ck0000768847-20221231


						PROSPECTUS
						May 1, 2023

VanEck Funds

VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund

Class I: MWMIX / Class Z: MWMZX


The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this Prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

800.826.2333 vaneck.com


TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Summary Information
VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund (Class I, Z)			1
II. Investment Objective, Strategies, Policies, Risks and Other Information			7
1. Investment Objective			7
2. Additional Information About Principal Investment Strategies and Risks			7
3. Additional Non-Principal Investment Strategies and Risks			10
4. Other Information and Policies			11
III. Shareholder Information			13
1. How to Buy, Sell, Exchange or Transfer Shares			13
2. How to Choose a Class of Shares			17
3. Sales Charges for Class I and Class Z Shares			17
4. Householding of Reports and Prospectuses			17
5. Retirement Plans			18
6. Federal Income Taxes			18
7. Dividends and Capital Gains Distributions			19
8. Management of the Fund and Service Providers			20
IV. Financial Highlights			22
Appendix A: Description of the Morningstar® Wide Moat Focus IndexSM			24
Appendix B: Licensing Agreement and Disclaimers			25


VANECK MORNINGSTAR WIDE MOAT FUND (CLASS I, Z)

I. SUMMARY INFORMATION

INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE

The VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Morningstar® Wide Moat Focus IndexSM (the “Index”).

FUND FEES AND EXPENSES

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund. For Class Z shares, investors in programs or plans offered by financial intermediaries may be charged fees or commissions by those financial intermediaries which are not reflected in the expense example.

Shareholder Fees

(fees paid directly from your investment)



	Class I	Class Z
Maximum Sales Charge (load) imposed on purchases (as a percentage of offering price)	0.00%	0.00%
Maximum Deferred Sales Charge (load) (as a percentage of the lesser of the net asset value or purchase price)	0.00%	0.00%

Annual Fund Operating Expenses

(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)



	Class I	Class Z
Management Fees	0.45%	0.45%
Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees	0.00%	0.00%
Other Expenses	1.59%	0.83%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	2.04%	1.28%
Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements1	-1.45%	-0.79%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursements	0.59%	0.49%

1 Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”) has agreed to waive fees and/or pay Fund expenses to the extent necessary to prevent the operating expenses of the Fund (excluding acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, trading expenses, dividends and interest payments on securities sold short, taxes and extraordinary expenses) from exceeding 0.59% for Class I and 0.49% for Class Z of the Fund’s average daily net assets per year until May 1, 2024. During such time, the expense limitation is expected to continue until the Board of Trustees acts to discontinue all or a portion of such expense limitation.

EXPENSE EXAMPLE

The following example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then either redeem all of your shares at the end of these periods or continue to hold them. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same, and applies fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements, if any, for the periods indicated above under “Annual Fund Operating Expenses.” Although your actual expenses may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:



	Share Status	1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
Class I	Sold or Held	$60	$499	$964	$2,253
Class Z	Sold or Held	$50	$328	$626	$1,476

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate that the Fund pays higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 72% of the average value of its portfolio.


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PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES

Under normal conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets in securities that comprise the Index. The Index is comprised of securities issued by companies that Morningstar, Inc. (“Morningstar”) determines to have sustainable competitive advantages based on a proprietary methodology that considers quantitative and qualitative factors (“wide moat companies”). Wide moat companies are selected from the universe of companies represented in the Morningstar® US Market IndexSM, a broad market index representing 97% of U.S. market capitalization. The Index targets a select group of wide moat companies: those that according to Morningstar’s equity research team are attractively priced as of each Index review. Out of the companies in the Morningstar® US Market IndexSM that Morningstar determines are wide moat companies, Morningstar selects companies to be included in the Index as determined by the ratio of Morningstar’s estimate of fair value of the issuer’s common stock to the price. Morningstar’s equity research fair value estimates are calculated using a standardized, proprietary valuation model. Wide moat companies may include medium-capitalization companies. The Fund’s 80% investment policy is non-fundamental and may be changed without shareholder approval upon 60 days’ prior written notice to shareholders. In seeking to achieve its investment objective, the Fund may also invest in VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (the “underlying fund”), an affiliated fund, which also seeks to replicate the price and yield performance of the Index, and such investment will count towards the Fund’s 80% investment policy. Additionally, the Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of its portfolio securities. A replication strategy is an indexing strategy that involves investing in the securities of the index in approximately the same proportions as the index.

As of December 31, 2022, the Index included 49 securities of companies with a market capitalization range of between approximately $5.1 billion to $1,787.7 billion and a weighted average market capitalization of $142.5 billion. These amounts are subject to change. The Fund, using a “passive” or indexing investment approach, attempts to approximate the investment performance of the Index by investing in a portfolio of securities that generally replicates the Index. Unlike many investment companies that try to “beat” the performance of a benchmark index, the Fund does not try to “beat” the Index and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies.The Fund may become “non-diversified” as defined under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), solely as a result of a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the Morningstar® Wide Moat Focus IndexSM (the “Index”). This means that the Fund may invest a greater percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers than would be the case if the Fund were always managed as a diversified management investment company. The Fund intends to be diversified in approximately the same proportion as the Index. Shareholder approval will not be sought when the Fund crosses from diversified to non-diversified status due solely to a change in the relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the Index. The Fund may concentrate its investments in a particular industry or group of industries to the extent that the Index concentrates in an industry or group of industries. As of December 31, 2022, each of the health care, information technology, industrials and financials sectors represented a significant portion of the Index. A more detailed description of the Index is contained in Appendix A to the Prospectus.

PRINCIPAL RISKS

There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. The Fund’s share price and return will fluctuate with changes in the market value of the Fund’s portfolio securities. Accordingly, an investment in the Fund involves the risk of losing money.

Competitive Advantage Assessment Risk. Morningstar may be incorrect in its assessment of the competitive advantages of the companies selected for inclusion in the Fund’s index, and the securities issued by such companies may underperform Morningstar’s expectations and have an adverse effect on the Fund’s overall performance. There can also be no assurance that wide or narrow moat companies will have sustainable competitive advantages for any period of time. Competitive advantages for wide and narrow moat companies may erode in a relatively short period of time due to, among other reasons, changes in laws and regulations, intellectual property rights, economic and political conditions and technological developments.

Equity Securities Risk. The value of the equity securities held by the Fund may fall due to general market and economic conditions, perceptions regarding the markets in which the issuers of securities held by the Fund participate, or factors relating to specific issuers in which the Fund invests. For example, an adverse event, such as an unfavorable earnings report, may result in a decline in the value of equity securities of an issuer held by the Fund; the price of the equity securities of an issuer may be particularly sensitive to general movements in the securities markets; or a drop in the securities markets may depress the price of most or all of the equities securities held by the Fund. In addition, the equity securities of an issuer in the Fund’s portfolio may decline in price if the issuer fails to make anticipated dividend payments. Equity securities are subordinated to preferred securities and debt in a company’s capital structure with respect to priority to a share of corporate income, and therefore will be subject to greater dividend risk than preferred securities or debt instruments. In addition, while broad market measures of equity securities have historically generated higher average returns than fixed income securities, equity securities have generally also experienced significantly more volatility in those returns.


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affects the scope of their activities, the prices they can charge and the amount of capital they must maintain. The profitability of companies in the financials sector may be adversely affected by increases in interest rates, by loan losses, which usually increase in economic downturns, and by credit rating downgrades. In addition, the financials sector is undergoing numerous changes, including continuing consolidations, development of new products and structures and changes to its regulatory framework. Furthermore, some companies in the financials sector perceived as benefiting from government intervention in the past may be subject to future government-imposed restrictions on their businesses or face increased government involvement in their operations. Increased government involvement in the financials sector, including measures such as taking ownership positions in financial institutions, could result in a dilution of the Fund’s investments in financial institutions.

Health Care Sector Risk. Companies in the health care sector may be affected by extensive government regulation, restrictions on government reimbursement for medical expenses, rising costs of medical products and services, pricing pressure, an increased emphasis on outpatient services, limited number of products, industry innovation, changes in technologies and other market developments. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection. The expiration of patents may adversely affect the profitability of these companies. Many health care companies are subject to extensive litigation based on product liability and similar claims.

High Portfolio Turnover Risk. The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of its portfolio securities, which will result in increased transaction costs to the Fund, including brokerage commissions, dealer mark-ups and other transaction costs on the sale of the securities and on reinvestment in other securities. High portfolio turnover may also result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. The effects of high portfolio turnover may adversely affect Fund performance.

Index Tracking Risk. The Fund’s return may not match the return of the Index for a number of reasons. For example, the Fund incurs operating expenses, including taxes, not applicable to the Index and incurs costs associated with buying and selling securities and entering into derivatives transactions (if applicable), especially when rebalancing the Fund’s securities holdings to reflect changes in the composition of the Index or (if applicable) raising cash to meet redemptions or deploying cash in connection with inflows into the Fund. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, may decrease the Fund’s net asset value.

Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Index. Errors in the Index data, the Index computations and/or the construction of the Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index provider, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its shareholders. Shareholders should understand that any gains from the Index provider’s or others’ errors will be kept by the Fund and its shareholders and any losses or costs resulting from the Index provider’s or others’ errors will be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. Additionally, when the Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Index provider or its agents to the Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund.

The Fund may not be fully invested at times either as a result of cash flows into the Fund or reserves of cash held by the Fund to pay expenses or to meet redemptions. In addition, the Fund may not invest in certain securities included in the Index, or invest in them in the exact proportions in which they are represented in the Index. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the Index for various reasons, including legal restrictions or limitations imposed by the governments of certain countries, certain exchange listing standards (where applicable), a lack of liquidity in markets in which such securities trade, potential adverse tax consequences or other regulatory reasons (such as diversification requirements). To the extent the Fund utilizes depositary receipts, the purchase of depositary receipts may negatively affect the Fund’s ability to track the performance of the Index and increase tracking error, which may be exacerbated if the issuer of the depositary receipt discontinues issuing new depositary receipts or withdraws existing depositary receipts.

