Types of Accounts
Total
Number of
Other
Accounts
Managed
Total Other
Assets (million)
Number of
Other Accounts
Managed subject
to a Performance
Based Advisory Fee
Total Other Assets
Managed subject
to a Performance
Based Advisory
Fee (million)
Sunil H. Thakor, CFA
 
 
 
 
Registered Investment Companies
2
$110
0
$0.00
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles
29
$2,791
1
$240.09
Other Accounts
19
$2,321
2
$237.56
David E. Levanson, CFA
 
 
 
 
Registered Investment Companies
2
$110
0
$0.00
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles
29
$2,791
1
$240.09
Other Accounts
19
$2,321
2
$237.56
Danielle Menichella, CFA
 
 
 
 
Registered Investment Companies
2
$110
0
$0.00
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles
29
$2,791
1
$240.09
Other Accounts
19
$2,321
2
$237.56
39

Ownership of Shares of the Funds. The following table indicates for the Fund, the dollar range of shares beneficially owned by the portfolio managers as of December 31, 2022:
 
Dollar Range of Beneficial Ownership
Portfolio Manager
Sands Capital International Growth Fund
Sunil H. Thakor, CFA
None
David E. Levanson, CFA
None
Danielle Menichella, CFA
None
Compensation. Investment professionals benefit from a salary competitive in the industry, an annual qualitative bonus based on subjective review of the employees’ overall contribution, and a standard profit sharing plan and 401(k) plan. Additional incentives include equity participation. The investment professionals also participate in an investment results bonus. The investment results bonus is calculated from the pre-tax performance variance of the Sands Capital composite returns and their respective benchmarks over 1, 3, and 5 year periods, weighted towards the 3 and 5 year results.
Material Conflicts of Interest. As an investment adviser to a variety of clients, Sands Capital recognizes there may be actual or potential conflicts of interest inherent in its business. For example, conflicts of interest could result from a portfolio manager’s management of multiple accounts for multiple clients, the execution and allocation of investment opportunities, the use of brokerage commission to obtain research, and personal trading by firm employees. Sands Capital has addressed these conflicts by developing policies and procedures it believes are reasonably designed to treat all clients in a fair and equitable manner over time. Sands Capital’s policies and procedures address such issues as execution of portfolio transactions, aggregation and allocation of trades, directed brokerage, and the use of brokerage commissions. Additionally, Sands Capital maintains a Code of Ethics and Insider Trading Policies and Procedures that address rules on personal trading and insider information.
40

THE ADMINISTRATOR
The Adviser entered into an Administration Agreement with the Trust, whereby the Adviser is responsible for: supplying executive and regulatory compliance services; supervising the preparation of tax returns; coordinating the preparation of reports to shareholders and reports to, and filings with, the Securities and Exchange Commission and state securities authorities, as well as materials for meetings of the Board of Trustees; calculating the daily NAV per share; and maintaining the financial books and records of each Fund.
For its services the Adviser’s annual administrative fee is:
0.145% on the first $20 billion of the aggregate average daily net assets;
0.11% on the next $10 billion of aggregate average daily net assets;
0.09% on the next $10 billion of aggregate average daily net assets; and
0.07% on the aggregate average daily net assets over $40 billion.
The fee is computed and allocated among the Touchstone Fund Complex on the basis of relative daily net assets.
The Adviser has engaged BNY Mellon as the sub-administrative and transfer agent to the Trust. BNY Mellon provides administrative, accounting, and transfer agent services to the Trust and is compensated directly by the Adviser, not the Trust. (See “Transfer and Sub-Administrative Agent” in this SAI.)
The following table shows administration fees incurred by the Funds listed below for the three most recent fiscal years ended December 31.
Fund
Date of Fiscal Period End
Administration Fees Paid
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
12/31/2020
$48,351
12/31/2021
$66,008
12/31/2022
$33,504
Dynamic Allocation Fund
12/31/2020
$117,422
12/31/2021
$116,034
12/31/2022
$95,507
Sands Capital International Growth Fund(1)
12/31/2020
N/A
12/31/2021
$46,110
12/31/2022
$37,659
(1)
The Fund commenced operations on March 8, 2021.
TOUCHSTONE SECURITIES
Touchstone Securities, Inc. (“Touchstone Securities” or the “Distributor”), and the Trust are parties to a distribution agreement (“Distribution Agreement”) with respect to the Funds. The Distributor’s principal place of business is 303 Broadway, Suite 1100, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. The Distributor is a registered broker-dealer, and an affiliate of the Adviser by reason of common ownership. The Distributor is obligated to sell shares on a best efforts basis only against purchase orders for the shares. Shares of each Fund are offered to the public on a continuous basis. The Distributor currently allows concessions to dealers who sell shares of the Funds. The Distributor retains that portion of the sales charge that is not re-allowed to dealers who sell shares of a Fund. The Distributor retains the entire sales charge on all direct initial investments in a Fund and on all investments in accounts with no designated dealer of record.
The table below sets forth the aggregate underwriting commissions on sales of the Funds and the amounts of underwriting commissions retained by the Distributor for the three most recent fiscal years ended December 31.
The Distributor retains the contingent deferred sales charge on redemptions of Class C shares of the Funds that are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge. The following table shows the amounts retained from sales loads and CDSCs for the three most recent fiscal years ended December 31.
41

Fund
Date of Fiscal
Period End
Aggregate
Underwriting
Commissions on Sales
Amount Retained
in Underwriting
Commissions
CDSC Retained
by Distributor
 
 
 
 
Class A
Class C
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
12/31/2020
$648
$55(1)
$
$
12/31/2021
$721
$63
$4
$
12/31/2022
$1,165
$93
$
$
Dynamic Allocation Fund
12/31/2020
$53,179
$5,197
$
$143
12/31/2021
$40,959
$3,615
$9
$1,153
12/31/2022
$28,036
$2,365
$
$319
Sands Capital International Growth Fund(2)
12/31/2020
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
12/31/2021
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
12/31/2022
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
(1)
Prior to October 3, 2020, fees were paid by the Dynamic Equity Fund.
(2)
The Fund commenced operations on March 8, 2021 and currently does not offer Class A or Class C shares.
Ms. McGruder may be deemed to be an affiliate of the Distributor because she is a Director of the Distributor and an officer of affiliates of the Distributor. Mr. Moore may be deemed to be an affiliate of the Distributor because he is an officer of the Distributor. Ms. McGruder and Mr. Moore, by reason of such affiliation, may directly or indirectly be deemed to receive benefits from the underwriting fees paid to the Distributor.
The Distribution Agreement shall remain in effect for a period of two years after the effective date of the agreement and is renewable annually thereafter. The Distribution Agreement may be terminated as to any Fund at any time by (i) the Trust, (a) by the vote of a majority of the Trustees of the Trust who are not “interested persons” of the Trust or the Distributor, (b) by vote of the Board of the Trust, or (c) by the “vote of majority of the outstanding voting securities” of the Fund, or (ii) by the Distributor, in any case without payment of any penalty on not more than 60 days’ nor less than 30 days’ written notice to the other party. The Distribution Agreement shall also automatically terminate in the event of its assignment.
Touchstone Securities may pay from its own resources cash bonuses or other incentives to selected dealers in connection with the sale of shares of the Funds. On some occasions, such bonuses or incentives may be conditioned upon the sale of a specified minimum dollar amount of the shares of the Funds or other funds in the Touchstone Fund Complex during a specific period of time. Such bonuses or incentives may include financial assistance to dealers in connection with conferences, sales or training programs for their employees, seminars for the public, advertising, sales campaigns, and other dealer-sponsored programs or events. The Adviser, at its expense, may also provide additional compensation to certain affiliated and unaffiliated dealers, financial intermediaries or service providers for distribution, administrative or shareholder servicing activities. The Adviser may also reimburse the Distributor for making these payments.
Touchstone Securities, at its expense, may provide additional compensation to financial intermediaries which sell or arrange for the sale of shares of the Touchstone Funds. Other compensation may be offered to the extent not prohibited by federal or state laws or any self-regulatory agency, such as the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”).
The Distributor makes payments for entertainment events it deems appropriate, subject to its guidelines and applicable law. These payments may vary depending upon the nature of the event or the relationship. As of March 31, 2022, the Distributor anticipates that the following broker-dealers or their affiliates will receive additional payments as described in the Fund’s prospectus and SAI:
Name of Broker-Dealer
American Enterprise Investment Services, Inc.
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
Equity Services Inc.
Great West Life & Annuity Insurance Company
Janney Montgomery Scott LLC
LPL Financial Corporation
Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner & Smith, Inc.
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
National Financial Services LLC
Pershing LLC
42

Name of Broker-Dealer
PNC Investments, LLC
Raymond James & Associates, Inc.
RBC Capital Markets Corporation
UBS Financial Services, Inc.
Waddell & Reed, Inc.
Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC
Touchstone Securities is motivated to make payments to the broker-dealers described above because they promote the sale of Fund shares and the retention of those investments by clients of financial advisers. To the extent financial advisers sell more shares of the Funds or retain shares of the Funds in their clients’ accounts, the Adviser benefits from the incremental management and other fees paid to the Adviser by the Funds with respect to those assets.
Your financial intermediary may charge you additional fees or commissions other than those disclosed in this SAI. You can ask your financial intermediary about any payments it receives from Touchstone Securities or the Funds, as well as about fees or commissions it charges. You should consult disclosures made by your financial adviser at the time of purchase.
The Funds may compensate dealers, including the Distributor and its affiliates, based on the average balance of all accounts in the Funds for which the dealer is designated as the party responsible for the account.
The Adviser recommends that the Funds utilize the Dreyfus Government Cash Management Fund - Institutional Shares (the “Dreyfus Fund”) as the cash sweep vehicle for the excess cash of the Funds. Touchstone Securities receives a fee based on a percentage of average daily net assets of the Touchstone Funds invested in the Dreyfus Fund from BNY Mellon Securities Corporation, the distributor of the Dreyfus Fund, for providing certain support services, including monitoring and due diligence. The payment of compensation by BNY Mellon Securities Corporation creates a conflict of interest because the Adviser is incentivized to recommend the Dreyfus Fund over other investment options for which it or its affiliates are not similarly compensated.
Distribution Plans and Shareholder Service Arrangements
Certain Funds have adopted a distribution or shareholder-servicing plan for certain classes of shares which permits a Fund to pay for expenses incurred in the distribution and promotion of its shares pursuant to Rule 12b-1 under the 1940 Act as well as account maintenance and other shareholder services in connection with maintaining such an account. Touchstone Securities may provide those services itself or enter into arrangements under which third parties provide such services and are compensated by the Distributor.
Class A Shares. With respect to its Class A shares, each Fund has adopted a plan of distribution and shareholder service (the “Class A Plan”) under which the Distributor is paid up to, but not exceeding, twenty-five basis points (0.25%) for distribution payments. Of the total compensation authorized, the Fund may pay for shareholder services in an amount up to 0.25%.
Class C Shares. With respect to its Class C shares, each Fund has adopted a plan of distribution and shareholder service (the “Class C Plan” and, together with the Class A Plan, the “Plans”) under which the Distributor is paid up to, but not exceeding, one hundred basis points (1.00%) in the aggregate, with up to twenty-five basis points (0.25%) for shareholder service fees and up to seventy-five basis points (0.75%) for distribution payments.
General Information. In connection with the distribution of shares, the Distributor may use the payments for: (i) compensation for its services in distribution assistance; or (ii) payments to financial institutions and intermediaries such as banks, savings and loan associations, insurance companies, investment counselors, broker-dealers, mutual fund supermarkets and the Distributor’s affiliates and subsidiaries as compensation for services or reimbursement of expenses incurred in connection with distribution assistance.
In addition, the Distributor may use payments to provide or enter into written agreements with service providers who will provide shareholder services, including: (i) maintaining accounts relating to shareholders that invest in shares; (ii) arranging for bank wires; (iii) responding to client inquiries relating to the services performed by the Distributor or service providers; (iv) responding to inquiries from shareholders concerning their investment in shares; (v) assisting shareholders in changing dividend options, account designations and addresses; (vi) providing information periodically to shareholders showing their position in shares; (vii) forwarding shareholder communications from the Funds such as proxies, shareholder reports, annual reports, dividend distribution and tax notices to shareholders; (viii) processing purchase, exchange and redemption requests from shareholders and placing orders with the Funds or the service providers; (ix) processing dividend payments from the Funds on behalf of shareholders; and (x) providing such other similar services as a Fund may reasonably request.
Agreements implementing the Plans (the “Implementation Agreements”), including agreements with dealers wherein such dealers agree for a fee to act as agents for the sale of the Funds’ shares, are in writing and have been approved by the Board. All payments made pursuant to the Plans are made in accordance with written Implementation Agreements. Some financial intermediaries charge fees in excess of the amounts available under the Plans, in which case the Adviser pays the additional fees.
43

The continuance of the Plans and the Implementation Agreements must be specifically approved at least annually by a vote of the Board and by a vote of the Independent Trustees who have no direct or indirect financial interest in the Plans or any Implementation Agreement at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such continuance. A Plan may be terminated at any time by a vote of a majority of the Independent Trustees or by a vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of a Fund or the applicable class of a Fund. In the event a Plan is terminated in accordance with its terms, the affected Fund (or class) will not be required to make any payments for expenses incurred by the Distributor after the termination date. Each Implementation Agreement terminates automatically in the event of its assignment and may be terminated at any time by a vote of a majority of the Independent Trustees or by a vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of a Fund (or the applicable class) on not more than 60 days’ written notice to any other party to the Implementation Agreement. The Plans may not be amended to increase materially the amount to be spent for distribution without shareholder approval. All material amendments to the Plans must be approved by a vote of the Trust’s Board and by a vote of the Independent Trustees.
In approving the Plans, the Trustees determined, in the exercise of their business judgment and in light of their fiduciary duties as Trustees, that there is a reasonable likelihood that the Plans will benefit the Funds and their shareholders. The Board believes that expenditure of the Funds’ assets for distribution expenses under the Plans should assist in the growth of the Funds, which will benefit each Fund and its shareholders through increased economies of scale, greater investment flexibility, greater portfolio diversification, and less chance of disruption of planned investment strategies. The Plans will be renewed only if the Trustees make a similar determination for each subsequent year of the Plans. There can be no assurance that the benefits anticipated from the expenditure of the Funds’ assets for distribution will be realized. While the Plans are in effect, all amounts spent by the Funds pursuant to the Plans and the purposes for which such expenditures were made must be reported quarterly to the Board for its review. Distribution expenses attributable to the sale of more than one class of shares of a Fund will be allocated at least annually to each class of shares based upon the ratio in which the sales of each class of shares bears to the sales of all the shares of the Fund. In addition, the selection and nomination of those Trustees who are not interested persons of the Trust are committed to the discretion of the Independent Trustees during such period.
Jill T. McGruder and E.Blake Moore, Jr., as interested persons of the Trust, may be deemed to have a financial interest in the operation of the Plans and the Implementation Agreements.
The Funds paid the following in distribution and shareholder servicing fees for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022:
 
12b-1 Plan Expenses
Fund
Printing
and
Mailing
Distribution
Services
Compensation
to Broker
Dealers
Compensation
to Sales
Personnel
Service
Providers
Total
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
 
 
 
 
 
 
Class A
$6
$6,357
$7,455
$71
$
$13,889
Class C
$2
$2,835
$7,920
$20
$
$10,777
Dynamic Allocation Fund
 
 
 
 
 
 
Class A
$91
$49,051
$108,188
$5,651
$
$162,981
Class C
$3
$4,921
$10,737
$160
$
$15,821
Sands Capital International Growth Fund*
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
*
The Fund currently does not offer Class A or Class C shares.
BROKERAGE TRANSACTIONS
Decisions to buy and sell securities for the Funds and the placing of the Funds’ securities transactions and negotiation of commission rates where applicable are made by the Sub-Adviser and are subject to oversight by the Adviser and the Board. In the purchase and sale of portfolio securities, the Sub-Adviser’s primary objective will be to obtain the most favorable price and execution for a Fund, taking into account such factors as the overall direct net economic result to a Fund (including commissions, which may not be the lowest available but ordinarily should not be higher than the generally prevailing competitive range), the financial strength and stability of the broker, the efficiency with which the transaction will be effected, the ability to effect the transaction at all where a large block is involved and the availability of the broker or dealer to stand ready to execute possibly difficult transactions in the future.
Each Sub-Adviser is specifically authorized, subject to certain limitations, to pay a trading commission to a broker who provides research services that is higher than the amount of trading commission another broker would have charged for the same transaction. This excess commission recognizes the additional research services rendered by the broker, but only if the Sub- Adviser determines in good faith that the excess commission is reasonable in relation to the value of the research services provided and that a Fund derives or will derive a reasonably significant benefit from such research services.
44

Research services include securities and economic analyses, reports on issuers’ financial conditions and future business prospects, newsletters and opinions relating to interest trends, general advice on the relative merits of possible investment securities for the Funds and statistical services and information with respect to the availability of securities or purchasers or sellers of securities. Although this information is useful to the Funds and the Sub-Advisers, it is not possible to place a dollar value on it. Research services furnished by brokers through whom a Fund effects securities transactions may be used by the Sub-Adviser in servicing all of its accounts and not all such services may be used by the Sub-Adviser in connection with a Fund. The Funds have no obligation to deal with any broker or dealer in the execution of securities transactions. However, the Funds may execute securities transactions on a national securities exchange or in the over-the-counter market conducted on an agency basis. A Fund will not execute any brokerage transactions in its portfolio securities with an affiliated broker if such transactions would be unfair or unreasonable to its shareholders. Over-the-counter transactions will be placed either directly with principal market makers or with broker-dealers. Although the Funds do not anticipate any ongoing arrangements with other brokerage firms, brokerage business may be transacted with other firms. Affiliated broker-dealers of the Trust will not receive reciprocal brokerage business as a result of the brokerage business transacted by the Funds with other brokers.
The Funds may direct transactions to certain brokers in order to reduce brokerage commissions through a commission recapture program offered by Frank Russell Securities, Inc. and Cowen and Company LLC.
In certain instances, there may be securities that are suitable for a Fund as well as for one or more of the respective Sub-Adviser’s other clients. The Sub-Adviser makes investment decisions for a Fund and for its other clients to achieve their respective investment objectives. The sub-Adviser may buy or sell a particular security for one client even though it is buying, selling, or holding the same security for another client. Some simultaneous transactions are inevitable when several clients receive investment advice from the same investment adviser, particularly when the same security is suitable for the investment objectives of more than one client. When two or more clients are simultaneously engaged in the purchase or sale of the same security, the Sub-Adviser will allocate the securities among clients in a fair and equitable manner. This system may detrimentally affect the price of a security purchased, sold, or held by the Fund, but this detrimental effect may be offset by a Fund’s ability to participate in volume transactions, which could lead to better executions for the Fund.
For the fiscal years ended December 31, 2020, 2021 and 2022, the Funds paid the following in aggregate brokerage commissions on portfolio transactions:
 
Aggregate Brokerage Commissions
Fund
2020
2021
2022
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
$35,521
$15,898
$9,125
Dynamic Allocation Fund
$4,269
$819
$3,349
Sands Capital International Growth Fund(1)
N/A
$41,037
$21,355
(1)
The Fund commenced operations on March 8, 2021.
During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, the amount of brokerage transactions and related commissions for the Funds directed to brokers in return for research services were:
Fund
Amount of
Transactions
Directed
to Brokers
Providing
Research
Brokerage
Commissions
Related to
Transactions
Directed to
Brokers
Providing
Research
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
$0
$0
Dynamic Allocation Fund
$0
$0
Sands Capital International Growth Fund
$29,831.532
$10,462
There were no securities of regular broker-dealers held by the Funds for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022.
PROXY VOTING
The Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund and the Sands Capital International Growth Fund have adopted their Sub-Adviser’s policies and procedures for voting proxies relating to portfolio securities held by each Fund, including procedures used when a vote presents a conflict between the interests of the Fund’s shareholders and those of the Sub-Adviser or its affiliates.
The Dynamic Allocation Fund is structured as a fund-of-funds. As such, the Dynamic Allocation Fund will own shares in certain other underlying affiliated Touchstone Funds. The Dynamic Allocation Fund, in its capacity as a shareholder in the underlying funds, may be requested to vote on matters relating to those funds. A potential conflict of interest could arise because the Dynamic Allocation Fund may
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be a large shareholder of an underlying affiliated Touchstone Fund. To reduce this potential conflict, the Dynamic Allocation Fund votes its shares of underlying affiliated Touchstone Funds in the same proportion as the votes of all other shareholders in such underlying affiliated Touchstone Funds.
A copy of the proxy voting policies of each Fund’s Sub-Adviser is attached in Appendix B.
Information about how the Funds voted proxies relating to their portfolio securities during the most recent year ending June 30 is available by August 31st of that year without charge, upon requesting by calling 1.800.543.0407 on the Touchstone website at TouchstoneInvestments.com and on the SEC’s website at sec.gov.
CODE OF ETHICS
The Trust has adopted a Code of Ethics pursuant to Rule 17j-1 under the 1940 Act. In addition, the Adviser, each Sub-Adviser and Distributor have adopted Codes of Ethics pursuant to Rule 17j-1. These Codes of Ethics apply to the personal investing activities of Trustees, officers, and certain employees (“access persons”). Rule 17j-1 and the Codes of Ethics are designed to prevent unlawful practices in connection with the purchase or sale of securities by access persons. Under each Code of Ethics, access persons are permitted to invest in securities (including securities that may be purchased or held by a Fund), but are required to report their personal securities transactions for monitoring purposes. In addition, certain access persons are required to obtain approval before investing in initial public offerings or private placements. Copies of these Codes of Ethics are on file with the SEC, and are available to the public.
Portfolio Turnover
A Fund’s portfolio turnover rate is calculated by dividing the lesser of purchases or sales of portfolio securities for the fiscal year by the monthly average of the value of the portfolio securities owned by the Fund during the fiscal year. High portfolio turnover involves correspondingly greater brokerage commissions and other transaction costs, which will be borne directly by the Fund. High turnover may result in a Fund recognizing greater amounts of income and capital gains, which would increase the amount of taxes payable by shareholders and increase the amount of commissions paid by the Fund. A 100% turnover rate would occur if all of a Fund’s portfolio securities were replaced once within a one-year period. The rate of portfolio turnover will depend upon market and other conditions, and will not be a limiting factor when the Sub-Adviser believes that portfolio changes are appropriate. A Fund may engage in active trading to achieve its investment goals and, as a result, may have substantial portfolio turnover.
During the most recent fiscal years ended December 31 (or periods), the portfolio turnover rate for each Fund was as follows:
 
