| the Securities Act of 1933 | ||
| Pre‑Effective Amendment No. | ||
| Post-Effective Amendment No. |
| the Investment Company Act of 1940 | ||
| Amendment No. |
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| when declared effective pursuant to section 8(c) of the Securities Act |
| immediately upon filing pursuant to paragraph (b) of Rule 486 |
| on |
| 60 days after filing pursuant to paragraph (a) of Rule 486 |
| on (date) pursuant to paragraph (a) of Rule 486 |
| This [post-effective] amendment designates a new effective date for a previously filed [post-effective amendment] [registration statement]. |
| This Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, and the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering is: . |
| This Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, and the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering is: . |
| This Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act, and the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering is: . |
| Registered Closed‑End Fund (closed‑end company that is registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “Investment Company Act”)). |
| Business Development Company (closed‑end company that intends or has elected to be regulated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act). |
| Interval Fund (Registered Closed‑End Fund or a Business Development Company that makes periodic repurchase offers under Rule 23c‑3 under the Investment Company Act). |
| A.2 Qualified (qualified to register securities pursuant to General Instruction A.2 of this Form). |
| Well-Known Seasoned Issuer (as defined by Rule 405 under the Securities Act). |
| Emerging Growth Company (as defined by Rule 12b‑2 under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934). |
| ☐ | If an Emerging Growth Company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. |
| New Registrant (registered or regulated under the Investment Company Act for less than 12 calendar months preceding this filing). |
| Class | Ticker Symbol | |
| Institutional Common Stock |
MUNEX | |
| Class A Common Stock |
XMUNX | |
| Class U Common Stock |
MUNUX |
| • | Investing in the Shares may be speculative and involve a high degree of risk, including the risks associated with leverage and the lack of liquidity. |
| • | The Shares are not redeemable at an investor’s option nor are they exchangeable for shares of any other fund, although the Fund periodically offers to repurchase Shares pursuant to its fundamental share repurchase policy described herein. |
| • | There is no assurance that the Fund will be able to maintain a certain level of distributions to common shareholders. |
| • | Because the Shares are not listed on a securities exchange, you should not expect to be able to sell your Shares when and/or in the amount desired, regardless of how the Fund performs and, as a result, you may be unable to reduce your exposure during any market downturn. |
| • | The Fund is designed primarily for long-term investors who are prepared to hold the Shares until the Fund accepts an investor’s Shares in a repurchase offer conducted by the Fund. |
| • | Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense. |
| Price to Public(1) |
Maximum Sales Load(2) |
Proceeds to the Fund | ||||||
| Per Institutional Share |
At current NAV | N/A | Amount invested at NAV | |||||
| Per Class A Share |
At current NAV, plus sales load of up to 2.50%, if applicable | 2.50% | Amount invested at NAV less sales load | |||||
| Per Class U Share |
At current NAV | N/A | Amount invested at NAV | |||||
| 1 | Institutional Shares and Class U Shares are offered on a continuous basis at an offering price equal to the then-current net asset value (“NAV”) per share of the class. Class A Shares are offered on a continuous basis at an offering price equal to the then-current NAV per share of the class plus the applicable sales load, as described in this prospectus. If you buy Shares through selling agents or other financial intermediaries, they may directly charge you a transaction fee in such amount as they may determine. Any such fees will be in addition to your investment in the Fund and not deducted therefrom. Investors should consult with their selling agents or other financial intermediaries about any transaction or other fees their selling agents or other financial intermediaries might impose on each class of shares. See “Plan of Distribution.” |
| 2 | Generally, the stated minimum initial investment by an investor in the Fund is $100,000 for Institutional Shares, $1,000 for Class A Shares, and $2,500 for Class U Shares For Institutional Shares, the minimum initial investment is waived or reduced for certain eligible investors as described under “Plan of Distribution—Minimum Investments.” There is no minimum subsequent investment for the Shares. There is no sales load for Institutional Shares and Class U Shares. Investors purchasing Class A Shares may be charged a sales load of up to 2.50%, of the investor’s aggregate purchase. The Distributor or Dealers (as defined herein) may waive all or a portion of the sales load for certain classes of investors as described under “Plan of Distribution—Class A Shares and Class U Shares.” If you buy Shares through certain selling agents or other financial intermediaries, they may directly charge you a transaction fee in such amount as they may determine. Any such fees will be in addition to your investment in the Fund and not deducted therefrom. Investors should consult with their selling agents or other financial intermediaries about any transaction or other fees their selling agents or other financial intermediaries might impose on each class of shares. Institutional Shares are not subject to any asset-based distribution fees but are only available through the Distributor or an asset-based fee program sponsored by a registered broker-dealer or registered investment adviser (also known as a “wrap fee” program) that has an agreement with the Distributor. Class A Shares and Class U Shares are subject to a distribution fee and shareholder servicing fee that will accrue at an annual rate equal to 0.75% of the applicable class’s average daily net assets. 0.25% of the fee is a shareholder servicing fee and the remaining portion is a distribution fee. See “Summary of Fund Fees and Expenses,” “Plan of Distribution” and “Periodic Repurchase Offers.” |
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| The Fund |
BlackRock Municipal Credit Alpha Portfolio, Inc. is a diversified, closed end management investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), and is operated as an “interval fund” (as defined below). |
| Effective March 24, 2025, the Fund converted from as a registered closed end management investment company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) to an unlisted, continuously offered “interval fund” (the “Conversion”). |
| Throughout this prospectus, we refer to BlackRock Municipal Credit Alpha Portfolio, Inc. simply as the “Fund” or as “we,” “us” or “our.” See “The Fund” in the prospectus |
| The Fund continuously offers three classes of shares of common stock (“Shares”) of the Fund: Institutional Shares, Class A Shares, and Class U Shares. The Fund has received exemptive relief from the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) to, among other things, issue multiple classes of Shares and to impose asset-based distribution fees and early-withdrawal fees as applicable (the “Multi-Class Exemptive Relief”). The Fund may offer other additional classes of Shares in the future with fees and expenses that differ from the classes of Shares described in this prospectus. |
| Periodic Repurchase Offers |
The Fund is an “interval fund,” a type of fund which, in order to provide liquidity to shareholders, has adopted a fundamental investment policy to make quarterly offers to repurchase between 5% and 25% of its outstanding Shares at net asset value (“NAV”), reduced by any applicable repurchase fee. The Fund’s Board of Directors (the “Board,” and each of the directors on the Board, a “Director”) has approved a quarterly repurchase offer amount of 7.5% of outstanding Shares at NAV for the Fund’s quarterly repurchase offers through the end of 2026. For quarterly repurchase offers commencing in 2027, subject to applicable law and approval of the Board, the Fund currently expects to offer to repurchase at least 7.5% of outstanding Shares at NAV. It is possible that a repurchase offer may be oversubscribed, with the result that shareholders may only be able to have a portion of their Shares repurchased. Affiliates of the Fund may own Shares and determine to participate in the Fund’s repurchase offers, which may contribute to a repurchase offer being oversubscribed and the Fund effecting repurchases on a pro rata basis. There is no assurance that you will be able to tender your Shares when or in the amount that you desire. |
| Written notification of each quarterly repurchase offer (the “Repurchase Offer Notice”) will be sent to shareholders at least 21 and not more than 42 calendar days before the repurchase request deadline (i.e., the date by which shareholders can tender their Shares in response to a repurchase offer) (the “Repurchase Request Deadline”). The Fund’s Shares are not listed on any securities exchange, and the Fund anticipates that no secondary market will develop for its Shares. Accordingly, you may not be able to sell Shares when and/or in the amount that you desire. Investors should consider Shares of the Fund to be an illiquid investment. Thus, the Shares are appropriate only as a long-term investment. In addition, the Fund’s repurchase offers may subject the Fund and shareholders to special risks. See “Risks—Repurchase Offers Risk” in the prospectus. |
| Investment Objective |
The Fund’s investment objective is to provide attractive after tax total return, through income and capital appreciation. |
| There can be no assurances that the Fund’s investment objective will be achieved or that the Fund’s investment program will be successful. The Fund is not intended as, and you should not construe it to be, a complete investment program. Investors should consider their investment goals, time horizons and risk tolerance before investing in the Fund. The Fund’s investment objective is a fundamental policy of the Fund that may not be changed without the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. The “vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities” means the vote, at a meeting of shareholders, (1) of 67% or more of the voting securities present at the meeting, if the holders of more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund are present or represented by proxy, or (2) of more than 50% of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund, whichever is less. |
| Investment Policies |
The Fund seeks to achieve its investment objective by investing at least 80% of its net assets, plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes, in municipal securities and other investments, the income of which is exempt from federal income taxes (except that the interest may be subject to the federal alternative minimum tax) (“Municipal Bonds”). The Fund’s investments in derivatives will be counted toward the Fund’s 80% policy to the extent that they provide investment exposure to the securities included within that policy or to one or more market risk factors associated with such securities. The Fund’s policy of investing at least 80% of its net assets, plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes, in Municipal Bonds is a fundamental policy that may not be changed without the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities (as defined above) of the Fund. |
| The Fund may invest in certain tax exempt securities classified as “private activity bonds” (or industrial development bonds, under pre |
| 1986 law) (“PABs”) (in general, bonds that benefit non‑governmental entities) that may subject certain investors in the Fund to an alternative minimum tax. The percentage of the Fund’s total assets invested in PABs will vary from time to time. The Fund has not established any limit on the percentage of its portfolio that may be invested in PABs. The Fund expects that a portion of the interest or income it produces will be includable in alternative minimum taxable income. |
| Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 75% of its assets in municipal bonds that are rated in the medium to lower categories by nationally recognized rating services (for example, Baa or lower by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. (“Moody’s”) or BBB or lower by S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”) or Fitch Ratings (“Fitch”), or non‑rated securities which are of comparable quality in the opinion of BlackRock Advisors, LLC (the “Advisor”). For temporary periods due to market conditions or to ensure sufficient liquidity for repurchase or tender offers, the Fund may invest less than 75% of its assets in such municipal bonds. |
| The Fund may invest without limit in Municipal Bonds that are rated below Baa by Moody’s or below BBB by S&P or Fitch or, if unrated, are considered by the Advisor to possess similar credit characteristics. Such securities, sometimes referred to as “high yield” or “junk” bonds, are predominantly speculative with respect to the capacity to pay interest and repay principal in accordance with the terms of the security and generally involve a greater volatility of price than securities in higher rating categories. The Fund may purchase Municipal Bonds that are in default or which the Advisor believes will soon be in default. Below investment grade securities and comparable unrated securities involve substantial risk of loss, are considered speculative with respect to the issuer’s ability to pay interest and any required redemption or principal payments and are susceptible to default or decline in market value due to adverse economic and business developments. |
| The Fund may invest 25% or more of its total assets in tax exempt securities of issuers in the industries comprising the same economic sector, such as hospitals or life care facilities and transportation-related issuers. However, the Fund will not invest 25% or more of its total assets in any one of the industries comprising an economic sector. In addition, a substantial part of the Fund’s portfolio may be comprised of securities credit enhanced by banks, insurance companies or companies with similar characteristics. Emphasis on these sectors may subject the Fund to certain risks. |
| The value of bonds and other fixed-income obligations may fall when interest rates rise and rise when interest rates fall. In general, bonds and other fixed-income obligations with longer maturities will be subject to greater volatility resulting from interest rate fluctuations |
| than will similar obligations with shorter maturities. “Duration” measures the sensitivity of a security’s price to changes in interest rates. Unlike final maturity, duration takes account of all payments made over the life of the security. Typically, with a 1% change in interest rates, an investment’s value may be expected to move in the opposite direction approximately 1% for each year of its duration. The greater a portfolio’s duration, the greater the change in the portfolio’s value in response to changes in interest rates. The Advisor increases or reduces the Fund’s portfolio duration based on its interest rate outlook. When the Advisor expects interest rates to fall, it attempts to maintain a longer portfolio duration. When the Advisor expects interest rates to increase, it attempts to shorten the portfolio’s duration. Generally, as is the case with any investment grade fixed-income obligations, Municipal Bonds with longer maturities tend to produce higher yields. Under normal market conditions, however, such yield to maturity increases tend to decline in the longer maturities (i.e., the slope of the yield curve flattens). At the same time, due to their longer exposure to interest rate risk, prices of longer term obligations are subject to greater market fluctuations as a result of changes in interest rates. |
| For temporary periods or to provide liquidity, the Fund has the authority to invest as much as 20% of its total assets in tax exempt and taxable money market obligations with a maturity of one year or less (such short-term obligations being referred to herein as “Temporary Investments”). In addition, the Fund reserves the right as a defensive measure to invest temporarily a greater portion of its assets in Temporary Investments, when, in the opinion of the Advisor, prevailing market or financial conditions warrant. Taxable money market obligations will yield taxable income. |
| The Fund also may invest in variable rate demand obligations (“VRDOs”) and VRDOs in the form of participation interests (“Participating VRDOs”) in variable rate tax exempt obligations held by a financial institution. The Fund’s hedging strategies are not fundamental policies and may be modified by the Fund’s Board of Directors (the “Board”) without the approval of the Fund’s stockholders. The Fund is also authorized to invest in indexed and inverse floating obligations for hedging purposes and to seek to enhance return. |
| Certain Municipal Bonds may be entitled to the benefits of letters of credit or similar credit enhancements issued by financial institutions. In such instances, the Board and the Advisor will take into account, in assessing the quality of such bonds, both the creditworthiness of the issuer of such bonds and the creditworthiness of the financial institution that provides the credit enhancement. |
| The Fund may also invest in privately placed or restricted securities (including in Rule 144A securities, which are privately placed |
| securities purchased by qualified institutional buyers), illiquid investments and investments in which no secondary market is readily available, including those of private companies. |
| The Fund may invest in securities not issued by or on behalf of a state or territory or by an agency or instrumentality thereof, if the Fund receives an opinion of counsel to the issuer that such securities pay interest that is excludable from gross income for federal income tax purposes (“Non Municipal Tax exempt Securities”). Non Municipal Tax exempt Securities could include trust certificates, partnership interests or other instruments evidencing interest in one or more long-term Municipal Bonds. Non‑Municipal Tax exempt Securities also may include securities issued by other investment companies that invest in Municipal Bonds, to the extent such investments are permitted by the Fund’s investment restrictions and applicable law. Non Municipal Tax exempt Securities are subject to the same risks associated with an investment in Municipal Bonds as well as many of the risks associated with investments in derivatives. While the Fund receives opinions of legal counsel to the effect that the income from the Non Municipal Tax exempt Securities in which the Fund invests is excludable from gross income for federal income tax purposes to the same extent as the underlying Municipal Bonds, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) has not issued a ruling on this subject. Were the IRS to issue an adverse ruling or take an adverse position with respect to the taxation of these types of securities, there is a risk that the interest paid on such securities would be deemed taxable at the federal level. |
| The Fund ordinarily does not intend to realize significant investment income not exempt from federal income tax. From time to time, the Fund may realize taxable capital gains. Interest received on certain otherwise tax exempt securities that are classified as “private activity bonds” (in general, bonds that benefit non‑governmental entities) may be subject to a federal alternative minimum tax. The percentage of the Fund’s total assets invested in “private activity bonds” will vary from time to time. Federal tax legislation has limited the types and volume of bonds the interest on which qualifies for a federal income tax exemption. As a result, this legislation and legislation that may be enacted in the future may affect the availability of Municipal Bonds for investment by the Fund. |
| There is no guarantee that a shareholder’s investment in the Fund will not lose money or that the Fund will not return less over the life of the Fund than such shareholder’s initial investment. |
| Unless otherwise stated herein or in the SAI, the Fund’s investment policies are non‑fundamental policies and may be changed by the Board without prior shareholder approval. Unless otherwise expressly stated in this prospectus or the SAI, or otherwise required by applicable law, all percentage and ratings or credit quality limitations |
| stated in this prospectus apply only at the time of investment and subsequent changes in percentage (including changes resulting from the Fund having a smaller base of assets after a repurchase offer), value, ratings downgrades, liquidity profile or changes in credit quality will not result in the Fund being required to dispose of any portfolio security. |
| For a discussion of risk factors that may affect the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective, see “Risks” in the prospectus. |
| Leverage |
The Fund currently intends to use leverage to seek to achieve its investment objective. |
| The Fund’s use of leverage may increase or decrease from time to time in its discretion, and the Fund may, in the future, determine not to use leverage. The Fund currently utilizes leverage for investment purposes through the use of shares of preferred stock (“Preferred Shares”) and by investing in leveraged residual certificates issued by tender option bond (“TOB”) trusts (“TOB Residuals”). Under the Investment Company Act, the Fund is permitted to issue Preferred Shares in an amount up to 50% of its Managed Assets (100% of its net assets), borrow money (including by investing in TOB Residuals) or issue debt securities in an amount up to 33 1/3% of its Managed Assets (50% of its net assets) and enter into derivative instruments with leverage embedded in them in a limited manner or subject to a limit on leverage risk calculated based on value-at-risk, as required by Rule 18f-4 under the Investment Company Act. Although it has no present intention to do so, the Fund reserves the right to borrow money from banks or other financial institutions, or issue debt securities, in the future if it believes that market conditions would be conducive to the successful implementation of a leveraging strategy through borrowing money or issuing debt securities. The use of leverage creates an opportunity for increased common share net investment income dividends, but also creates risks for the holders of Shares. “Managed Assets” means the total assets of the Fund (including any assets attributable to money borrowed for investment purposes) minus the sum of the Fund’s accrued liabilities (other than money borrowed for investment purposes). See “Leverage” in the prospectus. |
| The Fund has leveraged its portfolio by issuing Variable Rate Demand Preferred Shares, par value $0.10 per share and with a liquidation preference of $100,000 per share (“VRDP Shares”). Under the Investment Company Act, the Fund is not permitted to issue Preferred Shares if, immediately after such issuance, the liquidation value of the Fund’s outstanding Preferred Shares exceeds 50% of its assets (including the proceeds from the issuance) less liabilities other than borrowings (i.e., the value of the Fund’s assets must be at least 200% of the liquidation value of its outstanding Preferred Shares). In addition, the Fund would not be permitted to declare any cash |
| dividend or other distribution on its common shares unless, at the time of such declaration, the value of the Fund’s assets less liabilities other than borrowings is at least 200% of such liquidation value. See “Leverage—Preferred Shares.” |
| As part of its leverage strategy, the Fund may invest in TOB Residuals. The TOB Residuals in which the Fund invests pay interest or income that, in the opinion of counsel to the issuer, is exempt from regular federal income tax. The Advisor will not conduct its own analysis of the tax status of the interest or income paid by TOB Residuals held by the Fund, but will rely on the opinion of counsel to the issuer. Although volatile, TOB Residuals typically offer the potential for yields exceeding the yields available on fixed rate municipal bonds with comparable credit quality, coupon, call provisions and maturity. See “Leverage—Tender Option Bond Transactions.” |
| The use of leverage is subject to numerous risks and will cause the Fund’s NAV and the yield to holders of Shares to be more volatile than if leverage was not used. For example, if short-term interest rates continue to rise, they may reach a level at which those rates exceed the return earned on securities purchased with leverage, which would result in a reduced yield and cause the Fund’s NAV to decline more than if the Fund had not used leverage. No assurance can be given that the Fund’s use of leverage will in any particular circumstance be possible or successful or that the Fund’s use of leverage will result in a higher yield to holders of Shares. See “Risks—Leverage Risk” in the prospectus. |
| Investment adviser |
The Fund’s investment adviser is BlackRock Advisors, LLC. |
| The Advisor is a subsidiary of BlackRock, Inc. (“BlackRock”). The Advisor receives an annual fee, payable monthly, in an amount equal to 0.90% of the average daily value of the Fund’s net assets. |
| The Advisor has contractually agreed, effective as of December 1, 2025, to waive the entirety of its management fee otherwise payable by the Fund through June 30, 2026. |
| Distributions; Dividend Reinvestment Plan |
The Fund declares distributions on a monthly basis. The Fund distributes all or a portion of its net investment income to holders of Shares. The Fund distributes all or a portion of its net investment income, after payment of dividends on the Fund’s VRDP Shares outstanding, to holders of Shares. Distributions may also include net realized capital gains. The Fund pays any capital gains distributions at least annually. In addition, the Fund may pay a special distribution at the end of the calendar year if necessary to comply with applicable law. See “Distributions” in this prospectus. |
| Various factors will affect the level of the Fund’s income, including the asset mix, the average maturity of the Fund’s portfolio and the Fund’s use of hedging. To permit the Fund to maintain more stable monthly distributions, the Fund may from time to time distribute more or less than the entire amount of income earned in a particular period. Any undistributed income would be available to supplement future distributions. As a result, the distributions paid by the Fund for any particular monthly period may be more or less than the amount of income actually earned by the Fund during that period. Undistributed income will add to the Fund’s NAV (and indirectly benefits the Advisor by increasing its fee) and, correspondingly, distributions from undistributed income will reduce the Fund’s NAV. |
| Shareholders will automatically have all dividends and distributions reinvested in Shares of the Fund in accordance with the Fund’s dividend reinvestment plan, unless an election is made to receive cash by contacting the Reinvestment Plan Agent (as defined herein). All correspondence concerning the Reinvestment Plan should be directed to the Reinvestment Plan Agent, in writing to: BlackRock Funds, C/O BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (U.S.) Inc., PO Box 534429, Pittsburgh, PA 15253-4429. Overnight correspondence should be directed to the Reinvestment Plan Agent at: BlackRock Funds, C/O BNY Mellon Investment Servicing, 500 Ross Street 154 0520, Pittsburgh, PA 15262. See “Dividend Reinvestment Plan” in the prospectus. |
| The Fund reserves the right to change its distribution policies and the basis for establishing the rate of its monthly distribution declarations at any time and may do so without prior notice to common shareholders. See “Distributions” in the prospectus. |
| Share Classes; Purchase of Shares |
As discussed above, the Fund has received the Multi-Class Exemptive Relief, which permits the Fund to, among other things, issue multiple classes of Shares and to impose asset-based distribution fees and early-withdrawal fees as applicable. The Fund currently offers three classes of Shares: Institutional Shares, Class A Shares, and Class U Shares. The Fund may in the future register and include other classes of Shares in the offering. |
| The Shares are offered on a daily basis. Shares are being offered through BlackRock Investments, LLC (the “Distributor”) at an offering price equal to the then-current NAV of the applicable class, plus, with respect to Class A Shares, the applicable sales load. The Distributor or Dealers (as defined below) may waive all or a portion of the sales load for certain classes of investors. If you buy Shares through certain selling agents or other financial intermediaries, they may directly charge you a transaction fee in such amount as they may determine. Any such fees will be in addition to your investment in the Fund and not deducted therefrom. Investors should consult with their selling agents or other financial intermediaries about any transaction |
| or other fees their selling agents or other financial intermediaries might impose on each class of shares. Generally, the stated minimum initial investment by an investor in the Fund is $100,000 for Institutional Shares, $1,000 for Class A Shares, $2,500 for Class U Shares. For Institutional Shares, the minimum initial investment is waived or reduced for certain eligible investors as described under “Plan of Distribution—Minimum Investments.” The minimum initial investment for each class of Shares may be modified or waived by the Fund and the Distributor for the Directors and certain employees of BlackRock, including its affiliates, vehicles controlled by such Directors and employees and their extended family members. There is no minimum subsequent investment for the Shares. See “Plan of Distribution” in the prospectus. |
| The Fund’s Shares outstanding immediately prior to the Conversion were redesignated as Institutional Shares effective upon the Conversion. Accordingly, shareholders of the Fund who held Shares of the Fund immediately prior to the Conversion (“Pre Conversion Shareholders”) held Institutional Shares of the Fund immediately following the Conversion, regardless of whether they met the eligibility requirements for Institutional Shares at the time of the Conversion. Although the eligibility requirements of Institutional Shares were waived for Pre Conversion Shareholders in connection with the Conversion, any additional purchases of the Fund by a Pre Conversion Shareholder following the Conversion will be subject to the terms and conditions in of the Shares in this prospectus, including share class eligibility requirements. Therefore, although Pre‑Conversion Shareholders held Institutional Shares of the Fund immediately following the Conversion, they may not be eligible to purchase additional Institutional Shares in the future but may be eligible to purchase Class A Shares or Class U Shares of the Fund. |
| Distribution and Shareholder Servicing Fee |
Institutional Shares are not subject to a distribution or shareholder servicing fee. Class A Shares and Class U Shares are subject to an ongoing Distribution and Servicing Fee to compensate financial industry professionals for distribution-related expenses, if applicable, and providing ongoing services in respect of clients who own Shares of the Fund. Under the terms of the Multi-Class Exemptive Relief, the Fund is subject to Rule 12b‑1 under the Investment Company Act. The Fund has adopted a distribution and servicing plan (the “Distribution and Servicing Plan”) and pays the Distribution and Servicing Fee under such plan. The Distribution and Servicing Plan operates in a manner consistent with Rule 12b‑1 under the Investment Company Act, which regulates the manner in which an open end investment company may directly or indirectly bear the expenses of distributing its shares. The maximum annual rates at which the Distribution and Servicing Fees may be paid under the Distribution and Servicing Plan (calculated as a percentage of the Fund’s average |
| daily net assets attributable to each of the Class A Shares and Class U Shares) is 0.75%. 0.25% of such fee is a shareholder servicing fee and the remaining portion is a distribution fee. |
| Distributor |
BlackRock Investments, LLC, an affiliate of the Fund and the Advisor, acts as distributor for the Shares and serves in that capacity on a reasonable best efforts basis, subject to various conditions. The principal business address of the Distributor is 50 Hudson Yards, New York, NY 10001. The Shares are offered for sale through the Distributor at NAV, plus, with respect to Class A Shares, the applicable sales load. The Distributor may appoint additional selling agents (each a “Dealer”) or other financial intermediaries through which investors may purchase Shares. Dealers or other financial intermediaries may impose terms and conditions on investor accounts and investments in the Fund that are in addition to the terms and conditions set forth in this prospectus. Any terms and conditions imposed by a Dealer or other financial intermediary, or operational limitations applicable to such parties, may affect or limit a shareholder’s ability to purchase the Shares or tender the Shares for repurchase, or otherwise transact business with the Fund. Dealers typically receive the sales load with respect to Class A Shares purchased by their clients. Institutional Shares and Class U Shares are not subject to a sales load; however, investors may be required to pay brokerage commissions on purchases or sales of Institutional Shares to their Dealers. If you buy Shares through certain Dealers or other financial intermediaries, they may directly charge you a transaction fee in such amount as they may determine. Investors should consult with their Dealers or other financial intermediaries about any transaction or other fees their Dealers or other financial intermediaries might impose on each class of Shares in addition to any fees imposed by the Fund. |
| Institutional Shares are not subject to the Distribution and Servicing Fee but are only available through the Distributor or an asset-based fee program sponsored by a registered broker-dealer or registered investment adviser (also known as a “wrap fee” program) that has an agreement with the Distributor. With respect to Class A Shares and Class U Shares, the Fund will pay the Distributor the Distribution and Servicing Fee. |
| Additionally, the Advisor or its affiliates, in the Advisor’s discretion and from its own resources, may pay additional compensation to Dealers in connection with the sale of Shares (the “Additional Compensation”). In return for the Additional Compensation, the Fund may receive certain marketing advantages including but not limited to access to a broker’s or dealer’s registered representatives, placement on a list of investment options offered by a broker or dealer, or the ability to assist in training and educating the broker’s or dealer’s registered representatives. The Additional Compensation may differ among brokers or dealers in amount or in the amount of calculation. |
| Payments of Additional Compensation may be fixed dollar amounts or, based on the aggregate value of outstanding Shares held by common shareholders introduced by the broker or dealer, or determined in some other manner. The receipt of Additional Compensation by a selling broker or dealer may create potential conflicts of interest between an investor and its broker or dealer who is recommending the Fund over other potential investments. See “Plan of Distribution” in this prospectus. |
| Unlisted Closed‑End Fund |
The Shares are not listed on any securities exchange. The Fund is designed for long-term investors and an investment in the Shares, unlike an investment in a traditional listed closed end fund, should be considered illiquid. An investment in the Shares is not suitable for investors who need access to the money they invest and investors should provide for adequate liquidity outside of their investment in the Fund to meet their foreseeable liquidity needs. Before making an investment decision, an investor and/or its adviser should (i) consider the suitability of this investment with respect to its investment objectives and personal situation and (ii) consider factors such as its personal net worth, income, age, risk tolerance, and liquidity needs. Short-term investors and investors who cannot bear the loss of some or all of their investment and/or the risks associated with a lack of liquidity should not invest in the Fund. Unlike shares of open end funds (commonly known as mutual funds), which generally are redeemable on a daily basis, the Shares are not redeemable at an investor’s option, and unlike traditional listed closed end funds the Shares are not listed on any securities exchange. Notwithstanding that the Fund conducts periodic repurchase offers, investors should not expect to be able to sell their Shares when and/or in the amount desired regardless of how the Fund performs. See “Closed End Fund Structure” in this prospectus. |
| Custodian and Transfer Agent |
State Street Bank and Trust Company serves as the Fund’s custodian, and BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc. serves as the Fund’s transfer agent. |
| Administrator |
State Street Bank and Trust Company serves as the Fund’s administrator and fund accountant. |
| Principal Risk Considerations |
An investment in the Shares of the Fund involves risk. You should consider carefully the risks summarized below, each of which is described in more detail under “Risks” beginning on page 72 of this prospectus. |
| Closed End Interval Fund; Illiquidity of Shares. The Fund is structured as an “interval fund” and designed primarily for long-term investors. An investment in the Shares, unlike an investment in a traditional listed closed end fund, should be considered illiquid. The Shares are appropriate only for investors who are seeking an investment in less liquid or illiquid portfolio investments within an |
| illiquid fund. An investment in the Shares is not suitable for investors who need access to the money they invest and investors should provide for adequate liquidity outside of their investment in the Fund to meet their foreseeable liquidity needs. Before making an investment decision, an investor and/or its adviser should (i) consider the suitability of this investment with respect to its investment objectives and personal situation and (ii) consider factors such as its personal net worth, income, age, risk tolerance, and liquidity needs. Short-term investors and investors who cannot bear the loss of some or all of their investment and/or the risks associated with a lack of liquidity should not invest in the Fund. Unlike open end funds (commonly known as mutual funds), which generally permit redemptions on a daily basis, the Shares are not redeemable at an investor’s option. Unlike traditional listed closed end funds, the Shares are not listed for trading on any securities exchange, and the Fund does not expect any secondary market to develop for the Shares in the foreseeable future. The NAV of the Shares may be volatile and the Fund’s use of leverage will increase this volatility. As the Shares are not traded, investors may not be able to dispose of their investment in the Fund when or in the amount desired, no matter how the Fund performs. |
| Although the Fund, as a fundamental policy, makes quarterly offers to repurchase between 5% and 25% of its outstanding Shares at NAV, the number of Shares tendered in connection with a repurchase offer may exceed the number of Shares the Fund has offered to repurchase, in which case the Fund may not repurchase all of your Shares tendered in that offer. In connection with any given repurchase offer, it is possible that the Fund may offer to repurchase only the minimum amount of 5% of its outstanding Shares. Hence, you may not be able to sell your Shares when and/or in the amount that you desire. |
| Investment Risk. An investment in the Fund’s Shares is subject to investment risk, including the possible loss of the entire amount that you invest. The Shares are designed for long-term investors, and the Fund should not be treated as a trading vehicle. At any point in time an investment in the Fund’s Shares may be worth less than the original amount invested, even after taking into account distributions paid by the Fund. During periods in which the Fund may use leverage, the Fund’s investment and certain other risks will be magnified. |
| Repurchase Offers Risk. As described under “Periodic Repurchase Offers,” the Fund is an “interval fund” and, to provide some liquidity to shareholders, makes quarterly offers to repurchase between 5% and 25% of its outstanding Shares at NAV, pursuant to Rule 23c‑3 under the Investment Company Act. The Fund believes that these repurchase offers are generally beneficial to the Fund’s shareholders. Repurchase offers generally are funded from available cash or sales of portfolio securities but may be funded with borrowings. However, |
| the repurchase of Shares by the Fund decreases the assets of the Fund and, therefore, may have the effect of increasing the Fund’s expense ratio. Repurchase offers and the need to fund repurchase obligations may also affect the ability of the Fund to be fully invested or force the Fund to maintain a higher percentage of its assets in liquid investments, which may harm the Fund’s investment performance. Moreover, diminution in the size of the Fund through repurchases may result in untimely sales of portfolio securities, and may limit the ability of the Fund to participate in new investment opportunities. If the Fund uses leverage, repurchases of Shares may compound the adverse effects of leverage in a declining market. In addition, if the Fund borrows money to finance repurchases, interest on that borrowing will negatively affect shareholders who do not tender their Shares by increasing Fund expenses and reducing any net investment income. Certain shareholders may from time to time own or control a significant percentage of the Fund’s Shares. Repurchase requests by these shareholders of these Shares of the Fund may cause repurchases to be oversubscribed, with the result that shareholders may only be able to have a portion of their Shares repurchased in connection with any repurchase offer. If a repurchase offer is oversubscribed and the Fund determines not to repurchase additional Shares beyond the repurchase offer amount, or if shareholders tender an amount of Shares greater than that which the Fund is entitled to purchase, the Fund will repurchase the Shares tendered on a pro rata basis, and shareholders will have to wait until the next repurchase offer to make another repurchase request. Shareholders will be subject to the risk of NAV fluctuations during that period. Thus, there is also a risk that some shareholders, in anticipation of proration, may tender more Shares than they wish to have repurchased in a particular quarterly period, thereby increasing the likelihood that proration will occur. Affiliates of the Fund may own Shares and determine to participate in the Fund’s repurchase offers, which may contribute to a repurchase offer being oversubscribed and the Fund effecting repurchases on a pro rata basis. The NAV of Shares tendered in a repurchase offer may fluctuate between the date a shareholder submits a repurchase request and the Repurchase Request Deadline, and to the extent there is any delay between the Repurchase Request Deadline and the Repurchase Pricing Date. The NAV on the Repurchase Request Deadline or the Repurchase Pricing Date may be higher or lower than on the date a shareholder submits a repurchase request. See “Periodic Repurchase Offers” in the prospectus. |
| Distribution Payment Risk. The Fund cannot assure investors that the Fund will achieve investment results that will allow the Fund to make a specified level of cash distributions or year to year increases in cash distributions. All distributions will be paid at the discretion of the Board and may depend on the Fund’s earnings, the Fund’s net investment income, the Fund’s financial condition, maintenance of the Fund’s RIC status, compliance with applicable regulations and such other factors as |
| the Board may deem relevant from time to time. Shareholders should not assume that the source of distributions will be net profits. |
| In the event that the Fund encounters delays in locating suitable investment opportunities, all or a substantial portion of the Fund’s distributions may constitute a return of capital to shareholders. To the extent that the Fund pays distributions that constitute a return of capital for U.S. federal income tax purposes, it will lower an investor’s tax basis in his or her Shares. A return of capital generally is a return of an investor’s investment, rather than a return of earnings or gains derived from the Fund’s investment activities, and generally results in a reduction of the tax basis in the Shares. As a result from such reduction in tax basis, shareholders may be subject to tax in connection with the sale of Fund Shares, even if such Shares are sold at a loss relative to the shareholder’s original investment. |
| Effect of Additional Subscriptions. The Fund intends to accept additional subscriptions for Shares, and such subscriptions will dilute the interest of existing shareholders in the Fund’s investment portfolio, which could have an adverse impact on the value of existing shareholders’ Shares. |
| Purchase Price Risk. The purchase price at which an investor purchases Shares will be determined as of the close of the regular trading session on the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) on each business day on which the NYSE is open for trading (“daily closing”) and will equal the NAV per Common Share of the applicable class as of such date, plus, with respect to Class A Shares, the applicable sales load. As a result, in the event of an increase in the Fund’s NAV per Common Share of an applicable class, an investor’s purchase price may be higher than the prior daily closing price per Common Share of the applicable class, and therefore an investor may receive fewer Shares than if an investor had subscribed at the prior daily closing price. |
| Best-Efforts Offering Risk. This offering is being made on a reasonable best efforts basis, whereby the Distributor is only required to use its reasonable best efforts to sell the Shares and neither it nor any Dealer has a firm commitment or obligation to purchase any of the Shares. To the extent that less than the maximum number of Shares is subscribed for, the opportunity for the allocation of the Fund’s investments among various issuers and industries may be decreased, and the returns achieved on those investments may be reduced as a result of allocating all of the Fund’s expenses over a smaller capital base. As a result, the Fund may be unable to achieve its investment objective and an investor could lose some or all of the value of his or her investment in the Shares. The Distributor is an affiliate of the Fund and the Advisor. As a result, the Distributor’s due diligence review and investigation of the Fund and this prospectus cannot be considered to be an independent review. |
| Municipal Securities Market Risk. Economic exposure to the municipal securities market involves certain risks. The municipal market is one in which dealer firms make markets in bonds on a principal basis using their proprietary capital. Most municipal securities will not be registered with the SEC or any state securities commission and will not be listed on any national securities exchange. The amount of public information available about the municipal securities to which the Fund is economically exposed is generally less than that for corporate equities or bonds, and the investment performance of the Fund may therefore be more dependent on the analytical abilities of the Advisor than would be a fund investing solely in stocks or taxable bonds. The secondary market for municipal securities, particularly the below investment grade securities to which the Fund may be economically exposed, also tends to be less well-developed or liquid than many other securities markets, which may adversely affect the Fund’s ability to sell such securities at attractive prices or at prices approximating those at which the Fund currently values them. |
| In addition, many state and municipal governments that issue securities are under significant economic and financial stress and may not be able to satisfy their obligations. This stress may be significantly exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. The ability of municipal issuers to make timely payments of interest and principal may be diminished during general economic downturns and as governmental cost burdens are reallocated among federal, state and local governments. The taxing power of any governmental entity may be limited by provisions of state constitutions or laws and an entity’s credit will depend on many factors, including the entity’s tax base, the extent to which the entity relies on federal or state aid, and other factors which are beyond the entity’s control. In addition, laws enacted in the future by Congress or state legislatures or referenda could extend the time for payment of principal and/or interest, or impose other constraints on enforcement of such obligations or on the ability of municipalities to levy taxes. Issuers of municipal securities might seek protection under the bankruptcy laws. In the event of bankruptcy of such an issuer, holders of municipal securities could experience delays in collecting principal and interest and such holders may not, in all circumstances, be able to collect all principal and interest to which they are entitled. To enforce its rights in the event of a default in the payment of interest or repayment of principal, or both, the Fund may take possession of and manage the assets securing the issuer’s obligations on such securities, which may increase the Fund’s operating expenses. Any income derived from the Fund’s ownership or operation of such assets may not be tax exempt or may fail to generate qualifying income for purposes of the income tests applicable to regulated investment companies (“RICs”) under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the “Code”). |
| Risk Factors and Special Considerations Relating to Municipal Securities. The risks and special considerations involved in investment in municipal securities vary with the types of instruments being acquired. Certain instruments in which the Fund may invest may be characterized as derivative instruments. See “The Fund’s Investments—Description of Municipal Securities” and “The Fund’s Investments—Strategic Transactions—Financial Futures Transactions and Options.” |
| The value of municipal securities generally may be affected by uncertainties in the municipal markets as a result of legislation or litigation, including legislation or litigation that changes the taxation of municipal securities or the rights of municipal security holders in the event of a bankruptcy. Municipal bankruptcies are rare, and certain provisions of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code governing such bankruptcies are unclear. Further, the application of state law to municipal security issuers could produce varying results among the states or among municipal security issuers within a state. These uncertainties could have a significant impact on the prices of the municipal securities in which the Fund invests. |
| Tax Exempt Status Risk. In making investments, the Fund and the Advisor will rely on the opinion of issuers’ bond counsel and, in the case of derivative securities, sponsors’ counsel, on the tax exempt status of interest on municipal obligations and payments under tax‑exempt derivative securities. Neither the Fund nor the Advisor will independently review the bases for those tax opinions. If any of those tax opinions are ultimately determined to be incorrect or if events occur after the security is acquired that impact the security’s tax exempt status, the Fund and its shareholders could be subject to substantial tax liabilities. An assertion by the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) that a portfolio security is not exempt from U.S. federal income tax (contrary to indications from the issuer) could affect the Fund’s and its shareholders’ income tax liability for the current or past years and could create liability for information reporting penalties. In addition, an IRS assertion of taxability may cause the Fund to be ineligible to pay exempt-interest dividends or may impair the liquidity and the fair market value of the securities. See “Tax Matters.” |
| Taxability Risk. The Fund intends to minimize the payment of taxable income to shareholders by investing in tax exempt or municipal securities in reliance at the time of purchase on an opinion of bond counsel to the issuer that the interest paid on those securities will be excludable from gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Such securities, however, may be determined to pay, or have paid, taxable income subsequent to the Fund’s acquisition of the securities. In that event, the treatment of dividends previously paid or to be paid by the Fund as “exempt interest dividends” could be adversely affected, subjecting the Fund’s shareholders to increased |
| U.S. federal income tax liabilities. Alternatively, the Fund might enter into an agreement with the IRS to pay an agreed upon amount in lieu of the IRS adjusting individual shareholders’ income tax liabilities. If the Fund agrees to enter into such an agreement, the Fund’s yield could be adversely affected. Further, shareholders at the time the Fund enters into such an agreement that were not shareholders when the dividends in question were paid would bear some cost for a benefit they did not receive. Federal tax legislation may limit the types and volume of bonds the interest on which qualifies for a federal income tax exemption. As a result, current legislation and legislation that may be enacted in the future may affect the availability of municipal securities for investment by the Fund. In addition, future laws, regulations, rulings or court decisions may cause interest on municipal securities to be subject, directly or indirectly, to U.S. federal income taxation or interest on state municipal securities to be subject to state or local income taxation, or the value of state municipal securities to be subject to state or local intangible personal property tax, or may otherwise prevent the Fund from realizing the full current benefit of the tax exempt status of such securities. Any such change could also affect the market price of such securities, and thus the value of an investment in the Fund. |
| Alternative Minimum Tax and Capital Gain Tax Risk. The Fund expects that a portion of the interest or income it produces will be includable in alternative minimum taxable income. There is no limit on the portion of the Fund’s assets that may be invested in municipal securities the income from which would be subject to the alternative minimum tax. Exempt interest dividends also are likely to be subject to state and local income taxes. Distributions of any capital gain or other taxable income will be taxable to shareholders. The Shares may not be a suitable investment for investors who are subject to the federal alternative minimum tax or who would become subject to such tax by purchasing common shares. The suitability of an investment in common shares will depend upon a comparison of the after tax yield likely to be provided from the Fund with that from comparable tax exempt investments not subject to the alternative minimum tax, and from comparable fully taxable investments, in light of each such investor’s tax position. |
| Fixed-Income Securities Risks. Fixed-income securities in which the Fund may invest are generally subject to the following risks: |
| To the extent the Fund invests in debt securities that may be prepaid at the option of the obligor, the sensitivity of such securities to changes in interest rates may increase (to the detriment of the Fund) when interest rates rise. Moreover, because rates on certain floating rate debt securities typically reset only periodically, changes in prevailing interest rates (and particularly sudden and significant changes) can be expected to cause some fluctuations in the NAV of the Fund to the extent that it invests in floating rate debt securities. These basic principles of bond prices also apply to U.S. Government securities. A security backed by the “full faith and credit” of the U.S. Government is guaranteed only as to its stated interest rate and face value at maturity, not its current market price. Just like other fixed-income securities, government-guaranteed securities will fluctuate in value when interest rates change. |
| The Fund’s use of leverage will tend to increase the Fund’s interest rate risk. The Fund may utilize certain strategies, including taking positions in futures or interest rate swaps, for the purpose of reducing the interest rate sensitivity of fixed-income securities held by the Fund and decreasing the Fund’s exposure to interest rate risk. The Fund is not required to hedge its exposure to interest rate risk and may choose not to do so. In addition, there is no assurance that any attempts by the Fund to reduce interest rate risk will be successful or that any hedges that the Fund may establish will perfectly correlate with movements in interest rates. |
| Issuer Risk. The value of fixed-income securities may decline for a number of reasons that directly relate to the issuer, such as management performance, financial leverage, reduced demand for the issuer’s goods and services, historical and prospective earnings of the issuer and the value of the assets of the issuer. |
| Credit Risk. Credit risk is the risk that one or more fixed-income securities in the Fund’s portfolio will decline in price or fail to make timely payments of interest or principal when due, or otherwise honor their obligations, because the issuer of the security experiences a decline in its financial status. Credit risk is increased when a portfolio security is downgraded or the perceived creditworthiness of the issuer deteriorates. To the extent the Fund invests in below investment grade securities, it will be exposed to a greater amount of credit risk than a |
| fund that only invests in investment grade securities. See “Risks—Below Investment Grade Securities Risk.” In addition, to the extent the Fund uses credit derivatives, such use will expose it to additional risk in the event that the bonds underlying the derivatives default. The degree of credit risk depends on the issuer’s financial condition and on the terms of the securities. |
| Prepayment Risk. During periods of declining interest rates, borrowers may exercise their option to prepay principal earlier than scheduled. For fixed rate securities, such payments often occur during periods of declining interest rates, forcing the Fund to reinvest in lower yielding securities, resulting in a possible decline in the Fund’s income and distributions to shareholders. This is known as prepayment or “call” risk. Below investment grade securities frequently have call features that allow the issuer to redeem the security at dates prior to its stated maturity at a specified price (typically greater than par) only if certain prescribed conditions are met (i.e., “call protection”). For premium bonds (bonds acquired at prices that exceed their par or principal value) purchased by the Fund, prepayment risk may be increased. |
| Reinvestment Risk. Reinvestment risk is the risk that income from the Fund’s portfolio will decline if the Fund invests the proceeds from matured, traded or called fixed-income securities at market interest rates that are below the Fund portfolio’s current earnings rate. |
| Duration and Maturity Risk. The Fund has no set policy regarding portfolio maturity or duration of the fixed-income securities it may hold. The Advisor may seek to adjust the portfolio’s duration or maturity based on its assessment of current and projected market conditions and all other factors that the Advisor deems relevant. Any decisions as to the targeted duration or maturity of any particular category of investments or of the Fund’s portfolio generally will be made based on all pertinent market factors at any given time. The Fund may incur costs in seeking to adjust the portfolio’s average duration or maturity. There can be no assurance that the Advisor’s assessment of current and projected market conditions will be correct or that any strategy to adjust the portfolio’s duration or maturity will be successful at any given time. In general, the longer the duration of any fixed-income securities in the Fund’s portfolio, the more exposure the Fund will have to the interest rate risks described above. See “Risks—Fixed-Income Securities Risks—Duration and Maturity Risk.” |
| Spread Risk. Credit spread refers to the difference in interest rates between higher quality and lower quality debt securities, with credit spreads tending to be wider for lower quality securities. Wider credit spreads and decreasing market values typically represent a deterioration of a debt security’s credit soundness and a perceived greater likelihood of risk or default by the issuer. In addition, credit |
| spreads in general, or for a particular quality of securities, may widen due to the anticipation of deteriorating economic conditions, with widening tending to be greater for lower grade securities. A widening of spread for a security generally will result in a reduction in the market value of the security. |
| Below Investment Grade Securities Risk. The Fund will invest without limit in Municipal Bonds that are rated, at the time of investment, below investment grade quality (rated Ba/BB or below, or judged to be of comparable quality by the Advisor), which are commonly referred to as “high yield” or “junk” bonds and are regarded as predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer’s capacity to pay interest and repay principal when due. The value of high yield, lower quality bonds is affected by the creditworthiness of the issuers of the securities and by general economic and specific industry conditions. Issuers of high yield bonds are not perceived to be as strong financially as those with higher credit ratings. These issuers are more vulnerable to financial setbacks and recession than more creditworthy issuers, which may impair their ability to make interest and principal payments. Lower grade securities may be particularly susceptible to economic downturns. It is likely that an economic recession could severely disrupt the market for such securities and may have an adverse impact on the value of such securities. In addition, it is likely that any such economic downturn could adversely affect the ability of the issuers of such securities to repay principal and pay interest thereon and increase the incidence of default for such securities. |
| The secondary market for lower grade securities may be less liquid than that for higher rated securities. Adverse conditions could make it difficult at times for the Fund to sell certain securities or could result in lower prices than those used in calculating the Fund’s NAV. Because of the substantial risks associated with investments in lower grade securities, you could lose money on your investment in Shares of the Fund, both in the short-term and the long-term. To the extent that the Fund invests in lower grade securities that have not been rated by a rating agency, the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective will be more dependent on the Advisor’s credit analysis than would be the case when the Fund invests in rated securities. See “Risks—Below Investment Grade Securities Risk.” |
| Distressed and Defaulted Securities Risk. Investments in the securities of financially distressed issuers are speculative and involve substantial risks. These securities may present a substantial risk of default or may be in default at the time of investment. The Fund may incur additional expenses to the extent it is required to seek recovery upon a default in the payment of principal or interest on its portfolio holdings. In any reorganization or liquidation proceeding relating to a portfolio company, the Fund may lose its entire investment or may be required to accept cash or securities with a value less than its original |
| investment. Among the risks inherent in investments in a troubled entity is that it frequently may be difficult to obtain information as to the true financial condition of such issuer. The Advisor’s judgment about the credit quality of the issuer and the relative value and liquidity of its securities may prove to be wrong. Distressed securities and any securities received in an exchange for such securities may be subject to restrictions on resale. |
| Unrated Securities Risk. Because the Fund may purchase securities that are not rated by any rating organization, the Advisor may, after assessing their credit quality, internally assign ratings to certain of those securities in categories similar to those of rating organizations. Some unrated securities may not have an active trading market or may be difficult to value, which means the Fund might have difficulty selling them promptly at an acceptable price. To the extent that the Fund invests in unrated securities, the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective will be more dependent on the Advisor’s credit analysis than would be the case when the Fund invests in rated securities. |
| Leverage Risk. The use of leverage creates an opportunity for increased common share net investment income distributions, but also creates risks for the holders of Shares. |
| There can be no assurance that the Fund’s intended leveraging strategy will be successful. Leverage involves risks and special considerations for holders of Shares, including: |
| • | the likelihood of greater volatility of NAV and distribution rate of the Shares than a comparable portfolio without leverage; |
| • | the risk that fluctuations in interest rates or dividend rates on any leverage that the Fund must pay will reduce the return to the holders of Shares; |
| • | the effect of leverage in a declining market, which is likely to cause a greater decline in the NAV of the Shares than if the Fund were not leveraged; and |
| • | leverage may increase operating costs, which may reduce total return. |
| Any decline in the NAV of the Fund’s investments will be borne entirely by the holders of Shares. Therefore, if the market value of the Fund’s portfolio declines, leverage will result in a greater decrease in NAV to the holders of Shares than if the Fund were not leveraged. While the Fund may from time to time consider reducing leverage in response to actual or anticipated changes in interest rates in an effort to mitigate the increased volatility of current income and NAV associated with leverage, there can be no assurances that the Fund |
| will actually reduce leverage in the future or that any reduction, if undertaken, will benefit the holders of Shares. Changes in the future direction of interest rates are very difficult to predict accurately. If the Fund were to reduce leverage based on a prediction about future changes to interest rates, and that prediction turned out to be incorrect, the reduction in leverage would likely operate to reduce the income and/or total returns to holders of Shares relative to the circumstance where the Fund had not reduced leverage. The Fund may decide that this risk outweighs the likelihood of achieving the desired reduction to volatility in income and share price if the prediction were to prove to be correct and therefore determine not to reduce leverage as described above. |
| The Fund currently utilizes leverage through the use of Preferred Shares and investments in TOB Residuals (see “Risks—Tender Option Bond Risk”). |
| The Fund may utilize leverage through investment in derivatives. See “Risks—Strategic Transactions and Derivatives Risk.” Under Rule 18f‑4 under the Investment Company Act, among other things, the Fund must either use derivatives in a limited manner or comply with an outer limit on fund leverage risk based on value‑at‑risk. The use of leverage may cause the Fund to liquidate portfolio positions when it may not be advantageous to do so to satisfy its obligations or to meet the applicable requirements of the Investment Company Act and the rules thereunder. |
| Certain types of leverage used by the Fund may result in the Fund being subject to covenants relating to asset coverage and portfolio composition requirements. The Fund may be subject to certain restrictions on investments imposed by guidelines of one or more rating agencies, which may issue ratings for the short-term debt securities or preferred shares issued by the Fund. These guidelines may impose asset coverage or portfolio composition requirements that are more stringent than those imposed by the Investment Company Act. The Advisor does not believe that these covenants or guidelines will impede it from managing the Fund’s portfolio in accordance with the Fund’s investment objective and policies. |
| In addition to the foregoing, the use of leverage treated as indebtedness of the Fund for U.S. federal income tax purposes may reduce the amount of Fund dividends that are otherwise eligible for the dividends received deduction in the hands of corporate shareholders. |
| Tender Option Bond Risk. The Fund may leverage its assets through the use of TOB Residuals, which are derivative interests in municipal bonds. The TOB Residuals in which the Fund may invest pay interest or income that, in the opinion of counsel to the issuer of such TOB Residuals, is exempt from regular U.S. federal income tax. No independent investigation will be made to confirm the tax exempt |
| status of the interest or income paid by TOB Residuals held by the Fund. There is no assurance that the Fund’s strategy of using TOB Residuals to leverage its assets will be successful. |
| TOB Residuals represent beneficial interests in a special purpose trust formed for the purpose of holding municipal bonds contributed by one or more funds (a “TOB Trust”). A TOB Trust typically issues two classes of beneficial interests: short-term floating rate interests (“TOB Floaters”), which are sold to third party investors, and TOB Residuals, which are generally issued to the fund(s) that transferred municipal bonds to the TOB Trust. TOB Floaters may have first priority on the cash flow from the municipal bonds held by the TOB Trust and are enhanced with a liquidity support arrangement provided by a third party bank or other financial institution (the “TOBs Liquidity Provider”) which allows holders to tender their position at par (plus accrued interest). The Fund, as a holder of TOB Residuals, is paid the residual cash flow from the TOB Trust after payment of TOB Trust expenses and interest on the TOB Floaters. As result, distributions on TOB Residuals will bear an inverse relationship to short-term municipal bond interest rates. Distributions on the TOB Residuals paid to the Fund will be reduced or, in the extreme, eliminated as short-term municipal interest rates rise and will increase when short-term municipal interest rates fall. The amount of such reduction or increase is a function, in part, of the amount of TOB Floaters sold by the TOB Trust relative to the amount of the TOB Residuals that it sells. The greater the amount of TOB Floaters sold relative to the TOB Residuals, the more volatile the distributions on the TOB Residuals will be. Short-term interest rates have been at historic lows in recent years, but have begun to increase and are generally expected to continue to do so in the current market environment. |
| The municipal bonds transferred to a TOB Trust typically are high grade municipal bonds. In certain cases, when municipal bonds transferred are lower grade municipal bonds, the TOB Trust transaction includes a credit enhancement feature that provides for the timely payment of principal and interest on the bonds to the TOB Trust by a credit enhancement provider. The TOB Trust would be responsible for the payment of the credit enhancement fee and the Fund, as a TOB Residual holder, would be responsible for reimbursement of any payments of principal and interest made by the credit enhancement provider. |
| Any leverage achieved through the Fund’s investment in TOB Residuals will increase the possibility that common share long-term returns will be diminished if the cost of the TOB Floaters issued by a TOB Trust exceeds the return on the securities in the TOB Trust. If the income and gains earned on municipal securities owned by a TOB Trust that issues TOB Residuals to the Fund are greater than the payments due on the TOB Floaters issued by the TOB Trust, the Fund’s returns will be greater than if it had not invested in the TOB Residuals. |
| Although the Fund generally would unwind a TOB transaction rather than try to sell a TOB Residual, if it did try to sell a TOB Residual, its ability to do so would depend on the liquidity of the TOB Residual. |
| TOB Residuals have varying degrees of liquidity based, among other things, upon the liquidity of the underlying securities deposited in the TOB Trust. The market price of TOB Residuals is more volatile than the underlying municipal bonds due to leverage. |