The Fund may value certain of its investments, underlying currencies and/or other assets based on fair value prices. To the extent the Fund calculates its net asset value based on fair value prices and the value of the Index is based on securities’ closing prices on local foreign markets (i.e., the value of the Index is not based on fair value prices), the Fund’s ability to track the Index may be adversely affected. In addition, any issues the Fund encounters with regard to currency convertibility (including the cost of borrowing funds, if any), repatriation or economic sanctions may also increase the index tracking risk. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the performance of the Index due to the impact of withholding taxes, late announcements relating to changes to the Index and high turnover of the Index. When markets are volatile, the ability to sell securities at fair value prices may be adversely impacted and may result in additional trading costs and/or increase the index tracking risk. The Fund may also need to rely on borrowings to meet redemptions, which may lead to increased expenses. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of the Index. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Index. Changes to the composition of the Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Index may cause the Fund to experience increased volatility, during which time the Fund’s index tracking risk may be heightened.


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Industrials Sector Risk. The Fund may be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the industrials sector. The industrials sector comprises companies who produce capital goods used in construction and manufacturing, such as companies that make and sell machinery, equipment and supplies that are used to produce other goods. Companies in the industrials sector may be adversely affected by changes in government regulation, world events and economic conditions. In addition, companies in the industrials sector be adversely affected by environmental damages, product liability claims and exchange rates.

Industry Concentration Risk. The Fund’s assets may be concentrated in an industry or group of industries. As such, the Fund may be subject to greater risks and market fluctuations than a fund whose portfolio has exposure to a broader range of industries. The Fund may be susceptible to financial, economic, political or market events, as well as government regulation, impacting a particular industry.

Information Technology Sector Risk. The Fund may be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the information technology sector. Information technology companies face intense competition, both domestically and internationally, which may have an adverse effect on profit margins. 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. Companies in the information technology sector are heavily dependent on patent protection and the expiration of patents may adversely affect the profitability of these companies.

Market Risk. The prices of securities are subject to the risks associated with investing in the securities market, including general economic conditions, sudden and unpredictable drops in value, exchange trading suspensions and closures and public health risks. These risks may be magnified if certain social, political, economic and other conditions and events (such as natural disasters, epidemics and pandemics, terrorism, conflicts and social unrest) adversely interrupt the global economy; in these and other circumstances, such events or developments might affect companies world-wide. Overall securities values could decline generally or underperform other investments. An investment may lose money.

Medium-Capitalization Companies Risk. Medium-capitalization companies may be more volatile and more likely than large-capitalization companies to have narrower product lines, fewer financial resources, less management depth and experience and less competitive strength. In addition, these companies often have greater price volatility, lower trading volume and less liquidity than larger more established companies. Returns on investments in securities of medium-capitalization companies could trail the returns on investments in securities of large-capitalization companies.

Non-Diversification Risk. The Fund may become classified as “non-diversified” under the Investment Company Act of 1940 solely as a result of a change in relative market capitalization or index weighting of one or more constituents of the its Index. If the Fund becomes non-diversified, it may invest a greater portion of its assets in securities of a smaller number of individual issuers than a diversified fund. As a result, changes in the market value of a single investment could cause greater fluctuations in share price than would occur in a more diversified fund.

Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund’s service providers, counterparties or other third-parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or system failures.

Passive Management Risk. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund is not “actively” managed. Therefore, unless a specific security is removed from its Index, the Fund generally would not sell a security because the security’s issuer is in financial trouble. If a specific security is removed from the Fund’s Index, the Fund may be forced to sell such security at an inopportune time or for prices other than at current market values. An investment in the Fund involves risks similar to those of investing in any fund that invests in bonds or equity securities, such as market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic and political developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in security prices. The Fund’s Index may not contain the appropriate or a diversified mix of securities for any particular economic cycle. The timing of changes in the securities of the Fund’s portfolio in seeking to replicate its Index could have a negative effect on the Fund. Unlike with an actively managed fund, the Adviser does not use techniques or defensive strategies designed to lessen the effects of market volatility or to reduce the impact of periods of market decline. Additionally, unusual market conditions may cause the Fund’s Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance or reconstitution, which could cause the Fund’s Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. This means that, based on market and economic conditions, the Fund’s performance could be lower than funds that may actively shift their portfolio assets to take advantage of market opportunities or to lessen the impact of a market decline or a decline in the value of one or more issuers.

Underlying Fund Risk. Through its investment in the underlying fund, the Fund is subject to the risks associated with the underlying fund’s investments, including the possibility that the value of the securities or other assets held by the underlying fund could decrease. These risks include any combination of the risks described in this Prospectus, although the Fund’s exposure to a particular risk will be proportionate to the Fund’s overall allocation and the underlying fund’s asset allocation. Additionally, the Fund will bear additional expenses based on its pro rata share of the underlying fund’s operating expenses.


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PERFORMANCE

The following chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year to year and by showing how the Fund’s average annual total returns compare with those of a broad measure of market performance and one or more other performance measures. For instance, Morningstar® Wide Moat Focus IndexSM is a rules-based, equal-weighted index intended to offer exposure to companies that Morningstar, Inc. determines have sustainable competitive advantages based on a proprietary methodology that considers quantitative and qualitative factors (“wide moat companies”).The Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. The annual returns in the bar chart are for the Fund’s Class Z shares.

Additionally, large purchases and/or redemptions of shares of a class, relative to the amount of assets represented by the class, may cause the annual returns for each class to differ. Updated performance information for the Fund is available on the VanEck website at vaneck.com.

Class Z: Annual Total Returns (%) as of 12/31


Best Quarter:	+19.28%	2Q 2020
Worst Quarter:	-20.31%	1Q 2020



Average Annual Total Returns as of 12/31/2022	1 Year	5 Years	Life of Class
Class I Shares (11/6/17)
Before Taxes	-13.63%	10.23%	11.20%
After Taxes on Distributions1	-15.95%	6.94%	7.95%
After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares	-6.78%	7.19%	8.00%
Class Z Shares (11/6/17)
Before Taxes	-13.52%	10.36%	11.33%
Morningstar® Wide Moat Focus Index (reflects no deduction for fees, taxes, or expenses)	-13.08%	10.95%	11.93%
S&P 500® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses, or taxes)	-18.11%	9.42%	9.88%

1 After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. These returns are shown for one class of shares only; after-tax returns for the other classes may vary. Actual after-tax returns depend on your individual tax situation and may differ from those shown in the preceding table. The after-tax return information shown above does not apply to Fund shares held through a tax-advantaged account, such as a 401(k) plan or Investment Retirement Account.


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PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT

Investment Adviser. Van Eck Associates Corporation

Portfolio Managers. Peter Liao has been Portfolio Manager of the Fund since inception and has been employed by the Adviser since 2004. Gregory F. Krenzer has been Deputy Portfolio Manager of the Fund since inception and has been employed by the Adviser since 1994. Mr. Krenzer has also been an investment team member on various funds managed by the Adviser since 1994.

PURCHASE AND SALE OF FUND SHARES

In general, shares of the Fund may be purchased or redeemed on any business day, primarily through financial representatives such as brokers or advisers, or directly by eligible investors through the Fund’s transfer agent. Purchase minimums for Class I shares are $1 million for an initial purchase and no minimum for a subsequent purchase; the initial minimum may be reduced or waived at the Adviser’s discretion. Class Z shares have no initial and subsequent purchase minimums, although financial intermediaries may have their own minimums.

TAX INFORMATION

The Fund normally distributes net investment income and net realized capital gains, if any, to shareholders annually. These distributions are generally taxable to you as ordinary income or capital gains, unless you are investing through a tax advantaged retirement account, such as a 401(k) plan or an individual retirement account (IRA), in which case your distributions may be taxed as ordinary income when withdrawn from such account.

PAYMENTS TO BROKER-DEALERS AND OTHER FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES

If you purchase the Fund through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Fund and/or its affiliates may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your financial professional to recommend the Fund over another investment. Ask your financial professional or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.


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II. INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE, STRATEGIES, POLICIES, RISKS AND OTHER INFORMATION

This section states the Fund’s investment objective and describes certain strategies and policies that the Fund may utilize in pursuit of its investment objective. This section also provides additional information about the principal risks associated with investing in the Fund.

1. INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE

The VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund seeks to replicate as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the price and yield performance of the Morningstar Wide Moat Focus Index (the “Index”).

The Fund’s investment objective is non-fundamental and may be changed by the Board of Trustees (the “Board”) without shareholder approval. To the extent practicable, the Fund will provide shareholders with 60 days’ prior written notice before changing its investment objective.

2. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RISKS

Financials Sector Risk. The Fund may be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the financials sector. Companies in the financials sector may be subject to extensive government regulation that affects the scope of their activities, the prices they can charge and the amount of capital they must maintain. The profitability of companies in the financials sector may be adversely affected by increases in interest rates, by loan losses, which usually increase in economic downturns, and by credit rating downgrades. In addition, the financials sector is undergoing numerous changes, including continuing consolidations, development of new products and structures and changes to its regulatory framework. Furthermore, some companies in the financials sector perceived as benefiting from government intervention in the past may be subject to future government-imposed restrictions on their businesses or face increased government involvement in their operations. Increased government involvement in the financials sector, including measures such as taking ownership positions in financial institutions, could result in a dilution of the Fund’s investments in financial institutions.

Health Care Sector Risk. The Fund may be sensitive to, and its performance may depend to a greater extent on, the overall condition of the health care sector. Companies in the health care sector may be affected by extensive government regulation, restrictions on government reimbursement for medical expenses, rising costs of medical products and services, pricing pressure, an increased emphasis on outpatient services, limited number of products, industry innovation, changes in technologies and other market developments. Many health care companies are heavily dependent on patent protection. The expiration of patents may adversely affect the profitability of these companies. Many health care companies are subject to extensive litigation based on product liability and similar claims.

Health care companies are subject to competitive forces that may make it difficult to raise prices and, in fact, may result in price discounting. Many new products in the health care sector may be subject to regulatory approvals. The process of obtaining such approvals may be long and costly. Companies in the health care sector may be thinly capitalized and may be susceptible to product obsolescence.