Date of Fiscal Period End
Portfolio Turnover
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
12/31/2021
59%
12/31/2022
85%
Dynamic Allocation Fund
12/31/2021
20%
12/31/2022
60%
Sands Capital International Growth Fund
12/31/2021(1)(2)
18%
12/31/2022
50%
(1)
Represents the period from commencement of operations (March 8, 2021) through December 31, 2021.
(2)
Not annualized.
DISCLOSURE OF PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS
The Touchstone Funds have adopted policies and procedures for disclosing the Funds’ portfolio holdings to any person requesting this information. These policies and procedures are monitored by the Board through periodic reporting by the Funds’ CCO. No compensation will be received by a Fund, the Adviser, any Sub-Adviser, or any other party in connection with the disclosure of information about portfolio securities.
The procedures prohibit the disclosure of portfolio holdings except under the following conditions:
1.
A request made by a Sub-Adviser for a Fund (or that portion of a Fund) that it manages.
2.
A request by executive officers of the Adviser for routine oversight and management purposes.
3.
For use in preparing and distributing routine shareholder reports, including disclosure to the Funds’ independent registered public accounting firm, typesetter, and printer. Routine shareholder reports are filed as of the end of each fiscal quarter with the SEC within 60 days after the quarter end and routine shareholder reports are distributed to shareholders within 60 days after the applicable six-month semi-annual period. The Funds provide their full holdings to their independent registered public accounting firm annually,
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as of the end of their fiscal year, within one to ten business days after fiscal year end. The Funds provide their full holdings to their typesetter at least 50 days after the end of the calendar quarter. The Funds provide their full holdings to their printer at least 50 days after the applicable six-month semi-annual period.
4.
A request by service providers to fulfill their contractual duties relating to the Fund, subject to approval by the CCO.
5.
A request by a newly hired sub-adviser or sub-adviser candidate prior to the commencement of its duties to facilitate its transition as a new sub-adviser, subject to the conditions set forth in Item 8.
6.
A request by a potential merger candidate for the purpose of conducting due diligence, subject to the conditions set forth in Item 8.
7.
A request by a rating or ranking agency, subject to the conditions set forth in Item 8.
Other portfolio holdings disclosure policies of the Funds include:
The Funds provide their top ten holdings on their publicly available website and to market data agencies monthly, as of the end of a calendar month, generally within 15 days after month end.
The Funds provide their full holdings on their publicly available website and to market data agencies quarterly, as of the end of a calendar quarter, generally within 30 days after quarter end.
You may access this portfolio holdings information via the Funds’ public website at TouchstoneInvestments.com.
8.
The CCO may authorize disclosing non-public portfolio holdings to third parties more frequently or at different periods than as described above prior to when such information is made public, provided that certain conditions are met. The third-party must (i) specifically request in writing the more current non-public portfolio holdings, providing a reasonable basis for the request; (ii) execute an agreement to keep such information confidential, to only use the information for the authorized purpose, and not to use the information for their personal benefit; (iii) agree not to trade on such information, either directly or indirectly; and (iv) unless specifically approved by the CCO in writing, the non-public portfolio holdings are subject to a ten day time delay before dissemination. Any non-public portfolio holdings that are disclosed will not include any material information about a Fund’s trading strategies or pending portfolio transactions.
As of March 31, 2023 one or more Touchstone Funds discloses portfolio holdings information to the following parties based on ongoing arrangements:
Bloomberg LP
Morningstar, Inc.
Style Analytics, Inc.
FactSet Research Systems, Inc.
Employees of the Adviser and the Funds’ Sub-Advisers that are access persons under the Funds’ Code of Ethics have access to Fund holdings on a regular basis, but are subject to confidentiality requirements and trading prohibitions in the Code of Ethics. In addition, custodians of the Funds’ assets and the Funds’ accounting services agent, each of whose agreements contains a confidentiality provision (which includes a duty not to trade on non-public information), have access to the current Fund holdings on a daily basis.
The CCO is authorized to determine whether disclosure of a Fund’s portfolio securities is for a legitimate business purpose and is in the best interests of a Fund and its shareholders. Any conflict between the interests of shareholders and the interests of the Adviser, Touchstone Securities, or any affiliates, will be reported to the Board, which will make a determination that is in the best interests of shareholders.
DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE
The securities of each Fund are valued by the Adviser, which has been designated by the Trustees as the valuation designee for the Funds pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the 1940 Act. The securities of each Fund are valued under the direction of the Adviser and under the general oversight of the Trustees. The Adviser or its delegates may use independent pricing services to obtain valuations of securities. The pricing services rely primarily on prices of actual market transactions as well as on trade quotations obtained from third parties. Prices are generally determined using readily available market prices. For the Dynamic Allocation Fund, shares of the underlying funds are valued at the net asset value of the underlying fund. If market prices are unavailable or believed to be unreliable, the Sub-Administrative Agent will initiate a process by which the Adviser’s Fair Value Committee will make a good faith determination as to the “fair value” of the security using procedures approved by the Trustees. The pricing services may use a matrix system to determine valuations of fixed-income securities when market prices are not readily available. This system considers such factors as security prices, yields, maturities, call features, ratings and developments relating to specific securities in arriving at valuations. The procedures used by any such pricing service and its valuation results are reviewed by the Adviser, as the valuation designee. Some Funds may hold portfolio securities that are listed on foreign exchanges. Under certain circumstances, these investments may be valued under the Adviser’s fair value policies and procedures, such as when U.S. exchanges are open but a foreign exchange is closed.
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Securities with remaining maturities of 60 days or less may be valued by the amortized cost method, which involves valuing a security at its cost on the date of purchase and thereafter (absent unusual circumstances) assuming a constant amortization of maturity of any discount or premium, provided such amount approximates market value.
DESCRIPTION OF SHARES
The Trust’s Declaration of Trust authorizes the issuance of an unlimited number of Funds and shares of each Fund. Each share of a Fund represents an equal proportionate interest in that Fund with each other share. Upon liquidation, shares are entitled to a pro rata share in the net assets of the Fund, after taking into account additional distribution and shareholder servicing expenses attributable to the Class. Shareholders have no preemptive rights. The Declaration of Trust provides that the Trustees of the Trust may create additional series of shares or separate classes of funds. All consideration received by the Trust for shares of any portfolio or separate class and all assets in which such consideration is invested would belong to that portfolio or separate class and would be subject to the liabilities related thereto. Share certificates representing shares will not be issued.
The Trust is an entity of the type commonly known as a Massachusetts business trust. The Trust’s Declaration of Trust states that neither the Trust nor the Trustees, nor any officer, employee or agent of the Trust shall have any power to bind personally any shareholder, nor, except as specifically provided therein, to call upon any shareholder for the payment of any sum of money or assessment whatsoever other than such as the shareholder may at any time personally agree to pay.
The Declaration of Trust provides that a Trustee shall be liable only for his or her own willful defaults and, if reasonable care has been exercised in the selection of officers, agents, employees or investment advisers, shall not be liable for any neglect or wrongdoing of any such person. The Declaration of Trust also provides that the Trust will indemnify its Trustees and officers against liabilities and expenses incurred in connection with actual or threatened litigation in which they may be involved because of their offices with the Trust unless it is determined in the manner provided in the Declaration of Trust that they have not acted in good faith in the reasonable belief that their actions were in the best interests of the Trust. However, nothing in the Declaration of Trust shall protect or indemnify a Trustee against any liability for his or her willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of his or her duties.
Each whole share shall be entitled to one vote as to any matter on which it is entitled to vote and each fractional share shall be entitled to a proportionate fractional vote. Shares issued by each Fund have no preemptive, conversion, or subscription rights. Voting rights are not cumulative. Each Fund, as a separate series of the Trust, votes separately on matters affecting only that Fund. Shareholders of each Class of each Fund will vote separately on matters pertaining solely to that Fund or that Class. The Trust is not required to hold annual meetings of shareholders, but approval will be sought for certain changes in the operation of the Trust and for the election of Trustees under certain circumstances.
In addition, a Trustee may be removed by the remaining Trustees or by shareholders at a special meeting called upon written request of shareholders owning at least 10% of the outstanding shares of the Trust. In the event that such a meeting is requested, the Trust will provide appropriate assistance and information to the shareholders requesting the meeting.
Derivative Claims of Shareholders
The Trust’s Amended and Restated By-Laws (the “By-Laws”) contain provisions regarding derivative claims of shareholders. Under these provisions, a shareholder must make a pre-suit demand upon the Trustees to bring the subject action unless an effort to cause the Trustees to bring such an action is not likely to succeed. For purposes of the foregoing sentence, a demand on the Trustees shall only be deemed not likely to succeed and therefore excused if a majority of the Board, or a majority of any committee of the Board established to consider the merits of such action, has a personal financial interest in the transaction at issue, and a Trustee shall not be deemed interested in a transaction or otherwise disqualified from ruling on the merits of a shareholder demand by virtue of the fact that such Trustee receives remuneration for his service on the Board or on the boards of one or more Trusts that are under common management with or otherwise affiliated with the Trust.
Unless a demand is not required under the foregoing paragraph, the Trustees must be afforded a reasonable amount of time to consider such shareholder request and to investigate the basis of such claim. The Trustees shall be entitled to retain counsel or other advisers in considering the merits of the request and shall require an undertaking by the shareholders making such request to reimburse the Trust for the expense of any such advisers in the event that the Trustees determine not to bring such action.
Forum for Adjudication of Disputes
The By-Laws provide that, unless the Trust consents in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the sole and exclusive forum for (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of the Trust, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any Trustee, officer, or other employee of the Trust to the Trust or the Trust’s shareholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim arising pursuant to the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Declaration of Trust or the By-Laws, (iv) any action to interpret, apply, enforce or determine the validity of the Declaration of Trust or the By-Laws, or (v) any action asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine shall be the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts or the Superior Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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(each, a “Covered Action”). The By-Laws further provide that if any Covered Action is filed in a court other than the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts or the Superior Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (a “Foreign Action”) in the name of any shareholder, such shareholder shall be deemed to have consented to (i) the personal jurisdiction of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts or the Superior Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in connection with any action brought in any such courts to enforce the preceding sentence (an “Enforcement Action”) and (ii) having service of process made upon such shareholder in any such Enforcement Action by service upon such shareholder’s counsel in the Foreign Action as agent for such shareholder.
The By-Laws provide that any person purchasing or otherwise acquiring or holding any interest in shares of beneficial interest of the Trust shall be (i) deemed to have notice of and consented to the provisions of the foregoing paragraph and (ii) deemed to have waived any argument relating to the inconvenience of the forums referenced above in connection with any action or proceeding described in the foregoing paragraph.
This forum selection provision may limit a shareholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with Trustees, officers or other agents of the Trust and its service providers, which may discourage such lawsuits with respect to such claims. If a court were to find the forum selection provision contained in the By-Laws to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, the Trust may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions.
CHOOSING A CLASS OF SHARES
The Funds participate in fund “supermarket” arrangements. In such an arrangement, a program is made available by a broker or other institution (a sponsor) that allows investors to purchase and redeem shares of the Funds through the sponsor of the fund supermarket. In connection with these supermarket arrangements, each Fund has authorized one or more brokers to accept on its behalf purchase and redemption orders. In turn, the brokers are authorized to designate other intermediaries to accept purchase and redemption orders on the Funds’ behalf. As such, a Fund will be deemed to have received a purchase or redemption order when an authorized broker or, if applicable, a broker’s authorized designee, accepts the order. The customer order will be priced at the Fund’s NAV next computed after acceptance by an authorized broker or the broker’s authorized designee. In addition, a broker may charge transaction fees on the purchase or sale of Fund shares. Also in connection with fund supermarket arrangements, the performance of a participating Fund may be compared in publications to the performance of various indices and investments for which reliable performance data is available and compared in publications to averages, performance rankings, or other information prepared by recognized mutual fund statistical services. The Funds’ annual report contains additional performance information and will be made available to investors upon request and without charge.
The Touchstone Funds are intended for sale to residents of the United States, and, with very limited exceptions, are not registered or otherwise offered for sale in other jurisdictions. The above restrictions are generally not applicable to sales in United States territories of Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands or to diplomatic staff members or members of the U.S. military with an APO or FPO address outside of the U.S.. Investors are responsible for compliance with tax, securities, currency exchange or other regulations applicable to redemption and purchase transactions in any state or jurisdiction to which they may be subject. Investors should consult with their financial intermediary and appropriate tax and legal advisers to obtain information on the rules applicable to these transactions.
The shares of the Funds may not be directly or indirectly offered or distributed in any country outside of the United States. If an investor becomes a resident of another jurisdiction after purchasing shares of the Touchstone Funds, the investor will not be able to purchase any additional shares of the Funds (other than reinvestment of dividends and capital gains) or exchange shares of the Touchstone Funds for other U.S. registered Touchstone Funds.
Class A Shares. For initial purchases of Touchstone equity fund Class A shares of $1 million or more and subsequent purchases further increasing the size of a purchaser’s aggregate account value, participating dealers may receive compensation of up to 1.00% (an “Equity Fund Finder’s Fee”) of such purchases from Touchstone Securities according to the following schedule. For these purposes, the Funds are considered Touchstone equity funds.
Touchstone Equity Funds
Amount of Investment
Equity Fund Finder’s Fee
$1 million but less than $5 million
1.00%
$5 million but less than $25 million
0.50%
$25 million or more
0.25%
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Touchstone Fixed Income Funds
Amount of Investment
Fixed Income Fund Finder’s Fee
$500,000 but less than $3 million
1.00%
$3 million but less than $25 million
0.50%
$25 million or more
0.25%
The Distributor does not have an annual reset for Finder’s Fees. In determining a dealer’s eligibility for a Finder’s Fee, all purchases in the Touchstone Fund Complex may be aggregated for that individual shareholder in accordance with a Fund’s Rights of Accumulation Program. Please see the “Choosing a Class of Shares - Reduced Class A Sales Charge” and “Choosing a Class of Shares - Rights of Accumulation Program” sections in the Funds’ prospectus to determine whether accounts may be aggregated for purposes of determining eligibility for a Finder’s Fee. If a Finder’s Fee was paid to a participating dealer, that dealer is not eligible to receive 12b-1 fees on the shares that were used to generate the Finder’s Fee until they have aged for a period of one year. Additionally, if a Finder’s Fee was paid related to a purchase of Class A shares and those shares are redeemed within a year of their purchase, a contingent deferred sales charge (“CDSC”) of up to 1.00% will be charged on the redemption, limited by the amount of the finder’s fee that was paid. Dealers should contact the Distributor for more information on the calculation of the dealer’s commission in the case of combined purchases.
A dealer is eligible for a Finder’s Fee only if the dealer has not previously received a Finder’s Fee on the assets used to meet the required investment amount. Similarly, an exchange from any other Touchstone Fund will not qualify for a Finder’s Fee unless the dealer did not receive any compensation on those assets at the time of the initial investment. In all cases, Touchstone Securities reserves the right to deny payment of a Finder’s Fee if it reasonably believes such a fee has already been paid on those assets.
Class R6 Shares. No dealer compensation is paid from the sale of Class R6 shares of the Fund. Class R6 shares of the Fund are sold at NAV and do not pay a sales charge, Rule 12b-1 fee, impose a CDSC, or make payments to financial intermediaries/ broker dealers for assisting the Distributor in promoting the sales of the Fund’s shares. In addition, neither the Fund nor its affiliates make any type of administrative, service, relationship, or revenue sharing payments in connection with Class R6 shares. An investor transacting in Class R6 shares may be required to pay a commission to a broker for effecting such transactions on an agency basis.
Exchanging Your Shares. Shareholders of one class of a fund may be eligible to exchange their shares for a different share class of the same fund, if offered in their state and such an exchange can be accommodated by their financial institution. Class Y shares may be available through financial institutions that have appropriate selling agreements with Touchstone Securities, or through financial intermediaries that purchase shares for their customers. No front-end sales charges will apply to any such exchange. However, if Class A or Class C share assets have been held less than 12 months and a 1% commission was paid to the broker dealer at the time of purchase, a CDSC of 1% may be assessed on the exchange transaction, which may be processed as a liquidation and a purchase. Shareholders must meet the required minimum investment amount for the receiving fund in order to process such a share class exchange, and if the share class is available for sale in their state and if such an exchange can be accommodated by their financial institution.
For federal income tax purposes, exchanges of one share class for a different share class of the same fund (even if processed as a liquidation and a purchase) should not result in the realization by the investor of a capital gain or loss. There can be no assurance of any particular tax treatment, however, and you are urged and advised to consult with your own tax adviser before entering into a share class exchange.
Automated Share Class Conversions. Effective June 30, 2020 (the “Effective Date”), Class C shares of each Fund automatically convert into Class A shares of the same Fund after they have been held for eight (8) years. The conversion is not considered a taxable event for federal income tax purposes. These automatic conversions are executed without any sales charge (including CDSCs), redemption or transaction fee, or other charge. After such a conversion takes place, the shares will be subject to all features, rights and expenses of Class A shares. If you hold Class C shares through certain financial intermediaries, such as an omnibus account or group retirement recordkeeping platform, your intermediary may not be able to track the amount of time you held your Class C shares purchased before June 30, 2020. In that case, Class C shares held prior to June 30, 2020 would convert to Class A shares eight (8) years after the Effective Date of this policy. In addition, Class C shares held through certain financial intermediaries may convert to Class A shares of the same Fund in a shorter time frame than shares purchased directly from the Fund. Please contact your financial intermediary for further information about its Class C shares to Class A shares conversion policy.
Financial intermediaries may convert shares in a customer or client’s account to a more expensive share class if prior to the conversion the intermediary determines that the higher priced share class is more suitable to the customer’s interests and the intermediary discloses any additional compensation to the customer, including revenue sharing arrangements with the Adviser or Distributor.
If a financial institution or intermediary (a “converting entity”) is initiating a share class conversion(s) for Touchstone Funds on a platform, then the converting entity should contact Touchstone Securities at least 60 days in advance and obtain Touchstone Securities’ approval of the share class conversion.
Additional Information on the CDSC. The CDSC is waived under the following circumstances:
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Any partial or complete redemption following death or disability (as defined in the Code) of a shareholder (including one who owns the shares with his or her spouse as a joint tenant with rights of survivorship) from an account in which the deceased or disabled is named. Touchstone Securities may require documentation prior to waiver of the charge, including death certificates, physicians’ certificates, etc.
Redemptions from a systematic withdrawal plan. If the systematic withdrawal plan is based on a fixed dollar amount or number of shares, systematic withdrawal redemptions are limited to no more than 10% of your account value or number of shares per year, as of the date the transfer agent receives your request. If the systematic withdrawal plan is based on a fixed percentage of your account value, each redemption is limited to an amount that would not exceed 10% of your annual account value at the time of withdrawal.
Redemptions from retirement plans qualified under Section 401 of the Code. The CDSC will be waived for benefit payments made by Touchstone directly to plan participants. Benefit payments will include, but are not limited to, payments resulting from death, disability, retirement, separation from service, required minimum distributions (as described under Section 401(a)(9) of the Code), in-service distributions, hardships, loans and qualified domestic relations orders. The CDSC waiver will not apply in the event of termination of the plan or transfer of the plan to another financial institution.
Redemptions that are mandatory withdrawals from a traditional IRA account after reaching the qualified age based on applicable IRS regulations.
Please see Appendix A – Intermediary-Specific Sales Charge Waivers and Discounts in the prospectus for a description of variations in sales charges and waivers for Fund shares purchased through Ameriprise Financial, Edward D. Jones & Co., Janney Montgomery Scott LLC, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., Raymond James and Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated.
General. The above mentioned CDSC waivers do not apply to Class A share redemptions made within one year of the date of purchase where a Finder’s Fee was paid by Touchstone Securities due to an investment in the Touchstone equity funds totaling $1 million or more or an investment of $500,000 or more Touchstone fixed income funds. All sales charges imposed on redemptions are paid to the Distributor. In determining whether the CDSC is payable, it is assumed that shares not subject to the CDSC are the first redeemed followed by other shares held for the longest period of time. The CDSC will not be imposed upon shares representing reinvested dividends or capital gains distributions, or upon amounts representing share appreciation.
CDSC for Certain Redemptions of Class A Shares. A CDSC is imposed upon certain redemptions of Class A shares of the Funds (or shares into which such Class A shares were exchanged) purchased at NAV due to an individual shareholder investment amount in the Touchstone Fund Complex of $1 million or more where a Finder’s Fee was paid by the Distributor and the shares were redeemed within one year from the date of purchase. The CDSC will be paid to the Distributor and will be equal to the commission percentage paid at the time of purchase as applied to the lesser of (1) the NAV at the time of purchase of the Class A shares being redeemed, or (2) the NAV of such Class A shares at the time of redemption. If a purchase of Class A shares is subject to the CDSC, you will be notified on the confirmation you receive for your purchase. Redemptions of such Class A shares of the Funds held for at least one year will not be subject to the CDSC.
Examples. The following example will illustrate the operation of the CDSC. Assume that you open an account and purchase 1,000 shares at $10 per share and that six months later the NAV per share is $12 and, during such time, you have acquired 50 additional shares through reinvestment of distributions. If at such time you should redeem 450 shares (totaling proceeds of $5,400), then 50 shares will not be subject to the charge because of dividend reinvestment. With respect to the remaining 400 shares, the charge is applied only to the original cost of $10 per share and not to the increase in NAV to $12 per share. Therefore, $4,000 of the $5,400 redemption proceeds will pay the charge. At the rate of 1.00%, the CDSC would be $40 for redemptions of Class C shares. In determining whether an amount is available for redemption without incurring a deferred sales charge, the purchase payments made for all shares in your account are aggregated.
OTHER PURCHASE AND REDEMPTION INFORMATION
Waiver of Minimum Investment Requirements. The minimum and subsequent investment requirements for purchases in the Funds may not apply to:
1.
Any director, officer or other employee* (and their immediate family members**) of Western & Southern Financial Group, Inc. or any of its affiliates or any portfolio adviser or service provider to the Trust.
2.
Any employee benefit plan that is provided administrative services by a third-party administrator that has entered into a special service arrangement with Touchstone Securities.
Class R6 shares held through Touchstone Securities require a $50,000 minimum initial investment and have a $50 subsequent investment minimum. Touchstone does not impose a minimum investment requirement on accounts held through a financial intermediary for Class R6 shares. However, financial intermediaries may set different minimum initial and additional investment requirements, may impose other restrictions or may charge you fees for their services. In addition, a Fund reserves the right to waive investment minimums in the case of significant extenuating circumstances.
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Waiver of Class A Sales Charges. In addition to the categories of purchasers described in the prospectus for whom the sales charge on purchases of Class A shares of the Funds may be waived, Class A shares issued or purchased in the following transactions are not subject to sales charges (and no concessions are paid by the Distributor on such purchases):
1.
Purchases into a Fund by any director, officer, employee* (and their immediate family members**), or current separate account client of or referral by a Sub-Adviser to that particular Fund;
2.
Purchases by any director, officer or other employee* (and their immediate family members**, as defined below) of Western & Southern Financial Group or any of its affiliates; and
3.
Purchases by any employees of BNY Mellon who provide services for the Touchstone Funds, Touchstone Advisors, or Touchstone Securities. Exemptions must be qualified in advance by the Distributor. At the option of the Trust, the front-end sales charge may be included on purchases by such persons in the future.
*
The term “employee” is deemed to include current and retired employees.
**
Immediate family members are defined as the parents, mother-in-law or father-in-law, spouse, brother or sister, brother-in-law or sister-in-law, son-in-law or daughter-in-law, nephew or niece and children, of a registered representative or employee, and any other individual to whom the registered representative or employee provides material support.
Waiver of Class A Sales Charge for Clients of Financial Intermediaries. Touchstone Securities has agreed to waive the Class A sales charge for clients of financial intermediaries as defined in the Appendix to each Funds’ prospectus. In addition to those firms with an Appendix, the following firms have entered into an agreement with Touchstone Securities to offer shares to self-directed investment brokerage accounts that may or may not charge a transaction fee to their customers:
Merrill Lynch
RBC
JP Morgan Securities
Morgan Stanley
Ameriprise Financial
Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.
Raymond James
Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated
Please see Appendix A –- Intermediary-Specific Sales Charge Waivers and Discounts to the Funds’ prospectus for a description of variations in sales charges and waivers for Fund shares purchased through Ameriprise Financial, Edward D. Jones & Co., Janney Montgomery Scott LLC, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., Raymond James and Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated.
Waiver of Class A Sales Charge for former Constellation Shareholders. Shareholders who owned shares of the Trust as of November 17, 2006 who are purchasing additional shares for their accounts or opening new accounts in any Touchstone Fund are not subject to the front-end sales charge for purchases of Class A shares. If you are purchasing shares through a financial intermediary, you must notify the intermediary at the time of purchase that a purchase qualifies for a sales load waiver and you may be required to provide copies of account statements verifying your qualification.
Shareholders who are eligible for the sales charge waivers listed above may open an account with the Fund directly to receive the sales charge waiver.
Class Y Shares “Grandfather” Clause. New purchases of the Class Y shares are no longer available directly through Touchstone Securities. Those shareholders who owned Class Y shares purchased directly through Touchstone Securities prior to February 2, 2009, or those former Old Mutual shareholders who owned Class Z shares which became Class Y shares on April 16, 2012, or those former Fifth Third Mutual Fund Shareholders who owned Institutional Class shares which became Class Y shares on September 10, 2012 may continue to hold Class Y shares of the corresponding Fund(s). In addition, those shareholders may continue to make subsequent purchases into existing accounts of Class Y shares of the Fund(s) they owned prior to February 2, 2009, April 16, 2012, and September 10, 2012, respectively.
Purchases in-Kind. In limited circumstances and subject to the prior consent of the Fund, the Fund may accept payment for shares in securities. Shares may be purchased by tendering payment in-kind in the form of marketable securities, including but not limited to shares of common stock, provided the acquisition of such securities is consistent with the applicable Fund’s investment goal and is otherwise acceptable to the Adviser. Transactions of this type are generally a taxable transaction. Before purchasing shares by tendering payment in-kind, investors are urged and advised to consult with their own tax adviser regarding the tax consequences of such a transaction.
Redemptions in-Kind. Under unusual circumstances, when the Board deems it in the best interests of a Fund’s shareholders, the Fund may make payment for shares repurchased or redeemed in whole or in part in securities of the Fund taken at current value. Should payment be made in securities, the redeeming shareholder will bear the market risk until the securities are sold and the redeeming shareholder will generally incur brokerage costs and other costs in converting such securities to cash. Portfolio securities that are issued in an in-kind redemption will be readily marketable. The Trust has filed an irrevocable election with the SEC under Rule 18f-1 of the 1940 Act wherein
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the Funds are committed to pay redemptions in cash, rather than in-kind, to any shareholder of record of a Fund who redeems during any ninety-day period, the lesser of $250,000 or 1% of a Fund’s NAV at the beginning of such period. Redemptions in-kind are taxable for federal income tax purposes in the same manner as redemptions for cash. The Funds may also use redemption in-kind for certain Fund shares held by ReFlow.
Undeliverable Checks. Dividend and distribution checks issued from non-retirement accounts for less than $25 will be automatically reinvested in the Fund that pays them. If your redemption proceeds, dividend, or distribution check is returned as “undeliverable”, your account will be considered a lost shareholder account, correspondence will be sent to you requesting that you contact the Fund, and the outstanding payment will be deposited into an account for potential escheatment to your state of residence. If you contact the Fund and provide proper documentation to update the address on the account, the Fund will no longer consider your account to be a lost shareholder account, and your outstanding payment will be reissued to your corrected address. Also, if your dividend or distribution check is returned as “undeliverable”, your cash election will be changed automatically and future dividends will be reinvested in the Fund at the per share NAV determined as of the payable date.