| The leverage attributable to the Fund’s use of TOB Residuals may be “called away” on relatively short notice and therefore may be less permanent than more traditional forms of leverage. The TOB Trust may be collapsed without the consent of the Fund upon the occurrence of termination events, as defined in the TOB Trust agreements, including if TOB Floaters that are tendered to the TOBs Liquidity Provider cannot be remarketed. Attempts to remarket tendered securities often failed during volatile market conditions in the past. Upon the occurrence of a termination event, a TOB Trust would be liquidated with the proceeds applied first to any accrued fees owed to the trustee of the TOB Trust, the remarketing agent of the TOB Floaters and the TOBs Liquidity Provider. Upon certain termination events, the holders of the TOB Floaters would be paid before the TOB Residual holders (i.e., the Fund) whereas in other termination events, the TOB Floater and TOB Residual holders would be paid pro rata. If the proceeds upon liquidation of a TOB Trust, net of payment of fees, are less than the aggregate amount the TOB Residual and TOB Floater holders invested in the TOB Trust, the Fund as a TOB Residual holder will realize a loss on its investment, particularly if the TOB Floater holders are paid before the TOB Residual holders. The risk of such a loss may be greater during volatile market conditions when it may be difficult to sell the bonds held by a TOB Trust. |
| The Fund may invest in a TOB Trust on either a non‑recourse or recourse basis. If the Fund invests in a TOB Trust on a recourse basis, it will typically enter into a reimbursement agreement with the TOBs Liquidity Provider pursuant to which the Fund is required to reimburse the TOBs Liquidity Provider the balance, if any, of the amount owed under the liquidity facility over the liquidation proceeds (the “Liquidation Shortfall”). As a result, if the Fund invests in a recourse TOB Trust, the Fund will bear the risk of loss with respect to any Liquidation Shortfall. |
| The Fund structures and “sponsors” the TOB Trusts in which it holds TOB Residuals and has certain duties and responsibilities, which may give rise to certain additional risks including, but not limited to, compliance, securities law and operational risks. |
| TOB Trusts constitute an important component of the municipal bond market. Any modifications or changes to the rules governing TOB Trusts may adversely impact the municipal market and the Fund, including through reduced demand for and liquidity of municipal bonds and increased financing costs for municipal issuers. The ultimate impact of any potential modifications on the TOB market and the overall municipal market is not yet certain. |
| Insurance Risk. The Fund may purchase municipal securities that are secured by insurance or may purchase insurance for municipal securities it owns. Insurance guarantees that interest payments on a municipal security will be made on time and that the principal will be repaid when the security matures. Insurance is expected to protect the Fund against losses caused by a municipal security issuer’s failure to make interest and principal payments. However, insurance does not protect the Fund or its shareholders against losses caused by declines in a municipal security’s value. Also, the Fund cannot be certain that any insurance company will make the payments it guarantees. While an insured municipal security will typically be deemed to have the rating of its insurer, if the insurer of a municipal security suffers a downgrade in its credit rating or the market discounts the value of the insurance provided by the insurer, the rating of the underlying municipal security will be more relevant and the value of the municipal security would more closely, if not entirely, reflect such rating. The Fund may lose money on its investment if the insurance company does not make payments it guarantees. If a municipal security’s insurer fails to fulfill its obligations or loses its credit rating, the value of the security could drop. |
| Yield and Ratings Risk. The yields on debt obligations are dependent on a variety of factors, including general market conditions, conditions in the particular market for the obligation, the financial condition of the issuer, the size of the offering, the maturity of the obligation and the ratings of the issue. The ratings of Moody’s, S&P and Fitch, which are described in “Appendix A—Description of Bond Ratings” to the SAI, represent their respective opinions as to the quality of the obligations they undertake to rate. Ratings, however, are general and are not absolute standards of quality. Consequently, obligations with the same rating, maturity and interest rate may have different market prices. Subsequent to its purchase by the Fund, a rated security may cease to be rated. The Advisor will consider such an event in determining whether the Fund should continue to hold the security. |
| Zero-Coupon Securities Risk. Zero-coupon securities are securities that are sold at a discount to par value and do not pay interest during the life of the security. The discount approximates the total amount of interest the security will accrue and compound over the period until maturity at a rate of interest reflecting the market rate of the security |
| at the time of issuance. Upon maturity, the holder of a zero coupon security is entitled to receive the par value of the security. |
| The Fund accrues income with respect to these securities for U.S. federal income tax and accounting purposes prior to the receipt of cash payments. Zero-coupon securities may be subject to greater fluctuation in value and less liquidity in the event of adverse market conditions than comparably rated securities that pay cash interest at regular intervals. |
| Further, to maintain its qualification for pass-through treatment under the federal tax laws, the Fund is required to distribute income to its shareholders and, consequently, may have to dispose of other, more liquid portfolio securities under disadvantageous circumstances or may have to leverage itself by borrowing in order to generate the cash to satisfy these distributions. The required distributions may result in an increase in the Fund’s exposure to zero coupon securities. |
| In addition to the above-described risks, there are certain other risks related to investing in zero coupon securities. During a period of severe market conditions, the market for such securities may become even less liquid. In addition, as these securities do not pay cash interest, the Fund’s investment exposure to these securities and their risks, including credit risk, will increase during the time these securities are held in the Fund’s portfolio. |
| Variable Rate Demand Obligations Risk. VRDOs are floating rate securities that combine an interest in a long-term municipal bond with a right to demand payment before maturity from a bank or other financial institution. If the bank or financial institution is unable to pay, the Fund may lose money. |
| Indexed and Inverse Securities Risk. Indexed and inverse securities provide a potential return based on a particular index of value or interest rates. The Fund’s return on these securities will be subject to risk with respect to the value of the particular index. These securities are subject to leverage risk and correlation risk. Certain indexed and inverse securities have greater sensitivity to changes in interest rates or index levels than other securities, and the Fund’s investment in such instruments may decline significantly in value if interest rates or index levels move in a way Fund management does not anticipate. |
| When-Issued, Forward Commitment and Delayed Delivery Transactions Risk. The Fund may purchase securities on a when-issued basis (including on a forward commitment or “TBA” (to be announced) basis) and may purchase or sell securities for delayed delivery. When-issued and delayed delivery transactions occur when securities are purchased or sold by the Fund with payment and delivery taking place in the future to secure an advantageous yield or price. Securities purchased on a when-issued or delayed delivery |
| basis may expose the Fund to counterparty risk of default as well as the risk that securities may experience fluctuations in value prior to their actual delivery. The Fund will not accrue income with respect to a when-issued or delayed delivery security prior to its stated delivery date. Purchasing securities on a when-issued or delayed delivery basis can involve the additional risk that the price or yield available in the market when the delivery takes place may not be as favorable as that obtained in the transaction itself. |
| Repurchase Agreements Risk. Subject to its investment objective and policies, the Fund may enter into repurchase agreements. Repurchase agreements typically involve the acquisition by the Fund of fixed-income securities from a selling financial institution such as a bank, savings and loan association or broker-dealer. The agreement provides that the Fund will sell the securities back to the institution at a fixed time in the future. The Fund does not bear the risk of a decline in the value of the underlying security unless the seller defaults under its repurchase obligation. In the event of the bankruptcy or other default of a seller of a repurchase agreement, the Fund could experience both delays in liquidating the underlying securities and losses, including possible decline in the value of the underlying security during the period in which the Fund seeks to enforce its rights thereto; possible lack of access to income on the underlying security during this period; and expenses of enforcing its rights. While repurchase agreements involve certain risks not associated with direct investments in fixed-income securities, the Fund follows procedures approved by the Board that are designed to minimize such risks. In addition, the value of the collateral underlying the repurchase agreement will be at least equal to the repurchase price, including any accrued interest earned on the repurchase agreement. In the event of a default or bankruptcy by a selling financial institution, the Fund generally will seek to liquidate such collateral. However, the exercise of the Fund’s right to liquidate such collateral could involve certain costs or delays and, to the extent that proceeds from any sale upon a default of the obligation to repurchase were less than the repurchase price, the Fund could suffer a loss. |
| Securities Lending Risk. The Fund may lend securities to financial institutions. Securities lending involves exposure to certain risks, including operational risk (i.e., the risk of losses resulting from problems in the settlement and accounting process), “gap” risk (i.e., the risk of a mismatch between the return on cash collateral reinvestments and the fees the Fund has agreed to pay a borrower), foreign exchange risk (i.e., the risk of a shortfall at default when a cash collateral investment is denominated in a currency other than the currency of the assets being loaned due to movements in foreign exchange rates), and credit, legal, counterparty and market risks. If a securities lending counterparty were to default, the Fund would be subject to the risk of a possible delay in receiving collateral or in recovering the loaned securities, or to a possible loss of rights in the |
| collateral. In the event a borrower does not return the Fund’s securities as agreed, the Fund may experience losses if the proceeds received from liquidating the collateral do not at least equal the value of the loaned security at the time the collateral is liquidated, plus the transaction costs incurred in purchasing replacement securities. This event could trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund. The Fund could lose money if its short-term investment of the collateral declines in value over the period of the loan. Substitute payments for dividends received by the Fund for securities loaned out by the Fund will generally not be considered qualified dividend income. The securities lending agent will take the tax effects on shareholders of this difference into account in connection with the Fund’s securities lending program. Substitute payments received on tax exempt securities loaned out will generally not be tax exempt income. |
| Restricted and Illiquid Investments Risk. The Fund may invest in illiquid or less liquid investments or investments in which no secondary market is readily available or which are otherwise illiquid, including private placement securities. The Fund may not be able to readily dispose of such investments at prices that approximate those at which the Fund could sell such investments if they were more widely-traded and, as a result of such illiquidity, the Fund may have to sell other investments or engage in borrowing transactions if necessary to raise cash to meet its obligations. Limited liquidity can also affect the market price of investments, thereby adversely affecting the Fund’s NAV and ability to make dividend distributions. The financial markets have in recent years experienced periods of extreme secondary market supply and demand imbalance, resulting in a loss of liquidity during which market prices were suddenly and substantially below traditional measures of intrinsic value. During such periods, some investments could be sold only at arbitrary prices and with substantial losses. Periods of such market dislocation may occur again at any time. |
| Restricted securities are securities that may not be sold to the public without an effective registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or that may be sold only in a privately negotiated transaction or pursuant to an exemption from registration. For example, Rule 144A under the Securities Act provides an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act for the resale of certain restricted securities to qualified institutional buyers, such as the Fund. However, an insufficient number of qualified institutional buyers interested in purchasing the Rule 144A-eligible securities that the Fund holds could affect adversely the marketability of certain Rule 144A securities, and the Fund might be unable to dispose of such securities promptly or at reasonable prices. When registration is required to sell a security, the Fund may be obligated to pay all or part of the registration expenses and considerable time may pass before the Fund is permitted to sell a security under an effective registration statement. If adverse market |
| conditions develop during this period, the Fund might obtain a less favorable price than the price that prevailed when the Fund decided to sell. The Fund may be unable to sell restricted and other illiquid investments at opportune times or prices. |
| Investment Companies and ETFs Risk. Subject to the limitations set forth in the Investment Company Act and the rules thereunder, the Fund may acquire shares in other investment companies and in exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”), some of which may be affiliated investment companies. These investment companies and ETFs will generally have investment exposure to the commodities markets which may subject them to greater volatility than investments in traditional securities. The market value of the shares of other investment companies and ETFs may differ from their NAV. As an investor in investment companies and ETFs, the Fund would bear its ratable share of that entity’s expenses (to the extent not offset by BlackRock through waivers), including its investment advisory and administration fees, while continuing to pay its own advisory and administration fees and other expenses. As a result, shareholders will be absorbing duplicate levels of fees with respect to investments in other investment companies and ETFs (to the extent not offset by BlackRock through waivers). |
| The securities of other investment companies and ETFs, in which the Fund may invest may be leveraged. As a result, the Fund may be indirectly exposed to leverage through an investment in such securities. An investment in securities of other investment companies and ETFs, that use leverage may expose the Fund to higher volatility in the market value of such securities and the possibility that the Fund’s long-term returns on such securities (and, indirectly, the long-term returns of shares of the Fund) will be diminished. As with other investments, investments in other investment companies, including ETFs, are subject to market and selection risk. To the extent the Fund is held by an affiliated fund, the ability of the Fund itself to hold other investment companies may be limited. |
| Strategic Transactions and Derivatives Risk. The Fund may engage in various Strategic Transactions for duration management and other investment and risk management purposes, including to attempt to protect against possible changes in the market value of the Fund’s portfolio resulting from trends in the securities markets and changes in interest rates or to protect the Fund’s unrealized gains in the value of its portfolio securities, to facilitate the sale of portfolio securities for investment purposes or to establish a position in the securities markets as a temporary substitute for purchasing particular securities or to enhance income or gain. Derivatives are financial contracts or instruments whose value depends on, or is derived from, the value of an underlying asset, reference rate or index (or relationship between two indices). The Fund also may use derivatives to add leverage to the portfolio and/or to hedge against increases in the Fund’s costs |
| associated with any leverage strategy that it may employ. The use of Strategic Transactions to enhance current income may be speculative. |
| Strategic Transactions involve risks. The risks associated with Strategic Transactions include (i) the imperfect correlation between the value of such instruments and the underlying assets, (ii) the possible default of the counterparty to the transaction, (iii) illiquidity of the derivative instruments, and (iv) high volatility losses caused by unanticipated market movements, which are potentially unlimited. Although both OTC and exchange-traded derivatives markets may experience a lack of liquidity, OTC non‑standardized derivative transactions are generally less liquid than exchange-traded instruments. The illiquidity of the derivatives markets may be due to various factors, including congestion, disorderly markets, limitations on deliverable supplies, the participation of speculators, government regulation and intervention, and technical and operational or system failures. In addition, daily limits on price fluctuations and speculative position limits on exchanges on which the Fund may conduct its transactions in derivative instruments may prevent prompt liquidation of positions, subjecting the Fund to the potential of greater losses. Furthermore, the Fund’s ability to successfully use Strategic Transactions depends on the Advisor’s ability to predict pertinent asset prices, interest rates, currency exchange rates and other economic factors, which cannot be assured. |
| The use of Strategic Transactions may result in losses greater than if they had not been used, may require the Fund to sell or purchase portfolio securities at inopportune times or for prices other than current market values, may limit the amount of appreciation the Fund can realize on an investment or may cause the Fund to hold a security that it might otherwise sell. Additionally, amounts paid by the Fund as premiums and cash or other assets held in margin accounts with respect to Strategic Transactions are not otherwise available to the Fund for investment purposes. Please see the Fund’s SAI for a more detailed description of Strategic Transactions and the various derivative instruments the Fund may use and the various risks associated with them. |
| Exchange-traded derivatives and OTC derivative transactions submitted for clearing through a central counterparty have become subject to minimum initial and variation margin requirements set by the relevant clearinghouse, as well as possible margin requirements mandated by the SEC or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”). The CFTC and federal banking regulators also have imposed margin requirements on non‑cleared OTC derivatives, and the SEC’s non cleared margin requirements for security-based swaps became effective on November 1, 2021. Applicable margin requirements may increase the overall costs for the Fund. |
| Many OTC derivatives are valued on the basis of dealers’ pricing of these instruments. However, the price at which dealers value a |
| particular derivative and the price that the same dealers would actually be willing to pay for such derivative should the Fund wish or be forced to sell such position may be materially different. Such differences can result in an overstatement of the Fund’s NAV and may materially adversely affect the Fund in situations in which the Fund is required to sell derivative instruments. |
| While hedging can reduce or eliminate losses, it can also reduce or eliminate gains. Hedges are sometimes subject to imperfect matching between the derivative and the underlying security, and there can be no assurance that the Fund’s hedging transactions will be effective. |
| Derivatives may give rise to a form of leverage and may expose the Fund to greater risk and increase its costs. Recent legislation calls for new regulation of the derivatives markets. The extent and impact of the regulation is not yet known and may not be known for some time. New regulation may make derivatives more costly, may limit the availability of derivatives, or may otherwise adversely affect the value or performance of derivatives. |
| Future regulatory developments may impact the Fund’s ability to invest or remain invested in certain derivatives. Legislation or regulation may also change the way in which the Fund itself is regulated. The Advisor cannot predict the effects of any new governmental regulation that may be implemented on the ability of the Fund to use swaps or any other financial derivatives product, and there can be no assurance that any new governmental regulation will not adversely affect the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective. |
| Counterparty Risk. The Fund will be subject to credit risk with respect to the counterparties to the derivative contracts entered into by the Fund. Because derivative transactions in which the Fund may engage may involve instruments that are not traded on an exchange or cleared through a central counterparty but are instead traded between counterparties based on contractual relationships, the Fund is subject to the risk that a counterparty will not perform its obligations under the related contracts. If a counterparty becomes bankrupt or otherwise fails to perform its obligations due to financial difficulties, the Fund may experience significant delays in obtaining any recovery in bankruptcy or other reorganization proceedings. The Fund may obtain only a limited recovery, or may obtain no recovery, in such circumstances. Although the Fund intends to enter into transactions only with counterparties that the Advisor believes to be creditworthy, there can be no assurance that, as a result, a counterparty will not default and that the Fund will not sustain a loss on a transaction. In the event of the counterparty’s bankruptcy or insolvency, the Fund’s collateral may be subject to the conflicting claims of the counterparty’s creditors, and the Fund may be exposed to the risk of a court treating the Fund as a general unsecured creditor of the counterparty, rather than as the owner of the collateral. |
| The counterparty credit risk for cleared derivatives is generally lower than for uncleared OTC derivative transactions since a clearing organization is the counterparty to a cleared derivative contract and a clearing organization is generally considered to be of better credit quality than a counterparty to an uncleared OTC derivative transaction. |
| However, there can be no assurance that a clearing organization, or its members, will satisfy its obligations to the Fund, or that the Fund would be able to recover the full amount of assets deposited on its behalf with the clearing organization in the event of the default by the clearing organization or the Fund’s clearing broker. In addition, cleared derivative transactions benefit from daily marking to market and settlement, and segregation and minimum capital requirements applicable to intermediaries. Uncleared OTC derivative transactions generally may not benefit from such protections. This exposes the Fund to the risk that a counterparty will not settle a transaction in accordance with its terms and conditions because of a dispute over the terms of the contract (whether or not bona fide) or because of a credit or liquidity problem, thus causing the Fund to suffer a loss. Such “counterparty risk” is accentuated for contracts with longer maturities where events may intervene to prevent settlement, or where the Fund has concentrated its transactions with a single or small group of counterparties. |
| In addition, the Fund is subject to the risk that issuers of the instruments in which it invests and trades may default on their obligations under those instruments, and that certain events may occur that have an immediate and significant adverse effect on the value of those instruments. There can be no assurance that an issuer of an instrument in which the Fund invests will not default, or that an event that has an immediate and significant adverse effect on the value of an instrument will not occur, and that the Fund will not sustain a loss on a transaction as a result. |
| Swaps Risk. Swaps are a type of derivative. Swap agreements involve the risk of changes in market value of the swap position as well as the risk that the swap counterparty will default on its payment or other obligations to the Fund and the risk that the Fund will not be able to meet its obligations to pay the other party to the agreement. In order to seek to hedge the value of the Fund’s portfolio, to hedge against increases in the Fund’s cost associated with interest payments on any outstanding borrowings or to seek to increase the Fund’s return, the Fund may enter into swaps, including interest rate swap, total return swap (sometimes referred to as a “contract for difference”) and/or credit default swap transactions. In interest rate swap transactions, there is a risk that yields will move in the direction opposite of the direction anticipated by the Fund, which would cause the Fund to make payments to its counterparty in the transaction that could adversely affect Fund performance. In addition to the risks applicable |
| to swaps generally (including counterparty risk, high volatility, illiquidity risk and credit risk), credit default swap transactions involve special risks because they are difficult to value, are highly susceptible to liquidity and credit risk, and generally pay a return to the party that has paid the premium only in the event of an actual default or other credit event by the issuer of the underlying obligation (as opposed to a credit downgrade or other indication of financial difficulty). |
| The United States, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (the “Dodd-Frank Act”), requires that certain derivatives with U.S. persons must be executed on a regulated market and a substantial portion of OTC derivatives must be submitted for clearing to regulated clearinghouses. As a result, swap transactions entered into by the Fund may become subject to various requirements applicable to swaps under the Dodd-Frank Act, including clearing, exchange-execution, reporting and recordkeeping requirements, which may make it more difficult and costly for the Fund to enter into swap transactions and may also render certain strategies in which the Fund might otherwise engage impossible or so costly that they will no longer be economical to implement. Furthermore, the number of counterparties that may be willing to enter into swap transactions with the Fund may also be limited if the swap transactions with the Fund are subject to the swap regulation under the Dodd-Frank Act. |
| Credit default and total return swap agreements may effectively add leverage to the Fund’s portfolio because, in addition to its Managed Assets, the Fund would be subject to investment exposure on the notional amount of the swap in excess of any premium and margin required to establish and maintain the position. Total return swap agreements are subject to market risk as well as the risk that a counterparty will default on its payment obligations to the Fund thereunder. The Fund is not required to enter into swap transactions for hedging purposes or to enhance income or gain and may choose not to do so. In addition, the swaps market is subject to a changing regulatory environment. It is possible that regulatory or other developments in the swaps market could adversely affect the Fund’s ability to successfully use swaps. |
| Economic Sector and Geographic Risk. The Fund may invest 25% or more of its Managed Assets in municipal securities of issuers in the same state (or U.S. Territory) or in the same economic sector. If the Fund does so, this may make it more susceptible to adverse economic, political or regulatory occurrences affecting a particular state or economic sector. As concentration increases, so does the potential for fluctuation in the net asset value of the Shares. See “Risks—Economic Sector and Geographic Risk.” |
| Risks Associated with Recent Market Events. Although interest rates were unusually low in recent years in the U.S. and abroad, in 2022, |
| the Federal Reserve and certain foreign central banks raised interest rates as part of their efforts to address rising inflation. The Federal Reserve and certain foreign central banks have started to lower interest rates, though economic or other factors, such as inflation, could stop such changes. It is difficult to accurately predict the pace at which interest rates might change, the timing, frequency or magnitude of any such changes in interest rates, or when such changes might stop or again reverse course. Additionally, various economic and political factors could cause the Federal Reserve or other foreign central banks to change their approach in the future and such actions may result in an economic slowdown both in the U.S. and abroad. Unexpected changes in interest rates could lead to significant market volatility or reduce liquidity in certain sectors of the market. Deteriorating economic fundamentals may, in turn, increase the risk of default or insolvency of particular issuers, negatively impact market value, cause credit spreads to widen, and reduce bank balance sheets. Any of these could cause an increase in market volatility, reduce liquidity across various markets or decrease confidence in the markets, which could negatively affect the value of debt instruments held by the Fund and result in a negative impact on the Fund’s performance. |
| Recent policy initiatives undertaken by the U.S. government have the potential to impact international relations, trade agreements and the overall regulatory environment in ways that could create uncertainty and instability in domestic and global markets, and could adversely affect the investment performance of the Fund. In particular, actions taken by the U.S. government in respect of international trade relations could lead to trade wars, increased costs for imported goods, disruptions in supply chains, reduced foreign investment, and instability in regions where the Fund invests. Political and diplomatic events within the United States, including a contentious domestic political environment, changes in political party control of one or more branches of the U.S. government, the U.S. government’s inability at times to agree on a long term budget and deficit reduction plan, the threat of a U.S. government shutdown, and disagreements over, or threats not to increase, the U.S. government’s borrowing limit (or “debt ceiling”), as well as political and diplomatic events abroad, may affect investor and consumer confidence and may adversely impact financial markets and the broader economy, perhaps suddenly and to a significant degree. A downgrade of the ratings of U.S. government debt obligations, or concerns about the U.S. government’s credit quality in general, could have a substantial negative effect on the U.S. and global economies. In recent years, some countries, including the United States, have adopted more protectionist trade policies. Slowing global economic growth, the rise in protectionist trade policies, inflationary pressures, changes to some major international trade agreements, risks associated with the trade agreements between countries and regions, including the U.S. and other foreign nations, political or economic dysfunction within some countries or regions, |
| including the U.S., and dramatic changes in commodity and currency prices could affect the economies of many nations in ways that cannot necessarily be foreseen at the present time. |
| Market Disruption and Geopolitical Risk. The occurrence of events similar to those in recent years, such as the aftermath of the war in Iraq, instability in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Egypt, Libya, Syria and the Middle East, international war or conflict (including the Israel-Hamas war), new and ongoing epidemics and pandemics of infectious diseases and other global health events, natural/environmental disasters, terrorist attacks in the United States and around the world, social and political discord, debt crises (such as the Greek crisis), sovereign debt downgrades, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, increasingly strained relations between the United States and a number of foreign countries, including historical adversaries, such as North Korea, Iran, China and Russia, and the international community generally, new and continued political unrest in various countries, such as Venezuela and Spain, the exit or potential exit of one or more countries from the EU or the EMU, and continued changes in the balance of political power among and within the branches of the U.S. government, among others, may result in market volatility, may have long term effects on the U.S. and worldwide financial markets, and may cause further economic uncertainties in the United States and worldwide. |
| Russia launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. The extent and duration of the military action, resulting sanctions and resulting future market disruptions, including declines in its stock markets and the value of the ruble against the U.S. dollar, in the region are impossible to predict, but could be significant. Any such disruptions caused by Russian military action or other actions (including cyberattacks and espionage) or resulting actual and threatened responses to such activity, including purchasing and financing restrictions, boycotts or changes in consumer or purchaser preferences, sanctions, tariffs or cyberattacks on the Russian government, Russian companies or Russian individuals, including politicians, could have a severe adverse effect on Russia and the European region, including significant negative impacts on the Russian economy, the European economy and the markets for certain securities and commodities, such as oil and natural gas, and may likely have collateral impacts on such sectors globally as well as other sectors. How long such military action and related events will last cannot be predicted. |
| Trade tensions between the United States and China have led to concerns about economic stability and could have an adverse impact on global economic conditions. The United States and China have each been implementing increased tariffs on imports from the other, and the United States has also adopted certain targeted measures such as export controls or sanctions implicating Chinese companies and |
| officials. While certain trade agreements have been agreed between the two countries, there remains much uncertainty as to whether the trade negotiations between the United States and China will be successful and how the trade war between the United States and China will progress. Uncertainty regarding the outcome of the trade tensions and the potential for a trade war could cause the U.S. dollar to decline against safe haven currencies, such as the Japanese yen and the Euro. Events such as these and their consequences are difficult to predict and it is unclear whether further tariffs may be imposed or other escalating actions may be taken in the future. If the trade war between the United States and China continues or escalates, or if additional tariffs or trade restrictions are implemented by the United States, China or other countries in connection with a global trade war, there could be material adverse effects on the global economy, and the Fund and its portfolio investments could be materially and adversely affected. |
| On January 31, 2020, the United Kingdom officially left the European Union (Brexit), subject to a transitional period that ended December 31, 2020. The United Kingdom and European Union have reached an agreement on the terms of their future trading relationship effective January 1, 2021, which principally relates to the trading of goods rather than services, including financial services. Further discussions are to be held between the United Kingdom and the European Union in relation to matters not covered by the trade agreement, such as financial services. The Fund faces risks associated with the potential uncertainty and consequences that may follow Brexit, including with respect to volatility in exchange rates and interest rates. Brexit could adversely affect European or worldwide political, regulatory, economic or market conditions and could contribute to instability in global political institutions, regulatory agencies and financial markets. Brexit has also led to legal uncertainty and could lead to politically divergent national laws and regulations as a new relationship between the United Kingdom and European Union is defined and the United Kingdom determines which European Union laws to replace or replicate. Any of these effects of Brexit could adversely affect any of the companies to which the Fund has exposure and any other assets that the Fund invests in. |
| The occurrence of any of these above events could have a significant adverse impact on the value and risk profile of the Fund’s portfolio. The Fund does not know how long the securities markets may be affected by similar events and cannot predict the effects of similar events in the future on the U.S. economy and securities markets. There can be no assurance that similar events and other market disruptions will not have other material and adverse implications. |
| Cybersecurity incidents affecting particular companies or industries may adversely affect the economies of particular countries of the world in which the Fund invests. |
| Regulation and Government Intervention Risk. Federal, state, and other governments, their regulatory agencies or self-regulatory organizations may take actions that affect the regulation of the issuers in which the Fund invests in ways that are unforeseeable. Legislation or regulation may also change the way in which the Fund is regulated. Such legislation or regulation could limit or preclude the Fund’s ability to achieve its investment objective. |
| In light of popular, political and judicial focus on finance related consumer protection, financial institution practices are also subject to greater scrutiny and criticism generally. In the case of transactions between financial institutions and the general public, there may be a greater tendency toward strict interpretation of terms and legal rights in favor of the consuming public, particularly where there is a real or perceived disparity in risk allocation and/or where consumers are perceived as not having had an opportunity to exercise informed consent to the transaction. In the event of conflicting interests between retail investors holding common shares of a closed end investment company such as the Fund and a large financial institution, a court may similarly seek to strictly interpret terms and legal rights in favor of retail investors. |
| The Fund may be affected by governmental action in ways that are not foreseeable, and there is a possibility that such actions could have a significant adverse effect on the Fund and its ability to achieve its investment objective. |
| Legal, Tax and Regulatory Risks. Legal, tax and regulatory changes could occur that may have material adverse effects on the Fund. |
| To qualify for the favorable U.S. federal income tax treatment generally accorded to RICs, the Fund must, among other things, derive in each taxable year at least 90% of its gross income from certain prescribed sources and distribute for each taxable year at least 90% of its “investment company taxable income” (generally, ordinary income plus the excess, if any, of net short-term capital gain over net long-term capital loss). If for any taxable year the Fund does not qualify as a RIC, all of its taxable income for that year (including its net capital gain) would be subject to tax at regular corporate rates without any deduction for distributions to shareholders, and such distributions would be taxable as ordinary dividends to the extent of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits. |
| The rules dealing with U.S. federal income taxation are constantly under review by persons involved in the legislative process and by the IRS and the U.S. Treasury Department. Revisions in U.S. federal tax laws and interpretations of these laws could adversely affect the tax consequences of your investment. |
| Investment Dilution Risk. The Fund’s investors do not have preemptive rights to any Shares the Fund may issue in the future. After an investor purchases Shares, the Fund may sell additional Shares or other classes of Shares in the future or issue equity interests in private offerings. To the extent the Fund issues additional equity interests after an investor purchases its Shares, such investor’s percentage ownership interest in the Fund will be diluted. |
| Potential Conflicts of Interest of the Advisor and Others. The investment activities of the Advisor and its affiliates (including BlackRock, Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Affiliates”)) and their respective directors, officers and employees and of in the management of, or their interest in, their own accounts and other accounts they manage, may present conflicts of interest that could disadvantage the Fund and its shareholders. BlackRock and its Affiliates provide investment management services to other funds and discretionary managed accounts that may follow investment programs similar to that of the Fund. Subject to the requirements of the Investment Company Act, BlackRock and its Affiliates intend to engage in such activities and may receive compensation from third parties for their services. None of BlackRock or its Affiliates are under any obligation to share any investment opportunity, idea or strategy with the Fund. As a result, BlackRock and its Affiliates may compete with the Fund for appropriate investment opportunities. The results of the Fund’s investment activities, therefore, may differ from those of an Affiliate or another account managed by an Affiliate and it is possible that the Fund could sustain losses during periods in which one or more Affiliates and other accounts achieve profits on their trading for proprietary or other accounts. BlackRock has adopted policies and procedures designed to address potential conflicts of interest. For additional information about potential conflicts of interest and the way in which BlackRock addresses such conflicts, please see “Conflicts of Interest” and “Management of the Fund—Portfolio Management—Potential Material Conflicts of Interest” in the SAI. |
| For a discussion of additional risks relating to investments in the Fund, including “Equity Securities Risk,” “Convertible Securities Risk,” “Short Sales Risk,” “Inflation Risk,” “Deflation Risk,” “Regulation as a ‘Commodity Pool’,” “Failures of Futures Commission Merchants and Clearing Organizations Risk,” “Reference Rate Replacement Risk,” “Market and Selection Risk,” “Defensive Investing Risk,” “Decision-Making Authority Risk,” “Management Risk,” “Valuation Risk,” “Reliance on the Advisor Risk,” “Reliance on Service Providers Risk,” “Information Technology Systems Risk,” “Operational Risk and Technology Risks,” “Misconduct of Employees and of Service Providers Risk,” “Operational Risk,” “Portfolio Turnover Risk,” and “Anti-Takeover Provisions Risk,” please see “Risks” beginning on page 72 of this prospectus. |
| Institutional Shares |
Class A Shares |
Class U Shares |
||||||||||
| Shareholder Transaction Fees |
||||||||||||
| (fees paid directly from your investment) |
||||||||||||
| Maximum Sales Load imposed on purchases ( |
% | |||||||||||
| Maximum Deferred Sales Load (as a percentage of offering price or repurchase proceeds, whichever is lower) |
%(2) | |||||||||||
| Dividend Reinvestment Plan Fees(3) |
||||||||||||
| Repurchase Fee(4) |
| Annual Fund Operating Expenses |
||||||||||||
| ( |
||||||||||||
| Management Fee(5) |
% | % | % | |||||||||
| Distribution and Servicing Fee(6) |
% | % | ||||||||||
| Interest Expense(7) |
% | % | % | |||||||||
| Other Expenses |
% | % | % | |||||||||
| Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses |
% | % | % | |||||||||
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|||||||
| Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses |
% | % | % | |||||||||
| Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursement(5) |
% | % | % | |||||||||
| Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waivers and/or Expense Reimbursement |
% | % | % | |||||||||
| |
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|
| (1) | There is no sales load for Institutional Shares and Class U Shares. Investors purchasing Class A Shares may be charged a sales load of up to 2.50% of the investor’s aggregate purchase. The table assumes the maximum sales load is charged. The Distributor or Dealers may waive all or a portion of the sales load for certain classes of investors. While neither the Fund nor the Distributor imposes a sales load on Class U Shares, if you buy Class U Shares through certain selling agents or other financial intermediaries, they may directly charge you a transaction fee in such amount as they may determine. Any such fees will be in addition to your investment in the Fund and not deducted therefrom. Investors should consult with their selling agents or other financial intermediaries about any transaction or other fees their selling agents or other financial intermediaries might impose on each class of shares. See “Plan of Distribution.” |
| (2) | |
| (3) | |
| (4) | The Fund does not currently intend to impose a repurchase fee but is permitted to charge up to 2%. See “Periodic Repurchase Offers-Repurchase Fee.” |
| (5) | |
| |
| (6) | The Fund has adopted a distribution and servicing plan (the “Distribution and Servicing Plan”) and pays the Distribution and Servicing Fee under such plan. The maximum annual rates at which the Distribution and Servicing Fees may be paid under the Distribution and Servicing Plan (calculated as a percentage of the Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to each of the Class A Shares and Class U Shares) is 0.75%. 0.25% of such fee is a shareholder servicing fee and the remaining portion is a distribution fee. See “Plan of Distribution-Distribution and Servicing Plan—Class A Shares and Class U Shares.” |
| (7) | The total expense table assumes leverage in the amount of 27.7% of the Fund’s net assets (21.7% of the Fund’s Managed Assets) and includes estimated interest expense associated with the Fund’s investment in TOB Residuals (also known as “inverse floaters”). Although interest expense related to TOB Residuals is actually paid by special purpose vehicles in which the Fund invests, they will be recorded on the Fund’s financial statements for accounting purposes. The total expense table also includes, in interest expense, dividends associated with the VRDP Shares because the VRDP Shares are considered debt of the Fund for financial reporting purposes. |
| 1 Year | 3 Years | 5 Years | 10 Years | |||||||||||||
| Institutional Shares |
$ | $ | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| Class A Shares |
$ | $ | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| Class U Shares |
$ | $ | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| BlackRock Municipal Credit Alpha Portfolio, Inc. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Institutional | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Year Ended 07/31/25 |
Year Ended 07/31/24 |
Year Ended 07/31/23 |
Period from 05/01/22 to 07/31/22 |
Year Ended 04/30/22 |
Year Ended 04/30/21 |
Year Ended 04/30/20 |
||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 13.19 | $ | 13.23 | $ | 13.64 | $ | 13.45 | $ | 16.11 | $ | 14.62 | $ | 15.40 | ||||||||||||||
| Net investment income(a) |
0.56 | 0.44 | 0.46 | 0.14 | 0.56 | 0.64 | 0.56 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) |
(0.58 | ) | 0.10 | (0.40 | ) | 0.21 | (2.57 | ) | 1.48 | (0.81 | ) | |||||||||||||||||
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|
|||||||||||||||
| Net increase (decrease) from investment operations |
(0.02 | ) | 0.54 | 0.06 | 0.35 | (2.01 | ) | 2.12 | (0.25 | ) | ||||||||||||||||||
| |
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|
|||||||||||||||
| Distributions to Common Shareholders(b) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| From net investment income |
(0.49 | ) | (0.49 | ) | (0.45 | ) | (0.16 | ) | (0.65 | ) | (0.63 | ) | (0.53 | ) | ||||||||||||||
| Return of capital |
(0.21 | ) | (0.09 | ) | (0.02 | ) | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||
| |
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|
|||||||||||||||
| Total distributions to Common Shareholders |
(0.70 | ) | (0.58 | ) | (0.47 | ) | (0.16 | ) | (0.65 | ) | (0.63 | ) | (0.53 | ) | ||||||||||||||
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|||||||||||||||
| Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 12.47 | $ | 13.19 | $ | 13.23 | $ | 13.64 | $ | 13.45 | $ | 16.11 | $ | 14.62 | ||||||||||||||
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|||||||||||||||
| Market price, end of period |
$ | N/A | $ | 12.35 | $ | 11.47 | $ | 12.44 | $ | 12.26 | $ | 15.09 | $ | 13.13 | ||||||||||||||
| Total Return Applicable to Common Shareholders |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Based on net asset value |
(0.13 | )%(c) | 4.76 | %(d) | 1.05 | %(d) | 2.73 | %(d)(e) | (12.79 | )%(d) | 15.08 | %(d) | (1.41 | )% | ||||||||||||||
| |
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|
|||||||||||||||
| Based on market price |
N/A | 13.13 | %(d) | (3.95 | )%(d) | 2.79 | %(d)(e) | (15.13 | )%(d) | 20.02 | %(d) | (1.56 | )% | |||||||||||||||
| |
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|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Ratios to Average Net Assets Applicable to Common Shareholders(f) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total expenses |
1.60 | %(g) | 3.97 | %(h) | 3.46 | %(i) | 2.25 | %(j)(k) | 1.67 | %(l) | 1.58 | % | 2.31 | % | ||||||||||||||
| |
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed |
1.57 | %(g) | 3.94 | %(h) | 3.45 | %(i) | 2.25 | %(j)(k) | 1.67 | %(l) | 1.58 | % | 2.31 | % | ||||||||||||||
| |
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|
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|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and excluding interest expense and fees and amortization of offering costs and reorganization costs(m)(n) |
0.76 | % | 0.98 | % | 1.00 | % | 1.07 | %(j)(k) | 0.96 | % | 0.98 | % | 0.97 | % | ||||||||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Net investment income to Common Shareholders |
4.03 | % | 3.40 | % | 3.54 | % | 4.06 | % | 3.63 | % | 4.05 | % | 3.59 | % | ||||||||||||||
| |
|
|
|
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|
|
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|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Year Ended 07/31/25 |
Year Ended 07/31/24 |
Year Ended 07/31/23 |
Period from 05/01/22 to 07/31/22 |
Year Ended 04/30/22 |
Year Ended 04/30/21 |
Year Ended 04/30/20 |
||||||||||||||||||||||
| Supplemental Data |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 378,103 | $ | 949,458 | $ | 963,901 | $ | 1,007,256 | $ | 993,657 | $ | 617,032 | $ | 559,934 | ||||||||||||||
| |
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| VMTP Shares outstanding at $100,000 liquidation value, end of period (000) |
$ | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | 287,100 | $ | — | ||||||||||||||
| |
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|
|
|||||||||||||||
| VRDP Shares outstanding at $100,000 liquidation value, end of period (000) |
$ | — | $ | 561,700 | $ | 561,700 | $ | 561,700 | $ | 561,700 | $ | — | $ | — | ||||||||||||||
| |
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|
|
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|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Asset coverage per VMTP Shares at $100,000 liquidation value, end of period |
$ | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | 314,919 | (o) | $ | 287,100 | |||||||||||||
| |
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|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Asset coverage per VRDP Shares at $100,000 liquidation value, end of period |
$ | — | $ | 254,839 | (p) | $ | 249,597 | (p) | $ | 237,229 | (p) | $ | 276,902 | (o) | $ | — | $ | 295,031 | (n) | |||||||||
| |
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|
|
|||||||||||||||
| TOB Trust Certificates, end of period (000) |
$ | 76,450 | $ | 51,490 | $ | 82,631 | $ | 172,298 | $ | 180,858 | $ | 93,069 | $ | 92,014 | ||||||||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Asset coverage per $1,000 of TOB Trust Certificates, end of period(o) |
$ | 6,004 | $ | 30,343 | $ | 19,459 | $ | 10,104 | N/A | N/A | N/A | |||||||||||||||||
| |
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||
| Portfolio turnover rate |
37 | % | 40 | % | 47 | % | 14 | % | 25 | % | 13 | % | 20 | % | ||||||||||||||
| |
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|||||||||||||||
| (a) | Based on average shares outstanding. |
| (b) | Distributions for annual periods determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations. |
| (c) | Where applicable, assumes the reinvestment of distributions. The Fund is a continuously offered closed‑end fund, the Shares of which are offered at net asset value. No secondary market for the Fund’s Shares exists. |
| (d) | Total returns based on market price, which can be significantly greater or less than the net asset value, may result in substantially different returns. Where applicable, excludes the effects of any sales charges and assumes the reinvestment of distributions at actual reinvestment prices. |
| (e) | Not annualized. |
| (f) | Excludes fees and expenses incurred indirectly as a result of investments in underlying funds. |
| (g) | Includes non‑recurring expenses of reorganization costs. Without these costs, total expenses and total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed would have been 1.57% and 1.54%, respectively. |
| (h) | Includes non‑recurring expenses of offering and proxy costs. Without these costs, total expenses and total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed would have been 3.88% and 3.85%, respectively. |
| (i) | Includes non‑recurring expenses of proxy costs. Without these costs, total expenses and total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed would have been 3.43% and 3.42%, respectively. |
| (j) | Audit and printing costs were not annualized in the calculation of the expense ratios. If these expenses were annualized, the total expenses, total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and excluding interest expense, fees and amortization of offering costs would have been 2.27%, 2.27% and 1.08%, respectively. |
| (k) | Annualized. |
| (l) | Includes non‑recurring expenses of reorganization costs. Without these costs, total expenses and total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed would have been 1.62% and 1.61%, respectively. |
| (m) | Interest expense, fees and amortization of offering costs related to TOB Trusts and/or VRDP Shares. See Note 4 and Note 9 of the Notes to Financial Statements for details. |
| (n) | The total expense ratio after fees waived and/or reimbursed and excluding interest expense, fees, amortization of offering costs, reorganization cost, liquidity and remarketing fees as follows: |
| Year Ended 07/31/25 |
Year Ended 07/31/24 |
Year Ended 07/31/23 |
Period from 05/01/22 to 07/31/22 |
Year Ended 04/30/22 |
Year Ended 04/30/21 |
|||||||||||||||||||
| Expense ratios |
0.76 | % | 1.06 | % | 1.02 | % | 1.07 | % | 1.02 | % | 0.98 | % | ||||||||||||
| (o) | Calculated by subtracting the Fund’s total liabilities (not including VRDP/VMTP Shares) from the Fund’s total assets and dividing this by the liquidation value of the VRDP/VMTP Shares, and by multiplying the results by 100,000. |
| (p) | Calculated by subtracting the Fund’s total liabilities (not including VRDP Shares and TOBs) from the Fund’s total assets and dividing this by the sum of the amount of TOBs and liquidation value of the VRDP Shares, and by multiplying the results by 100,000. |
| (q) | Effective July 18, 2022, TOB Trust Certificates are treated as senior securities pursuant to Rule 18f‑4 of the 1940 Act. Calculated by subtracting the Fund’s total liabilities (not including VRDP Shares and TOBs) from the Fund’s total assets and dividing this by the amount of TOBs, and by multiplying the results by 1,000. |
| Year Ended April 30, | ||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |||||||||||||
| Net asset value, beginning of year |
$ | 14.93 | $ | 15.17 | $ | 16.16 | $ | 15.86 | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Net investment income(a) |
0.56 | 0.59 | 0.65 | 0.73 | ||||||||||||
| Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) |
0.47 | (0.23 | ) | (0.83 | ) | 0.53 | ||||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Net increase (decrease) from investment operations |
1.03 | 0.36 | (0.18 | ) | 1.26 | |||||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Distributions to Common Shareholders(b) |
||||||||||||||||
| From net investment income |
(0.53 | ) | (0.60 | ) | (0.67 | ) | (0.78 | ) | ||||||||
| From net realized gain |
(0.03 | ) | (0.00 | )(c) | (0.14 | ) | (0.18 | ) | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Total distributions to Common Shareholders |
(0.56 | ) | (0.60 | ) | (0.81 | ) | (0.96 | ) | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Net asset value, end of year |
$ | 15.40 | $ | 14.93 | $ | 15.17 | $ | 16.16 | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Market price, end of year |
$ | 13.85 | $ | 13.01 | $ | 13.96 | $ | 15.19 | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Total Return Applicable to Common Shareholders(d) |
||||||||||||||||
| Based on net asset value |
7.68 | % | 2.76 | % | (0.69 | )% | 9.04 | % | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Based on market price |
11.13 | % | (2.69 | )% | (2.77 | )% | 12.27 | % | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Ratios to Average Net Assets Applicable to Common Shareholders |
||||||||||||||||
| Total expenses |
2.63 | % | 2.17 | % | 1.90 | % | 1.57 | % | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and paid indirectly |
2.63 | % | 2.17 | % | 1.89 | % | 1.57 | % | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and paid indirectly and excluding interest expense, fees and amortization of offering costs(e) |
1.01 | % | 0.97 | % | 0.96 | % | 0.94 | % | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Net investment income to Common Shareholders |
3.73 | % | 3.87 | % | 4.12 | % | 4.61 | % | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Supplemental Data |
||||||||||||||||
| Net assets applicable to Common Shareholders, end of year (000) |
$ | 589,887 | $ | 571,769 | $ | 580,945 | $ | 618,971 | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| VMTP Shares outstanding at $100,000 liquidation value, end of year (000) |
$ | 287,100 | $ | 287,100 | $ | 287,100 | $ | 287,100 | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Asset coverage per VMTP Shares at $100,000 liquidation value, end of year |
$ | 305,464 | $ | 299,153 | $ | 302,349 | $ | 315,594 | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Borrowings outstanding, end of year (000) |
$ | $ | $ | $ | ||||||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| Portfolio turnover rate |
24 | % | 34 | % | 12 | % | 20 | % | ||||||||
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||
| (a) | Based on average Common Shares outstanding. |
| (b) | Distributions for annual periods determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations. |
| (c) | Amount is greater than $(0.005) per share. |
| (d) | Total returns based on market price, which can be significantly greater or less than the net asset value, may result in substantially different returns. Where applicable, excludes the effects of any sales charges and assumes the reinvestment of distributions at actual reinvestment prices. |
| (e) | Interest expense, fees and amortization of offering costs related to TOB Trusts and/or VMTP Shares. See Note 4 and Note 10 of the Notes to Financial Statements for details. |
| BlackRock Municipal Credit Alpha Portfolio, Inc. (continued) | ||||
| Class A | ||||
| Period from 03/26/25(a) to 07/31/25 |
||||
| Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 13.05 | ||
| |
|
|||
| Net investment income(b) |
0.17 | |||
| Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) |
(0.52 | ) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Net decrease from investment operations |
(0.35 | ) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Distribution to Common Shareholders(c) |
||||
| From net investment income |
(0.04 | ) | ||
| Return of capital |
(0.19 | ) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Total distributions |
(0.23 | ) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 12.47 | ||
| |
|
|||
| Total Return |
||||
| Based on net asset value |
(2.73 | )%(d)(e) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Ratios to Average Net Assets(f) |
||||
| Total expenses |
3.34 | %(g)(h) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed |
3.29 | %(g)(h) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and excluding interest expense and fees and reorganization costs(i) |
1.70 | %(g) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Net investment income |
3.89 | %(g) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Supplemental Data |
||||
| Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 478 | ||
| |
|
|||
| TOB Trust Certificates, end of period (000) |
$ | 76,450 | ||
| |
|
|||
| Asset coverage per $1,000 of TOB Trust Certificates, end of period |
$ | 6,004 | ||
| |
|
|||
| Portfolio turnover rate |
37 | %(j) | ||
| |
|
|||
| (a) | Commencement of operations. |
| (b) | Based on average shares outstanding. |
| (c) | Distributions for annual periods determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations. |
| (d) | Where applicable, excludes the effects of any sales charges and assumes the reinvestment of distributions. The Fund is a continuously offered closed‑end fund, the Shares of which are offered at net asset value. No secondary market for the Fund’s Shares exists. |
| (e) | Not annualized. |
| (f) | Excludes fees and expenses incurred indirectly as a result of investments in underlying funds. |
| (g) | Annualized. |
| (h) | Includes non‑recurring expenses of reorganization costs. Without these costs, total expenses and total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed would have been 3.31% and 3.26%, respectively. |
| (i) | Interest expense and fees and amortization of offering costs related to TOB Trusts. See Note 4 of the Notes to Financial Statements for details. |
| (j) | Portfolio turnover rate is representative of the Fund for the entire year. |
| BlackRock Municipal Credit Alpha Portfolio, Inc. (continued) | ||||
| Class U | ||||
| Period from 03/26/25(a) to 07/31/25 |
||||
| Net asset value, beginning of period |
$ | 13.05 | ||
| |
|
|||
| Net investment income(b) |
0.18 | |||
| Net realized and unrealized gain (loss) |
(0.53 | ) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Net decrease from investment operations |
(0.35 | ) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Distribution to Common Shareholders(c) |
||||
| From net investment income |
(0.04 | ) | ||
| Return of capital |
(0.19 | ) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Total distributions |
(0.23 | ) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Net asset value, end of period |
$ | 12.47 | ||
| |
|
|||
| Total Return |
||||
| Based on net asset value |
(2.73 | )%(d)(e) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Ratios to Average Net Assets(f) |
||||
| Total expenses |
3.10 | %(g)(h) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed |
3.05 | %(g)(h) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed and excluding interest expense and fees and reorganization costs(i) |
1.70 | %(g) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Net investment income |
3.94 | %(g) | ||
| |
|
|||
| Supplemental Data |
||||
| Net assets, end of period (000) |
$ | 3,996 | ||
| |
|
|||
| TOB Trust Certificates, end of period (000) |
$ | 76,450 | ||
| |
|
|||
| Asset coverage per $1,000 of TOB Trust Certificates, end of period |
$ | 6,004 | ||
| |
|
|||
| Portfolio turnover rate |
37 | %(j) | ||
| |
|
|||
| (a) | Commencement of operations. |
| (b) | Based on average shares outstanding. |
| (c) | Distributions for annual periods determined in accordance with U.S. federal income tax regulations. |
| (d) | Where applicable, assumes the reinvestment of distributions. The Fund is a continuously offered closed‑end fund, the Shares of which are offered at net asset value. No secondary market for the Fund’s Shares exists. |
| (e) | Not annualized. |
| (f) | Excludes fees and expenses incurred indirectly as a result of investments in underlying funds. |
| (g) | Annualized. |
| (h) | Includes non‑recurring expenses of reorganization costs. Without these costs, total expenses and total expenses after fees waived and/or reimbursed would have been 3.07 and 3.02%, respectively. |
| (i) | Interest expense and fees and amortization of offering costs related to TOB Trusts. See Note 4 of the Notes to Financial Statements for details. |
| (j) | Portfolio turnover rate is representative of the Fund for the entire year. |
| Assumed Portfolio Total Return (Net of Expenses) |
(10.00 | )% | (5.00 | )% | 0.00 | % | 5.00 | % | 10.00 | % | ||||||||||
| Corresponding Total Return to Holders of Institutional Shares |
( |
)% | ( |
)% | ( |
)% | % | % | ||||||||||||
| Corresponding Total Return to Holders of Class A Shares |
( |
)% | ( |
)% | ( |
)% | % | % | ||||||||||||
| Corresponding Total Return to Holders of Class U Shares |
( |
)% | ( |
)% | ( |
)% | % | % |
| • | the likelihood of greater volatility of NAV and distribution rate of the Shares than a comparable portfolio without leverage; |
| • | the risk that fluctuations in interest rates or dividend rates on any leverage that the Fund must pay will reduce the return to the holders of Shares; |
| • | the effect of leverage in a declining market, which is likely to cause a greater decline in the NAV of the Shares than if the Fund were not leveraged; |
| • | leverage may increase operating costs, which may reduce total return. |
| Portfolio Manager | Title and Recent Biography | |
| Patrick Haskell |
Managing Director of Blackrock since 2023; Managing Director of Morgan Stanley from 2009 to 2023. | |
| Ryan McDonald, CFA |
Managing Director of BlackRock since 2023; Director of BlackRock from 2017 to 2023. | |
| Walter O’Connor, CFA(1) |
Managing Director of BlackRock since 2006. | |
| Kevin Maloney, CFA |
Managing Director of BlackRock since 2025; Director of BlackRock from 2021 to 2024; Vice President of BlackRock from 2018 to 2020. | |
| Phillip Soccio, CFA |
Director of BlackRock since 2009. | |
| (1) | On or about March 17, 2026, Walter O’Connor, CFA, will no longer serve as portfolio manager of the Fund. |
| • | Level 1 – Unadjusted price quotations in active markets/exchanges for identical assets or liabilities that the Fund has the ability to access |
| • | Level 2 – Other observable inputs (including, but not limited to, quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in markets that are active, quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active, inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the assets or liabilities (such as interest rates, yield curves, volatilities, prepayment speeds, loss severities, credit risks and default rates) or other market-corroborated inputs) |
| • | Level 3 – Unobservable inputs based on the best information available in the circumstances, to the extent observable inputs are not available (including the Fund’s own assumptions used in determining the fair value of investments and derivative financial instruments) |
| Title of Class | Amount Authorized |
Amount Held by the Fund or for its Account |
Amount Outstanding Exclusive of Amount Held by the Fund or for its Account |
|||||||||
| |
||||||||||||
| |
||||||||||||
| |
||||||||||||
| |
||||||||||||
| Institutional Shares | Class A Shares | Class U Shares | ||||||||||
| Minimum Initial Investment |
$ | 100,000 | $ | 1,000 | $ | 2,500 | ||||||
| Minimum Subsequent Investment |
None | None | None | |||||||||
| • | Employer-sponsored retirement plans (not including Simplified Employee Pension Individual Retirement Arrangements, Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees Individual Retirement Accounts or Salary Reduction Simplified Employee Pension Plans) and state sponsored 529 college savings plans, collective trust funds, investment companies or other pooled investment vehicles, unaffiliated thrifts and unaffiliated banks and trust companies. |
| • | Employees, officers and directors/trustees of BlackRock or its affiliates and immediate family members of such persons, if they open an account directly with BlackRock. |
| • | Clients of Dealers or other financial intermediaries that: (i) charge such clients a fee for advisory, investment consulting, or similar services or (ii) have entered into an agreement with the Distributor to offer Institutional Shares through a no load program or investment platform. |
| • | Clients investing through Dealers or other financial intermediaries that offer Institutional Shares on a platform that charges a transaction based sales commission outside of the Fund. |
| • | Tax qualified accounts for insurance agents that are registered representatives of an insurance company’s broker-dealer that has entered into an agreement with the Distributor to offer Institutional Shares, and the family members of such persons. |
| • | The minimum initial investment for each class of Shares may be modified or waived by the Fund and the Distributor for the Directors and certain employees of BlackRock, Inc., including its affiliates, vehicles controlled by such Directors and employees and their extended family members. There is no minimum subsequent investment for the Shares. |
| • | which share classes are available to you; |
| • | the amount you intend to invest; |
| • | how long you expect to own the Shares; and |
| • | total costs and expenses associated with a particular share class. |
| Your investment | Sales charge as a % of the offering price |
Sales charge as a % of net asset value |
Dealer compensation as a % of offering price | |||
| Less than $100,000 |
2.50% | 2.56% | 2.50% | |||
| $100,000 but less than $250,000 |
2.00% | 2.04% | 2.00% | |||
| $250,000 and over1 |
None | None | 1.50% |
| 1 | If you invest $250,000 or more in Class A Shares, you will not pay an initial sales load. In the case, the Advisor compensates the Dealer from its own resources. However, if the Fund repurchases your Class A Shares within 18 months after purchase, you may be charged a deferred sales charge of 1.50% of the lesser of the original cost of the Class A Shares being repurchased or your repurchase proceeds. |
| • | reinvesting distributions; |
| • | a current or former director or Director of the Fund; |
| • | an employee (including the employee’s spouse, domestic partner, children, grandchildren, parents, grandparents, siblings or any dependent of the employee, as defined in section 152 of the Internal Revenue Code) of the Advisor or its affiliates or of a broker-dealer authorized to sell Class A Shares of the Fund; or |
| • | purchasing Class A Shares through a financial services firm that has a special arrangement with the Fund. |
| i. | Buy a specified amount of Investor A, Investor C, Investor P, Institutional, Class K and/or Premier Shares of Eligible BlackRock Open End Funds, |
| ii. | Make an investment in one or more Eligible Unlisted BlackRock Closed End Funds and/or |
| iii. | Make an investment through the BlackRock CollegeAdvantage 529 Program in one or more Eligible BlackRock Open End Funds. |
| • | The current value of an investor’s existing Investor A and A1, Investor C, Investor P, Institutional, Class K and Premier Shares in most Eligible BlackRock Open End Funds; |
| • | The current value of an investor’s existing shares of Eligible Unlisted BlackRock Closed End Funds; and |
| • | The investment in the BlackRock CollegeAdvantage 529 Program by the investor or by or on behalf of the investor’s spouse and children. |
| • | Redemptions resulting from shareholder death as long as the waiver request is made within one year of death or, if later, reasonably promptly following completion of probate (including in connection with the distribution of account assets to a beneficiary of the decedent); |
| • | Withdrawals resulting from shareholder disability (as defined in the Internal Revenue Code) as long as the disability arose subsequent to the purchase of the shares; and |
| • | Redemptions when a shareholder can demonstrate hardship, in the absolute discretion of the Fund. |
BlackRock Municipal Credit Alpha Portfolio, Inc.