High Portfolio Turnover Risk.The Fund may engage in active and frequent trading of its portfolio securities, which will result in increased transaction costs to the Fund, including brokerage commissions, dealer mark-ups and other transaction costs on the sale of the securities and on reinvestment in other securities. High portfolio turnover may also result in higher taxes when Fund Shares are held in a taxable account. The effects of high portfolio turnover may adversely affect Fund performance.


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reflect changes in the composition of the Index, or (if applicable) raising cash to meet redemptions or deploying cash in connection with inflows into the Fund. Transaction costs, including brokerage costs, may decrease the Fund’s net asset value.

Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund’s ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Index. Unusual market conditions may cause the Index provider to postpone a scheduled rebalance, which could cause the Index to vary from its normal or expected composition. There is no assurance that the Index provider or any agents that may act on its behalf will compile the Index accurately, or that the Index will be determined, composed or calculated accurately. Errors in respect of the quality, accuracy and completeness of the data used to compile the Index may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index provider, particularly where the indices are less commonly used as benchmarks by funds or managers. Therefore, gains, losses or costs associated with errors of the Index provider or its agents will generally be borne by the Fund and its shareholders. For example, during a period where the Index contains incorrect constituents, the Fund would have market exposure to such constituents and would be underexposed to the Index’s other constituents. Such errors may negatively or positively impact the Fund and its shareholders.

When the Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. The Fund may not be fully invested at times either as a result of cash flows into the Fund or reserves of cash held by the Fund to pay expenses or to meet redemptions. In addition, the Fund may not invest in certain securities and/or other assets included in the Index, or invest in them in the exact proportions in which they are represented in the Index. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the return of the Index for a variety of reasons, including legal restrictions or limitations imposed by the governments of certain countries, certain exchange listing standards (where applicable), a lack of liquidity in markets in which such securities trade, potential adverse tax consequences or other regulatory reasons (such as diversification requirements). A lack of liquidity may be due to various events, including market events, economic conditions or investor perceptions. Illiquid securities may be difficult to value and their value may be lower than the market price of comparable liquid securities, which would negatively affect the Fund’s performance. Moreover, the Fund may be delayed in purchasing or selling securities included in the Index. When markets are volatile, the ability to sell securities at fair value prices may be adversely impacted and may result in additional trading costs and/or increase the index tracking risk. To the extent the Fund encounters any issues with regard to currency convertibility (including the cost of borrowing funds, if any), repatriation or economic sanctions, such issues may also increase index tracking risk. The Fund may also need to rely on borrowings to meet redemptions, which may lead to increased expenses. For tax efficiency purposes, the Fund may sell certain securities, and such sale may cause the Fund to realize a loss and deviate from the performance of the Index. The Fund’s performance may also deviate from the performance of the Index due to the impact of withholding taxes, late announcements relating to changes to the Index and high turnover of the Index.

The Fund may fair value certain of its investments, underlying currencies and/or other assets. To the extent the Fund calculates its net asset value based on fair value prices and the value of the Index is based on securities’ closing prices on local foreign markets (i.e., the value of the Index is not based on fair value prices) or if the Fund otherwise calculates its net asset value based on prices that differ from those used in calculating the Index, the Fund’s ability to track the Index may be adversely affected. The need to comply with the tax diversification and other requirements of the Internal Revenue Code may also impact the Fund’s ability to track the performance of the Index. In addition, if the Fund utilizes depositary receipts or other derivative instruments, its return may not correlate as well with the return of the Index as would be the case if the Fund purchased all the securities in the Index directly. To the extent the Fund utilizes depositary receipts, the purchase of depositary receipts may negatively affect the Fund’s ability to track the performance of the Index and increase tracking error, which may be exacerbated if the issuer of the depositary receipt discontinues issuing new depositary receipts or withdraws existing depositary receipts. Actions taken in response to proposed corporate actions could also result in increased tracking error. In light of the factors discussed above, the Fund’s return may deviate significantly from the return of the Index.

Apart from scheduled rebalances, the Index provider or its agents may carry out additional ad hoc rebalances to the Index in order, for example, to correct an error in the selection of index constituents. When the Index is rebalanced and the Fund in turn rebalances its portfolio to attempt to increase the correlation between the Fund’s portfolio and the Index, any transaction costs and market exposure arising from such portfolio rebalancing will be borne directly by the Fund and its shareholders. Therefore, errors and additional ad hoc rebalances carried out by the Index provider to the Index may increase the costs to and the tracking error risk of the Fund.

Index tracking risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Changes to the composition of the Index in connection with a rebalancing or reconstitution of the Index may cause the Fund to experience increased volatility, during which time the Fund’s index tracking risk may be heightened.


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economic conditions. In addition, companies in the industrials sector be adversely affected by environmental damages, product liability claims and exchange rates.

The stock prices of companies in the industrials sector are affected by supply and demand both for their specific product or service and for industrial sector products in general. The products of manufacturing companies may face product obsolescence due to rapid technological developments and frequent new product introduction. In addition, the industrials sector may also be adversely affected by changes or trends in commodity prices, which may be influenced or characterized by unpredictable factors.

Medium-Capitalization Companies Risk. The Fund may invest in medium-capitalization companies and, therefore will be subject to certain risks associated with medium- capitalization companies. These companies are often subject to less analyst coverage and may be in early and less predictable periods of their corporate existences, with little or no record of profitability. In addition, these companies often have greater price volatility, lower trading volume and less liquidity than larger more established companies. These companies tend to have smaller revenues, narrower product lines, less management depth and experience, smaller shares of their product or service markets, fewer financial resources and less competitive strength than large-capitalization companies. Returns on investments in securities of medium-capitalization companies could trail the returns on investments in securities of larger companies.

Underlying Fund Risk. In seeking to achieve its investment objective, the Fund may invest in the VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat ETF (the “underlying fund”). Through its investment in the underlying fund, the Fund is subject to the risks associated with the underlying fund’s investments, including the possibility that the value of the securities or other assets held by the underlying fund could decrease. These risks include any combination of the risks set forth in this Prospectus, although the Fund’s exposure to a


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particular risk will be proportionate to the Fund’s overall allocation and the underlying fund’s asset allocation. Shares of the underlying fund may trade at prices that reflect a premium above or a discount below the investment company’s net asset value. If investment company securities are purchased at a premium to net asset value, the premium may not exist when those securities are sold and the Fund could incur a loss. Additionally, the Fund will bear additional expenses based on its pro rata share of the underlying fund’s operating expenses.

3. ADDITIONAL NON-PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES AND RISKS

ADDITIONAL NON-PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES

The Fund may invest in securities not included in its Index, including, money market instruments, including repurchase agreements or other funds which invest exclusively in money market instruments, convertible securities, structured notes (notes on which the amount of principal repayment and interest payments are based on the movement of one or more specified factors, such as the movement of a particular stock or stock index) and certain derivatives. Depositary receipts not included in the Fund’s Index may be used by the Fund in seeking performance that corresponds to its Index and in managing cash flows, and may count towards compliance with the Fund’s 80% policy. The Fund may also invest, to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act, in other affiliated and unaffiliated funds, such as open-end or closed-end management investment companies, including other exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”). The Fund does not employ a temporary defensive strategy, and does not invest as part of a temporary defensive strategy to protect against potential stock market declines.

BORROWING MONEY

The Fund may borrow money from a bank up to a limit of one-third of the market value of its assets. The Fund has entered into a credit facility to borrow money for temporary, emergency or other purposes, including the funding of shareholder redemption requests, trade settlements and as necessary to distribute to shareholders any income required to maintain the Fund’s status as a regulated investment company. To the extent that the Fund borrows money, it will be leveraged; at such times, the Fund will appreciate or depreciate in value more rapidly than its Index. Leverage generally has the effect of increasing the amount of loss or gain the Fund might realize, and may increase volatility in the value of the Fund’s investments.

SECURITIES LENDING

The Fund may lend its securities as permitted under the 1940 Act, including by participating in securities lending programs managed by broker-dealers or other institutions. Securities lending allows the Fund to retain ownership of the securities loaned and, at the same time, earn additional income. The borrowings must be collateralized in full with cash, U.S. government securities or high-quality letters of credit.

The Fund could experience delays and costs in recovering the securities loaned or in gaining access to the securities lending collateral. If the Fund is not able to recover the securities loaned, the Fund may sell the collateral and purchase a replacement investment in the market. The value of the collateral could decrease below the value of the replacement investment by the time the replacement investment is purchased. Cash received as collateral and which is invested is subject to market appreciation and depreciation.

RISK OF INVESTING IN DERIVATIVES

Derivatives and other similar instruments (referred to collectively as “derivatives”) are financial instruments whose values are based on the value of one or more reference assets or indicators, such as a security, currency, interest rate, or index. The Fund’s use of derivatives involves risks different from, and possibly greater than, the risks associated with investing directly in securities and other more traditional investments. Moreover, although the value of a derivative is based on an underlying asset or indicator, a derivative typically does not carry the same rights as would be the case if the Fund invested directly in the underlying securities, currencies or other assets.

Derivatives are subject to a number of risks, such as potential changes in value in response to market developments or, in the case of “over-the-counter” derivatives, as a result of a counterparty’s credit quality and the risk that a derivative transaction may not have the effect the Adviser anticipated. Derivatives also involve the risk of mispricing or improper valuation and the risk that changes in the value of a derivative may not achieve the desired correlation with the underlying asset or indicator. Derivative transactions can create investment leverage and may be highly volatile, and the Fund could lose more than the amount it invests. The use of derivatives may increase the amount and affect the timing and character of taxes payable by shareholders of the Fund.

Many derivative transactions are entered into “over-the-counter” without a central clearinghouse; as a result, the value of such a derivative transaction will depend on, among other factors, the ability and the willingness of the Fund’s counterparty to perform its obligations under the transaction. If a counterparty were to default on its obligations, the Fund’s contractual remedies against such counterparty may be subject to bankruptcy and insolvency laws, which could affect the Fund’s rights as a creditor (e.g., the Fund may not receive the net amount of payments that it is contractually entitled to receive). Counterparty risk also refers to the related risks of having concentrated exposure to such a counterparty. A liquid secondary market may not always exist for the Fund’s derivative positions at any time, and the Fund may not be able to initiate or liquidate a swap position at an advantageous time or price, which may result in significant losses. The Fund may also face the risk that it may not be able to meet margin and payment requirements and maintain a derivatives position.