Uncashed Checks. All uncashed checks on your account will appear with your monthly or quarterly statement for your convenience. If your redemption proceeds, dividend, or distribution check from a non-retirement account is not cashed within six months (an “outstanding payment”) and the account remains open, the outstanding payment on your account will be cancelled and the proceeds will be reinvested in the Fund at the per share NAV determined as of the date of cancellation, which may be higher or lower than the NAV at which your shares were initially redeemed. In addition, if the payment was for dividends or distributions, your cash election will be automatically changed and future dividends and distributions will be reinvested in the Fund at the per share NAV determined as of the payable date. For outstanding payments in retirement accounts, no action will be taken.
For redemption checks returned as “undeliverable”, the check will be voided and deposited into a lost shareholder account for the Fund. If the account holder contacts the Fund and provides proper documentation to update the address on the account, a check for the previously voided amount will be re-issued to the shareholder and sent to the new address of record.
Fund Shares Purchased by Check. We may delay the processing and payment of a redemption request for shares you recently purchased by check until your check clears, which may take up to 15 days. If you need your money sooner, you should purchase shares by bank wire.
Low Account Balances. (only applicable for shares held through Touchstone Securities directly). If your balance falls below the minimum amount required for your account, based on actual amounts you have invested (as opposed to a reduction from market changes), Touchstone Securities may sell your shares and send the proceeds to you. Touchstone Securities will notify you if your shares are about to be sold and you will have 30 days to increase your account balance to the minimum amount.
Facilitated Transfers. In the event an existing Touchstone shareholder wishes to move money between their Touchstone mutual fund account and a money market fund, Touchstone has partnered with The BNY Mellon Securities Corporation to help facilitate this type of transaction pursuant to certain limitations. Please contact Touchstone Shareholder Services at 1.800.543.0407 for more information if you are interested in pursuing this type of transaction.
DISTRIBUTIONS
A Fund’s dividends and other distributions are taxable to shareholders (other than retirement plans and other tax-exempt investors) whether received in cash or reinvested in additional shares of the Fund. A dividend or distribution paid by a Fund has the effect of reducing the NAV per share on the ex-dividend date by the amount of the dividend or distribution. A dividend or distribution declared shortly after a purchase of shares by an investor would, therefore, represent, in substance, a return of capital to the shareholder with respect to such shares even though it would be subject to federal income taxes. For most shareholders, a statement will be sent to you within 45 days after the end of each year detailing the federal income tax status of your distributions.
Please see “Federal Income Taxes” below for more information on the federal income tax consequences of dividends and other distributions made by the Funds.
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FEDERAL INCOME TAXES
The following discussion summarizes certain U.S. federal income tax considerations affecting the Funds and their shareholders. This discussion is for general information only and does not purport to consider all aspects of U.S. federal income taxation that might be relevant to beneficial owners of shares of the Funds. Therefore, the summary discussion that follows may not be considered to be individual tax advice and may not be relied upon by any shareholder. The summary is based upon current provisions of the Code, applicable U.S. Treasury Regulations (the “Regulations”), and administrative and judicial interpretations thereof, all of which are subject to change, which change could be retroactive, and may affect the conclusions expressed herein. The summary applies only to beneficial owners of a Fund’s shares in whose hands such shares are capital assets within the meaning of Section 1221 of the Code, and may not apply to certain types of beneficial owners of a Fund’s shares, including, but not limited to insurance companies, tax-exempt organizations, shareholders holding a Fund’s shares through tax-advantaged accounts (such as an individual retirement account (an “IRA”), a 401(k) plan account, or other qualified retirement account), financial institutions, pass-through entities, broker-dealers, entities that are not organized under the laws of the United States or a political subdivision thereof, persons who are neither a citizen nor resident of the United States, shareholders holding a Fund’s shares as part of a hedge, straddle or conversion transaction, and shareholders who are subject to the alternative minimum tax. Persons who may be subject to tax in more than one country should consult the provisions of any applicable tax treaty to determine the potential tax consequences to them.
No Fund has requested nor will any Fund request an advance ruling from the IRS as to the federal income tax matters described below. The IRS could adopt positions contrary to those discussed below and such positions could be sustained. In addition, the following discussion applicable to shareholders of a Fund addresses only some of the federal income tax considerations generally affecting investments in such Fund.
Shareholders are advised to consult their own tax adviser with respect to the tax consequences of the ownership, purchase and disposition of an investment in a Fund including, but not limited to, the applicability of state, local, foreign, and other tax laws affecting the particular shareholder and to possible effects of changes in federal or other tax laws.
General. For federal income tax purposes, each Fund is treated as a separate corporation. Each Fund has elected, and intends to continue to qualify for, taxation as a regulated investment company (a “RIC”) under the Code. By qualifying as a RIC, a Fund (but not the shareholders) will not be subject to federal income tax on that portion of its investment company taxable income and realized net capital gains that it distributes to its shareholders.
Shareholders should be aware that investments made by a Fund, some of which are described below, may involve complex tax rules some of which may result in income or gain recognition by the Fund without the concurrent receipt of cash. Although each Fund seeks to avoid significant noncash income, such noncash income could be recognized by a Fund, in which case it may distribute cash derived from other sources in order to meet the minimum distribution requirements described below. Cash to make the required minimum distributions may be obtained from sales proceeds of securities held by a Fund (even if such sales are not advantageous) or, if permitted by its governing documents and other regulatory restrictions, through borrowing the amounts required to be distributed.
Qualification as a Regulated Investment Company. Qualification as a RIC under the Code requires, among other things, that a Fund: (a) derive at least 90% of its gross income for each taxable year from (i) dividends, interest, payments with respect to securities loans and gains from the sale or other disposition of stock, securities or foreign currencies, or other income (including but not limited to gains from options, futures and forward contracts) derived with respect to its business of investing in such stock, securities or currencies, and (ii) net income from interests in qualified publicly traded partnerships (together with (i), the “Qualifying Income Requirement”); (b) diversify its holdings so that, at the close of each quarter of the taxable year: (i) at least 50% of the value of its total assets is comprised of cash, cash items (including receivables), U.S. government securities, securities of other RICs and other securities, with those other securities limited, in respect of any one issuer, to an amount that does not exceed 5% of the value of its total assets and that does not represent more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer; and (ii) not more than 25% of the value of its assets is invested in the securities (other than U.S. government securities or securities of other RICs) of any one issuer or the securities (other than the securities of other RICs) of two or more issuers controlled by it and engaged in the same, similar or related trades or businesses, or the securities of one or more “qualified publicly traded partnerships” (together with (i) the “Diversification Requirement”); and (c) distribute for each taxable year at least the sum of (i) 90% of its investment company taxable income (which includes dividends, taxable interest, taxable original issue discount income, market discount income, income from securities lending, net short-term capital gain in excess of net long-term capital loss, certain net realized foreign currency exchange gains, and any other taxable income other than “net capital gain” as defined below and is reduced by deductible expenses) determined without regard to any deduction for dividends paid; and (ii) 90% of its tax-exempt interest, if any, net of certain expenses allocable thereto (“net tax-exempt interest”) (together with (i), the “Distribution Requirement”).
Each Fund may use “equalization payments” in determining the portion of its net investment income and net realized capital gains that have been distributed. A Fund that elects to use equalization payments will allocate a portion of its investment income and capital gains to the amounts paid in redemption of Fund shares, and such income and gains will be deemed to have been distributed by the Fund for purposes of the distribution requirements described above. This may have the effect of reducing the amount of income and gains that the Fund is required to distribute to shareholders in order for the Fund to avoid federal income tax and excise tax and also may defer the recognition of taxable income by shareholders. This process does not affect the tax treatment of redeeming shareholders and, since the
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amount of any undistributed income and/or gains will be reflected in the value of the Fund’s shares, the total return on a shareholder’s investment will not be reduced as a result of the Fund’s distribution policy. The IRS has not published any guidance concerning the methods to be used in allocating investment income and capital gain to redemptions of shares. In the event that the IRS determines that a Fund is using an improper method of allocation and has under-distributed its net investment income or net realized capital gains for any taxable year, such Fund may be liable for additional federal income or excise tax or may jeopardize its treatment as a RIC.
The U.S. Treasury Department is authorized to promulgate regulations under which gains from foreign currencies (and options, futures, and forward contracts on foreign currency) would constitute qualifying income for purposes of the Qualifying Income Requirement only if such gains are directly related to the principal business of a Fund of investing in stock or securities or options and futures with respect to stock or securities. To date, the U.S. Treasury Department has not issued such regulations.
As a RIC, a Fund generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on the portion of its income and capital gains that it distributes to its shareholders in any taxable year for which it distributes, in compliance with the Code’s timing and other requirements, at least the sum of 90% of its investment company taxable income (determined without regard to the deduction for dividends paid) and 90% of its net tax-exempt interest. Each Fund may retain for investment all or a portion of its net capital gain (i.e., the excess of its net long-term capital gain over its net short-term capital loss). If a Fund retains any investment company taxable income or net capital gain, it will be subject to tax at regular corporate rates on the amount retained. If a Fund retains any net capital gain, it may designate the retained amount as undistributed net capital gain in a notice to its shareholders, who will be (i) required to include in income for federal income tax purposes, as long-term capital gain, their shares of such undistributed amount; and (ii) entitled to credit their proportionate shares of tax paid by such Fund against their federal income tax liabilities, if any, and to claim refunds to the extent the credit exceeds such liabilities. For federal income tax purposes, the tax basis of the shares owned by a shareholder of the Fund will be increased by the amount of undistributed net capital gain included in the shareholder’s gross income and decreased by the federal income tax paid by the Fund on that amount of capital gain.
The Qualifying Income Requirement and Diversification Requirement that must be met under the Code in order for a Fund to qualify as a RIC, as described above, may limit the extent to which it will be able to engage in derivative transactions. Rules governing the federal income tax aspects of derivatives, including swap agreements, are not entirely clear in certain respects, particularly in light of two IRS revenue rulings issued in 2006. Revenue Ruling 2006-1 held that income from a derivative contract with respect to a commodity index is not qualifying income for a RIC. Subsequently, the IRS issued Revenue Ruling 2006-31 in which it stated that the holding in Revenue Ruling 2006-1 “was not intended to preclude a conclusion that the income from certain instruments (such as certain structured notes) that create a commodity exposure for the holder is qualifying income.” Accordingly, the Qualifying Income Requirement may limit each Fund’s ability to invest in commodity-related derivative transactions and other derivative transactions. Each Fund will account for any investments in commodity derivative transactions in a manner it deems to be appropriate; the IRS, however, might not accept such treatment. If the IRS did not accept such treatment, the status of such Fund as a RIC might be jeopardized.
In general, for purposes of the Qualifying Income Requirement described above, income derived from a partnership is treated as qualifying income only to the extent such income is attributable to items of income of the partnership which would be qualifying income if realized directly by the RIC. However, all of the net income of a RIC derived from an interest in a qualified publicly traded partnership (defined as a partnership (x) the interests in which are traded on an established securities market or are readily tradable on a secondary market or the substantial equivalent thereof, and (y) that meets certain qualifying income requirements but derives less than 90% of its income from the qualifying income described in clause (i) of the Qualifying Income Requirement described above) will be treated as qualifying income. In general, such entities will be treated as partnerships for federal income tax purposes if they meet the passive income requirement under Section 7704(c)(2) of the Code. In addition, although in general the passive loss rules of the Code do not apply to RICs, such rules do apply to a RIC with respect to items attributable to an interest in a qualified publicly traded partnership.
For purposes of the Diversification Requirement described above, the term “outstanding voting securities of such issuer” will include the equity securities of a qualified publicly traded partnership.
If a Fund fails to satisfy the Qualifying Income Requirement or the Diversification Requirement in any taxable year, such Fund may be eligible for relief provisions if the failures are due to reasonable cause and not willful neglect and if a penalty tax is paid with respect to each failure to satisfy the applicable requirements. Additionally, relief is provided for certain de minimis failures to satisfy the Diversification Requirements where the Fund corrects the failure within a specified period of time. If the applicable relief provisions are not available or cannot be met, such Fund will fail to qualify as a RIC and will be subject to federal income tax in the same manner as an ordinary corporation at a tax rate of 21% and all distributions from earnings and profits (as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles) to its shareholders will be taxable as ordinary dividend income eligible for the dividends-received deduction for corporate shareholders and for qualified dividend income treatment for non-corporate shareholders.
Excise Tax. If a Fund fails to distribute by December 31 of a calendar year an amount equal to the sum of (1) at least 98% of its taxable ordinary income (excluding capital gains and losses) for such year, (2) at least 98.2% of the excess of its capital gains over its capital losses (as adjusted for certain ordinary losses) for the twelve month period ending on October 31 of such year, and (3) all taxable ordinary income and the excess of capital gains over capital losses for the prior year that were not distributed during such year and on which it did not pay federal income tax, such Fund will be subject to a nondeductible 4% excise tax (the “Excise Tax”) on the undistributed amounts. A
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distribution will be treated as paid on December 31 of the calendar year if it is declared by a Fund in October, November, or December of that year to shareholders of record on a date in such month and paid by it during January of the following year. Such distributions will be taxable to shareholders (other than those not subject to federal income tax) in the calendar year in which the distributions are declared, rather than the calendar year in which the distributions are received. Each Fund generally intends to actually distribute or be deemed to have distributed substantially all of its net income and gain, if any, by the end of each calendar year in compliance with these requirements so that it will generally not be required to pay the Excise Tax. A Fund may in certain circumstances be required to liquidate its investments in order to make sufficient distributions to avoid the Excise Tax liability at a time when its Adviser might not otherwise have chosen to do so. Liquidation of investments in such circumstances may affect the ability of a Fund to satisfy the requirements for qualification as a RIC. However, no assurances can be given that a Fund will not be subject to the Excise Tax and, in fact, in certain instances if warranted, a Fund may choose to pay the Excise Tax as opposed to making an additional distribution.
Capital Loss Carryforwards. For capital losses realized with respect to a tax year of a Fund that exceed the Fund’s capital gains for such year, the Fund may carry such excess capital losses forward indefinitely. The excess of a Fund’s net short-term capital losses over its net long-term capital gain is treated as short-term capital losses arising on the first day of the Fund’s next taxable year and the excess of a Fund’s net long-term capital losses over its net short-term capital gain is treated as long-term capital losses arising on the first day of the Fund’s next taxable year. If carried forward capital losses offset future capital gains, such future capital gains are not subject to Fund-level federal income taxation, regardless of whether they are distributed to shareholders. A Fund cannot carry back or carry forward any net operating losses.
Original Issue Discount and Market Discount. A Fund may acquire debt securities that are treated as having original issue discount (“OID”) (generally a debt obligation with a purchase price less than its principal amount, such as a zero coupon bond). Generally, a Fund will be required to include the OID in income over the term of the debt security, even though it will not receive cash payments for such OID until a later time, usually when the debt security matures. A Fund may make one or more of the elections applicable to debt securities having OID which could affect the character and timing of recognition of income. Inflation-protected bonds generally can be expected to produce OID income as their principal amounts are adjusted upward for inflation. The IRS may treat a portion of the OID includible in income with respect to certain high-yield corporate debt securities as a dividend for federal income tax purposes.
A debt security acquired in the secondary market by a Fund may be treated as having market discount if acquired at a price below redemption value or adjusted issue price if issued with OID. The Fund’s market discount accrues ratably, on a daily basis, over the period from the date of acquisition to the date of maturity even though the Fund will not receive cash. Absent an election by a Fund to include the market discount in income as it accrues, gain on its disposition of such an obligation will be treated as ordinary income rather than capital gain to the extent of the accrued market discount.
In addition, pay-in-kind securities will give rise to income which is required to be distributed and is taxable even though a Fund holding such securities receives no interest payments in cash on such securities during the year.
Each Fund generally will be required to make distributions to shareholders representing the income accruing on the securities, described above, that is currently includable in income, even though cash representing such income may not have been received by such Fund. Cash to pay these distributions may be obtained from sales proceeds of securities held by a Fund (even if such sales are not advantageous) or, if permitted by such Fund’s governing documents, through borrowing the amounts required to be distributed. In the event a Fund realizes net capital gains from such transactions, its shareholders may receive a larger capital gain distribution, if any, than they would have in the absence of such transactions.
Options, Futures and Forward Contracts. The writing (selling) and purchasing of options and futures contracts and entering into forward currency contracts, involves complex rules that will determine for federal income tax purposes the amount, character and timing of recognition of the gains and losses a Fund realizes in connection with such transactions.
Gains and losses on the sale, lapse, or other termination of options and futures contracts, options thereon and certain forward contracts (except certain foreign currency options, forward contracts and futures contracts) will generally be treated as capital gains and losses. Some regulated futures contracts, certain foreign currency contracts, and certain non-equity options (such as certain listed options or options on broad based securities indexes) held by a Fund (“Section 1256 contracts”), other than contracts on which it has made a “mixed-straddle election”, will be required to be “marked-to-market” for federal income tax purposes, that is, treated as having been sold at their market value on the last day of such Fund’s taxable year. These provisions may require a Fund to recognize income or gains without a concurrent receipt of cash. Any gain or loss recognized on actual or deemed sales of Section 1256 contracts will be treated as 60% long-term capital gain or loss and 40% short-term capital gain or loss, although certain foreign currency gains and losses from such contracts may be treated as ordinary income or loss as described below. Transactions that qualify as designated hedges are exempt from the mark-to-market rule, but may require a Fund to defer the recognition of losses on futures contracts, foreign currency contracts and certain options to the extent of any unrecognized gains on related positions held by it.
The tax provisions described above applicable to options, futures and forward contracts may affect the amount, timing, and character of a Fund’s distributions to its shareholders. For example, the Section 1256 rules described above may operate to increase the amount a Fund must distribute to satisfy the minimum distribution requirement for the portion treated as short-term capital gain which will be taxable to its shareholders as ordinary income, and to increase the net capital gain it recognizes, without, in either case, increasing the cash available
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to it. A Fund may elect to exclude certain transactions from the operation of Section 1256, although doing so may have the effect of increasing the relative proportion of net short-term capital gain (taxable as ordinary income) and thus increasing the amount of dividends it must distribute. Section 1256 contracts also may be marked-to-market for purposes of the Excise Tax.
When a covered call or put option written (sold) by a Fund expires such Fund will realize a short-term capital gain equal to the amount of the premium it received for writing the option. When a Fund terminates its obligations under such an option by entering into a closing transaction, it will realize a short-term capital gain (or loss), depending on whether the cost of the closing transaction is less than (or exceeds) the premium received when it wrote the option. When a covered call option written by a Fund is exercised, such Fund will be treated as having sold the underlying security, producing long-term or short-term capital gain or loss, depending upon the holding period of the underlying security and whether the sum of the option price received upon the exercise plus the premium received when it wrote the option is more or less than the basis of the underlying security.
Straddles. Section 1092 deals with the taxation of straddles which also may affect the taxation of options in which a Fund may invest. Offsetting positions held by a Fund involving certain derivative instruments, such as options, futures and forward currency contracts, may be considered, for federal income tax purposes, to constitute “straddles.” Straddles are defined to include offsetting positions in actively traded personal property. In certain circumstances, the rules governing straddles override or modify the provisions of Section 1256, described above. If a Fund is treated as entering into a straddle and at least one (but not all) of its positions in derivative contracts comprising a part of such straddle is governed by Section 1256, then such straddle could be characterized as a “mixed straddle.” A Fund may make one or more elections with respect to mixed straddles. Depending on which election is made, if any, the results with respect to a Fund may differ. Generally, to the extent the straddle rules apply to positions established by a Fund, losses realized by it may be deferred to the extent of unrealized gain in any offsetting positions. Moreover, as a result of the straddle rules, short-term capital loss on straddle positions may be characterized as long-term capital loss, and long-term capital gain may be characterized as short-term capital gain. In addition, the existence of a straddle may affect the holding period of the offsetting positions and cause such sales to be subject to the “wash sale” and “short sale” rules. As a result, the straddle rules could cause distributions that would otherwise constitute “qualified dividend income” to fail to satisfy the applicable holding period requirements, described below, and therefore to be taxed as ordinary income. Further, a Fund may be required to capitalize, rather than deduct currently, any interest expense and carrying charges applicable to a position that is part of a straddle. Because the application of the straddle rules may affect the character and timing of gains and losses from affected straddle positions, the amount which must be distributed to shareholders, and which will be taxed to shareholders as ordinary income or long-term capital gain, may be increased or decreased substantially as compared to the situation where a Fund had not engaged in such transactions.
In circumstances where a Fund has invested in certain pass-through entities, the amount of long-term capital gain that it may recognize from certain derivative transactions with respect to interests in such pass-through entities is limited under the Code’s constructive ownership rules. The amount of long-term capital gain is limited to the amount of such gain a Fund would have had if it directly invested in the pass-through entity during the term of the derivative contract. Any gain in excess of this amount is treated as ordinary income. An interest charge is imposed on the amount of gain that is treated as ordinary income.
Swaps and Derivatives. As a result of entering into swap or derivative agreements, a Fund may make or receive periodic net payments. A Fund may also make or receive a payment when a swap or derivative is terminated prior to maturity through an assignment of the swap or derivative or other closing transaction. Periodic net payments will generally constitute ordinary income or deductions, while termination of a swap or derivative will generally result in capital gain or loss (which will be a long-term capital gain or loss if the Fund has been a party to a swap or derivative for more than one year). With respect to certain types of swaps or derivatives, a Fund may be required to currently recognize income or loss with respect to future payments on such swaps or derivatives or may elect under certain circumstances to mark such swaps or derivatives to market annually for tax purposes as ordinary income or loss.
Rules governing the tax aspects of swap or derivative agreements are not entirely clear in certain respects, in particular whether income generated is Qualifying Income. Accordingly, while each Fund intends to account for such transactions in a manner it deems appropriate, the IRS might not accept such treatment. If the IRS did not accept such treatment, the status of the Fund as a RIC might be adversely affected. The Funds intend to monitor developments in this area. Certain requirements that must be met under the Code in order for each Fund to qualify as a RIC may limit the extent to which a Fund will be able to engage in swap agreements and certain derivatives.
Constructive Sales. Certain rules may affect the timing and character of gain if a Fund engages in transactions that reduce or eliminate its risk of loss with respect to appreciated financial positions. If a Fund enters into certain transactions (including a short sale, an offsetting notional principal contract, a futures or forward contract, or other transactions identified in U.S. Treasury regulations) in property while holding an appreciated financial position in substantially identical property, it will be treated as if it had sold and immediately repurchased the appreciated financial position and will be taxed on any gain (but not loss) from the constructive sale. The character of gain from a constructive sale will depend upon a Fund’s holding period in the appreciated financial position. Loss from a constructive sale would be recognized when the position was subsequently disposed of, and its character would depend on a Fund’s holding period and the application of various loss deferral provisions of the Code.
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In addition, if the appreciated financial position is itself a short sale, acquisition of the underlying property or substantially identical property by a Fund will be deemed a constructive sale. The foregoing will not apply, however, to a Fund’s transaction during any taxable year that otherwise would be treated as a constructive sale if the transaction is closed within 30 days after the end of that year and such Fund holds the appreciated financial position unhedged for 60 days after that closing (i.e., at no time during that 60-day period is such Fund’s risk of loss regarding the position reduced by reason of certain specified transactions with respect to substantially identical or related property, such as having an option to sell, being contractually obligated to sell, making a short sale or granting an option to buy substantially identical stock or securities).
Wash Sales. A Fund may in certain circumstances be impacted by special rules relating to “wash sales.” In general, the wash sale rules prevent the recognition of a loss by a Fund from the disposition of stock or securities at a loss in a case in which identical or substantially identical stock or securities (or an option to acquire such property) is or has been acquired by it within 30 days before or 30 days after the sale.
Short Sales. A Fund may make short sales of securities. Short sales may increase the amount of short-term capital gain realized by a Fund, which is taxed as ordinary income when distributed to its shareholders. Short sales also may be subject to the “Constructive Sales” rules, discussed above.
Tax Credit Bonds. If a Fund holds (directly or indirectly) one or more “tax credit bonds” (defined below) on one or more specified dates during a Fund’s taxable year, and it satisfies the minimum distribution requirement, it may elect for U.S. federal income tax purposes to pass through to shareholders tax credits otherwise allowable to it for that year with respect to such tax credit bonds. A tax credit bond is defined in the Code as a “qualified tax credit bond” (which includes a qualified forestry conservation bond, a new clean renewable energy bond, a qualified energy conservation bond, or a qualified zone academy bond, each of which must meet certain requirements specified in the Code), a “build America bond” (which includes certain qualified bonds issued before January 1, 2011) or certain other bonds specified in the Code. New tax credit bonds may not be issued after December 31, 2017. If a Fund were to make an election, a shareholder of such Fund would be required to include in gross income an amount equal to such shareholder’s proportionate share of the interest income attributable to such credits and would be entitled to claim as a tax credit an amount equal to a proportionate share of such credits. Certain limitations may apply on the extent to which the credit may be claimed.
Other Regulated Investment Companies. The use of a fund-of-funds structure by the Dynamic Allocation Fund could affect the amount, timing, and character of distributions from the Fund, and, therefore, may increase the amount of taxes payable by shareholders. Because the Dynamic Allocation Fund will invest a large portion of its assets in shares of other funds, the distributable income and gains of the Dynamic Allocation Fund will normally consist largely of distributions from the underlying funds in which the Dynamic Allocation Fund invests and gains and losses on disposition of shares of the underlying funds. Generally, the character of the income or capital gains that a Fund receives from another investment company will pass through to the Fund’s shareholders as long as the Fund and the other investment company each qualify as RICs under the Code. However, to the extent that another investment company that qualifies as a RIC realizes net losses on its investments for a given taxable year, a Fund will not be able to recognize its share of those losses until it disposes of shares of such investment company. Moreover, even when a Fund does make such a disposition, a portion of its loss may be recognized as a long-term capital loss.
In addition, in certain circumstances, the “wash sale” rules may apply to a Fund’s sales of underlying fund shares that have generated losses. A wash sale occurs if shares of an underlying fund are sold by a Fund at a loss and the Fund acquires additional shares of that same underlying fund or other substantially identical stock or securities 30 days before or after the date of the sale. The wash sale rules could defer losses in a Fund’s hands on sales of underlying fund shares (to the extent such sales are wash sales) for extended (and, in certain cases, potentially indefinite) periods of time. 
As a result of the foregoing rules, and certain other special rules, it is possible that the amounts of net investment income and net capital gains that a Fund will be required to distribute to shareholders will be greater than such amounts would have been had the Fund invested directly in the securities held by the investment companies in which it invests, rather than investing in shares of the investment companies. For similar reasons, the character of distributions from a Fund (e.g., long-term capital gain, qualified dividend income, etc.) will not necessarily be the same as it would have been had the Fund invested directly in the securities held by the investment companies in which it invests. If the Dynamic Allocation Fund is a “qualified fund-of-funds” (i.e., a RIC that invests at least 50% of its total assets in other RICs at the close of each quarter of its taxable year), it may elect to pass through to its own shareholders foreign tax credits received from underlying funds that make the election to pass such foreign tax credits through to their shareholders (see “Foreign Taxation” below).