STATEMENT OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
BlackRock Municipal Credit Alpha Portfolio, Inc. (the “Fund”) is a diversified, closed-end management investment company that operates as an “interval fund.” This Statement of Additional Information (“SAI”) relating to Shares (as defined below) does not constitute a prospectus, but should be read in conjunction with the prospectus relating thereto dated November 28, 2025. This SAI, which is not a prospectus, does not include all information that a prospective investor should consider before purchasing the Fund’s shares of common stock (the “Shares”), and investors should obtain and read the prospectus prior to purchasing such shares. A copy of the prospectus may be obtained without charge by calling (800) 882-0052. You may also obtain a copy of the prospectus on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (the “SEC”) website (http://www.sec.gov). Capitalized terms used but not defined in this SAI have the meanings ascribed to them in the prospectus.
References to the Investment Company Act or other applicable law, will include any rules promulgated thereunder and any guidance, interpretations or modifications by the SEC, SEC staff or other authority with appropriate jurisdiction, including court interpretations, and exemptive, no-action or other relief or permission from the SEC, SEC staff or other authority.
This Statement of Additional Information is dated November 28, 2025.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| S-1 | ||||
| S-2 | ||||
| S-9 | ||||
| S-16 | ||||
| S-35 | ||||
| S-40 | ||||
| S-45 | ||||
| S-54 | ||||
| S-57 | ||||
| S-63 | ||||
| S-64 | ||||
| S-64 | ||||
| S-65 | ||||
| A-1 | ||||
| APPENDIX B PROXY VOTING POLICIES — BLACKROCK CLOSED-END FUNDS |
B-1 |
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE AND POLICIES
The Fund has adopted restrictions and policies relating to the investment of the Fund’s assets and its activities, as described below.
The restrictions and polices described below as “fundamental” may not be changed without the approval of the holders of a majority of the Fund’s outstanding voting securities (which for this purpose and under the Investment Company Act means the lesser of (i) 67% of the shares represented at a meeting at which more than 50% of the outstanding shares are represented or (ii) more than 50% of the outstanding shares), including class approval by a majority of the Fund’s outstanding Preferred Shares, if any (which for this purpose and under the Investment Company Act means the lesser of (i) 67% of the Preferred Shares, as a single class, represented at a meeting at which more than 50% of the Fund’s outstanding Preferred Shares are represented or (ii) more than 50% of the outstanding Preferred Shares).
Fundamental Investment Restrictions and Policies. Under its fundamental investment restrictions, the Fund may not:
| 1. |
Make investments for the purpose of exercising control or management; |
| 2. |
Purchase or sell real estate, commodities or commodity contracts except that, to the extent permitted by applicable law, the Fund may invest in securities directly or indirectly secured by real estate or interests therein or issued by entities that invest in real estate or interests therein, and the Fund may purchase and sell financial futures contracts and options thereon; |
| 3. |
Issue senior securities or borrow money except as permitted by Section 18 of the Investment Company Act; |
| 4. |
Underwrite securities of other issuers except insofar as the Fund may be deemed an underwriter under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, in selling portfolio securities; |
| 5. |
Make loans to other persons, except (i) the Fund shall not be deemed to be making a loan to the extent that the Fund purchases Municipal Bonds or other debt instruments or enters into repurchase agreements or any similar instruments and (ii) the Fund may lend its portfolio securities in an amount not in excess of 33 1/3% of its total assets, taken at market value, provided that such loans shall be made in accordance with the guidelines set forth in the Fund’s prospectus; or |
| 6. |
Invest more than 25% of its total assets (taken at market value at the time of each investment) in the securities of issuers in a single industry; provided that, for purposes of this restriction, tax-exempt securities of issuers that are states, municipalities or their political subdivisions are not considered to be the securities of issuers in any single industry. |
The Fund has adopted a fundamental policy that it will make quarterly repurchase offers pursuant to Rule 23c-3 of the Investment Company Act, as such rule may be amended from time to time, for no less than 5% nor more than 25% of the Shares outstanding at NAV, less any repurchase fee, unless suspended or postponed in accordance with regulatory requirements. This repurchase offer fundamental policy may be changed only with approval of a majority of the Fund’s outstanding voting securities. Each repurchase pricing shall occur no later than the 14th day after the Repurchase Request Deadline (as defined in the Prospectus), or the next business day if the 14th day is not a business day. Shareholders will be notified in writing about each quarterly repurchase offer, how they may request that the Fund repurchase their Shares and the Repurchase Request Deadline, which is the date the repurchase offer ends.
The Fund is currently classified as a diversified fund under the Investment Company Act. This means that the Fund may not purchase securities of an issuer (other than (i) obligations issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, its agencies or instrumentalities and (ii) securities of other investment companies) if, with respect to 75% of its total assets, (a) more than 5% of the Fund’s total assets would be invested in securities of that issuer or
S-1
(b) the Fund would hold more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of that issuer. With respect to the remaining 25% of its total assets, the Fund can invest more than 5% of its assets in one issuer. Under the Investment Company Act, the Fund cannot change its classification from diversified to non-diversified without shareholder approval.
Non-Fundamental Restrictions. In addition to the foregoing fundamental investment policies, the Fund is also subject to the following non-fundamental restrictions and policies, which may be changed by the Board without shareholder approval. The Fund may not:
| (a) |
Purchase securities of other investment companies, except to the extent that such purchases are permitted by applicable law. Applicable law currently prohibits the Fund from purchasing the securities of other investment companies except if immediately thereafter not more than (i) 3% of the total outstanding voting stock of such company is owned by the Fund, (ii) 5% of the Fund’s total assets, taken at market value, would be invested in any one such company, (iii) 10% of the Fund’s total assets, taken at market value, would be invested in such securities and provided that the Fund, together with other investment companies having the same investment adviser and companies controlled by such companies, owns not more than 10% of the total outstanding stock of any one closed-end investment company; |
| (b) |
Mortgage, pledge, hypothecate or in any manner transfer, as security for indebtedness, any securities owned or held by the Fund except as may be necessary in connection with borrowings mentioned in investment restriction (3) above or except as may be necessary in connection with transactions described under “The Fund’s Investments—Investment Objective and Policies” of the prospectus; or |
| (c) |
Purchase any securities on margin, except that the Fund may obtain such short term credit as may be necessary for the clearance of purchases and sales of portfolio securities (the deposit or payment by the Fund of initial or variation margin in connection with financial futures contracts and options thereon is not considered the purchase of a security on margin). |
Unless otherwise indicated, all limitations under the Fund’s fundamental or non-fundamental investment restrictions apply only at the time that a transaction is undertaken. Any change in the percentage of the Fund’s assets invested in certain securities or other instruments resulting from market fluctuations or other changes in the Fund’s total assets, including changes resulting from the Fund having a smaller base of assets after a repurchase offer, will not require the Fund to dispose of an investment until the Advisor determines that it is practicable to sell or close out the investment without undue market or tax consequences.
INVESTMENT POLICIES AND TECHNIQUES
The following information supplements the discussion of the Fund’s investment objective, policies and techniques that are described in the prospectus. The Fund may invest in the following instruments and use the following investment techniques, subject to any limitations set forth in the prospectus. There is no guarantee the Fund will buy all of the types of securities or use all of the investment techniques that are described herein.
Strategic Transactions and Other Management Techniques
As described in the prospectus, the Fund may use Strategic Transactions (as defined in the prospectus). This section contains various additional information about the types of Strategic Transactions in which the Fund may engage.
Swaps. The Fund may enter into swap agreements, including interest rate and index swap agreements. Swap agreements are two party contracts entered into primarily by institutional investors for periods ranging from a few weeks to more than one year. In a standard “swap” transaction, two parties agree to exchange the returns (or
S-2
differentials in rates of return) earned or realized on particular predetermined investments or instruments. The gross returns to be exchanged or “swapped” between the parties are calculated with respect to a “notional amount,” i.e., the dollar amount invested at a particular interest rate, in a particular foreign currency, or in a “basket” of securities representing a particular index. The “notional amount” of the swap agreement is only a fictive basis on which to calculate the obligations that the parties to a swap agreement have agreed to exchange. The Fund’s obligations (or rights) under a swap agreement will generally be equal only to the net amount to be paid or received under the agreement based on the relative values of the positions held by each party to the agreement (the “net amount”).
Whether the Fund’s use of swap agreements will be successful in furthering its investment objective will depend on the Advisor’s ability to correctly predict whether certain types of investments are likely to produce greater returns than other investments. Moreover, the Fund bears the risk of loss of the amount expected to be received under a swap agreement in the event of the default or bankruptcy of a swap agreement counterparty. Swap agreements also bear the risk that the Fund will not be able to meet its payment obligations to the counterparty. Restrictions imposed by the tax rules applicable to RICs may limit the Fund’s ability to use swap agreements. It is possible that developments in the swap market, including government regulation, could adversely affect the Fund’s ability to terminate existing swap agreements or to realize amounts to be received under such agreements.
Swaptions. A swaption is a contract that gives a counterparty the right (but not the obligation) to enter into a new swap agreement or to shorten, extend, cancel or otherwise modify an existing swap agreement, at some designated future time on specified terms. The Fund may write (sell) and purchase put and call swaptions. Depending on the terms of the particular option agreement, the Fund may incur a greater degree of risk when it writes a swaption than it would incur when it purchases a swaption with the same terms. When the Fund purchases a swaption, it risks losing only the amount of the premium it has paid should it decide to let the option expire unexercised. However, when the Fund writes a swaption, upon exercise of the option the Fund will become obligated according to the terms of the underlying agreement, and the Fund could be exposed to losses in excess of the amount of premium it received from the purchaser of the swaption.
Total Return Swaps. Total return swap agreements are contracts in which one party agrees to make periodic payments to another party based on the change in market value of the assets underlying the contract, which may include a specified security, basket of securities or securities indices during the specified period, in return for periodic payments based on a fixed or variable interest rate or the total return from other underlying assets. Total return swap agreements may be used to obtain exposure to a security or market without owning or taking physical custody of such security or investing directly in such market. Total return swap agreements may effectively add leverage to the Fund’s portfolio because, in addition to its Managed Assets (as defined in the prospectus), the Fund would be subject to investment exposure on the notional amount of the swap in excess of any premium and margin required to establish and maintain the position.
Total return swap agreements are subject to market risk as well as the risk that a counterparty will default on its payment obligations to the Fund thereunder. Swap agreements also bear the risk that the Fund will not be able to meet its obligation to the counterparty. Generally, the Fund will enter into total return swaps on a net basis (i.e., the two payment streams are netted against one another with the Fund receiving or paying, as the case may be, only the net amount of the two payments).
Foreign Exchange Transactions. The Fund may engage in spot and forward foreign exchange transactions and currency swaps, purchase and sell options on currencies and purchase and sell currency futures and related options thereon (collectively, “Currency Instruments”) for purposes of hedging against the decline in the value of currencies in which its portfolio holdings are denominated against the U.S. dollar or may seek to enhance returns. Such transactions could be effected with respect to hedges on foreign dollar denominated securities owned by the Fund, sold by the Fund but not yet delivered, or committed or anticipated to be purchased by the Fund. As an illustration, the Fund may use such techniques to hedge the stated value in U.S. dollars of an investment in a
S-3
yen-denominated security. In such circumstances, for example, the Fund may purchase a foreign currency put option enabling it to sell a specified amount of yen for dollars at a specified price by a future date. To the extent the hedge is successful, a loss in the value of the yen relative to the dollar will tend to be offset by an increase in the value of the put option. To offset, in whole or in part, the cost of acquiring such a put option, the Fund may also sell a call option which, if exercised, requires it to sell a specified amount of yen for dollars at a specified price by a future date (a technique called a “straddle”). By selling such a call option in this illustration, the Fund gives up the opportunity to profit without limit from increases in the relative value of the yen to the dollar. “Straddles” of the type that may be used by the Fund are considered to constitute hedging transactions. The Fund may not attempt to hedge any or all of its foreign portfolio positions.
Forward Foreign Currency Contracts. The Fund may enter into forward currency contracts to purchase or sell foreign currencies for a fixed amount of U.S. dollars or another foreign currency. A forward currency contract involves an obligation to purchase or sell a specific currency at a future date, which may be any fixed number of days (term) from the date of the forward currency contract agreed upon by the parties, at a price set at the time the forward currency contract is entered into. Forward currency contracts are traded directly between currency traders (usually large commercial banks) and their customers. The Fund may purchase a forward currency contract to lock in the U.S. dollar price of a security denominated in a foreign currency that the Fund intends to acquire. The Fund may sell a forward currency contract to lock in the U.S. dollar equivalent of the proceeds from the anticipated sale of a security or a dividend or interest payment denominated in a foreign currency. The Fund may also use forward currency contracts to shift the Fund’s exposure to foreign currency exchange rate changes from one currency to another. For example, if the Fund owns securities denominated in a foreign currency and the Advisor believes that currency will decline relative to another currency, the Fund might enter into a forward currency contract to sell the appropriate amount of the first foreign currency with payment to be made in the second currency. The Fund may also purchase forward currency contracts to enhance income when the Advisor anticipates that the foreign currency will appreciate in value but securities denominated in that currency do not present attractive investment opportunities. The Fund may also use forward currency contracts to hedge against a decline in the value of existing investments denominated in a foreign currency. Such a hedge would tend to offset both positive and negative currency fluctuations, but would not offset changes in security values caused by other factors. The Fund could also hedge the position by entering into a forward currency contract to sell another currency expected to perform similarly to the currency in which the Fund’s existing investments are denominated. This type of transaction could offer advantages in terms of cost, yield or efficiency, but may not hedge currency exposure as effectively as a simple forward currency transaction to sell U.S. dollars. This type of transaction may result in losses if the currency used to hedge does not perform similarly to the currency in which the hedged securities are denominated. The Fund may also use forward currency contracts in one currency or a basket of currencies to attempt to hedge against fluctuations in the value of securities denominated in a different currency if the Advisor anticipates that there will be a correlation between the two currencies.
The cost to the Fund of engaging in forward currency contracts varies with factors such as the currency involved, the length of the contract period and the market conditions then prevailing. Because forward currency contracts are usually entered into on a principal basis, no fees or commissions are usually involved. When the Fund enters into a forward currency contract, it relies on the counterparty to make or take delivery of the underlying currency at the maturity of the contract. Failure by the counterparty to do so would result in the loss of some or all of any expected benefit of the transaction. Secondary markets generally do not exist for forward currency contracts, with the result that closing transactions generally can be made for forward currency contracts only by negotiating directly with the counterparty. Thus, there can be no assurance that the Fund will in fact be able to close out a forward currency contract at a favorable price prior to maturity. In addition, in the event of insolvency of the counterparty, the Fund might be unable to close out a forward currency contract. In either event, the Fund would continue to be subject to market risk with respect to the position. The precise matching of forward currency contract amounts and the value of the securities involved generally will not be possible because the value of such securities, measured in the foreign currency, will change after the forward currency contract has been established.
S-4
Thus, the Fund might need to purchase or sell foreign currencies in the spot (cash) market to the extent such foreign currencies are not covered by forward currency contracts. The projection of short-term currency market movements is extremely difficult and the successful execution of a short-term hedging strategy is highly uncertain.
Futures Contracts and Options on Futures Contracts. The Fund may engage in transactions in financial futures contracts (“futures contracts”) and related options on such futures contracts. A futures contract is an agreement between two parties which obligates the purchaser of the futures contract to buy and the seller of a futures contract to sell a security for a set price on a future date or, in the case of an index futures contract, to make and accept a cash settlement based upon the difference in value of the index between the time the contract was entered into and the time of its settlement. A majority of transactions in futures contracts, however, do not result in the actual delivery of the underlying instrument or cash settlement, but are settled through liquidation (i.e., by entering into an offsetting transaction). Futures contracts have been designed by boards of trade which have been designated “contract markets” by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”).
The Fund may sell financial futures contracts in anticipation of an increase in the general level of interest rates. Generally, as interest rates rise, the market values of securities that may be held by the Fund will fall, thus reducing the net asset value (“NAV”) of the Fund. However, as interest rates rise, the value of the Fund’s short position in the futures contract also will tend to increase, thus offsetting all or a portion of the depreciation in the market value of the Fund’s investments which are being hedged. While the Fund will incur commission expenses in selling and closing out futures positions, these commissions are generally less than the transaction expenses which the Fund would have incurred had the Fund sold portfolio securities in order to reduce its exposure to increases in interest rates. The Fund also may purchase financial futures contracts in anticipation of a decline in interest rates when it is not fully invested in a particular market in which it intends to make investments to gain market exposure that may in part or entirely offset an increase in the cost of securities it intends to purchase. It is anticipated that, in a substantial majority of these transactions, the Fund will purchase securities upon termination of the futures contract.
The Fund may purchase and write call and put options on futures contracts. Options on futures contracts are similar to options on securities except that an option on a futures contract gives the purchaser the right in return for the premium paid to assume a position in a futures contract (a long position if the option is a call and a short position if the option is a put). Generally, these strategies are utilized under the same market and market sector conditions (i.e., conditions relating to specific types of investments) in which the Fund enters into futures transactions. The Fund may purchase put options or write call options on futures contracts rather than selling the underlying futures contract in anticipation of a decrease in the market value of securities or an increase in interest rates. Similarly, the Fund may purchase call options, or write put options on futures contracts, as a substitute for the purchase of such futures to hedge against the increased cost resulting from an increase in the market value or a decline in interest rates of securities which the Fund intends to purchase.
The Fund may engage in options and futures transactions on exchanges and options in the OTC markets. In general, exchange-traded contracts are third-party contracts (i.e., performance of the parties’ obligation is guaranteed by an exchange or clearing corporation) with standardized strike prices and expiration dates. OTC options transactions are two-party contracts with price and terms negotiated by the buyer and seller. See “—Additional Information About Options,” below.
At the time a futures contract is purchased or sold, the Fund must allocate cash or securities as a deposit payment (“initial margin”). It is expected that the initial margin that the Fund will pay may range from approximately 1% to approximately 5% of the value of the securities or commodities underlying the contract. In certain circumstances, however, such as periods of high volatility, the Fund may be required by an exchange to increase the level of its initial margin payment. Additionally, initial margin requirements may be increased generally in the future by regulatory action or as required by the Fund’s clearing broker. An outstanding futures contract is valued daily and the payment in case of “variation margin” may be required, a process known as “marking to the market.”
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Transactions in listed options and futures are usually settled by entering into an offsetting transaction, and are subject to the risk that the position may not be able to be closed if no offsetting transaction can be arranged.
Additional Information About Options. In the case of either put or call options that it has purchased, if the option expires without being sold or exercised, the Fund will experience a loss in the amount of the option premium plus any commissions paid by the Fund. When the Fund sells put and call options, it receives a premium as the seller of the option. The premium that the Fund receives for selling the option will serve as a partial and limited (to the dollar amount of the premium) hedge, in the amount of the option premium, against changes in the value of the securities in its portfolio. During the term of the option, however, a covered call seller has, in return for the premium on the option, given up the opportunity for capital appreciation above the exercise price of the option if the value of the underlying security increases, but has retained the risk of loss should the price of the underlying security decline. Conversely, a put seller retains the risk of loss should the market value of the underlying security decline below the exercise price of the option, less the premium received on the sale of the option. The Fund may purchase and sell exchange-listed options and OTC options which are privately negotiated with the counterparty. Listed options are issued by the Options Clearing Corporation (the “OCC”), which guarantees the performance of the obligations of the parties to such options.
The Fund’s ability to close out its position as a purchaser or seller of an exchange-listed put or call option is dependent upon the existence of a liquid secondary market on option exchanges. Among the possible reasons for the absence of a liquid secondary market on an exchange are: (i) insufficient trading interest in certain options; (ii) restrictions on transactions imposed by an exchange; (iii) trading halts, suspensions or other restrictions imposed with respect to particular classes or series of options or underlying securities; (iv) interruption of the normal operations on an exchange; (v) inadequacy of the facilities of an exchange or OCC to handle current trading volume; or (vi) a decision by one or more exchanges to discontinue the trading of options (or a particular class or series of options), in which event the secondary market on that exchange (or in that class or series of options) would cease to exist, although outstanding options on that exchange that had been listed by the OCC as a result of trades on that exchange would generally continue to be exercisable in accordance with their terms. OTC options are purchased from or sold to dealers, financial institutions or other counterparties which have entered into direct agreements with the Fund. With OTC options, such variables as expiration date, exercise price and premium will be agreed upon between the Fund and the counterparty, without the intermediation of a third party such as the OCC. If the counterparty fails to make or take delivery of the securities underlying an option it has written, or otherwise settle the transaction in accordance with the terms of that option as written, the Fund would lose the premium paid for the option as well as any anticipated benefit of the transaction. OTC options and assets used to cover OTC options written by the may be illiquid. The illiquidity of such options or assets may prevent a successful sale of such options or assets, result in a delay of sale, or reduce the amount of proceeds that might otherwise be realized.
The hours of trading for options on debt securities may not conform to the hours during which the underlying securities are traded. To the extent that the option markets close before the markets for the underlying securities, significant price and rate movements can take place in the underlying markets that cannot be reflected in the option markets.
Restrictions on OTC Options. The Fund will engage in OTC options only with member banks of the Federal Reserve System and primary dealers in U.S. Government securities or with affiliates of such banks or dealers that have capital of at least $50 million or whose obligations are guaranteed by an entity having capital of at least $50 million. OTC options and assets used to cover OTC options written by the Fund may be considered to be illiquid. The illiquidity of such options or assets may prevent a successful sale of such options or assets, result in a delay of sale, or reduce the amount of proceeds that might otherwise be realized.
Hybrid Instruments. A hybrid instrument is a type of potentially high-risk derivative that combines a traditional bond, stock or commodity with an option or forward contract. Generally, the principal amount, amount payable upon maturity or redemption, or interest rate of a hybrid is tied (positively or negatively) to the
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price of some commodity, currency or securities index or another interest rate or some other economic factor (each a “benchmark”). The interest rate or (unlike most fixed-income securities) the principal amount payable at maturity of a hybrid security may be increased or decreased, depending on changes in the value of the benchmark. An example of a hybrid could be a bond issued by an oil company that pays a small base level of interest with additional interest that accrues in correlation to the extent to which oil prices exceed a certain predetermined level. Such a hybrid instrument would be a combination of a bond and a call option on oil. Hybrids can be used as an efficient means of pursuing a variety of investment goals, including currency hedging, duration management and increased total return. Hybrids may not bear interest or pay dividends. The value of a hybrid or its interest rate may be a multiple of a benchmark and, as a result, may be leveraged and move (up or down) more steeply and rapidly than the benchmark. These benchmarks may be sensitive to economic and political events, such as commodity shortages and currency devaluations, which cannot be readily foreseen by the purchaser of a hybrid. Under certain conditions, the redemption value of a hybrid could be zero. Thus, an investment in a hybrid may entail significant market risks that are not associated with a similar investment in a traditional, U.S. dollar-denominated bond that has a fixed principal amount and pays a fixed rate or floating rate of interest. The purchase of hybrids also exposes the Fund to the credit risk of the issuer of the hybrids. These risks may cause significant fluctuations in the NAV of the Shares if the Fund invests in hybrid instruments.
New Products. The financial markets continue to evolve and financial products continue to be developed. The Fund reserves the right to invest in new financial products as they are developed or become more widely accepted. As with any new financial product, these products will entail risks, including risks to which the Fund currently is not subject.
The principal risks relating to the use of futures contracts and other Strategic Transactions are: (i) less than perfect correlation between the prices of the instrument and the market value of the securities in the Fund’s portfolio; (ii) possible lack of a liquid secondary market for closing out a position in such instruments; (iii) losses resulting from interest rate or other market movements not anticipated by the Advisor; and (iv) the obligation to meet additional variation margin or other payment requirements, all of which could result in the Fund being in a worse position than if such transactions had not been used.
The Fund’s investment objective and the requirements of Subchapter M of the Code for qualification as a regulated investment company may restrict or affect the ability of the Fund to engage in Strategic Transactions. See “Tax Matters.”
Rating Agency and Guidelines. The Fund has outstanding 350 Series W-7 Variable Rate Demand Preferred Shares (“VRDP Shares”). The Fund’s VRDP Shares are assigned long-term ratings by Moody’s. In order to maintain the required ratings, the Fund is required to comply with certain investment quality, diversification and other guidelines established by Moody’s. Such guidelines may be more restrictive than the restrictions set forth above. The Fund does not anticipate that such guidelines would have a material adverse effect on its ability to achieve its investment objective. Moody’s receives fees in connection with its rating issuance. The Fund is also subject to certain covenants and requirements under the terms of the VRDP Shares and related documents. Such requirements may be more restrictive than the restrictions set forth above. The Fund does not anticipate that such requirements would have a material adverse effect on its ability to achieve its investment objective.
Cash Equivalents and Short Term Debt Securities
For temporary defensive purposes or to keep cash on hand fully invested, the Fund may invest up to 100% of its total assets in cash equivalents and short-term debt securities.
Short-term debt securities are defined to include, without limitation:
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U.S. Government securities, including bills, notes and bonds differing as to maturity and rates of interest that are either issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury or by U.S. Government agencies or |
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| instrumentalities. U.S. Government securities include securities issued by (a) the FHA, Farmers Home Administration, Export-Import Bank of the United States, Small Business Administration GNMA, whose securities are supported by the full faith and credit of the United States; (b) the FHLBs, Federal Intermediate Credit Banks, and Tennessee Valley Authority, whose securities are supported by the right of the agency to borrow from the U.S. Treasury; (c) FNMA, whose securities are supported by the discretionary authority of the U.S. Government to purchase certain obligations of the agency or instrumentality; and (d) the Student Loan Marketing Association, whose securities are supported only by its credit. While the U.S. Government provides financial support to such U.S. Government-sponsored agencies or instrumentalities, no assurance can be given that it always will do so since it is not so obligated by law. The U.S. Government, its agencies and instrumentalities do not guarantee the market value of their securities. Consequently, the value of such securities may fluctuate. |
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Certificates of deposit issued against funds deposited in a bank or a savings and loan association. Such certificates are for a definite period of time, earn a specified rate of return, and are normally negotiable. The issuer of a certificate of deposit agrees to pay the amount deposited plus interest to the bearer of the certificate on the date specified thereon. Certificates of deposit purchased by the Fund may not be fully insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. |
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Repurchase agreements, which involve purchases of debt securities. |
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Commercial paper, which consists of short-term unsecured promissory notes, including variable rate master demand notes issued by corporations to finance their current operations. Master demand notes are direct lending arrangements between the Fund and a corporation. There is no secondary market for such notes. However, they are redeemable by the Fund at any time. The Advisor will consider the financial condition of the corporation (e.g., earning power, cash flow and other liquidity ratios) and will continuously monitor the corporation’s ability to meet all of its financial obligations, because the Fund’s liquidity might be impaired if the corporation were unable to pay principal and interest on demand. |
Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) Integration
Although the Fund does not seek to implement a specific sustainability objective, strategy or process unless disclosed in the Prospectus, Fund management will consider ESG factors as part of the investment process for the Fund. Fund management views ESG integration as the practice of incorporating financially material ESG data or information into investment processes with the objective of enhancing risk-adjusted returns. These ESG considerations will vary depending on a fund’s particular investment strategies and may include consideration of third-party research as well as consideration of proprietary research of the Advisor across the ESG risks and opportunities regarding an issuer. The ESG characteristics utilized in the Fund’s investment process are anticipated to evolve over time and one or more characteristics may not be relevant with respect to all issuers that are eligible for investment.
Certain of these considerations may affect the Fund’s exposure to certain companies or industries. While Fund management views ESG considerations as having the potential to contribute to the Fund’s long-term performance, there is no guarantee that such results will be achieved.
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ADDITIONAL RISK FACTORS
Risk Factors in Strategic Transactions and Derivatives
The Fund’s use of derivative instruments involves risks different from, and possibly greater than, the risks associated with investing directly in securities and other traditional investments. There are significant risks that apply generally to derivatives transactions, including:
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Correlation Risk—the risk that changes in the value of a derivative will not match the changes in the value of the portfolio holdings that are being hedged or of the particular market or security to which the Fund seeks exposure. There are a number of factors which may prevent a derivative instrument from achieving the desired correlation (or inverse correlation) with an underlying asset, rate or index, such as the impact of fees, expenses and transaction costs, the timing of pricing, and disruptions or illiquidity in the markets for such derivative instrument. |
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Counterparty Risk—the risk that the counterparty in a derivative transaction will be unable to honor its financial obligation to the Fund. In particular, derivatives traded in OTC markets often are not guaranteed by an exchange or clearing corporation and often do not require payment of margin, and to the extent that the Fund has unrealized gains in such instruments or has deposited collateral with its counterparties the Fund is at risk that its counterparties will become bankrupt or otherwise fail to honor their obligations. The Fund will typically attempt to minimize counterparty risk by engaging in OTC derivatives transactions only with creditworthy entities that have substantial capital or that have provided the Fund with a third-party guaranty or other credit support. |
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Credit Risk—the risk that the reference entity in a credit default swap or similar derivative will not be able to honor its financial obligations. |
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Currency Risk—the risk that changes in the exchange rate between two currencies will adversely affect the value (in U.S. dollar terms) of an investment. |
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Illiquidity Risk—the risk that certain securities or instruments may be difficult or impossible to sell at the time or at the price desired by the counterparty in connection with payments of margin, collateral, or settlement payments. There can be no assurance that the Fund will be able to unwind or offset a derivative at its desired price, in a secondary market or otherwise. It may, therefore, not be possible for the Fund to unwind its position in a derivative without incurring substantial losses (if at all). The absence of liquidity may also make it more difficult for the Fund to ascertain a market value for such instruments. Although both OTC and exchange-traded derivatives markets may experience a lack of liquidity, certain derivatives traded in OTC markets, including swaps and OTC options, involve substantial illiquidity risk. The Fund will, therefore, acquire illiquid OTC derivatives (i) if the agreement pursuant to which the instrument is purchased contains a formula price at which the instrument may be terminated or sold, or (ii) for which the Advisor anticipates the Fund can receive on each business day at least two independent bids or offers, unless a quotation from only one dealer is available, in which case that dealer’s quotation may be used. The illiquidity of the derivatives markets may be due to various factors, including congestion, disorderly markets, limitations on deliverable supplies, the participation of speculators, government regulation and intervention, and technical and operational or system failures. In addition, the liquidity of a secondary market in an exchange-traded derivative contract may be adversely affected by “daily price fluctuation limits” established by the exchanges which limit the amount of fluctuation in an exchange-traded contract price during a single trading day. Once the daily limit has been reached in the contract, no trades may be entered into at a price beyond the limit, thus preventing the liquidation of open positions. Prices have in the past moved beyond the daily limit on a number of consecutive trading days. If it is not possible to close an open derivative position entered into by the Fund, the Fund would continue to be required to make daily cash payments of variation margin in the event of adverse price movements. In such a situation, if the Fund has insufficient cash, it may have to sell portfolio securities to meet daily variation margin requirements at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so. |
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Index Risk—if the derivative is linked to the performance of an index, it will be subject to the risks associated with changes in that index. If the index changes, the Fund could receive lower interest payments or experience a reduction in the value of the derivative to below the price that the Fund paid for such derivative. |
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Legal Risk—the risk of insufficient documentation, insufficient capacity or authority of counterparty, or legality or enforceability of a contract. |
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Leverage Risk—the risk that the Fund’s derivatives transactions can magnify the Fund’s gains and losses. Relatively small market movements may result in large changes in the value of a derivatives position and can result in losses that greatly exceed the amount originally invested. |
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Market Risk—the risk that changes in the value of one or more markets or changes with respect to the value of the underlying asset will adversely affect the value of a derivative. In the event of an adverse movement, the Fund may be required to pay substantial additional margin to maintain its position or the Fund’s returns may be adversely affected. |
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Operational Risk—the risk related to potential operational issues, including documentation issues, settlement issues, systems failures, inadequate controls and human error. |
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Valuation Risk—the risk that valuation sources for a derivative will not be readily available in the market. This is possible especially in times of market distress, since many market participants may be reluctant to purchase complex instruments or quote prices for them. |
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Volatility Risk—the risk that the value of derivatives will fluctuate significantly within a short time period. |
When a derivative is used as a hedge against a position that the Fund holds, any loss generated by the derivative generally should be substantially offset by gains on the hedged investment, and vice versa. While hedging can reduce or eliminate losses, it can also reduce or eliminate gains. Hedges are sometimes subject to imperfect matching between the derivative and the underlying security, and there can be no assurance that the Fund’s hedging transactions will be effective. The Fund could also suffer losses related to its derivative positions as a result of unanticipated market movements, which losses are potentially unlimited. The Advisor may not be able to predict correctly the direction of securities prices, interest rates and other economic factors, which could cause the Fund’s derivatives positions to lose value. In addition, some derivatives are more sensitive to interest rate changes and market price fluctuations than other securities. The possible lack of a liquid secondary market for derivatives and the resulting inability of the Fund to sell or otherwise close a derivatives position could expose the Fund to losses and could make derivatives more difficult for the Fund to value accurately.
When engaging in a hedging transaction, the Fund may determine not to seek to establish a perfect correlation between the hedging instruments utilized and the portfolio holdings being hedged. Such an imperfect correlation may prevent the Fund from achieving the intended hedge or expose the Fund to a risk of loss. The Fund may also determine not to hedge against a particular risk because it does not regard the probability of the risk occurring to be sufficiently high as to justify the cost of the hedge or because it does not foresee the occurrence of the risk. It may not be possible for the Fund to hedge against a change or event at attractive prices or at a price sufficient to protect the assets of the Fund from the decline in value of the portfolio positions anticipated as a result of such change. In addition, it may not be possible to hedge at all against certain risks.
If the Fund invests in a derivative instrument it could lose more than the principal amount invested. Moreover, derivatives raise certain tax, legal, regulatory and accounting issues that may not be presented by investments in securities, and there is some risk that certain issues could be resolved in a manner that could adversely impact the performance of the Fund.
The Fund is not required to use derivatives or other portfolio strategies to seek to increase return or to seek to hedge its portfolio and may choose not to do so. Also, suitable derivative transactions may not be available in
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all circumstances and there can be no assurance that the Fund will engage in these transactions to reduce exposure to other risks when that would be beneficial. Although the Advisor seeks to use derivatives to further the Fund’s investment objective, there is no assurance that the use of derivatives will achieve this result.
Options Risk. There are several risks associated with transactions in options on securities and indexes. For example, there are significant differences between the securities and options markets that could result in an imperfect correlation between these markets, causing a given transaction not to achieve its objective. In addition, a liquid secondary market for particular options, whether traded OTC or on a recognized securities exchange (e.g., NYSE), separate trading boards of a securities exchange or through a market system that provides contemporaneous transaction pricing information (an “Exchange”) may be absent for reasons which include the following: there may be insufficient trading interest in certain options; restrictions may be imposed by an Exchange on opening transactions or closing transactions or both; trading halts, suspensions or other restrictions may be imposed with respect to particular classes or series of options or underlying securities; unusual or unforeseen circumstances may interrupt normal operations on an Exchange; the facilities of an Exchange or the OCC may not at all times be adequate to handle current trading volume; or one or more Exchanges could, for economic or other reasons, decide or be compelled at some future date to discontinue the trading of options (or a particular class or series of options), in which event the secondary market on that Exchange (or in that class or series of options) would cease to exist, although outstanding options that had been issued by the OCC as a result of trades on that Exchange would continue to be exercisable in accordance with their terms.
Futures Transactions and Options Risk. The primary risks associated with the use of futures contracts and options are (a) the imperfect correlation between the change in market value of the instruments held by the Fund and the price of the futures contract or option; (b) possible lack of a liquid secondary market for a futures contract and the resulting inability to close a futures contract when desired; (c) losses caused by unanticipated market movements, which are potentially unlimited; (d) the Advisor’s inability to predict correctly the direction of securities prices, interest rates, currency exchange rates and other economic factors; and (e) the possibility that the counterparty will default in the performance of its obligations.
Investment in futures contracts involves the risk of imperfect correlation between movements in the price of the futures contract and the price of the security being hedged. The hedge will not be fully effective when there is imperfect correlation between the movements in the prices of two financial instruments. For example, if the price of the futures contract moves more or less than the price of the hedged security, the Fund will experience either a loss or gain on the futures contract which is not completely offset by movements in the price of the hedged securities. To compensate for imperfect correlations, the Fund may purchase or sell futures contracts in a greater dollar amount than the hedged securities if the volatility of the hedged securities is historically greater than the volatility of the futures contracts. Conversely, the Fund may purchase or sell fewer futures contracts if the volatility of the price of the hedged securities is historically lower than that of the futures contracts.
The particular securities comprising the index underlying a securities index financial futures contract may vary from the securities held by the Fund. As a result, the Fund’s ability to hedge effectively all or a portion of the value of its securities through the use of such financial futures contracts will depend in part on the degree to which price movements in the index underlying the financial futures contract correlate with the price movements of the securities held by the Fund. The correlation may be affected by disparities in the average maturity, ratings, geographical mix or structure of the Fund’s investments as compared to those comprising the securities index and general economic or political factors. In addition, the correlation between movements in the value of the securities index may be subject to change over time as additions to and deletions from the securities index alter its structure. The correlation between futures contracts on U.S. Government securities and the securities held by the Fund may be adversely affected by similar factors and the risk of imperfect correlation between movements in the prices of such futures contracts and the prices of securities held by the Fund may be greater. The trading of futures contracts also is subject to certain market risks, such as inadequate trading activity, which could at times make it difficult or impossible to liquidate existing positions.