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Derivatives are also subject to operational and legal risks. Operational risk generally refers to risk related to potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, system failures, inadequate controls, and human errors. Legal risk generally refers to insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract.

ADDITIONAL REGULATORY CONSIDERATIONS
With respect to the Fund, the Adviser has claimed an exclusion from the definition of “commodity pool operator” (“CPO”) under the U.S. Commodity Exchange Act of 1936, as amended (“CEA") and the rules of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) and, therefore, is not subject to CFTC registration or regulation as a CPO. In addition, with respect to the Fund, the Adviser is relying upon a related exclusion from the definition of “commodity trading advisor” (“CTA”) under the CEA and the rules of the CFTC. The terms of the CPO exclusion require the Fund, among other things, to adhere to certain limits on its investments in “commodity interests.” Commodity interests include commodity futures, commodity options and swaps, which in turn include non-deliverable currency forward contracts. Because the Adviser and the Fund intend to comply with the terms of the CPO exclusion, the Fund may, in the future, need to adjust its investment strategies, consistent with its investment objective to limit its investments in these types of instruments. The Fund is not intended as a vehicle for trading in the commodity futures, commodity options or swaps markets. The CFTC has neither reviewed nor approved the Adviser's reliance on these exclusions, or the Fund, its investment strategies or this prospectus.

LEVERAGE RISK

To the extent that the Fund borrows money or utilizes certain derivatives, it may be leveraged. Leveraging generally exaggerates the effect on net asset value of any increase or decrease in the market value of the Fund’s portfolio securities. The Fund is required to comply with the derivatives rule when it engages in transactions that create future Fund payment or delivery obligations. The Fund is required to comply with the asset coverage requirements under the Investment Company Act of 1940 when it engages in borrowings and/or transactions treated as borrowings.

4. OTHER INFORMATION AND POLICIES

BENEFICIARIES OF CONTRACTUAL ARRANGEMENTS

VanEck Funds (the “Trust”) enters into contractual arrangements with various parties, including, among others, the Fund’s investment adviser, administrator and distributor, who provide services to the Fund. Shareholders of the Fund are not parties to, or intended (or “third-party”) beneficiaries of, any of those contractual arrangements, and those contractual arrangements are not intended to create in any individual shareholder or group of shareholders any right to enforce such contractual arrangements against the service providers or to seek any remedy under such contractual arrangements against the service providers, either directly or on behalf of the Trust.

This prospectus provides information concerning the Trust and the Fund that you should consider in determining whether to purchase shares of the Fund. None of this prospectus, the Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) or any document filed as an exhibit to the Trust’s registration statement, is intended to, nor does it, give rise to an agreement or contract between the Trust or the Fund and any investor, or give rise to any contract or other rights in any individual shareholder, group of shareholders or other person. Nothing contained in the preceding sentence constitutes a waiver of any rights under the federal or state securities laws.

CHANGING THE FUND’S 80% POLICY

The Fund’s policy of investing “at least 80% of its net assets” in securities that comprise the Index (which includes net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes) may be changed by the Board without a shareholder vote, as long as shareholders are given 60 days’ notice of the change.

PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS INFORMATION

Generally, it is the Fund’s and the Adviser’s policy that no current or potential investor, including any Fund shareholder, shall be provided information about the Fund’s portfolio on a preferential basis in advance of the provision of that information to other investors. A complete description of the Fund’s policies and procedures with respect to the disclosure of the Fund’s portfolio securities is available in the Fund’s SAI.

Portfolio holdings information for the Fund is available to all investors on the VanEck website at vaneck.com. Generally, this information is posted to the website on a daily basis. This information generally remains available on the website until new information is posted. The Fund reserves the right to exclude any portion of these portfolio holdings from publication when deemed in the best interest of the Fund, and to discontinue the posting of portfolio holdings information at any time, without prior notice.

CYBER SECURITY

The Fund and its service providers are susceptible to cyber security risks that include, among other things, theft, unauthorized monitoring, release, misuse, loss, destruction or corruption of confidential and highly restricted data; denial of service attacks; unauthorized access to relevant systems; compromises to networks or devices that the Fund and its service providers use to service the Fund’s operations; and operational disruption or failures in the physical infrastructure or operating systems that support the Fund and its service providers. Cyber attacks against or security breakdowns of the Fund or its service providers may adversely impact the Fund and its shareholders, potentially resulting in, among other things, financial losses; the inability of Fund


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shareholders to transact business and the Fund to process transactions; the inability to calculate the Fund’s net asset value; violations of applicable privacy and other laws; regulatory fines, penalties, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs; and/or additional compliance costs. The Fund may incur additional costs for cyber security risk management and remediation purposes. In addition, cyber security risks may also impact issuers of securities in which the Fund invests, which may cause the Fund’s investments in such issuers to lose value. There can be no assurance that the Fund or its service providers will not suffer losses relating to cyber attacks or other information security breaches in the future.

PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS INFORMATION

Portfolio holdings information for the Fund is available to all investors on the VanEck website at vaneck.com. Information regarding the Fund’s top holdings and country and sector weightings, updated as of each month-end, is also located on this website. Generally, this information is posted to the website within 10 business days of the end of the applicable month. This information generally remains available on the website until new information is posted. The Fund reserves the right to exclude any portion of these portfolio holdings from publication when deemed in the best interest of the Fund, and to discontinue the posting of portfolio holdings information at any time, without prior notice.

PORTFOLIO INVESTMENTS

The percentage limitations relating to the composition of the Fund’s portfolio apply at the time the Fund acquires an investment. A subsequent increase or decrease in percentage resulting from a change in the value of portfolio securities or the total or net assets of the Fund will not be considered a violation of the restriction.


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III. SHAREHOLDER INFORMATION

1. HOW TO BUY, SELL, EXCHANGE OR TRANSFER SHARES

The Fund offers Class I and Class Z shares. Information related to how to buy, sell, exchange and transfer shares is discussed below. See the “Minimum Purchase” section for information related to initial and subsequent minimum investment amounts. The minimum investment amounts vary by share class.

Through a Financial Intermediary

Primarily, accounts are opened through a financial intermediary (broker, bank, adviser or agent). Please contact your financial intermediary for details.

Through the Transfer Agent, SS&C GIDS, Inc. (SS&C)

You may buy (purchase), sell (redeem), exchange, or transfer ownership of Class I shares directly through SS&C by mail or telephone, as stated below. For Class Z shares, shareholders must open accounts and transact business through a financial intermediary.

The Fund’s mailing address at SS&C is:

VanEck Funds

P.O. Box 218407

Kansas City, MO 64121-8407

For overnight delivery:

VanEck Funds

430 W. 7th Street, Suite 218407

Kansas City, MO 64105-1407

Non-resident aliens cannot make a direct investment to establish a new account in the Fund, but may invest through their broker or agent.

To telephone the Fund at SS&C, call VanEck Account Assistance at 800-544-4653.

Purchase by Mail

To make an initial purchase, complete the VanEck Account Application and mail it with your check made payable to VanEck Funds. Subsequent purchases can be made by check with the remittance stub of your account statement. You cannot make a purchase by telephone. We cannot accept third party checks, starter checks, money orders, travelers checks, cashier checks, checks drawn on a foreign bank, or checks not in U.S. dollars. There are separate applications for VanEck retirement accounts (see “Retirement Plans” for details). For further details, see the application or call Account Assistance.

Telephone Redemption-Proceeds by Check 800-544-4653

If your account has the optional Telephone Redemption Privilege, you can redeem up to $50,000 per day. The redemption check must be payable to the registered owner(s) at the address of record (which cannot have been changed within the past 30 days). You automatically get the Telephone Redemption Privilege (for eligible accounts) unless you specifically refuse it on your Account Application, on broker/agent settlement instructions, or by written notice to SS&C. All accounts are eligible for the privilege except those registered in street, nominee, or corporate name and custodial accounts held by a financial institution, including VanEck sponsored retirement plans.

Expedited Redemption—Proceeds by Wire 800-544-4653

If your account has the optional Expedited Redemption Privilege, you can redeem a minimum of $1,000 or more per day by telephone or written request with the proceeds wired to your designated bank account. The Fund reserves the right to waive the minimum amount. This privilege must be established in advance by Application. For further details, see the Application or call Account Assistance.

Written Redemption

Your written redemption (sale) request must include:

■ Fund and account number.

■ Number of shares or dollar amount to be redeemed, or a request to sell “all shares.”

■ Signatures of all registered account holders, exactly as those names appear on the account registration, including any additional documents concerning authority and related matters in the case of estates, trusts, guardianships, custodianships, partnerships and corporations, as requested by SS&C.

■ Special instructions, including bank wire information or special payee or address.

A signature guarantee for each account holder will be required if:

■ The redemption is for $50,000 or more.

■ The redemption amount is wired.


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■ The redemption amount is paid to someone other than the registered owner.

■ The redemption amount is sent to an address other than the address of record.

■ The address of record has been changed within the past 30 days.

Institutions eligible to provide signature guarantees include banks, brokerages, trust companies, and some credit unions.

Telephone Exchange 800-544-4653

If your account has the optional Telephone Exchange Privilege, you can exchange between VanEck Funds of the same Class without any sales charge. All accounts are eligible except for omnibus accounts or those registered in street name and certain custodial retirement accounts held by a financial institution other than VanEck. For further details regarding exchanges, please see the application, “Limits and Restrictions” and “Unauthorized Telephone Requests” below, or call Account Assistance.

Written Exchange

Written requests for exchange must include:

■ The fund and account number to be exchanged out of.

■ The fund to be exchanged into.

■ Directions to exchange “all shares” or a specific number of shares or dollar amount.

For further details regarding exchanges, please see the applicable information in “Telephone Exchange.”

Certificates

Certificates are not issued for new or existing shares.