The foregoing is only a general description of the federal income tax consequences of a fund-of-funds structure. Accordingly,
prospective purchasers of shares of the Dynamic Allocation Fund are urged to consult their tax advisers with specific reference to their own tax situation, including the potential application of state, local and foreign taxes.
Passive Foreign Investment Companies. A Fund may invest in a non-U.S. corporation, which could be treated as a passive foreign investment company (a “PFIC”) or become a PFIC under the Code. A PFIC is generally defined as a foreign corporation that meets either of the following tests: (1) at least 75% of its gross income for its taxable year is income from passive sources (such as interest, dividends, certain rents and royalties, or capital gains); or (2) an average of at least 50% of its assets produce, or are held for the production of, such passive income. If a Fund acquires any equity interest in a PFIC, such Fund could be subject to federal income tax and interest charges on “excess distributions” received with respect to such PFIC stock or on any gain from the sale of such PFIC stock (collectively “PFIC
58

income”), even if such Fund distributes the PFIC income as a taxable dividend to its shareholders. The balance of the PFIC income will be included in such Fund’s investment company taxable income and, accordingly, will not be taxable to it to the extent it distributes that income to its shareholders. A Fund’s distributions of PFIC income will be taxable as ordinary income even though, absent the application of the PFIC rules, some portion of the distributions may have been classified as capital gain.
A Fund will not be permitted to pass through to its shareholders any credit or deduction for taxes and interest charges incurred with respect to a PFIC. Payment of this tax would therefore reduce a Fund’s economic return from its investment in PFIC shares. To the extent a Fund invests in a PFIC, it may elect to treat the PFIC as a “qualified electing fund” (“QEF”), then instead of the tax and interest obligation described above on excess distributions, such Fund would be required to include in income each taxable year its pro rata share of the QEF’s annual ordinary earnings and net capital gain. As a result of a QEF election, a Fund would likely have to distribute to its shareholders an amount equal to the QEF’s annual ordinary earnings and net capital gain to satisfy the Code’s minimum distribution requirement described herein and avoid imposition of the Excise Tax, even if the QEF did not distribute those earnings and gain to such Fund. In most instances it will be very difficult, if not impossible, to make this election because of certain requirements in making the election.
A Fund may elect to “mark-to-market” its stock in any PFIC. “Marking-to-market,” in this context, means including in ordinary income each taxable year the excess, if any, of the fair market value of the PFIC stock over such Fund’s adjusted basis therein as of the end of that year. Pursuant to the election, a Fund also may deduct (as an ordinary, not capital, loss) the excess, if any, of its adjusted basis in the PFIC stock over the fair market value thereof as of the taxable year-end, but only to the extent of any net mark-to-market gains with respect to that stock it included in income for prior taxable years under the election. A Fund’s adjusted basis in its PFIC stock subject to the election would be adjusted to reflect the amounts of income included and deductions taken thereunder. In either case, a Fund may be required to recognize taxable income or gain without the concurrent receipt of cash.
Foreign Currency Transactions. Foreign currency gains and losses realized by a Fund in connection with certain transactions involving foreign currency-denominated debt instruments, certain options, futures contracts, forward contracts, and similar instruments relating to foreign currency, foreign currencies, and foreign currency-denominated payables and receivables are subject to Section 988 of the Code, which causes such gains and losses to be treated as ordinary income or loss and may affect the amount and timing of recognition of such Fund’s income. In some cases elections may be available that would alter this treatment, but such elections could be detrimental to a Fund by creating current recognition of income without the concurrent recognition of cash. If a foreign currency loss treated as an ordinary loss under Section 988 were to exceed a Fund’s investment company taxable income (computed without regard to such loss) for a taxable year the resulting loss would not be deductible by it or its shareholders in future years. The foreign currency income or loss will also increase or decrease a Fund’s investment company income distributable to its shareholders.
Foreign Taxes. Income received by a Fund from sources within foreign countries may be subject to foreign withholding and other taxes. If a Fund qualifies (by having more than 50% of the value of its total assets at the close of the taxable year consist of stock or securities in foreign corporations or by being a qualified fund of funds) and elects to pass through foreign taxes paid on its investments during the year, such taxes will be reported to you as income. You may, however, be able to claim an offsetting tax credit or deduction on your federal income tax return, depending on your particular circumstances and provided you meet certain holding period and other requirements. Tax-exempt holders of Fund shares, such as qualified tax-advantaged retirement plans, will not benefit from such a deduction or credit.
REITs. A Fund may invest in REITs. Investments in REIT equity securities may require a Fund to accrue and distribute taxable income without the concurrent receipt of cash. To generate sufficient cash to make the requisite distributions, a Fund may be required to sell securities in its portfolio (including when it is not advantageous to do so) that it otherwise would have continued to hold. A Fund’s investments in REIT equity securities may at other times result in its receipt of cash in excess of the REIT’s earnings; if such Fund distributes these amounts, these distributions could constitute a return of capital to its shareholders for federal income tax purposes.
For taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017 and before January 1, 2026, qualified REIT dividends (i.e., REIT dividends other than capital gain dividends and portions of REIT dividends designated as qualified dividend income) are eligible for a 20% federal income tax deduction in the case of individuals, trusts and estates. A Fund that receives qualified REIT dividends may elect to pass the special character of this income through to its shareholders. To be eligible to treat distributions from a Fund as qualified REIT dividends, a shareholder must hold shares of the Fund for more than 45 days during the 91-day period beginning on the date that is 45 days before the date on which the shares become ex dividend with respect to such dividend and the shareholder must not be under an obligation (whether pursuant to a short sale or otherwise) to make related payments with respect to positions in substantially similar or related property. If a Fund does not elect to pass the special character of this income through to shareholders or if a shareholder does not satisfy the above holding period requirements, the shareholder will not be entitled to the 20% deduction for the shareholder's share of the Fund's qualified REIT dividend income).
A Fund may invest in REITs that hold residual interests in REMICs or taxable mortgage pools (“TMPs”), or such REITs may themselves constitute TMPs. Under an IRS notice, and U.S. Treasury regulations that have yet to be issued but may apply retroactively, a portion of a Fund’s income from a REIT that is attributable to the REIT’s residual interest in a REMIC or a TMP (referred to in the Code as an “excess inclusion”) will be subject to federal income tax in all events. This notice also provides, and the regulations are expected to provide, that excess inclusion income of a RIC, such as the Funds, will be allocated to shareholders of the RIC in proportion to the dividends received
59

