text
stringlengths 6
768k
|
---|
the event that one or more Authorized Participants having substantial interests in Shares or otherwise responsible for a significant
|
portion of the Shares’ daily trading volume on the Exchange withdraw from participation, the liquidity of the Shares will
|
likely decrease which could adversely affect the market price of the Shares and result in Shareholders incurring a loss on their
|
investment. 27 Shareholders
|
do not have the protections associated with ownership of shares in an investment company registered under the Investment Company
|
Act of 1940 or the protections afforded by the Commodity Exchange Act ("CEA"). The
|
Trust is not registered as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and is not required to register under
|
such act. Consequently, Shareholders do not have the regulatory protections provided to investors in investment companies.
|
The Trust does not and will not hold or trade in commodity futures contracts, “commodity interests” or any other instruments
|
regulated by the CEA, as administered by the CFTC and the National Futures Association (“NFA”). Furthermore, the Trust
|
is not a commodity pool for purposes of the CEA and the Shares are not “commodity interests”, and neither the Sponsor
|
nor the Trustee is subject to regulation by the CFTC as a commodity pool operator or a commodity trading advisor in connection
|
with the Trust or the Shares. Consequently, Shareholders do not have the regulatory protections provided to investors in CEA-regulated
|
instruments or commodity pools operated by registered commodity pool operators or advised by registered commodity trading
|
advisors. The
|
Trust may be required to terminate and liquidate at a time that is disadvantageous to Shareholders. If
|
the Trust is required to terminate and liquidate, such termination and liquidation could occur at a time which is disadvantageous
|
to Shareholders, such as when gold prices are lower than the gold prices at the time when Shareholders purchased their
|
Shares. In such a case, when the Trust’s gold is sold as part of the Trust’s liquidation, the resulting proceeds
|
distributed to Shareholders will be less than if gold prices were higher at the time of sale. The
|
lack of an active trading market for the Shares may result in losses on investment at the time of disposition of the Shares. Although
|
Shares are listed for trading on the NYSE Arca, it cannot be assumed that an active trading market for the Shares will be maintained.
|
If an investor needs to sell Shares at a time when no active market for Shares exists, such lack of an active market will most
|
likely adversely affect the price the investor receives for the Shares (assuming the investor is able to sell them). Shareholders
|
do not have the rights enjoyed by investors in certain other vehicles. As
|
interests in an investment trust, the Shares have none of the statutory rights normally associated with the ownership of shares
|
of a corporation (including, for example, the right to bring “oppression” or “derivative” actions). In
|
addition, the Shares have limited voting and distribution rights (for example, Shareholders do not have the right to elect directors
|
or approve amendments to the Trust Agreement and do not receive dividends). An
|
investment in the Shares may be adversely affected by competition from other methods of investing in gold. The
|
Trust competes with other financial vehicles, including traditional debt and equity securities issued by companies in the gold
|
industry and other securities backed by or linked to gold, direct investments in gold and investment vehicles similar to
|
the Trust. Market and financial conditions, and other conditions beyond the Sponsor’s control, may make it more attractive
|
to invest in other financial vehicles or to invest in gold directly, which could limit the market for the Shares and reduce
|
the liquidity of the Shares. The
|
amount of gold represented by each Share will decrease over the life of the Trust due to the recurring deliveries of gold
|
necessary to pay the Sponsor’s Fee in-kind and potential sales of gold to pay in cash the Trust expenses not assumed
|
by the Sponsor. Without increases in the price of gold sufficient to compensate for that decrease, the price of the Shares
|
will also decline proportionately over the life of the Trust. The
|
amount of gold represented by each Share decreases each day by the Sponsor’s Fee. In addition, although the Sponsor
|
has agreed to assume all organizational and certain administrative and marketing expenses incurred by the Trust (the Trustee's
|
monthly fee and out-of-pocket expenses, the Custodian's fee and reimbursement of the Custodian's expenses under the Custody Agreements,
|
Exchange listing fees, SEC registration fees, printing and mailing costs, audit fees and up to $100,000 per annum in legal expenses),
|
in exceptional cases certain Trust expenses may need to be paid by the Trust. Because the Trust does not have any income, it must
|
either make payments in-kind by deliveries of gold (as is the case with the Sponsor’s Fee) or it must sell gold
|
to obtain cash (as in the case of any exceptional expenses). The result of these sales of gold and recurring deliveries
|
of gold to pay the Sponsor’s Fee in-kind is a decrease in the amount of gold represented by each Share. New deposits
|
of gold, received in exchange for new Shares issued by the Trust, will not reverse this trend. 28 A
|
decrease in the amount of gold represented by each Share results in a decrease in each Share’s price even if the price
|
of gold bullion does not change. To retain the Share’s original price, the price of gold must increase. Without
|