Transfer of Ownership

Requests must be in writing and provide the same information and legal documentation necessary to redeem and establish an account, including the social security or tax identification number of the new owner.

Redemption Liquidity

The Fund expects to make redemption payments to the shareholder, or shareholder’s financial intermediary, within 1 to 2 business days following the Fund’s receipt of the redemption transaction from the shareholder, or shareholder’s financial intermediary. The financial intermediary acts on behalf of the shareholder and is responsible for transmitting redemption proceeds to the shareholder. Payment of redemption proceeds by the Fund may take longer than the time the Fund typically expects and may take up to 7 days as permitted by the 1940 Act.

Typically, redemption payments of Fund shares will be made in U.S. dollars. The Fund generally expects to satisfy redemption requests from available cash holdings and sale of portfolio securities. On a less regular basis, the Fund also may draw on a bank line of credit to meet redemption requests. In stressed market conditions or for a particularly large redemption, the Fund also reserves the right to meet redemption requests through a “redemption in kind” as described below.

Redemption in Kind

The Fund reserves the right to satisfy redemption requests by making payment in securities (known as a redemption in kind). Redemptions in kind are not routinely used by the Fund. The Fund may, however, use redemptions in kind during particularly stressed market conditions or to manage the impact of a large redemption on the Fund. In such case, the Fund may pay all or part of the redemption in securities of equal value as permitted under the 1940 Act, and the rules thereunder. The redeeming shareholder should expect to incur transaction costs upon the disposition of the securities received and will bear any market risks associated with such securities until they are converted into cash. A redemption in kind is treated as a taxable transaction and a sale of the redeemed shares, generally resulting in capital gain or loss to the redeeming shareholder subject to certain loss limitation rules.

Redemptions Initiated by the Fund

The Fund reserves the right to redeem your shares in the Fund if the Fund’s Board determines that the failure to so redeem may have materially adverse consequences to the shareholders of the Fund. For additional information, please see “Additional Purchase and Redemption Information—Redemptions Initiated by the Fund” in the SAI.

LIMITS AND RESTRICTIONS

Frequent Trading Policy

The Board has adopted policies and procedures reasonably designed to deter frequent trading in shares of the Fund, commonly referred to as “market timing,” because such activities may be disruptive to the management of the Fund’s portfolio and may increase the Fund’s expenses and negatively impact the Fund’s performance. As such, the Fund may reject a purchase or


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exchange transaction or restrict an account from investing in the Fund for any reason if the Adviser, in its sole discretion, believes that a shareholder is engaging in market timing activities that may be harmful to the Fund. The Fund discourages and does not accommodate frequent trading of shares by its shareholders.

The Fund may invest in securities of foreign issuers, and consequently may be subject to an increased risk of frequent trading activities because frequent traders may attempt to take advantage of time zone differences between the foreign markets in which the Fund’s portfolio securities trade and the time as of which the Fund’s net asset value is calculated (“time-zone arbitrage”). The Fund’s investments in other types of securities may also be susceptible to frequent trading strategies. These investments include securities that are, among other things, thinly traded, traded infrequently, or relatively illiquid, which have the risk that the current market price for the securities may not accurately reflect current market values. The Fund has adopted fair valuation policies and procedures intended to reduce the Fund’s exposure to potential price arbitrage. However, there is no guarantee that the Fund’s net asset value will immediately reflect changes in market conditions.

The Fund uses a variety of techniques to monitor and detect abusive trading practices, such as monitoring purchases, redemptions and exchanges that meet certain criteria established by the Fund, and making inquiries with respect to such trades. If a transaction is rejected or an account restricted due to suspected market timing, the investor or his or her financial adviser will be notified.

With respect to trades that occur through omnibus accounts at intermediaries, such as broker-dealers and third party administrators, the Fund requires all such intermediaries to agree to cooperate in identifying and restricting market timers in accordance with the Fund’s policies and will periodically request customer trading activity in the omnibus accounts based on certain criteria established by the Fund. There is no assurance that the Fund will request such information with sufficient frequency to detect or deter excessive trading or that review of such information will be sufficient to detect or deter excessive trading in omnibus accounts effectively.

Although the Fund will use reasonable efforts to prevent market timing activities in the Fund’s shares, there can be no assurances that these efforts will be successful. As some investors may use various strategies to disguise their trading practices, the Fund’s ability to detect frequent trading activities by investors that hold shares through financial intermediaries may be limited by the ability and/or willingness of such intermediaries to monitor for these activities.

For further details, contact Account Assistance.

Unauthorized Telephone Requests

Like most financial organizations, VanEck, the Fund and SS&C may only be liable for losses resulting from unauthorized transactions if reasonable procedures designed to verify the caller’s identity and authority to act on the account are not followed.

If you do not want to authorize the Telephone Exchange or Redemption privilege on your eligible account, you must refuse it on the Account Application, broker/agent settlement instructions, or by written notice to SS&C. VanEck, the Fund, and SS&C reserve the right to reject a telephone redemption, exchange, or other request without prior notice either during or after the call. For further details, contact Account Assistance.

AUTOMATIC SERVICES

Automatic Investment Plan

You may authorize SS&C to periodically withdraw a specified dollar amount from your bank account and buy shares in your Fund account. For further details and to request an Application, contact Account Assistance.

Automatic Exchange Plan

You may authorize SS&C to periodically exchange a specified dollar amount for your account from one Fund to another Fund. For further details and to request an Application, contact Account Assistance.

Automatic Withdrawal Plan

You may authorize SS&C to periodically withdraw (redeem) a specified dollar amount from your Fund account and mail a check to you for the proceeds. Your Fund account must be valued at $10,000 or more at the current offering price to establish the Plan. For further details and to request an Application, contact Account Assistance.

MINIMUM PURCHASE

Each class can set its own transaction minimums and may vary with respect to expenses for distribution, administration and shareholder services.

For Class I shares, an initial purchase by an eligible investor of $1 million is required. The minimum initial investment requirement may be waived or aggregated among investors, in the Adviser’s discretion, for investors in certain fee-based, wrap or other no-load investment programs, and for an eligible Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan with plan assets of $3 million or more, sponsored by financial intermediaries that have entered into a Class I agreement with VanEck, as well as for other categories of investors. An “Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan” includes (a) an employer sponsored pension or profit sharing plan that qualifies (a “Qualified Plan”) under section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), including Code


15

section 401(k), money purchase pension, profit sharing and defined benefit plans; (b) an ERISA-covered 403(b) plan; and (c) certain non-qualified deferred compensation arrangements that operate in a similar manner to a Qualified Plan, such as 457 plans and executive deferred compensation arrangements, but not including employer-sponsored IRAs. In addition, members of the Boards of Trustees of VanEck Funds and VanEck VIP Trust and each officer, director and employee of VanEck may purchase Class I shares without being subject to the $1 million minimum initial investment requirement. There are no minimum investment requirements for subsequent purchases to existing accounts. To be eligible to purchase Class I shares, you must also qualify as specified in “How to Choose a Class of Shares.”

Class Z shares have no initial and subsequent purchase minimums, although financial intermediaries may impose their own minimums. To be eligible to purchase Class Z shares, you must also qualify as specified in “How to Choose a Class of Shares” below.

ACCOUNT VALUE AND REDEMPTION

If the value of your account falls below $500,000 for Class I shares and $1,000 for Class Z shares after the initial purchase, the Fund reserves the right to redeem your shares after 30 days notice to you. This does not apply to Class I accounts exempt from purchase minimums as described above.

HOW THE FUND SHARES ARE PRICED

The Fund buys or sells its shares at its NAV per share next determined after receipt of a purchase or redemption plus any applicable sales charge. The Fund calculates its NAV per share class every day the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is open, as of the close of regular trading on the NYSE, which is normally 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

You may enter a buy or sell order when the NYSE is closed for weekends or holidays. If that happens, your price will be the NAV calculated as of the close of the next regular trading session of the NYSE. The Fund may invest in certain securities which are listed on foreign exchanges that trade on weekends or other days when the Fund does not price its shares. As a result, the NAV of the Fund’s shares may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or redeem shares.

The Fund’s investments are generally valued based on market quotations which may be based on quotes obtained from a quotation reporting system, established market makers, broker dealers or by an independent pricing service. Short-term debt investments having a maturity of 60 days or less are valued at amortized cost, which approximates the fair value of the security. Assets or liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar are converted into U.S. dollars at the current market rates on the date of valuation as quoted by one or more sources. When market quotations are not readily available for a portfolio security or other asset, or, in the opinion of the Adviser, are deemed unreliable, the Fund will use the security’s or asset’s “fair value” as determined in good faith in accordance with the Fund’s Fair Value Pricing Policies and Procedures, which have been approved by the Board. As a general principle, the current fair value of a security or other asset is the amount which the Fund might reasonably expect to receive for the security or asset upon its current sale. The Fund’s Pricing Committee, whose members are selected by the senior management of the Adviser and reported to the Board, is responsible for recommending fair value procedures to the Board and for administering the process used to arrive at fair value prices.

Factors that may cause the Fund’s Pricing Committee to fair value a security include, but are not limited to: (1) market quotations are not readily available because a portfolio security is not traded in a public market, trading in the security has been suspended, or the principal market in which the security trades is closed, (2) trading in a portfolio security is limited or suspended and not resumed prior to the time at which the Fund calculates its NAV, (3) the market for the relevant security is thin, or the price for the security is “stale” because its price has not changed for five consecutive business days, (4) the Adviser determines that a market quotation is not reliable, for example, because price movements are highly volatile and cannot be verified by a reliable alternative pricing source, or (5) a significant event affecting the value of a portfolio security is determined to have occurred between the time of the market quotation provided for a portfolio security and the time at which the Fund calculates its NAV.

In determining the fair value of securities, the Pricing Committee will consider, among other factors, the fundamental analytical data relating to the security, the nature and duration of any restrictions on the disposition of the security, and the forces influencing the market in which the security is traded.