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The Fund may liquidate futures contracts it enters into through offsetting transactions on the applicable contract market. There can be no assurance, however, that a liquid secondary market will exist for any particular futures contract at any specific time. Thus, it may not be possible to close out a futures position. In the event of adverse price movements, the Fund would continue to be required to make daily cash payments of variation margin. In such situations, if the Fund has insufficient cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities to meet daily variation margin requirements at a time when it may be disadvantageous to do so. The inability to close out futures positions also could have an adverse impact on the Fund’s ability to hedge effectively its investments in securities. The liquidity of a secondary market in a futures contract may be adversely affected by “daily price fluctuation limits” established by commodity exchanges which limit the amount of fluctuation in a futures contract price during a single trading day. Once the daily limit has been reached in the contract, no trades may be entered into at a price beyond the limit, thus preventing the liquidation of open futures positions. Prices have in the past moved beyond the daily limit on a number of consecutive trading days.
The successful use of transactions in futures and related options also depends on the ability of the Advisor to forecast correctly the direction and extent of interest rate movements within a given time frame. To the extent interest rates remain stable during the period in which a futures contract or option is held by the Fund or such rates move in a direction opposite to that anticipated, the Fund may realize a loss on the Strategic Transaction which is not fully or partially offset by an increase in the value of portfolio securities. As a result, the Fund’s total return for such period may be less than if it had not engaged in the Strategic Transaction.
Because of low initial margin deposits made upon the opening of a futures position, futures transactions involve substantial leverage. As a result, relatively small movements in the price of the futures contracts can result in substantial unrealized gains or losses. There is also the risk of loss by the Fund of margin deposits in the event of bankruptcy of a broker with which the Fund has an open position in a financial futures contract. Because the Fund may engage in the purchase and sale of futures contracts for hedging purposes or to seek to enhance the Fund’s return, any losses incurred in connection therewith may, if the strategy is successful, be offset in whole or in part by increases in the value of securities held by the Fund or decreases in the price of securities the Fund intends to acquire.
The amount of risk the Fund assumes when it purchases an option on a futures contract is the premium paid for the option plus related transaction costs. In addition to the correlation risks discussed above, the purchase of an option on a futures contract also entails the risk that changes in the value of the underlying futures contract will not be fully reflected in the value of the option purchased.
Over-the-Counter Trading Risk. The derivative instruments that may be purchased or sold by the Fund may include instruments not traded on an Exchange. The risk of nonperformance by the counterparty to an instrument may be greater than, and the ease with which the Fund can dispose of or enter into closing transactions with respect to an instrument may be less than, the risk associated with an exchange traded instrument. In addition, significant disparities may exist between “bid” and “asked” prices for derivative instruments that are not traded on an Exchange. Derivative instruments not traded on exchanges also are not subject to the same type of government regulation as exchange traded instruments, and many of the protections afforded to participants in a regulated environment may not be available in connection with the transactions. Because derivatives traded in OTC markets generally are not guaranteed by an exchange or clearing corporation, to the extent that the Fund has unrealized gains in such instruments or has deposited collateral with its counterparties, the Fund is at risk that its counterparties will become bankrupt or otherwise fail to honor its obligations.
Certain derivatives traded in OTC markets, including indexed securities, swaps and OTC options, involve substantial liquidity risk. The absence of liquidity may make it difficult or impossible for the Fund to sell such instruments promptly at an acceptable price. The absence of liquidity may also make it more difficult for the Fund to ascertain a market value for such instruments. The Fund will, therefore, acquire illiquid OTC instruments (i) if the agreement pursuant to which the instrument is purchased contains a formula price at which the instrument may be terminated or sold, or (ii) for which the Advisor anticipates the Fund can receive on each
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business day at least two independent bids or offers, unless a quotation from only one dealer is available, in which case that dealer’s quotation may be used. Because derivatives traded in OTC markets are not guaranteed by an exchange or clearing corporation and generally do not require payment of margin, to the extent that the Fund has unrealized gains in such instruments or has deposited collateral with its counterparties the Fund is at risk that its counterparties will become bankrupt or otherwise fail to honor its obligations. The Fund will attempt to minimize these risks by engaging in transactions in derivatives traded in OTC markets only with financial institutions that have substantial capital or that have provided the Fund with a third-party guaranty or other credit enhancement.
Rule 18f-4 Under the Investment Company Act. Rule 18f-4 under the Investment Company Act permits the Fund to enter into Derivatives Transactions (as defined below) and certain other transactions notwithstanding the restrictions on the issuance of “senior securities” under Section 18 of the Investment Company Act. Section 18 of the Investment Company Act, among other things, prohibits closed-end funds, including the Fund, from issuing or selling any “senior security” representing indebtedness (unless the fund maintains 300% “asset coverage”) or any senior security representing stock (unless the fund maintains 200% “asset coverage”).
Under Rule 18f-4, “Derivatives Transactions” include the following: (1) any swap, security-based swap (including a contract for differences), futures contract, forward contract, option (excluding purchased options), any combination of the foregoing, or any similar instrument, under which the Fund is or may be required to make any payment or delivery of cash or other assets during the life of the instrument or at maturity or early termination, whether as margin or settlement payment or otherwise; (2) any short sale borrowing; (3) reverse repurchase agreements and similar financing transactions (e.g., recourse and non-recourse tender option bonds, and borrowed bonds), if the Fund elects to treat these transactions as Derivatives Transactions under Rule 18f-4; and (4) when-issued or forward-settling securities (e.g., firm and standby commitments, including to-be-announced (“TBA”) commitments, and dollar rolls) and non-standard settlement cycle securities, unless such transactions meet the Delayed-Settlement Securities Provision (as defined in the prospectus under “The Fund’s Investments—Portfolio Contents and Techniques—When-Issued Securities, Delayed Delivery Securities and Forward Commitments”).
Unless the Fund is relying on the Limited Derivatives User Exception (as defined below), the Fund must comply with Rule 18f-4 with respect to its Derivatives Transactions. Rule 18f-4, among other things, requires the Fund to adopt and implement a comprehensive written derivatives risk management program (“DRMP”) and comply with a relative or absolute limit on fund leverage risk calculated based on value-at-risk (“VaR”). The DRMP is administered by a “derivatives risk manager,” who is appointed by the Board, including a majority of the Directors who are not “interested persons” (as defined in the Investment Company Act) (the “Independent Directors”), and periodically reviews the DRMP and reports to the Board.
Rule 18f-4 provides an exception from the DRMP, VaR limit and certain other requirements if the Fund’s “derivatives exposure” is limited to 10% of its net assets (as calculated in accordance with Rule 18f-4) and the Fund adopts and implements written policies and procedures reasonably designed to manage its derivatives risks (the “Limited Derivatives User Exception”).
Dodd-Frank Act Risk. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank”), enacted in July 2010, includes provisions that comprehensively regulate the over-the-counter (“OTC”) derivatives markets for the first time. While the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) and other U.S. regulators have adopted many of the required Dodd-Frank regulations, certain regulations have only recently become effective and other regulations remain to be adopted. The full impact of Dodd-Frank on the Fund remains uncertain.
OTC derivatives dealers are now required to register with the CFTC as “swap dealers” and will ultimately be required to register with the SEC as “security-based swap dealers”. Registered swap dealers are subject to various regulatory requirements, including, but not limited to, margin, recordkeeping, reporting, transparency,
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position limits, limitations on conflicts of interest, business conduct standards, minimum capital requirements and other regulatory requirements.
The CFTC requires that certain interest rate swaps and certain credit default swaps must be executed in regulated markets and be submitted for clearing to regulated clearinghouses. The SEC is also expected to impose similar requirements on certain security-based derivatives in the future. OTC derivatives trades submitted for clearing are subject to minimum initial and variation margin requirements set by the relevant clearinghouse, as well as margin requirements mandated by the CFTC, SEC and/or federal prudential regulators. In addition, futures commission merchants (“FCMs”), who act as clearing members on behalf of customers for cleared OTC derivatives and futures contracts, also have discretion to increase the Fund’s margin requirements for these transactions beyond any regulatory and clearinghouse minimums subject to any restrictions on such discretion in the documentation between the FCM and the customer. These regulatory requirements may make it more difficult and costly for the Fund to enter into highly tailored or customized transactions, potentially rendering certain investment strategies impossible or not economically feasible. If the Fund decides to execute and clear cleared OTC derivatives and/or futures contracts through execution facilities, exchanges or clearinghouses, either indirectly through an executing broker, clearing member FCM or as a direct member, the Fund would be required to comply with the rules of the execution facility, exchange or clearinghouse and other applicable law.
With respect to cleared OTC derivatives and futures contracts and options on futures, the Fund will not face a clearinghouse directly but rather will do so through a FCM that is registered with the CFTC and/or SEC and that acts as a clearing member. The Fund may face the indirect risk of the failure of another clearing member customer to meet its obligations to its clearing member. Such scenario could arise due to a default by the clearing member on its obligations to the clearinghouse simultaneously with a customer’s failure to meet its obligations to the clearing member.
Clearing member FCMs are required to post initial margin to the clearinghouses through which they clear their customers’ cleared OTC derivatives and futures contracts, instead of using such initial margin in their businesses, as was widely permitted before Dodd-Frank. While an FCM may require its customer to post initial margin in excess of clearinghouse requirements, and certain clearinghouses may share a portion of their earnings on initial margin with their clearing members, some portion of the initial margin that is passed through to the clearinghouse does not generate earnings for the FCM. The inability of FCMs to earn the same levels of returns on initial margin for cleared OTC derivatives as they could earn with respect to non-cleared OTC derivatives may cause FCMs to charge higher fees, or provide less favorable pricing on cleared OTC derivatives than swap dealers will provide for non-cleared OTC derivatives. Furthermore, customers, including the Fund, are subject to additional fees payable to FCMs with respect to cleared OTC derivatives, which may raise the cost to the Fund of clearing as compared to trading non-cleared OTC derivatives bilaterally.
With respect to uncleared swaps, swap dealers are required to collect variation margin from the Fund and may be required by applicable regulations to collect initial margin from the Fund. Both initial and variation margin may be comprised of cash and/or securities, subject to applicable regulatory haircuts. Shares of investment companies (other than certain money market funds) may not be posted as collateral under applicable regulations.
The CFTC and the U.S. commodities exchanges impose limits on the maximum net long or net short speculative positions that any person may hold or control in any particular futures or options contracts traded on U.S. commodities exchanges. For example, the CFTC has historically imposed speculative position limits on a number of agricultural commodities (e.g., corn, oats, wheat, soybeans and cotton) and United States commodities exchanges currently impose speculative position limits on many other commodities. The Fund could be required to liquidate positions it holds in order to comply with position limits or may not be able to fully implement trading instructions generated by its trading models, in order to comply with position limits. Any such liquidation or limited implementation could result in substantial costs to the Fund.
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Dodd-Frank significantly expanded the CFTC’s authority to impose position limits with respect to agricultural commodities and other physical commodity futures contracts, options on these futures contracts and economically equivalent swaps. In October 2020, the CFTC adopted a new set of speculative position limit rules with respect to agricultural commodities and other physical commodity futures contracts, options on these futures contracts (“core referenced futures contracts”) and economically equivalent swaps. An economically equivalent swap is a swap with identical material contractual specifications, terms and conditions to a core referenced futures contract, disregarding differences with respect to any of the following: (1) lot size specifications or notional amounts, (2) post-trade risk management arrangements and (3) delivery dates for physically-settled swaps as long as these delivery dates diverge by less than one calendar day from the referenced contract’s delivery date (or, for natural gas, two calendar days). A cash-settled swap could only be deemed to be economically equivalent to a cash-settled referenced contract, and a physically-settled swap could only be deemed to be economically equivalent to a physically-settled referenced contract. However, a cash-settled swap that initially did not qualify as economically equivalent due to the fact that there was no corresponding cash-settled core referenced futures contract could subsequently become an economically equivalent swap if a cash-settled futures contract market were to subsequently be developed. The CFTC’s new position limits rules include an exemption from limits for bona fide hedging transactions or positions. A bona fide hedging transaction or position may exceed the applicable federal position limits if the transaction or position: (1) represents a substitute for transactions or positions made or to be made at a later time in a physical marketing channel; (2) is economically appropriate to the reduction of price risks in the conduct and management of a commercial enterprise; and (3) arises from the potential change in value of (A) assets which a person owns, produces, manufactures, processes or merchandises, or anticipates owning, producing, manufacturing, processing or merchandising; (B) liabilities which a person owes or anticipates incurring; or (C) services that a person provides or purchases, or anticipates providing or purchasing. The CFTC’s new position rules set forth a list of enumerated bona fide hedges for which a market participant is not required to request prior approval from the CFTC in order to hold a bona fide hedge position above the federal position limit. However, a market participant holding an enumerated bona fide hedge position still would need to request an exemption from the relevant exchange for exchange-set limits. For non-enumerated bona fide hedge positions, a market participant may request CFTC approval which must be granted prior to exceeding the applicable federal position limit, except where there is a demonstrated sudden or unforeseen increase in bona fide hedging needs (in which case the application must be submitted within five business days after the market participant exceeds the applicable limit). The compliance dates for the CFTC’s new federal speculative position limits are January 1, 2022 for the core referenced futures contracts and January 1, 2023 for economically equivalent swaps. While the ultimate effect of the final position limit rules are not yet known, these limits will likely restrict the ability of many market participants to trade in the commodities markets to the same extent as they have in the past. These rules may, among other things, reduce liquidity, increase market volatility, limit the size and duration of positions available to market participants, and increase costs in these markets, which could adversely affect the Fund.
These new regulations and the resulting increased costs and regulatory oversight requirements may result in market participants being required or deciding to limit their trading activities, which could lead to decreased market liquidity and increased market volatility. In addition, transaction costs incurred by market participants are likely to be higher due to the increased costs of compliance with the new regulations. These consequences could adversely affect the Fund’s returns.
Legal and Regulatory Risk. At any time after the date hereof, legislation or additional regulations may be enacted that could negatively affect the assets of the Fund. Changing approaches to regulation may have a negative impact on the securities in which the Fund invests. Legislation or regulation may also change the way in which the Fund itself is regulated. There can be no assurance that future legislation, regulation or deregulation will not have a material adverse effect on the Fund or will not impair the ability of the Fund to achieve its investment objective. In addition, as new rules and regulations resulting from the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act are implemented and new international capital and liquidity requirements are introduced under the Basel III Accords, the market may not react the way the Advisor expects. Whether the Fund achieves its investment
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objective may depend on, among other things, whether the Advisor correctly forecasts market reactions to this and other legislation. In the event the Advisor incorrectly forecasts market reaction, the Fund may not achieve its investment objective.
MANAGEMENT OF THE FUND
Investment Management Agreement
Although the Advisor intends to devote such time and effort to the business of the Fund as is reasonably necessary to perform its duties to the Fund, the services of the Advisor are not exclusive and the Advisor provides similar services to other investment companies and other clients and may engage in other activities.
The amended and restated investment management agreement between the Advisor and the Fund (the “Investment Management Agreement”) also provides that in the absence of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of its obligations thereunder, the Advisor is not liable to the Fund or any of the Fund’s shareholders for any act or omission by the Advisor in the supervision or management of its respective investment activities or for any loss sustained by the Fund or the Fund’s shareholders and provides for indemnification by the Fund of the Advisor, its directors, officers, employees, agents and control persons for liabilities incurred by them in connection with their services to the Fund, subject to certain limitations and conditions.
The Investment Management Agreement provides that the Advisor receives an annual fee, payable monthly, in an amount equal to 0.90% of the average daily value of the Fund’s net assets. Prior to March 24, 2025, the Fund was party to an investment management agreement with the Advisor (the “Prior Investment Management Agreement”) pursuant to which the Fund paid the Advisor an annual fee, payable monthly, in an amount equal to 0.55% of the average daily value of the Fund’s Managed Assets.
The Advisor has contractually agreed, effective as of December 1, 2025, to waive the entirety of its management fee otherwise payable by the Fund through June 30, 2026. This agreement may be terminated upon 90 days’ notice by a majority of the Fund’s Independent Directors or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund. Furthermore, the Fund and the Advisor have entered into a fee waiver agreement (the “Fee Waiver Agreement”), pursuant to which the Advisor has contractually agreed to waive the management fee with respect to any portion of the Fund’s assets attributable to investments in any equity and fixed-income mutual funds and exchange-traded funds managed by the Advisor or its affiliates that have a contractual fee, through June 30, 2027. In addition, pursuant to the Fee Waiver Agreement, the Advisor has contractually agreed to waive its management fees by the amount of investment advisory fees the Fund pays to the Advisor indirectly through its investment in money market funds advised by the Advisor or its affiliates, through June 30, 2027. The Fee Waiver Agreement may be continued from year to year thereafter, provided that such continuance is specifically approved by the Advisor and the Fund (including by a majority of the Fund’s Independent Directors). Neither the Advisor nor the Fund is obligated to extend the Fee Waiver Agreement. The Fee Waiver Agreement may be terminated at any time, without the payment of any penalty, only by the Fund (upon the vote of a majority of the Independent Directors of the Fund or a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund), upon 90 days’ written notice by the Fund to the Advisor.
The Investment Management Agreement will continue in effect for a period of two years from its effective date, and if not sooner terminated, will continue in effect for successive periods of 12 months thereafter, provided that each continuance is specifically approved at least annually by both (1) the vote of a majority of the Board or the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund (as such term is defined in the Investment Company Act) and (2) by the vote of a majority of the Directors who are not parties to the Investment Management Agreement or “interested persons” (as such term is defined in the Investment Company Act) of any such party, cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval. The Investment
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Management Agreement may be terminated as a whole at any time by the Fund, without the payment of any penalty, upon the vote of a majority of the Board or a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund or by the Advisor, on 60 days’ written notice by either party to the other which can be waived by the non-terminating party. The Investment Management Agreement will terminate automatically in the event of its “assignment” (as such term is defined in the Investment Company Act and the rules thereunder).
A discussion regarding the basis for the approval of the Investment Management Agreement by the Board is available in the Fund’s Annual Report to shareholders for the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025. The table below sets forth information about the total management fees paid by the Fund to the Advisor, and the amounts waived and/or reimbursed by the Advisor, for the periods indicated (when the Prior Investment Management Agreement was in effect):
| Paid to the Advisor | Waived by the Advisor | Reimbursed by the Advisor | ||||||||||
| Fiscal Year Ended |
$ | 4,340,482 | $ | 115,449 | $ | 84,975 | ||||||
| Fiscal Year Ended |
$ | 8,544,906 | $ | 37,420 | $ | 268,919 | ||||||
| Fiscal Year Ended |
$ | 8,906,374 | $ | 12,529 | $ | 0 | ||||||
Administration and Accounting Services Agreement
State Street Bank and Trust Company (“State Street”) provides certain administration and accounting services to the Fund pursuant to an Administration and Accounting Services Agreement. The table below shows the amounts paid to State Street for such services for the periods indicated:
| Paid to State Street | ||||
| Fiscal Year Ended July 31, 2025 |
$ | 140,965 | ||
| Fiscal Year Ended July 31, 2024 |
$ | 175,298 | ||
| Fiscal Year Ended July 31, 2023 |
$ | 177,246 | ||
Information on Directors and Officers
The Board consists of ten individuals (each a “Directors”), eight of whom are Independent Directors. The registered investment companies advised by the Advisor or its affiliates (the “BlackRock-advised Funds”) are organized into the BlackRock Multi-Asset Complex, the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex, and the iShares Complex (each, a “BlackRock Fund Complex”). The Fund is included in the BlackRock Fund Complex referred to as the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex. The Directors also oversee as board members the operations of the other open-end and closed-end registered investment companies included in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex.
The Board has overall responsibility for the oversight of the Fund. The Chair of the Board and the Chief Executive Officer are different people. Not only is the Chair of the Board an Independent Director, but also the Chair of each Board committee (each, a “Committee”) is an Independent Director. The Board has six standing Committees: an Audit Committee, a Governance and Nominating Committee, a Compliance Committee, a Performance Oversight Committee, a Securities Lending and an Executive Committee. The role of the Chair of the Board is to preside over all meetings of the Board and to act as a liaison with service providers, officers, attorneys, and other Directors between meetings. The Chair of each Committee performs a similar role with respect to the Committee. The Chair of the Board or a Committee may also perform such other functions as may be delegated by the Board or the Committee from time to time. The Independent Directors meet regularly outside the presence of the Fund’s management, in executive sessions or with other service providers to the Fund. The Board has regular meetings five times a year, including a meeting to consider the approval of the Fund’s
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investment management agreement, and, if necessary, may hold special meetings before its next regular meeting. The Audit Committee, the Governance and Nominating Committee, the Compliance Committee, the Performance Oversight Committee and the Securities Lending Committee each meets regularly and the Executive Committee meets on an ad hoc basis to conduct the oversight functions delegated to that Committee by the Board and reports its findings to the Board. The Board and each standing Committee conduct annual assessments of their oversight function and structure. The Board has determined that the Board’s leadership structure is appropriate because it allows the Board to exercise independent judgment over management and to allocate areas of responsibility among Committees and the Board to enhance oversight.
The Board decided to separate the roles of Chief Executive Officer from the Chair because it believes that having an independent Chair:
| • |
increases the independent oversight of the Fund and enhances the Board’s objective evaluation of the Chief Executive Officer; |
| • |
allows the Chief Executive Officer to focus on the Fund’s operations instead of Board administration; |
| • |
provides greater opportunities for direct and independent communication between shareholders and the Board; and |
| • |
provides an independent spokesman for the Fund. |
The Board has engaged the Advisor to manage the Fund on a day-to-day basis. The Board is responsible for overseeing the Advisor, other service providers, the operations of the Fund and associated risks in accordance with the provisions of the Investment Company Act, state law, other applicable laws, the Fund’s charter, and the Fund’s investment objective and strategies. The Board reviews, on an ongoing basis, the Fund’s performance, operations, and investment strategies and techniques. The Board also conducts reviews of the Advisor and its role in running the operations of the Fund.
Day-to-day risk management with respect to the Fund is the responsibility of the Advisor or other service providers (depending on the nature of the risk), subject to the supervision of the Advisor. The Fund is subject to a number of risks, including investment, compliance, operational and valuation risks, among others. While there are a number of risk management functions performed by the Advisor or other service providers, as applicable, it is not possible to eliminate all of the risks applicable to the Fund. Risk oversight is part of the Board’s general oversight of the Fund and is addressed as part of various Board and Committee activities. The Board, directly or through Committees, also reviews reports from, among others, management, the independent registered public accounting firm for the Fund, the Advisor and internal auditors for the Advisor or its affiliates, as appropriate, regarding risks faced by the Fund and management’s or the service provider’s risk functions. The Committee system facilitates the timely and efficient consideration of matters by the Directors and facilitates effective oversight of compliance with legal and regulatory requirements and of the Fund’s activities and associated risks. The Board has approved the appointment of a Chief Compliance Officer (“CCO”), who oversees the implementation and testing of the Fund’s compliance program and reports regularly to the Board regarding compliance matters for the Fund and its service providers. The Independent Directors have engaged independent legal counsel to assist them in performing their oversight responsibilities.
Audit Committee. The Board has a standing Audit Committee composed of Catherine A. Lynch (Chair), Lorenzo A. Flores, J. Phillip Holloman and Arthur P. Steinmetz, all of whom are Independent Directors. The principal responsibilities of the Audit Committee are to assist the Board in fulfilling its oversight responsibilities relating to the accounting and financial reporting policies and practices of the Fund. The Audit Committee’s responsibilities include, without limitation: (i) approving, and recommending to the full Board for approval, the selection, retention, termination and compensation of the Fund’s independent registered public accounting firm (the “Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm”) and evaluating the independence and objectivity of the Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm; (ii) approving all audit engagement terms and fees for the Fund; (iii) reviewing the conduct and results of each audit; (iv) reviewing any issues raised by the Fund’s
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Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm or management regarding the accounting or financial reporting policies and practices of the Fund, its internal controls, and, as appropriate, the internal controls of certain service providers and management’s response to any such issues; (v) reviewing and discussing the Fund’s audited and unaudited financial statements and disclosure in the Fund’s shareholder reports relating to the Fund’s performance; (vi) assisting the Board’s responsibilities with respect to the internal controls of the Fund and its service providers with respect to accounting and financial matters; and (vii) resolving any disagreements between the Fund’s management and the Fund’s Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm regarding financial reporting. The Board has adopted a written charter for the Board’s Audit Committee. A copy of the Audit Committee Charter for the Fund can be found in the “Corporate Governance” section of the BlackRock Closed-End Fund website at https://www.blackrock.com/us/individual/education/closed-end-funds/corporate-governance. During the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, the Audit Committee met nine times.
Governance and Nominating Committee. The Board has a standing Governance and Nominating Committee composed of W. Carl Kester (Chair), Cynthia L. Egan, J. Phillip Holloman, R. Glenn Hubbard and Catherine A. Lynch, all of whom are Independent Directors. The principal responsibilities of the Governance and Nominating Committee are: (i) identifying individuals qualified to serve as Independent Directors and recommending Board nominees that are not “interested persons” of the Fund (as defined in the Investment Company Act) for election by shareholders or appointment by the Board; (ii) advising the Board with respect to Board composition, procedures and Committees of the Board (other than the Audit Committee); (iii) overseeing periodic self-assessments of the Board and Committees of the Board (other than the Audit Committee); (iv) reviewing and making recommendations in respect to Independent Director compensation; (v) monitoring corporate governance matters and making recommendations in respect thereof to the Board; (vi) acting as the administrative committee with respect to Board policies and procedures, committee policies and procedures (other than the Audit Committee) and codes of ethics as they relate to the Independent Directors; and (vii) reviewing and making recommendations to the Board in respect of Fund share ownership by the Independent Directors. The Board has adopted a written charter for the Board’s Governance and Nominating Committee. During the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, the Governance and Nominating Committee met four times.
The Governance and Nominating Committee of the Board seeks to identify individuals to serve on the Board who have a diverse range of viewpoints, qualifications, experiences, backgrounds and skill sets so that the Board will be better suited to fulfill its responsibility of overseeing the Fund’s activities. In so doing, the Governance and Nominating Committee reviews the size of the Board, the ages of the current Directors and their tenure on the Board, and the skills, background and experiences of the Directors in light of the issues facing the Fund in determining whether one or more new Directors should be added to the Board. The Board as a group strives to achieve diversity in terms of gender, race and geographic location. The Governance and Nominating Committee believes that the Directors as a group possess the array of skills, experiences and backgrounds necessary to guide the Fund. The Directors’ biographies included herein highlight the diversity and breadth of skills, qualifications and expertise that the Directors bring to the Fund.
The Governance and Nominating Committee may consider nominations for Directors made by the Fund’s shareholders as it deems appropriate. Under the Fund’s Bylaws, shareholders must follow certain procedures to nominate a person for election as a Director at a special meeting, or to introduce an item of business at a special meeting. Under these advance notice procedures, shareholders must submit the proposed nominee or item of business by delivering a notice to the Secretary of the Fund at its principal executive offices no later than the close of business on the tenth (10th) day following the day on which notice of the date of the special meeting was mailed or public disclosure of the date of the special meeting was made, whichever first occurs.
The Fund’s Bylaws provide that notice of a proposed nomination must include certain information about the shareholder and the nominee, as well as a written consent of the proposed nominee to serve if elected. A notice of a proposed item of business must include a description of and the reasons for bringing the proposed business to the meeting, any material interest of the shareholder in the business, and certain other information about the shareholder.
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Further, the Fund has adopted Director qualification requirements which can be found in the Fund’s Bylaws and are applicable to all Directors that may be nominated, elected, appointed, qualified or seated to serve as Directors. The qualification requirements include: (i) age limits; (ii) limits on service on other boards; (iii) restrictions on relationships with investment advisers other than the Advisor; and (iv) character and fitness requirements. In addition to not being an “interested person” of the Fund as defined under Section 2(a)(19) of the Investment Company Act, each Independent Director may not be or have certain relationships with a shareholder owning five percent or more of the Fund’s voting securities or owning other percentage ownership interests in investment companies registered under the Investment Company Act. Reference is made to the Fund’s Bylaws for more details.
A copy of the Governance and Nominating Committee Charter for the Fund can be found in the “Corporate Governance” section of the BlackRock Closed-End Fund website at https://www.blackrock.com/us/individual/education/closed-end-funds/corporate-governance.
Compliance Committee. The Board has a Compliance Committee composed of Cynthia L. Egan (Chair), Stayce D. Harris, R. Glenn Hubbard and W. Carl Kester, all of whom are Independent Directors. The Compliance Committee’s purpose is to assist the Board in fulfilling its responsibility with respect to the oversight of regulatory and fiduciary compliance matters involving the Fund, the fund-related activities of the Advisor, and any sub-advisers and the Fund’s other third party service providers. The Compliance Committee’s responsibilities include, without limitation: (i) overseeing the compliance policies and procedures of the Fund and its service providers and recommending changes or additions to such policies and procedures; (ii) reviewing information on and, where appropriate, recommending policies concerning the Fund’s compliance with applicable law; (iii) reviewing information on any significant correspondence with or other actions by regulators or governmental agencies with respect to the Fund and any employee complaints or published reports that raise concerns regarding compliance matters; and (iv) reviewing reports from, overseeing the annual performance review of, and making certain recommendations in respect of, the Fund’s CCO, including, without limitation, determining the amount and structure of the CCO’s compensation. The Board has adopted a written charter for the Board’s Compliance Committee. During the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, the Compliance Committee met four times.
Performance Oversight Committee. The Board has a Performance Oversight Committee composed of Arthur P. Steinmetz (Chair), Cynthia L. Egan, Lorenzo A. Flores, Stayce D. Harris, J. Phillip Holloman, R. Glenn Hubbard, W. Carl Kester and Catherine A. Lynch, all of whom are Independent Directors. The Performance Oversight Committee’s purpose is to assist the Board in fulfilling its responsibility to oversee the Fund’s investment performance relative to the Fund’s investment objective, policies and practices. The Performance Oversight Committee’s responsibilities include, without limitation: (i) reviewing the Fund’s investment objective, policies and practices; (ii) recommending to the Board any required action in respect of changes in fundamental and non-fundamental investment restrictions; (iii) reviewing information on appropriate benchmarks and competitive universes; (iv) reviewing the Fund’s investment performance relative to such benchmarks; (v) reviewing information on unusual or exceptional investment matters; (vi) reviewing whether the Fund has complied with its investment policies and restrictions; and (vii) overseeing policies, procedures and controls regarding valuation of the Fund’s investments. The Board has adopted a written charter for the Board’s Performance Oversight Committee. During the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, the Performance Oversight Committee met four times.
Discount Committee. The Board has a Discount Committee composed of Catherine A. Lynch (Chair), Cynthia L. Egan, W. Carl Kester and Arthur P. Steinmetz, all of whom are Independent Board Members. The principal responsibilities of the Discount Committee include, without limitation, the following responsibilities with respect to the Fund when the Fund is trading at a share price lower than its net asset value (referred to as “trading at a discount”): (i) monitoring, on behalf of the Board, the Fund; (ii) seeking to identify factors driving the Fund trading at a discount; (iii) engaging with the Investment Advisor on ways to potentially mitigate the Fund trading at a discount; (iv) reviewing and making recommendations to the Board regarding actions related to
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the Fund trading at a discount; and (v) addressing such other matters relating to the Fund trading at a discount as the Discount Committee deems appropriate. The Board has adopted a written charter for the Board’s Discount Committee. During the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, the Discount Committee met four times.
Securities Lending Committee. The Board has a Securities Lending Committee composed of Catherine A. Lynch (Chair), Cynthia L. Egan and W. Carl Kester, all of whom are Independent Directors. The principal responsibilities of the Securities Lending Committee include, without limitation: (i) supporting, overseeing and organizing on behalf of the Board the process for oversight of the Fund’s securities lending activities; and (ii) providing a recommendation to the Board regarding the annual approval of the Fund’s Securities Lending Guidelines and the Fund’s agreement with the lending agent. The Board has adopted a written charter for the Board’s Securities Lending Committee. During the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, the Securities Lending Committee met two times.
Executive Committee. The Board has an Executive Committee composed of R. Glenn Hubbard (Chair) and W. Carl Kester, both of whom are Independent Directors, and John M. Perlowski, who serves as an interested Director. The principal responsibilities of the Executive Committee include, without limitation: (i) acting on routine matters between meetings of the Board; (ii) acting on such matters as may require urgent action between meetings of the Board; and (iii) exercising such other authority as may from time to time be delegated to the Executive Committee by the Board. The Board has adopted a written charter for the Board’s Executive Committee. During the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, the Executive Committee did not meet.
The Governance and Nominating Committee may consider nominations for Directors made by the Fund’s shareholders as it deems appropriate. Under the Fund’s Bylaws, shareholders must follow certain procedures to nominate a person for election as a Director at a shareholder meeting at which Directors are to be elected. Under these advance notice procedures, shareholders must submit the proposed nominee by delivering a notice to the Secretary of the Fund at its principal executive offices no earlier than the 150th day prior to such meeting and not later than 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time, on the later of the 120th day prior to such meeting or the tenth day following the day on which public announcement is first made of the date of such meeting.
The Fund’s Bylaws provide that notice of a proposed nomination must include certain information about the shareholder and the nominee, as well as certain other information, including a written consent of the proposed nominee to serve if elected. Reference is made to the Fund’s Bylaws for more details.
The Independent Directors have adopted a statement of policy that describes the experiences, qualifications, skills and attributes that are necessary and desirable for potential Independent Director candidates (the “Statement of Policy”). The Board believes that each Independent Director satisfied, at the time he or she was initially elected or appointed a Director, and continues to satisfy, the standards contemplated by the Statement of Policy as well as the standards set forth in the Fund’s Bylaws. Furthermore, in determining that a particular Director was and continues to be qualified to serve as a Director, the Board has considered a variety of criteria, none of which, in isolation, was controlling. The Board believes that, collectively, the Directors have balanced and diverse experiences, skills, attributes and qualifications, which allow the Board to operate effectively in governing the Fund and protecting the interests of shareholders. Among the attributes common to all Directors is their ability to review critically, evaluate, question and discuss information provided to them, to interact effectively with the Advisor, sub-advisers, other service providers, counsel and independent auditors, and to exercise effective business judgment in the performance of their duties as Directors. Each Director’s ability to perform his or her duties effectively is evidenced by his or her educational background or professional training; business, consulting, public service or academic positions; experience from service as a board member of the Fund or the other funds in the BlackRock Fund Complexes (and any predecessor funds), other investment funds, public companies, or not-for-profit entities or other organizations; ongoing commitment and participation in Board and Committee meetings, as well as his or her leadership of standing and other committees throughout the years; or other relevant life experiences.
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The table below discusses some of the experiences, qualifications and skills of each Director that support the conclusion that he or she should serve on the Board.
| Directors |
Experience, Qualifications and Skills | |
| Independent Directors | ||
| R. Glenn Hubbard |
R. Glenn Hubbard has served in numerous roles in the field of economics, including as the Chairman of the U.S. Council of Economic Advisers of the President of the United States. Dr. Hubbard has served as the Dean of Columbia Business School, as a member of the Columbia Faculty and as a Visiting Professor at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, the Harvard Business School and the University of Chicago. Dr. Hubbard’s experience as an adviser to the President of the United States adds a dimension of balance to the Fund’s governance and provides perspective on economic issues. Dr. Hubbard’s service on the boards of ADP and Metropolitan Life Insurance Company provides the Board with the benefit of his experience with the management practices of other financial companies. Dr. Hubbard’s long-standing service on the boards of directors/trustees of the closed-end funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex also provides him with a specific understanding of the Fund, its operations, and the business and regulatory issues facing the Fund. Dr. Hubbard’s independence from the Fund and the Manager enhances his service as Chair of the Board, Chair of the Executive Committee and a member of the Governance and Nominating Committee, the Compliance Committee and the Performance Oversight Committee. | |
| W. Carl Kester |
The Board benefits from W. Carl Kester’s experiences as a professor and author in finance, and his experience as the George Fisher Baker Jr. Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School and as Deputy Dean of Academic Affairs at Harvard Business School from 2006 through 2010 adds to the Board a wealth of expertise in corporate finance and corporate governance. Dr. Kester has authored and edited numerous books and research papers on both subject matters, including co-editing a leading volume of finance case studies used worldwide. Dr. Kester’s long-standing service on the boards of directors/trustees of the closed-end funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex also provides him with a specific understanding of the Fund, its operations, and the business and regulatory issues facing the Fund. Dr. Kester’s independence from the Fund and the Manager enhances his service as a Vice Chair of the Board, Chair of the Governance and Nominating Committee and a member of the Executive Committee, the Compliance Committee, the Performance Oversight Committee and the Securities Lending Committee. | |
| Cynthia L. Egan |
Cynthia L. Egan brings to the Board a broad and diverse knowledge of investment companies and the retirement industry as a result of her many years of experience as President, Retirement Plan Services, for T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. and her various senior operating officer positions at Fidelity Investments, including her service as Executive Vice President of FMR Co., President of Fidelity Institutional Services Company and President of the Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund. Ms. Egan has also served as an advisor to the U.S. Department of Treasury as an expert in domestic retirement security. Ms. Egan began her professional career at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Ms. Egan is also a director of UNUM Corporation, a publicly traded insurance company providing personal risk reinsurance, and a director and Chair of the Board of The Hanover Group, a public property casualty insurance company. Ms. Egan is also the lead independent director and non-executive Vice Chair of the Board of Huntsman Corporation, a publicly traded manufacturer and marketer of chemical products. Ms. Egan’s independence from the Fund and the Advisor enhances her service as Chair of the Compliance Committee and a member of the Governance and Nominating Committee, the Performance Oversight Committee and the Securities Lending Committee. | |
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| Directors |
Experience, Qualifications and Skills | |
| Lorenzo A. Flores |
The Board benefits from Lorenzo A. Flores’s many years of business, leadership and financial experience in his roles at various public and private companies. In particular, Mr. Flores’s service as Chief Financial Officer of Lattice Semiconductor Corporation, a semiconductor company that designs, develops, and markets programmable logic products and related software, Chief Financial Officer of Intel Foundry, a semiconductor manufacturing unit of Intel Corporation, Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Controller of Xilinx, Inc., a technology and semiconductor company that supplies programmable logic devices, and Vice Chairman of Kioxia, Inc., a manufacturer and supplier of flash memory and solid state drives, and his long experience in the technology industry allow him to provide insight to into financial, business and technology trends. Mr. Flores’s knowledge of financial and accounting matters qualifies him to serve as a member of the Audit Committee. Mr. Flores’s independence from the Fund and the Manager enhances his service as a member of the Performance Oversight Committee. | |
| Stayce D. Harris |
The Board benefits from Stayce D. Harris’s leadership and governance experience gained during her extensive military career, including as a three-star Lieutenant General of the United States Air Force. In her most recent role, Ms. Harris reported to the Secretary and Chief of Staff of the Air Force on matters concerning Air Force effectiveness, efficiency and the military discipline of active duty, Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard forces. Ms. Harris’s experience on governance matters includes oversight of inspection policy and the inspection and evaluation system for all Air Force nuclear and conventional forces; oversight of Air Force counterintelligence operations and service on the Air Force Intelligence Oversight Panel; investigation of fraud, waste and abuse; and oversight of criminal investigations and complaints resolution programs. Ms. Harris is also a director of The Boeing Company. Ms. Harris’s independence from the Fund and the Manager enhances her service as a member of the Compliance Committee and the Performance Oversight Committee. | |
| J. Phillip Holloman |
The Board benefits from J. Phillip Holloman’s many years of business and leadership experience as an executive, director and advisory board member of various public and private companies. In particular, Mr. Holloman’s service as President and Chief Operating Officer of Cintas Corporation and director of PulteGroup, Inc. and Rockwell Automation Inc. allows him to provide insight into business trends and conditions. Mr. Holloman’s knowledge of financial and accounting matters qualifies him to serve as a member of the Audit Committee. Mr. Holloman’s independence from the Fund and the Manager enhances his service as a member of the Governance and Nominating Committee and the Performance Oversight Committee. | |
| Catherine A. Lynch |
Catherine A. Lynch, who served as the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of the National Railroad Retirement Investment Trust, benefits the Board by providing business leadership and experience and a diverse knowledge of pensions and endowments. Ms. Lynch is also a trustee of PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust, a specialty finance company that invests primarily in mortgage-related assets. Ms. Lynch also holds the designation of Chartered Financial Analyst. Ms. Lynch’s knowledge of financial and accounting matters qualifies her to serve as Chair of the Audit Committee. Ms. Lynch’s independence from the Fund and the Advisor enhances her service as the Chair of the Securities Lending Committee, and a member of the Governance and Nominating Committee and the Performance Oversight Committee. | |
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| Directors |
Experience, Qualifications and Skills | |
| Arthur P. Steinmetz |
The Board benefits from Arthur P. Steinmetz’s many years of business and leadership experience as an executive, chairman and director of various companies in the financial industry. Mr. Steinmetz’s service as Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of the OppenheimerFunds, Inc. and as Trustee, President and Principal Executive Officer of certain OppenheimerFunds funds provides insight into the asset management industry. He has also served as a Director of ScotiaBank (U.S.). Mr. Steinmetz’s knowledge of financial and accounting matters qualifies him to serve as a member of the Audit Committee. Mr. Steinmetz’s independence from the Fund and the Manager enhances his service as Chair of the Performance Oversight Committee. | |
| Interested Directors |
||
| Robert Fairbairn |
Robert Fairbairn has more than 25 years of experience with BlackRock, Inc. and over 30 years of experience in finance and asset management. In particular, Mr. Fairbairn’s positions as Vice Chairman of BlackRock, Inc., Member of BlackRock’s Global Executive and Global Operating Committees and Co-Chair of BlackRock’s Human Capital Committee provide the Board with a wealth of practical business knowledge and leadership. In addition, Mr. Fairbairn has global investment management and oversight experience through his former positions as Global Head of BlackRock’s Retail and iShares® businesses, Head of BlackRock’s Global Client Group, Chairman of BlackRock’s international businesses and his previous oversight over BlackRock’s Strategic Partner Program and Strategic Product Management Group. Mr. Fairbairn also serves as a board member for the funds in the BlackRock Multi-Asset Complex. | |
| John M. Perlowski |
John M. Perlowski’s experience as Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2009, as the Head of BlackRock Global Accounting and Product Services since 2009, and as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Fund provides him with a strong understanding of the Fund, its operations, and the business and regulatory issues facing the Fund. Mr. Perlowski’s prior position as Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of the Global Product Group at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, and his former service as Treasurer and Senior Vice President of the Goldman Sachs Mutual Funds and as Director of the Goldman Sachs Offshore Funds provides the Board with the benefit of his experience with the management practices of other financial companies. Mr. Perlowski also serves as a board member for the funds in the BlackRock Multi-Asset Complex. Mr. Perlowski’s experience with BlackRock enhances his service as a member of the Executive Committee. | |
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Biographical Information
Certain biographical and other information relating to the Directors is set forth below, including their address and year of birth, principal occupations for at least the last five years, length of time served, total number of registered investment companies and investment portfolios overseen in the BlackRock-advised funds and any currently held public company and other investment company directorships.
| Name and |
Position(s) |
Principal Occupation(s) |
Number of |
Public | ||||
| Independent Directors |
||||||||
| R. Glenn Hubbard
1958 |
Chair of the Board (Since 2022) and Director (Since 2007) |
Dean, Columbia Business School from 2004 to 2019; Faculty member, Columbia Business School since 1988. | 66 RICs consisting of 103 Portfolios | ADP (data and information services) from 2004 to 2020; Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (insurance); TotalEnergies SE (multi-energy) | ||||
| W. Carl Kester4
1951 |
Vice Chair of the Board (Since 2022) and Director (Since 2007) | Baker Foundation Professor and George Fisher Baker Jr. Professor of Business Administration, Emeritus, Harvard Business School since 2022; George Fisher Baker Jr. Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School from 2008 to 2022; Deputy Dean for Academic Affairs from 2006 to 2010; Chairman of the Finance Unit, from 2005 to 2006; Senior Associate Dean and Chairman of the MBA Program from 1999 to 2005; Member of the faculty of Harvard Business School since 1981. | 68 RICs consisting of 105 Portfolios | None | ||||
| Cynthia L. Egan4
1955 |
Director (Since 2016) | Advisor, U.S. Department of the Treasury from 2014 to 2015; President, Retirement Plan Services, for T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. from 2007 to 2012; executive positions within Fidelity Investments from 1989 to 2007. | 68 RICs consisting of 105 Portfolios | Unum (insurance); The Hanover Insurance Group (Board Chair); Huntsman Corporation (Lead Independent Director and non-Executive Vice Chair of the Board) (chemical products) | ||||
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| Name and |
Position(s) |
Principal Occupation(s) |
Number of |
Public | ||||
| Lorenzo A. Flores
1964 |
Director (Since 2021) | Chief Financial Officer, Lattice Semiconductor Corporation (LSCC) since 2025; Chief Financial Officer, Intel Foundry from 2024 to 2025; Vice Chairman, Kioxia, Inc. from 2019 to 2024; Chief Financial Officer, Xilinx, Inc. from 2016 to 2019; Corporate Controller, Xilinx, Inc. from 2008 to 2016. | 66 RICs consisting of 103 Portfolios | None | ||||
| Stayce D. Harris
1959 |
Director (Since 2021) | Lieutenant General, Inspector General of the United States Air Force from 2017 to 2019; Lieutenant General, Assistant Vice Chief of Staff and Director, Air Staff, United States Air Force from 2016 to 2017; Major General, Commander, 22nd Air Force, AFRC, Dobbins Air Reserve Base, Georgia from 2014 to 2016; Pilot, United Airlines from 1990 to 2020. | 66 RICs consisting of 103 Portfolios | KULR Technology Group, Inc. in 2021; The Boeing Company (airplane manufacturer) | ||||
| J. Phillip Holloman
1955 |
Director (Since 2021) | Executive Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Vestis Corporation since 2025; President and Chief Operating Officer, Cintas Corporation from 2008 to 2018. | 66 RICs consisting of 103 Portfolios | PulteGroup, Inc. (home construction); Vestis Corporation (uniforms and facilities services | ||||
| Catherine A. Lynch4
1961 |
Director (Since 2016) | Advisory Committee Member, Rocade Capital Fund V since 2025; Chief Executive Officer, Chief Investment Officer and various other positions, National Railroad Retirement Investment Trust from 2003 to 2016; Associate Vice President for Treasury Management, The George Washington University from 1999 to 2003; Assistant Treasurer, Episcopal Church of America from 1995 to 1999. | 68 RICs consisting of 105 Portfolios | PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust | ||||
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| Name and |
Position(s) |
Principal Occupation(s) |
Number of |
Public | ||||
| Arthur P. Steinmetz4
1958 |
Director (Since 2023) | Trustee of Denison University since 2020; Consultant, Posit PBC (enterprise data science) since 2020; Director, ScotiaBank (U.S.) from 2020 to 2023; Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of OppenheimerFunds, Inc. from 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively to 2019); Trustee, President and Principal Executive Officer of 104 OppenheimerFunds funds from 2014 to 2019. Portfolio manager of various OppenheimerFunds fixed income mutual funds from 1986 to 2014. | 68 RICs consisting of 105 Portfolios | Trustee of 104 OppenheimerFunds funds from 2014 to 2019 | ||||
| Interested Directors5 |
||||||||
| Robert Fairbairn
1965 |
Director (Since 2018) | Vice Chairman of BlackRock, Inc. since 2019; Member of BlackRock’s Global Executive and Global Operating Committees; Co-Chair of BlackRock’s Human Capital Committee; Senior Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. from 2010 to 2019; oversaw BlackRock’s Strategic Partner Program and Strategic Product Management Group from 2012 to 2019; Member of the Board of Managers of BlackRock Investments, LLC from 2011 to 2018; Global Head of BlackRock’s Retail and iShares® businesses from 2012 to 2016. | 94 RICs consisting of 271 Portfolios | None | ||||
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| Name and |
Position(s) |
Principal Occupation(s) |
Number of |
Public | ||||
| John M. Perlowski4
1964 |
Director (Since 2015) President and Chief Executive Officer (Since 2020) | Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2009; Head of BlackRock Global Accounting and Product Services since 2009; Advisory Director of Family Resource Network (charitable foundation) since 2009. | 96 RICs consisting of 273 Portfolios | None | ||||
| 1 | The address of each Director is c/o BlackRock, Inc., 50 Hudson Yards, New York, New York 10001. |
| 2 | Each Independent Director holds office until his or her successor is duly elected and qualifies or until his or her earlier death, resignation, retirement or removal as provided by the Fund’s by-laws or charter or statute, or until December 31 of the year in which he or she turns 75. Directors who are “interested persons,” as defined in the Investment Company Act, serve until their successor is duly elected and qualifies or until their earlier death, resignation, retirement or removal as provided by the Fund’s by-laws or statute, or until December 31 of the year in which they turn 72. The Board may determine to extend the terms of Independent Directors on a case-by-case basis, as appropriate. |
| 3 | Following the combination of Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, L.P. (“MLIM”) and BlackRock, Inc. in September 2006, the various legacy MLIM and legacy BlackRock fund boards were realigned and consolidated into three new fund boards in 2007. Certain Independent Directors first became members of the boards of other legacy MLIM or legacy BlackRock funds as follows: R. Glenn Hubbard, 2004 and W. Carl Kester, 1995. Certain other Independent Directors became members of the boards of the closed-end funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex as follows: Cynthia L. Egan, 2016; and Catherine A. Lynch, 2016. |
| 4 | Ms. Egan, Dr. Kester, Ms. Lynch, Mr. Steinmetz and Mr. Perlowski are also trustees of the BlackRock Credit Strategies Fund and BlackRock Private Investments Fund. |
| 5 | Mr. Fairbairn and Mr. Perlowski are both “interested persons,” as defined in the Investment Company Act, of the Fund based on their positions with BlackRock, Inc. and its affiliates. Mr. Fairbairn and Mr. Perlowski are also board members of the BlackRock Multi-Asset Complex. |
Certain biographical and other information relating to the officers of the Fund who are not Directors is set forth below, including their address and year of birth, principal occupations for at least the last five years and length of time served. With the exception of the CCO, executive officers receive no compensation from the Fund. The Fund compensates the CCO for his services as its CCO.