by such shareholders, with the same consequences as if the shareholders held the related REMIC residual interest or invested in the TMP directly. Tax exempt-shareholders, including a qualified pension plan, an individual retirement account, a 401(k) plan, a Keogh plan and other tax-exempt entities should consider this before investing in a Fund. See “Tax-Exempt Shareholders.”
MLPs. A Fund may invest to a limited degree in MLPs that are treated as qualified publicly traded partnerships for federal income tax purposes. Net income derived from an interest in a qualified publicly traded partnership is included in the sources of income that satisfy the Qualifying Income Requirement. However, under the Diversification Requirement, no more than 25% of the value of a RIC’s total assets at the end of each fiscal quarter may be invested in securities of qualified publicly traded partnerships. If an MLP in which a Fund invests is taxed as a partnership for federal income tax purposes, the Fund will be taxable on its allocable share of the MLP’s income regardless of whether the Fund receives any distribution from the MLP. Thus, the Fund may be required to sell other securities in order to satisfy the distribution requirements to qualify as a RIC and to avoid federal income tax and the Excise Tax. Distributions to a Fund from an MLP that is taxed as a partnership for federal income tax purposes will constitute a return of capital to the extent of the Fund’s basis in its interest in the MLP. If a Fund’s basis is reduced to zero, distributions will generally constitute capital gain for federal income tax purposes.
For taxable years beginning after December 31, 2017 and before January 1, 2026, individuals, trusts and estates are eligible for a 20% federal income tax deduction for certain income from investments in MLPs that is included in the “combined qualified business income amount”. The Code currently does not contain a provision permitting a RIC to pass the special character of this income through to its shareholders. As a result, direct investors in MLPs may be entitled to this deduction while investors that invest in a Fund that invests in MLPs will not.
Distributions. Distributions paid out of a Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits (as determined at the end of the year), whether reinvested in additional shares or paid in cash, are generally taxable and must be reported by each shareholder who is required to file a federal income tax return. Distributions in excess of a Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits, as computed for federal income tax purposes, will first be treated as a return of capital up to the amount of a shareholder’s tax basis in his or her Fund shares and then as capital gain.
For federal income tax purposes, distributions of net investment income are generally taxable as ordinary income, and distributions of gains from the sale of investments that a Fund owned (or is treated as owning) for one year or less will be taxable as ordinary income. Distributions designated by a Fund as “capital gain dividends” (distributions from the excess of net long-term capital gain over net short-term capital losses) will be taxable to shareholders as long-term capital gain regardless of the length of time they have held their shares of such Fund. Such dividends do not qualify as dividends for purposes of the dividends received deduction or for qualified dividend income purposes as described below.
Distributions of “qualified dividend income” received by non-corporate shareholders of a Fund may be eligible for the long-term capital gain rate. A Fund’s distribution will be treated as qualified dividend income and therefore eligible for the long-term capital gain rate to the extent the Fund receives dividend income from taxable domestic corporations and certain qualified foreign corporations, provided that certain holding period and other requirements are met. A corporate shareholder of a Fund may be eligible for the dividends received deduction on such Fund’s distributions attributable to dividends received by such Fund from domestic corporations, which, if received directly by the corporate shareholder, would qualify for such a deduction. For eligible corporate shareholders, the dividends received deduction may be subject to certain reductions, and a distribution by a Fund attributable to dividends of a domestic corporation will be eligible for the deduction only if certain holding period and other requirements are met.
An additional 3.8% Medicare tax is imposed on certain net investment income (including dividends and capital gain distributions received from a Fund and net gains from redemptions or other taxable dispositions of shares of a Fund) 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 a threshold amount.
Each Fund will furnish a statement to shareholders providing the federal income tax status of its dividends and distributions including the portion of such dividends, if any, that qualifies as long-term capital gain.
Different tax treatment, including penalties on certain excess contributions and deferrals, certain pre-retirement and post-retirement distributions, and certain prohibited transactions, is accorded to accounts maintained as qualified retirement plans.
Shareholders are urged and advised to consult their own tax advisers for more information.
Purchases of Fund Shares. Prior to purchasing shares in a Fund, the impact of dividends or distributions which are expected to be or have been declared, but not paid, should be carefully considered. Any dividend or distribution declared shortly after a purchase of shares of a Fund prior to the record date will have the effect of reducing the per share NAV by the per share amount of the dividend or distribution, and to the extent the distribution consists of the Fund’s taxable income, the purchasing shareholder will be taxed on the taxable portion of the dividend or distribution received even though some or all of the amount distributed is effectively a return of capital.
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Sales, Exchanges or Redemptions. Upon the disposition of shares of a Fund (whether by redemption,  sale or exchange), a shareholder may realize a capital gain or loss. Such capital gain or loss will be long-term or short-term depending upon the shareholder’s holding period for the shares. The capital gain will be long-term if the shares were held for more than 12 months and short-term if held for 12 months or less. If a shareholder sells or exchanges Fund shares within 90 days of having acquired such shares and if, before January 31 of the calendar year following the calendar year of the sale or exchange, as a result of having initially acquired those shares, the shareholder subsequently pays a reduced sales charge on a new purchase of shares of the Fund or another Fund, the sales charge previously incurred in acquiring the Fund’s shares generally shall not be taken into account (to the extent the previous sales charges do not exceed the reduction in sales charges on the new purchase) for the purpose of determining the amount of gain or loss on the disposition, but generally will be treated as having been incurred in the new purchase. Any loss realized on a disposition will be disallowed under the “wash sale” rules to the extent that the shares disposed of by the shareholder are replaced by the shareholder (including through dividend reinvestment) within a period of 61 days beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the date of disposition. In such a case, the basis of the shares acquired will be adjusted to reflect the disallowed loss. Any loss realized by a shareholder on a disposition of shares held by the shareholder for six months or less will be treated as a long-term capital loss to the extent of any distributions of capital gain dividends received by the shareholder and disallowed to the extent of any distributions of exempt-interest dividends received by the shareholder with respect to such shares unless the Fund declared exempt-interest dividends on a daily basis in an amount equal to at least 90% of its net tax-exempt interest and distributes such dividends on a monthly or more frequent basis. Capital losses are generally deductible only against capital gains except that individuals may deduct up to $3,000 of capital losses against ordinary income.
The 3.8% Medicare contribution tax (described above) will apply to gains from the sale or exchange of a Fund’s shares.
Backup Withholding. Each Fund (or a financial intermediary, such as a broker, through which a shareholder holds Fund shares) generally is required to withhold, and remit to the U.S. Treasury, subject to certain exemptions, an amount equal to 24% of all distributions and redemption proceeds paid or credited to a shareholder of such Fund if (i) the shareholder fails to furnish such Fund with the correct taxpayer identification number (“TIN”) certified under penalties of perjury, (ii) the shareholder fails to provide a certified statement that the shareholder is not subject to backup withholding, or (iii) the IRS or a broker has notified such Fund that the number furnished by the shareholder is incorrect or that the shareholder is subject to backup withholding as a result of failure to report interest or dividend income. If the backup withholding provisions are applicable, any such distributions or proceeds, whether taken in cash or reinvested in shares, will be reduced by the amounts required to be withheld. Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld may be credited against a shareholder’s U.S. federal income tax liability.
State and Local Taxes. State and local laws often differ from federal income tax laws with respect to the treatment of specific items of income, gain, loss, deduction and credit. Shareholders are urged and advised to consult their own tax advisers for more information.
Non-U.S. Shareholders. Distributions made to non-U.S. shareholders attributable to net investment income generally are subject to U.S. federal income tax withholding at a 30% rate (or such lower rate provided under an applicable income tax treaty). However, a Fund or broker will generally not be required to withhold tax on any amounts paid to a non-U.S. investor with respect to dividends attributable to “qualified short-term gain” (i.e., the excess of net short-term capital gain over net long-term capital loss) designated as such by the Fund and dividends attributable to certain U.S. source interest income that would not be subject to federal withholding tax if earned directly by a non-U.S. person, provided such amounts are properly designated by the Fund. A Fund may choose not to designate such amounts.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a distribution described above is effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business carried on by a non-U.S. shareholder within the U.S. (or, if an income tax treaty applies, is attributable to a permanent establishment in the U. S.), federal income tax withholding and exemptions attributable to foreign persons will not apply and such distribution will be subject to the federal income tax, reporting and withholding requirements generally applicable to U.S. persons described above.
Under U.S. federal tax law, a non-U.S. shareholder is not, in general, subject to federal income tax or withholding tax on capital gains (and is not allowed a deduction for losses) realized on the sale of shares of a Fund or on capital gain dividends, provided that the Fund obtains a properly completed and signed certificate of foreign status, unless (i) such gains or distributions are effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business carried on by the non-U.S. shareholder within the U.S. (or, if an income tax treaty applies, are attributable to a permanent establishment in the U.S. of the non-U.S. shareholder); (ii) in the case of an individual non-U.S. shareholder, the shareholder is present in the U.S. for a period or periods aggregating 183 days or more during the year of the sale and certain other conditions are met; or (iii) the shares of the Fund constitute U.S. real property interests (“USRPIs”), as described below.
Special rules apply to foreign persons who receive distributions from a Fund that are attributable to gains from USRPIs. The Code defines USRPIs to include direct holdings of U.S. real property and any interest (other than an interest solely as a creditor) in a “U.S. real property holding corporation” or former U.S. real property holding corporation. The Code defines a U.S. real property holding corporation as any corporation whose USRPIs make up 50% or more of the fair market value of its USRPIs, its interests in real property located outside the U.S., plus any other assets it uses in a trade or business. In general, if a Fund is a U.S. real property holding corporation (determined without regard to certain exceptions), distributions by the Fund that are attributable to (a) gains realized on the disposition of USRPIs by the Fund and (b) distributions received by the Fund from a lower-tier RIC or REIT that the Fund is required to treat as USRPI gain in its hands will retain their character as gains realized from USRPIs in the hands of the foreign persons and will be subject to U.S. federal withholding tax. In addition, such distributions could result in a foreign shareholder being required to file a U.S. tax return and pay tax on
61

the distributions at regular U.S. federal income tax rates. The consequences to a non-U.S. shareholder, including the rate of such withholding and character of such distributions (e.g., ordinary income or USRPI gain) will vary depending on the extent of the non-U.S. shareholder’s current and past ownership of a Fund.
In addition, if a Fund is a U.S. real property holding corporation or former U. S. real property holding corporation, the Fund may be required to withhold U.S. tax upon a redemption of shares by a greater-than-5% shareholder that is a foreign person, and that shareholder would be required to file a U.S. income tax return for the year of the disposition of the USRPI and pay any additional tax due on the gain. However, no such withholding is generally required with respect to amounts paid in redemption of shares of a Fund if the Fund was a domestically controlled qualified investment entity, or, in certain other limited cases, if a Fund (whether or not domestically controlled) holds substantial investments in RICs that are domestically controlled qualified investment entities.
Subject to the additional rules described herein, federal income tax withholding will apply to distributions attributable to dividends and other investment income distributed by the Funds. The federal income tax withholding rate may be reduced (and, in some cases, eliminated) under an applicable tax treaty between the U.S. and the non-U.S. shareholder’s country of residence or incorporation. In order to qualify for treaty benefits, a non-U.S. shareholder must comply with applicable certification requirements relating to its foreign status (generally by providing a Fund with a properly completed Form W-8BEN).
Sections 1471-1474 of the Code and the U.S. Treasury and IRS guidance issued thereunder (collectively, the “Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act” or “FATCA”) generally requires a Fund to obtain information sufficient to identify the status of each of its shareholders. If a shareholder fails to provide this information or otherwise fails to comply with FATCA, a Fund may be required to withhold under FATCA at a rate of 30% with respect to that shareholder on Fund dividends and distributions. Proposed regulations (effective while pending) eliminate the withholding tax that was scheduled to apply, starting in 2019, to the proceeds of the sale, redemption, or exchange of Fund shares. A Fund may disclose the information that it receives from (or concerning) its shareholders to the IRS, non-U.S. taxing authorities or other parties as necessary to comply with FATCA, related intergovernmental agreements or other applicable law or regulation. Each investor is urged to consult its tax adviser regarding the applicability of FATCA and any other reporting requirements with respect to the investor’s own situation, including investments through an intermediary.
Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts and Foreign Financial Assets Reporting Requirements. A shareholder that owns directly or indirectly more than 50% by vote or value of a Fund, is urged and advised to consult its own tax adviser regarding its filing obligations with respect to FinCen Form 114, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts.
Tax-Exempt Shareholders. A tax-exempt shareholder could realize unrelated business taxable income (“UBTI”) by virtue of its investment in a Fund if shares in the Fund constitute debt financed property in the hands of the tax-exempt shareholder within the meaning of Code Section 514(b).
It is possible that a tax-exempt shareholder of a Fund will also recognize UBTI if such Fund recognizes “excess inclusion income” (as described above) derived from direct or indirect investments in REMIC residual interests or TMPs. Furthermore, any investment in a residual interest of a CMO that has elected to be treated as a REMIC can create complex tax consequences, especially if a Fund has state or local governments or other tax-exempt organizations as shareholders.
In addition, special tax consequences apply to charitable remainder trusts (“CRTs”) that invest in RICs that invest directly or indirectly in residual interests in REMICs or in TMPs.
Tax Shelter Reporting Regulations. Under U.S. Treasury regulations, if a shareholder recognizes a loss of $2 million or more for an individual shareholder or $10 million or more for a corporate shareholder, the shareholder must file with the IRS a disclosure statement on Form 8886. The fact that a loss is reportable under these regulations does not affect the legal determination of whether the taxpayer’s treatment of the loss is proper. Shareholders are urged and advised to consult their own tax advisers to determine the applicability of these regulations in light of their individual circumstances.
Shareholders are urged and advised to consult their own tax adviser with respect to the tax consequences of an investment in a Fund including, but not limited to, the applicability of state, local, foreign and other tax laws affecting the particular shareholder and to possible effects of changes in federal or other tax laws.
CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL SECURITY HOLDERS
Persons or organizations beneficially owning more than 25% of the outstanding shares of a Fund are presumed to “control” the Fund. As a result, those persons or organizations could have the ability to influence an action taken by a Fund if such action requires a shareholder vote.
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As of March 31, 2023 the name, address and percentage ownership of each entity or person that owned of record or beneficially 5% or more of the outstanding shares of any class of a Fund are as follows:
Fund Name and Share Class
Name and Address
Percentage
of Class
Anti-Benchmark US Core Equity Fund
Class A
MLPF & S THE SOLE BENEFIT OF
FOR IT'S CUSTOMERS
ATTN FUND ADMISTRATION
4800 DEER LAKE DR EAST-2ND FLR
JACKSONVILLE FL 32246
24.64%
 
MORGAN STANLEY SMITH BARNEY LLC
FOR THE EXCLUSIVE BENEFIT OF ITS
CUSTOMERS
1 NEW YORK PLAZA FL 12
NEW YORK NY 10004-1901
12.09%
 
LPL FINANCIAL
4701 EXECUTIVE DR
SAN DIEGO CA 92121
10.47%
 
UBS WM USA FBO
SPEC CDY A/C EXL BEN CUSTOMERS
OF UBSFSI
1000 HARBOR BLVD
WEEHAWKEN, NJ 07086
8.66%
 
FIRST CLEARING LLC
SPECIAL CUSTODY ACCT FOR THE
EXCLUSIVE BENEFIT OF CUSTOMER
2801 MARKET ST
SAINT LOUIS MO 63103-2523
8.56%
 
PERSHING LLC
1 PERSHING PLAZA
JERSEY CITY NJ 07399
5.93%
Anti-Benchmark US Core Equity Fund
Class C
LPL FINANCIAL
4701 EXECUTIVE DR
SAN DIEGO CA 92121
78.62%
 
NATIONAL FINANCIAL SERVICES LLC
499 WASHINGTON BLVD
JERSEY CITY, NJ 07310
5.40%
 
ROGER D KRUMLAUF TOD
SUBJECT TO STA TOD RULES
4468 CAMBRIDGE DR
PORT HURON MI 48060-7209
5.31%*
Anti-Benchmark US Core Equity Fund
Class Y
UBS WM USA FBO
SPEC CDY A/C EXL BEN CUSTOMERS
OF UBSFSI
1000 HARBOR BLVD
WEEHAWKEN, NJ 07086
13.31%
 
LPL FINANCIAL
4701 EXECUTIVE DR
SAN DIEGO CA 92121
8.57%
 
CHARLES SCHWAB & CO INC
SPECIAL CUSTODY ACCOUNT
FOR BENEFIT OF CUSTOMERS
ATTN MUTUAL FUNDS
101 MONTGOMERY ST
SAN FRANCISCO CA 94104-4151
8.22%
 
NATIONAL FINANCIAL SERVICES CORP
(FBO) OUR CUSTOMERS
ATTN MUTUAL FUNDS DEPARTMENT 4TH FL
499 WASHINGTON BLVD
JERSEY CITY NJ 07310-2010
6.55%
63

Fund Name and Share Class
Name and Address
Percentage
of Class
Anti-Benchmark US Core Equity Fund
Institutional Class
WESTERN SOUTHERN FINANCIAL GROUP
400 BROADWAY
CINCINNATI OH 45202
98.57%*
Dynamic Allocation Fund Class A
MLPF & S THE SOLE BENEFIT OF
FOR IT'S CUSTOMERS
ATTN FUND ADMISTRATION
4800 DEER LAKE DR EAST-2ND FLR
JACKSONVILLE FL 32246
7.07%
Dynamic Allocation Fund Class C
AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INVESTMENTS INC
707 2ND AVE S
MINNEAPOLIS MN 55402-2405
11.09%
 
LPL FINANCIAL
4701 EXECUTIVE DR
SAN DIEGO CA 92121
9.64%
 
FIRST CLEARING LLC
SPECIAL CUSTODY ACCT FOR THE
EXCLUSIVE BENEFIT OF CUSTOMER
2801 MARKET ST
SAINT LOUIS MO 63103-2523
9.18%
 
CHARLES PETRUSKY &
AMANDA PETRUSKY JTWROS
LAUREL MD 20723
8.85%*
 
CHARLES SCHWAB & CO INC
SPECIAL CUSTODY ACCT FBO CUSTOMERS
ATTN MUTUAL FUND OPERATIONS
211 MAIN ST
SAN FRANCISCO CA 94105-1905
7.92%
Dynamic Allocation Fund Class Y
EMPOWER TRUST FBO
VARIOUS FASCORE LLC RECORDKEPT PLAN
C/O FASCORE LLC
8515 E ORCHARD RD 2T2
GREENWOOD VILLAGE CO 80111
22.24%
 
LPL FINANCIAL
4701 EXECUTIVE DR
SAN DIEGO CA 92121
13.40%
 
CHARLES SCHWAB & CO INC
SPECIAL CUSTODY ACCT FBO CUSTOMERS
ATTN MUTUAL FUND OPERATIONS
211 MAIN ST
SAN FRANCISCO CA 94105-1905
13.19%
 
NATIONAL FINANCIAL SERVICES CORP
(FBO) OUR CUSTOMERS
ATTN MUTUAL FUNDS DEPARTMENT 4TH FL
499 WASHINGTON BLVD
JERSEY CITY NJ 07310-2010
8.01%
 
RAYMOND JAMES & ASSOCIATES
OMNIBUS FOR MUTUAL FUNDS
ATTN: COURTNEY WALLER
880 CARILLON PKWY
ST PETERSBURG FL 33716-1100
7.68%
 
MATRIX TRUST COMPANY AS AGENT FOR
NEWPORT TRUST COMPANY
SHANNON AND ASSOCIATES, LLP 401(K)
PROFIT SHARING PLAN
35 IRON POINT CIRCLE
FOLSOM CA 95630
7.25%
64

Fund Name and Share Class
Name and Address
Percentage
of Class
 
MLPF & S THE SOLE BENEFIT OF
FOR IT'S CUSTOMERS
ATTN FUND ADMISTRATION
4800 DEER LAKE DR EAST-2ND FLR
JACKSONVILLE FL 32246
5.15%
Sands Capital International Growth
Fund Class Y
CHARLES SCHWAB & CO INC
101 MONTGOMERY ST
SAN FRANCISCO CA 94104
66.98%
 
PERSHING LLC
1 PERSHING PLAZA
JERSEY CITY NJ 07399
23.30%
 
TD AMERITRADE INC FOR THE
EXCLUSIVE BENEFIT OF OUR CLIENTS
PO BOX 2226
OMAHA NE 68103-2226
8.91%
Sands Capital International Growth
Fund Institutional Class
CHARLES SCHWAB & CO INC
101 MONTGOMERY ST
SAN FRANCISCO CA 94104
57.00%
 
TD AMERITRADE INC FOR THE
EXCLUSIVE BENEFIT OF OUR CLIENTS
PO BOX 2226
OMAHA NE 68103-2226
23.24%
 
NATIONAL FINANCIAL SERVICES CORP
(FBO) OUR CUSTOMERS
ATTN MUTUAL FUNDS DEPARTMENT 4TH FL
499 WASHINGTON BLVD
JERSEY CITY NJ 07310-2010
19.04%
Sands Capital International Growth
Fund Class R6
WESTERN & SOUTHERN LIFE
AND INSURANCE COMPANY
400 BROADWAY MS 80
CINCINNATI OH 45202
99.99%*
*
Indicates that shares are held beneficially.
As of March 31, 2023, the Trustees and principal officers of the Trust as a group owned of record or beneficially less than 1% of any class of each Fund’s outstanding shares, with the exception of the Institutional Class of the Sands Capital International Growth Fund. Trustees and principal officers of the Trust as a group beneficially owned approximately 3.32% of the Institutional Class of the Sands Capital International Growth Fund as of March 31, 2023; however this ownership percentage represents less than 1% of the total outstanding shares of Sands Capital International Growth Fund.
CUSTODIAN
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. (“BBH”), 50 Post Office Square, Boston, Massachusetts 02110, is the Trust’s custodian. BBH acts as the Trust’s depository, safe keeps its portfolio securities, collects all income and other payments with respect thereto, disburses money as instructed and maintains records in connection with its duties.
LEGAL COUNSEL
K&L Gates LLP, State Street Financial Center, One Lincoln Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02111, serves as counsel to the Trust.
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
The firm of Ernst & Young LLP, 221 E. 4th Street, Suite 2900, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202, has been selected as the independent registered public accounting firm for the Trust for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2023. Ernst & Young LLP will perform an annual audit of the Trust’s financial statements, and advise the Trust as to certain accounting matters.
65