Foreign equity securities in which the Fund may invest may be traded in markets that close before the time that the Fund calculates its NAV. Foreign equity securities are normally priced based upon the market quotation of such securities as of the close of their respective principal markets, as adjusted to reflect the Adviser’s determination of the impact of events, such as a significant movement in the U.S. markets occurring subsequent to the close of such markets but prior to the time at which the Fund calculates its NAV. In such cases, the Pricing Committee may apply a fair valuation formula to those foreign equity securities based on the Committee’s determination of the effect of the U.S. significant event with respect to each local market.

Certain of the Fund’s portfolio securities are valued by an independent pricing service approved by the Board. The independent pricing service may utilize an automated system incorporating a model based on multiple parameters, including a security’s local closing price (in the case of foreign securities), relevant general and sector indices, currency fluctuations, and trading in depositary receipts and futures, if applicable, and/or research evaluations by its staff, in determining what it believes is the fair valuation of the portfolio securities valued by such independent pricing service.


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There can be no assurance that the Fund could purchase or sell a portfolio security or other asset at the price used to calculate the Fund’s NAV. Because of the inherent uncertainty in fair valuations, and the various factors considered in determining value pursuant to the Fund’s fair value procedures, there can be material differences between a fair value price at which a portfolio security or other asset is being carried and the price at which it is purchased or sold.

Furthermore, changes in the fair valuation of portfolio securities or other assets may be less frequent, and of greater magnitude, than changes in the price of portfolio securities or other assets valued by an independent pricing service, or based on market quotations.

2. HOW TO CHOOSE A CLASS OF SHARES

The Fund offers two classes of shares designed to provide you with different purchase options according to your investment needs. Different share classes may have different fees and expenses. Class I shares have no sales charge, no contingent deferred redemption charge (“CDRC”) and no 12b-1 fee and are offered to eligible investors primarily through financial intermediaries that have entered into a Class I Agreement with VanEck. The Fund reserves the right to accept direct investments by eligible investors. Class Z shares have no sales charge, no CDRC and no 12b-1 fee, with no fees paid to financial intermediaries. Class Z shares are only offered through financial intermediaries that have entered into a Class Z Agreement with VanEck and that make Class Z shares available to their and/or their clients’ programs or plans (e.g., retirement plans). For Class Z shares, investors in programs or plans offered by financial intermediaries may be charged fees or commissions by those financial intermediaries. For additional information, please contact your financial intermediary.

Financial intermediaries making Fund shares available to their clients determine which share class(es) to make available. Your financial intermediary may receive different compensation for selling one class of shares than for selling another class, which may depend on, among other things, the type of investor account and the policies, procedures and practices adopted by your financial intermediary. You should review these arrangements with your financial intermediary.

■ CLASS I Shares are offered with no sales charge, no CDRC, and no 12b-1 fee. To be eligible to purchase Class I (Institutional) shares, you must be an eligible investor that is making or has made a minimum initial investment of at least $1 million (which may be reduced or waived under certain circumstances) in Class I shares of the Fund. Eligible investors in Class I shares include corporations, foundations, family offices and other institutional organizations; high net worth individuals; persons purchasing through certain financial intermediaries or a bank, trust company or similar institution investing for its own account or for the account of a client when such institution has entered into a Class I Agreement with VanEck and makes Class I shares available to the client’s program or plan.

■ CLASS Z Shares are only offered through financial intermediaries that have entered into a Class Z Agreement with VanEck and that make Class Z shares available to their and/ or their clients’ programs or plans. Such financial intermediaries may trade and hold Class Z shares on behalf of other financial intermediaries (including third-party retirement plan recordkeepers). Financial intermediaries determine which of their and/or their clients’ programs or plans may use Class Z shares, and may establish certain minimum investment amounts and/or other criteria. Investors in plans or programs offered by financial intermediaries may be charged fees or commissions by those financial intermediaries. For additional information, please contact your financial intermediary.

Financial intermediaries may offer their clients more than one class of shares of the Fund. Shareholders who own shares of one class of the Fund and who are eligible to invest in another class of the same Fund may be eligible to convert their shares from one class to the other. Shareholders no longer participating in a fee-based program may be subject to conversion of their current class of shares by their financial intermediary to another class of shares of the Fund having expenses that may be higher than the expenses of their current class of shares. The timing and implementation of such conversions are at the discretion of the shareholder’s financial intermediary. For additional information, please contact your financial intermediary or see “Class Conversions” in the SAI. Investors should consider carefully a Fund’s share class expenses and applicable sales charges and fees plus any separate transaction and other fees charged by such intermediaries in connection with investing in each available share class before selecting a share class. It is the responsibility of the financial intermediary and the investor to choose the proper share class and notify SS&C or VanEck of that share class at the time of each purchase. More information regarding share class eligibility is available in the “How to Buy, Sell, Exchange, or Transfer Shares” section of the prospectus and in “Purchase of Shares” in the SAI.

3. SALES CHARGES FOR CLASS I AND CLASS Z SHARES

No initial sales charge or CDRC for Class I or Class Z shares is imposed by the Fund. For Class Z shares, investors in programs or plans offered by financial intermediaries may be charged fees or commissions by those financial intermediaries. For additional information, please contact your financial intermediary.

4. HOUSEHOLDING OF REPORTS AND PROSPECTUSES

If more than one member of your household is a shareholder of any of the funds in the VanEck Funds, regulations allow us, subject to certain requirements, to deliver single copies of your shareholder reports, prospectuses and prospectus supplements to a shared address for multiple shareholders. For example, a husband and wife with separate accounts in the same fund who have


17

the same shared address generally receive two separate envelopes containing the same report or prospectus. Under the system, known as “householding,” only one envelope containing one copy of the same report or prospectus will be mailed to the shared address for the household. You may benefit from this system in two ways, a reduction in mail you receive and a reduction in fund expenses due to lower fund printing and mailing costs. However, if you prefer to continue to receive separate shareholder reports and prospectuses for each shareholder living in your household now or at any time in the future, please call Account Assistance at 800-544-4653.

5. RETIREMENT PLANS

Fund shares may be invested in tax-advantaged retirement plans sponsored by VanEck or other financial organizations. Retirement plans sponsored by VanEck use UMB Bank n.a. as custodian and must receive investments directly by check or wire using the appropriate VanEck retirement plan application. Confirmed trades through a broker or agent cannot be accepted. To obtain applications and helpful information on VanEck retirement plans, contact your broker or agent or Account Assistance.

Retirement Plans Sponsored by VanEck:

Traditional IRA

Roth IRA

SEP IRA

6. FEDERAL INCOME TAXES

TAXATION OF DIVIDENDS AND CAPITAL GAINS DISTRIBUTIONS YOU RECEIVE

The Fund intends to qualify each year as a regulated investment company under the Code. As a regulated investment company, the Fund generally pays no federal income tax on the income and gains it distributes to you.

For tax-reportable accounts, dividends and capital gains distributions are normally taxable even if they are reinvested. Fund distributions of short-term capital gains are taxed as ordinary income. Fund distributions of long-term capital gains are taxed at long-term capital gain rates no matter how long you have owned your fund shares. Certain income dividends are treated as qualified dividend income, taxable at long-term capital gain rates provided certain holding period requirements are met. Tax laws and regulations are subject to change.

At the time you purchase your Fund shares, the Fund’s NAV may reflect undistributed income, undistributed capital gains, or net unrealized appreciation in the value of portfolio securities held by the Fund. For taxable investors, a subsequent distribution to you of such amounts, although constituting a return of your investment, would be taxable. Buying shares in the Fund just before it declares an income dividend or capital gains distribution is sometimes known as “buying a dividend.”

TAXATION OF SHARES YOU SELL

For tax-reportable accounts, when you redeem your shares you may incur a capital gain or loss on the proceeds. The amount of gain or loss, if any, is the difference between the amount you paid for your shares (including reinvested dividends and capital gains distributions) and the amount you receive from your redemption. Be sure to keep your regular statements; they contain the information necessary to calculate the capital gain or loss. An exchange of shares from one Fund to another will be treated as a sale and purchase of Fund shares. It is therefore a taxable event.

COST BASIS REPORTING

As required by law, for shares purchased on and after January 1, 2012 in accounts eligible for IRS Tax Form 1099-B tax reporting by VanEck Funds for which tax basis information is available (“covered shares”), the VanEck Funds will provide cost basis information to you and the IRS for shares using the IRS Tax Form 1099-B. Generally, cost basis is the dollar amount paid to purchase shares, including purchases of shares made by reinvestment of dividends and capital gains distributions, adjusted for various items, such as sales charges and transaction fees, wash sales, and returns of capital.

The cost basis of your shares will be calculated using the Fund’s default cost basis method of Average Cost, and the Fund will deplete your oldest shares first, unless you instruct the Fund to use a different cost basis method. You may elect the cost basis method that best fits your specific tax situation using VanEck’s Cost Basis Election Form. It is important that any such election be received in writing from you by the VanEck Funds before you redeem any covered shares since the cost basis in effect at the time of redemption, as required by law, will be reported to you and the IRS. Particularly, any election or revocation of the Average Cost method must be received in writing by the VanEck Funds before you redeem covered shares. The VanEck Funds will process any of your future redemptions by depleting your oldest shares first (FIFO). If you elect a cost basis method other than Average Cost, the method you chose will not be utilized until shares held prior to January 1, 2012 are liquidated. Cost basis reporting for non-covered shares will be calculated and reported separately from covered shares. You should carefully review the cost basis information provided by the Fund and make any additional cost basis, holding period, or other adjustments that are required when reporting these amounts on your federal, state, and local income tax returns. For tax advice specific to your situation, please contact your tax advisor and visit the IRS website at IRS.gov. The VanEck Funds cannot and do not provide any advice, including tax advice.


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To obtain VanEck’s Cost Basis Election Form and to learn more about the cost basis elections offered by the VanEck Funds, please go to our website at vaneck.com or call VanEck Account Services at 800-544-4653.

BACKUP WITHHOLDING

By law, if you do not provide the Fund with your proper taxpayer identification number and certain required certifications, you may be subject to backup withholding on any distributions of income, capital gains, or proceeds from the sale of your shares. The Fund also must withhold if the IRS instructs it to do so. When withholding is required, the amount will be 24% of any distributions or proceeds paid.