that increase, the lesser amount of gold represented by the Share will have a correspondingly lower price. If this increase
|
does not occur, or is not sufficient to counter the lesser amount of gold represented by each Share, Shareholders will sustain
|
losses on their investment in Shares. An
|
increase in Trust expenses not assumed by the Sponsor, or the existence of unexpected liabilities affecting the Trust, will require
|
the Trustee to sell larger amounts of gold, and will result in a more rapid decrease of the amount of gold represented by
|
each Share and a corresponding decrease in its value. RISKS
|
RELATED TO THE CUSTODY OF GOLD The
|
Trust’s gold may be subject to loss, damage, theft or restriction on access. There
|
is a risk that part or all of the Trust’s gold could be lost, damaged or stolen. Access to the Trust’s gold
|
could also be restricted by natural events (such as an earthquake) or human actions (such as a terrorist attack). Any of these
|
events may adversely affect the operations of the Trust and, consequently, an investment in the Shares. The
|
Trust’s lack of insurance protection and the Shareholders’ limited rights of legal recourse against the Trust, the
|
Trustee, the Sponsor, the Custodian, the Zurich Sub-Custodian and any other sub-custodian exposes the Trust and its Shareholders
|
to the risk of loss of the Trust’s gold for which no person is liable. The
|
Trust does not insure its gold. The Custodian maintains insurance with regard to its business on such terms and conditions as
|
it considers appropriate in connection with its custodial obligations and is responsible for all costs, fees and expenses arising
|
from the insurance policy or policies. The Trust is not a beneficiary of any such insurance and does not have the ability to dictate
|
the existence, nature or amount of coverage. Therefore, Shareholders cannot be assured that the Custodian maintains adequate insurance
|
or any insurance with respect to the gold held by the Custodian on behalf of the Trust. In addition, the Custodian and the
|
Trustee do not require the Zurich Sub-Custodian or any other direct or indirect sub-custodians to be insured or bonded with respect
|
to their custodial activities or in respect of the gold held by them on behalf of the Trust. Further, Shareholders’
|
recourse against the Trust, the Trustee and the Sponsor under New York law, the Custodian, the Zurich Sub-Custodian and any other
|
sub-custodian under English law, and any other sub-custodian under the law governing their custody operations is limited. Consequently,
|
a loss may be suffered with respect to the Trust’s gold which is not covered by insurance and for which no person is
|
liable in damages. The
|
Custodian’s limited liability under the Custody Agreements and English law may impair the ability of the Trust to recover
|
losses concerning its gold and any recovery may be limited, even in the event of fraud, to the market value of the gold
|
at the time the fraud is discovered. The
|
liability of the Custodian is limited under the Custody Agreements. Under the Custody Agreements between the Trustee and the Custodian
|
which establish the Trust’s unallocated gold account (“Unallocated Account”) and the Trust’s allocated gold
|
account (“Allocated Account”), the Custodian is only liable for losses that are the direct result of its own negligence,
|
fraud or willful default in the performance of its duties. Any such liability is further limited to the market value of the gold
|
lost or damaged at the time such negligence, fraud or willful default is discovered by the Custodian provided the Custodian notifies
|
the Trust and the Trustee promptly after the discovery of the loss or damage. Under each Authorized Participant Unallocated Bullion
|
Account Agreement (between the Custodian and an Authorized Participant establishing an Authorized Participant Unallocated Account),
|
the Custodian is not contractually or otherwise liable for any losses suffered by any Authorized Participant or Shareholder that
|
are not the direct result of its own gross negligence, fraud or willful default in the performance of its duties under such agreement,
|
and in no event will its liability exceed the market value of the balance in the Authorized Participant Unallocated Account at
|
the time such gross negligence, fraud or willful default is discovered by the Custodian. For any Authorized Participant Unallocated
|
Bullion Account Agreement between an Authorized Participant and another gold clearing bank, the liability of the gold clearing
|
bank to the Authorized Participant may be greater or lesser than the Custodian’s liability to the Authorized Participant
|
described in the preceding sentence, depending on the terms of the agreement. In addition, the Custodian will not be liable for
|
any delay in performance or any non-performance of any of its obligations under the Allocated Account Agreement, the Unallocated
|
Account Agreement or the Authorized Participant Unallocated Bullion Account Agreement by reason of any cause beyond its reasonable
|
control, including acts of God, war or terrorism. As a result, the recourse of the Trustee or a Shareholder, under English law,
|
is limited. Furthermore, under English common law, the Custodian, the Zurich Sub-Custodian, or any other sub-custodian will
|
not be liable for any delay in the performance or any non-performance of its custodial obligations by reason of any cause beyond
|
its reasonable control. 29 The
|
obligations of the Custodian, the Zurich Sub-Custodian and any other sub-custodians are governed by English law, which may
|
frustrate the Trust in attempting to seek legal redress against the Custodian, the Zurich Sub-Custodian or any other
|
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.