TRANSFER AND SUB-ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT
Transfer Agent. The Trust’s transfer agent is BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc. (“BNY Mellon IS”), 4400 Computer Drive, Westborough, Massachusetts 01581. BNY Mellon IS maintains the records of each shareholder’s account, answers shareholders’ inquiries concerning their accounts, processes purchases and redemptions of the Funds’ shares, acts as dividend and distribution disbursing agent and performs other shareholder servicing functions. For providing transfer agent and shareholder services to the Trust, BNY Mellon IS receives a monthly per account fee from each Fund, plus out of-pocket expenses.
The Funds may also pay a fee to certain servicing organizations (such as broker-dealers and financial institutions) that provide sub-transfer agency services. These services include maintaining shareholder records, processing shareholder transactions and distributing communications to shareholders.
Sub-Administrative Agent. The Adviser provides administrative services to the Trust under an Administration Agreement and has sub-contracted certain accounting and administrative services to The Bank of New York Mellon (“BNY Mellon”). The sub-administrative services sub-contracted to BNY Mellon include certain accounting and pricing services, SEC and state security filings, providing executive and administrative services, and providing reports for meetings of the Board. The Adviser pays BNY Mellon a sub-administrative fee out of its administration fee.
Set forth below are the sub-administrative fees paid by the Adviser to BNY Mellon with respect to each Fund during the fiscal years (or periods) ended December 31.
Fund
Date of Fiscal Period End
Sub-Administration
Fees Paid
Anti-Benchmark® US Core Equity Fund
12/31/2020
$22,516
12/31/2021
$25,899
12/31/2022
$21,070
Dynamic Allocation Fund
12/31/2020
$27,874
12/31/2021
$29,394
12/31/2022
$25,588
Sands Capital International Growth Fund(1)
12/31/2020
N/A
12/31/2021
$20,398
12/31/2022
$21,691
(1)
The Fund commenced operations on March 8, 2021.
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The Funds’ audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, including the notes thereto and the report of Ernst & Young LLP thereon, included in the annual report to shareholders (the “Annual Report”), are hereby incorporated into this SAI by reference. A copy of the Trust’s prospectus and the Annual Report may be obtained without charge by writing to the Trust at P.O. Box 534467, Pittsburgh, PA 15253-4467, by calling 1.800.543.0407, or by downloading a copy at TouchstoneInvestments.com/Resources. You may also obtain the annual report or unaudited semi-annual report, as well as other information about the Trust, from the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov.
TSF-54CC-TST-SAI-2304
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APPENDIX A — DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES RATINGS(1)
Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”) and Standard & Poor’s® (“S&P”) are private services that provide ratings of the credit quality of debt obligations. A description of the ratings assigned by Moody’s and S&P are provided below. These ratings represent the opinions of these rating services as to the quality of the securities that they undertake to rate. It should be emphasized, however, that ratings are general and are not absolute standards of quality. An adviser attempts to discern variations in credit rankings of the rating services and to anticipate changes in credit ranking. However, subsequent to purchase by a fund, an issue of securities may cease to be rated or its rating may be reduced below the minimum rating required for purchase by the fund. In that event, an adviser will consider whether it is in the best interest of a fund to continue to hold the securities.
Moody’s credit ratings are current opinions of the relative future credit risk of entities, credit commitments, or debt or debt-like securities. Moody’s defines credit risk as the risk that an entity may not meet its contractual, financial obligations as they come due and any estimated financial loss in the event of default. Credit ratings do not address any other risk, including but not limited to: liquidity risk, market value risk, or price volatility. Credit ratings are not statements of current or historical fact. Credit ratings do not constitute investment or financial advice, and credit ratings are not recommendations to purchase, sell, or hold particular securities. Credit ratings do not comment on the suitability of an investment for any particular investor. Moody’s issues its credit ratings with the expectation and understanding that each investor will make its own study and evaluation of each security that is under consideration for purchase, holding, or sale.
An S&P issue credit rating is a forward-looking opinion about the creditworthiness of an obligor with respect to a specific financial obligation, a specific class of financial obligations, or a specific financial program (including ratings on medium-term note programs and commercial paper programs). It takes into consideration the creditworthiness of guarantors, insurers, or other forms of credit enhancement on the obligation and takes into account the currency in which the obligation is denominated. The opinion reflects S&P’s view of the obligor’s capacity and willingness to meet its financial commitments as they come due, and may assess terms, such as collateral security and subordination, which could affect ultimate payment in the event of default.
(1)
This Appendix A may contain information obtained from third parties, including ratings from credit ratings agencies such as S&P. Reproduction and distribution of third party content in any form is prohibited except with the prior written permission of the related third party. Third party content providers do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, timeliness or availability of any information, including ratings, and are not responsible for any errors or omissions (negligent or otherwise), regardless of the cause, or for the results obtained from the use of such content. THIRD PARTY CONTENT PROVIDERS GIVE NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE. THIRD PARTY CONTENT PROVIDERS SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, EXEMPLARY, COMPENSATORY, PUNITIVE, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, COSTS, EXPENSES, LEGAL FEES, OR LOSSES (INCLUDING LOST INCOME OR PROFITS AND OPPORTUNITY COSTS OR LOSSES CAUSED BY NEGLIGENCE) IN CONNECTION WITH ANY USE OF THEIR CONTENT, INCLUDING RATINGS. Credit ratings are statements of opinions and are not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold or sell securities. They do not address the suitability of securities or the suitability of securities for investment purposes, and should not be relied on as investment advice. they issue, as well as structured finance securities backed by receivables or other financial assets.
Short-Term Credit Ratings
Moody’s
Moody’s short-term ratings are opinions of the ability of issuers to honor short-term financial obligations. Ratings may be assigned to issuers, short-term programs or to individual short-term debt instruments. Such obligations generally have an original maturity not exceeding thirteen months, unless explicitly noted.
Moody’s employs the following designations to indicate the relative repayment ability of rated issuers:
“P-1” - Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-1 have a superior ability to repay short-term debt obligations.
“P-2” - Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-2 have a strong ability to repay short-term debt obligations.
“P-3” - Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Prime-3 have an acceptable ability to repay short-term obligations.
“NP” - Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Not Prime do not fall within any of the Prime rating categories.
Note: Canadian issuers rated P-1 or P-2 have their short-term ratings enhanced by the senior-most long-term rating of the issuer, its guarantor or support-provider.
S&P
S&P’s short-term ratings are generally assigned to those obligations considered short-term in the relevant market. In the U.S., for example, that means obligations with an original maturity of no more than 365 days-including commercial paper. Short-term ratings are also used to indicate the creditworthiness of an obligor with respect to put features on long-term obligations. The result is a dual rating, in which the short-term rating addresses the put feature, in addition to the usual long-term rating.
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The following summarizes the rating categories used by S&P for short-term issues:
“A-1” - Obligations are rated in the highest category and indicate that the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is strong. Within this category, certain obligations are designated with a plus sign (+). This indicates that the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on these obligations is extremely strong.
“A-2” - Obligations are somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher rating categories. However, the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is satisfactory.
“A-3” - Obligations exhibit adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity of the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.
“B” - Obligations are regarded as having significant speculative characteristics. The obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitments; however, it faces major ongoing uncertainties which could lead to the obligor’s inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitments.
“C” - Obligations are currently vulnerable to nonpayment and are dependent upon favorable business, financial and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.
“D” - Obligations are in payment default. The “D” rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P believes that such payments will be made within any stated grace period. However, any stated grace period longer than five business days will be treated as five business days. The “D” rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of a similar action if payments on an obligation are jeopardized.
Local Currency and Foreign Currency Risks - Country risk considerations are a standard part of S&P’s analysis for credit ratings on any issuer or issue. Currency of repayment is a key factor in this analysis. An obligor’s capacity to repay foreign currency obligations may be lower than its capacity to repay obligations in its local currency due to the sovereign government’s own relatively lower capacity to repay external versus domestic debt. These sovereign risk considerations are incorporated in the debt ratings assigned to specific issues. Foreign currency issuer ratings are also distinguished from local currency issuer ratings to identify those instances where sovereign risks make them different for the same issuer.
Long-Term Credit Ratings
Moody’s
Moody’s long-term ratings are opinions of the relative credit risk of financial obligations with an original maturity of one year or more. They address the possibility that a financial obligation will not be honored as promised. Such ratings use Moody’s Global Scale and reflect both the likelihood of default and any financial loss suffered in the event of default.
The following summarizes the ratings used by Moody’s for long-term debt:
“Aaa” - Obligations rated “Aaa” are judged to be of the highest quality, subject to the lowest level of credit risk.
“Aa” - Obligations rated “Aa” are judged to be of high quality and are subject to very low credit risk.
“A” - Obligations rated “A” are judged to be upper-medium grade and are subject to low credit risk.
“Baa” - Obligations rated “Baa” are judged to be medium-grade and subject to moderate credit risk and as such may possess certain speculative characteristics.
“Ba” - Obligations rated “Ba” are judged to be speculative and are subject to substantial credit risk.
“B” - Obligations rated “B” are considered speculative and are subject to high credit risk.
“Caa” - Obligations rated “Caa” are judged to be of poor standing and are subject to very high credit risk.
“Ca” - Obligations rated “Ca” are highly speculative and are likely in, or very near, default, with some prospect of recovery of principal and interest.
“C” - Obligations rated “C” are the lowest rated and are typically in default, with little prospect for recovery of principal or interest.
Note: Moody’s appends numerical modifiers 1, 2, and 3 to each generic rating classification from “Aa” through “Caa.” The modifier 1 indicates that the obligation ranks in the higher end of its generic rating category; the modifier 2 indicates a mid-range ranking; and the modifier 3 indicates a ranking in the lower end of that generic rating category.
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S&P
Issue credit ratings are based, in varying degrees, on S&P’s analysis of the following considerations:
Likelihood of payment — capacity and willingness of the obligor to meet its financial commitment on an obligation in accordance with the terms of the obligation;
Nature of and provisions of the obligation;
Protection afforded by, and relative position of, the obligation in the event of bankruptcy, reorganization, or other arrangement under the laws of bankruptcy and other laws affecting creditors’ rights.
Issue ratings are an assessment of default risk, but may incorporate an assessment of relative seniority or ultimate recovery in the event of default. Junior obligations are typically rated lower than senior obligations, to reflect the lower priority in bankruptcy, as noted above. (Such differentiation may apply when an entity has both senior and subordinated obligations, secured and unsecured obligations, or operating company and holding company obligations.)
The following summarizes the ratings used by S&P for long-term issues:
“AAA” - An obligation rated “AAA” has the highest rating assigned by S&P. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is extremely strong.
“AA” - An obligation rated “AA” differs from the highest-rated obligations only to a small degree. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is very strong.
“A” - An obligation rated “A” is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher-rated categories. However, the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation is still strong.
“BBB” - An obligation rated “BBB” exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to lead to a weakened capacity of the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.
Obligations rated “BB,” “B,” “CCC,” “CC,” and “C” are regarded as having significant speculative characteristics. “BB” indicates the least degree of speculation and “C” the highest. While such obligations will likely have some quality and protective characteristics, these may be outweighed by large uncertainties or major exposures to adverse conditions.
“BB” - An obligation rated “BB” is less vulnerable to nonpayment than other speculative issues. However, it faces major ongoing uncertainties or exposure to adverse business, financial or economic conditions which could lead to the obligor’s inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.
“B” - An obligation rated “B” is more vulnerable to nonpayment than obligations rated “BB,” but the obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation. Adverse business, financial or economic conditions will likely impair the obligor’s capacity or willingness to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.
“CCC” - An obligation rated “CCC” is currently vulnerable to nonpayment, and is dependent upon favorable business, financial and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitment on the obligation. In the event of adverse business, financial, or economic conditions, the obligor is not likely to have the capacity to meet its financial commitment on the obligation.
“CC” - An obligation rated “CC” is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment. The “CC” rating is used when a default has not yet occurred but S&P expects default to be a virtual certainty, regardless of the anticipated time to default.
“C” - An obligation rated “C” is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment, and the obligation is expected to have lower relative seniority or lower ultimate recovery compared with obligations that are rated higher.
“D” - An obligation rated “D” is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non-hybrid capital instruments, the “D” rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P believes that such payments will be made within five business days in the absence of a stated grace period or within the earlier of the stated grace period or 30 calendar days. The “D” rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. A rating on an obligation is lowered to “D” if it is subject to a distressed exchange offer.
Plus (+) or minus (-) - The ratings from “AA” to “CCC” may be modified by the addition of a plus (+) or minus (-) sign to show relative standing within the major rating categories.
“NR” - This indicates that no rating has been requested, that there is insufficient information on which to base a rating, or that S&P does not rate a particular obligation as a matter of policy.
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Local Currency and Foreign Currency Risks - Country risk considerations are a standard part of S&P’s analysis for credit ratings on any issuer or issue. Currency of repayment is a key factor in this analysis. An obligor’s capacity to repay foreign currency obligations may be lower than its capacity to repay obligations in its local currency due to the sovereign government’s own relatively lower capacity to repay external versus domestic debt. These sovereign risk considerations are incorporated in the debt ratings assigned to specific issues. Foreign currency issuer ratings are also distinguished from local currency issuer ratings to identify those instances where sovereign risks make them different for the same issuer.
Municipal Note Ratings
Moody’s
Moody’s uses three rating categories for short-term municipal obligations that are considered investment grade. These ratings are designated as Municipal Investment Grade (“MIG”) and are divided into three levels - “MIG 1” through “MIG 3”. In addition, those short-term obligations that are of speculative quality are designated “SG”, or speculative grade. MIG ratings expire at the maturity of the obligation.
The following summarizes the ratings used by Moody’s for these short-term obligations:
“MIG 1” - This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by established cash flows, highly reliable liquidity support, or demonstrated broad-based access to the market for refinancing.
“MIG 2” - This designation denotes strong credit quality. Margins of protection are ample, although not as large as in the preceding group.
“MIG 3” - This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Liquidity and cash-flow protection may be narrow, and market access for refinancing is likely to be less well-established.
“SG” - This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Debt instruments in this category may lack sufficient margins of protection.
In the case of variable rate demand obligations (“VRDOs”), a two-component rating is assigned; a long- or short-term debt rating and a demand obligation rating. The first element represents Moody’s evaluation of risk associated with scheduled principal and interest payments. The second element represents Moody’s evaluation of risk associated with the ability to receive purchase price upon demand (“demand feature”). The second element uses a rating from a variation of the MIG scale called the Variable Municipal Investment Grade or “VMIG” rating scale.
When either the long- or short-term aspect of a VRDO is not rated, that piece is designated “NR”, e.g., “Aaa/NR” or “NR/VMIG 1”.
VMIG rating expirations are a function of each issue’s specific structural or credit features.
“VMIG 1” - This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by the superior short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.
“VMIG 2” - This designation denotes strong credit quality. Good protection is afforded by the strong short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.
“VMIG 3” - This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Adequate protection is afforded by the satisfactory short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.
“SG” - This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Demand features rated in this category may be supported by a liquidity provider that does not have an investment grade short-term rating or may lack the structural and/or legal protections necessary to ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand.
S&P
An S&P U.S. municipal note rating reflects S&P’s opinion about the liquidity factors and market access risks unique to notes. Notes due in three years or less will likely receive a note rating. Notes with an original maturity of more than three years will most likely receive a long-term debt rating. In determining which type of rating, if any, to assign, S&P’s analysis will review the following considerations:
Amortization schedule-the larger the final maturity relative to other maturities, the more likely it will be treated as a note; and
Source of payment-the more dependent the issue is on the market for its refinancing, the more likely it will be treated as a note.
Note rating symbols are as follows:
“SP-1” - The issuers of these municipal notes exhibit a strong capacity to pay principal and interest. Those issues determined to possess a very strong capacity to pay debt service are given a plus (+) designation.
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“SP-2” - The issuers of these municipal notes exhibit a satisfactory capacity to pay principal and interest, with some vulnerability to adverse financial and economic changes over the term of the notes.
“SP-3” - The issuers of these municipal notes exhibit speculative capacity to pay principal and interest.
71