STATE AND LOCAL TAXES

Fund distributions and gains from the sale or exchange of your Fund shares generally are subject to state and local taxes.

NON-RESIDENT ALIENS

Dividends and short-term capital gains, if any, paid to non-resident aliens generally are subject to the maximum withholding tax (or lower tax treaty rates for certain countries). The IRS considers these dividends U.S. source income. Exemptions from U.S. withholding tax are provided for certain capital gain dividends paid by the Fund from net long-term capital gains, interest-related dividends paid by the Fund from its qualified net interest income from U.S. sources and short- term capital gain dividends, if such amounts are reported by the Fund. However, notwithstanding such exemptions from U.S. withholding at the source, any such dividends and distributions of income and capital gains will be subject to backup withholding at a rate of 24% if you fail to properly certify that you are not a U.S. person.

As part of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, (“FATCA”), the Fund is required to withhold a 30% federal tax on income dividends paid by the Fund to (i) foreign financial institutions (“FFIs”), including non-U.S. investment funds, unless they agree to collect and disclose to the IRS information regarding their direct and indirect U.S. account holders and (ii) certain nonfinancial foreign entities (“NFFEs”), unless they certify certain information regarding their direct and indirect U.S. owners. After December 31, 2018, FATCA withholding also would have applied to certain capital gain distributions, return of capital distributions and the proceeds arising from the sale of Fund shares; however, based on proposed regulations issued by the IRS, which can be relied on currently, such withholding is no longer required unless final regulations provide otherwise (which is not expected). To avoid possible withholding, FFIs, other than FFIs subject to special treatment under certain intergovernmental agreements, will need to enter into agreements with the IRS which state that they will provide the IRS information, including the names, account numbers and balances, addresses and taxpayer identification numbers of U.S. account holders and comply with due diligence procedures with respect to the identification of U.S. accounts as well as agree to withhold tax on certain types of withholdable payments made to non-compliant foreign financial institutions or to applicable foreign account holders who fail to provide the required information to the IRS, or similar account information and required documentation to a local revenue authority, should an applicable intergovernmental agreement be implemented. NFFEs will need to provide certain information regarding each substantial U.S. owner or certifications of no substantial U.S. ownership, unless certain exceptions apply, or agree to provide certain information to the IRS.

The Fund may be subject to the FATCA withholding obligation, and also will be required to perform due diligence reviews to classify foreign entity investors for FATCA purposes. Investors are required to agree to provide information necessary to allow the Fund to comply with the FATCA rules. If the Fund is required to withhold amounts from payments pursuant to FATCA, investors will receive distributions that are reduced by such withholding amounts.

Because everyone’s tax situation is unique, you should consult your tax professional about federal, state, local, or foreign tax consequences before making an investment in the Fund.

7. DIVIDENDS AND CAPITAL GAINS DISTRIBUTIONS

The Fund makes distributions of all of its net investment income to shareholders as dividends annually. The Fund makes distributions of any net capital gains, at least annually, in December. See your tax adviser for details. Occasionally, a dividend and/or capital gain distribution may be made outside of the normal schedule.

Dividends and Capital Gains Distribution Schedule

Fund

Dividends

Distribution of Short-Term and Long-Term Capital Gains

VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund

December

Dividends and Capital Gains Distributions Reinvestment Plan

Dividends and/or distributions are automatically reinvested into your account without a sales charge, unless you elect a cash payment. You may elect cash payment either on your original Account Application, or by calling Account Assistance at 800-544-4653.


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8. MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND AND SERVICE PROVIDERS

INFORMATION ABOUT FUND MANAGEMENT

INVESTMENT ADVISER

Van Eck Associates Corporation (the “Adviser”), 666 Third Avenue, New York, New York 10017, is the Adviser to the Fund. The Adviser has been an investment adviser since 1955 and also acts as adviser or sub-adviser to other mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, other pooled investment vehicles and separate accounts.

Jan F. van Eck and members of his family own 100% of the voting stock of the Adviser. As of December 31, 2022, the Adviser’s assets under management were approximately $69.03 billion.

Fees paid to the Adviser: Pursuant to the advisory agreement between the Adviser and the Trust (the “Advisory Agreement”), the Fund pays the Adviser a monthly fee at the annual rate equal to 0.45% of average daily net assets of the Fund. This includes the fee paid to the Adviser for accounting and administrative services.

The Adviser has agreed to waive fees and/or pay expenses for the Fund to the extent necessary to prevent the operating expenses of the Fund (excluding acquired fund fees and expenses, interest expense, trading expenses, dividends and interest payments on securities sold short, taxes and extraordinary expenses) from exceeding 0.59% for Class I and 0.49% for Class Z of the Fund’s average daily net assets per year until May 1, 2024. During such time, the expense limitation is expected to continue until the Board acts to discontinue all or a portion of such expense limitation. To minimize the duplication of fees, the Adviser has agreed to waive the management fee it charges to the Fund by any amount it collects as a management fee from an underlying investment company in which the Fund invests that is managed by the Adviser, as a result of the investment of the Fund’s assets in such investment company.

The Adviser may hire and terminate sub-advisers in accordance with the terms of an exemptive order obtained by the Fund and the Adviser from the SEC under which the Adviser is permitted, subject to supervision and approval of the Board, to enter into and materially amend sub-advisory agreements without seeking shareholder approval. The Adviser will furnish shareholders of the Fund with information regarding a new sub-adviser within 90 days of the hiring of the new sub- adviser. Currently, the Adviser has not hired a sub-adviser to assist with the portfolio management of the Fund.

For the Fund’s most recent fiscal year end, the advisory fee paid to the Adviser was as follows:



			VanEck Funds			As a % of average daily net assets
			Morningstar Wide Moat Fund			0.45%

A discussion regarding the basis for the Board’s approval of the Advisory Agreement is available in the Fund’s semi- annual report to shareholders for the period ended June 30, 2022.

PORTFOLIO MANAGERS

Portfolio Managers.

Peter Liao, Portfolio Manager of the Fund, is primarily responsible for the day-to-day portfolio management of the Fund.

Peter Liao. Mr. Liao is Portfolio Manager of the Fund. Mr. Liao has been employed by the Adviser since the summer of 2004. Mr. Liao also serves as a portfolio manager for certain other investment companies advised by the Adviser.

Gregory F. Krenzer, CFA. Mr. Krenzer is Deputy Portfolio Manager of the Fund. He has been employed by the Adviser since 1994 and has over 20 years of experience in the international and financial markets.

The SAI provides additional information about the above Portfolio Managers, their compensation, other accounts they manage, and their securities ownership in the Fund.

THE TRUST

For more information on the VanEck Funds (the “Trust”), the Trustees and the Officers of the Trust, see “General Information,” “Description of the Trust” and “Trustees and Officers” in the SAI.

THE DISTRIBUTOR

Van Eck Securities Corporation, 666 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 (the “Distributor”), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Adviser, has entered into a Distribution Agreement with the Trust for distributing shares of the Fund.

The Distributor generally sells and markets shares of the Fund through intermediaries, such as broker-dealers. The intermediaries may be compensated by the Fund for providing various services.


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In addition, the Distributor or the Adviser may pay certain intermediaries, out of its own resources and not as an expense of the Fund, additional cash or non-cash compensation as an incentive to intermediaries to promote and sell shares of the Fund and other mutual funds distributed by the Distributor. These payments are commonly known as “revenue sharing”. The benefits that the Distributor or the Adviser may receive when each of them makes these payments include, among other things, placing the Fund on the intermediary’s sales system and/or preferred or recommended fund list, offering the Fund through the intermediary’s advisory or other specialized programs, and/or access (in some cases on a preferential basis over other competitors) to individual members of the intermediary’s sales force. Such payments may also be used to compensate intermediaries for a variety of administrative and shareholders services relating to investments by their customers in the Fund.

The fees paid by the Distributor or the Adviser to intermediaries may be calculated based on the gross sales price of shares sold by an intermediary, the NAV of shares held by the customers of the intermediary, or otherwise. These fees may, but are not normally expected to, exceed in the aggregate 0.50% of the average net assets of the Fund attributable to a particular intermediary on an annual basis.

The Distributor or the Adviser may also provide intermediaries with additional cash and non-cash compensation, which may include financial assistance to intermediaries in connection with conferences, sales or training programs for their employees, seminars for the public and advertising campaigns, technical and systems support, attendance at sales meetings and reimbursement of ticket charges. In some instances, these incentives may be made available only to intermediaries whose representatives have sold or may sell a significant number of shares.

Intermediaries may receive different payments, based on a number of factors including, but not limited to, reputation in the industry, sales and asset retention rates, target markets, and customer relationships and quality of service. No one factor is determinative of the type or amount of additional compensation to be provided. Financial intermediaries that sell the Fund’s shares may also act as a broker or dealer in connection with execution of transactions for the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund and the Adviser have adopted procedures to ensure that the sales of the Fund’s shares by an intermediary will not affect the selection of brokers for execution of portfolio transactions.

Not all intermediaries are paid the same to sell mutual funds. Differences in compensation to intermediaries may create a financial interest for an intermediary to sell shares of a particular mutual fund, or the mutual funds of a particular family of mutual funds. Before purchasing shares of the Fund, you should ask your intermediary or its representative about the compensation in connection with the purchase of such shares, including any revenue sharing payments it receives from the Distributor.

THE CUSTODIAN

State Street Bank & Trust Company

One Lincoln Street

Boston, MA 02111

THE TRANSFER AGENT

SS&C GIDS, Inc.

210 West 10th Street, 8th Floor

Kansas City, MO 64105

INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

300 Madison Avenue

New York, NY 10017

COUNSEL

Stradley Ronon Stevens and Young, LLP

2005 Market Street, Suite 2600

Philadelphia, PA 19103


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IV. FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

The financial highlights tables that follow are intended to help you understand the Fund’s financial performance since the commencement of the Fund’s operations. Certain information reflects financial results for a single Fund share. The total returns in the table represent the rate that an investor would have earned or lost on an investment in the Fund (assuming reinvestment of all dividends and distributions). The information for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 has been audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, the Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm, whose report, along with the Fund’s financial statements are included in the Fund’s annual report, which is available upon request. The information for periods prior to the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 has been audited by another independent registered public accounting firm.