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Each executive officer is an “interested person” of the Fund (as defined in the Investment Company Act) by virtue of that individual’s position with BlackRock or its affiliates described in the table below.
| Name and |
Position(s) |
Principal Occupation(s) During Past Five Years | ||
| Officers Who Are Not Directors |
||||
| Jonathan Diorio
1980 |
Vice President (Since 2015) | Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2015. | ||
| Trent Walker
1974 |
Chief Financial Officer (Since 2021) | Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2019; Executive Vice President of PIMCO from 2016 to 2019 | ||
| Jay M. Fife
1970 |
Treasurer (Since 2007) | Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2007. | ||
| Aaron Wasserman
1974 |
Chief Compliance Officer (Since 2023) | Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2018; Chief Compliance Officer of the BlackRock-advised funds in the BlackRock Multi-Asset Complex, the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex and the iShares Complex since 2023; Deputy Chief Compliance Officer for the BlackRock-advised funds in the BlackRock Multi-Asset Complex, the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex and the iShares Complex from 2014 to 2023. | ||
| Lisa Belle
1968 |
Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Officer (Since 2024) | Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2019; Global Financial Crime Head for Asset and Wealth Management of JP Morgan from 2013 to 2019. | ||
| Janey Ahn
1975 |
Secretary (Since 2012) | Managing Director of BlackRock, Inc. since 2018. | ||
| 1 | The address of each Officer is c/o BlackRock, Inc., 50 Hudson Yards, New York, New York 10001. |
| 2 | Officers of the Fund serve at the pleasure of the Board. |
Share Ownership
Information relating to each Director’s share ownership in the Fund and in all BlackRock-advised funds that are currently overseen by the respective Director (“Supervised Funds”) as of December 31, 2024 is set forth in the chart below. Amounts shown may include shares as to which a Director has indirect beneficial ownership,
S-29
such as through participation in certain family accounts, 529 college savings plan interests, or similar arrangements where the Director has beneficial economic interest but not a direct ownership interest.
| Name |
Dollar Range of Equity Securities in the Fund |
Aggregate Dollar Range of Equity Securities in Supervised Funds* |
||||||
| Independent Directors: |
||||||||
| Cynthia L. Egan |
None | Over $ | 100,000 | |||||
| Lorenzo A. Flores |
None | Over $ | 100,000 | |||||
| Stayce D. Harris |
None | Over $ | 100,000 | |||||
| J. Phillip Holloman |
None | Over $ | 100,000 | |||||
| R. Glenn Hubbard |
None | Over $ | 100,000 | |||||
| W. Carl Kester |
None | Over $ | 100,000 | |||||
| Catherine A. Lynch |
None | Over $ | 100,000 | |||||
| Arthur P. Steinmetz |
None | Over $ | 100,000 | |||||
| Interested Directors: |
||||||||
| Robert Fairbairn |
None | Over $ | 100,000 | |||||
| John M. Perlowski |
None | Over $ | 100,000 | |||||
| * |
Includes share equivalents owned under the deferred compensation plan in the Supervised Funds by certain Independent Directors who have participated in the deferred compensation plan of the Supervised Funds. |
Independent Board Member Ownership of Securities
As of November 20, 2025, none of the Independent Directors of the Fund or their immediate family members owned beneficially or of record any securities of the Advisor or any person controlling, controlled by or under common control with the Advisor nor did any Independent Director of the Fund or their immediate family member have any material interest in any transaction, or series of similar transactions, during the most recently completed two calendar years involving the Fund, the Advisor or any affiliate of the Advisor controlling, controlled by or under common control with the Fund or the Advisor.
As of November 20, 2025, the officers and Directors of the Fund, as a group, directly or indirectly beneficially owned less than 1% of the outstanding Shares of the Fund.
Compensation of Directors
Effective January 1, 2024, each Independent Director is paid an annual retainer of $370,000 per year for his or her services as a Board member of the BlackRock-advised Funds, including the Fund, together with out-of-pocket expenses in accordance with a Board policy on travel and other business expenses relating to attendance at meetings. In addition, the Chair of the Board and the Vice Chair of the Board are paid an additional annual retainer of $140,000 and $84,000, respectively. The Chairs of the Audit Committee, Performance Oversight Committee, Compliance Committee, Governance and Nominating Committee, and Securities Lending Committee are paid an additional annual retainer of $55,000, $42,500, $50,000, $42,500, and $20,000, respectively. Each of the other members of the Audit Committee, Compliance Committee, Governance and Nominating Committee, and Securities Lending Committee are paid an additional annual retainer of $30,000, $25,000, $25,000 and $15,000, respectively, for his or her service on such committee. An Independent Director may receive additional compensation for his or her service as a member or Chair, as applicable, of one or more ad hoc committees of the Board. The Fund will pay a pro rata portion quarterly (based on relative net assets) of the foregoing Director fees paid by the funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex.
The Independent Directors have agreed that a maximum of 50% of each Independent Director’s total compensation paid by funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex may be deferred pursuant to the
S-30
BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex’s deferred compensation plan. Under the deferred compensation plan, deferred amounts earn a return for the Independent Directors as though equivalent dollar amounts had been invested in shares of certain funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex selected by the Independent Directors. This has approximately the same economic effect for the Independent Directors as if they had invested the deferred amounts in such funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex. The deferred compensation plan is not funded and obligations thereunder represent general unsecured claims against the general assets of a fund and are recorded as a liability for accounting purposes.
Prior to January 1, 2024, the Chair of the Board and the Vice Chair of the Board were paid an additional annual retainer of $100,000 and $60,000, respectively. The Chairs of the Audit Committee, Performance Oversight Committee, Compliance Committee, and Governance and Nominating Committee were paid an additional annual retainer of $45,000, $37,500, $45,000 and $37,500, respectively.
The following table sets forth the compensation paid to the Directors by the Fund for the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, and the aggregate compensation, including deferred compensation amounts, paid to them by all BlackRock-advised Funds for the calendar year ended December 31, 2024. Messrs. Fairbairn and Perlowski serve without compensation from the Fund because of their affiliation with BlackRock, Inc. and the Advisor.
| Name1 |
Compensation from the Fund |
Estimated Annual Benefits upon Retirement |
Aggregate Compensation from the Fund and Other BlackRock-advised Funds2,3 |
|||||||||
| Independent Directors: |
||||||||||||
| Cynthia L. Egan |
$ | 5,140 | None | $ | 655,000 | |||||||
| Lorenzo A. Flores |
$ | 4,105 | None | $ | 420,000 | |||||||
| Stayce D. Harris |
$ | 3,861 | None | $ | 395,000 | |||||||
| J. Phillip Holloman |
$ | 4,153 | None | $ | 425,000 | |||||||
| R. Glenn Hubbard |
$ | 5,666 | None | $ | 600,000 | |||||||
| W. Carl Kester |
$ | 5,887 | None | $ | 746,500 | |||||||
| Catherine A. Lynch |
$ | 5,338 | None | $ | 695,000 | |||||||
| Arthur P. Steinmetz4 |
$ | 4,531 | None | $ | 534,206 | |||||||
| Interested Directors: |
||||||||||||
| Robert Fairbairn |
None | None | None | |||||||||
| John M. Perlowski |
None | None | None | |||||||||
| 1 |
For the number of BlackRock-advised Funds from which each Director receives compensation, see the Biographical Information Chart beginning on page S-25. |
| 2 |
For the Independent Directors, this amount represents the aggregate compensation earned from the funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex during the calendar year ended December 31, 2024. Of this amount, Mr. Flores, Ms. Harris, Mr. Holloman, Dr. Hubbard, Dr. Kester, Ms. Lynch and Mr. Steinmetz deferred $210,000, $197,500, $212,500, $300,000, $58,641, $34750 and $266,957, respectively, pursuant to the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex’s deferred compensation plan. |
| 3 |
Total amount of deferred compensation payable by the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex to Mr. Flores, Ms. Harris, Mr. Holloman, Dr. Hubbard, Dr. Kester, Ms. Lynch, and Mr. Steinmetz is $743,845, $726,494, $773,663, $5,010,835, $2,155,608, $631,953 and $278,737 respectively, as of December 31, 2024. Ms. Egan did not participate in the deferred compensation plan as of December 31, 2024. |
| 4 |
Mr. Steinmetz was elected as a Trustee of the Fund effective November 9, 2023, appointed as a member and Chair of the Performance Oversight Committee effective January 1, 2024 and January 19, 2024, respectively, and appointed as a member of the Audit Committee effective January 19, 2024. |
S-31
Indemnification of Directors and Officers
The governing documents of the Fund generally provide that, to the extent permitted by applicable law, the Fund will indemnify its Directors and officers against liabilities and expenses incurred in connection with litigation in which they may be involved because of their offices with the Fund unless they engaged in willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in their offices. In addition, the Fund will not indemnify Directors with respect to any matter as to which Directors did not act in good faith in the reasonable belief that his or her action was in the best interest of the Fund or, in the case of any criminal proceeding, as to which Directors had reasonable cause to believe that the conduct was unlawful. Indemnification provisions contained in the Fund’s governing documents are subject to any limitations imposed by applicable law.
Closed-end funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex, including the Fund, have also entered into a separate indemnification agreement with the board members of each board of such funds (the “Indemnification Agreement”). The Indemnification Agreement (i) extends the indemnification provisions contained in a fund’s governing documents to board members who leave that fund’s board and serve on an advisory board of a different closed-end fund in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex; (ii) sets in place the terms of the indemnification provisions of a fund’s governing documents once a board member retires from a board; and (iii) in the case of board members who left the board of a fund in connection with or prior to the board consolidation that occurred in 2007 as a result of the merger of BlackRock and Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc.’s investment management business, clarifies that such fund continues to indemnify the director for claims arising out of his or her past service to that fund.
Portfolio Management
Portfolio Manager Assets Under Management
The following table sets forth information about funds and accounts other than the Fund for which the portfolio manager is primarily responsible for the day-to-day portfolio management as of July 31, 2025 unless otherwise indicated:
| (ii) Number of Other Accounts Managed and Assets by Account Type |
(iii) Number of Other Accounts and Assets for Which Advisory Fee is Performance-Based | |||||||||||
| (i) Name of Portfolio Manager |
Other Registered Investment Companies |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles |
Other Accounts |
Other Registered Investment Companies |
Other Pooled Investment Vehicles |
Other Accounts | ||||||
| Patrick Haskell1 |
2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| $2.18 Billion | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||||||
| Ryan McDonald, CFA |
6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| $9.37 Billion | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||||||
| Walter O’Connor, CFA1 |
33 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| $28.30 Billion | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||||||
| Kevin Maloney, CFA |
42 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| $39.14 Billion | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||||||
| Philip Soccio, CFA |
34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| $24.81 Billion | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||||||
| 1 |
On or about March 17, 2026, Walter O’Connor, CFA, will no longer serve as a portfolio manager of the Fund. |
S-32
Portfolio Manager Compensation Overview
The discussion below describes the portfolio managers’ compensation as of July 31, 2025.
BlackRock’s financial arrangements with its portfolio managers, its competitive compensation and its career path emphasis at all levels reflect the value senior management places on key resources. Compensation may include a variety of components and may vary from year to year based on a number of factors. The principal components of compensation include a base salary, a performance-based discretionary bonus, participation in various benefits programs and one or more of the incentive compensation programs established by BlackRock.
Base Compensation. Generally, portfolio managers receive base compensation based on their position with the firm.
Discretionary Incentive Compensation. Discretionary incentive compensation is a function of several components: the performance of BlackRock, Inc., the performance of the portfolio manager’s group within BlackRock, the investment performance, including risk-adjusted returns, of the firm’s assets under management or supervision by that portfolio manager relative to predetermined benchmarks, and the individual’s performance and contribution to the overall performance of these portfolios and BlackRock. In most cases, these benchmarks are the same as the benchmark or benchmarks against which the performance of the Funds or other accounts managed by the portfolio managers are measured. Among other things, BlackRock’s Chief Investment Officers make a subjective determination with respect to each portfolio manager’s compensation based on the performance of the Funds and other accounts managed by each portfolio manager relative to the various benchmarks. Performance of fixed income funds is measured on a pre-tax and/or after-tax basis over various time periods including 1-, 3- and 5- year periods, as applicable. With respect to these portfolio managers, the benchmark for the Fund and other accounts is : A combination of market-based indices (e.g., Bloomberg Municipal Bond Index), certain customized indices and certain fund industry peer groups.
Distribution of Discretionary Incentive Compensation. Discretionary incentive compensation is distributed to portfolio managers in a combination of cash, deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock awards, and/or deferred cash awards that notionally track the return of certain BlackRock investment products.
Portfolio managers receive their annual discretionary incentive compensation in the form of cash. Portfolio managers whose total compensation is above a specified threshold also receive deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock awards annually as part of their discretionary incentive compensation. Paying a portion of discretionary incentive compensation in the form of deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock puts compensation earned by a portfolio manager for a given year “at risk” based on BlackRock’s ability to sustain and improve its performance over future periods. In some cases, additional deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock may be granted to certain key employees as part of a long-term incentive award to aid in retention, align interests with long-term shareholders and motivate performance. Deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock awards are generally granted in the form of BlackRock, Inc. restricted stock units that vest pursuant to the terms of the applicable plan and, once vested, settle in BlackRock, Inc. common stock. The portfolio managers of this Fund have deferred BlackRock, Inc. stock awards.
For certain portfolio managers, a portion of the discretionary incentive compensation is also distributed in the form of deferred cash awards that notionally track the returns of select BlackRock investment products they manage, which provides direct alignment of portfolio manager discretionary incentive compensation with investment product results. Deferred cash awards vest ratably over a number of years and, once vested, settle in the form of cash. Only portfolio managers who manage specified products and whose total compensation is above a specified threshold are eligible to participate in the deferred cash award program.
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Other Compensation Benefits. In addition to base salary and discretionary incentive compensation, portfolio managers may be eligible to receive or participate in one or more of the following:
Incentive Savings Plans—BlackRock, Inc. has created a variety of incentive savings plans in which BlackRock, Inc. employees are eligible to participate, including a 401(k) plan, the BlackRock Retirement Savings Plan (RSP), and the BlackRock Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP). The employer contribution components of the RSP include a company match equal to 50% of the first 8% of eligible pay contributed to the plan capped at $5,000 per year, and a company retirement contribution equal to 3-5% of eligible compensation up to the Internal Revenue Service limit ($350,000 for 2025). The RSP offers a range of investment options, including registered investment companies and collective investment funds managed by the firm. BlackRock, Inc. contributions follow the investment direction set by participants for their own contributions or, absent participant investment direction, are invested into a target date fund that corresponds to, or is closest to, the year in which the participant attains age 65. The ESPP allows for investment in BlackRock, Inc. common stock at a 5% discount on the fair market value of the stock on the purchase date. Annual participation in the ESPP is limited to the purchase of 1,000 shares of common stock or a dollar value of $25,000 based on its fair market value on the purchase date. All of the eligible portfolio managers are eligible to participate in these plans.
Securities Ownership of the Portfolio Managers
As of July 31, 2025, the end of the Fund’s most recently completed fiscal year, the dollar range of securities beneficially owned by each portfolio manager in the Fund is shown below.
| Portfolio Manager |
Dollar Range of Equity Securities of the Fund Beneficially Owned | |
| Patrick Haskell1 |
None | |
| Ryan McDonald, CFA |
None | |
| Walter O’Connor, CFA1 |
None | |
| Kevin Maloney, CFA |
None | |
| Phillip Soccio, CFA |
None |
| 1 |
On or about March 17, 2026, Walter O’Connor, CFA, will no longer serve as a portfolio manager of the Fund. |
Portfolio Manager Potential Material Conflicts of Interest
BlackRock has built a professional working environment, firm-wide compliance culture and compliance procedures and systems designed to protect against potential incentives that may favor one account over another. BlackRock has adopted policies and procedures that address the allocation of investment opportunities, execution of portfolio transactions, personal trading by employees and other potential conflicts of interest that are designed to ensure that all client accounts are treated equitably over time. Nevertheless, BlackRock furnishes investment management and advisory services to numerous clients in addition to the Fund, and BlackRock may, consistent with applicable law, make investment recommendations to other clients or accounts (including accounts which are hedge funds or have performance or higher fees paid to BlackRock, or in which portfolio managers have a personal interest in the receipt of such fees), which may be the same as or different from those made to the Fund. In addition, BlackRock, Inc., its affiliates and significant shareholders and any officer, director, shareholder or employee may or may not have an interest in the securities whose purchase and sale BlackRock recommends to the Fund. BlackRock, Inc. or any of its affiliates or significant shareholders, or any officer, director, shareholder, employee or any member of their families may take different actions than those recommended to the Fund by BlackRock with respect to the same securities. Moreover, BlackRock may refrain from rendering any advice or services concerning securities of companies of which any of BlackRock, Inc.’s (or its affiliates’ or significant shareholders’) officers, directors or employees are directors or officers, or companies as to which BlackRock, Inc. or any of its affiliates or significant shareholders or the officers, directors and employees of any of them has any substantial economic interest or possesses material non-public information. Certain portfolio managers also
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may manage accounts whose investment strategies may at times be opposed to the strategy utilized for a fund. It should also be noted that a portfolio manager may be managing hedge fund and/or long only accounts, or may be part of a team managing hedge fund and/or long only accounts, subject to incentive fees. Such portfolio managers may therefore be entitled to receive a portion of any incentive fees earned on such accounts. Currently, the portfolio managers of this fund are not entitled to receive a portion of incentive fees of other accounts.
As a fiduciary, BlackRock owes a duty of loyalty to its clients and must treat each client fairly. When BlackRock purchases or sells securities for more than one account, the trades must be allocated in a manner consistent with its fiduciary duties. BlackRock attempts to allocate investments in a fair and equitable manner among client accounts, with no account receiving preferential treatment. To this end, BlackRock, Inc. has adopted policies that are intended to ensure reasonable efficiency in client transactions and provide BlackRock with sufficient flexibility to allocate investments in a manner that is consistent with the particular investment discipline and client base, as appropriate.
Proxy Voting Policies
The Board of each Fund has delegated the voting of proxies for the Fund’s securities to the Advisor pursuant to the Closed-End Fund Proxy Voting Policy. The Advisor has adopted the BlackRock Active Investment Stewardship—Global Engagement and Voting Guidelines (the “BAIS Guidelines”) with respect to certain funds, including the Fund.
Copies of the Closed-End Fund Proxy Voting Policy and the BAIS Guidelines are attached as Appendix B to this SAI.
Information on how each Fund voted proxies relating to portfolio securities during the most recent 12-month period ended June 30 is available (i) without charge, upon request, by calling (800) 882-0052, (ii) at www.blackrock.com and (iii) on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov.Codes of Ethics
The Fund and the Advisor have adopted a code of ethics (the “Code of Ethics”) in compliance with Section 17(j) of the Investment Company Act and Rule 17j-1 thereunder. Each Code of Ethics establishes procedures for personal investing and restricts certain transactions. Employees subject to a Code of Ethics may invest in securities for their personal investment accounts, including making investments in securities that may be purchased or held by the Fund. The Codes of Ethics are available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.
Copies of the Codes of Ethics may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following e-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov.
Other Information
BlackRock is independent in ownership and governance, with no single majority stockholder and a majority of independent directors.
DISTRIBUTION OF FUND SHARES
BlackRock Investments, LLC, located at 50 Hudson Yards, New York, NY 10001, acts as the distributor of the Fund’s Shares, pursuant to the Distribution Agreement, on a reasonable best efforts basis, subject to various conditions.
The Distribution Agreement will continue in effect with respect to the Fund for successive one-year periods, provided that each such continuance is specifically approved: (i) by the vote of a majority of the Directors who are not interested persons of the Fund (as defined in the Investment Company Act) and who have no direct or
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indirect financial interest in the Distribution Agreement or the Investment Management Agreement; and (ii) by the vote of a majority of the entire Board cast in person at a meeting called for that purpose.
Under the terms of the Multi-Class Exemptive Relief, the Fund is subject to Rule 18f-3 under the Investment Company Act. The Fund has adopted a Multi-Class Plan pursuant to Rule 18f-3 under the Investment Company Act. Under the Multi-Class Plan, Shares of each class of the Fund represent an equal pro rata interest in the Fund and, generally, have identical voting, dividend, liquidation, and other rights, preferences, powers, restrictions, limitations, qualifications and terms and conditions, except that: (a) each class has a different designation; (b) each class of shares bears any class-specific expenses; and (c) each class shall have separate voting rights on any matter submitted to shareholders in which the interests of one class differ from the interests of any other class, and shall have exclusive voting rights on any matter submitted to shareholders that relates solely to that class.
Distribution and Servicing Plan
Under the terms of the Multi-Class Exemptive Relief, the Fund is subject to Rule 12b-1 under the Investment Company Act. The Fund has adopted the Distribution and Servicing Plan and intends to pay the Distribution and Servicing Fee under such plan. The Distribution and Servicing Plan operates in a manner consistent with Rule 12b-1 under the Investment Company Act, which regulates the manner in which an open-end investment company may directly or indirectly bear the expenses of distributing its shares. The Distribution and Servicing Plan permits the Fund to compensate the Distributor for providing or procuring through financial firms, distribution, administrative, recordkeeping, shareholder and/or related services with respect to the Class A Shares and Class U Shares. Most or all of the distribution and/or service fees are paid to financial firms through which shareholders may purchase or hold Class A Shares and Class U Shares. Because these fees are paid out of the Fund’s assets attributable to Class A Shares and Class U Shares on an ongoing basis, over time they will increase the cost of an investment in Class A Shares and Class U Shares, including causing the Class A Shares and Class U Shares to have a higher expense ratio, pay lower dividends and have a lower total return than Institutional Shares.
The maximum annual rates at which the Distribution and Servicing Fees may be paid under the Distribution and Servicing Plan (calculated as a percentage of the Fund’s average daily net assets attributable to the Class A Shares and Class U Shares) is 0.75%. 0.25% of such fee is a shareholder servicing fee and the remaining portion is a distribution fee.
The fee payable pursuant to the Distribution and Servicing Plan may be used by the Distributor to provide or procure distribution services and shareholder services in respect of Class A Shares and Class U Shares (either directly or by procuring through other entities, including various financial services firms such as broker-dealers and registered investment advisors (“Service Organizations”)). Distribution services include some or all of the following services and facilities in connection with direct purchases by shareholders or in connection with products, programs or accounts offered by such Service Organizations: (i) facilities for placing orders directly for the purchase of the Fund’s Shares; (ii) advertising with respect to Class A Shares and Class U Shares; (iii) providing information about the Fund; (iv) providing facilities to answer questions from prospective investors about the Fund; (v) receiving and answering correspondence, including requests for prospectuses and statements of additional information; (vi) preparing, printing and delivering prospectuses and shareholder reports to prospective shareholders; (vii) assisting investors in applying to purchase Class A Shares and Class U Shares and selecting dividend and other account options.
Shareholder services may include, but are not limited to, the following functions: (i) answering shareholder inquiries regarding account status and history, the manner in which purchases, exchanges and repurchases of Shares may be effected and certain other matters pertaining to the shareholders’ investments; (ii) receiving, aggregating and processing shareholder orders; (iii) furnishing shareholder sub-accounting; (iv) providing and
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maintaining elective shareholder services such as check writing and wire transfer services; (v) providing and maintaining pre-authorized investment plans; (vi) communicating periodically with shareholders; (vii) acting as the sole shareholder of record and nominee for shareholders; (viii) maintaining accounting records for shareholders; (ix) answering questions and handling correspondence from shareholders about their accounts; (x) issuing confirmations for transactions by shareholders; (xi) performing similar account administrative services; (xii) providing such shareholder communications and recordkeeping services as may be required for any program for which a Service Organization is a sponsor that relies on Rule 3a-4 under the Investment Company Act (i.e., a “wrap fee” program); and (xiii) providing such other similar services as may reasonably be requested to the extent a Service Organization is permitted to do so under applicable statutes, rules, or regulations. The distribution and/or servicing fee may be spent by the Distributor for the services rendered to holders of Class A Shares and Class U Shares as set forth above, but will generally not be spent by the Distributor on recordkeeping charges, accounting expenses, transfer costs or custodian fees.
In accordance with Rule 12b-1 under the Investment Company Act, the Distribution and Servicing Plan may not be amended to increase materially the costs which holders of Class A Shares and Class U Shares may bear under the Distribution and Servicing Plan without approval of a majority of the outstanding Class A Shares and Class U Shares, as applicable, and by vote of a majority of both: (i) the Directors of the Fund; and (ii) those Directors who are not “interested persons” of the Fund (as defined in the Investment Company Act) and who have no direct or indirect financial interest in the operation of the Distribution and Servicing Plan or any agreements related to it (the “Plan Directors”), cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on the Distribution and Servicing Plan and any related amendments. The Distribution and Servicing Plan may not take effect until approved by a vote of a majority of both: (i) the Directors of the Fund; and (ii) the Plan Directors. The Distribution and Servicing Plan shall continue in effect so long as such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by the Directors and the Plan Directors. The Distribution and Servicing Plan may be terminated at any time, without penalty, by vote of a majority of the Plan Directors or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding Class A Shares and Class U Shares, as applicable. Pursuant to the Distribution and Servicing Plan, the Board will be provided with quarterly reports of amounts expended under the Distribution and Servicing Plan and the purpose for which such expenditures were made.
FINRA rules limit the amount of distribution fees that may be paid by registered investment companies out of their assets as a percentage of total new gross sales. “Service fees,” defined to mean fees paid for providing shareholder services or the maintenance of accounts (but not transfer agency or sub-account services), are not subject to these limits on distribution fees. Some portion of the fees paid pursuant to the Distribution and Servicing Plan may qualify as “service fees” (or fees for ministerial, recordkeeping or administrative activities) and therefore will not be limited by FINRA rules which limit distribution fees as a percentage of total new gross sales. However, FINRA rules limit service fees to 0.25% of a fund’s average annual net assets.
For the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, the amount of the distribution and/or service fees paid by Class A Shares and Class U Shares to the Distributor pursuant to the Distribution and Servicing Plan was as follows:
| Class A | Class U | |
| $1,274 | $7,274 |
Additional Payments to Dealers
The Distributor may from time to time make payments and provide other incentives to Dealers as compensation for services such as providing the Fund with “shelf space” or a higher profile for the Dealers’ financial advisors and their customers, placing the Fund on the Dealers’ preferred or recommended fund list or otherwise identifying the Fund as being part of a complex to be accorded a higher degree of marketing support than complexes not making such payments, granting the Distributor access to the Dealers’ financial advisors (including through the firms’ intranet websites) in order to promote the Fund, promotions in communications with Dealers’ customers such as in the firms’ internet websites or in customer newsletters, providing assistance in training and educating the Dealers’ personnel, and furnishing marketing support and other specified services.
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The actual services provided, and any payments made for such services, may vary from firm to firm. These payments may be significant to the Dealers.
A number of factors will be considered in determining the amount of these additional payments to Dealers. On some occasions, such payments may be conditioned upon levels of sales, including the sale of a specified minimum dollar amount of the shares of the Fund and/or other funds sponsored by the Distributor together or a particular class of shares, during a specified period of time. The Distributor also may make payments to one or more Dealers based upon factors such as the amount of assets a Dealer’s clients have invested in the Fund and the quality of the Dealer’s relationship with the Distributor, the Advisor and/or their affiliates.
To the extent the additional payments described above are made, such additional payments would be made from the assets of the Distributor or an affiliate of the Distributor (and sometimes, therefore referred to as “revenue sharing”) pursuant to agreements with Dealers and would not change the price paid by investors for the purchase of Shares or the amount the Fund will receive as proceeds from such sales. These payments may be made to Dealers (as selected by the Distributor) that have sold significant amounts of Shares.
In addition to revenue sharing payments, the Distributor may also make payments to Dealers in connection with certain transaction fees (also referred to as “ticket charges”) incurred by the Dealers.
The additional payments described above may be made to a Dealer as a fixed dollar amount or may be calculated on another basis.
In addition to the payments described above, the Distributor and/or the Advisor may make payments in connection with or reimburse Dealers’ sponsorship and/or attendance at conferences, seminars or informational meetings (“event support”), provide Dealers or their personnel with occasional tickets to events or other entertainment, meals and small gifts (“other non-cash compensation”) to the extent permitted by applicable law, rules and regulations.
In addition, wholesale representatives of the Distributor and employees of the Advisor or its affiliates visit Dealers on a regular basis to educate financial advisors and other personnel about the Fund and to encourage the sale or recommendation of Fund Shares to their clients. The Distributor and/or the Advisor may also provide (or compensate consultants or other third parties to provide) other relevant training and education to a Dealer’s financial advisors and other personnel. Although the Fund may use Dealers that sell Shares to effect transactions for the Fund’s portfolio, neither the Fund nor the Advisor will consider the sale of Fund Shares as a factor when choosing Dealers to effect those transactions.
The Distributor also may make payments or reimbursements to Dealers or their affiliated companies, which may be used for the development, maintenance and availability of certain services including, but not limited to, platform education and communications, relationship management support, development to support new or changing products, trading platforms and related infrastructure/technology and/or legal risk management and regulatory compliance infrastructure in support of investment-related products, programs and services (collectively, “platform support”) or for various studies, surveys, industry data, research and access to information about, and contact information for, particular financial advisors who have sold, or may in the future sell, Shares of the Fund (i.e., “leads”). In addition, the Distributor may pay investment consultants or their affiliated companies for certain services including technology, operations, tax, or audit consulting services and may pay such firms for the Distributor’s attendance at investment forums sponsored by such firms (collectively, “consultant services”).
Payments for items including event support, platform support, leads and consultant services (but not including certain account services, discussed below), as well as revenue sharing, may be bundled and allocated among these categories in the Distributor’s discretion. The Dealers receiving such bundled payments may characterize or allocate the payments differently from the Distributor’s internal allocation.
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In addition to the payments, reimbursements and incentives described above, further amounts may be paid to Dealers for providing services with respect to shareholders holding Fund Shares in nominee or street name, including, but not limited to, the following services: providing explanations and answering inquiries regarding the Fund and their accounts; providing recordkeeping and other administrative services, including preparing record date shareholder lists for proxy solicitation; maintaining records of and facilitating shareholder purchases and redemptions; processing and mailing transaction confirmations, periodic statements, prospectuses, shareholder reports, shareholder notices and other SEC-required communications to shareholders; providing periodic statements to certain benefit plans and participants in such plans of the Fund held for the benefit of each participant in the plan; processing, collecting and posting distributions to their accounts; issuing and mailing dividend checks to shareholders who have selected cash distributions; assisting in the establishment and maintenance of shareholder accounts; providing account designations and other information; capturing and processing tax data; establishing and maintaining automatic withdrawals and automated investment plans and shareholder account registrations; providing sub-accounting services; providing recordkeeping services related to purchase and redemption transactions, including providing such information as may be necessary to assure compliance with applicable blue sky requirements; and performing similar administrative services as requested by the Advisor to the extent that the firm is permitted by applicable statute, rule or regulation to provide such information or services. The actual services provided, and the payments made for such services, vary from firm to firm.
These payments, taken together in the aggregate, may be material to Dealers relative to other compensation paid by the Fund and/or the Advisor and may be in addition to any (i) marketing support, revenue sharing or “shelf space” fees; and (ii) event support and other non-cash compensation. The additional servicing payments and set-up fees described above may vary from amounts paid to the Fund’s transfer agent for providing similar services to other accounts.
If investment advisers, distributors or affiliated persons of registered investment companies make payments and provide other incentives in differing amounts, Dealers and their financial advisors may have financial incentives for recommending a particular fund over other funds. In addition, depending on the arrangements in place at any particular time, a Dealer and its financial advisors also may have a financial incentive for recommending a particular share class, to the extent applicable, over other share classes. Because Dealers and plan recordkeepers may be paid varying amounts per class for sub-accounting and related recordkeeping services, the service requirements of which also may vary by class, this may create an additional incentive for Dealers and their financial advisors to favor one fund complex over another or one fund share class over another, to the extent applicable. You should review carefully any disclosure by the Dealers or plan recordkeepers as to their compensation.
In certain circumstances, the Distributor or its affiliates may pay or reimburse Dealers for distribution and/or shareholder services out of the Distributor’s or its affiliates’ own assets. Such activities by the Distributor or its affiliates may provide incentives to Dealers to purchase or market Shares of the Fund. Additionally, these activities may give the Distributor or its affiliates additional access to sales representatives of such Dealers, which may increase sales of Fund Shares. The payments described in this paragraph may be significant to payors and payees.
As of November 20, 2025, the Dealers listed below, and, in some cases, certain of the Dealers’ affiliates, may be receiving one or more types of additional payments discussed above. This list may change over time, and BlackRock may pay Dealers or their affiliates other types of additional payments in the future. Please contact your Dealer to determine whether it or its affiliate currently may be receiving such additional payments and to obtain further information regarding any such payments.
American Enterprise Investment Services, Inc.
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC
LPL Financial LLC
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC
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National Financial Services LLC
Pershing LLC
RBC Capital Markets
SEI Private Trust Company
UBS Financial Services Inc.
U.S. Bank, National Association
Vanguard Marketing Corporation
Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC
PORTFOLIO TRANSACTIONS AND BROKERAGE
Subject to policies established by the Board, BlackRock is primarily responsible for the execution of the Fund’s portfolio transactions and the allocation of brokerage. BlackRock does not execute transactions through any particular broker or dealer, but seeks to obtain the best net results for the Fund, taking into account such factors as price (including the applicable brokerage commission or dealer spread), size of order, difficulty of execution, operational facilities of the firm and the firm’s risk and skill in positioning blocks of securities. While BlackRock generally seeks reasonable trade execution costs, the Fund does not necessarily pay the lowest spread or commission available, and payment of the lowest commission or spread is not necessarily consistent with obtaining the best price and execution in particular transactions. Subject to applicable legal requirements, BlackRock may select a broker based partly upon brokerage or research services provided to BlackRock and its clients, including the Fund. In return for such services, BlackRock may cause the Fund to pay a higher commission than other brokers would charge if BlackRock determines in good faith that the commission is reasonable in relation to the services provided.
In selecting brokers or dealers to execute portfolio transactions, the Advisor seeks to obtain the best price and most favorable execution for the Fund, taking into account a variety of factors including: (i) the size, nature and character of the security or instrument being traded and the markets in which it is purchased or sold; (ii) the desired timing of the transaction; (iii) BlackRock’s knowledge of the expected commission rates and spreads currently available; (iv) the activity existing and expected in the market for the particular security or instrument, including any anticipated execution difficulties; (v) the full range of brokerage services provided; (vi) the broker’s or dealer’s capital; (vii) the quality of research and research services provided; (viii) the reasonableness of the commission, dealer spread or its equivalent for the specific transaction; and (ix) BlackRock’s knowledge of any actual or apparent operational problems of a broker or dealer.
Section 28(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”, and Section 28(e) thereof, “Section 28(e)”) permits an investment adviser, under certain circumstances to cause an account to pay a broker or dealer a commission for effecting a transaction that exceeds the amount another broker or dealer would have charged for effecting the same transaction in recognition of the value of brokerage and research services provided by that broker or dealer. This includes commissions paid on riskless principal transactions under certain conditions. Brokerage and research services include: (1) furnishing advice as to the value of securities, including pricing and appraisal advice, credit analysis, risk measurement analysis, performance and other analysis, as well as the advisability of investing in, purchasing or selling securities, and the availability of securities or purchasers or sellers of securities; (2) furnishing analyses and reports concerning issuers, industries, securities, economic factors and trends, portfolio strategy, and the performance of accounts; and (3) effecting securities transactions and performing functions incidental to securities transactions (such as clearance, settlement, and custody). BlackRock believes that access to independent investment research is beneficial to its investment decision-making processes and, therefore, to the Fund.
BlackRock may participate in client commission arrangements under which BlackRock may execute transactions through a broker-dealer and request that the broker-dealer allocate a portion of the commissions or commission credits to another firm that provides research to BlackRock. BlackRock believes that research
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services obtained through soft dollar or commission sharing arrangements enhance its investment decision-making capabilities, thereby increasing the prospects for higher investment returns. BlackRock will engage only in soft dollar or commission sharing transactions that comply with the requirements of Section 28(e). BlackRock regularly evaluates the soft dollar products and services utilized, as well as the overall soft dollar and commission sharing arrangements to ensure that trades are executed by firms that are regarded as best able to execute trades for client accounts, while at the same time providing access to the research and other services BlackRock views as impactful to its trading results.
BlackRock may utilize soft dollars and related services, including research (whether prepared by the broker-dealer or prepared by a third-party and provided to BlackRock by the broker-dealer) and execution or brokerage services within applicable rules and BlackRock’s policies to the extent that such permitted services do not compromise BlackRock’s ability to seek to obtain best execution. In this regard, the portfolio management investment and/or trading teams may consider a variety of factors, including the degree to which the broker-dealer: (a) provides access to company management; (b) provides access to their analysts; (c) provides meaningful/insightful research notes on companies or other potential investments; (d) facilitates calls on which meaningful or insightful ideas about companies or potential investments are discussed; (e) facilitates conferences at which meaningful or insightful ideas about companies or potential investments are discussed; or (f) provides research tools such as market data, financial analysis, and other third party related research and brokerage tools that aid in the investment process.
Research-oriented services for which BlackRock, might pay with fund commissions may be in written form or through direct contact with individuals and may include information as to particular companies or industries and securities or groups of securities, as well as market, economic, or institutional advice and statistical information, political developments and technical market information that assists in the valuation of investments. Except as noted immediately below, research services furnished by brokers may be used in servicing some or all client accounts and not all services may be used in connection with the Fund or account that paid commissions to the broker providing such services. In some cases, research information received from brokers by investment company management personnel, or personnel principally responsible for BlackRock’s individually managed portfolios, is not necessarily shared by and between such personnel. Any investment advisory or other fees paid by the Fund to BlackRock are not reduced as a result of BlackRock’s receipt of research services. In some cases, BlackRock may receive a service from a broker that has both a “research” and a “non-research” use. When this occurs BlackRock makes a good faith allocation, under all the circumstances, between the research and non-research uses of the service. The percentage of the service that is used for research purposes may be paid for with client commissions, while BlackRock will use its own funds to pay for the percentage of the service that is used for non-research purposes. In making this good faith allocation, BlackRock faces a potential conflict of interest, but BlackRock believes that its allocation procedures are reasonably designed to ensure that it appropriately allocates the anticipated use of such services to their research and non-research uses.
Payments of commissions to brokers who are affiliated persons of the Fund will be made in accordance with Rule 17e-1 under the Investment Company Act.
From time to time, the Fund may purchase new issues of securities in a fixed price offering. In these situations, the broker may be a member of the selling group that will, in addition to selling securities, provide BlackRock with research services. FINRA has adopted rules expressly permitting these types of arrangements under certain circumstances. Generally, the broker will provide research “credits” in these situations at a rate that is higher than that available for typical secondary market transactions. These arrangements may not fall within the safe harbor of Section 28(e).
BlackRock does not consider sales of shares of the investment companies it advises as a factor in the selection of brokers or dealers to execute portfolio transactions for the Fund; however, whether or not a particular broker or dealer sells shares of the investment companies advised by BlackRock neither qualifies nor disqualifies such broker or dealer to execute transactions for those investment companies.
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The Fund anticipates that its brokerage transactions involving foreign securities generally will be conducted primarily on the principal stock exchanges of the applicable country. Foreign equity securities may be held by the Fund in the form of depositary receipts, or other securities convertible into foreign equity securities. Depositary receipts may be listed on stock exchanges, or traded in OTC markets in the United States or Europe, as the case may be. American Depositary Receipts, like other securities traded in the United States, will be subject to negotiated commission rates.
The Fund may invest in certain securities traded in the OTC market and intends to deal directly with the dealers who make a market in the particular securities, except in those circumstances in which better prices and execution are available elsewhere. Under the Investment Company Act, persons affiliated with the Fund and persons who are affiliated with such affiliated persons are prohibited from dealing with the Fund as principal in the purchase and sale of securities unless a permissive order allowing such transactions is obtained from the SEC. Since transactions in the OTC market usually involve transactions with the dealers acting as principal for their own accounts, the Fund will not deal with affiliated persons in connection with such transactions. However, an affiliated person of the Fund may serve as its broker in OTC transactions conducted on an agency basis provided that, among other things, the fee or commission received by such affiliated broker is reasonable and fair compared to the fee or commission received by non-affiliated brokers in connection with comparable transactions.
OTC issues, including most fixed-income securities such as corporate debt and U.S. Government securities, are normally traded on a “net” basis without a stated commission, through dealers acting for their own account and not as brokers. The Fund will primarily engage in transactions with these dealers or deal directly with the issuer unless a better price or execution could be obtained by using a broker. Prices paid to a dealer with respect to both foreign and domestic securities will generally include a “spread,” which is the difference between the prices at which the dealer is willing to purchase and sell the specific security at the time, and includes the dealer’s normal profit.
Purchases of money market instruments by the Fund are made from dealers, underwriters and issuers. The Fund does not currently expect to incur any brokerage commission expense on such transactions because money market instruments are generally traded on a “net” basis with dealers acting as principal for their own accounts without a stated commission. The price of the security, however, usually includes a profit to the dealer.
Securities purchased in underwritten offerings include a fixed amount of compensation to the underwriter, generally referred to as the underwriter’s concession or discount. When securities are purchased or sold directly from or to an issuer, no commissions or discounts are paid.
The Advisor may seek to obtain an undertaking from issuers of commercial paper or dealers selling commercial paper to consider the repurchase of such securities from the Fund prior to maturity at their original cost plus interest (sometimes adjusted to reflect the actual maturity of the securities), if it believes that the Fund’s anticipated need for liquidity makes such action desirable. Any such repurchase prior to maturity reduces the possibility that the Fund would incur a capital loss in liquidating commercial paper, especially if interest rates have risen since acquisition of such commercial paper.
Investment decisions for the Fund and for other investment accounts managed by the Advisor are made independently of each other in light of differing conditions. The Advisor allocates investments among client accounts in a fair and equitable manner. A variety of factors will be considered in making such allocations. These factors include: (i) investment objectives or strategies for particular accounts, including sector, industry, country or region and capitalization weightings, (ii) tax considerations of an account, (iii) risk or investment concentration parameters for an account, (iv) supply or demand for a security at a given price level, (v) size of available investment, (vi) cash availability and liquidity requirements for accounts, (vii) regulatory restrictions, (viii) minimum investment size of an account, (ix) relative size of account, and (x) such other factors as may be approved by BlackRock. Moreover, investments may not be allocated to one client account over another based
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on any of the following considerations: (i) to favor one client account at the expense of another, (ii) to generate higher fees paid by one client account over another or to produce greater performance compensation to BlackRock, (iii) to develop or enhance a relationship with a client or prospective client, (iv) to compensate a client for past services or benefits rendered to BlackRock or to induce future services or benefits to be rendered to BlackRock, or (v) to manage or equalize investment performance among different client accounts.
Equity securities will generally be allocated among client accounts within the same investment mandate on a pro rata basis. This pro-rata allocation may result in the Fund receiving less of a particular security than if pro-ration had not occurred. All allocations of equity securities will be subject, where relevant, to share minimums established for accounts and compliance constraints. In addition, allocations to the Fund, particularly with respect to certain privately placed equity securities sourced by BCIA (or its controlled subsidiaries), may be limited by criteria established by the Board under the Co-Investment Order.
Initial public offerings of securities may be over-subscribed and subsequently trade at a premium in the secondary market. When BlackRock is given an opportunity to invest in such an initial offering or “new” or “hot” issue, the supply of securities available for client accounts is often less than the amount of securities the accounts would otherwise take. In order to allocate these investments fairly and equitably among client accounts over time, each portfolio manager or a member of his or her respective investment team will indicate to BlackRock’s trading desk their level of interest in a particular offering with respect to eligible clients’ accounts for which that team is responsible. Initial public offerings of U.S. equity securities will be identified as eligible for particular client accounts that are managed by portfolio teams who have indicated interest in the offering based on market capitalization of the issuer of the security and the investment mandate of the client account and in the case of international equity securities, the country where the offering is taking place and the investment mandate of the client account. Generally, shares received during the initial public offering will be allocated among participating client accounts within each investment mandate on a pro rata basis. In situations where supply is too limited to be allocated among all accounts for which the investment is eligible, portfolio managers may rotate such investment opportunities among one or more accounts so long as the rotation system provides for fair access for all client accounts over time. Other allocation methodologies that are considered by BlackRock to be fair and equitable to clients may be used as well.
Because different accounts may have differing investment objectives and policies, BlackRock may buy and sell the same securities at the same time for different clients based on the particular investment objectives, guidelines and strategies of those accounts. For example, BlackRock may decide that it may be entirely appropriate for a growth fund to sell a security at the same time a value fund is buying that security. To the extent that transactions on behalf of more than one client of BlackRock or its affiliates during the same period may increase the demand for securities being purchased or the supply of securities being sold, there may be an adverse effect on price. For example, sales of a security by BlackRock on behalf of one or more of its clients may decrease the market price of such security, adversely impacting other BlackRock clients that still hold the security. If purchases or sales of securities arise for consideration at or about the same time that would involve the Fund or other clients or funds for which BlackRock or an affiliate act as investment manager, transactions in such securities will be made, insofar as feasible, for the respective funds and clients in a manner deemed equitable to all.
In certain instances, BlackRock may find it efficient for purposes of seeking to obtain best execution, to aggregate or “bunch” certain contemporaneous purchases or sale orders of its advisory accounts. In general, all contemporaneous trades for client accounts under management by the same portfolio manager or investment team will be bunched in a single order if the trader believes the bunched trade would provide each client with an opportunity to achieve a more favorable execution at a potentially lower execution cost. The costs associated with a bunched order will be shared pro rata among the clients in the bunched order. Generally, if an order for a particular portfolio manager or management team is filled at several different prices through multiple trades, all accounts participating in the order will receive the average price except in the case of certain international markets where average pricing is not permitted. While in some cases this practice could have a detrimental effect upon the price or value of the security as far as the Fund is concerned, in other cases it could be beneficial to the
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Fund. Transactions effected by BlackRock on behalf of more than one of its clients during the same period may increase the demand for securities being purchased or the supply of securities being sold, causing an adverse effect on price. The trader will give the bunched order to the broker dealer that the trader has identified as being able to provide the best execution of the order. Orders for purchase or sale of securities will be placed within a reasonable amount of time of the order receipt and bunched orders will be kept bunched only long enough to execute the order.
The Fund will not purchase securities during the existence of any underwriting or selling group relating to such securities of which BlackRock, the Distributor or any affiliated person (as defined in the Investment Company Act) thereof is a member except pursuant to procedures adopted by the Board in accordance with Rule 10f-3 under the Investment Company Act. In no instance will portfolio securities be purchased from or sold to the BlackRock, the Distributor or any affiliated person of the foregoing entities except as permitted by SEC exemptive order or by applicable law.
While the Fund generally does not expect to engage in trading for short-term gains, it will effect portfolio transactions without regard to any holding period if, in Fund management’s judgment, such transactions are advisable in light of a change in circumstances of a particular company or within a particular industry or in general market, economic or financial conditions. The portfolio turnover rate is calculated by dividing the lesser of the Fund’s annual sales or purchases of portfolio securities (exclusive of purchases or sales of U.S. Government securities and all other securities whose maturities at the time of acquisition were one year or less) by the monthly average value of the securities in the portfolio during the year. A high rate of portfolio turnover results in certain tax consequences, such as increased capital gain dividends and/or ordinary income dividends, and in correspondingly greater transaction costs in the form of dealer spreads and brokerage commissions, which are borne directly by the Fund.
Information about the brokerage commissions paid by the Fund, including commissions paid to affiliated broker-dealers is set forth in the following table:
| Aggregate Brokerage Commissions Paid |
Commissions Paid to Affiliates |
|||||||
| Fiscal Year Ended July 31, 2025 |
$ | 1400 | $ | 0 | ||||
| Fiscal Year Ended July 31, 2024 |
$ | 8,587 | $ | 0 | ||||
| Fiscal Year Ended July 31, 2023 |
$ | 21,780 | $ | 0 | ||||
For the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, the brokerage commissions paid to affiliates by the Fund represented 0% of the aggregate brokerage commissions paid and involved 0% of the dollar amount of transactions involving payment of commissions during the period.
The following table shows the dollar amount of brokerage commissions paid to brokers for providing third-party research services and the approximate dollar amount of the transactions involved for the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025. The provision of third-party research services was not necessarily a factor in the placement of all brokerage business with such brokers.
| Amount of Commissions Paid to Brokers |
Amount of Brokerage Transactions Involved | |
| $ 0 |
$ 0 |
As of July 31, 2025, the Fund did not hold the securities of any of its “regular brokers or dealers” (as defined in Rule 10b-1 under the Investment Company Act).
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CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
Certain activities of BlackRock, Inc., BlackRock Advisors, LLC, BlackRock Fund Advisors and the other subsidiaries of BlackRock, Inc. (collectively referred to in this section as “BlackRock”) and their respective directors, officers or employees, with respect to the Fund and/or other accounts managed by BlackRock, may give rise to actual or perceived conflicts of interest such as those described below.
BlackRock is one of the world’s largest asset management firms. BlackRock, its subsidiaries and their respective directors, officers and employees, including the business units or entities and personnel who may be involved in the investment activities and business operations of the Fund, are engaged worldwide in businesses, including managing equities, fixed-income securities, cash and alternative investments, and other financial services, and have interests other than that of managing the Fund. These are considerations of which investors in the Fund should be aware, and which may cause conflicts of interest that could disadvantage the Fund and its shareholders. These businesses and interests include potential multiple advisory, transactional, financial and other relationships with, or interests in companies and interests in securities or other instruments that may be purchased or sold by the Fund.
BlackRock has proprietary interests in, and may manage or advise with respect to, accounts or funds (including separate accounts and other funds and collective investment vehicles) that have investment objectives similar to those of the Fund and/or that engage in transactions in the same types of securities, currencies and instruments as the Fund. BlackRock is also a major participant in the global currency, equities, swap and fixed-income markets, in each case, for the accounts of clients and, in some cases, on a proprietary basis. As such, BlackRock is or may be actively engaged in transactions in the same securities, currencies, and instruments in which the Fund invests.
Such activities could affect the prices and availability of the securities, currencies, and instruments in which the Fund invests, which could have an adverse impact on the Fund’s performance. Such transactions, particularly in respect of most proprietary accounts or client accounts, will be executed independently of the Fund’s transactions and thus at prices or rates that may be more or less favorable than those obtained by the Fund.
In addition, the portfolio holdings of certain BlackRock-advised investment vehicles managed in an identical or substantially similar manner as certain funds are made publicly available on a more timely basis than the Fund. In some cases, such portfolio holdings are made publicly available on a daily basis. While not expected, it is possible that a recipient of portfolio holdings information for such an investment vehicle could cause harm to the Fund that is managed in an identical or substantially similar manner, including by trading ahead of or against the Fund based on the information received.