Appendix B
Sands Capital Management, LLC
Proxy Voting Policy and Procedures
Most Recent Amendment: March 2020
Implementation Date: November 2006
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Issue
Rule 206(4)-6 under the Advisers Act requires registered investment advisers to adopt and implement written policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure advisers vote proxies in the best interest of their clients. The procedures must address material conflicts that may arise in connection with proxy voting. Rule 206(4)-6 further requires advisers to describe to clients their proxy voting policies and procedures and to provide copies of such policies and procedures to clients upon their request. Lastly, the Rule requires advisers to disclose how clients may obtain information on how the adviser voted their proxies.
To comply with Rule 206(4)-6, Sands Capital Management, LLC (“SCM”) has adopted and implemented this Policy and the procedures described herein.
Policy
SCM’s policy is to vote client proxies in the best interest of its clients. Proxies are an asset of a client, which must be treated by SCM with the same care, diligence and loyalty as any asset belonging to a client. In voting proxies SCM should consider the short- and long-term implications of each proposal. In voting proxies, SCM typically is neither an activist in corporate governance nor an automatic supporter of management. However, because SCM believes that the management teams of most companies it invests in generally seek to serve shareholder interests, SCM believes that voting proxy proposals in the client’s best economic interests usually means voting with the recommendations of these management teams. Any specific voting instructions provided by an advisory client or its designated agent in writing will supersede this Policy. Clients with their own general or specific proxy voting and governance policies may wish to have their proxies voted by an independent third party or other named fiduciary or agent, at the client’s expense.
Proxy Committee
SCM has established a Proxy Committee, which consists of five permanent members: the Chief Administrative Officer (“CAO”), the Chief Compliance Officer (“CCO”), a Director of Client Relations, the Director of ESG Research, and a member of the Directing Research Team (the “DRT”). The Proxy Committee meets at least annually, and as necessary to fulfill its responsibilities. A majority of the members of the Proxy Committee constitutes a quorum for the transaction of business. The CAO or designee acts as secretary of the Proxy Committee and maintains a record of Proxy Committee meetings and actions.
The Proxy Committee is responsible for: (i) the oversight and administration of proxy voting on behalf of SCM’s clients, including developing, authorizing, implementing and updating this Policy and the procedures described herein; (ii) overseeing the proxy voting process, including reviewing reports on proxy voting activity at least annually, and as necessary, to fulfill its responsibilities; and (iii) engaging and overseeing third-party service provider(s), as necessary or appropriate, to ensure SCM receives the applicable proxy statements or to provide SCM information, research or other services to facilitate SCM’s proxy voting decisions.
The Proxy Committee has developed a set of criteria to be used when evaluating proxy issues. These criteria and general proxy voting guidelines are set forth in the Proxy Voting Guidelines, which are attached hereto as Attachment A (the “Guidelines”). The Proxy Committee may amend or supplement the Guidelines from time to time. All Guidelines are to be applied generally and not absolutely, such that the evaluation of each proposal incorporates considerations specific to the company whose proxy is being voted.
Retention and Oversight of Proxy Advisory Firms
Institutional Shareholder Service (ISS), Glass Lewis, and Stakeholders Empowerment Services (SES) (“Proxy Research Providers”) re independent advisers that specialize in providing a variety of fiduciary-level proxy-related services to institutional investment managers, plan sponsors, custodians, consultants, and other institutional investors. The services provided may include in-depth research, global issuer analysis and voting recommendations. SCM has retained Proxy Research Providers to analyze proxy issues and to make vote recommendations on those issues. While we review the recommendations of one or more Proxy Research Providers in making proxy voting decisions, we are in no way obligated to follow such recommendations. SCM votes all proxies based on its own proxy voting policies in the best interests of clients. In addition to research, ISS provides vote execution, reporting, and recordkeeping services to SCM. As part of SCM’s ongoing oversight responsibilities, SCM performs periodic due diligence on the Proxy Research Providers.
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Procedures for Identification and Voting of Proxies
The following procedures are designed to resolve material conflicts of interest before voting client proxies.
1.
SCM maintains a list of all clients for which it votes proxies. The list may be maintained either in hard copy or electronically, and is updated by the Investment Operations Team, which obtains proxy voting information from client agreements or internal account onboarding documentation.
2.
As part of the account opening procedure, the Investment Operations Team will note whether or not SCM is responsible for voting proxies for the client.
3.
Where SCM has the authority to vote proxies, the Investment Operations and Client Relations Teams will work with the client to ensure that SCM is designated to receive proxy voting materials from companies or intermediaries.
4.
SCM has retained one or more third parties to assist in the coordination, voting and recordkeeping of proxies (see Retention and Oversight of Proxy Advisory Firms).
5.
The CAO, through a proxy voting designee working as a proxy administrator, receives all proxy voting materials and has overall responsibility for ensuring that proxies are voted and submitted in a timely manner.
6.
SCM’s Investment Research Team (the “Research Team”) is responsible for reviewing proxy proposals for portfolio securities. Prior to a proxy voting deadline, the appropriate Research Team member will decide as how to vote each proxy proposal based on his or her analysis of the proposal and the Guidelines. In evaluating a proxy proposal, a Research Team member may consider information from a number of sources, including management of the company, shareholder groups and independent proxy research services.
7.
If the Research Team or Proxy Administrator becomes aware of potential factual errors, incompleteness or methodological weaknesses in the Proxy Research Providers analysis, they must escalate this issue to the CAO or CCO.
8.
SCM believes that engagement with issuers is important to good corporate governance and to assist in making proxy voting decisions. SCM may engage with issuers to discuss specific ballot items to be voted on in advance of an annual or special meeting to obtain further information or clarification on the proposals. SCM may also engage with management on a range of environmental, social or corporate governance issues throughout the year.
9.
SCM Staff Members involved in the process are responsible for assessing whether there is any material conflict between the interests of SCM or its affiliates or associates and the interests of its clients with respect to proxy voting by considering the situations identified in the Conflicts of Interest section of this Policy.
10.
If no material conflicts of interest have been identified, SCM will vote proxies according to this Policy (including by not voting if SCM deems that to be in its clients’ best interest).
11.
Upon detection of a conflict of interest, the conflict will be brought to the attention of the Proxy Committee for resolution. See Conflicts of Interest section for additional information.
12.
SCM is not required to vote every client proxy provided that electing not to vote is consistent with SCM’s fiduciary obligations. SCM shall at no time ignore or neglect its proxy voting responsibilities. However, there may be times when refraining from voting is in the client’s best interest, such as when an analysis of a particular client proxy reveals that the cost of voting the proxy may exceed the expected benefit to the client. See Proxies of Certain Global Issuers below.
13.
SCM may process certain proxies without voting them or may systematically vote with management. Examples include, without limitation, proxies issued by companies SCM has decided to sell, proxies issued for securities that SCM did not select for a client portfolio, such as, securities that were selected by a previous adviser, unsupervised or non-managed securities held in a client’s account (such as ETFs), money market securities, or other securities selected by clients or their representatives other than SCM.
14.
In the event that SCM votes the same proxy in two directions, it shall maintain documentation to support its voting (this may occur if a client requires SCM to vote a certain way on an issue, while SCM deems it beneficial to vote in the opposite direction for its other clients) in SCM’s files.
15.
The CAO and the applicable Research Team member must report any attempts by SCM’s personnel to influence the voting of client proxies in a manner that is inconsistent with this Policy, as well as any attempts by persons or entities outside SCM seeking to influence the voting of client proxies. Reporting shall be made to the CCO, or if the CCO is the person attempting to influence the voting, then to SCM’s General Counsel.
16.
All proxy votes will be recorded, and the following information must be maintained:
a.
The name of the issuer of the portfolio security;
b.
The security identifier of the portfolio holding.
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c.
The Council on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures (“CUSIP”) or similar number, in each case, if any, for the security;
d.
The shareholder meeting date;
e.
The number of shares SCM is voting firm-wide;
f.
A brief identification of the matter voted on;
g.
Whether the matter was proposed by the issuer or by a security holder;
h.
Whether or not SCM cast its vote on the matter;
i.
How SCM voted (e.g., for or against proposal, or abstain; for or withhold regarding election of directors);
j.
Whether SCM cast its vote with or against management; and
i. Whether any client requested an alternative vote of its proxy.
Securities Lending
If a client participates in a securities lending program, SCM will not be able to vote the proxy of the shares out on loan. SCM will generally not seek to recall for voting the client shares on loan. However, under rare circumstances, for voting issues that may have a particularly significant impact on the investment (a “Significant Event”), SCM may request a client to recall securities that are on loan if SCM determines that the benefit of voting outweighs the costs and lost revenue to the client and the administrative burden of retrieving the securities. The Research Team member who is responsible for voting the proxy will notify the Proxy Committee in the event they believe a recall of loaned securities is necessary.
In determining whether a recall of a security is warranted, SCM will take into consideration whether the benefit of the vote would be in the client’s best interest despite the costs and the lost revenue to the client and the administrative burden of retrieving the securities. SCM may use third-party service providers to assist it in identifying and evaluating whether an event constitutes a Significant Event. From time to time, the Proxy Committee will deem certain matters to be Significant Events and will adjust the foregoing standard accordingly.
Proxies of Issuers in Certain Countries
It is SCM’s policy to seek to vote all proxies for client securities over which it has proxy voting authority where SCM can reasonably determine that voting such proxies will be in the best interest of its clients.
Voting proxies of issuers in certain countries may give rise to a number of administrative or operational issues that may cause SCM to determine that voting such proxies are not in the best interest of its clients or that it is not reasonably possible to determine whether voting such proxies will be in the best interests of its clients. While not exhaustive, the following list of considerations highlights some potential instances in which a proxy vote might not be entered.
SCM may receive meeting notices without enough time to fully consider the proxy or after the cut-off date for voting.
A market may require SCM to provide local agents with a power of attorney or consularization prior to implementing SCM’s voting instructions.
Proxy materials may not be available in English.
SCM may be unable to enter an informed vote in certain circumstances due to the lack of information provided in the proxy statement or by the issuer or other resolution sponsor.
Proxy voting in certain countries may require “share blocking.” In such cases, shareholders wishing to vote their proxies must deposit their shares shortly before the date of the meeting with a designated depositary. During this blocking period, shares that will be voted at the meeting cannot be sold until the meeting has taken place and the shares are returned to the clients’ custodian banks. Absent compelling reasons to the contrary, SCM believes that the benefit to the client of exercising the vote is outweighed by the cost of voting (i.e., not being able to sell the shares during this period). Accordingly, if share blocking is required SCM generally elects not to vote those shares. The applicable Research Team member in conjunction with the Proxy Committee retains the final authority to determine whether to block the shares in the client’s portfolio or to pass on voting the meeting.
The rationale for not voting a client proxy must be documented and the documentation must be maintained in SCM’s files.
Conflicts of Interest
The following potential conflicts of interest have been identified:
SCM provides services to an institutional client or is in the process of being engaged to provide services to an institutional client that is affiliated with an issuer that is held in the SCM’s client portfolios. For example, SCM may be retained to manage Company A’s
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pension fund, where Company A is a public company and SCM’s client accounts hold shares of Company A. Another example is SCM’s clients may hold an investment in an issuer affiliated with an adviser of a fund vehicle sub-advised by SCM.
SCM provides services to an individual, or is in the process of being engaged to provide services to an individual, who is an officer or director of an issuer that is held in SCM’s client portfolios;
A Staff Member maintains a personal or business relationship (not an advisery relationship) with issuers or individuals that serve as officers or directors of issuers. For example, the spouse of a Staff Member may be a high-level executive of an issuer that is held in SCM’s client portfolios. The spouse could attempt to influence SCM to vote in favor of management; and
SCM or a Staff Member personally owns a significant number of an issuer’s securities that are also held in SCM’s client portfolios. The Staff Member may seek to vote proxies in a different direction for his or her personal holdings than would otherwise be warranted by this Policy. The Staff Member could oppose voting the proxies according to the policy and successfully influence SCM to vote proxies in contradiction to this Policy.
The issuer is a vendor whose products or services are material or significant to the business of to the business of SCM or its affiliates.
Due to the difficulty of predicting and identifying all material conflicts, Staff Members are responsible for notifying the CAO or the CCO of any material conflict that may impair SCM’s ability to vote proxies in an objective manner. Upon such notification, the CAO or the CCO will notify the Proxy Committee of the conflict.
In the event that the Proxy Committee determines that SCM has a conflict of interest with respect to a proxy proposal, the Proxy Committee will also determine whether the conflict is “material” to that proposal. The Proxy Committee may determine on a case‑by-case basis that a particular proposal does not involve a material conflict of interest. To make this determination, the Proxy Committee must conclude that the proposal is not directly related to SCM’s conflict with the issuer. If the Proxy Committee determines that a conflict is not material, then SCM may vote the proxy in accordance with the recommendation of the relevant Research Team member.
In the event that the Proxy Committee determines that SCM has a material conflict of interest with respect to a proxy proposal, SCM will vote on the proposal in accordance with the determination of the Proxy Committee. Prior to voting on the proposal, SCM may: (i) contact an independent third party (such as another plan fiduciary) to recommend how to vote on the proposal and vote in accordance with the recommendation of such third party (or have the third party vote such proxy); or (ii) with respect to clients that are not subject to ERISA, fully disclose the nature of the conflict to the client and obtain the client’s consent as to how SCM will vote on the proposal (or otherwise obtain instructions from the client as to how to vote the proxy).
Recordkeeping
SCM must maintain the documentation described in the following section for a period of not less than five years in an easily accessible place, the first two years at its principal place of business. The CAO will be responsible for the following procedures and for ensuring that the required documentation is retained.
Outside third party request to review proxy votes:
Staff Members must be thoughtful and cautious in sharing how SCM plans to vote its clients’ proxies. Until the vote has been cast and the relevant shareholder meeting has transpired, SCM generally treats information about SCM’s voting as confidential. Staff Members may not disclose SCM’s vote prior to the meeting or commit to any third party to vote a certain way without the prior consent of the CCO or General Counsel. Notwithstanding the previous sentence, Staff Members are permitted to prudently express SCM’s thoughts or opinions on topics in discussions with the relevant companies, advisers (3rd party research providers), and other shareholders prior to voting as a part of SCM’s ongoing education and engagement.
Once the vote has been cast and the relevant shareholder meeting has transpired, analysts can choose to share how SCM voted with the relevant company or other shareholders, if necessary, as part of SCM’s ongoing engagement with management and the company’s shareholder base.
All disclosures of votes in response to requests for vote information not originating from the company must be approved by the CAO prior to the disclosure of the vote. All written requests must be retained in the permanent file. The CAO or designee will record the identity of the outside third party, the date of the request, and the disposition (e.g., provided a written or oral response to client’s request, referred to third party, not a proxy voting client, other dispositions, etc.) in a suitable place.
As is consistent with SCM’s Advertising and Marketing Policy, all Staff Members must refer inquiries from the press to the Director, Portfolio Analysis and Communications.
Proxy statements received regarding client securities:
Proxy statements must be maintained in accordance with this Policy.
Note: SCM is permitted to rely on proxy statements filed on the SEC’s EDGAR system instead of keeping its own
copies.
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Proxy voting records:
Documents prepared or created by SCM that were material to deciding on how to vote, or that memorialized the basis for the decision, must be maintained in accordance with this Policy.
Documentation or notes or any communications received from third parties, other industry analysts, third-party service providers, company’s management discussions, etc. that were material in the basis for the decision, must be maintained in accordance with this Policy.
Clients may request their proxy voting record for the 5-year period prior to their request. Records prior to that 5-year request will be provided on a best efforts basis.
Disclosure
SCM will ensure that Part 2A of Form ADV is updated as necessary to reflect: (i) all material changes to this Policy and the procedures described herein; and (ii) information about how clients may obtain information on how SCM voted their securities. In addition, certain voting records are available on SCM’s website at www.sandscapital.com.
Procedures for SCM’s Receipt of Class Actions
SCM will not file “Class Actions” on behalf of any client. If “Class Action” documents are received by SCM from a client’s custodian, SCM will make a commercially reasonable best effort to forward the documents to the client. Likewise, if “Class Action” documents are received by SCM from a client, SCM will make a commercially reasonable effort to gather, at the client’s request, any requisite information it has regarding the matter and forward it to the client, to enable the client to file the “Class Action.”
Responsibility
The CAO is responsible for overseeing and implementing this Policy.
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Attachment A
PROXY VOTING GUIDELINES
The majority of votes presented to shareholders are proposals made by management, which have been approved and recommended by its board of directors. One of the primary factors SCM considers when determining the desirability of investing in a particular company is the quality and depth of its management. Accordingly, SCM believes that the recommendation of management on any issue should be given substantial weight in determining how proxy issues are resolved. For routine matters (e.g., those matters that are not expected to measurably change the structure, management, control or operation of the company and are consistent with customary industry standards and practices, and the laws of the state of incorporation of the applicable company), SCM will vote in accordance with the recommendation of management, unless, in SCM’s opinion, such recommendation is not conducive to long term value creation or otherwise in the best interest of its clients. Non-routine matters (e.g., those matters relating to directors’ liability and indemnity proposals; executive compensation plans; mergers, acquisitions, and other restructurings submitted to a shareholder vote; anti-takeover and related provisions; and shareholder proposals) require company-specific and a case-by-case review and analysis. With respect to matters that do not fit in the categories stated below, SCM will exercise its best judgment as a fiduciary to vote in accordance with the best interest of its clients.
I.  The Board of Directors
A.  Voting on Director Nominees in Uncontested Elections
These votes are made on a case-by-case basis, and SCM may consider the following:
Long-term performance record relative to a market index;
Composition of board (e.g., diversity and independence) and key board committees;
Attendance at board and committee meetings;
Corporate governance provisions and takeover activity;
Board decisions regarding executive pay; and
Director compensation.
B.  Director and Officer Indemnification and Liability Protection
These votes are evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
C.  Voting for Director Nominees in Contest Elections
These are evaluated on a case-by-case basis, and SCM may consider the following:
Long-term performance relative to its industry;
Management’s track record;
Background to the proxy contest;
Qualifications of director nominees (both slates);
Evaluation of what each side is offering shareholders and the likelihood that the proposed objectives and goals can be met; and
Stock ownership positions.
D.  Size of the Board
Proposals to limit the size of the Board will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
E.  Majority Vote for Director Elections
SCM will evaluate, on a case-by-case basis, proposals asking the Board to initiate the process to provide that director nominees be elected by the affirmative majority of votes cast at an annual meeting of shareholders. Resolutions should specify a carve-out for a plurality vote standard when there are more nominees than board seats.
F.  Require Independent Board Chairman
SCM will evaluate, on a case-by-case basis, as to whether the role of board chair should be a separate position. Secondary considerations include the role of the board’s Lead Independent Director and the board’s overall composition.
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II.  Auditors
Ratifying Auditors
SCM generally votes for proposals to ratify auditors, unless:
an auditor is not independent (i.e., it has a financial interest in or association with the company);
there is reason to believe the auditor’s opinion is not accurate or indicative of the company’s financial position;
poor accounting practices are identified that rise to a level of serious concern, such as: fraud; misapplication of GAAP; or material weaknesses in internal controls;
Evidence that the committee approved an inappropriate indemnification agreement with the auditor; or
Non-audit fees are excessive in relation to audit-related fees without adequate explanation.
III.  Proxy Contest Defenses
A.  Cumulative Voting
Proposals on cumulative voting are voted on a case-by-case basis. SCM may consider the following, among other, factors:
the ability of significant stockholders to elect a director of their choosing;
the ability of minority shareholders to concentrate their support in favor of a director or directors of their choosing; and
the potential to limit the ability of directors to work for all shareholders.
B.  Proxy Contests
Votes on proxy contests are made on a case-by-case basis considering the long-term financial performance of the company relative to its industry, management’s track record, the qualifications of the shareholder’s nominees, and other factors.
C.  Proxy Solicitation Expenses
Decisions to provide full reimbursement for dissidents waging a proxy contest are made on a case-by-case basis.
D.  Proxy Access
Shareholder proposals to provide shareholders proxy access are voted on a case-by-case basis taking into account, among other factors:
Company-specific factors; and
Proposal-specific factors including:
the ownership thresholds proposed in the resolutions;
the maximum proportion of directors that shareholders may nominate each year; and
the method of determining which nominations should appear on the ballot if multiple shareholders submit nominations.
IV.  Anti-Takeover Issues
SCM conducts an independent review of each anti-takeover proposal. SCM may vote with management when it concludes that the proposal is not onerous and would not harm clients’ interests as shareholders. Anti-takeover issues include the following:
A.  Poison Pills
The “poison pill” entitles shareholders to purchase certain securities at discount prices in the event of a change in corporate control. Such a measure would make a potential takeover prohibitively expensive to the acquirer.
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis for management proposals to ratify a poison pill.
B.  Fair Price Provisions
Fair price provisions attempt to ensure approximately equal treatment for all shareholders in the event of a takeover. SCM may consider, among other factors:
a.
the vote required to approve the proposed acquisition;
b.
the vote required to repeal the fair price provision;
c.
the mechanism for determining fair price; and
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d.
whether these provisions are bundled with other anti-takeover measures (e.g., supermajority voting requirements) that may entrench management and discourage attractive tender offers.
Fair price proposals are voted on a case-by-case basis.
C.  Greenmail
Greenmail payments are targeted share repurchases by management of company stock from individuals or groups seeking control of the company. Since only the hostile party receives payment, usually at a substantial premium over the market value of its shares, the practice discriminates against all other shareholders.
Proposals to adopt anti-greenmail charter or bylaw amendments or otherwise restrict a company’s ability to make greenmail payments are voted on a case-by-case basis.
D.  Superstock/Duel-class Equity
Another takeover defense is superstock, i.e., shares that give holders disproportionate voting rights. For example, a company could propose authorizing a class of preferred stock which “could be issued in a private placement with one or more institutional investors” and “could be designated as having voting rights which might dilute or limit the present voting rights of the holders of common stock….” The purpose of this additional class of stock would be to give insiders an edge in fending off an unsolicited or hostile takeover attempt.
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis for proposals that would authorize the creation/removal of new classes of “superstock.”
E.  Supermajority Rules
Supermajority provisions require approval by holders of minimum amounts of the common shares (usually 75% to 80%). While applied mainly to merger bids, supermajority rules also may be extended to cover substantive transfers of corporate assets, liquidations, reverse splits and removal of directors for reasons other than cause. A supermajority provision would make it nearly impossible in some cases for shareholders to benefit from a takeover attempt.
Supermajority shareholder vote requirements to approve mergers, amend the charter or bylaws are voted on a case-by-case basis.
F.  Board Classification
A “classified” or “staggered” board is a structure in which only a portion of a company’s board of directors (typically one-third) is elected each year. A company may employ such a structure to promote continuity of leadership and thwart takeover attempts. In evaluating a classified board proposal, SCM may consider the following factors, among others:
the company’s long-term strategic plan;
the extent to which continuity of leadership is necessary to advance that plan; and
the need to guard against takeover attempts.
SCM votes on board classification on a case-by-case basis.
V.  Miscellaneous Governance Provision
A.  Approval of Financial Statements
In some markets, companies are required to submit their financial statements for shareholder approval. Approval of financial statements is voted on a case-by-case basis. However, SCM may abstain if the information is not available in advance of the meeting.
B.  Adopting or Amending the Charter, Bylaws, or Articles of Association
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis proposals on adopting or amending the charter, bylaws, or articles of association, and may consider whether:
Shareholder rights are protected;
There is negligible or positive impact on shareholder value;
Management provides sufficiently valid reasons for the amendments;
The company is required to do so by law (if applicable); and
They are of a housekeeping nature (updates or corrections).
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C.  Bundled Proposals
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis bundled or “conditioned” proxy proposals. In this case where items are conditioned upon each other, SCM examines the benefits and costs of the packages items. In instances when the joint effect of the conditioned items is not in shareholder’s best interests, SCM votes against the proposals. If the combined effect is positive, SCM votes for such proposals.
D.  Share Re-Registration Consent
SCM will typically vote for this proposal. Certain securities are subject to share re-registration in order to receive and vote the shareholder meeting. In order to be eligible to vote, shares must be re-registered in the beneficial owner’s name by a certain deadline. SCM will vote these proposals on a case-by-case basis.
E.   “Other Business”
SCM will typically vote against this proposal if there is a lack of information available. While this request is usually routine, the potential for the discussion and subsequent approval of items could be dangerous to minority shareholders. SCM will vote these proposals on a case-by-case basis.
VI.  Capital Structure
A.  Common Stock Authorization
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis for proposals that increase the number of shares of common stock authorized for issue.
B.  Stock Distributions; Splits and Dividends
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis for proposals that increase the common share authorization for a stock split or share dividend.
C.  Debt Restructuring
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis for proposals that increase common and/or preferred shares and to issue shares as part of a debt restructuring plan.
VII.  Executive and Director Compensation