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VANECK MORNINGSTAR WIDE MOAT FUND

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

For a share outstanding throughout each period:


	Class I
	Year Ended December 31,
	2022			2021			2020			2019			2018
Net asset value, beginning of year	$	33.51		$	30.70		$	29.13		$	23.94		$	26.63
Net investment income (a)	0.31			0.40			0.47			0.49			0.49
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on
investments	(4.82)			6.92			3.63			7.86			(0.91)
Total from investment operations	(4.51)			7.32			4.10			8.35			(0.42)
Distributions from:
Net investment income	(0.30)			(0.38)			(0.48)			(0.46)			(0.48)
Net realized capital gains	(2.68)			(4.13)			(2.05)			(2.70)			(1.79)
Total distributions	(2.98)			(4.51)			(2.53)			(3.16)			(2.27)
Net asset value, end of year	$	26.02		$	33.51		$	30.70		$	29.13		$	23.94
Total return (b)	(13.63)		%	24.04		%	14.18		%	34.80		%	(1.30)		%
Ratios to average net assets
Gross expenses	2.04		%	2.26		%	4.28		%	5.21		%	3.42		%
Net expenses	0.59		%	0.59		%	0.59		%	0.59		%	0.59		%
Net investment income	1.03		%	1.13		%	1.65		%	1.72		%	1.79		%
Supplemental data
Net assets, end of year (in millions)	$2			$4			$3			$1			$1
Portfolio turnover rate	72		%	59		%	64		%	108		%	76		%


	Class Z
	Year Ended December 31,
	2022			2021			2020			2019			2018
Net asset value, beginning of year	$	33.04		$	30.32		$	28.76		$	23.95		$	26.63
Net investment income (a)	0.34			0.44			0.49			0.52			0.50
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) on
investments	(4.75)			6.82			3.59			7.89			(0.90)
Total from investment operations	(4.41)			7.26			4.08			8.41			(0.40)
Distributions from:
Net investment income	(0.32)			(0.41)			(0.47)			(0.90)			(0.49)
Net realized capital gains	(2.68)			(4.13)			(2.05)			(2.70)			(1.79)
Total distributions	(3.00)			(4.54)			(2.52)			(3.60)			(2.28)
Net asset value, end of year	$	25.63		$	33.04		$	30.32		$	28.76		$	23.95
Total return (b)	(13.52)		%	24.15		%	14.31		%	35.02		%	(1.22)		%
Ratios to average net assets
Gross expenses	1.28		%	1.59		%	2.48		%	3.02		%	2.16		%
Net expenses	0.49		%	0.49		%	0.49		%	0.49		%	0.49		%
Net investment income	1.14		%	1.23		%	1.74		%	1.83		%	1.90		%
Supplemental data
Net assets, end of year (in millions)	$13			$15			$10			$8			$5
Portfolio turnover rate	72		%	59		%	64		%	108		%	76		%

(a)Calculated based upon average shares outstanding

(b)Returns include adjustments in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Net asset values and returns for financial reporting purposes may differ from those for shareholder transactions.


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APPENDIX A

APPENDIX A: DESCRIPTION OF THE MORNINGSTAR® WIDE MOAT FOCUS INDEXSM

The Wide Moat Focus Index is a rules-based index intended to offer exposure to companies that Morningstar determines have sustainable competitive advantages based on a proprietary methodology that considers quantitative and qualitative factors (“wide moat companies”). Wide moat companies are selected from the universe of companies represented in the Morningstar® US Market IndexSM, a broad market index representing 97% of U.S. market capitalization. The Wide Moat Focus Index targets a select group of wide moat companies: those that according to Morningstar’s equity research team are attractively priced as of each Wide Moat Focus Index review. Out of the companies in the Morningstar US Market Index that Morningstar determines are wide moat companies, Morningstar selects companies to be included in the Wide Moat Focus Index as determined by the ratio of the Morningstar’s estimate of fair value of the issuer’s common stock to the price. Morningstar’s equity research team’s fair value estimates are calculated using a standardized, proprietary valuation model.

A selection committee, comprising members of Morningstar’s equity research team, makes the final determination of whether a company is a wide moat company. Only those companies with one or more of the identifiable competitive advantages, as determined by Morningstar’s equity research team and agreed to by the selection committee, are wide moat companies. The quantitative factors used to identify competitive advantages include historical and projected returns on invested capital relative to cost of capital. The qualitative factors used to identify competitive advantages include customer switching cost (i.e., the costs of customers switching to competitors), internal cost advantages, intangible assets (e.g., intellectual property and brands), network effects (i.e., whether products or services become more valuable as the number of customers grows) and efficient scale (i.e., whether the company effectively serves a limited market that potential rivals have little incentive to enter into).

Morningstar’s equity research team uses a standardized, proprietary valuation model to assign fair values to potential Wide Moat Focus Index constituents’ common stock. Morningstar’s equity research team estimates the issuer’s future free cash flows and then calculates an enterprise value using weighted average costs of capital as the discount rate. Morningstar’s equity research team then assigns each issuer’s common stock a fair value by adjusting the enterprise value to account for net debt and other adjustments.

A buffer rule is applied to the current Wide Moat Focus Index constituents. Those that are ranked in the top 150% of stocks representing the lowest current market price/fair value price eligible for inclusion in the Wide Moat Focus Index will remain in the Wide Moat Focus Index at the time of reconstitution and those that fall outside of the top 150% are excluded from the Index. The maximum weight of an individual sector in the Wide Moat Focus Index is capped at 10% more than its corresponding weight in the Morningstar US Market Index at the time of reconstitution, or 40%, whichever is higher.

The Wide Moat Focus Index employs a staggered rebalance methodology. The Wide Moat Focus Index is divided into two equally-weighted sub-portfolios, and each is reconstituted and rebalanced semi-annually on alternating quarters. Each sub-portfolio will contain 40 equally-weighted securities at its semi-annual reconstitution and weights will vary with market prices until the next reconstitution date. Due to the staggered rebalance methodology, constituents and weightings may vary between sub-portfolios. Each sub-portfolio is reweighted to 50% of the total Wide Moat Focus Index every six months. Adjustments to one sub-portfolio are performed after the close of business on the third Friday of March and September and adjustments to the other sub-portfolio are performed after the close of business on the third Friday of June and December, and all adjustments are effective on the following Monday. If the Monday is a market holiday, reconstitution and rebalancing occurs on the Tuesday immediately following.

Rebalancing data, including constituent weights and related information, is posted on Morningstar’s website at the end of each quarter-end month. Target weights of the constituents are not otherwise adjusted between quarters except in the event of certain types of corporate actions.

Morningstar may delay or change a scheduled rebalancing or reconstitution of the Wide Moat Focus Index or the implementation of certain rules at its sole discretion.


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APPENDIX B

APPENDIX B: LICENSING AGREEMENT AND DISCLAIMERS

The Adviser has entered into a licensing agreement with Morningstar to use the Index. The Fund is entitled to use the Index pursuant to a sub-licensing arrangement with the Adviser.

VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Morningstar. Morningstar makes no representation or warranty, express or implied, to the shareholders of VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund in particular or the ability of VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund to track general stock market performance. Morningstar’s only relationship to the Adviser is the licensing of certain service marks and service names of Morningstar and of the Wide Moat Index, which are determined, composed and calculated by Morningstar without regard to the Adviser or VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund. Morningstar has no obligation to take the needs of the Adviser or the shareholders of VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund into consideration in determining, composing or calculating the Wide Moat Index. Morningstar is not responsible for and has not participated in the determination of the prices and amount of VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund or the timing of the issuance or sale of VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund or in the determination or calculation of the equation by which VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund are converted into cash. Morningstar has no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of VanEck Morningstar Wide Moat Fund.

MORNINGSTAR DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY AND/OR THE COMPLETENESS OF THE WIDE MOAT INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN AND MORNINGSTAR SHALL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS, OMISSIONS, OR INTERRUPTIONS THEREIN. MORNINGSTAR MAKES NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY THE ADVISER, SHAREHOLDERS OF VANECK MONRINGSTAR WIDE MOAT FUND, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE WIDE MOAT INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. MORNINGSTAR MAKES NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE WITH RESPECT TO THE WIDE MOAT INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT SHALL MORNINGSTAR HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING LOST PROFITS), EVEN IF NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

The S&P 500 Index included in certain of the Fund’s performance tables is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and/or its affiliates and has been licensed for use by the Adviser. Copyright © 2023 S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, a division of S&P Global, Inc., and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Redistribution or reproduction in whole or in part are prohibited without written permission of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC. For more information on any of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC’s indices please visit www.spdji.com. S&P is a registered trademark of S&P Global and Dow Jones® is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. Neither S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC, their affiliates nor their third party licensors make any representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the ability of any index to accurately represent the asset class or market sector that it purports to represent and neither S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC, their affiliates nor their third party licensors shall have any liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions of any index or the data included therein.


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For more detailed information, see the Statement of Additional Information (SAI), which is legally a part of and is incorporated by reference into this prospectus. The SAI includes information regarding, among other things: the Fund and its investment policies and risks; management of the Fund, investment advisory and other services, the Fund’s Board of Trustees, and tax matters related to the Fund.

Additional information about the investments is available in the Fund’s annual and semi-annual reports to shareholders. In the Fund’s annual report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund’s performance during its last fiscal year.

▪Call VanEck at 800.826.1115, or visit the VanEck website at vaneck.com to request, free of charge, the annual or semi-annual reports, the SAI, information regarding applicable sales loads, breakpoint discounts, reduced or waived sales charges and eligibility minimums, or other information about the Fund.

▪Reports and other information about the Fund are available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s Internet site at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, copies of this information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following e-mail address: [email protected].



Transfer Agent: SS&C GIDS, Inc. P.O. Box 218407 Kansas City, Missouri 64121-8407 SEC Registration Number: 811-04297			800.544.4653 vaneck.com
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