When BlackRock seeks to purchase or sell the same assets for client accounts, including the Fund, the assets actually purchased or sold may be allocated among the accounts on a basis determined in its good faith discretion to be equitable. In some cases, this system may adversely affect the size or price of the assets purchased or sold for the Fund. In addition, transactions in investments by one or more other accounts managed by BlackRock may have the effect of diluting or otherwise disadvantaging the values, prices or investment strategies of the Fund, particularly, but not limited to, with respect to small capitalization, emerging market or less liquid strategies. This may occur with respect to BlackRock-advised accounts when investment decisions regarding the Fund are based on research or other information that is also used to support decisions for other accounts. When BlackRock implements a portfolio decision or strategy on behalf of another account ahead of, or contemporaneously with, similar decisions or strategies for the Fund, market impact, liquidity constraints, or other factors could result in the Fund receiving less favorable trading results and the costs of implementing such decisions or strategies could be increased or the Fund could otherwise be disadvantaged. BlackRock may, in certain cases, elect to implement internal policies and procedures designed to limit such consequences, which may cause the Fund to be unable to engage in certain activities, including purchasing or disposing of securities, when it might otherwise be desirable for it to do so.
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Conflicts may also arise because portfolio decisions regarding the Fund may benefit other accounts managed by BlackRock. For example, the sale of a long position or establishment of a short position by the Fund may impair the price of the same security sold short by (and therefore benefit) BlackRock or its other accounts or funds, and the purchase of a security or covering of a short position in a security by the Fund may increase the price of the same security held by (and therefore benefit) BlackRock or its other accounts or funds.
BlackRock, on behalf of other client accounts, on the one hand, and the Fund, on the other hand, may invest in or extend credit to different parts of the capital structure of a single issuer. BlackRock may pursue rights, provide advice or engage in other activities, or refrain from pursuing rights, providing advice or engaging in other activities, on behalf of other clients with respect to an issuer in which the Fund has invested, and such actions (or refraining from action) may have a material adverse effect on the Fund. In situations in which clients of BlackRock (including the Fund) hold positions in multiple parts of the capital structure of an issuer, BlackRock may not pursue certain actions or remedies that may be available to the Fund, as a result of legal and regulatory requirements or otherwise. BlackRock addresses these and other potential conflicts of interest based on the facts and circumstances of particular situations. For example, BlackRock may determine to rely on information barriers between different business units or portfolio management teams. BlackRock may also determine to rely on the actions of similarly situated holders of loans or securities rather than, or in connection with, taking such actions itself on behalf of the Fund.
In addition, to the extent permitted by applicable law, the Fund may invest its assets in other funds advised by BlackRock, including funds that are managed by one or more of the same portfolio managers, which could result in conflicts of interest relating to asset allocation, timing of Fund purchases and redemptions, and increased remuneration and profitability for BlackRock and/or its personnel, including portfolio managers.
Third parties, including service providers to BlackRock or the Fund, may sponsor events (including, but not limited to, marketing and promotional activities and presentations, educational training programs and conferences) for registered representatives, other professionals and individual investors. There is a potential conflict of interest as such sponsorships may defray the costs of such activities to BlackRock, and may provide an incentive to BlackRock to retain such third parties to provide services to the Fund.
In certain circumstances, BlackRock, on behalf of the Fund, may seek to buy from or sell securities to another fund or account advised by BlackRock. BlackRock may (but is not required to) effect purchases and sales between BlackRock clients (“cross trades”), including the Fund, if BlackRock believes such transactions are appropriate based on each party’s investment objectives and guidelines, subject to applicable law and regulation. There may be potential conflicts of interest or regulatory issues relating to these transactions which could limit BlackRock’s decision to engage in these transactions for the Fund. BlackRock may have a potentially conflicting division of loyalties and responsibilities to the parties in such transactions.
BlackRock and its clients may pursue or enforce rights with respect to an issuer in which the Fund has invested, and those activities may have an adverse effect on the Fund. As a result, prices, availability, liquidity and terms of the Fund’s investments may be negatively impacted by the activities of BlackRock or its clients, and transactions for the Fund may be impaired or effected at prices or terms that may be less favorable than would otherwise have been the case.
The results of the Fund’s investment activities may differ significantly from the results achieved by BlackRock for its proprietary accounts or other accounts (including investment companies or collective investment vehicles) that it manages or advises. It is possible that one or more accounts managed or advised by BlackRock and such other accounts will achieve investment results that are substantially more or less favorable than the results achieved by the Fund. Moreover, it is possible that the Fund will sustain losses during periods in which one or more proprietary or other accounts managed or advised by BlackRock achieve significant profits. The opposite result is also possible.
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From time to time, the Fund may be restricted from purchasing or selling securities, or from engaging in other investment activities because of regulatory, legal or contractual requirements applicable to BlackRock or other accounts managed or advised by BlackRock, and/or the internal policies of BlackRock designed to comply with such requirements. As a result, there may be periods, for example, when BlackRock will not initiate or recommend certain types of transactions in certain securities or instruments with respect to which BlackRock is performing services or when position limits have been reached. For example, the investment activities of BlackRock for its proprietary accounts and accounts under its management may limit the investment opportunities for the Fund in certain emerging and other markets in which limitations are imposed upon the amount of investment, in the aggregate or in individual issuers, by affiliated foreign investors.
In connection with its management of the Fund, BlackRock may have access to certain fundamental analysis and proprietary technical models developed by BlackRock. BlackRock will not be under any obligation, however, to effect transactions on behalf of the Fund in accordance with such analysis and models. In addition, BlackRock will not have any obligation to make available any information regarding its proprietary activities or strategies, or the activities or strategies used for other accounts managed by them, for the benefit of the management of the Fund and it is not anticipated that BlackRock will have access to such information for the purpose of managing the Fund. The proprietary activities or portfolio strategies of BlackRock, or the activities or strategies used for accounts managed by BlackRock or other client accounts could conflict with the transactions and strategies employed by BlackRock in managing the Fund.
The Fund may be included in investment models developed by BlackRock for use by clients and financial advisors. To the extent clients invest in these investment models and increase the assets under management of the Fund, the investment management fee amounts paid by the Fund to BlackRock may also increase. The net asset value and liquidity of the Fund may be impacted by purchases and sales of the Fund by model-driven investment portfolios, as well as by BlackRock itself and by its advisory clients.
In addition, certain principals and certain employees of the Fund’s investment adviser are also principals or employees of other business units or entities within BlackRock. As a result, these principals and employees may have obligations to such other business units or entities or their clients and such obligations to other business units or entities or their clients may be a consideration of which investors in the Fund should be aware.
BlackRock may enter into transactions and invest in securities, instruments and currencies on behalf of the Fund in which clients of BlackRock or, to the extent permitted by the SEC and applicable law, BlackRock serves as the counterparty, principal or issuer. In such cases, such party’s interests in the transaction will be adverse to the interests of the Fund, and such party may have no incentive to assure that the Fund obtains the best possible prices or terms in connection with the transactions. In addition, the purchase, holding and sale of such investments by the Fund may enhance the profitability of BlackRock.
BlackRock may also create, write or issue derivatives for its clients, the underlying securities, currencies or instruments of which may be those in which the Fund invests or which may be based on the performance of the Fund. Additionally, an affiliate of BlackRock will create, write or issue options, which may be based on the performance of certain BlackRock-advised funds. BlackRock has entered into an arrangement with Markit Indices Limited, the index provider for underlying fixed-income indexes used by certain iShares ETFs, related to derivative fixed-income products that are based on such iShares ETFs. Trading activity in these derivative products could also potentially lead to greater liquidity for such products, increased purchase activity with respect to these iShares ETFs and increased assets under management for BlackRock.
The Fund may, subject to applicable law, purchase investments that are the subject of an underwriting or other distribution by BlackRock and may also enter into transactions with other clients of BlackRock where such other clients have interests adverse to those of the Fund.
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At times, these activities may cause business units or entities within BlackRock to give advice to clients that may cause these clients to take actions adverse to the interests of the Fund. To the extent such transactions are permitted, the Fund will deal with BlackRock on an arms-length basis.
To the extent authorized by applicable law, BlackRock may act as broker, dealer, agent, lender or adviser or in other commercial capacities for the Fund. It is anticipated that the commissions, mark-ups, mark-downs, financial advisory fees, underwriting and placement fees, sales fees, financing and commitment fees, brokerage fees, other fees, compensation or profits, rates, terms and conditions charged by BlackRock will be in its view commercially reasonable, although BlackRock, including its sales personnel, will have an interest in obtaining fees and other amounts that are favorable to BlackRock and such sales personnel, which may have an adverse effect on the Fund. Index based funds may use an index provider that is affiliated with another service provider of the Fund or BlackRock that acts as a broker, dealer, agent, lender or in other commercial capacities for the Fund or BlackRock.
Subject to applicable law, BlackRock (and its personnel and other distributors) will be entitled to retain fees and other amounts that they receive in connection with their service to the Fund as broker, dealer, agent, lender, adviser or in other commercial capacities. No accounting to the Fund or its shareholders will be required, and no fees or other compensation payable by the Fund or its shareholders will be reduced by reason of receipt by BlackRock of any such fees or other amounts.
When BlackRock acts as broker, dealer, agent, adviser or in other commercial capacities in relation to the Fund, BlackRock may take commercial steps in its own interests, which may have an adverse effect on the Fund. The Fund will be required to establish business relationships with its counterparties based on the Fund’s own credit standing. BlackRock will not have any obligation to allow its credit to be used in connection with the Fund’s establishment of its business relationships, nor is it expected that the Fund’s counterparties will rely on the credit of BlackRock in evaluating the Fund’s creditworthiness.
BlackRock Investment Management, LLC (“BIM”), an affiliate of BlackRock, pursuant to SEC exemptive relief, acts as securities lending agent to, and receives a share of securities lending revenues from, the Fund. BlackRock will also receive compensation for managing the reinvestment of the cash collateral from securities lending. There are potential conflicts of interests in managing a securities lending program, including but not limited to: (i) BlackRock as securities lending agent may have an incentive to, among other things, increase or decrease the amount of securities on loan or to lend particular securities in order to generate additional risk-adjusted revenue for BlackRock and its affiliates; and (ii) BlackRock as securities lending agent may have an incentive to allocate loans to clients that would provide more revenue to BlackRock. As described further below, BlackRock seeks to mitigate this conflict by providing its securities lending clients with equal lending opportunities over time in order to approximate pro-rata allocation.
As part of its securities lending program, BlackRock indemnifies the Fund and certain other clients and/or funds against a shortfall in collateral in the event of borrower default. On a regular basis, BlackRock calculates the potential dollar exposure of collateral shortfall resulting from a borrower default (“shortfall risk”) in the securities lending program. BlackRock establishes program-wide borrower limits (“credit limits”) to actively manage borrower-specific credit exposure. BlackRock oversees the risk model that calculates projected collateral shortfall values using loan-level factors such as loan and collateral type and market value as well as specific borrower credit characteristics. When necessary, BlackRock may adjust securities lending program attributes by restricting eligible collateral or reducing borrower credit limits. As a result, the management of program-wide exposure as well as BlackRock-specific indemnification exposure may affect the amount of securities lending activity BlackRock may conduct at any given point in time by reducing the volume of lending opportunities for certain loans (including by asset type, collateral type and/or revenue profile).
BlackRock may decline to make a securities loan on behalf of the Fund, discontinue lending on behalf of the Fund or terminate a securities loan on behalf of the Fund for any reason, including but not limited to regulatory
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requirements and/or market rules, liquidity considerations, or credit considerations, which may impact the Fund by reducing or eliminating the volume of lending opportunities for certain types of loans, loans in particular markets, loans of particular securities or types of securities, or for loans overall. In addition, some borrowers may prefer certain BlackRock lenders that provide additional protections against lender default that are favored by their prudential regulation. BlackRock uses a predetermined systematic process in order to approximate pro-rata allocation over time. In order to allocate a loan to a portfolio: (i) BlackRock as a whole must have sufficient lending capacity pursuant to the various program limits (i.e., indemnification exposure limit and borrower credit limits); (ii) the lending portfolio must hold the asset at the time a loan opportunity arrives; and (iii) the lending portfolio must also have enough inventory, either on its own or when aggregated with other portfolios into one single market delivery, to satisfy the loan request. In doing so, BlackRock seeks to provide equal lending opportunities for all portfolios, independent of whether BlackRock indemnifies the portfolio. Equal opportunities for lending portfolios does not guarantee equal outcomes. Specifically, short and long-term outcomes for individual clients may vary due to asset mix, asset/liability spreads on different securities, and the overall limits imposed by the firm.
Purchases and sales of securities and other assets for the Fund may be bunched or aggregated with orders for other BlackRock client accounts, including with accounts that pay different transaction costs solely due to the fact that they have different research payment arrangements. BlackRock, however, is not required to bunch or aggregate orders if portfolio management decisions for different accounts are made separately, or if they determine that bunching or aggregating is not practicable or required, or in cases involving client direction.
Prevailing trading activity frequently may make impossible the receipt of the same price or execution on the entire volume of securities purchased or sold. When this occurs, the various prices may be averaged, and the Fund will be charged or credited with the average price. Thus, the effect of the aggregation may operate on some occasions to the disadvantage of the Fund. In addition, under certain circumstances, the Fund will not be charged the same commission or commission equivalent rates in connection with a bunched or aggregated order.
As discussed in the section entitled “Portfolio Transactions and Brokerage” in this SAI, BlackRock, unless prohibited by applicable law, may cause the Fund or account to pay a broker or dealer a commission for effecting a transaction that exceeds the amount another broker or dealer would have charged for effecting the same transaction in recognition of the value of brokerage and research services provided by that broker or dealer. Under MiFID II, EU investment managers, including BlackRock International Limited, pay for research from brokers and dealers directly out of their own resources, rather than through client commissions.
Subject to applicable law, BlackRock may select brokers that furnish BlackRock, the Fund, other BlackRock client accounts or personnel, directly or through correspondent relationships, with research or other appropriate services which provide, in BlackRock’s view, appropriate assistance to BlackRock in the investment decision-making process (including with respect to futures, fixed-price offerings and OTC transactions). Such research or other services may include, to the extent permitted by law, research reports on companies, industries and securities; economic and financial data; financial publications; proxy analysis; trade industry seminars; computer data bases; research-oriented software and other services and products.
Research or other services obtained in this manner may be used in servicing any or all of the Fund and other BlackRock client accounts, including in connection with BlackRock client accounts other than those that pay commissions to the broker relating to the research or other service arrangements. Such products and services may disproportionately benefit other BlackRock client accounts relative to the Fund based on the amount of brokerage commissions paid by the Fund and such other BlackRock client accounts. For example, research or other services that are paid for through one client’s commissions may not be used in managing that client’s account. In addition, other BlackRock client accounts may receive the benefit, including disproportionate benefits, of economies of scale or price discounts in connection with products and services that may be provided to the Fund and to such other BlackRock client accounts. To the extent that BlackRock uses soft dollars, it will not have to pay for those products and services itself.
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BlackRock, unless prohibited by applicable law, may endeavor to execute trades through brokers who, pursuant to such arrangements, provide research or other services in order to ensure the continued receipt of research or other services BlackRock believes are useful in its investment decision-making process. BlackRock may from time to time choose not to engage in the above described arrangements to varying degrees. BlackRock, unless prohibited by applicable law, may also enter into commission sharing arrangements under which BlackRock may execute transactions through a broker-dealer and request that the broker-dealer allocate a portion of the commissions or commission credits to another firm that provides research to BlackRock. To the extent that BlackRock engages in commission sharing arrangements, many of the same conflicts related to traditional soft dollars may exist.
BlackRock may utilize certain electronic crossing networks (“ECNs”) (including, without limitation, ECNs in which BlackRock has an investment or other interest, to the extent permitted by applicable law) in executing client securities transactions for certain types of securities. These ECNs may charge fees for their services, including access fees and transaction fees. The transaction fees, which are similar to commissions or markups/markdowns, will generally be charged to clients and, like commissions and markups/markdowns, would generally be included in the cost of the securities purchased. Access fees may be paid by BlackRock even though incurred in connection with executing transactions on behalf of clients, including the Fund. In certain circumstances, ECNs may offer volume discounts that will reduce the access fees typically paid by BlackRock. BlackRock will only utilize ECNs consistent with its obligation to seek to obtain best execution in client transactions.
BlackRock owns a minority interest in, and is a member of, Members Exchange (“MEMX”), a newly created U.S. stock exchange. Transactions for the Fund may be executed on MEMX if third party brokers select MEMX as the appropriate venue for execution of orders placed by BlackRock traders on behalf of client portfolios.
BlackRock has adopted policies and procedures designed to prevent conflicts of interest from influencing proxy voting decisions that it makes on behalf of advisory clients, including the Fund, and to help ensure that such decisions are made in accordance with BlackRock’s fiduciary obligations to its clients. Nevertheless, notwithstanding such proxy voting policies and procedures, actual proxy voting decisions of BlackRock may have the effect of favoring the interests of other clients or businesses of other divisions or units of BlackRock, provided that BlackRock believes such voting decisions to be in accordance with its fiduciary obligations. For a more detailed discussion of these policies and procedures, see “Appendix B-Closed-End Fund Proxy Voting Policy.”
It is also possible that, from time to time, BlackRock and/or its advisory clients (including other funds and separately managed accounts) may, subject to compliance with applicable law, purchase and hold shares of the Fund. Increasing the Fund’s assets may enhance investment flexibility and diversification and may contribute to economies of scale that tend to reduce the Fund’s expense ratio. BlackRock reserves the right, subject to compliance with applicable law, to redeem at any time some or all of the shares of the Fund acquired for its own accounts. A large redemption of shares of the Fund by BlackRock could significantly reduce the asset size of the Fund, which might have an adverse effect on the Fund’s investment flexibility, portfolio diversification and expense ratio. BlackRock seeks to consider the effect of redemptions on the Fund and other shareholders in deciding whether to redeem its shares but is not obligated to do so and may elect not to do so.
It is possible that the Fund may invest in securities of, or engage in transactions with, companies in which BlackRock has significant debt or equity investments or other interests. The Fund may also invest in issuances (such as structured notes) by entities for which BlackRock provides and is compensated for cash management services relating to the proceeds from the sale of such issuances. In making investment decisions for the Fund, BlackRock is not permitted to obtain or use material non-public information acquired by any unit of BlackRock, in the course of these activities. In addition, from time to time, the activities of BlackRock may limit the Fund’s flexibility in purchases and sales of securities. As indicated below, BlackRock may engage in transactions with companies in which BlackRock-advised funds or other clients of BlackRock have an investment.
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BlackRock and its personnel and other financial service providers may have interests in promoting sales of the Fund. With respect to BlackRock and its personnel, the remuneration and profitability relating to services to and sales of the Funds or other products may be greater than remuneration and profitability relating to services to and sales of certain funds or other products that might be provided or offered. BlackRock and its sales personnel may directly or indirectly receive a portion of the fees and commissions charged to the Fund or their shareholders. BlackRock and its advisory or other personnel may also benefit from increased amounts of assets under management. Fees and commissions may also be higher than for other products or services, and the remuneration and profitability to BlackRock and such personnel resulting from transactions on behalf of or management of the Fund may be greater than the remuneration and profitability resulting from other funds or products.
As disclosed in more detail in “Net Asset Value” in the prospectus, when market quotations are not readily available or are believed by BlackRock to be unreliable, the Fund’s investments are valued at fair value by BlackRock. BlackRock has been designated as the Fund’s valuation designee pursuant to Rule 2a-5 under the Investment Company Act and acts through BlackRock’s Rule 2a-5 Committee (the “2a-5 Committee”), with assistance from other BlackRock pricing committees and in accordance with BlackRock’s policies and procedures (the “Valuation Procedures”). When determining a “fair value price,” the 2a-5 Committee seeks to determine the price that the Fund might reasonably expect to receive from the current sale of that asset or liability in an arm’s-length transaction. The price generally may not be determined based on what the Fund might reasonably expect to receive for selling an asset or liability at a later time or if it holds the asset or liability to maturity. While fair value determinations will be based upon all available factors that BlackRock deems relevant at the time of the determination, and may be based on analytical values determined by BlackRock using proprietary or third party valuation models, fair value represents only a good faith approximation of the value of an asset or liability. The fair value of one or more assets or liabilities may not, in retrospect, be the price at which those assets or liabilities could have been sold during the period in which the particular fair values were used in determining the Fund’s NAV. As a result, the Fund’s sale or repurchase of its shares at NAV, at a time when a holding or holdings are valued by the 2a-5 Committee at fair value, may have the effect of diluting or increasing the economic interest of existing shareholders and may affect the amount of revenue received by BlackRock with respect to services for which it receives an asset-based fee.
To the extent permitted by applicable law, the Fund may invest all or some of its short-term cash investments in any money market fund or similarly-managed private fund advised or managed by BlackRock. In connection with any such investments, the Fund, to the extent permitted by the Investment Company Act, may pay its share of expenses of a money market fund or other similarly-managed private fund in which it invests, which may result in the Fund bearing some additional expenses.
BlackRock and its directors, officers and employees, may buy and sell securities or other investments for their own accounts and may have conflicts of interest with respect to investments made on behalf of the Fund. As a result of differing trading and investment strategies or constraints, positions may be taken by directors, officers, and employees of BlackRock that are the same, different from or made at different times than positions taken for the Fund. To lessen the possibility that the Fund will be adversely affected by this personal trading, the Fund, the Distributor and the Advisor each have adopted a Code of Ethics in compliance with Section 17(j) of the Investment Company Act that restricts securities trading in the personal accounts of investment professionals and others who normally come into possession of information regarding the Fund’s portfolio transactions. Each Code of Ethics is also available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s Internet site at http://www.sec.gov, and copies may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by e-mail at publicinfo@sec.gov.
BlackRock will not purchase securities or other property from, or sell securities or other property to, the Fund, except that the Fund may in accordance with rules or guidance adopted under the Investment Company Act engage in transactions with another fund or accounts that are affiliated with the Fund as a result of common officers, directors, or investment advisers or pursuant to exemptive orders granted to the Fund and/or BlackRock by the SEC. These transactions would be effected in circumstances in which BlackRock determined that it would
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be appropriate for the Fund to purchase and another client of BlackRock to sell, or the Fund to sell and another client of BlackRock to purchase, the same security or instrument on the same day. From time to time, the activities of the Fund may be restricted because of regulatory requirements applicable to BlackRock and/or BlackRock’s internal policies designed to comply with, limit the applicability of, or otherwise relate to such requirements. A client not advised by BlackRock would not be subject to some of those considerations. There may be periods when BlackRock may not initiate or recommend certain types of transactions, or may otherwise restrict or limit its advice in certain securities or instruments issued by or related to companies for which BlackRock is performing advisory or other services or has proprietary positions. For example, when BlackRock is engaged to provide advisory or risk management services for a company, BlackRock may be prohibited from or limited in purchasing or selling securities of that company on behalf of the Fund, particularly where such services result in BlackRock obtaining material non-public information about the company (e.g., in connection with participation in a creditors’ committee). Similar situations could arise if personnel of BlackRock serve as directors of companies the securities of which the Fund wishes to purchase or sell. However, if permitted by applicable law, and where consistent with BlackRock’s policies and procedures (including the necessary implementation of appropriate information barriers), the Fund may purchase securities or instruments that are issued by such companies, are the subject of an advisory or risk management assignment by BlackRock, or where personnel of BlackRock are directors or officers of the issuer.
BlackRock has adopted and implemented policies and procedures that are designed to address potential conflicts that arise in connection with the advisory services BlackRock provides to the Funds and other clients. Certain BlackRock advisory personnel may take views, and make decisions or recommendations, that are different than or opposite those of other BlackRock advisory personnel. Certain portfolio management teams within BlackRock may make decisions or take (or refrain from taking) actions with respect to clients they advise in a manner different than or adverse to the decisions made or the actions taken (or not taken) by each Fund’s portfolio management teams. The various portfolio management teams may not share information with each other, including as a result of certain information barriers and other policies, and will not have any obligation or other duty to do so.
BlackRock has established certain information barriers and other policies to address the sharing of information between different businesses within BlackRock, including with respect to personnel responsible with managing portfolios and voting proxies with respect to certain index equity portfolios versus those responsible for managing portfolios and voting proxies with respect to all other portfolios. As a result of information barriers, certain units of BlackRock generally will not have access, or will have limited access, to certain information and personnel, including senior personnel, in other units of BlackRock, and generally will not manage the Fund with the benefit of information possessed by such other units. Therefore, BlackRock may not be able to review potential investments for the Fund with the benefit of information held by certain areas of BlackRock.
BlackRock may determine to move certain personnel, businesses, or business units from one side of an information barrier to the other side of the information barrier. In connection therewith, BlackRock personnel, businesses, and business units that were moved will no longer have access to the information and personnel from the side of the information barrier from which they were moved. Information obtained in connection with such changes to information barriers may limit or restrict the ability of BlackRock to engage in or otherwise effect transactions on behalf of each Fund (including purchasing or selling securities that BlackRock may otherwise have purchased or sold for a client in the absence of a change to an information barrier). Information barriers may not have their intended impact due to, for example, changes in applicable law or inadvertent crossings of the barriers, and actions by personnel on one side of a barrier may impact the potential actions of personnel on the other side of a barrier.
Although the information barriers are intended to allow for independent portfolio management decision-making and proxy voting among certain BlackRock businesses, the investment activities of BlackRock for BlackRock clients, as well as BlackRock’s proprietary accounts, may nonetheless limit the investment strategies and rights of other clients (including each Fund). As BlackRock’s assets under management increases,
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BlackRock clients may face greater negative impacts due to ownership restrictions and limitations imposed by laws, regulations, rules, regulators, or issuers. For example, in certain circumstances where a BlackRock client invests in securities issued by companies that operate in certain industries (e.g., banking, insurance, and utilities) or in certain emerging or international markets, or are subject to regulatory or corporate ownership restrictions (e.g., with mechanisms such as poison pills in place to prevent takeovers), or where a BlackRock client invest in certain futures and derivatives, there may be limits on the aggregate amount invested by BlackRock for its clients and BlackRock’s proprietary accounts that may not be exceeded without the grant of a license or other regulatory or corporate approval, order, consent, relief, waiver or non-disapproval or, if exceeded, may cause BlackRock or its clients to be subject to enforcement actions, disgorgement of share ownership or profits, regulatory restrictions, complex compliance reporting, increased compliance costs or suffer disadvantages or business restrictions. In light of certain restrictions, BlackRock may also seek to make indirect investments (e.g., using derivatives) on behalf of its clients to receive exposure to certain securities in excess of the applicable ownership restrictions and limitations when legally permitted that will expose such clients to additional costs and additional risks, including any risks associated with investing in derivatives. There may be limited availability of derivatives that provide indirect exposure to an impacted security. BlackRock clients can be subject to more than one ownership limitation depending on each client’s holdings, and each ownership limitation can impact multiple securities held by the client. Certain clients or shareholders may have their own overlapping obligations to monitor their compliance with ownership limitations across their investments.
When BlackRock or a BlackRock client is subject to an ownership limitation, BlackRock may in its discretion seek permission from the applicable issuers or regulators to exceed the limitation. However, there is no guarantee that permission will be granted, or that, once granted, it will not be modified or revoked at a later date with minimal or no notice. The issuer and/or regulator may also require that BlackRock on behalf of itself and its clients take or refrain from taking certain actions in connection with the approval, order, consent, relief or non-disapproval, which BlackRock may accept if it believes the benefits outweigh the costs and may limit BlackRock from taking actions that it otherwise would take. In those circumstances where ownership thresholds or limitations must be observed, BlackRock seeks to allocate limited investment opportunities equitably among clients, taking into consideration benchmark weight and investment strategy. BlackRock may adopt certain controls designed to prevent the occurrence of a breach of any applicable ownership threshold or limits, including, for example, when ownership in certain securities nears an applicable threshold, BlackRock may limit additional purchases in such securities or, with respect to ETFs, remove such securities from the list of Deposit Securities to be delivered to the Fund in connection with purchases of Creation Units of such Fund. If client holdings of an issuer exceed an applicable threshold and BlackRock is unable to obtain relief to enable the continued holding of such investments, it may be necessary to reduce these positions to meet the applicable limitations and BlackRock or such client may be subject to regulatory actions. In these cases, the investments will be sold in a manner that BlackRock deems fair and equitable over time.
Ownership limitations are highly complex. It is possible that, despite BlackRock’s intent to either comply with or be granted permission to exceed ownership limitations, it may inadvertently breach a limit or violate the corporate or regulatory approval, order, consent, relief or non-disapproval that was obtained.
In addition to the foregoing, other ownership thresholds may trigger reporting requirements to governmental and regulatory authorities, and such reports may entail the disclosure of the identity of a client or BlackRock’s intended strategy with respect to such security or asset.
BlackRock may maintain securities indices. To the extent permitted by applicable laws, each Fund may seek to license and use such indices as part of their investment strategy. Index based funds that seek to track the performance of securities indices also may use the name of the index or index provider in the fund name. Index providers, including BlackRock (to the extent permitted by applicable law), may be paid licensing fees for use of their index or index name. In instances where BlackRock charges a unitary management fee, BlackRock may have a financial incentive to use a BlackRock index that is less costly to BlackRock than a third party index. BlackRock may benefit from each Fund using BlackRock indices by creating increasing acceptance in the
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marketplace for such indices. BlackRock is not obligated to license its indices to the Fund and the Fund is under no obligation to use BlackRock indices. Any fund that enters into a license for a BlackRock index cannot be assured that the terms of any index licensing agreement with BlackRock will be as favorable as those terms offered to other licensees.
BlackRock may enter into contractual arrangements with third-party service providers to the Fund (e.g., custodians, administrators and index providers) pursuant to which BlackRock receives fee discounts or concessions in recognition of BlackRock’s overall relationship with such service providers. BlackRock may also enter into contractual arrangements with such service providers pursuant to which BlackRock incurs additional costs if the service provider’s services are terminated with respect to the Fund. To the extent that BlackRock is responsible for paying service providers out of its fees that it receives from the Fund, the benefits of lower fees, including any fee discounts or concessions, or any additional savings, may accrue, in whole or in part, to BlackRock, which could result in conflicts of interest relating to the use or termination of service providers to the Fund. In addition, conflicts of interest may arise with respect to contractual arrangements with third-party service providers to the Fund, or the selection of such providers, particularly in circumstances where BlackRock is negotiating on behalf of both funds that have a unitary management fee and those that do not or different service providers have different fee structures.
Conflicts of interest may arise as a result of simultaneous investment management of multiple client accounts by the BlackRock’s investment professionals. For example, differences in the advisory fee structure may create the appearance of actual or potential conflicts of interest because such differences could create pecuniary incentives for BlackRock to favor one client account over another.
BlackRock owns or has an ownership interest in certain trading, portfolio management, operations and/or information systems used by Fund service providers. These systems are, or will be, used by the Fund service provider in connection with the provision of services to accounts managed by BlackRock and funds managed and sponsored by BlackRock, including the Fund, that engage the service provider (typically the custodian). The Fund’s service provider remunerates BlackRock for the use of the systems. The Fund’s service provider’s payments to BlackRock for the use of these systems may enhance the profitability of BlackRock.
BlackRock’s receipt of fees from a service provider in connection with the use of systems provided by BlackRock may create an incentive for BlackRock to recommend that the Fund enter into or renew an arrangement with the service provider.
In recognition of a BlackRock client’s overall relationship with BlackRock, BlackRock may offer special pricing arrangements for certain services provided by BlackRock. Any such special pricing arrangements will not affect Fund fees and expenses applicable to such client’s investment in the Fund.
Present and future activities of BlackRock and its directors, officers and employees, in addition to those described in this section, may give rise to additional conflicts of interest.
DESCRIPTION OF SHARES
Common Shares
The Fund intends to hold annual meetings of shareholders so long as the common shares are listed on a national securities exchange and such meetings are required as a condition to such listing.
Preferred Shares
The Fund’s VRDP Shares have the benefit of an unconditional demand feature pursuant to a purchase agreement provided by Bank of America, N.A. acting as liquidity provider to ensure full and timely repayment of
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the liquidation preference amount plus any accumulated and unpaid dividends to holders upon the occurrence of certain events (the “Liquidity Facility”). The Fund entered into a fee agreement with the liquidity provider (the “Fee Agreement”) in connection with the Liquidity Facility that require a per annum liquidity fee payable to the liquidity provider. The Fee Agreement between the Fund and the liquidity provider is scheduled to expire, unless renewed or terminated in advance, on September 29, 2028.
The Liquidity Facility requires the liquidity provider to purchase all of the VRDP Shares tendered for sale that were not successfully remarketed. The Fund is required to redeem its VRDP Shares owned by the liquidity provider after six months of continuous, unsuccessful remarketing. Upon the occurrence of the first unsuccessful remarketing, the Fund is required to segregate liquid assets to fund the redemption.
In the event the VRDP Shares Purchase Agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”) for the Fund is not renewed, and the Fund does not arrange for a Purchase Agreement with an alternate liquidity provider, the VRDP Shares will be subject to mandatory purchase by the liquidity provider prior to the termination of the Purchase Agreement. There is no assurance the Fund will replace such redeemed VRDP Shares with any other preferred shares or other form of leverage.
Except during the Special Rate Period (as defined and described below), holders of VRDP Shares have the right to give notice on any business day to tender the Fund’s VRDP Shares for remarketing in seven days, the VRDP Shares are subject to a mandatory tender for remarketing upon the occurrence of certain events, and should a remarketing be unsuccessful, the dividend rate for such VRDP Shares will reset to a maximum rate as defined in the governing documents of the VRDP Shares. The VRDP Shares are also subject to certain restrictions on transfer outside of the remarketing process. Except during the Special Rate Period, the Fund may incur remarketing fees at the annual rate of 0.10% on the aggregate principal amount of the VRDP Shares.
The Fund is required to redeem its VRDP Shares on September 1, 2055, the mandatory redemption date for such VRDP Shares, unless earlier redeemed or repurchased. Six months prior to the mandatory redemption date, the Fund is required to begin to segregate liquid assets with its custodian to fund the redemption. In addition, the Fund is required to redeem certain of its outstanding VRDP Shares if it fails to maintain certain asset coverage, basic maintenance amount or leverage requirements.
Subject to certain conditions, the Fund’s VRDP Shares may be redeemed, in whole or in part, at any time at the option of the Fund. The redemption price per VRDP Share is equal to the liquidation value per VRDP Share plus any outstanding unpaid dividends, except that a redemption premium may be applicable during the Special Rate Period.
Except during the Special Rate Period, dividends on the VRDP Shares are payable monthly at a variable rate set weekly by the remarketing agent. Such dividend rates are generally based upon a spread over a base rate and cannot exceed a maximum rate. In the event of a failed remarketing, the dividend rate of the VRDP Shares will be reset to a maximum rate. The maximum rate is determined based on, among other things, the long-term preferred share rating assigned to the VRDP Shares and the length of time that the VRDP Shares fail to be remarketed. The maximum rate of the VRDP Shares will not exceed 15% per annum, exclusive of any applicable gross-up payments or increased dividend payment relating to the inclusion in any dividend of net capital gains or ordinary income taxable for regular U.S. federal income tax purposes. At the date of issuance, the VRDP Shares were assigned a long-term rating of Aa3 from Moody’s. The VRDP Shares do not have short-term ratings during a Special Rate Period, as described below. The short-term ratings on the VRDP Shares are directly related to the short-term ratings of the liquidity provider for the VRDP Shares. Changes in the credit quality of the liquidity provider could cause a change in the short-term credit ratings of the VRDP Shares. Except during a Special Rate Period, a change in the short-term credit rating of the liquidity provider or the VRDP Shares may adversely affect the dividend rate paid on such VRDP Shares, although the dividend rate paid on the VRDP Shares is not directly related to the short-term rating. The liquidity provider may be terminated prior to the scheduled termination date if the liquidity provider fails to maintain short-term debt ratings in one of the two highest rating categories.
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The VRDP Shares are senior in priority to the Fund’s common shares as to the payment of dividends and the distribution of assets upon dissolution, liquidation or winding up of the affairs of the Fund. The VRDP Shares will rank on parity with other preferred shares of the Fund as to the payment of dividends and the distribution of assets upon dissolution, liquidation or winding up of the affairs of the Fund. The 1940 Act prohibits the declaration of any dividend on the Fund’s common shares or the repurchase of the Fund’s common shares if the Fund fails to maintain the asset coverage of at least 200% of the liquidation preference of the outstanding VRDP Shares. In addition, pursuant to the VRDP Shares’ governing instruments, the Fund is restricted from declaring and paying dividends on classes of shares ranking junior to or on parity with the VRDP Shares or repurchasing such shares if the Fund fails to declare and pay dividends on the VRDP Shares, redeem any VRDP Shares required to be redeemed under the VRDP Shares’ governing instruments or comply with the basic maintenance amount requirement of the agencies rating the VRDP Shares.
The holders of VRDP Shares have voting rights equal to the Fund’s common shareholders (one vote per Share) and will vote together with such common shareholders (one vote per Share) as a single class. However, the holders of VRDP Shares, voting as a separate class, are also entitled to elect two Directors for the Fund. In addition, the 1940 Act requires that along with approval by shareholders that might otherwise be required, the approval of a 1940 Act Majority of the holders of VRDP Shares, voting separately as a class, would be required to (a) adopt any plan of reorganization that would adversely affect the VRDP Shares, (b) change the Fund’s sub-classification as a closed-end management investment company or change its fundamental investment restrictions or (c) change its business so as to cease to be an investment company.
On September 17, 2025, the Fund commenced a special rate period ending September 14, 2028, with respect to its VRDP Shares (the “Special Rate Period”). The holders of the VRDP Shares and the Fund may mutually agree to extend the Special Rate Period prior to the expiration of the Special Rate Period. If the Special Rate Period is not extended, the VRDP Shares will revert to remarketable securities upon the termination of the Special Rate Period and will be remarketed and available for purchase by qualified institutional investors. The Liquidity Facility remains in effect for the duration of the Special Rate Period and the VRDP Shares are still subject to mandatory redemption by the Fund on their mandatory redemption date. However, the VRDP Shares will not be remarketed or subject to optional or mandatory tender events during such time. Short-term ratings may be re-assigned to the VRDP Shares upon the termination of the Special Rate Period.
During the Special Rate Period, the Fund is required to maintain the same asset coverage, basic maintenance amount and leverage requirements for the VRDP Shares as is required when not in the Special Rate Period.
During the Special Rate Period, the Fund will pay nominal fees to the liquidity provider and remarketing agent, and will instead pay dividends monthly based on the sum of Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) Municipal Swap Index and a percentage per annum based on the long-term ratings assigned to the VRDP Shares (“Ratings Spread”).
As of September 17, 2025, the VRDP Shares were assigned long-term ratings of Aa3 from Moody’s.
The Ratings Spread will increase in the event the VRDP Shares are rated below Aaa by all of the rating agencies rating the VRDP Shares at the time such Ratings Spread is determined, up to a maximum of 4.15%.
In addition, if the Fund redeems its VRDP Shares on or before September 16, 2026 and the VRDP Shares are rated above A2 by all rating agencies then rating the VRDP Shares, then such redemption is subject to a redemption premium of 1% of the liquidation preference of the BRDP Shares payable to the holders of VRDP Shares, subject to certain exceptions for redemptions that are required to maintain minimum asset coverage requirements.
Under the Fund’s Fee Agreement with the liquidity provider, to the extent the liquidity provider together with certain affiliates individually or in the aggregate own at least 20% of the outstanding VRDP Shares and the
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Fund has not failed to pay dividends on the VRDP Shares for two years, the liquidity provider agreed to enter into and maintain a voting trust agreement and convey into the voting trust the right to vote all of its VRDP Shares owned by it or such affiliates, with respect to: (i) the election of the two members of the Board for which VRDP Holders are entitled to vote under the 1940 Act and all other rights given to VRDP Holders with respect to the election of the Board; (ii) the conversion of the Fund from a closed-end management investment company to an open-end fund, or to change the Fund’s classification from diversified to non-diversified; (iii) the deviation from a policy in respect of concentration of investments in any particular industry or group of industries as recited in the Fund’s registration statement; and (iv) borrowing money, issuing senior securities, underwriting securities issued by other persons, purchasing or selling real estate or commodities or making loans to other persons other than in accordance with the recitals of policy with respect thereto in the Fund’s registration statement.
If the Special Rate Period is not extended, the VRDP Shares will revert back to remarketable securities and will be remarketed and available for purchase by qualified institutional investors. There is no assurance that the VRDP Shares will be remarketed or purchased by investors after the termination of the Special Rate Period. If the VRDP Shares are not remarketed or purchased, then a failed remarketing will occur. As described above, in the event of a failed remarketing, the dividend rate of the VRDP Shares will be reset to the maximum rate and the VRDP Shares that have not been remarketed are required to be purchased by the liquidity provider and subject to redemption by the Fund after six months of continuous, unsuccessful remarketing.
Other Shares
The Board (subject to applicable law and the Charter) may authorize an offering, without the approval of the holders of common shares and, depending on their terms, any preferred stock outstanding at that time, of other classes of shares, or other classes or series of shares, as they determine to be necessary, desirable or appropriate, having such terms, rights, preferences, privileges, limitations and restrictions as the Board sees fit. The Fund currently does not expect to issue any other classes of shares, or series of shares, except for the common shares and the VRDP Shares.
TAX MATTERS
The following is a summary of certain U.S. federal income tax consequences generally applicable to a shareholder of holding and disposing of Shares of the Fund. The discussion reflects applicable income tax laws of the United States as of the date of this SAI, which income tax laws may be changed or subject to new interpretations by the courts or the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) retroactively or prospectively. No attempt is made to present a detailed explanation of all U.S. federal income tax concerns affecting the Fund and its shareholders (including shareholders subject to special provisions of the Code, including, without limitation, financial institutions, insurance companies, a partnership or other pass-through entity for U.S. federal income tax purposes, common shareholders whose “functional currency” is not the U.S. dollar, tax-exempt organizations, a controlled foreign corporation or a passive foreign investment company, dealers in securities or currencies, traders in securities or commodities that elect mark-to-market treatment, or persons that will hold Shares as a position in a “straddle,” “hedge” or as part of a “constructive sale” for federal income tax purposes), and the discussions set forth here do not constitute tax advice. If a partnership (or any other entity treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) holds Shares, the tax treatment of a partner in the partnership generally will depend upon the status of the partner and the activities of the partnership. Partnerships that hold Shares and partners in such a partnership should consult their tax advisors about the U.S. federal income tax considerations of the purchase, ownership and disposition of Shares. Except as expressly provided otherwise, this discussion assumes that you are a taxable U.S. person for U.S. federal income tax purposes and that you hold Shares of the Fund as capital assets (generally, for investment). The Fund has not sought and will not seek any ruling from the IRS regarding any matters discussed herein. No assurances can be given that the IRS would not assert, or that a court would not sustain, a position contrary to those set forth below. This summary does not discuss any aspects
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of foreign, state or local tax. Prospective investors should consult their own tax advisors as to the U.S. federal income tax consequences (including the alternative minimum tax consequences) of acquiring, holding and disposing of the Fund’s shares, as well as the effects of state, local and non-U.S. tax laws.
Taxation of the Fund
The Fund has elected to be treated and to qualify to be taxed as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code. To qualify as a RIC, the Fund must, among other things, satisfy certain requirements relating to the source of its income, diversification of its assets, and distributions of its income to its shareholders. First, the Fund must derive at least 90% of its annual gross income from dividends, interest, payments with respect to securities loans, gains from the sale or other disposition of stock or securities or foreign currencies, or other income (including but not limited to gains from options, futures and forward contracts) derived with respect to its business of investing in such stock, securities or currencies, or net income derived from interests in “qualified publicly traded partnerships” (as defined in the Code) (the “90% gross income test”). Second, the Fund must diversify its holdings so that, at the close of each quarter of its taxable year, (i) at least 50% of the value of its total assets is comprised of cash, cash items, U.S. government securities, securities of other RICs and other securities, with such other securities limited in respect of any one issuer to an amount not greater in value than 5% of the value of the Fund’s total assets and to not more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of such issuer, and (ii) not more than 25% of the value of the total assets is invested in the securities (other than U.S. government securities and securities of other RICs) of any one issuer or two or more issuers controlled by the Fund and engaged in the same, similar or related trades or businesses, or any one or more “qualified publicly traded partnerships.”
As long as the Fund qualifies as a RIC, the Fund will generally not be subject to corporate-level U.S. federal income tax on income and gains that it distributes each taxable year to its shareholders, provided that in such taxable year it distributes at least 90% of the sum of (i) its “investment company taxable income” (which includes, among other items, dividends, taxable interest, taxable original issue discount and market discount income, income from securities lending, net short-term capital gain in excess of net long-term capital loss, and any other taxable income other than “net capital gain” (as defined below), reduced by deductible expenses) determined without regard to the deduction for dividends paid and (ii) its net tax-exempt interest (the excess of its gross tax-exempt interest income over certain disallowed deductions), if any. The Fund may retain for investment its net capital gain (which consists of the excess of its net long-term capital gain over its net short-term capital loss). However, if the Fund retains any net capital gain or any investment company taxable income, it will be subject to tax at regular corporate rates on the amount retained.
To avoid a 4% nondeductible U.S. federal excise tax, the Fund must distribute by December 31 of each calendar year the sum of at least 98% of its taxable ordinary income for such year, at least 98.2% of its capital gain net income (the excess of its capital gains over its capital losses, generally computed on the basis of the one-year period ending on October 31 of such year). In addition, the minimum amounts that must be distributed in any year to avoid the excise tax will be increased or decreased to reflect any under-distribution or over-distribution, as the case may be, from the previous year. For purposes of the excise tax, the Fund will be deemed to have distributed any income on which it paid U.S. federal income tax. The Fund intends to make timely distributions in compliance with these requirements, and consequently it is anticipated that it generally will not be required to pay the excise tax, although no assurances can be given in this regard.
If in any taxable year the Fund should fail to qualify under Subchapter M of the Code for tax treatment as a RIC, the Fund would incur a regular corporate U.S. federal income tax upon all of its taxable income for that year, and all distributions to its shareholders (including distributions of tax-exempt interest income or net capital gain) would be taxable to shareholders as ordinary dividend income for U.S. federal income tax purposes to the extent of the Fund’s current or accumulated earnings and profits. In addition, to qualify again to be taxed as a RIC in a subsequent year, the Fund would be required to distribute to shareholders its earnings and profits attributable to non-RIC years. In addition, if the Fund failed to qualify as a RIC for a period greater than two taxable years, then to qualify as a RIC in a subsequent year, the Fund would be required to elect to recognize and
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pay tax on any net built-in gain (the excess of aggregate gain, including items of income, over aggregate loss that would have been realized if the Fund had been liquidated) or, alternatively, be subject to taxation on such built-in gain recognized for a period of five years. The remainder of this discussion assumes that the Fund qualifies for taxation as a RIC.
The Fund’s Investments
Certain of the Fund’s investment practices may be subject to special and complex U.S. federal income tax provisions that may, among other things, (i) disallow, suspend or otherwise limit the allowance of certain losses or deductions, (ii) convert lower taxed long-term capital gain or qualified dividend income into higher taxed short-term capital gain or ordinary income, (iii) convert tax-exempt income into taxable income, (iv) convert an ordinary loss or a deduction into a capital loss (the deductibility of which is more limited), (v) cause the Fund to recognize taxable income or gain without a corresponding receipt of cash, (vi) adversely affect when taxable income must be recognized or the time as to when a purchase or sale of stock or securities is deemed to occur, (vii) adversely alter the characterization of certain complex financial transactions or (viii) produce income that will not be qualifying income for purposes of the 90% gross income test. Although the Fund intends to monitor its transactions and may make certain tax elections to mitigate the effect of these provisions, no assurances can be made that the Fund will be able to do so.
The Fund may invest a portion of its net assets in below investment grade securities, commonly known as “junk” securities. Investments in these types of securities may present special tax issues for the Fund. U.S. federal income tax rules are not entirely clear about issues such as when the Fund may cease to accrue interest, original issue discount or market discount, when and to what extent deductions may be taken for bad debts or worthless securities, how payments received on obligations in default should be allocated between principal and income and whether modifications or exchanges of debt obligations in a bankruptcy or workout context are taxable. These and other issues could affect the Fund’s ability to distribute sufficient income to preserve its status as a RIC or to avoid the imposition of U.S. federal income or excise tax.
Certain debt securities acquired by the Fund may be treated as debt securities that were originally issued at a discount. Generally, the amount of the original issue discount is treated as interest income and is included in taxable income (and required to be distributed by the Fund to qualify as a RIC and avoid U.S. federal income tax or the 4% excise tax on undistributed income) over the term of the security, even though payment of that amount is not received until a later time, usually when the debt security matures.
If the Fund purchases a debt security on a secondary market at a price lower than its adjusted issue price, the excess of the adjusted issue price over the purchase price is “market discount.” Unless the Fund makes an election to accrue market discount on a current basis, generally, any gain realized on the disposition of, and any partial payment of principal on, such a debt security having market discount is treated as ordinary income to the extent the gain, or principal payment, does not exceed the “accrued market discount” on the debt security. Market discount generally accrues in equal daily installments. If the Fund ultimately collects less on the debt instrument than its purchase price plus the market discount previously included in income, the Fund may not be able to benefit from any offsetting loss deductions.
The Fund may invest in preferred securities or other investments the U.S. federal income tax treatment of which may not be clear or may be subject to recharacterization by the IRS. To the extent the tax treatment of such investments or the income from such investments differs from the tax treatment expected by the Fund, it could affect the timing or character of income recognized by the Fund, potentially requiring the Fund to purchase or sell securities, or otherwise change its portfolio, to comply with the tax rules applicable to RICs under the Code.
Gain or loss on the sale of securities, including tax-exempt municipal securities, by the Fund will generally be long-term capital gain or loss if the securities have been held by the Fund for more than one year. Gain or loss on the sale of securities held for one year or less will be short-term capital gain or loss.
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Because the Fund may invest in foreign securities, its income from such securities may be subject to non-U.S. taxes. The Fund does not expect that it will be eligible to elect to “pass through” to common shareholders of the Fund the ability to use the foreign tax deduction or foreign tax credit for foreign taxes paid by the Fund with respect to qualifying taxes.
Foreign currency gain or loss on foreign currency exchange contracts, non-U.S. dollar-denominated securities contracts, and non-U.S. dollar-denominated futures contracts, options and forward contracts that are not section 1256 contracts (as defined below) generally will be treated as ordinary income and loss.
Income from options on individual securities written by the Fund will generally not be recognized by the Fund for tax purposes until an option is exercised, lapses or is subject to a “closing transaction” (as defined by applicable regulations) pursuant to which the Fund’s obligations with respect to the option are otherwise terminated. If the option lapses without exercise, the premiums received by the Fund from the writing of such options will generally be characterized as short-term capital gain. If the Fund enters into a closing transaction, the difference between the premiums received and the amount paid by the Fund to close out its position will generally be treated as short-term capital gain or loss. If an option written by the Fund is exercised, thereby requiring the Fund to sell the underlying security, the premium will increase the amount realized upon the sale of the security, and the character of any gain on such sale of the underlying security as short-term or long-term capital gain will depend on the holding period of the Fund in the underlying security.