SCM believes that because a company has exclusive knowledge of material information not available to shareholders regarding its business, financial condition, and prospects, the company itself usually is in the best position to make decisions about compensation and benefits. Accordingly, SCM generally votes with management on such matters. However, SCM may oppose management on a case-by-case basis if it deems a company’s compensation to be excessive or inconsistent with its peer companies’ compensation, SCM believes a company’s compensation measures do not foster a long-term focus among its executive officers and other employees, or SCM believes a company has not met performance expectations, among other reasons. Discussed below are some specific types of compensation-related proposals that SCM may encounter.
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis items related to executive pay and practices.
A.  Management Say on Pay
“Say on pay” proposals give shareholders a nonbinding vote on executive compensation. These proposals are designed to serve as a means of conveying to company management shareholder concerns, if any, about executive compensation.
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis for management proposals seeking approval of advisory vote on executive compensation.
B.  Equity-Based Compensation Plans
A company’s equity-based compensation plan should be in alignment with the shareholders’ long-term interests. SCM believes that executive compensation should be directly linked to the performance of the company.
SCM vote on a case-by-case basis on proposals for equity-based compensation plans.
C.  Incentive Bonus Plans and Tax Deductibility Proposals (Section 163(m))
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis on proposals for incentive bonus plans and tax deductibility proposals.
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D.  Golden Parachutes
Golden Parachutes assure key officers of a company lucrative compensation packages if the company is acquired and/or if the new owners terminate such officers. SCM recognizes that offering generous compensation packages that are triggered by a change in control may help attract qualified officers. However, such compensation packages cannot be so excessive that they are unfair to shareholders or make the company unattractive to potential bidders, thereby serving as a constructive anti-takeover mechanism.
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis proposals to submit severance plans.
E.  Golden Coffins / Executive Death Benefits
Survivor benefit compensation plans, or “golden coffins,” can require a company to make substantial payments or awards to a senior executive’s beneficiaries following the death of the senior executive. The compensation can take the form of unearned salary or bonuses, accelerated vesting or the continuation in force of unvested equity grants, perquisites and other payments or awards. This compensation would not include compensation that the senior executive chooses to defer during his or her lifetime.
SCM recognizes that offering generous compensation packages that are triggered by the passing of senior executives may help attract qualified officers. However, such compensation packages cannot be so excessive that they are unfair to shareholders or make the company unattractive to potential bidders, thereby serving as a constructive anti-takeover mechanism.
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis proposals on Golden Coffins / Executive Death Benefits.
VIII.  State of Incorporation
G.  Voting on State Takeover Statutes
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis proposals to opt in or out of state takeover statutes (including control share acquisition statutes, control share cash-out statutes, freeze-out provisions, fair price provisions, stakeholder laws, poison pill endorsements, severance pay and labor contract provisions, anti-greenmail provisions and disgorgement provisions).
H.  Voting on Reincorporation Proposals
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis proposals to change a company’s state of incorporation.
IX.  Mergers and Corporate Restructurings
I.  Mergers and Acquisitions
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis proposals on mergers and acquisitions.
J.  Corporate Restructuring
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis proposal on corporate restructuring, including minority squeeze outs, leveraged buyouts, spin-offs, liquidations, and asset sales.
K.  Spin-offs
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis proposals on spin-offs.
L.  Changing Corporate Name
SCM votes on changing the corporate name on a case-by-case basis.
E. Authority to Issue Shares without Preemptive Rights
SCM votes on giving authority to issue shares without preemptive rights on a case-by-case basis.
X.  Socially Oriented Proposals
A.  Proposals of a Social or Environmental Nature
Consistent with its fiduciary duty to clients, SCM will vote on social and environmental issues with a view toward promoting good corporate citizenship. However, SCM realizes that it cannot require a portfolio company to go beyond applicable legal requirements or put itself in a non‑competitive position.
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SCM considers environmental and social issues alongside traditional financial measures to provide a more comprehensive view of the value, risk, and return potential of an investment. Companies may face significant financial, legal and reputational risks resulting from poor environmental and social practices, or negligent oversight of environmental or social issues. SCM’s Environmental, Social, and Governance Framework describes SCM’s approach to consideration of environmental, social, and governance issues within its processes and ownership practices.
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis proposals regarding environmental or social issues. To do this, SCM uses research reports from SCM’s external proxy advisers, company filings and sustainability reports, research from other investors and non-governmental organizations, and the Research Team.
B.  Political Spending and Lobby Proposals
Companies may engage in certain political activities, within legal and regulatory limits, in order to influence public policy consistent with the companies’ values and strategies, and thus serve shareholders’ best long-term economic interests. These activities can create risks, including: the potential for allegations of corruption; the potential for reputational issues associated with a candidate, party or issue; and risks that arise from the complex legal, regulatory and compliance considerations associated with corporate political activity. SCM believes that companies which choose to engage in political activities should develop and maintain robust processes to guide these activities and to mitigate risks, including a level of board oversight.
When presented with shareholder proposals requesting increased disclosure on corporate political activities, SCM may consider the political activities of that company and its peers, the existing level of disclosure, and its view regarding the associated risks. SCM generally believes that it is the duty of boards and management to determine the appropriate level of disclosure of all types of corporate activity.
SCM votes on a case-by-case basis proposals regarding political spending and lobbying activities.
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Proxy Voting Policy
PROXY VOTING POLICIES
TOBAM S.A.S.
Active Ownership Policy
February 2021
TOBAM defines active ownership and corporate engagement as using its shareholder position on behalf of its client shareholders to influence company management decision making and the further integration of ESG principles and good corporate governance in the companies in which it invests.
TOBAM uses Proxy Voting to further its commitment to socially responsible investing and to improve corporate governance. Proxy voting is conducted in the sole long-term interests of clients.
I.  General Voting Rights Exercise
1.  Voting Scope
TOBAM votes for all open-ended funds managed by TOBAM. For mandates and closed-ended funds it will do so on specific request from the client.
TOBAM has not implemented a minimum shareholding or geographical restriction to exercise its voting rights.
Share Blocking Requirements
Some issuers require that shareholders who wish to vote must deposit their shares beforehand. The shares remain inaccessible for lengths of time that vary widely depending on the country, issuer, custodian and sub-custodian. TOBAM does not vote at meetings implying share blocking requirements.
Securities Lending Programme
TOBAM do not recall lent shares for voting purposes. Of note, TOBAM has requested service providers to keep at least one stock (which will not be lent) to be able to vote at meetings.
1.  Exercising Voting Rights
a.
Automatic votes
The vote has been outsourced to ISS since 1st January 2012, under the supervision of the Risk Management team of TOBAM using “SRI International Proxy Voting Guidelines”.
For each meeting and resolution, ISS suggests a voting decision and automatically votes on behalf of TOBAM.
Voting records are closely monitored via the ISS website and using an internal procedure.
TOBAM records all voting decisions internally in its proprietary portfolio management system (“PILOT”). Votes are published annually on the annual voting report, and on the website. Further details are also available on request.
b.
Manual votes
In certain circumstances, such as French General Meetings in French funds, automatic votes are not technically possible. As a consequence, TOBAM votes manually, following ISS voting guidelines.
Votes manually instructed are recorded and filed by the Risk management department.
For mandates or dedicated funds, clients may request specific voting instructions. Voting requests and instructions are also recorded and filed by the Risk Management department.
c.
Exceptions – TOBAM Convictions
TOBAM, in addition to the ISS voting policy, implements some voting guidelines on specific topics that might differ from ISS SRI Guidelines.
TOBAM’s quantitative process does not incorporate analysis of the fundamentals of a holding or on the management.
We do not intend to intervene on the day to day activities of the CEO or boards of the firms and trust ISS voting policy on these entirely as it is aligned with our beliefs.
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We are relying on the management and boards of the companies we invest in to act in the shareholders and client’s best interests.
However, as we consider sustainability to be in the best interest of our clients, we still believe that it is our role as a shareholder to exercise our voting rights on behalf of our clients to improve the sustainable development of the firm in which we invest and also on the broader level of our society.
In that context we believe that a diverse and independent composition of the board brings a range of longer term benefits including a real balance and more efficient countervailing power.
The composition of corporate boards is key and is driven by the belief that independent directors and board diversity broaden skills and enhance governance capabilities.
As a consequence, and in the exclusive interest of its clients, TOBAM has decided to further enhance its requirement by incorporating stricter requirements with regards to board diversity and independence in order to promote a long-term approach to development.
TOBAM’s position of supporting the broadening and deepening of the director pool is applied to all countries regardless of local partiality, and this has been decided upon in an effort to avoid possible segregation and enhance the governance structure.
Please refer to the table below detailing TOBAM’s specific voting instructions:
Voting Issue
Voting Instruction
Company Boards —Bundling of Elections
TOBAM will vote AGAINST bundled director elections in all markets except Italy,
where director elections take place through the voto di lista mechanism (slate
system).
Company Boards —Voto di Lista (Italy)
TOBAM will vote in line with the SRI recommendation for both election of
directors and statutory auditors taking place through the voto di lista
mechanism.
In cases where the voto di lista does not apply (because only a fraction of the
board is up for approval), the normal TOBAM guidelines pertaining to director
elections will apply.
Company Boards —Board Independence
TOBAM will require a minimum level of independence of 50% for the board or
supervisory board at all companies in all countries. When calculating the board
independence level, all directors will be included in the count (including
employee representatives).
If the level of board independence falls below this threshold, TOBAM will vote
AGAINST the election of all the non-independent directors (except the CEO).
TOBAM will use the SRI director independence classification.
Company Boards —Government Representative
TOBAM will vote AGAINST the election of a director that has been classified by
ISS as ‘Government Representative’.
Company Boards—Director Terms
TOBAM will vote AGAINST the election of directors (except the CEO), including
bundled elections, if the proposed length of term exceeds 4 years.
Company Boards—Combined CEO/Chairman*
TOBAM will vote FOR the election and re-election of a combined Chair/CEO in
all markets.
TOBAM will vote FOR shareholder proposals to split the roles of Chairman and
CEO and FOR shareholder proposals requiring an independent board
Chairman.
Company Boards—Election of Former CEO as
Chairman of the Board
TOBAM will not vote AGAINST the election or reelection of a former CEO as
Chairman of the board or supervisory board only for this reason (however,
TOBAM would vote AGAINST, should the director fail to meet other TOBAM
criteria)
Company Boards Gender Diversity
TOBAM requires a gender diversity level of at least 15%.
If the level of gender diversity on the board is below this threshold, TOBAM will
vote AGAINST:
– The reelection of the Chairman of the Nomination Committee (except the
CEO), and
– The election of any new majority gender candidate (except the CEO).
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Voting Issue
Voting Instruction
Social/Environmental Shareholder Proposals
TOBAM will vote FOR shareholder proposals asking for more transparency and
additional information and additional reporting on the following issues:
Board Diversity
ESG Board Committee
Improvement of Human Rights Standards or Policies
Internet Censorship If the shareholder proposal is a ‘Call for Action’ proposal
TOBAM will vote in line with ISS SRI Policy (on a case-by-case basis). ISS typically
identifies “call to action proposals” as proposals where shareholders are calling
for the board to do something more than merely reporting. Some examples
would include proposals requesting the adoption of specific GHG goals,
requiring director nominees to have certain environmental qualifications,
establishing a new E&S committee, or requiring the adoption of specific
diversity requirements
Items not addressed in this policy document
TOBAM will follow the ISS SRI policy recommendation.
II.  Controls
The Risk Management department explicitly endeavours to avoid missing a vote. The Risk Management department has set up weekly checks that are filed and stored in TOBAM’s network.
On a monthly basis, The Risk Management Department analyses proxy voting reports sent by ISS to identify votes that were not instructed or voted and determine the underlying reasons.
For traceability purposes, controls are stored on TOBAM’s network.
The Risk department sends aggregated reports to the Compliance Department on a quarterly basis.
III.  Conflicts of interest
TOBAM places the clients’ best interest above any other consideration and maintains an organizational structure that helps manage conflicts of interest and has set up a conflict of interest procedure, detailing the key measures:
Segregation of duties: reporting lines are separate to prevent or limit interest conflicts between research and fund management.
Remuneration is designed to avoid incentives which could promote conflicts between its employees and its clients, to a reasonably possible extent.
Soft dollars are not permissible.
Where TOBAM funds will invest in other TOBAM funds, there will be neither subscription/redemption fees.
Aggregation of orders will only be permitted where it is unlikely that the aggregation of orders and transactions will be an overall disadvantage to any client, and allocated fairly subject to the company’s allocation policy.
IV.  Engagement
Upholding Environmental, Social and Governance principles (ESG) is not only part of our investment process; but also, an integral part of our day to day business.
TOBAM aims to act in a socially responsible manner via its business, its social relations and its long-term vision of sustainable growth. By upholding these principles every day we make sure that TOBAM does not veer from its “sustainable” journey.
We consider engagement towards third parties, the industry and the investee companies as another crucial step towards the promotion and development of responsible investment.
Direct Engagement
With companies excluded by Norges Bank
In 2017, TOBAM started to actively communicate with companies included in the Norges Bank’s exclusion list and subsequently excluded from our investment universe.
We believe that leveraging on Norges Bank exclusions and spreading their impact will contribute to further developing best practices and encouraging the adoption of sound ESG policies by a wider range of companies worldwide.
Leveraged engagement on holdings
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Following discussions and brainstorming with long-term partners/ investors, TOBAM has set up an initiative to open a dialogue with two to three companies per year based on identified allegations (issued by ISS norm-based research) of failure to prevent social or governance controversies in line with established standards.
These discussions will be led by TOBAM but in partnership with large institutional clients in order for TOBAM to benefit from its clients base and amplify its actions by leveraging from these large asset owners’ influence.
Ad-hoc engagement on holdings
TOBAM might decide to start an engagement action following any serious allegations of ESG-related shortcomings identified by investors or partners NGO’s. TOBAM has been supporting human rights NGO’s and these groups may identify specific issues with companies held by TOBAM.
The engagement process has a long-time horizon and if we are not satisfied with the responses and actions of certain companies, this may ultimately lead to an exclusion from our investment universe.
Collaborative Engagement
Pooled Engagement in collaboration with ISS
ISS ESG is an adviser to institutional investors in the area of responsible investment, expert in ESG analysis. In 2019, TOBAM joined their pooled engagement initiative to jointly engage with companies regarding their ESG risk and performance.
Approximately 100 listed companies3 are identified annually under norm-based research as failing to prevent or address social and environment controversies in line with established standards for responsible business conduct.
Through this initiative, TOBAM has the ability to voice its concerns with companies that fail to respect established norms (Red flagged controversies – already on TOBAM’s exclusion list) and companies that face credible allegations (Amber flagged) as identified by ISS ESG’s team of analysts.
We believe that by joining a collective engagement alongside some of the largest and most renowned asset owners and managers, we amplify a global movement and increase our impact.
3 please note that among the companies identified by ISS, TOBAM might or might not be engaging as shareholder of these companies.
Participative engagement
In our efforts to promote best practices and to be a participative player and promoter of ESG integration and disclosures, we participate in collective engagement when appropriate.
TOBAM is a signatory to some collaborative initiatives and take an active role on those most relevant to us:
-The United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) since 2011
-The United Nations Global Compact (since 2011)
-The Carbon Disclosure Project
-The Global Statement on investor obligations
-The Sustainable Stock Exchanges Investor Working Group
-The Global Investor Statement to Governments on Climate Change
Reporting
We publish a summary of our engagement activity in the annual engagement report published on our website: https://www.tobam.fr/engagement-report/
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For more information
TOBAM is an asset management company offering innovative investment capabilities designed to increase diversification. Its mission is to provide rational and professional solutions to long term investors in the context of efficient markets.
The Maximum Diversification® approach, TOBAM’s flagship investment process founded in 2006, is supported by original, patented research and a mathematical definition of diversification and provides clients with diversified core exposures, across equity and fixed income markets.
In line with its mission statement and commitment to diversification, TOBAM also launched a separate activity on cryptocurrencies in 2017.
As at December 2020, TOBAM manages US$10.2 billion on behalf of clients globally. TOBAM’s team is composed of 48 professionals.
Contacts
Paris
49-53, Avenue des Champs-Elysées
75008 Paris
France
Dublin
Hong Kong
New York
Client Service
[email protected]
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Disclaimer
This material is solely for the attention of institutional, professional, qualified or sophisticated investors and distributors. It is not to be distributed to the general public, private customers or retail investors in any jurisdiction whatsoever. This document is intended only for the person to whom it has been delivered.
Funds and/or SICAV specific information may have been provided for information solely to illustrate TOBAM’s expertise in the strategy. Funds or the SICAV that might be mentioned in this document may not be eligible for sale in some states or countries and they may not be suitable for all types of investors. In particular, TOBAM funds are not registered for sale in the US, and this document is not an offer for sale of funds to US persons (as such term is used in Regulation S promulgated under the 1933 Act). This material is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute a recommendation, solicitation, offer, advice or invitation to purchase or sell any fund, SICAV or sub-fund or to enter in any transaction and should in no case be interpreted as such, nor shall it or the fact of its distribution form the basis of, or be relied on in connection with, any contract for the same.
The information provided in this presentation relates to strategies managed by TOBAM, a French investment adviser registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under the U.S. Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF) and having its head office located at 49-53 avenue des Champs Elysées, 75008 Paris, France. TOBAM’s Form ADV is available free of charge upon request. In Canada, TOBAM is acting under the assumed name “Tobam SAS Inc.” in Alberta and “TOBAM Société par Actions Simplifiée” in Québec.
Investment involves risk. All investors should seek the advice of their legal and/or tax counsel or their financial adviser prior to any investment decision in order to determine its suitability. The value and income produced by a strategy may be adversely affected by exchange rates, interest rates, or other factors so that an investor may get back less than he or she invested.
Past performance and simulations based on thereon are not indicative of future results nor are they reliable indicators of future performance. Any performance objective is solely intended to express an objective or target for a return on your investment and represents a forward-looking statement. It does not represent and should not be construed as a guarantee, promise or assurance of a specific return on your investment. Actual returns may differ materially from the performance objective, and there are no guarantees that you will achieve such returns. Back tests do not represent the results of an actual portfolio, and TOBAM does not guarantee the accuracy of supporting data. The constraints and fees applicable to an actual portfolio would affect results achieved.
This material, including back tests, is based on sources that TOBAM considers to be reliable as of the date shown, but TOBAM does not warrant the completeness or accuracy of any data, information, opinions or results. TOBAM has continued and will continue its research efforts amending the investment process from time to time accordingly. TOBAM reserves the right of revision or change without notice, of the universe, data, models, strategy and opinions. TOBAM accepts no liability whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, that may arise from the use of information contained in this material. TOBAM can in no way be held responsible for any decision or investment made on the basis of information contained in this material. The allocations and weightings, as well as the views, strategies, universes, data, models and opinions of the investment team, are as of the date shown and are subject to change.
This document and the information herein is disclosed to you on a confidential basis and shall not be reproduced, modified, translated or distributed without the express written permission of TOBAM or TOBAM NORTH AMERICA and to the extent that it is passed on, care must be taken to ensure that any reproduction is in a form which accurately reflects the information presented here. This information could be presented by TOBAM NORTH AMERICA, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the TOBAM group of companies that is authorized to present the investment strategies of TOBAM, subject to TOBAM’s supervision, but is not authorized to provide investment advice.
Copyrights: All text, graphics, interfaces, logos and artwork, including but not limited to the design, structure, selection, coordination, expression, “look and feel” and arrangement contained in this presentation, are owned by TOBAM and are protected by copyright and various other intellectual property rights and unfair competition laws. Trademarks: “TOBAM,” “MaxDiv,” “Maximum Diversification,” “Diversification Ratio,” “Most Diversified Portfolio,” “Most Diversified Portfolios,” “MDP” and “Anti-Benchmark” are registered trademarks. The absence of a product or service name from this list does not constitute a waiver of TOBAM trademark or other intellectual property rights concerning that name. Patents: The Anti-Benchmark, MaxDiv and Maximum Diversification strategies, methods and systems for selecting and managing a portfolio of securities, processes and products are patented or patent pending. Knowledge, processes and strategies: The Anti-Benchmark, MaxDiv and Maximum Diversification strategies, methods and systems for selecting and managing a portfolio of securities, processes and products are protected under unfair competition, passing-off and misappropriation laws. Terms of use: TOBAM owns all rights to, title to and interest in TOBAM products and services, marketing and promotional materials, trademarks and Patents, including without limitation all associated Intellectual Property Rights. Any use of the intellectual property, knowledge, processes and strategies of TOBAM for any purpose and under any form (known and/or unknown) in direct or indirect relation with financial products including but not limited to certificates, indices, notes, bonds, OTC options, warrants, mutual funds, ETFs and insurance policies (i) is strictly prohibited without TOBAM’s prior written consent and (ii) requires a license.
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Wilshire Proxy Voting Policy
Wilshire votes proxies for each client that has specifically authorized us to vote them in the investment management contract. These policies and procedures are intended to fulfill Wilshire’s obligations in accordance with Rule 206(4)-6 of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (“Act”), to vote client securities in the best interest of clients.
I.  POLICY
When voting proxies for securities directly held by a client, Wilshire will attempt to consider all factors reasonably believed to be relevant which could affect the value of the investments and will vote proxies in the manner that it believes is consistent with efforts to maximize shareholder value.
Attached to this policy as Appendix A are Proxy Voting Guidelines (“Guidelines”) that Wilshire will use when voting proxies. The Guidelines seek to ensure Wilshire fulfills its duty of care and loyalty to clients when voting proxies.
1.  Duty of Care
Wilshire’s proxy policy mandates the monitoring of corporate events and the voting of client proxies. However, there may be occasions when Wilshire determines that not voting a proxy may be in the best interests of its clients; for example, when the cost of voting the proxy exceeds the expected benefit to the client. There may also be times when clients have instructed Wilshire not to vote proxies or direct Wilshire to vote proxies in a certain manner. Wilshire will maintain written instructions from clients with respect to directed proxy votes.
2.  Duty of Loyalty
Wilshire will ensure proxy votes are cast in a manner consistent with the best interests of the client. Wilshire will use the following process to address conflicts of interest: a) identify potential conflicts of interest; b) determine which conflicts, if any, are material; and c) establish procedures to ensure that Wilshire’s voting decisions are based on the best interests of clients and are not a product of the conflict.
a.
Identify Potential Conflicts of Interest
Conflicts of interest may occur due to business, personal or family relationships. Potential conflicts may include votes affecting Wilshire.
b.
Determine which Conflicts are Material
A “material” conflict is one that is reasonably likely to be viewed as important by the average shareholder. For example, an issue may not be viewed as material unless it has the potential to affect at least 1% of an adviser’s annual revenue.
c.
Establish Procedures to Address Material Conflicts.
Wilshire has established multiple methods to address voting items it has identified as those in which it may have a material conflict of interest.
i.
Use an independent third party to recommend how a proxy presenting a conflict should be voted or authorize the third party to vote the proxy.
ii.
Refer the proposal to the client and obtain the client’s instruction on how to vote.
iii.
Disclose the conflict to the client and obtain the client’s consent to Wilshire’s vote.
3.  Proxy Referrals
For securities held within an account whose strategy either involves passive management or whose stock selection is based solely upon quantitative analysis and/or does not involve fundamental analysis of the issuer, proxies will be referred to a third party proxy service for voting in accordance with their policies and guidelines.
4.  Wilshire may have different voting policies and procedures for different clients and may vote proxies of different clients differently, if appropriate in the fulfillment of its duties.
II.  DOCUMENTATION
Wilshire shall maintain the following types of records relating to proxy voting:
1.
Wilshire Proxy Voting Policy and all amendments thereto
2.
applicable, rely on statements maintained by a proxy voting service provided that Wilshire has obtained an undertaking from the service that it will provide a copy of the statements promptly upon request.
3.
Records of votes cast on behalf of clients.
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4.
Any document prepared by Wilshire that is material to making a proxy voting decision or that memorialized the basis for that decision.
Such records shall be maintained for the period of time specified in Rule 204-2 of the Act. To the extent that Wilshire is authorized to vote proxies for a United States Registered Investment Company, Wilshire shall maintain such records as are necessary to allow such fund to comply with its recordkeeping, reporting and disclosure obligations under applicable laws, rules and regulations.
Wilshire Proxy Voting Policy
Appendix A of the Proxy Voting Guidelines
The following guidelines, which may be amended from time to time, will be used when deciding how to vote proxies on behalf of clients. These guidelines may be superseded in accordance with Wilshire’s duty to act in the best interest of the client.
A.  Election of Directors
We generally vote for all director nominees, except in situations where there is a potential conflict of interest, including but not limited to the nomination of a director who also serves on the compensation committee, audit committee or other relevant committee of the company’s board.
B.  Auditors
a.
Ratifying Auditors — we generally vote in favor for such proposals, unless the auditor is affiliated or has a financial interest in the company.
b.
Financial Statements & Auditor Reports — we generally vote in favor of approving financial and auditor reports.
c.
Compensation — we generally vote in favor for such proposals.
d.
Indemnification — we vote against indemnification of auditors.
C.  Executive & Director Compensation
a.
We generally vote in favor for such proposals.
D.  Miscellaneous and Non-Routine matters
a.
We vote miscellaneous proposals on a case-by-case basis, in the best interest of shareholders.
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