Options on indices of securities and sectors of securities that qualify as “section 1256 contracts” will generally be “marked-to-market” for U.S. federal income tax purposes. As a result, the Fund will generally recognize gain or loss on the last day of each taxable year equal to the difference between the value of the option on that date and the adjusted basis of the option. The adjusted basis of the option will consequently be increased by such gain or decreased by such loss. Any gain or loss with respect to options on indices and sectors that qualify as “section 1256 contracts” will be treated as short-term capital gain or loss to the extent of 40% of such gain or loss and long-term capital gain or loss to the extent of 60% of such gain or loss. Because the mark-to-market rules may cause the Fund to recognize gain in advance of the receipt of cash, the Fund may be required to dispose of investments to meet its distribution requirements. “Mark-to-market” losses may be suspended or otherwise limited if such losses are part of a straddle or similar transaction.
Taxation of Shareholders
The Fund will either distribute or retain for reinvestment all or part of its net capital gain. If any such gain is retained, the Fund will be subject to a corporate income tax on such retained amount. In that event, the Fund expects to report the retained amount as undistributed capital gain in a notice to its common shareholders, each of whom, if subject to U.S. federal income tax on long-term capital gains, (i) will be required to include in income for U.S. federal income tax purposes as long-term capital gain its share of such undistributed amounts, (ii) will be entitled to credit its proportionate share of the tax paid by the Fund against its U.S. federal income tax liability and to claim refunds to the extent that the credit exceeds such liability and (iii) will increase its basis in its Shares by the amount of undistributed capital gains included in the shareholder’s income less the tax deemed paid by the shareholder under clause (ii).
Distributions paid to you by the Fund from its net capital gain, if any, that the Fund properly reports as capital gain dividends (“capital gain dividends”) are taxable as long-term capital gains, regardless of how long you have held your Shares. All other dividends paid to you by the Fund (including dividends from net short-term capital gains) from its current or accumulated earnings and profits (“ordinary income dividends”) are generally subject to tax as ordinary income. Provided that certain holding period and other requirements are met, ordinary income dividends (if properly reported by the Fund) may qualify (i) for the dividends received deduction in the case of corporate shareholders to the extent that the Fund’s income consists of dividend income from U.S. corporations, (ii) in the case of individual shareholders, as “qualified dividend income” eligible to be taxed at long-term capital gains rates to the extent that the Fund receives qualified dividend income, and (iii) in the case
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of individual shareholders, as “section 199A dividends” eligible for a 20% “qualified business income” deduction in tax years beginning after December 31, 2017 and before January 1, 2026 to the extent the Fund receives ordinary REIT dividends, reduced by allocable Fund expenses. Qualified dividend income is, in general, dividend income from taxable domestic corporations and certain qualified foreign corporations (e.g., generally, foreign corporations incorporated in a possession of the United States or in certain countries with a qualifying comprehensive tax treaty with the United States, or whose stock with respect to which such dividend is paid is readily tradable on an established securities market in the United States). There can be no assurance as to what portion, if any, of the Fund’s distributions will constitute qualified dividend income.
Any distributions you receive that are in excess of the Fund’s current and accumulated earnings and profits will be treated as a return of capital to the extent of your adjusted tax basis in your Shares, and thereafter as capital gain from the sale of Shares. The amount of any Fund distribution that is treated as a return of capital will reduce your adjusted tax basis in your Shares, thereby increasing your potential gain or reducing your potential loss on any subsequent sale or other disposition of your Shares.
Common shareholders may be entitled to offset their capital gain dividends with capital losses. The Code contains a number of statutory provisions affecting when capital losses may be offset against capital gain, and limiting the use of losses from certain investments and activities. Accordingly, common shareholders that have capital losses are urged to consult their tax advisers.
Dividends and other taxable distributions are taxable to you even though they are reinvested in additional Shares of the Fund. Dividends and other distributions paid by the Fund are generally treated under the Code as received by you at the time the dividend or distribution is made. If, however, the Fund pays you a dividend in January that was declared in the previous October, November or December to common shareholders of record on a specified date in one of such months, then such dividend will be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as being paid by the Fund and received by you on December 31 of the year in which the dividend was declared. In addition, certain other distributions made after the close of the Fund’s taxable year may be “spilled back” and treated as paid by the Fund (except for purposes of the 4% nondeductible excise tax) during such taxable year. In such case, you will be treated as having received such dividends in the taxable year in which the distributions were actually made.
The price of Shares purchased at any time may reflect the amount of a forthcoming distribution. Those purchasing Shares just prior to the record date for a distribution will receive a distribution which will be taxable to them even though it represents, economically, a return of invested capital.
The Fund will send you information after the end of each year setting forth the amount and tax status of any distributions paid to you by the Fund.
Subject to the discussion of repurchases below, the sale or other disposition of Shares will generally result in capital gain or loss to you and will be long-term capital gain or loss if you have held such Shares for more than one year at the time of sale. Any loss upon the sale or other disposition of Shares held for six months or less will be treated as long-term capital loss to the extent of any capital gain dividends received (including amounts credited as an undistributed capital gain dividend) by you with respect to such Shares. Any loss you recognize on a sale or other disposition of Shares will be disallowed if you acquire other Shares (whether through the automatic reinvestment of dividends or otherwise) within a 61-day period beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after your sale or exchange of the Shares. In such case, your tax basis in the Shares acquired will be adjusted to reflect the disallowed loss.
The repurchase of Shares through a periodic repurchase offer will be a taxable transaction for U.S. federal income tax purposes, either as a “sale or exchange,” or under certain circumstances, as a “dividend.” In general, the transaction should be treated as a sale or exchange of shares if the receipt of cash (a) is “substantially disproportionate” with respect to the shareholder, (b) results in a “complete redemption” of the shareholder’s
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interest, or (c) is “not essentially equivalent to a dividend” with respect to the shareholder. A “substantially disproportionate” distribution generally requires a reduction of at least 20% in the shareholder’s proportionate interest in the Fund and also requires the shareholder to own less than 50% of the voting power of all classes of the Fund entitled to vote immediately after the repurchase. A “complete redemption” of a shareholder’s interest generally requires that all shares of the Fund owned by such shareholder be disposed of. A distribution “not essentially equivalent to a dividend” requires that there be a “meaningful reduction” in the shareholder’s proportionate interest in the Fund, which should result if the shareholder has a minimal interest in the Fund, exercises no control over Fund affairs and suffers a reduction in his proportionate interest in the Fund. In determining whether any of these tests has been met, any Fund shares actually owned, as well as shares considered to be owned by the shareholder by reason of certain constructive ownership rules set forth in section 318 of the Code, generally must be taken into account.
If the repurchase of your Shares meets any of these three tests for “sale or exchange” treatment, you will recognize gain or loss equal to the difference between the amount of cash and the fair market value of other property received pursuant to the repurchase and the adjusted tax basis of the Shares sold. If none of the tests described above are met with respect to a repurchase, you may be treated as having received, in whole or in part, a dividend, return of capital or capital gain, depending on (i) whether there are sufficient earnings and profits to support a dividend and (ii) your tax basis in the relevant Shares. The tax basis in the Shares tendered to the Fund will be transferred to any remaining Shares held by you in the Fund. In addition, if the sale of Shares pursuant to the applicable repurchase is treated as a “dividend” to a tendering stockholder, a constructive dividend under certain provisions of the Code may result to a non-tendering shareholder whose proportionate interest in the earnings and assets of the Fund has been increased as a result of such tender.
Current U.S. federal income tax law taxes both long-term and short-term capital gain of corporations at the rates applicable to ordinary income. For non-corporate taxpayers, short-term capital gain is currently taxed at rates applicable to ordinary income while long-term capital gain generally is taxed at a reduced maximum rate. The deductibility of capital losses is subject to limitations under the Code.
Certain U.S. holders who are individuals, estates or trusts and whose income exceeds certain thresholds will be required to pay a 3.8% Medicare tax on all or a portion of their “net investment income,” which includes dividends received from the Fund and capital gains from the sale or other disposition of the Fund’s stock.
A common shareholder that is a nonresident alien individual or a foreign corporation (a “foreign investor”) generally will be subject to U.S. federal withholding tax at the rate of 30% (or possibly a lower rate provided by an applicable tax treaty) on ordinary income dividends (except as discussed below). In general, U.S. federal withholding tax and U.S. federal income tax will not apply to any gain or income realized by a foreign investor in respect of any distribution of net capital gain (including amounts credited as an undistributed capital gain dividend) or upon the sale or other disposition of Shares of the Fund. Different tax consequences may result if the foreign investor is engaged in a trade or business in the United States or, in the case of an individual, is present in the United States for 183 days or more during a taxable year and certain other conditions are met. Foreign investors should consult their tax advisers regarding the tax consequences of investing in the Fund’s Shares.
Ordinary income dividends properly reported by a RIC are generally exempt from U.S. federal withholding tax where they (i) are paid in respect of the RIC’s “qualified net interest income” (generally, its U.S.-source interest income, other than certain contingent interest and interest from obligations of a corporation or partnership in which the RIC is at least a 10% shareholder, reduced by expenses that are allocable to such income) or (ii) are paid in respect of the RIC’s “qualified short-term capital gains” (generally, the excess of the RIC’s net short-term capital gain over its long-term capital loss for such taxable year). Depending on its circumstances, the Fund may report all, some or none of its potentially eligible dividends as qualified net interest income or as qualified short-term capital gains, and/or treat such dividends, in whole or in part, as ineligible for this exemption from withholding. To qualify for this exemption from withholding, a foreign investor needs to comply with applicable certification requirements relating to its non-U.S. status (including, in general, furnishing
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an IRS Form W-8BEN, W-8BEN-E, or substitute Form). In the case of Shares held through an intermediary, the intermediary may withhold even if the Fund reports the payment as qualified net interest income or qualified short-term capital gain. Foreign investors should contact their intermediaries with respect to the application of these rules to their accounts. There can be no assurance as to what portion of the Fund’s distributions would qualify for favorable treatment as qualified net interest income or qualified short-term capital gains.
Separately, legislation commonly known as “FATCA,” and existing guidance issued thereunder require withholding at a rate of 30% on dividends in respect of common shares of the Fund held by or through certain foreign financial institutions (including investment funds), unless such institution enters into an agreement with the Treasury to report, on an annual basis, information with respect to shares in, and accounts maintained by, the institution to the extent such shares or accounts are held by certain U.S. persons and by certain non-U.S. entities that are wholly or partially owned by U.S. persons and to withhold on certain payments. Accordingly, the entity through which common shares of the Fund is held will affect the determination of whether such withholding is required. Similarly, dividends in respect of common shares of the Fund held by an investor that is a non-financial foreign entity that does not qualify under certain exemptions will be subject to withholding at a rate of 30%, unless such entity either (i) certifies that such entity does not have any “substantial United States owners” or (ii) provides certain information regarding the entity’s “substantial United States owners,” which the applicable withholding agent will in turn provide to the Secretary of the Treasury. An intergovernmental agreement between the United States and an applicable foreign country, or future Treasury regulations or other guidance, may modify these requirements. The Fund will not pay any additional amounts to shareholders in respect of any amounts withheld. Foreign investors are encouraged to consult with their tax advisers regarding the possible implications of these rules on their investment in the Fund’s Shares.
U.S. federal backup withholding tax may be required on dividends, distributions and sale proceeds payable to certain non-exempt common shareholders who fail to supply their correct taxpayer identification number (in the case of individuals, generally, their social security number) or to make required certifications, or who are otherwise subject to backup withholding. Backup withholding is not an additional tax and any amount withheld may be refunded or credited against your U.S. federal income tax liability, if any, provided that you timely furnish the required information to the IRS.
Ordinary income dividends, capital gain dividends, and gain from the sale or other disposition of Shares of the Fund also may be subject to state, local, and/or foreign taxes. Common shareholders are urged to consult their own tax advisers regarding specific questions about U.S. federal, state, local or foreign tax consequences to them of investing in the Fund.
***
The foregoing is a general and abbreviated summary of the provisions of the Code and the Treasury Regulations presently in effect as they directly govern the taxation of the Fund and the Fund’s shareholders. For complete provisions, reference should be made to the pertinent Code sections and Treasury Regulations. The Code and the Treasury Regulations are subject to change by legislative or administrative action, and any such change may be retroactive with respect to Fund transactions. Holders of Shares are advised to consult their own tax advisors for more detailed information concerning the U.S. federal income taxation of the Fund and the income tax consequences to their holders of Shares.
CUSTODIAN AND TRANSFER AGENT
The custodian of the assets of the Fund is State Street Bank and Trust Company (previously defined as “State Street”), whose principal business address is One Congress Street, Suite 1, Boston, Massachusetts 02114-2016. The custodian is responsible for, among other things, receipt of and disbursement of funds from the Fund’s accounts, establishment of segregated accounts as necessary, and transfer, exchange and delivery of the Fund’s portfolio securities.
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BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (U.S.) Inc., whose principal business address is 301 Bellevue Parkway Wilmington, Delaware 19809, serves as the Fund’s transfer agent with respect to the Shares.
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
Deloitte & Touche LLP, whose principal business address is 115 Federal Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02110, is the independent registered public accounting firm of the Fund and is expected to render an opinion annually on the financial statements of the Fund.
CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS OF SECURITIES
A control person is a person who beneficially owns, either directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the voting securities of a company. As of November 20, 2025, the following persons owned or record or beneficially 25% or more of the Fund’s outstanding shares:
| Name |
Address |
Class |
Percentage of Class | |||
| Morgan Stanley Smith Barney |
1 NEW YORK PLAZA NEW YORK, NY 10004 |
Institutional | 25.49% | |||
| BlackRock Investments LLC |
50 HUDSON YARDS NEW YORK |
Class A | 100% | |||
| Morgan Stanley Smith Barney |
1 NEW YORK PLAZA NEW YORK, NY 10004 |
Class U | 91.27% |
As of November 20, 2025, the following persons owned of record or beneficially 5% or more of any class of the Fund’s outstanding Shares:
| Name |
Address |
Class |
Percentage of Class | |||
| Charles Schwab & Co Inc |
101 MONTGOMERY ST SAN FRANCISCO |
Institutional | 20.33% | |||
| Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner |
4800 E DEERLAKE DR 3RD FLR JACKSONVILLE |
Institutional | 12.82% | |||
| National Financial Services LLC |
499 WASHINGTON BLVD JERSEY CITY, NJ 07310 |
Institutional | 12.73% | |||
| Wells Fargo Clearing SVCS LLC |
ONE NORTH JEFFERSON AVENUE SAINT LOUIS, |
Institutional | 10.17% | |||
| Pershing LLC |
1 PERSHING PLAZA JERSEY CITY |
Institutional | 5.02% | |||
| BlackRock Investments |
50 HUDSON YARDS NEW YORK |
Class U | 8.73% |
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FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The audited financial statements and financial highlights included in the Annual Report to the Fund’s shareholders for the fiscal year ended July 31, 2025, together with the report of Deloitte & Touche LLP for the Fund’s Annual Report, are incorporated herein by reference to the Fund’s Annual Report to shareholders filed on Form N-CSR. All other portions of the Annual Report to shareholders are not incorporated herein by reference and are not part of the registration statement, the SAI, the prospectus or any prospectus supplement.
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APPENDIX A
DESCRIPTION OF BOND RATINGS
A rating is generally assigned to a fixed-income security at the time of issuance by a credit rating agency designated as a nationally recognized statistical rating organization (“NRSRO”) by the SEC. While NRSROs may from time to time revise such ratings, they undertake no obligation to do so, and the ratings given to securities at issuance do not necessarily represent ratings which would be given to these securities on a particular subsequent date.
NRSROs may rate specific investments (e.g., bonds), issuers (e.g., corporations, governments and financial institutions) and/or programs (e.g., commercial paper programs). However, certain types of investments may not be rated by NRSROs, such as certain government/sovereign obligations, US agency securities, commercial paper, time deposits at financial institutions, and derivative instruments such as credit default swaps. For these types of investments, as well as US Treasury securities (some of which are not rated), where a NRSRO has not rated the specific investment but has rated the investment’s issuer, program, financial institution or underlying reference asset, BlackRock Advisors, LLC, BlackRock Fund Advisors or their respective affiliates (“BlackRock”) may consider the investment to have the same NRSRO rating as its issuer, program, financial institution or underlying reference asset, as applicable. In the case of municipal securities, where one NRSRO provides multiple ratings for the same security (e.g., “underlying,” “insured” and/or “enhanced” ratings), BlackRock may consider the security to have the highest of the multiple ratings.
New issue securities (regardless of type) may not be rated by a NRSRO at the time of their initial offering. Preliminary prospectuses or term sheets for new issue securities may include an expected rating for the security (as determined by the underwriter and/or issuer) or a NRSRO rating for the issuer of the security. If applicable, when deciding whether to purchase a new issue security that has not yet been rated by a NRSRO, BlackRock may attribute an expected rating to the security based on: (i) the expected rating of the security set forth in the preliminary prospectus or term sheet for the security; (ii) the NRSRO’s rating for the issuer of the security set forth in the preliminary prospectus or term sheet for the security; or (iii) with respect to asset-backed securities, the rating of a prior issuance having a similar structure or the same sponsor.
Where the investment objective of a fund is to track the performance of an index that includes credit ratings eligibility criteria as part of its index methodology, the fund may purchase any security within the index, such security having been determined by the index provider as meeting its credit ratings eligibility criteria. The credit ratings practices of an index provider may differ from BlackRock’s practices, as described above. Further, the fund may invest, directly or indirectly, in securities that are not rated by a rating agency or securities with a credit rating that differs from the credit rating specified in its index methodology in various circumstances, including where a security is downgraded but not yet removed from an index, following the removal of a security from an index prior to its sale by the fund or as a result of a corporate action or restructuring affecting an issuer of a security held by the fund.
Fixed-income securities which are unrated may expose the investor to risks with respect to capacity to pay interest or repay principal which are similar to the risks of lower-rated speculative bonds. Evaluation of these securities is dependent on BlackRock’s judgment, analysis and experience in the evaluation of such securities.
Investors should note that the assignment of a rating to a security by an NRSRO may not reflect the effect of recent developments on the issuer’s ability to make interest and principal payments or on the likelihood of default.
Securities deemed to be high yield are rated below Baa3 by Moody’s and below BBB- by S&P Global Ratings and Fitch.
The descriptions below relate to general long-term and short-term obligations of an issuer.
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A Description of Moody’s Investors Service, Inc.’s (“Moody’s”) Global Rating Scales
Ratings assigned on Moody’s global long-term and short-term rating scales are forward-looking opinions of the relative credit risks of financial obligations issued by non-financial corporates, financial institutions, structured finance vehicles, project finance vehicles, and public sector entities. Moody’s defines credit risk as the risk that an entity may not meet its contractual financial obligations as they come due and any estimated financial loss in the event of default or impairment. The contractual financial obligations addressed by Moody’s ratings are those that call for, without regard to enforceability, the payment of an ascertainable amount, which may vary based upon standard sources of variation (e.g., floating interest rates), by an ascertainable date. Moody’s rating addresses the issuer’s ability to obtain cash sufficient to service the obligation, and its willingness to pay. Moody’s ratings do not address non-standard sources of variation in the amount of the principal obligation (e.g., equity indexed), absent an express statement to the contrary in a press release accompanying an initial rating. Long-term ratings are assigned to issuers or obligations with an original maturity of one year or more and reflect both on the likelihood of a default or impairment on contractual financial obligations and the expected financial loss suffered in the event of default or impairment. Short-term ratings are assigned for obligations with an original maturity of thirteen months or less and reflect both on the likelihood of a default or impairment on contractual financial obligations and the expected financial loss suffered in the event of default or impairment. Moody’s issues ratings at the issuer level and instrument level on both the long-term scale and the short-term scale. Typically, ratings are made publicly available although private and unpublished ratings may also be assigned.
Moody’s differentiates structured finance ratings from fundamental ratings (i.e., ratings on nonfinancial corporate, financial institution, and public sector entities) on the global long-term scale by adding (sf) to all structured finance ratings. The addition of (sf) to structured finance ratings should eliminate any presumption that such ratings and fundamental ratings at the same letter grade level will behave the same. The (sf) indicator for structured finance security ratings indicates that otherwise similarly rated structured finance and fundamental securities may have different risk characteristics. Through its current methodologies, however, Moody’s aspires to achieve broad expected equivalence in structured finance and fundamental rating performance when measured over a long period of time.
Description of Moody’s Global Long-Term Rating Scale
| Aaa |
Obligations rated Aaa are judged to be of the highest quality, subject to the lowest level of credit risk. |
| Aa |
Obligations rated Aa are judged to be of high quality and are subject to very low credit risk. |
| A |
Obligations rated A are judged to be upper-medium grade and are subject to low credit risk. |
| Baa |
Obligations rated Baa are judged to be medium-grade and subject to moderate credit risk and as such may possess certain speculative characteristics. |
| Ba |
Obligations rated Ba are judged to be speculative and are subject to substantial credit risk. |
| B |
Obligations rated B are considered speculative and are subject to high credit risk. |
| Caa |
Obligations rated Caa are judged to be speculative of poor standing and are subject to very high credit risk. |
| Ca |
Obligations rated Ca are highly speculative and are likely in, or very near, default, with some prospect of recovery of principal and interest. |
| C |
Obligations rated C are the lowest rated and are typically in default, with little prospect for recovery of principal or interest. |
Note: Moody’s appends numerical modifiers 1, 2, and 3 to each generic rating classification from Aa through Caa. The modifier 1 indicates that the obligation ranks in the higher end of its generic rating category;
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the modifier 2 indicates a mid-range ranking; and the modifier 3 indicates a ranking in the lower end of that generic rating category. Additionally, a “(hyb)” indicator is appended to all ratings of hybrid securities issued by banks, insurers, finance companies, and securities firms.
By their terms, hybrid securities allow for the omission of scheduled dividends, interest, or principal payments, which can potentially result in impairment if such an omission occurs. Hybrid securities may also be subject to contractually allowable write-downs of principal that could result in impairment. Together with the hybrid indicator, the long-term obligation rating assigned to a hybrid security is an expression of the relative credit risk associated with that security.
Description of Moody’s Global Short-Term Rating Scale
| P-1 |
Ratings of Prime-1 reflect a superior ability to repay short-term obligations. |
| P-2 |
Ratings of Prime-2 reflect a strong ability to repay short-term obligations. |
| P-3 |
Ratings of Prime-3 reflect an acceptable ability to repay short-term obligations. |
| NP |
Issuers (or supporting institutions) rated Not Prime do not fall within any of the Prime rating categories. |
Description of Moody’s U.S. Municipal Short-Term Debt and Demand Obligation Ratings
Description of Moody’s Short-Term Obligation Ratings
Moody’s uses the global short-term Prime rating scale for commercial paper issued by U.S. municipalities and nonprofits. These commercial paper programs may be backed by external letters of credit or liquidity facilities, or by an issuer’s self-liquidity.
For other short-term municipal obligations, Moody’s uses one of two other short-term rating scales, the Municipal Investment Grade (“MIG”) and Variable Municipal Investment Grade (“VMIG”) scales discussed below.
Moody’s uses the MIG scale for U.S. municipal cash flow notes, bond anticipation notes and certain other short-term obligations, which typically mature in three years or less. Under certain circumstances, Moody’s uses the MIG scale for bond anticipation notes with maturities of up to five years.
MIG Scale
| MIG 1 |
This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by established cash flows, highly reliable liquidity support, or demonstrated broad-based access to the market for refinancing. |
| MIG 2 |
This designation denotes strong credit quality. Margins of protection are ample, although not as large as in the preceding group. |
| MIG 3 |
This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Liquidity and cash-flow protection may be narrow, and market access for refinancing is likely to be less well-established. |
| SG |
This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Debt instruments in this category may lack sufficient margins of protection. |
Description of Moody’s Demand Obligation Ratings
In the case of variable rate demand obligations (“VRDOs”), a two-component rating is assigned. The components are a long-term rating and a short-term demand obligation rating. The long-term rating addresses the issuer’s ability to meet scheduled principal and interest payments. The short-term demand obligation rating addresses the ability of the issuer or the liquidity provider to make payments associated with the purchase-price-
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upon-demand feature (“demand feature”) of the VRDO. The short-term demand obligation rating uses the VMIG scale. VMIG ratings with liquidity support use as an input the short-term Counterparty Risk Assessment of the support provider, or the long-term rating of the underlying obligor in the absence of third party liquidity support. Transitions of VMIG ratings of demand obligations with conditional liquidity support differ from transitions on the Prime scale to reflect the risk that external liquidity support will terminate if the issuer’s long-term rating drops below investment grade.
Moody’s typically assigns the VMIG short-term demand obligation rating if the frequency of the demand feature is less than every three years. If the frequency of the demand feature is less than three years but the purchase price is payable only with remarketing proceeds, the short-term demand obligation rating is “NR”.
VMIG Scale
| VMIG 1 |
This designation denotes superior credit quality. Excellent protection is afforded by the superior short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand. |
| VMIG 2 |
This designation denotes strong credit quality. Good protection is afforded by the strong short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand. |
| VMIG 3 |
This designation denotes acceptable credit quality. Adequate protection is afforded by the satisfactory short-term credit strength of the liquidity provider and structural and legal protections that ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand. |
| SG |
This designation denotes speculative-grade credit quality. Demand features rated in this category may be supported by a liquidity provider that does not have a sufficiently strong short-term rating or may lack the structural or legal protections necessary to ensure the timely payment of purchase price upon demand. |
Description of S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”), a Division of S&P Global Inc., Issue Credit Ratings
An S&P issue credit rating is a forward-looking opinion about the creditworthiness of an obligor with respect to a specific financial obligation, a specific class of financial obligations, or a specific financial program (including ratings on medium-term note programs and commercial paper programs). It takes into consideration the creditworthiness of guarantors, insurers, or other forms of credit enhancement on the obligation and takes into account the currency in which the obligation is denominated. The opinion reflects S&P’s view of the obligor’s capacity and willingness to meet its financial commitments as they come due, and this opinion may assess terms, such as collateral security and subordination, which could affect ultimate payment in the event of default.
Issue credit ratings can be either long-term or short-term. Short-term issue credit ratings are generally assigned to those obligations considered short-term in the relevant market, typically with an original maturity of no more than 365 days. Short-term issue credit ratings are also used to indicate the creditworthiness of an obligor with respect to put features on long-term obligations. S&P would typically assign a long-term issue credit rating to an obligation with an original maturity of greater than 365 days. However, the ratings S&P assigns to certain instruments may diverge from these guidelines based on market practices. Medium-term notes are assigned long-term ratings.
Issue credit ratings are based, in varying degrees, on S&P’s analysis of the following considerations:
| • |
The likelihood of payment—the capacity and willingness of the obligor to meet its financial commitments on an obligation in accordance with the terms of the obligation; |
| • |
The nature and provisions of the financial obligation, and the promise S&P imputes; and |
A-4
| • |
The protection afforded by, and relative position of, the financial obligation in the event of a bankruptcy, reorganization, or other arrangement under the laws of bankruptcy and other laws affecting creditors’ rights. |
An issue rating is an assessment of default risk but may incorporate an assessment of relative seniority or ultimate recovery in the event of default. Junior obligations are typically rated lower than senior obligations, to reflect lower priority in bankruptcy, as noted above. (Such differentiation may apply when an entity has both senior and subordinated obligations, secured and unsecured obligations, or operating company and holding company obligations.)
Long-Term Issue Credit Ratings*
| AAA |
An obligation rated ‘AAA’ has the highest rating assigned by S&P. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is extremely strong. | |
| AA |
An obligation rated ‘AA’ differs from the highest-rated obligations only to a small degree. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is very strong. | |
| A |
An obligation rated ‘A’ is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher-rated categories. However, the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is still strong. | |
| BBB |
An obligation rated ‘BBB’ exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to weaken the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. | |
| BB, B, CCC, CC, and C |
Obligations rated ‘BB’, ‘B’, ‘CCC’, ‘CC’, and ‘C’ are regarded as having significant speculative characteristics. ‘BB’ indicates the least degree of speculation and ‘C’ the highest. While such obligations will likely have some quality and protective characteristics, these may be outweighed by large uncertainties or major exposure to adverse conditions. | |
| BB |
An obligation rated ‘BB’ is less vulnerable to nonpayment than other speculative issues. However, it faces major ongoing uncertainties or exposure to adverse business, financial, or economic conditions that could lead to the obligor’s inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. | |
| B |
An obligation rated ‘B’ is more vulnerable to nonpayment than obligations rated ‘BB’, but the obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. Adverse business, financial, or economic conditions will likely impair the obligor’s capacity or willingness to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. | |
| CCC |
An obligation rated ‘CCC’ is currently vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. In the event of adverse business, financial, or economic conditions, the obligor is not likely to have the capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. | |
| CC |
An obligation rated ‘CC’ is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment. The ‘CC’ rating is used when a default has not yet occurred but S&P expects default to be a virtual certainty, regardless of the anticipated time to default. | |
| C |
An obligation rated ‘C’ is currently highly vulnerable to nonpayment, and the obligation is expected to have lower relative seniority or lower ultimate recovery compared with obligations that are rated higher. | |
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| D |
An obligation rated ‘D’ is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non-hybrid capital instruments, the ‘D’ rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P believes that such payments will be made within five business days in the absence of a stated grace period or within the earlier of the stated grace period or 30 calendar days. The ‘D’ rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. A rating on an obligation is lowered to ‘D’ if it is subject to a distressed debt restructuring. |
* Ratings from ‘AA’ to ‘CCC’ may be modified by the addition of a plus (+) or minus (-) sign to show relative standing within the rating categories.
Short-Term Issue Credit Ratings
| A-1 |
A short-term obligation rated ‘A-1’ is rated in the highest category by S&P. The obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is strong. Within this category, certain obligations are designated with a plus sign (+). This indicates that the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on these obligations is extremely strong. | |
| A-2 |
A short-term obligation rated ‘A-2’ is somewhat more susceptible to the adverse effects of changes in circumstances and economic conditions than obligations in higher rating categories. However, the obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation is satisfactory. | |
| A-3 |
A short-term obligation rated ‘A-3’ exhibits adequate protection parameters. However, adverse economic conditions or changing circumstances are more likely to weaken an obligor’s capacity to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. | |
| B |
A short-term obligation rated ‘B’ is regarded as vulnerable and has significant speculative characteristics. The obligor currently has the capacity to meet its financial commitments; however, it faces major ongoing uncertainties that could lead to the obligor’s inadequate capacity to meet its financial commitments. | |
| C |
A short-term obligation rated ‘C’ is currently vulnerable to nonpayment and is dependent upon favorable business, financial, and economic conditions for the obligor to meet its financial commitments on the obligation. | |
| D |
A short-term obligation rated ‘D’ is in default or in breach of an imputed promise. For non-hybrid capital instruments, the ‘D’ rating category is used when payments on an obligation are not made on the date due, unless S&P believes that such payments will be made within any stated grace period. However, any stated grace period longer than five business days will be treated as five business days. The ‘D’ rating also will be used upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of a similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. A rating on an obligation is lowered to ‘D’ if it is subject to a distressed debt restructuring. | |
Description of S&P’s Municipal Short-Term Note Ratings
An S&P U.S. municipal note rating reflects S&P’s opinion about the liquidity factors and market access risks unique to the notes. Notes due in three years or less will likely receive a note rating. Notes with an original maturity of more than three years will most likely receive a long-term debt rating. In determining which type of rating, if any, to assign, S&P’s analysis will review the following considerations:
| • |
Amortization schedule—the larger the final maturity relative to other maturities, the more likely it will be treated as a note; and |
| • |
Source of payment—the more dependent the issue is on the market for its refinancing, the more likely it will be treated as a note. |
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S&P’s municipal short-term note rating symbols are as follows:
| SP-1 |
Strong capacity to pay principal and interest. An issue determined to possess a very strong capacity to pay debt service is given a plus (+) designation. |
| SP-2 |
Satisfactory capacity to pay principal and interest, with some vulnerability to adverse financial and economic changes over the term of the notes. |
| SP-3 |
Speculative capacity to pay principal and interest. |
| D |
‘D’ is assigned upon failure to pay the note when due, completion of a distressed debt restructuring, or the filing of a bankruptcy petition or the taking of similar action and where default on an obligation is a virtual certainty, for example due to automatic stay provisions. |
Description of Fitch Ratings’ (“Fitch’s”) Credit Ratings Scales
Fitch Ratings publishes opinions on a variety of scales. The most common of these are credit ratings, but the agency also publishes ratings, scores and other relative opinions relating to financial or operational strength. For example, Fitch also provides specialized ratings of servicers of residential and commercial mortgages, asset managers and funds. In each case, users should refer to the definitions of each individual scale for guidance on the dimensions of risk covered in each assessment.
Fitch’s credit ratings relating to issuers are an opinion on the relative ability of an entity to meet financial commitments, such as interest, preferred dividends, repayment of principal, insurance claims or counterparty obligations. Credit ratings relating to securities and obligations of an issuer can include a recovery expectation. Credit ratings are used by investors as indications of the likelihood of receiving the money owed to them in accordance with the terms on which they invested. The agency’s credit ratings cover the global spectrum of corporate, sovereign financial, bank, insurance, and public finance entities (including supranational and sub-national entities) and the securities or other obligations they issue, as well as structured finance securities backed by receivables or other financial assets.
The terms “investment grade” and “speculative grade” have established themselves over time as shorthand to describe the categories ‘AAA’ to ‘BBB’ (investment grade) and ‘BB’ to ‘D’ (speculative grade). The terms investment grade and speculative grade are market conventions and do not imply any recommendation or endorsement of a specific security for investment purposes. Investment grade categories indicate relatively low to moderate credit risk, while ratings in the speculative categories either signal a higher level of credit risk or that a default has already occurred.
For the convenience of investors, Fitch may also include issues relating to a rated issuer that are not and have not been rated on its web page. Such issues are also denoted as ‘NR’.
Credit ratings express risk in relative rank order, which is to say they are ordinal measures of credit risk and are not predictive of a specific frequency of default or loss. For information about the historical performance of ratings please refer to Fitch’s Ratings Transition and Default studies which detail the historical default rates and their meaning. The European Securities and Markets Authority also maintains a central repository of historical default rates.
Fitch’s credit ratings do not directly address any risk other than credit risk. In particular, ratings do not deal with the risk of a market value loss on a rated security due to changes in interest rates, liquidity and other market considerations. However, in terms of payment obligation on the rated liability, market risk may be considered to the extent that it influences the ability of an issuer to pay upon a commitment.
Ratings nonetheless do not reflect market risk to the extent that they influence the size or other conditionality of the obligation to pay upon a commitment (for example, in the case of index-linked bonds).
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In the default components of ratings assigned to individual obligations or instruments, the agency typically rates to the likelihood of non-payment or default in accordance with the terms of that instrument’s documentation. In limited cases, Fitch may include additional considerations (i.e., rate to a higher or lower standard than that implied in the obligation’s documentation).
The primary credit rating scales can be used to provide a rating of privately issued obligations or certain note issuance programs or for private ratings. In this case the rating is not published, but only provided to the issuer or its agents in the form of a rating letter.
The primary credit rating scales may also be used to provide ratings for a more narrow scope, including interest strips and return of principal or in other forms of opinions such as credit opinions or rating assessment services. Credit opinions are either a notch- or category-specific view using the primary rating scale and omit one or more characteristics of a full rating or meet them to a different standard. Credit opinions will be indicated using a lower case letter symbol combined with either an ‘*’ (e.g., ‘bbb+*’) or (cat) suffix to denote the opinion status. Credit opinions will be point-in-time typically but may be monitored if the analytical group believes information will be sufficiently available. Rating assessment services are a notch-specific view using the primary rating scale of how an existing or potential rating may be changed by a given set of hypothetical circumstances. While credit opinions and rating assessment services are point-in-time and are not monitored, they may have a directional watch or outlook assigned, which can signify the trajectory of the credit profile.
Description of Fitch’s Long-Term Corporate Finance Obligations Rating Scales
Ratings of individual securities or financial obligations of a corporate issuer address relative vulnerability to default on an ordinal scale. In addition, for financial obligations in corporate finance, a measure of recovery given default on that liability is also included in the rating assessment. This notably applies to covered bonds ratings, which incorporate both an indication of the probability of default and of the recovery given a default of this debt instrument. On the contrary, Ratings of debtor-in-possession (“DIP”) obligations incorporate the expectation of full repayment.
The relationship between the issuer scale and obligation scale assumes a generic historical average recovery. Individual obligations can be assigned ratings higher, lower, or the same as that entity’s issuer rating or issuer default rating (“IDR”), based on their relative ranking, relative vulnerability to default or based on explicit Recovery Ratings.
As a result, individual obligations of entities, such as corporations, are assigned ratings higher, lower, or the same as that entity’s issuer rating or IDR, except DIP obligation ratings that are not based off an IDR. At the lower end of the ratings scale, Fitch publishes explicit Recovery Ratings in many cases to complement issuer and obligation ratings.
Fitch long-term obligations rating scales are as follows:
| AAA |
Highest Credit Quality. ‘AAA’ ratings denote the lowest expectation of credit risk. They are assigned only in cases of exceptionally strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is highly unlikely to be adversely affected by foreseeable events. | |
| AA |
Very High Credit Quality. ‘AA’ ratings denote expectations of very low credit risk. They indicate very strong capacity for payment of financial commitments. This capacity is not significantly vulnerable to foreseeable events. | |
| A |
High Credit Quality. ‘A’ ratings denote expectations of low credit risk. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered strong. This capacity may, nevertheless, be more vulnerable to adverse business or economic conditions than is the case for higher ratings. | |
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| BBB |
Good Credit Quality. ‘BBB’ ratings indicate that expectations of credit risk are currently low. The capacity for payment of financial commitments is considered adequate, but adverse business or economic conditions are more likely to impair this capacity. | |
| BB |
Speculative. ‘BB’ ratings indicate an elevated vulnerability to credit risk, particularly in the event of adverse changes in business or economic conditions over time; however, business or financial alternatives may be available to allow financial commitments to be met. | |
| B |
Highly Speculative. ‘B’ ratings indicate that material credit risk is present. | |
| CCC |
Substantial Credit Risk. ‘CCC’ ratings indicate that substantial credit risk is present. | |
| CC |
Very High Levels of Credit Risk. ‘CC’ ratings indicate very high levels of credit risk. | |
| C |
Exceptionally High Levels of Credit Risk. ‘C’ indicates exceptionally high levels of credit risk. | |
Within rating categories, Fitch may use modifiers. The modifiers “+” or “-” may be appended to a rating to denote relative status within major rating categories.
For example, the rating category ‘AA’ has three notch-specific rating levels (‘AA+’; ‘AA’; ‘AA-’; each a rating level). Such suffixes are not added to ‘AAA’ ratings and ratings below the ‘CCC’ category. For the short-term rating category of ‘F1’, a ‘+’ may be appended.
Description of Fitch’s Short-Term Ratings Assigned to Issuers and Obligations
A short-term issuer or obligation rating is based in all cases on the short-term vulnerability to default of the rated entity and relates to the capacity to meet financial obligations in accordance with the documentation governing the relevant obligation. Short-term deposit ratings may be adjusted for loss severity. Short-term ratings are assigned to obligations whose initial maturity is viewed as “short term” based on market convention. Typically, this means up to 13 months for corporate, sovereign, and structured obligations and up to 36 months for obligations in U.S. public finance markets.
Fitch short-term ratings are as follows:
| F1 |
Highest Short-Term Credit Quality. Indicates the strongest intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments; may have an added “+” to denote any exceptionally strong credit feature. | |
| F2 |
Good Short-Term Credit Quality. Good intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments. | |
| F3 |
Fair Short-Term Credit Quality. The intrinsic capacity for timely payment of financial commitments is adequate. | |
| B |
Speculative Short-Term Credit Quality. Minimal capacity for timely payment of financial commitments, plus heightened vulnerability to near term adverse changes in financial and economic conditions. | |
| C |
High Short-Term Default Risk. Default is a real possibility. | |
| RD |
Restricted Default. Indicates an entity that has defaulted on one or more of its financial commitments, although it continues to meet other financial obligations. Typically applicable to entity ratings only. | |
| D |
Default. Indicates a broad-based default event for an entity, or the default of a short-term obligation. | |
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APPENDIX B
PROXY VOTING POLICIES—BLACKROCK CLOSED-END FUNDS
Closed-End Fund Proxy Voting Policy
| • |
Procedures Governing Delegation of Proxy Voting to Fund Adviser |
Effective Date: January 1, 2025
| • |
Applies to the following types of Funds registered under the 1940 Act: |
Open-End Mutual Funds (including money market funds)
Money Market Funds Only
iShares and BlackRock ETFs
Closed-End Funds
Other
Objective and Scope
Set forth below is the Closed-End Fund Proxy Voting Policy.
Policy / Document Requirements and Statements
The Boards of Trustees/Directors (the “Directors”) of the closed-end funds advised by BlackRock Advisors, LLC (“BlackRock”), (the “Funds”) have the responsibility for the oversight of voting proxies relating to portfolio securities of the Funds, and have determined that it is in the best interests of the Funds and their shareholders to delegate the responsibility to vote proxies to BlackRock as part of BlackRock’s authority to manage, acquire and dispose of account assets, all as contemplated by the Funds’ respective investment management agreements.
BlackRock has adopted the BlackRock Active Investment Stewardship Global Engagement and Voting Guidelines (as from time to time amended, the “Guidelines”) governing proxy voting by accounts managed by BlackRock.
BlackRock will cast votes on behalf of each of the Funds covered by this policy on specific proxy issues in respect of securities held by each such Fund (or may refrain from voting) in accordance with the Guidelines; provided, however, that in the case of underlying closed-end funds (including business development companies and other similarly-situated asset pools) held by the Funds that have, or are proposing to adopt, a classified board structure, BlackRock will typically (a) vote in favor of proposals to adopt classification and against proposals to eliminate classification, and (b) not vote against directors as a result of their adoption of a classified board structure.
Conflicts Management
BlackRock Active Investment Stewardship (“BAIS”) maintains policies and procedures that seek to prevent undue influence on BlackRock’s proxy voting activity and to mitigate material conflicts of interest in the exercise of proxy voting responsibilities. Potential material conflicts, and the resultant potential for undue influence, might be due to a relationship between the investee company (or any shareholder proponent or dissident shareholder) and BlackRock, BlackRock’s affiliates or employees, or a Fund or a Fund’s affiliates. BlackRock has taken certain steps to mitigate potential conflicts, which are outlined in detail in the Guidelines. In mitigating conflicts, BAIS will adhere to the Guidelines.
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In certain instances, BAIS will engage an independent third-party voting service provider to make proxy voting recommendations as a further safeguard to avoid potential conflicts of interest, to satisfy regulatory compliance requirements, or as may be otherwise required by applicable law.
With respect to the relationship between securities lending and proxy voting, shares on loan cannot be voted and BlackRock may determine to recall them for voting, as guided by BlackRock’s fiduciary responsibility to act in clients’ financial interests. The Guidelines set forth BlackRock’s approach to recalling securities on loan in connection with proxy voting.
Reports to the Board
BlackRock will report on an annual basis to the Directors on (1) a summary of the proxy voting process as applicable to the Funds covered by this Policy in the preceding year together with a representation that all votes were in accordance with the Guidelines (as modified pursuant to the immediately preceding paragraph), and (2) any material changes to the Guidelines, including material changes to conflicts management practices, that have not previously been reported.
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BlackRock Active Investment Stewardship
Global Engagement and Voting Guidelines
Effective as of January 2025
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CONTENTS
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| Appendix 1: How we fulfil and oversee our active investment stewardship responsibilities |
16 | |||
Overview
This document provides high level guidance on how BlackRock Active Investment Stewardship (BAIS) views corporate governance matters that are commonly put to a shareholder vote, or on which investors engage with issuers. BAIS works in partnership with BlackRock’s investment teams, excluding index equity, providing expertise on investment stewardship, engaging with companies on behalf of those teams when appropriate, and assisting in recommending, operationalizing and reporting on voting decisions. The guidance informs BAIS’ voting recommendations to BlackRock’s active portfolio managers. It applies to active equity holdings in BlackRock’s fundamental equity, systematic equity and multi-asset solutions strategies. It also may apply to holdings in BlackRock’s index and active fixed income strategies, to the extent those strategies hold voting securities or conduct issuer engagements. The guidelines are not prescriptive as active portfolio managers have discretion as to how they integrate these guidelines within their investment processes in light of their clients’ or funds’ investment objectives. There are separate, independently developed principles and voting policies that are applied to BlackRock’s index equity investments by a distinct and independent function, BlackRock Investment Stewardship.
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Introduction to BlackRock
BlackRock’s purpose is to help more and more people experience financial well-being. We manage assets on behalf of institutional and individual clients, across a full spectrum of investment strategies, asset classes, and regions. Our client base includes pension plans, endowments, foundations, charities, official institutions, insurers, and other financial institutions, as well as individuals around the world.
About BlackRock Active Investment Stewardship
BlackRock Active Investment Stewardship (BAIS) is a specialist team within the Portfolio Management Group and manages BlackRock’s stewardship engagement and voting on behalf of clients invested in active strategies globally. BAIS is also responsible for engagement with issuers in index fixed income strategies, where appropriate. Our activities are informed by these Global Engagement and Voting Guidelines (the “Guidelines”) and insights from active investment analysts and portfolio managers, with whom we work closely in engaging companies and voting at shareholder meetings.
Engagement with public companies is the foundation of our approach to stewardship within fundamental active investing. Through direct dialogue with company leadership, we seek to understand their businesses and how they manage risks and opportunities to deliver durable, risk adjusted financial returns. Generally, portfolio managers and stewardship specialists engage jointly on substantive matters. Our discussions focus on topics relevant to a company’s success over time including governance and leadership, corporate strategy, capital structure and financial performance, operations and sustainability-related risks, as well as macro-economic, geopolitical and sector dynamics. We aim to be constructive investors and are generally supportive of management teams that have a track record of financial value creation. We aim to build and maintain strong relationships with company leadership based on open dialogue and mutual respect.
Different active equity strategies may implement these voting guidelines differently, as a result of the latitude the portfolio manager has to make independent voting decisions aligned with their portfolio objectives and investment strategy. For example, BAIS will generally vote the holdings in Systematic Active Equity portfolios in accordance with these guidelines. We provide voting recommendations to fundamental equity portfolio managers, who may determine to vote differently based on their portfolio investment objectives and strategy.
These guidelines discuss corporate governance topics on which we may engage with management teams and board directors1 and matters that routinely come to a shareholder vote. We recognize that accepted corporate governance norms can differ across markets, and believe these guidelines represent globally applicable elements of governance that support a company’s ability to manage material risks and opportunities and deliver financial returns to investors. Generally, we believe companies should observe accepted corporate governance norms within their local markets or, particularly in markets without well-established norms, aspire to widely recognized international best practices. As one of many minority shareholders, BlackRock cannot—and does not try to—direct a company’s strategy or its implementation. We look to companies to provide disclosures that explain how their approach to corporate governance best aligns with the financial interests of their investors.
Our approach to stewardship within active equities
As shareholders of public companies, BlackRock’s clients have certain fundamental rights, including the right to vote on proposals put forth by a company’s management or its shareholders. The voting rights attached to these clients’ holdings are an important mechanism for investors to express support for, or concern about, a company’s performance. As a fiduciary, BlackRock is legally required to make proxy voting determinations, on behalf of clients who have delegated voting authority to us, in a manner that is consistent with their investment objectives.
1 References to the board, board directors or non-executive directors should be understood to include supervisory boards and their members, where relevant.
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In general, we tend to support the recommendations of the board of directors and management. As indicated below, we may vote against management recommendations when we have concerns about how companies are serving the financial interests of our clients as their shareholders. We take a globally consistent approach to voting but consider the different corporate governance regulations and norms in various markets. Votes are determined on a case-by-case basis, in the context of a company’s situation and the investment mandate we have from clients. Please see page 16 for more information about how we fulfil and oversee BlackRock’s non-index equity investment stewardship responsibilities.
Our approach to stewardship within fixed income
Although fixed income investors do not have the right to vote at shareholder meetings, issuer engagement is a component of fixed income investment strategies at BlackRock, particularly those with sustainability objectives in addition to financial objectives. Most corporate governance-related fixed income engagements are undertaken in conjunction with the active investment stewardship team, and often active equity investors. In addition to the topics listed below, engagement with fixed income investment teams can help inform an issuer’s approach to structuring specialist issuances, such as green bonds, and the standard terms and information in bond documentation.
Boards of Directors
Roles and responsibilities
There is widespread consensus that the foundation of good corporate governance is an effective board of directors that is able to advise and supervise management in an independent and objective manner.2
We look to the board of directors (hereafter ‘the board’) to have an oversight role in the establishment and realization of a company’s strategy, purpose and culture. These constructs are interdependent and, when aligned, can better position a company to be resilient in the face of a changing business environment, help reduce the risks of corporate or employee misconduct, and attract and retain the caliber of workers necessary to deliver financial performance over time.
In promoting the success of the company, the board ensures the necessary resources, policies and procedures are in place to help management meet its strategic objectives within an agreed risk tolerance.
One of the most important responsibilities of the board is to appoint, and remove as necessary, the chief executive officer (CEO). In addition, the board plays a meaningful role in monitoring the performance of the CEO and other key executives, determining executive compensation, ensuring a rigorous audit, overseeing strategy execution and risk management and engaging with shareholders, and other stakeholders, as necessary.
Composition and effectiveness
Appointment process
A formal and transparent process for identifying and appointing director candidates is critical to ensuring the board is composed of directors with the appropriate mix of skills and experience. The board or a sub-committee should determine the general criteria given the company’s circumstances (e.g., sector, maturity, geographic footprint) and any additional criteria for a specific role being filled (e.g., financial expertise, industry track record). To inform the process, we encourage companies to review the skills and experience of incumbent directors to identify any gaps and whether a director candidate’s characteristics would be additive. We welcome
2 See the Corporate Governance Codes of Germany, Japan, and the UK, as well as the corporate governance principles of the US Business Roundtable as examples.
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disclosures that explain how the board considered different skills, backgrounds and experience to ensure the directors collectively can be effective in fulfilling their responsibilities. We assess a company’s board composition against that of its peer group and local market requirements.
Shareholders periodically vote to elect, remove and nominate directors to serve on the board. We may vote against the election of the most senior independent director, or the chair of the relevant committee, where a company has not demonstrated it has an appointment process that results in a high functioning board with the appropriate complement of skills, backgrounds and experience amongst the directors to support strong financial performance over time. We may vote against newly nominated directors who do not seem to have the appropriate skills or experience to contribute to the board’s effectiveness.
Independence
Director independence from management, significant shareholders or other stakeholders (e.g., government or employees) is of paramount importance to the protection of the interests of minority shareholders such as BlackRock’s clients. At least half of the directors should be independent and free from conflicts of interest or undue influence.3 This ensures sufficient independent directors to have appropriately independent board committees. Companies domiciled in markets with a higher threshold for board independence should meet those requirements.
We may vote against the election of non-independent directors if the board does not have a sufficient balance of independence. We may also vote against the election of the chair of the committee responsible for board composition if this is a perennial issue.
Independent board leadership
Practices across markets differ, as do board structures, but we observe two main approaches to independent board leadership. One is a non-executive, independent chair of the board who is responsible for leading the board in the effective exercise of its duties. The other is a lead or senior independent director, who is responsible for coordinating with the other non-executive directors and working closely with the executive chair on the board agenda and other board procedures. In this case, the executive chair and the lead independent director work together to ensure the board is effectively fulfilling its responsibilities. In our view, the independent leader of the board, and/or the chair of a relevant committee, should be available to investors to discuss board governance matters such as CEO succession, executive pay, and board performance. We look to boards to explain their independent board leadership model and how it serves the interests of shareholders.
We may vote against the election of the chair of the committee responsible for board composition if there is not an identified independent leader of the board with clear responsibilities for board performance. We may vote against the most senior independent director if the board has a policy of not engaging with shareholders.
Tenure and succession
Boards should establish the length of time a director would normally be expected to serve, in line with market norms where those exist. In such markets, we find it helpful when companies disclose their approach to director tenure particularly around the contributions of directors who have served for longer periods than provided for in local practices. In our experience, long-serving directors could become less independent given their relationship with management and involvement in past board decisions.
3 Common impediments to independence may include but are not limited to: current or recent employment at the company or a subsidiary; being, or representing, a shareholder with a substantial shareholding in the company; interlocking directorships; lengthy tenure, and having any other interest, business, or other relationship which could, or could reasonably be perceived to, materially interfere with a director’s ability to act in the best interests of the company and shareholders.
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Succession planning for board roles helps achieve the appropriate cadence of turnover that balances renewal through the regular introduction of directors with fresh perspectives and expertise with continuity through the retention of directors with long-term knowledge of the board and company.
In markets where there is not specific director tenure guidance, we may vote against the election of the chair of the committee responsible for board composition if there is not a clearly disclosed approach to director tenure and board renewal. We may vote against the election of directors who have served for longer duration than typical in markets with specific guidance, where the case for their continued service is not evident.
Capacity
To be effective and engaged, directors must commit appropriate time and energy to the role. A board should assess the ability of its members to maintain an appropriate focus on board matters and the company taking into consideration competing responsibilities. We recognize that board leadership roles vary across markets in responsibilities and required time commitment but note that they are generally more intensive than a standard directorship. We will take local norms and practices into consideration when making our voting determinations across markets.
We may vote against the election of directors who do not seem to have sufficient capacity to effectively fulfil their duties to the board and company.
Director elections
In support of director accountability to shareholders, directors should stand for election on a regular basis, ideally annually. A classified board structure may be justified by a company when it needs consistency and stability during a time of transition, or on the basis of its business model, e.g., a non-operating company such as closed-end funds.
Shareholders should have the opportunity to evaluate nominated directors individually rather than in bundled slates. We look to companies to provide sufficient information on each director standing for election so that shareholders can assess their capabilities and suitability. We will not support the election of directors whose names and biographical details have not been disclosed sufficiently in advance of the shareholder meeting.
Each director’s appointment should be dependent on receiving a simple majority of the votes cast at the shareholder meeting. Where a company’s practices differ, we look to the board to provide a detailed explanation as to how its approach best serves investors’ interests.
We may vote for shareholder or management proposals seeking to establish annual election of directors and/or a simple majority vote standard for director elections. We may vote against all the directors standing for election as part of a single slate if we have concerns about the profile or performance of an individual director.
Committees
Many boards establish committees to focus on specific responsibilities of the board such as audit and risk, governance and human capital, and executive compensation, amongst other matters. We do not prescribe to companies what committees they should establish but we seek to understand the board’s rationale for the committee structure it determines is appropriate. We note that, in some markets, regulation requires such committees. The responsibilities of each committee should be clear, and the board should ensure that all critical matters are assigned either to the full board or to one of the committees. The board should disclose to shareholders the structure, membership, proportion of independent directors, and responsibilities of each committee. The responsibilities we typically see assigned to the three most common committees include:
| • |
Audit and risk – oversight responsibilities for the integrity of financial reporting, risk management and compliance with legal and regulatory requirements; may also play an oversight role in relation to the internal audit function and whistleblowing mechanisms. |
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| • |
Nominating, governance and human capital – ensures appropriate corporate governance principles and practices including the periodic review of board performance; responsible for succession planning for CEO and key board roles, as well as the director appointment process; may also have oversight responsibilities for human capital management strategies including corporate culture and purpose. |
| • |
Executive compensation – determines the compensation policies and programs for the CEO and other executive officers, approves annual awards and payments under the policies; may also have oversight responsibilities for firm-wide compensation policies. |
We may vote against the election of the chair of the committee or other directors serving as committee members to convey our concerns and provide feedback on how a committee has undertaken its responsibilities. We may vote against the election of the most senior non-executive director if there is not a clearly disclosed approach to board committees.
Board and director evaluation
We consider it best practice for companies to conduct an annual review of the performance of the board, the committees, the chair and individual directors. Periodically, this review could be undertaken by an independent third party able to bring objective perspectives to the board on governance and performance. We encourage companies to disclose their approach to and objectives of evaluations, including any changes made to the board’s approach as a result.
Access to independent advice
To support the directors in effectively fulfilling their duties to the company and shareholders, they should have access to independent advice. When circumstances warrant, boards should be able to retain independent third parties to advise on critical matters. These might include new industry developments such as emergent and disruptive technology, operating events with material consequences for the company’s reputation and/or performance, or significant transactions. Board committees may similarly retain third parties to advise them on specialist matters such as audit, compensation and succession planning.
Executive compensation
Boards should establish compensation arrangements that enable the company to recruit, retain and reward the caliber of executive management necessary to lead and operate the company to deliver superior financial returns over time. We focus on alignment between variable pay and a company’s financial performance.
Generally, executive compensation arrangements have four components: base salary, annual bonus that rewards performance against short-term metrics, share-based incentives that reward performance against long-term metrics, and pensions and benefits. In our observation, base salary, pensions and benefits are largely set relative to market norms and benchmarks. The annual bonus and share-based incentive, or variable pay plans, tend to be tailored to the company, its sector and long-term strategy, as well as the individuals the board is seeking to recruit and motivate.
Recognizing the unique circumstances of each company, we determine whether to support a company’s approach to executive compensation on a case-by-case basis. We rely on companies providing sufficient quantitative and qualitative information in their disclosures to enable shareholders to understand the compensation arrangements and assess the alignment with investors’ interests. Features we look for in compensation arrangements include:
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Fixed pay components, including base salary, benefits and prerequisites that are appropriate in the context of the company’s size, sector and market. |
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Variable pay subject to performance metrics that are closely linked to the company’s short- and long-term strategic objectives. |
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Long-term incentives that motivate sustained performance across a multi-year period. |
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A balance between fixed and variable pay, short- and long-term incentives, and specific instruments (cash and equity awards) that promotes pay program durability and seldom necessitates one-off, discretionary payments. |
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Outcomes that are consistent with the returns to investors over the relevant time period. |
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Board discretion, if allowed within the variable pay arrangements, to be used sparingly, responsibly and transparently. |
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A requirement, that participants in long-term share-based incentive plans build a meaningful shareholding in the company within a defined time period, as determined by the board. |
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Change of control provisions that appropriately balance the interests of executives and shareholders. |
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Clawback or malus provisions that allow the company to recoup or hold back variable compensation from individuals whose awards were based on fraudulent activities, misstated financial reports, or executive misconduct. |
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Severance arrangements that protect the company’s interests but do not cost more than is contractual. |
We may vote against proposals to introduce new share-based incentives, approve existing policies or plans, or approve the compensation report where we do not see alignment between executive compensation arrangements and our clients’ financial interests. When there is not an alternative, or where there have been multi-year issues with compensation misaligned with performance, we may vote against the election of the chair of the responsible committee, or the most senior independent director.
Non-executive director compensation
Companies generally pay non-executive directors an annual retainer or fee in cash, shares or a combination of the two. Some companies also pay additional fees for service on board committees or in board leadership roles. We do not support non-executive directors participating in performance-based incentive plans as doing so may create a conflict of interest and undermine their independence from management, whom they oversee.
Capital structure
Boards are responsible for ensuring senior executive leadership has established a capital strategy that achieves appropriate capital allocation and management in support of long-term financial resilience.
Where company practices diverge from those set out below, we look for companies to disclose why they view these practices to be aligned with shareholders’ interests. We may vote against management proposals seeking capital-related authorities or the election of the most senior independent director if we have concerns about a company’s approach. We may also support a shareholder proposal seeking conversion of shares with differentiated voting rights to a one-share, one-vote standard.
Share issuance
We assess requests for share issuance for particular transactions on a case-by-case basis. We will generally support authorities to issue shares when subject to pre-emptive rights, and up to 20% absent pre-emptive rights. Companies should seek regular approval of these authorities to allow shareholders to take into consideration how prior authorities were used, as well as the current circumstances of the company and the market environment.
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Share buybacks
We assess share buyback proposals in the context of the company’s disclosed capital management strategy and management’s determination of the appropriate balance between investment that supports the long-term growth of the company and returning cash to investors. We also take into consideration the effect of a buyback program on the company’s balance sheet and executive compensation arrangements and the price at which shares are repurchased relative to market price. Companies should seek regular approval of these authorities to allow shareholders to take into consideration how prior authorities were used, as well as the current circumstances of the company and the market environment.
We would normally expect companies to cancel repurchased shares. If a company plans to retain them as treasury shares, management should provide a detailed rationale in the context of the disclosed capital management strategy.
Dividends
We generally defer to management and the board on dividend policy but may engage to seek further clarification where a proposed dividend appears out of line with the company’s financial position.
Differentiated voting rights
We prefer companies to adopt a one-share, one-vote structure for share classes with the same economic exposure. Certain companies, particularly those new to public markets, could make the case to adopt a differentiated voting rights structure, or dual class stock. In those situations, we encourage companies to evaluate and seek approval for their capital structure on a periodic basis.
Transactions and special situations
We monitor developments in transactions and special situations closely and undertake our own detailed analyses of proposals.
Mergers and acquisitions
We evaluate proposed mergers or acquisitions by assessing the financial outcome for our clients as minority shareholders. Management should provide an assessment of the proposed transaction’s strategic and financial rationale, along with its execution and operational risks. We review each transaction independently based on these factors and the degree to which the transaction enhances shareholder value. The board should consider establishing an ad hoc transaction committee to undertake an independent assessment of a significant merger or acquisition, in advance of making its recommendation to shareholders.
We will vote against transactions that, in our assessment, do not advance our clients’ financial interests.
Anti-takeover defenses
In principle, we do not support companies using anti-takeover defenses, also known as poison pills or shareholder rights plans, as they can entrench management and boards which have not delivered long-term shareholder value. By exception, a poison pill may be supported if its purpose is to delay a takeover that is considered sub-optimal and enable management to seek an improved offer. Similarly, management could make the case to use a poison pill to block a shareholder activism campaign that may be counter to the interests of other investors. Defense mechanisms introduced in these circumstances should be limited in term and threshold, and also be closely monitored by the independent members of the board. We look for a shareholder vote for any mechanisms expected to be in place for more than 12 months.
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Shareholder activism
When companies are the focus of an activism campaign, we may engage with the activist to understand their analysis and objectives, once they have gone public. We will also engage with company management and possibly board members, especially those the activist may be seeking to replace. In our assessment, we evaluate various factors, including the concerns raised by the activist and the case for change; the quality of both the activist’s and management’s plans; and the qualifications of each party’s candidates. We evaluate each contested situation by assessing the potential financial outcome for our clients as minority shareholders.
We may support board candidates nominated by a shareholder activist if the activist has demonstrated that their case for change enhances shareholder value, or if the incumbent board members do not demonstrate the relevant skills and expertise or have a poor track record of protecting shareholders’ interests.
Significant shareholders and related party transactions
Boards of companies with affiliated shareholders or directors should be able to demonstrate that the interests of all shareholders are given equitable consideration.
Transactions with related parties, such as significant shareholders or companies connected with the public company, should be disclosed in detail and conducted on terms similar to what would objectively have been agreed with a non-related party. Such transactions should be reviewed and approved by the independent members of the board, and if voted on, only disinterested shareholders should vote.
Corporate reporting, risk management and audit
Investors depend on corporate reporting, both regulatory and voluntary, to understand a company’s strategy, its implementation and financial performance, as well as to assess the quality of management and operations and potential for the company to create shareholder value over time. The board should oversee corporate reporting and the policies and procedures underpinning the internal audit function and external audit.
A company’s financial reporting should provide decision-useful information for investors and other stakeholders on its financial performance and position. It should provide an accurate and balanced assessment of the risks and opportunities the company faces in realizing its long-term strategy. Accordingly, the assumptions made by management and reviewed by the auditor in preparing the financial statements should be reasonable and justified. Financial statements should be prepared in accordance with globally developed reporting standards and any divergence from generally accepted accounting principles should be explained in detail and justified. Accounting restatements should be explained in detail and any remedial actions, and the implications of these, disclosed.
In this context, audit committees play a vital role in a company’s financial reporting system by providing independent oversight of the accounts, material financial and, where appropriate to the jurisdiction, nonfinancial information, internal control frameworks and Enterprise Risk Management systems. In our view, effective audit committee oversight strengthens the quality and reliability of a company’s financial statements and provides an important level of reassurance to shareholders. Audit committees should have a procedure in place for assessing the independence of the auditor and the quality of the external audit process annually.
Similarly, material sustainability-related factors that are integral to how a company manages risks or generates revenue should be disclosed. In our view, the standards developed by the International Sustainability Standards Board, can be helpful to companies in preparing such reports.4
4 The objective of IFRS S1 General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information is to require an entity to disclose information about its sustainability-related risks and opportunities that is useful to primary users of general-purpose financial reports in making decisions relating to providing resources to the entity. The objective of IFRS S2 Climate-related Disclosures is to require an entity to disclose information about its climate-related risks and opportunities that is useful to primary users of general-purpose financial reports in making decisions relating to providing resources to the entity.
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Companies should establish robust risk management and internal control processes appropriate to the company’s business, risk tolerance, and regulatory environment. A credible whistleblowing system for employees, and potentially other stakeholders, can be a useful mechanism for ensuring that senior management and the board are aware of potential misconduct or breaches in risk management and internal control processes.
A comprehensive audit conducted by an independent audit firm contributes to investor confidence in the quality of corporate reporting. It is helpful when the audit report gives some insight into the scope and focus of the audit, as well as any critical audit matters identified and how these were resolved. A comprehensive and effective audit is time and resource intensive, and the audit fee should be commensurate. Fees paid to the audit firm for non-audit consulting should not exceed the audit fee to a degree that may prompt concerns about the independence of the audit. The audit committee should explain its position on auditor tenure and how it confirmed that the auditor remained independent.
We may vote against the election of the responsible directors if corporate reporting is insufficient or there are material misstatements in financial reports. In markets where relevant, we may vote against a proposal to approve the financial statements or the discharge of the board when we are concerned about the quality of the reporting or the audit. We may vote against proposals to appoint the auditor, ratify the audit report, or approve the audit fee if we are concerned about the auditor’s independence, the quality of the audit, or there are material misstatements in financial reports and the board has not established reasonable remediation plans.
Shareholder rights and protections
General shareholder meetings
Companies normally have an annual general meeting of shareholders at which routine and non-routine items of business are discussed and voted on by shareholders in attendance or submitting proxy votes. Companies should disclose materials relevant to the shareholder meeting sufficiently in advance so that shareholders can take them into consideration in their voting decisions. Many companies offer shareholders the option of participating in the meeting virtually which, whilst welcome, should not limit the rights of shareholders to participate as they would during an in-person meeting.
We may vote against directors when materials related to the business of the shareholder meeting are not provided in a timely manner or do not provide sufficient information for us to take an informed voting decision. We may vote against directors if the format of the shareholder meeting does not accommodate reasonable shareholder participation.
Bylaw amendments
We review bylaw amendments proposed by management on a case-by-case basis and will generally support those that are aligned with the interests of minority shareholders. Any material changes to the bylaws should be explained in detail and put to a shareholder vote.
We may vote against bylaw amendments that reduce shareholder rights and protections. We may vote against directors if material changes are made to the bylaws without shareholder approval.
If not provided for in the relevant corporate law, company bylaws should allow shareholders, individually or as a group, with a meaningful shareholding the right to call a special meeting of shareholders. The shareholding required to exercise this right should balance its utility with the cost to the company of holding special meetings.
If not provided for in the relevant corporate law, company bylaws should allow shareholders, individually or as a group, with a meaningful shareholding the right to nominate directors to the company’s board. The threshold for this right should be set so that shareholders can exercise it without being unduly disruptive to the board’s own nomination process.
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Whilst we would not use either of these rights ourselves, we see them as important accountability mechanisms. We may vote for a shareholder proposal seeking the addition of either of these provisions to a company’s bylaws.
Change of domicile
We generally defer to management on proposals to change a company’s domicile as long as the rationale for doing so is consistent with the company’s long-term strategy and business model and the related costs are immaterial.
We may vote against directors or a proposal to change a company’s domicile where it does not seem aligned with our clients’ financial interests.
Changes to a company’s purpose or the nature of its business
Plans to materially change the nature of a company’s business or its purpose should be disclosed and explained in the context of long-term strategy and business dynamics. Such changes may significantly alter an investor’s views on the suitability of a company for their investment strategy or portfolio.
Where relevant, we may vote against proposals to change a company’s purpose or the nature of its business if the board has not provided a credible argument for change.
Shareholder proposals
Shareholders in many markets, who meet certain eligibility criteria, have the right to submit proposals to the general shareholder meeting asking a company to take a particular course of action subject to the proposal being supported by a majority of votes cast at the meeting. The topics raised address a range of governance, social and environmental matters that may be relevant to a company’s business. Shareholder proposals are considered by many investors to be an escalation tool when a company is unresponsive to their engagement.
We vote on these proposals on a case-by-case basis. We assess the relevance of the topic raised to a company’s business and its current approach, whether the actions sought are consistent with shareholders’ interests, and what impact the proposal being acted upon might have on financial performance.
Our general approach where we have concerns about a company’s governance, disclosures or performance is to engage to understand the apparent difference in perspective. If we continue to believe the company is not acting in shareholders’ financial interests, we may vote against the election of directors. We may support a relevant shareholder proposal if doing so reinforces the points made in our engagement or is aligned with our clients’ financial interests. We generally do not support shareholder proposals that are legally binding on the company, seek to alter a company’s strategy or direct its operations, or are unrelated to how a company manages risk or generates financial returns.
BlackRock is subject to legal and regulatory requirements in the U.S. that place restrictions and limitations on how we can interact with the companies in which we invest on behalf of our clients, including our ability to submit shareholder proposals. We can vote on behalf of clients who authorize us to do so, on proposals put forth by others.
Corporate political activities
We seek to understand how companies ensure that their direct and indirect engagement in the policy making process is consistent with their public statements on policy matters important to the company’s long-term strategy. The board should be aware of the approach taken to corporate political activities as there can be reputational risks arising from inconsistencies. Companies should, as a minimum, meet all regulatory disclosure requirements on political activities, and ideally, provide accessible and clear disclosures to shareholders on
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policy positions, public policy engagement activities and political donations. To mitigate the risk of inconsistencies, companies can usefully assess the alignment between their policy priorities and the policy positions of the trade associations of which they are active members and any engagements undertaken by trade associations on behalf of members.
Generally, this is an engagement matter, although we may support a relevant shareholder proposal, or vote against directors, where a company’s disclosures are insufficient, or it becomes public that there is a material contradiction in a company’s public policy positions and its policy engagement.
Sustainability, or environmental and social, considerations
We seek to understand how companies manage the risks and opportunities inherent in their business operations. In our experience, sustainability-related factors5 that are relevant to a company’s business or material to its financial performance, are generally operational considerations embedded into day-to-day management systems. Certain sustainability issues may also inform long-term strategic planning, for example, investing in product innovation in anticipation of changing consumer demand or adapting supply chains in response to changing regulatory requirements.
We recognize that the specific sustainability-related factors that may be financially material or business relevant will vary by company business model, sector, key markets, and time horizon, amongst other considerations. From company disclosures and our engagement, we aim to understand how management is identifying, assessing and integrating material sustainability-related risks and opportunities into their business decision-making and practices. Doing so helps us undertake a more holistic assessment of a company’s potential financial performance and the likely risk-adjusted returns of an investment.
We may vote against directors or support a relevant shareholder proposal if we have concerns about how a company is managing or disclosing its approach to material sustainability-related risks that may impact financial returns.
Key stakeholders
In our view, companies should understand and take into consideration the interests of the various parties on whom they depend for their success over time. It is for each company to determine their key stakeholders based on what is material to their business and long-term financial performance. For many companies, key stakeholders include employees, business partners (such as suppliers and distributors), clients and consumers, regulators, and the communities in which they operate. Companies that appropriately balance the interests of investors and other stakeholders are, in our experience, more likely to be financially resilient over time.
Climate and decarbonization investment objectives
Certain active BlackRock funds have climate and decarbonization objectives in addition to financial objectives. Consistent with the objectives of those investment strategies, our stewardship activity in relation to the holdings in those funds differs in some respects from BAIS’ benchmark guidelines, which are described above. Specifically, for those funds’ holdings, we look to investee companies to demonstrate that they are aligned with a decarbonization pathway that means their business model would be viable in a low-carbon economy, i.e., one in which global temperature rise is limited to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. This approach is only taken following BlackRock receiving the explicit approval from the applicable fund board.
5 By material sustainability-related risks and opportunities, we mean the drivers of risk and financial value creation in a company’s business model that have an environmental or social dependency or impact. Examples of environmental issues include, but are not limited to, water use, land use, waste management, and climate risk. Examples of social issues include, but are not limited to, human capital management, impacts on the communities in which a company operates, customer loyalty, and relationships with regulators. It is our view that well-managed companies will effectively evaluate and manage material sustainability-related risks and opportunities relevant to their businesses. Governance is the core means by which boards can oversee the creation of durable financial value over time. Appropriate risk oversight of business-relevant and material sustainability-related considerations is a component of a sound governance framework.
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The decarbonization stewardship guidelines focus on companies which produce goods and services that contribute to real world decarbonization or have a carbon intensive business model and face outsized impacts from the low carbon transition, based on reported and estimated scopes 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions. These companies should provide disclosures that set out their governance, strategy, risk management processes and metrics and targets relevant to decarbonization. These disclosures should include an explanation of the decarbonization scenarios a company is using in its near- and long-term planning, as well as its scope 1, scope 2 and material scope 3 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and reduction targets for scope 1 and 2 emissions. As with the BAIS benchmark policies, we consider the climate-risk reporting standard issued by the International Sustainability Standards Board, IFRS S2, a useful reference for such reporting.
Under these climate- and decarbonization-specific guidelines, BAIS may recommend a vote against directors or support for a relevant shareholder proposal if a company does not appear to be adequately addressing or disclosing material climate-related risks. We may recommend supporting shareholder proposals seeking information relevant to a company’s stated low-carbon transition strategy and targets that the company does not currently provide and that would be helpful to investment decision-making. As under the BAIS benchmark approach, the active portfolio managers are ultimately responsible for voting consistent with their investment mandate and fund objectives.
Appendix 1: How we fulfil and oversee our active investment stewardship responsibilities
Oversight
The Global Head of BAIS has primary oversight of and responsibility for the team’s activities, including voting in accordance with the BlackRock Active Investment Stewardship Global Engagement and Voting Guidelines (the “Guidelines”), which require the application of professional judgment and consideration of each company’s unique circumstances, as well as input from active investors. BAIS is independent from BlackRock Investment Stewardship in our engagement and voting activities, reporting lines, and oversight.
The Active Investment Stewardship Oversight Committee, comprised of senior representatives of the active investment, legal and risk teams, reviews and advises on amendments to BAIS’ Global Engagement and Voting Guidelines. The Committee also considers developments in corporate governance, related public policy, and market norms and how these might influence BAIS’ policies and practices. The Committee does not determine voting decisions, which are the responsibility of BAIS and the relevant active equity investors.
In addition, there is a standing advisory group of senior active investors who counsel BAIS on complex or high-profile votes before a recommendation is finalized and escalated to the portfolio managers with holdings in the company under consideration. This group also formally reviews any revisions to the Engagement and Voting Guidelines proposed by BAIS as part of its annual review.
BAIS carries out engagement with companies in collaboration with active investment colleagues, executes proxy votes, and conducts vote operations (including maintaining records of votes cast) in a manner consistent with the Guidelines. BAIS also conducts research on corporate governance issues and participates in industry discussions to contribute to and keep abreast of important developments in the corporate governance field. BAIS may use third parties for certain of the foregoing activities and performs oversight of those third parties (see “Use and oversight of third-party vote services providers” below).
Voting guidelines and vote execution
BlackRock votes on proxy issues when our clients authorize us to do so. We carefully consider the voting items submitted to funds and other fiduciary account(s) (Fund or Funds) for which we have voting authority. BlackRock votes (or refrains from voting) for each Fund for which we have voting authority based on our evaluation of the alignment of the voting items with the long-term economic interests of our clients, in the
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exercise of our independent business judgment, and without regard to the relationship of the issuer (or any shareholder proponent or dissident shareholder) to the Fund, the Fund’s affiliates (if any), BlackRock or BlackRock’s affiliates, or BlackRock employees (see “Conflicts management policies and procedures,” below).
When exercising voting rights, BAIS will normally vote on specific proxy issues in accordance with the Guidelines, although portfolio managers have the right to vote differently on their holdings if they determine doing so is more aligned with the investment objective and financial interests of clients invested in the funds they manage.
The Guidelines are not intended to be exhaustive. BAIS applies the Guidelines on a case-by-case basis, in the context of the individual circumstances of each company and the specific issue under review. As such, the Guidelines do not indicate how BAIS will vote in every instance. Rather, they reflect our view about corporate governance issues generally, and provide insight into how we typically approach issues that commonly arise on corporate ballots. The Guidelines are reviewed annually and updated as necessary to reflect changes in market practices, developments in corporate governance and feedback from companies and clients. In this way, BAIS aims to maintain policies that explain our approach to governance practices most aligned with clients’ long-term financial interests.
In certain markets, proxy voting involves logistical issues which can affect BAIS’ ability to vote such proxies, as well as the desirability of voting such proxies. These issues include, but are not limited to: i) untimely notice of shareholder meetings; ii) restrictions on a foreigner’s ability to exercise votes; iii) requirements to vote proxies in person; iv) “share-blocking” (requirements that investors who exercise their voting rights surrender the right to dispose of their holdings for some specified period in proximity to the shareholder meeting); v) potential difficulties in translating the proxy; vi) regulatory constraints; and vii) requirements to provide local agents with unrestricted powers of attorney to facilitate voting instructions. We are not supportive of impediments to the exercise of voting rights such as share-blocking or overly burdensome administrative requirements.
BlackRock votes proxies in these situations on a “best-efforts” basis. In addition, BAIS may determine that it is generally in the interests of BlackRock’s clients not to vote proxies (or not to vote our full allocation) if the costs (including but not limited to opportunity costs associated with share-blocking constraints) associated with exercising a vote are expected to outweigh the benefit the client would derive by voting on the proposal.
Voting Choice
BlackRock offers Voting Choice, a program that provides eligible clients with more opportunities to participate in the proxy voting process where legally and operationally viable.
Voting Choice is currently available for eligible clients invested in certain institutional pooled funds in the U.S., UK, and Canada that use systematic active equity (SAE) and multi-asset strategies. In addition, institutional clients in separately managed accounts (SMAs) are eligible for BlackRock Voting Choice regardless of their investment strategies.6
As a result, the shares attributed to BlackRock in company share registers may be voted differently depending on whether our clients have authorized BAIS to vote on their behalf, have authorized BlackRock to vote in accordance with a third-party policy, or have elected to vote shares in accordance with their own policy. Our clients have greater control over proxy voting because of Voting Choice. BlackRock does not disclose client information, including a client’s selection of proxy policy, without client consent.
6 With Voting Choice, SMAs have the ability to select from a set of voting policies from third-party proxy advisers the policy that best aligns with their views and preferences. BlackRock can then use its proxy voting infrastructure to cast votes based on the client’s selected voting policy.
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Use and oversight of third-party vote services providers
Third-party vote services providers—or proxy research firms—provide research and recommendations on proxy votes, as well as voting infrastructure. As mentioned previously, BlackRock contracts primarily with the vote services provider ISS and leverages its online platform to supply research and support voting, record keeping, and reporting processes. We also use Glass Lewis’ research and analysis as an input into our voting process. It is important to note that, although proxy research firms provide important data and analysis, BAIS does not rely solely on their information or follow their voting recommendations. A company’s disclosures, our past engagements and voting, investment colleagues’ insights and our voting guidelines are important inputs into our voting decisions on behalf of clients.
Given the large universe of actively held companies, BAIS employs the proxy services provider to streamline the voting process by making voting recommendations based on BAIS’ voting guidelines when the items on a shareholder meeting agenda are routine. Agenda items that are not routine are referred back to BAIS to assess, escalate as necessary to the relevant portfolio managers and vote. BAIS reviews and can override the recommendations of the vote services provider at any time prior to the vote deadline. Both BAIS and the vote services provider actively monitor securities filings, research reports, company announcements, and direct communications from companies to ensure awareness of supplemental disclosures and proxy materials that may require a modification of votes.
BAIS closely monitors the third-party vote services providers we contract with to ensure that they are meeting our service level expectations and have effective policies and procedures in place to manage potential conflicts of interest. Our oversight of service providers includes regular meetings with client service teams, systematic monitoring of vendor operations, as well as annual due diligence meetings in accordance with BlackRock’s firmwide policies.
Conflicts management policies and procedures
BAIS maintains policies and procedures that seek to prevent undue influence on BlackRock’s proxy voting activity. Such influence might stem from any relationship between the investee company (or any shareholder proponent or dissident shareholder) and BlackRock, BlackRock’s affiliates, a Fund or a Fund’s affiliates, or BlackRock employees. The following are examples of sources of perceived or potential conflicts of interest:
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BlackRock clients who may be issuers of securities or proponents of shareholder resolutions |
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BlackRock business partners or third parties who may be issuers of securities or proponents of shareholder resolutions |
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BlackRock employees who may sit on the boards of public companies held in Funds managed by BlackRock |
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Significant BlackRock, Inc. investors who may be issuers of securities held in Funds managed by BlackRock |
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Securities of BlackRock, Inc. or BlackRock investment funds held in Funds managed by BlackRock |
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BlackRock, Inc. board members who serve as senior executives or directors of public companies held in Funds managed by BlackRock |
BlackRock has taken certain steps to mitigate perceived or potential conflicts including, but not limited to, the following:
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Adopted the Guidelines which are designed to advance our clients’ long-term economic interests in the companies in which BlackRock invests on their behalf |
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Established a reporting structure that separates BAIS from employees with sales, vendor management, or business partnership roles. In addition, BlackRock seeks to ensure that all engagements with corporate issuers, dissident shareholders or shareholder proponents are managed consistently and without regard to BlackRock’s relationship with such parties. Clients or business partners are not given special treatment or differentiated access. BAIS prioritizes engagements based on factors including, but not limited to, our need for additional information to make a voting decision or our view on the likelihood that an engagement could lead to positive outcome(s) over time for the economic value of the company. Within the normal course of business, BAIS may engage directly with BlackRock clients, business partners and/or third parties, and/or with employees with sales, vendor management, or business partnership roles, in discussions regarding our approach to stewardship, general corporate governance matters, client reporting needs, and/or to otherwise ensure that proxy-related client service levels are met |
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Determined to engage, in certain instances, an independent third-party voting service provider to make proxy voting recommendations as a further safeguard to avoid potential conflicts of interest, to satisfy regulatory compliance requirements, or as may be otherwise required by applicable law. In such circumstances, the independent third-party voting service provider provides BlackRock with recommendations, in accordance with the Guidelines, as to how to vote such proxies. BlackRock uses an independent third-party voting service provider to make proxy voting recommendations for shares of BlackRock, Inc. and companies affiliated with BlackRock, Inc. BlackRock may also use an independent third-party voting service provider to make proxy voting recommendations for: |
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public companies that include BlackRock employees on their boards of directors |
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public companies of which a BlackRock, Inc. board member serves as a senior executive or a member of the board of directors |
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public companies that are the subject of certain transactions involving BlackRock Funds |
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public companies that are joint venture partners with BlackRock, and |
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public companies when legal or regulatory requirements compel BlackRock to use an independent third-party voting service provider |
In selecting an independent third-party voting service provider, we assess several characteristics, including but not limited to: independence, an ability to analyze proxy issues and make recommendations in the economic interest of our clients in accordance with the Guidelines, reputation for reliability and integrity, and operational capacity to accurately deliver the assigned recommendations in a timely manner. We may engage more than one independent third-party voting service provider, in part to mitigate potential or perceived conflicts of interest at a single voting service provider. The Active Investment Stewardship Oversight Committee appoints and reviews the performance of the independent third-party voting service providers, generally on an annual basis.
Securities lending
When so authorized, BlackRock acts as a securities lending agent on behalf of Funds. Securities lending is a well-regulated practice that contributes to capital market efficiency. It also enables funds to generate additional returns while allowing fund providers to keep fund expenses lower.
With regard to the relationship between securities lending and proxy voting, BlackRock cannot vote shares on loan and may determine to recall them for voting, as guided by our fiduciary duty as an asset manager to our clients in helping them achieve their investment goals. While this has occurred in a limited number of cases, the decision to recall securities on loan as part of BlackRock’s securities lending program in order to vote is based on an evaluation of various factors that include, but are not limited to, assessing potential securities lending revenue alongside the potential long-term financial value to clients of voting those securities (based on the information available at the time of recall consideration). BAIS works with active portfolio managers, as well as colleagues in
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the Securities Lending and Risk and Quantitative Analysis teams, to evaluate the costs and benefits to clients of recalling shares on loan.
In almost all instances, BlackRock anticipates that the potential long-term financial value to clients of voting shares would not warrant recalling securities on loan. However, in certain instances, BlackRock may determine, in our independent business judgment as a fiduciary, that the value of voting outweighs the securities lending revenue loss to clients and would therefore recall shares to be voted in those instances.
Periodically, BlackRock reviews our process for determining whether to recall securities on loan in order to vote and may modify it as necessary.
Reporting and vote transparency
BAIS is committed to transparency in the stewardship work we do on behalf of clients. We inform clients about our engagement and voting policies and activities through direct communication and disclosure on our website.
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Want to know more?
blackrock.com/stewardship | ContactActiveStewardship@blackrock.com
The document is provided for information purposes only and is subject to change. Reliance upon this information is at the sole discretion of the reader.
Prepared by BlackRock, Inc.
©2024 BlackRock, Inc. All rights reserved. BLACKROCK is a trademark of BlackRock, Inc., or its subsidiaries in the United States and elsewhere. All other trademarks are those of their respective owners.
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PART C
OTHER INFORMATION
| Item 25. |
Financial Statements And Exhibits |
The agreements included or incorporated by reference as exhibits to this registration statement contain representations and warranties by each of the parties to the applicable agreement. These representations and warranties were made solely for the benefit of the other parties to the applicable agreement and (i) were not intended to be treated as categorical statements of fact, but rather as a way of allocating the risk to one of the parties if those statements prove to be inaccurate; (ii) may have been qualified in such agreement by disclosures that were made to the other party in connection with the negotiation of the applicable agreement; (iii) may apply contract standards of “materiality” that are different from “materiality” under the applicable securities laws; and (iv) were made only as of the date of the applicable agreement or such other date or dates as may be specified in the agreement.
The Registrant acknowledges that, notwithstanding the inclusion of the foregoing cautionary statements, it is responsible for considering whether additional specific disclosures of material information regarding material contractual provisions are required to make the statements in this registration statement not misleading.
| (1) |
Financial Statements | |
| Part A: Financial Highlights | ||
| (2) |
Exhibits | |
| (a)(1) |
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| (2) |
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| (3) |
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| (4) |
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| (5) |
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| (6) |
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| (7) |
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| (8) |
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| (9) |
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| (10) |
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| (11) |
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| (12) |
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| (13) |
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| (14) |
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| (15) |
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| (16) |
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| (17) |
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| (18) |
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| (19) |
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| (20) |
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| (21) |
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| (22) |
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| (23) |
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| (b) |
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| (c) |
Inapplicable | |
| (d) |
Incorporated by reference to Exhibits (a) and (b) above. | |
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| (e) |
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| (f) |
Inapplicable | |
| (g)(1) |
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| (2) |
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| (3) |
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| (4) |
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| (5) |
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| (6) |
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| (7) |
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| (8) |
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| (9) |
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| (h)(1) |
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| (2) |
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| (i) |
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| (j) |
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| (k)(1) |
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| (2) |
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| (3) |
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| (4) |
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| (5) |
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| (l) |
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| (m) |
Inapplicable | |
| (n) |
Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm Consent filed herein. | |
| (o) |
Inapplicable | |
| (p) |
Inapplicable | |
| (q) |
Inapplicable | |
| (r) |
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| (s) |
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| Item 26. |
Marketing Arrangements |
| Item 27. |
Other Expenses Of Issuance And Distribution |
Not applicable.
| Item 28. |
Persons Controlled By Or Under Common Control With The Registrant |
Not applicable.
| Item 29. |
Number Of Holders Of Shares |
The following table sets forth the number of record holders of Shares as of November 19, 2025:
| Title Of Class |
Number Of Record Holders | |||
| Institutional Shares |
3,060 | |||
| Class A Shares |
1 | |||
| Class U Shares |
35 | |||
| Item 30. |
Indemnification |
Article V (Provisions for Defining, Limiting and Regulating Certain Powers of the Corporation and of the Directors and Stockholders) of the Registrant’s Articles of Incorporation, in relevant part, provides as follows:
(4) Each director and each officer of the Corporation shall be indemnified and advanced expenses by the Corporation to the full extent permitted by the General Laws of the State of Maryland now or hereafter in force, including the advance of expenses under the procedures and to the full extent permitted by law subject to the requirements of the Investment Company Act of 1940. The foregoing rights of indemnification shall not be exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking indemnification may be entitled. No amendment of these Articles of Incorporation or repeal of any provision hereof shall limit or eliminate the benefits provided to directors and officers under this provision in connection with any act or omission that occurred prior to such amendment or repeal.
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(5) To the fullest extent permitted by the General Laws of the State of Maryland or decisional law, as amended or interpreted, subject to the requirements of the Investment Company Act of 1940, no director or officer of the Corporation shall be personally liable to the Corporation or its security holders for money damages. No amendment of these Articles of Incorporation or repeal of any provision hereof shall limit or eliminate the benefits provided to directors and officers under this provision in connection with any act or omission that occurred prior to such amendment or repeal.
Article IV of the Registrant’s Amended and Restated Bylaws provides as follows:
Section 1. No Personal Liability of Directors or Officers. No Director, advisory board member or officer of the Fund shall be subject in such capacity to any personal liability whatsoever to any Person, save only liability to the Fund or its shareholders arising from bad faith, willful misfeasance, gross negligence or reckless disregard for his or her duty to such Person; and, subject to the foregoing exception, all such Persons shall look solely to the assets of the Fund for satisfaction of claims of any nature arising in connection with the affairs of the Fund. If any Director, advisory board member or officer, as such, of the Fund, is made a party to any suit or proceeding to enforce any such liability, subject to the foregoing exception, such person shall not, on account thereof, be held to any personal liability. Any repeal or modification of the Charter or this Article IV Section 1 shall not adversely affect any right or protection of a Director, advisory board member or officer of the Fund existing at the time of such repeal or modification with respect to acts or omissions occurring prior to such repeal or modification.
Section 2. Mandatory Indemnification.
| (a) |
The Fund hereby agrees to indemnify each person who is or was a Director, advisory board member or officer of the Fund (each such person being an “Indemnitee”) to the full extent permitted under the Charter. In addition, the Fund may provide greater but not lesser rights to indemnification pursuant to a contract approved by at least a majority of Directors between the Fund and any Indemnitee. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no Indemnitee shall be indemnified hereunder against any liability to any person or any expense of such Indemnitee arising by reason of (i) willful misfeasance, (ii) bad faith, (iii) gross negligence, or (iv) reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of the Indemnitee’s position (the conduct referred to in such clauses (i) through (iv) being sometimes referred to herein as “Disabling Conduct”). Furthermore, with respect to any action, suit or other proceeding voluntarily prosecuted by any Indemnitee as plaintiff, indemnification shall be mandatory only if the prosecution of such action, suit or other proceeding by such Indemnitee (A) was authorized by a majority of the Directors or (B) was instituted by the Indemnitee to enforce his or her rights to indemnification hereunder in a case in which the Indemnitee is found to be entitled to such indemnification. |
| (b) |
Notwithstanding the foregoing, unless otherwise provided in any agreement relating to indemnification between an Indemnitee and the Fund, no indemnification shall be made hereunder unless there has been a determination (i) by a final decision on the merits by a court or other body of competent jurisdiction before whom the issue of entitlement to indemnification hereunder was brought that such Indemnitee is entitled to indemnification hereunder or, (ii) in the absence of such a decision, by (A) a majority vote of a quorum of |
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| those Directors who are both Independent Directors and not parties to the proceeding (“Independent Non-Party Directors”), that the Indemnitee is entitled to indemnification hereunder, or (B) if such quorum is not obtainable or even if obtainable, if such majority so directs, a Special Counsel in a written opinion concludes that the Indemnitee should be entitled to indemnification hereunder. |
| (c) |
Subject to any limitations provided by the 1940 Act and the Charter, the Fund shall have the power and authority to indemnify and provide for the advance payment of expenses to employees, agents and other Persons providing services to the Fund or serving in any capacity at the request of the Fund to the full extent permitted for corporations organized under the corporations laws of the state in which the Fund was formed, provided that such indemnification has been approved by a majority of the Directors. |
| (d) |
Any repeal or modification of the Charter or Section 2 of this Article IV shall not adversely affect any right or protection of a Director, advisory board member or officer of the Fund existing at the time of such repeal or modification with respect to acts or omissions occurring prior to such repeal or modification. |
Section 3. Good Faith Defined; Reliance on Experts. For purposes of any determination under this Article IV, a person shall be deemed to have acted in good faith and in a manner such person reasonably believed to be in the best interests of the Fund, or, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, to have had no reasonable cause to believe such person’s conduct was unlawful, if such person’s action is based on the records or books of account of the Fund, or on information supplied to such person by the officers of the Fund in the course of their duties, or on the advice of legal counsel for the Fund or on information or records given or reports made to the Fund by an independent certified public accountant or by an appraiser or other expert or agent selected with reasonable care by the Fund. The provisions of this Article IV Section 3 shall not be deemed to be exclusive or to limit in any way the circumstances in which a person may be deemed to have met the applicable standard of conduct set forth in this Article IV. Each Director and officer or employee of the Fund shall, in the performance of his or her duties, be fully and completely justified and protected with regard to any act or any failure to act resulting from reliance in good faith upon the books of account or other records of the Fund, upon an opinion of counsel selected by the Board of Directors or a committee of the Directors, or upon reports made to the Fund by any of the Fund’s officers or employees or by any advisor, administrator, manager, distributor, dealer, accountant, appraiser or other expert or consultant selected with reasonable care by the Board of Directors or a committee of the Directors, officers or employees of the Fund, regardless of whether such counsel or expert may also be a Director.
Section 4. Survival of Indemnification and Advancement of Expenses. The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by, or granted pursuant to, this Article IV shall, unless otherwise provided when authorized or ratified, continue as to a person who has ceased to be a director or officer and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs, executors and administrators of such a person.
Section 5. Insurance. The Directors may maintain insurance for the protection of the Fund’s property, the shareholders, Directors, officers, employees and agents in such amount as the Directors shall deem adequate to cover possible tort liability, and such other insurance as the Directors in their sole judgment shall deem advisable or is required by the 1940 Act.
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Section 6. Subrogation. In the event of payment by the Fund to an Indemnitee under the Charter or these Bylaws, the Fund shall be subrogated to the extent of such payment to all of the rights of recovery of the Indemnitee, who shall execute such documents and do such acts as the Fund may reasonably request to secure such rights and to enable the Fund effectively to bring suit to enforce such rights.
The Registrant has also entered into an agreement with directors and officers of the Registrant entitled to indemnification under the charter of the Registrant pursuant to which the Registrant has agreed to advance expenses and costs incurred by the indemnitee in connection with any matter in respect of which indemnification might be sought pursuant to the charter of the Registrant to the maximum extent permitted by law.
Reference is also made to:
| • |
Sections 10 and 11 of the Registrant’s Investment Management Agreement, a form of which will be filed by pre-effective amendment as Exhibit (g)(1) to this Registration Statement. |
| • |
Section 9 of the Distribution Agreement, a form of which will be filed by pre-effective amendment as Exhibit (h)(1) to this Registration Statement. |
Additionally, the Registrant and the other funds in the BlackRock Fixed-Income Complex jointly maintain, at their own expense, E&O/D&O insurance policies for the benefit of its Directors, officers and certain affiliated persons. The Registrant pays a pro rata portion of the premium on such insurance policies.
| Item 31. |
Business And Other Connections Of Investment Adviser |
BlackRock Advisors, LLC, a limited liability company organized under the laws of Delaware (the “Advisor”), acts as investment adviser to the Registrant. The Registrant is fulfilling the requirement of this Item 31 to provide a list of the officers and directors of the Advisor, together with information as to any other business, profession, vocation or employment of a substantial nature engaged in by the Advisor or those officers and directors during the past two years, by incorporating by reference the information contained in the Form ADV of the Advisor filed with the commission pursuant to the Investment Advisors Act of 1940 (Commission File No. 801-47710).
| Item 32. |
Location Of Accounts And Records |
Omitted pursuant to the instruction to Item 32 of Form N-2.
| Item 33. |
Management Services |
Not Applicable
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| Item 34. |
Undertakings |
| 1. |
Not applicable. |
| 2. |
Not applicable. |
| 3. |
Registrant undertakes: |
| (a) |
to file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this Registration Statement: |
(1) to include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act;
(2) to reflect in the prospectus any facts or events after the effective date of the Registration Statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the Registration Statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20% change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement; and
(3) to include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the Registration Statement or any material change to such information in the Registration Statement.
(4) if (i) it determines to conduct one or more offerings of the Fund’s common shares (including rights to purchase its common shares) at a price below its net asset value per common share at the date the offering is commenced, and (ii) such offering or offerings will result in greater than a 15% dilution to the Fund’s net asset value per common share.
| (b) |
that, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of those securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof; |
| (c) |
to remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering; and |
| (d) |
that, for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act to any purchaser: |
| (1) |
if the Registrant is relying on Rule 430B: |
(A) Each prospectus filed by the Registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3) shall be deemed to be part of the registration statement as of the date the filed prospectus was deemed part of and included in the registration statement; and
(B) Each prospectus required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2), (b)(5), or (b)(7) as part of a registration statement in reliance on Rule 430B relating to an offering made
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pursuant to Rule 415(a)(1)(i), (x), or (xi) for the purpose of providing the information required by Section 10(a) of the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the earlier of the date such form of prospectus is first used after effectiveness or the date of the first contract of sale of securities in the offering described in the prospectus. As provided in Rule 430B, for liability purposes of the issuer and any person that is at that date an underwriter, such date shall be deemed to be a new effective date of the registration statement relating to the securities in the registration statement to which that prospectus relates, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such effective date, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such effective date; or
| (2) |
if the Registrant is relying on Rule 430C: each prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act as part of a registration statement relating to an offering, other than registration statements relying on Rule 430B or other than prospectuses filed in reliance on Rule 430A, shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the date it is first used after effectiveness. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such first use, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such date of first use. |
| (e) |
that for the purpose of determining liability of the Registrant under the Securities Act to any purchaser in the initial distribution of securities: |
The undersigned Registrant undertakes that in a primary offering of securities of the undersigned Registrant pursuant to this Registration Statement, regardless of the underwriting method used to sell the securities to the purchaser, if the securities are offered or sold to such purchaser by means of any of the following communications, the undersigned Registrant will be a seller to the purchaser and will be considered to offer or sell such securities to the purchaser:
| (1) |
any preliminary prospectus or prospectus of the undersigned Registrant relating to the offering required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act; |
| (2) |
free writing prospectus relating to the offering prepared by or on behalf of the undersigned Registrant or used or referred to by the undersigned Registrants; |
| (3) |
the portion of any other free writing prospectus or advertisement pursuant to Rule 482 under the Securities Act relating to the offering containing material information about the undersigned Registrant or its securities provided by or on behalf of the undersigned Registrant; and |
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| (4) |
any other communication that is an offer in the offering made by the undersigned Registrant to the purchaser. |
| 4. |
Registrant undertakes: |
| (a) |
that, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act the information omitted from the form of prospectus filed as part of the Registration Statement in reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in a form of prospectus filed by the Registrant under Rule 424(b)(1) under the Securities Act will be deemed to be a part of the Registration Statement as of the time it was declared effective. |
| (b) |
that, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each post-effective amendment that contains a form of prospectus will be deemed to be a new Registration Statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of the securities at that time will be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. |
| 5. |
Not applicable. |
| 6. |
Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue. |
| 7. |
Registrant undertakes to send by first class mail or other means designed to ensure equally prompt delivery, within two business days of receipt of a written or oral request, any prospectus or Statement of Additional Information constituting Part B of this Registration Statement. |
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Investment Company Act of 1940, the Fund certifies that this post-effective amendment to the registration statement meets all of the requirements for effectiveness under Rule 486(b) under the Securities Act of 1933 and has duly caused this amendment to its registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of New York, and State of New York, on the 26th day of November 2025.
| BLACKROCK MUNICIPAL CREDIT ALPHA PORTFOLIO, INC. | ||||
| By: | /s/ John M. Perlowski | |||
| John M. Perlowski | ||||
| President and Chief Executive Officer | ||||
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities indicated on the 26th day of November, 2025.
| Signature |
Title | |
| /s/ John M. Perlowski John M. Perlowski |
Director, President and Chief Executive Officer | |
| /s/ Trent Walker Trent Walker |
Chief Financial Officer | |
| * Cynthia L. Egan |
Director | |
| * Lorenzo A. Flores |
Director | |
| * Stayce D. Harris |
Director | |
| * J. Phillip Holloman |
Director | |
| * R. Glenn Hubbard |
Director | |
| * W. Carl Kester |
Director | |
| * Catherine A. Lynch |
Director | |
| * Arthur P. Steinmetz |
Director | |
| * Robert Fairbairn |
Director | |
| *By: |
/s/ John M. Perlowski | |
| John M. Perlowsk | ||
| as Attorney-in-Fact |